(6) Real Substance of Devotion

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Preaching programme in Kinkarbati
Translated into English from Bengali
26 February 2020, part 6

When old age comes, everything will go. If we do not practise this Krishna consciousness properly, then you will lament in the end, 'My days have passed in vain, what am I to do now?' Therefore, if you always think about the Lord and practise, then when you leave this body, you will be able to remember the Lord. If you can do that, you can reach the holy abode of the Lord – you will not have to suffer from birth, death, old age and disease anymore. Even if we do not know anything, do not understand anything, even if we have no knowledge – if we practise Krishna consciousness sincerely, without any duplicity, it is very good.

[Clamour] When I tell them not to speak, they still speak, and when I start speaking, they start speaking more. If I put on some ankle bells and started singing lila-kirtan, everybody would be riveted. ...Who can understand these things? Who will understand what I am saying? Who has the capacity to understand it? Who has got this kind of devotion to understand it? We have not got this kind of devotion...

বিষয় ছাড়িয়া কবে শুদ্ধ হ'বে মন ।
কবে হাম হেরব শ্রীবৃন্দাবন ॥

visaya chhadiya kabe suddha habe mana
kabe hama heraba sri-vrndavan

'When will my material desires become trifle? When will I give up this material world and my mind become clean? When will I behold this Vrindavan?'

(Prarthana, Srila Narottam Das Thakur)

Actually, we do not speak Hari-katha for you. Do you know that? I speak Hari-katha so that I myself can hear it. I speak about the Lord for my own sake, not for yours. It is necessary to hear Hari-katha yourself first. We say with our mouth:

ন ধনং ন জনং ন সুন্দরীং কবিতাং বা জগদীশ কাময়ে ।
মম জন্মনি জন্মনীশ্বরে ভবতাদ্ভক্তিরহৈতুকী ত্বয়ি ॥

na dhanam na janam na sundarim kavitam va jagadisa kamaye
mama janmani janmanisvare bhavatad bhaktir ahaituki tvayi

"I do not want wealth, I do not want followers, I do not want beautiful women, I do not want to be a poet. I only want causeless devotion to Your lotus feet. Give me that kind of devotion to Your lotus feet so that I could do Your service life after life."

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, 3.20.29)

We say and write many things.

তোমার সেবায় দুঃখ হয় যত,
সেও ত' পরম সুখ ।

tomara sevaya, duhkha haya yata,
seo ta' parama sukha

"No matter how much unhappiness comes when I try to serve You, even all unhappiness is a source of great happiness for me."

(Saranagati, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

All the misery and unhappiness I may feel in your service is my great happiness. When we are unhappy, we call out to the Lord, 'O Lord, please remove this unhappiness!' Does anyone want to be unhappy or to suffer? But Vraja gopis left all unhappiness, all misery, all shame, shyness and fear – they left everything, including the established pious behaviour and practices (arya-path) – and worshipped the Lord. I say to the historians who try to describe these things: O historians, what can you understand about Vraja-lila? You say that it is not good that all those young girls ran behind Krishna, but can you understand the real substance? You have no capacity to understand it. You do not have such eyes to see it! You have not got any of this knowledge yet! You cannot understand how strong their attraction to Krishna is...

Everyone must worship the Lord according to their inner devotional attraction and mood (rasa). The cowherd boys of Vraja who loved the Lord as their friend did not leave their position and enter the Lord's amorous pastimes. Nanda Maharaj and Mother Yasoda did not leave their parental love for the Lord and enter the Lord's amorous pastimes. Everyone serves the Lord according to their right, or qualification. If you try to cross your right and try to reach for another right, it is inauspicious.

We have been averse to the Lord from time immemorial. We have forgotten the Lord. We do not even know who we are. Who am I? Why am I suffering? Where is my benefit? We do not even understand what we are. We think, 'I am so-and-so Maharaj', 'I am so-and-so minister', 'I am so-and-so name' – we are always busy with such identities. What country do you come from? Which caste do you belong to? We live in this world always engrossed in these identities. We do not know what our soul is. Our soul has a relationship with the Lord, but we do not know this relationship. There is no relationship between the Lord and this body or this mind! The Lord is related to our souls, but we do not understand this atma-tattva jnana. We are engrossed in our body, mind, intelligence and ego. We must submit our body, youth, mind, life force, ego, everything at the lotus feet of Govinda. You must offer, surrender everything at the lotus feet of Krishna. Everything is for our beloved. Our beloved is there, and He is the Supreme Lord Krishna.

Having lost Him, Vraja-gopis would go from tree to tree and tell them about their separation, 'Have you seen our Master? He left some days ago... Can you tell us which way our Master has gone?' They would cry, 'O Krishna!' and roam around... This kind of devotion should be cultivated, practised. Do not practise spiritual life only to impress others. Do not chant the Holy Name to show off in front of others. People hang their mala on their necks and walk around, showing everyone that they are chanting. Do not be like that. The Lord is not worshipped and served in front of everyone.

“গোরার আমি, গোরার আমি” মুখে বলিলে নাহি চলে ।

গোরার আচার, গোরার বিচার লইলে ফল ফলে ॥

"gorara ami, gorara ami" mukhe balile nahi chale
gorara achara, gorara vichara la-ile phala phale

'Just saying, "I am Gora's! I am Gora's!" will not do. Only when you follow Gora's practice and Gora's conception will you get the proper result.'

লোক দেখান গোরা ভজা তিলক মাত্র ধরি ।

গোপনেতে অত্যাচার গোরা ধরে চুরি ॥

loka dekhana gora bhaja tilaka matra dhari'
gopanete atyachara gora dhare churi

'You put on tilaks and show the whole world that you serve Gora, but secretly you do outrageous things. Gora will catch you, thief (hypocrite)!'

(Sri Sri Prema-vivarta, 8.6-7)

'আমি ত বৈষ্ণব' এ বুদ্ধি হইলে
অমানী না হ'ব আমি ।
প্রতিষ্ঠাশা আসি' হৃদয় দূষিবে
হইব নিরয়গামী ॥

'ami ta vaisnava' e buddhi haile
amani na ha'ba ami
pratisthasa asi' hrdaya dusibe
haiba nirayagami

'If I think, "I am a Vaishnav", then I will never stop desiring honour.'

Do you understand it? You must remember (smaran) Lord Krishna. What does Gurudev do? Lord Krishna sends His associate in the form of Gurudev to this material universe to rescue the souls who have forgotten the Lord – to rescue such forgetful souls as us.

তব নিজ-জন কোন মহাজনে
পাঠাইয়া দিলে তুমি ॥

tava nija-jana kona mahajane
pathaiya dile tumi

"You have sent a great soul, Your associate (to rescue me)."

এক বর দয়া করি' মোরে পতিত দেখিয়া
কহিল আমারে গিয়া ।
ওহে দীনজন শুন ভাল কথা
উল্লসিত হবে হিয়া ॥

(ek bar) daya kari' more patita dekhiya
kahila amare giya
ohe dina-jana suna bhala katha
ullasita ha'be hiya

Seeing me so fallen and being merciful, he came to me and said, 'O humble soul, listen to this wonderful message and your heart will rejoice.'

তোমারে তারিতে শ্রীকৃষ্ণচৈতন্য
নবদ্বীপে অবতার ।

tomare tarite sri-krsna-chaitanya
navadvipe avatara

'Sri Krishna Chaitanya has appeared in Nabadwip to deliver you.'

(Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur, Saranagati)

We must think about all this!

— : • : —

{ 2001  |   2002  |   2003  |   2005  |   2009  |   2010  |   2011  |   2012 }
{ 2013  |   2014  |   2015  |   2016  |   2017  |   2018  |   2019  |   2020  |   2021 }

CLICK TO LISTEN TO THE LECTURE

Size: 28.3 Mb
Length: 58 min
Language: Bengali

READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Become Good Listener
2) Eternal Engagement
3) Serve Intently
4) Worse Than Death
5) Increase Your Devotion
6) Real Substance of Devotion
7) Shameful
8) Exclusive Self-Realisation
9) Keep Your Focus Straight