Remembering Devotees (Part 2)

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Evening class, Sri Gaura Purnima, Sri Nrisingha Palli
9 March 2020, part 2, translated from Bengali

I must also mention the Bengali devotees: my sons sometimes disturb me, but my daughters are all very good. Sometimes, when I tell something to my sons, they understand it in a different way. For example, when we went to our last stop for the day in Mayapur, to Sridhar Angan, I left the cart with the microphone there and told devotees that we would come back by bus, so we would not need the cart anymore. But they took that cart all the way to the ghat instead! That is why I say that there some foolish boys among my sons. There is also Sripad Niriha Maharaj: he does not understand immediately, so I often have to explain things to him, but he has a good quality – because he sometimes cannot understand things, I chastise him, but he is able to tolerate chastisement.

I can see also there are many devotees who do a lot during the parikrama, but they do not come in front. There are devotees who are managing the store room (Keshto Prabhu, Nisikanta Prabhu, Tarok Prabhu). There are devotees serving in the prasad department – they had been giving prasad to everybody during the parikrama. All these devotees always help us. It would be not good not to mention their names. There is also (elderly) Ashok Prabhu who had been collecting much, taking much trouble. There is also one crazy devotee staying in Vrindavan [who took sannyas in another Mission]. Sometimes, I have to run the mission with many crazy persons... You saw that yesterday one lady became mad – she became stark mad with love for Krishna. [His Divine Grace and devotees laugh, remembering strange, sudden hysteria of a lady.]

So, there are many devotees who always help me, who live following what I say. There are also many householder devotees like that. You must all try to gradually come and try to engage in the Lord's service. There are many lady devotees who have been going house to house, preaching and collecting very extensively. In this respect, Hooghly district should be named first of all – they are preaching and collecting most of all. Also, devotees do a lot in Uluberia – all the ladies have been collecting for the temple and Gaura Purnima festival in particular. I do not tell anyone that they must give five hundred or a thousand or two thousand rupees to come. Gurudev gave me a jolt once. That time, I wrote in the invitation card that the devotees who were coming had to give two hundred rupees. Gurudev chastised me, and after that I will never say to anyone, 'You are coming for Gaura Purnima, so you must give some fee.' Jay Gurudev!

There is one more devotee who has come from London – Krishna Kishor Prabhu. He is doing much service. Suddha Krishna Prabhu also always goes wherever he is sent to – he does whatever he is told. This year, he forgot the flags in the bus. I told him, 'The parikrama has finished, so we will not need those flags, but next year you must arrange for new flags!'

All devotees are serving in one or another way. I am sorry that I cannot recall everyone's names, but you are all in my heart. There is one more thing I want to tell you. I do not know what I have been able to give to you, but I would like to ask you all for something....

...Sripad Sadhu Maharaj is here too – he is always only busy taking photos. I did not have to hire any special photographer. Sadhu Maharaj came with his big camera and has always been taking photos. My assistant Nimai Chandra Prahbu is also here. There are actually many Nimais – Nimai Chaitanya, Nimai Krishna and so on. I use this name in court cases also. When we file some court case, we write 'Nimai Das' as the name of the prosecutor and then send somebody to represent the person. There are court cases against Srila Ashram Maharaj and Sripad Tyagi Maharaj (fake cases accusing them of attempted murder), but they are staying abroad and cannot attend the hearing, so I send somebody disguised in their name. They cannot recognise who is Ashram Maharaj and who is Tyagi Maharaj in court. Now almost all court cases have finished, and I have never been afraid of all these court cases. Wherever I am, even if I am in jail or in a jungle, I continue chanting the Holy Name. What is the problem?

There is Sripad Adhoksaja Prabhu also here. He has come from Mauritius. I have told him many times that he must become a little more forceful, stronger. He must always preach about Mahaprabhu, he must try to harder. Many devotees have come from Uluberia, Siliguri and Ganga Sagar, where we have centres. Everybody has come and helped this Nabadwip Dham parikrama. Also, boys from Jharkhand and Bihar have come. If they did not come all the time, we would always have a lack of people to distribute prasad. But they always come every year and distribute prasad. Kiran Prabhu has come from Dinhata (we have a centre there); Sanjiv Prabhu has come from Delhi, and also Krishna Kanta Prabhu, a doctor, has come. You know that two doctors, Madhumangal Prabhu and Ramasundar Prabhu, could not come this year because they could not get this time off, but Krishna Kanta Prabhu has been able to come.

So, there was one thing I wanted to ask you for. Those of you who agree to give it please raise your hand. [His Divine Grace laughs] Is everybody afraid? Why are you not raising your hands? Are you thinking, 'What will Maharaj ask? How many lakhs rupees will he ask for? What wealth will he ask for? Does he want us to give our children and husbands?' Nobody is raising their hands. What can I give you? Actually, I could not give you anything, but there is one thing I want from you. I want your heart! I want your hearts so that you serve Krishna consciousness, so that you can always be attached to the service to your Guru and the Lord.

Jay Srila Guru Maharaj ki jay.

— : • : —

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

CLICK TO LISTEN TO THE LECTURE

Size: 19.4 Mb
Length: 43 min
Language: Bengali

READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Remembering Devotees (part 1)
2) Remembering Devotees (part 2)