Joy of Good Association

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Adhivas of Srila Sridhar Maharaj's appearance
Kolkata—Worldwide, 8 November 2020, part 6

Question: Is it correct to have the feeling that I want to leave everything? I want to leave my family, friends, attachments and follow Krishna consciousness.

This is a correct question. There are so many questions in this world, but Srila Sukadev Goswami said that only one question is sufficient and only one answer is sufficient. If you listen to that class of Srila Gurudev, you will find the answer there—you will understand what is the goal, what are the means of attaining the goal, etc.

However, sometimes it happens that somebody leaves their parents, somebody leaves their relatives, and becomes proud of that—they can leave everything, but they cannot leave their pride ("Oh, I have left everything!"). Some do a complete fast on ekadasi, without even drinking any water, and they become proud of it, "I am doing nirjal ekadasi! I am not taking anything!"

Your question is very serious, but your bhakti is karma-misra bhakti (devotion mixed with material pursuits). "Grhe thako, vane thako—sada Hari bole dako. Whether you are in a house or in a forest, always call out to the Lord." You can stay with your family, it is not necessary to leave everything.

মর্কট-বৈরাগ্য না কর লোক দেখাঞা ।
যথাযোগ্য বিষয় ভুঞ্জ' অনাসক্ত হঞা ॥

markata-vairagya na kara loka dekhana
yatha-yogya visaya bhunja' anasakta hana

"Do not show your false renunciation to people. Serve accepting material things, but without attachment."

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, Madhya-lila, 16.238)

This is what Mahaprabhu told Srila Raghunath Das Goswami. It is not necessary to show false renunciation. Yukta-vairagya (proper renunciation) is OK, but not phalgu-vairagya (false renunciation). Yukta-vairagya means you can stay with your family and you can still chant the Holy Name. You know, you can be living in South America, in Peru—so many thousands of kilometres away—but I can still connect with you through some electric power, or some sound vibration. If it is possible here, then why cannot we connect with Lord Krishna, with the Absolute, through the sound vibration of the Hare Krishna maha-mantra? This Krishna-nama, the maha-mantra, comes from the Absolute, so why cannot we connect with Him through this sound vibration? That is why I am telling you that you want to leave the connection with your parents, family, etc., go to Himalaya or Rishikesh and stay in a cave, but this is not right. I never advise to do this.

...Now is Damodar month, you know that it is dam (rope) yog (bind) udar (stomach)—Krishna was tied by His mother in this month and He rescued two offenders who were cursed by Narad Goswami and became trees—the twin Yamalarjuna trees. Kuver, the heavenly treasurer, is very rich, and he had two sons, Nalakuvar and Manigriv. One day, they were swimming in a pond naked with some girls, and when Narad Goswami was passing that place and saw them, they did not feel shy, so Narad Goswami cursed them, "You are shameless! You will be born in trees' bodies next life!" Fearful, they apologised to Narad Goswami, and then Narad Goswami said, "All right. In Dvaparu-yuga, Krishna, the Lord Himself, will appear in Vrindavan, Mathura, and come to Gokula. At that time, He will rescue you." It happened in this month.

Satyavrata Muni composed this famous song,

namamisvaram sach-chid-ananda rupam
lasat-kundalam gokule bhrajamanam

"To the Supreme Lord, whose form is the embodiment of eternal existence, knowledge, and bliss, whose shark-shaped earrings are swinging to and fro, who is beautifully shining in the divine realm of Gokula—to that Supreme Lord, Sri Damodara, I offer my humble obeisances."

It is a very beautiful song. You can sing it every day during the month of Kartik, it is good for you. This Damodar month is very nice. I went to Uluberia this morning, and from 10:30 I sang the Siksastakam songs, this Namamisvaram song, and Radhe Jaya Jaya Madhava Dayite. We can sing this song only during this month:

radhe jaya jaya madhava-dayite
gokula-taruni-mandala-mahite

"Glory to Radha, the beloved of Madhava! All the young girls of Gokula, beautiful like Laksmi Devi, are charmed to see Your exquisite beauty."

damodara-rati-varddhana-vese
hari-niskuta-vrnda-vipinese

"You are always decorated with many beautiful garments and scented flowers, You are irresistible to Damodar. Your Pastimes with Krishna are going on eternally in the groves of Sri Vrindavan Dham."

It is a very nice song. You can sing all these songs during this month when you get time, and when you sing them, you must see the meaning of the songs, then you will get taste and interest towards the songs.

Devotee: We are missing the Kartik parikrama this year...

Yes, we could not go for the Vrindavan parikrama this year... Everybody keeps calling me and asking, "Maharaj, are you coming? Are you coming?" I can go there with one-two persons, but I always want devotees' association. "Ekaki amara nahi paya bala hari-nama-sankirtane. When I am alone, I get no strength to chant the Holy Name." Devotees' enthusiasm gives me inspiration. I do not want to go preaching alone, when there are only two-three devotees. It is not good. I want to go when devotees can come from abroad or India, and when we all together can do the parikrama of Vrindavan and Govardhan.

I do not know if the planes can come this year at Gaura Purnima or not, if devotees can come this Gaura Purnima or not, but I am praying to the Lord that all devotees can come from abroad. I cannot stop the Gaura Purnima parikrama... Everything depends upon the Lord, upon the will of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. I am thinking this year I want to visit Badarikashram and Kedarnath a month or so after Gaura Purnima. Gurudev took Srila Sridhar Maharaj there, so I want to visit that place just once. I want to go there with devotees. This is my plan. Now almost all places are closed. Badrikashram, Kedarnath Asram, Gangotri, Yamunotri—we want to do parikrama of these four holy places. It was in Badrikasram that Srila Vyasadev got an inspiration from Narad Goswami to write Srimad Bhagavatam. Before that, Vyasadev had written so many books, but he described karma-yoga, jnana-yoga, bhakti-yoga, sankhya-yoga, and so many other things, so this time he wanted to make just one book that would be about devotion only. This book is Srimad Bhagavatam. This book comes through Sri Suta Goswami and Sri Sukadev Goswami—this book relates what Sukadev Goswami told Sri Pariksit Maharaj. Remembering all this, we want to visit that place.

Anyhow, there are devotees here, and I get devotees' association every day, I get the association of so many devotees from abroad also—Srila Janardan Maharaj, Srila Ashram Maharaj, and so many devotees from all over the world—from Spain, Venezuela, London, Singapore, Malaysia, Mauritius, Russia, Ukraine, America, etc. I am very happy about that.

Tomorrow I will give a live class at 10:30 a.m. I will sing some kirtans and speak something about the glories of Om Vishnupad Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj. I do not have any qualification to do it, but I am trying. 'Vaisnavera guna-gana karile jivera trana. Singing the glories of the Vaishnavs rescues and protects the jiva soul.' We have heard the glorification of Vaishnavs a hundred times, but due to our bad luck, bad fortune, our ignorance and a lack of qualification we still are not able to understand the glories of or to glorify Srila Sridhar Maharaj, his pastimes. Still, I can only tell what I have heard from my Gurudev, Om Vishnupad Srila B.S. Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj, what I have read other Vaishnavs, godbrothers wrote about Srila Sridhar Maharaj. It is actually possible to say anything about Srila Sridhar Maharaj only by the mercy of devotees, so I pray especially for the mercy of Srila Gurudev and Param Gurudev so that I can say something about Srila Sridhar Maharaj tomorrow.

I am trying to preach... I am going to Nrisingha Palli and Ekachakra next week, the day after tomorrow, then I will come back to Kolkata, and on Friday again go out for preaching. I am doing some small preaching programmes. "Prana achhe yara se hetu prachara: you have life, so you must preach." I have life, so I must preach because when life is gone, I will not be able to do it. We have been sitting in some few places since March, we have not gathered properly, and Indian devotees do not have the facility for this kind of online connection. If they try, they will get it, but they are not trying because most of them are not so expert about all these things. Still, at least you, foreign devotees, are getting connection through the technology, and I am very fortunate that every Sunday I am getting good association of all the senior devotees and all the other devotees. I am very happy about it.

Jay Srila Guru Maharaj ki jay.

— : • : —

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

• Listen to the audio or download (5.2 Mb, 13 min)