(6/8) Rare Birth, Rare Gift

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Noon preaching programme in Adra,
13 November 2020, part 6
Translated from Bengali

There is one very beautiful kirtan. I sometimes sing it when I am alone. It is a long kirtan, that is why I did not sing it today.

দুর্ল্লভ মানব জন্ম লভিয়া সংসারে ।
কৃষ্ণ না ভজিনু দুঃখ কহিব কাহারে ॥

durlabha manava-janma labhiya samsare
krsna na bhajinu—duhkha kahiba kahare?

'I have got a very rare human life in this world, but I have not worshipped Lord Krishna. Whom will I tell about my misery?'

(Sri Kalyan-kalpataru, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

We have got this rare human birth now, but it is not so easy to get it. We have got this human birth having travelled through 8,400,000 species. In other words, we had been born 8,400,000 times, and then we have got this human birth. No one can even say how many times we had been born as humans before also. We may have been born in America, Pakistan or in Nagaland, where people eat other people and dogs (currently, the price of dog's meat is 1,000 rupees there). People eat dogs' meat, cats' meat, snakes' meat. We have devotees in China, and we have heard that people there eat snakes, frogs, earthworms. Even in such a place, there are devotees who have come to this line and follow Krishna consciousness, fasting on ekadasi and chanting the Holy Name. In this way, we have been born in many places before.

জলজা নবলক্ষাণি স্থাবরা লক্ষবিংশতি
কৃময়োরুদ্রসঙ্খকাঃ পক্ষিণাং দশলক্ষনম্
ত্রিংশললক্ষাণি পশবঃ চতুরলক্ষাণি মানুষাঃ

jalaja nava-laksani sthavara laksa-vimsati
krmayo rudra-sankhyakah paksinam dasa-laksanam
trimsal-laksani pasavah chatur-laksani manusah

'There are 900,000 aquatic species; 2,000,000 nonmoving living entities (trees, plants, etc.); 1,100,000 species of insects and reptiles; 1,000,000 species of birds; 3,000,000 species of beasts; and 400,000 species of humans.'

(Padma Purana, Vishnu Purana)

We were born 900,000 times in water as all kinds of fish, crocodiles and so on. We were born 2,000,000 times as all kinds of trees, 1,100,00 times as insects, 1,000,000 time as birds, 3,000,000 times as animals and 400,000 times as humans. In this way, having crossed 8,400,000 births, we have finally taken birth in India (Bharata-bhumi). Mahaprabhu said:

ভারত-ভূমিতে হৈল মনুষ্য-জন্ম যার ।
জন্ম সার্থক করি' কর পর-উপকার ॥

bharata-bhumite haila manusya janma yara
janma sarthaka kari' kara para-upakara

'One who has taken birth as a human being in the land of India should take advantage of this birth by bringing benefit to others.'

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, 1.9.41)

What does 'bringing benefit to others' mean? Does it mean giving people a kg of rice or giving 5 kg of flour by ration? People will eat it for a few days, and it will all come out as stool. After that, they will again be unhappy. People want blankets in winter, but when it gets torn, they will want another one. Desires will never end like that. But there is something that you can get and all your desires will be gone. This is what we must want and what we must look for. Where is it? We must go to the place where it exists.

We chanted during kirtans today:

এমন দুর্ম্মতি, সংসার-ভিতরে,
পড়িয়া আছিনু আমি ।
তব নিজ-জন, কোন মহাজনে,
পাঠাইয়া দিলে তুমি ॥

emana durmati, samsara bhitare,
padiya achhinu ami
tava nija-jana, kona mahajane,
pathaiya dile tumi

'I have fallen into this wicked material world, but You have sent a great soul, Your associate, to me.'

(Saranagati, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

'Prabhu, You have sent Your own associates in this age, and they go door to door distributing the Holy Name.' These sadhus come to you to give you this gift.

One time, must be over twenty years ago, I went to a village called Kapasda (to the south of Midnapore; this area is famous for their very good honey). I went there in a Tata Sumo, and when the owner of one house saw our car, he came out and said with folded palms, 'Sir, please do not come to our house. We had a bad flood, so we will not be able to help you.' I told him, 'I have not come to take your help. I have come to help you.' When he heard it, he thought that he would get some help. So, I came in, and he gave me a straw mat to sit on. Then, the man went to climb a coconut palm to get some dub for me, but I told him it was not necessary and asked him to sit with me. I spoke some Hari-katha for ten–fifteen minutes, and at the end, I told him, 'I have come to bring everyone for Sri Nabadwip Dham parikrama. Please come.' The man said, 'Nabadwip?! It costs so much to go there!' (The train fare from Balichak to Nabadwip was perhaps thirty-five or thirty-eight rupees at that time.)

'Do you cook rice at home?' I asked him.

'Yes,' he said, 'but we cannot eat three times a day. We only eat two meals a day.'

'How many of you are there?'

'My wife, I, two daughters and my parents. Six people.'

'How much rice do you cook every day?'

'One a half kg in the morning and one and a half kg in the evening. Three kg a day.'

'All right. I know you eat meat and fish and cannot offer bhog to Deities. Here is what you should do. Every morning and evening when you cook, take a handful of rice and keep it aside in a pot. I will come to your house again in 365 days, in a year, and see how much rice you will have kept aside.'

When I came the next year, he told me that he had accumulated a lot of rice. Then, I told him, 'Good, bring to our car ten kg for the service to the Nabadwip temple. As for the rest of your rice, twenty-four kg, sell it and use that money to come to Nabadwip with your children.'

He came to Nabadwip, did the parikrama, heard Hari-katha and took initiation from Gurudev. Now he says, 'Gurudev, you do not come to the Kapasda village any more.' I told him, 'I went to your house to hijack you. I did not go there to take any money. You have taken shelter of the guru, I have got you, so I do not need to go to Kapasda any more now. You have all come to the lotus feet of the Lord now.' His daughters, who are both married now to police officers, later also took initiation; their parents were old, so they have already died.

We pray to Gurudev, 'Gurudev! Please hijack me! Please hijack me, take me away from this illusory world and use me for the service of Sri Sri Radha-Govinda in Goloka Vrindavan!' This is how you must chant the Holy Name.

— : • : —

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Language: Bengali

READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Sincerely, Conscientiously and Without Offences
2) Greatest Benefactors
3) Learn to Call the Lord
4) Loving Service Connection
5) Exclusive Enquiry
6) Rare Birth, Rare Gift
7) Devotional Progress
8) Step on Clean Path