(1/5) Refine Your Destination

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Bhagavanpur, 8 December 2020, noon, part 1
Translated from Bengali

You told me you were going to invite a hundred people, where is everyone? They are beggars for food, not for spiritual life... We must be beggars for spiritual life.

First, I am offering my full obeisance at the lotus feet of my Divine Master Om Vishnupad Jagad-guru Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj, begging him for his causeless mercy and aspiring to serve him; after that, I am offering my full obeisance to all the assembled guru-varga, all my godbrothers, to all the listeners, to all the motherly lady devotees and all the devotees. I am offering my obeisance at your holy feet and praying for your mercy to this lowly soul.

You have all come today, so I will say a few words. It is said in the scriptures (Padma Purana):

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 have got this human birth having crossed all these 8,400,000 species. We have got this human birth, but what did we get it for? There are many living entities living in water (fish, dolphins, crocodiles). We were born 900,000 times in water. We were born 2,000,000 times as trees, plants, hills, mountains. We were born 1,100,000 times as various worms and insects. We were born 1,100,000 times as birds, 3,000,000 times as beasts (animals, cows, sheep, goats) and 400,000 times as humans (in various places in the world, such as Garo, Khasi or Naga, and in various sampradayas, such as Antaja or Sabar). We have born in India this time, but we do not know how many times we have been born as humans before; perhaps, we are born here after all 400,000 births.

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 it mean to 'bring benefit to others'? It means that we must bring to this path the souls who have turned away from Lord Krishna.

The religion of Satya-yuga is meditation (dhyan); the religion of Treta-yuga is sacrifices (yajna); the religion of Dvapara-yuga is Deity worship (paricharya); and the religion of Kali-yuga is congregational chanting of the Holy Name (Harinam-sankirtan).

কলিকালে নামরূপ কৃষ্ণ-অবতার ।
নাম হৈতে হয় সর্ব্বজগৎ-নিস্তার ॥

kali-kale nama-rupe krsna-avatara
nama haite haya sarva-jagat-nistara

'In the Kali-yuga, Krishna appears in the form of the Name. The entire world is delivered through that Name.'

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, 1.17.22)

The Lord's Name, beauty, qualities, pastimes, associates, paraphernalia are completely non-different from the Lord Himself, and nobody except for the Lord or for the Lord's associate can give this to the world. In Kali-yuga, the Lord comes as Gauranga Mahaprabhu, a combined form of Radha and Krishna. Taking Radharani's heart and halo, Krishna appears as Gauranga Mahaprabhu. We have sung today, 'Nija nama kari' dana (নিজ নাম করি’ দান)': He gives His own Name (the Hare Krishna maha-mantra) to this world. Going door to door, house to house, He told everyone:

জীব জাগ, জীব জাগ, গোরাচাঁদ বলে ।
কত নিদ্রা যাও মায়া-পিশাচীর কোলে ॥

jiva jago, jiva jago, gorachanda bale
kata nidra yao maya-pisachira kole

'Sri Gorachand says, "Wake up, souls! Wake up! How much longer will you sleep in the lap of the witch Maya?"'

(Sri Gitavali, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

পিশাচী পাইলে যেন মতিচ্ছন্ন হয় ।

মায়াগ্রস্ত জীবের হয় সে ভাব উদয় ॥

pisachi paile yena mati-chchhanna haya
maya-grasta jivera haya se bhava udaya

'Those who are possessed by a ghost become delirious, and the same condition arises in those who are seized by Maya, illusion.'

(Sri Sri Prema-vivarta, 6.3)

The souls who are captured by Maya, who live in illusory bondage, only think about themselves – about money, clothes, sleep and so on. How can I eat good food? How can I wear nice clothes? Who does not think like that? Even when we were pigs, we ate so much stool; when we were elephants, we ate and finished so many banana trees – did our hungry go away? Now you think, 'I will eat a hundred grams of rice more,' but even then your hunger will not be appeased; you will want more. There is something that you can get and all your desires will go away – we must go back to our homes, to the Lord. You think that whatever place you are staying in at present is your home because your father or grandfather has built it. But this is not your home. [His Divine Grace is interrupted.]

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Length: 27 min
Language: Bengali

READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Refine Your Destination
2) Devotional Clothes or Devotional Heart?
3) Inside and Outside
4) Beauty of Kirtan
5) Search for Your Original Home