(3/11) Awakening Inner Longing

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Preaching programme, Basirhat, noon programme,
14 December 2020, part 3

Material life is suffering and misery.

সংসার সংসার ক'রে মিছে গেল কাল ।
লাভ না হইল কিছু ঘটিল জঞ্জাল ॥

'samsara' 'samsara' kari' michhe gela kala
labha na ha-ila kichhu, ghatila janjala

'Time has passed as I have been busy with my material life, and the result is nothing—only garbage.'

কিসের সংসার এই, ছায়াবাজী প্রায় ।
ইহাতে মমতা করি' বৃথা দিন যায় ॥

kisera samsara ei chhayabaji praya
ihate mamata kari vrtha dina yaya

'What sort of world is this? It is only a trick, a show. While I affectionately take it as my own, days pass by in vain.'

(Sri Kalyan-kalpataru, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

If I thought, 'Oh, you have got some sadhu-sanga, and now your son, daughter-in-law and husband have also come to this line. They are practising Krishna consciousness,' then I would see that this is Krishna's family and I would not say that you are living in Maya's family. But they have not come to this line. They may go to the market, buy some fruit or sweets for the Lord – they have sukriti to do that. They show some devotion to the Lord out of fear ('if I do not do this, it is a sin'). This is not really devotion. Many people worship Deities out of fear, but some people worship the Lord with their hearts and souls. Do you think it is the same? Somebody loves gurudev with all their heart, keeping a loving relationship with gurudev with all their heart and soul; and somebody waits for gurudev to leave and then does whatever they want. This is not love. It is only pretence to impress others. Those who forget Krishna are attacked by Maya. It is said in Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita:

কৃষ্ণ ভুলি' সেই জীব অনাদি-বহির্ম্মুখ ।
অতএব মায়া তারে দেয় সংসারাদি-দুঃখ ॥

krsna bhuli' sei jiva anadi-bahirmukha
ataeva maya tare deya samsaradi-duhkha

'Forgetting Krishna, the soul turned towards the external illusory world in primaeval times. As the result, illusion (Maya) gives such a soul various material miseries.'

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, 2.20.117)

What is the purpose of human birth? Its purpose is fulfilled when you feel intense eagerness, passion (sprha, স্পৃহা) to practise Krishna consciousness. You must feel this longing to practise awaken in you: paying obeisance to the Lord, coming to the Lord, sitting near the Lord. We must awaken this kind of spiritual longing within us. Always remember this. This is the meaning of life: to awaken a deep longing within you to practise Krishna consciousness.

I have told you earlier that becoming a devotee of Krishna is not everything. First it is necessary to become a devotee of Gaura. Those who stay in Vrindavan say that they are not devotees of Krishna but devotees of Radharani (they always say, 'Radhe, Radhe'). That is an ever higher standard. But we stay in Vrindavan for two days, put on an uttariya around our necks, put on black tilak on our foreheads and start saying, 'Radhe! Radhe!' Is this how one becomes a devotee of Radharani? Mahaprabhu said, 'Mukhe bole Ra-ra-, dui nayane bahe dhara (মুখে বলে রা-রা- দুই নয়নে বহে ধারা): those who behold Srimati Radharani cannot even pronounce Her Name, they keep saying "Ra-ra-."' When Mahaprabhu went to see Lord Jagannath, He could not pronounce His Name – He only said, 'Ja-ja-ga-ga.' So, when devotees see Radharani, they cannot even pronounce Her Name, they can only say, 'Ra-ra,' but we go to Vrindavan and two days later start saying, 'Radhe, Radhe.' How much audacity!

ব্রহ্মাণ্ড ভ্রমিতে কোন ভাগ্যবান্ জীব ।
গুরু-কৃষ্ণ-প্রসাদে পায় ভক্তিলতা-বীজ ॥

brahmanda bhramite kona bhagyavan jiva
guru-krsna-prasade paya bhakti-lata-bija

'Having travelled throughout the universe, some fortunate souls receive the seed of the devotional creeper by the mercy of Sri Guru, who is non-different from Krishna.'

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, 2.19.151)

If you pour too much water on this seed, it will rot. If I have studied only until fifth grade, then I can go only to the fifth grade, but if I try to go to university, will I be able to learn anything? Now children study at school in Bengali, but when they come to university to study medicine or science, they have to study in English. Some of those who do not know English become so depressed that they commit suicide! In government schools, not all children study English, so when they come to university, they have a big problem because they cannot study there. Our situation is also like that. If we do not worship Gauranga and Nitai and jump to start worshipping Radharani or Krishna directly, what will we be able to do? We do not accept Mirabai because she worshipped only Krishna (she always chanted, 'Krishna, Krishna'). You cannot have the right to worship, or understand the glory of, the Powerful with His Power. That is why when we worship Lord Nrisinghadev, we worship Laksmi-Nrisinghadev. Laksmi Devi is Lord Nrisinghadev's Power. The Powerful cannot exist without His Power.

রাধা-ভজনে যদি মতি নাহি ভেলা ।
কৃষ্ণ-ভজন তব অকারণ গেলা ॥

radha-bhajane yadi mati nahi bhela
krsna-bhajana tava akarana gela

'If you did not become devoted to the worship of Srimati Radharani, your worship of Krishna was in vain.'

(Sri Gitavali, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

You cannot have any spiritual life without worshipping Srimati Radharani. That is why when Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur opened his first temple, he installed Sri Sri Guru Gauranga Gandharvika Giridhari: Radha, Krishna and Their combined form (Sri Gauranga).

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Language: Bengali

READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Grave Warning
2) Pull of Material Life
3) Awakening Inner Longing
4) Private Service Stays Private
5) Universal Religion
6) On Others' Offences
7) Unburden Yourself
8) Benefactor's Gift
9) Exclusive Path
10) Behind Closed Doors
11) Unbending Stance