(10/13) Indomitable Power of Mercy

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Srila B.S. Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj's Vyasa Puja Adhivas
Nrisingha Palli, 31 December 2020, evening, part 10

We often chant, 'Seva-adhikara diya, ei bara more kare daya. Please be merciful to me this time, give me the right to serve.' Service is like that. When Nityananda Prabhu scolded Sivananda Sen so much and even kicked him, Sivananda Sen began to dance!

Yesterday, and even today also, I scolded them. There is a devotee who often hosts programmes. When you come to his house, he gives you posto [white poppy seed fritters; a very costly preparation], paneer-rasa and other nice prasad. He arrived today, but because he did not get a room, he got some ego and left. He came and left – he went from the temple straight to the Nabadwip station. There are no buses today, so he is taking a train from Nabadwip to Bandel, then from Bandel to Bardhaman, and from there he will take a bus. He will have to struggle so much to get back. He stays in Bardhaman. I got the news that he had not got a room and went back. I was in Krishnanagar when this happened. I called to the temple here. They said they were taking prasad. I told them, 'You are taking prasad?! Devotees are coming, you have invited them, and they leave because they do not get a room! What is this?' In general, when a guest comes, they are treated as Narayan, the Supreme Lord. [There is a common saying 'atithi narayana, অতিথি নারায়ণ: a guest is Narayan.'] It is necessary to arrange for a place for them to stay, to speak to them sweetly. What did Mahaprabhu say?

বৈষ্ণবে আদর কর প্রসাদাদি দিয়া ।

অর্থ নাই দৈন্যবাক্যে তোষ মিনতি করিয়া ॥

vaisnave adara kara prasadadi diya
artha nai dainya-vakye tosa minati kariya

'Honour Vaishnavs with prasad and other remnants. If you have no wealth, then submissively satisfy them with humble words.'

(Sri Sri Prema-vivarta, 9.32)

It is necessary to make arrangements.

When I was a brahmachari, and even after I took sannyas, what did I do? Even I told the brahmacharis here, 'Sleep on your bed, and some ladies will sleep on the floor nearby.' What is the problem? They are all like your mothers. They will stay on the floor, and you will be up there on the bed. What is the problem? It is only for one or two nights. Do you think they are coming to stay here their whole life? Even if I clasp their feet and tell them to stay, they will not stay. Even if I say to a devotee, 'Prabhu, I am clasping your feet, please stay here,' they will not stay. Nobody will stay. They all come with a return ticket. Yesterday, something bad came out of my mouth. I said that if I were to say to some Prabhu, 'Please stay for two months,' he will say after one or two months, 'No, I do not like it here.' Why does he not like it here? Because there is nobody to warm his quilt in winter. Do you understand what I am saying? When you stay alone, there is nobody to warm your blanket... They come here thinking, 'When will I run from here? When will it be time to leave?' ...I joke sometimes because if I always speak straightforward and dry, if I always say it as it is, nobody will like it, that is why I have to add some 'water'.

So, I told them, 'Take the car and bring him back.' At the same time, I called the devotee who had left and told him, 'Prabhu, I am asking you with folded palms, please do not go to the Nabadwip station. I am sending my man to bring you back.' They brought him back. I told them that I have a servitor, he can free his room and stay with another devotee, and that devotee can stay in his room. What is the problem? It is only one or two nights.

You all know that some years ago police arrested me and took me away from the temple. You can see me walking alone, you can see me go everywhere alone – what has not happened to me! When I got into Apollo hospital, I could not even wash myself after going to the bathroom. This is the state I was in. They gave me two injections every day – each injection cost 16,000 rupees. Besides this 32,000-rupee injections a day, they gave me thirty-five(!!) injections during the whole day. After that, I was able to sit by the end of the day. Then I came to Puri and went for some massage and other therapy, and I recovered; otherwise, I would have been finished. Doctors told me that nobody could survive the condition that I was in. But I have Gurudev, and Gurudev saved me. Doctors told me, 'When one has diabetes and this kind of disease happens, 999 people out of 1000 die – only one out of a thousand people can survive – but how you survived it, it is only the Lord, no other way.' I told them, 'I have my guru, I do not worry.' I remember what state I was in when I came from Durgapur Ramkrishna Mission (hospital) and Apollo hospital – I could not even wash myself after going to the toilet. One of the boys would come to help me bath at that time. I came out from that kind of state, and I am all right now. I can sleep, I can live happily and be with you all – I can talk, laugh and play with you all, I can tell you stories, and so on. That is my happiness. Big temples, great buildings – what is it to me? One time, Gurudev hit me – he said, 'If you are not here, what will I do with temples and buildings? What are they to me? They want to kill you, to murder you! Since the very day you took sannyas in 1999, they have been sharpening their knife to kill you! Have you not been able to understand it? You have been going here and there all day long all this time, but they have been trying to kill you!' The Lord has saved me. Devotees are there, Gurudev is there, the Lord is there, so I do not worry about anything.

When I was giving a lecture in the evening in Ekachakra [in 2014], just like I am doing here now, the police came and took me away. They had been trying to do this for several months, and I knew that they were nearby that night, but I said, 'Whatever. I will chant the Holy Name.' They came, took me away and put me in jail. Then I was hospitalised, and after some time I was brought back to jail. When I was in jail, the Lord did not give me much suffering. I had got a devotee next to me, and he told me, 'Maharaj, do not eat this food. I will cook for you.' He got some pots and cooked for me there. Even when I was there, I gave class for all the prisoners for one hour every day. Do you know about it? When some prisoners, who had spent nine years in prison, came out, came to me, they took initiation! Fifteen of them took initiation from me. When that happened, I called out to Gurudev, 'Gurudev! You must have sent me to prison to save these fifteen men.' When in jail, they would come to hear my Hari-katha – I would sit on a bed, and they would sit on the ground and listen. Because I was admitted to hospital there, I was given a bed (others slept on the ground). I have one bad habit – I cannot tolerate when mosquitos bite. Here in the rooms, mosquitos do not bite because we have mosquito nets, but in jail everyone sleeps on a blanket, and mosquitos bite a lot. But when I came there, I was immediately admitted to a hospital, so they gave me a bed, and devotees sent me my clothes. They do not allow any pillows, but they managed to bring in a pillow secretly. I am also used to shaving my beard, so when they sent me socks, they also put a razor blade and other things for shaving inside. They did this service. Different devotees would come and bring vegetables and other food. You know that Santosh Prabhu was with me. Then, he came out first, and I came out after some days, too. I did not suffer there. But those who caused all this have taken shelter in lies and falsehood. They filed many false cases. But what of that? I call out to the Lord. I do not feel any vengeance towards them. I do not have any grudges against them – I wish them well. I am staying away from them and I am not disturbing them.

You are all with me, that is my happiness. 'Bhaktera sangete mana anandita anuksana" (ভক্তের সঙ্গেতে মন আনন্দিত অনুক্ষণ): In the association of devotees, my mind is always joyful.' If there was no association of devotees, would I be able to live? I made a promise to Gurudev, and you can see today how many devotees have come to observe his appearance day. Gurudev can see it. I feel very happy inside because Gurudev can see today that on his appearance day the nat-mandir is full. In Nabadwip, the nat-mandir is not so big – it must be half of this nat-mandir here in Nrisingha Palli – but our nat-mandir here is full today. I left, and devotees have come to me. Despite all struggles and inconveniences, even though not getting food sometimes, they have stayed with me. I remember this. They were with me, and they have been fighting alongside with me in all my sad and difficult times; they stayed with me, and I tolerated everything.

তৃণাধিক হীন দীন অকিঞ্চন ছার ।
আপনে মানবি সদা ছাড়ি অহঙ্কার ॥

trnadhika hina, dina, akinchana chhara
apane manabi sada chhadi ahankara

'Give up ego and consider yourself lower than a blade of grass, poor, destitute and vile.'

(Gitavali, Sri Siksastakam Giti, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

Gurudev has given me so much mercy, he loved me so much. He may have beaten me with a stick or with a shoe, but he has truly given me his mercy. I can understand it now, and I can also understand that he is very happy. There are thousands and thousands of devotee all over the world, there are temples in 130 countries all over the world – and they do not know anybody except me. Every week, on Sunday, I sit with them all. They have called me today too, and I told them that I would give a class for them after nine o'clock tomorrow. It will be nine o'clock in the evening here, but it is nine o'clock in the morning for them. And every Sunday I also give class for them – I talk to them, ask them how they are, and they ask me questions. I have spent the past nine or ten months like this, happily.

Therefore, if you have Gurudev's blessing, if you have Gurudev's mercy, nobody can do anything to you. Always remember this. Even my Gurudev was criticised by many, not only some few people – Srila Sridhar Maharaj had to tolerate a lot for him, but Gurudev tolerated all dangers and obstacles and expanded his gurudev's temple so much. He did so much. Therefore, I am praying to you all: please always practise Krishna consciousness.

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Language: Bengali

READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Spiritual Conscience
2) Trust the Lord
3) Service Is Not a Chore
4) May You Live Clean Life
5) Four Biggest Hurdles
6) Internal Meaning of Initiation
7) Amidst What Are You Sitting?
8) Karma-Misra Bhakti
9) Beyond Jnana-Misra Bhakti
10) Indomitable Power of Mercy
11) Learn to Behave as Sadhu
12) Preparing for Festival
13) External and Internal Opulence