What Are Your Plans?

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Basirhat, 13 January 2021, part 5
Translated from Bengali

We must practise Krishna consciousness. The Lord comes in this Kali-yuga and brings His Holy Name. The people of Kali-yuga are all conditioned souls ruined by Kali... You know, in Satya-yuga people lived for 100,000 years. Do you think you can live for 100,000 years? In Satya-yuga people practised meditation for 60-70,000 years,

narayana-para veda narayana-paraksaram
narayana-para muktar narayana-para-gatih

They would sit and meditate without eating anything—they would 'eat' air. Do you think you can do that? You can do that for one day, five days, but not longer. In Treta-yuga, people lived for 10,000 years and they would practise yajna (fire sacrifices). In Dvapar-yuga, people's lifespan was 1,000 years, and they worshipped Deities. However, in Kali-yuga, people's lifespan is only 120 years, and now the situation is such people eat all kinds of things and nobody lives to 120 years (many live for forty-fifty years, get a stroke, and die; a very rare person can live to even one hundred years). However, there is no use getting a lifetime of one hundred years if you do not chant the Holy Name! If you live for only ten years and chant the Holy Name, that is better than living for one hundred years without any use. So, we actually do not need to live for one hundred years—if we are to live for only ten years, we will chant the Holy Name during these ten years. You think you want to live longer to enjoy longer, but this is not right—you must think, "Even if I live for ten years—if I can chant the Holy Name, it is OK."

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."

(Chaitanya-charitamrita, Adi-lila, 17.22)

Coming to this world in the form of His Name, the Lord goes door to door telling everyone,

হরের্নাম হরের্নাম হরের্নামৈব কেবলম্ ।
কলৌ নাস্ত্যেব নাস্ত্যেব নাস্ত্যেব গতিরন্যথা ॥

harer nama harer nama harer namaiva kevalam
kalau nasty eva nasty eva nasty eva gatir anyatha

"Only chanting the Holy Name, chanting the Holy Name, chanting the Holy Name—there is no other way, no other way, no other way."

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, Adi-lila, 7.76)

There is no other path in Kali-yuga except for chanting the Holy Name of the Lord. To chant this Holy Name, you need to follow four things (four regulative principles). We often say,

aparadha-sunya haye laha krsna-nama
achirat tumi pabe krsna-prema-dhana

'Chant the Holy Name of Krishna without offence and you will quickly get the treasure of divine love to Krishna.'

We must become free from offences. We will not kill any jiva soul. Somebody can say, "Oh, you say not to kill anyone, but you have just cut a lau [gourd] and some sak [spinach]." Yes, we cut it, but we do not eat it. Who are we cooking for? We are not cooking for ourselves—we are cooking for Govinda, Gopal. You give what you cook to Govinda, and if Govinda, Gopal leaves any prasadam for us, then we will take that. So, who must we cook for? For Govinda. Who do you work for? For Govinda. Who do you drive a car for? For Govinda. Who do you run a business for? For Govinda. Everything is for Him, not for our own enjoyment.

আত্মেন্দ্রিয়প্রীতি-বাঞ্ছা—তারে বলি 'কাম' ।
কষ্ণেন্দ্রিয়প্রীতি-ইচ্ছা ধরে 'প্রেম' নাম ॥

atmendriya-priti-vancha—tare bali 'kama'
krsnendriya-priti-ichchha dhare 'prema' nama

"The desire to gratify one's own senses is kama (lust), but the desire to please the senses of Lord Krishna is prema (love)."

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, Adi-lila, 4.165)

We are doing everything for the pleasure of the Lord, not for our own pleasure. You must realise, "Whatever I do, I will do it for the Lord." This is the difference between a devotee and a non-devotee. Devotees cook something at their home and outside people also cook at their homes, but outside people (non-devotees) cook for their own enjoyment, and devotees cook for the Lord. One is kama or karma (lust or selfish interest), and the other is seva (service).

Karma and seva look the same. Suppose a cat has a kitten and the kitten is cold—the cat will pick the kitten up with its mouth and carry it to a warm place. At another time, that same cat will be also carrying a mouse in its mouth—is that the same thing? Does a cat carry its kitten in its mouth to eat it? No, it does not. It carries the kitten to serve the kitten, to take care of the kitten. And does the cat carry a mouse to look after it? It does not. The cat clenches its teeth so hard that the mouse dies in its mouth, and the cat will eat that mouse. So, externally both may look the same, but it is actually not. In the same way, they are cooking here today, and somebody else is cooking in another house next door—in one house they are cooking for the Lord, and in the other house for their own selves. One is seva, and the other is karma. If you do karma (do something for your own pleasure), you will have to get bound by that karma and go to hell, and if you serve the Lord, you will not have to suffer from birth, death, old age and disease and you will come to the Lord without having to return to this world ever again. When you are born, you have to die, and if you are not born, then there is no death, no old age—you will stay with the Lord in His eternal abode in Goloka Vrindavan.

Anyhow, much has been said, I am going to chant a few kirtans and after that I will speak again.

[His Divine Grace chants 'Sri Guru-charana-padma', 'Sri Krsna-Chaitanya Prabhu daya kara', 'Ohe Vaishnava Thakura', 'Nitai-pada-kamala', 'Gaurangera-duti-pada', 'Hare Krishna maha-mantra'.]

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