Genuine Surrender

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Nrisingha Palli, 3 February 2021, part 3
Translated from Bengali

First, it is necessary to become surrendered. We sing in the kirtan,

ষড়ঙ্গ শরণাগতি হইবে যাঁহার ।
তাঁহার প্রার্থনা শুনে শ্রীনন্দকুমার ॥

sad-anga saranagati ha-ibe yahara
tahara prarthana sune sri-nanda-kumara

"Sri Krishna hears the prayers of those who surrender in the six-fold way."

(Saranagati, 1.5, by Srila Bhakti Vinod Thakur)

Among the six limbs of surrender, first is humility (always be very, very humble; when you ask questions, you must be humble).

তৃণাদপি সুনীচেন তরোরিব সহিষ্ণুনা ।
অমানিনা মানদেন কীর্ত্তনীয়ঃ সদা হরিঃ ॥

trnad api sunichena taror api sahisnuna
amanina manadena kirtaniyah sada harih

"One who is humbler than a blade of grass, more forbearing than a tree, who gives honour to others without desiring it for himself, is qualified to always chant the Holy Name of Krishna."

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, Antya-lila, 6.239)

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

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

"Give up your false ego, and always consider yourself lower than grass, poor, needy, and mean."

We must be lower than a blade of grass, and we must leave all ego.

বৃক্ষসম ক্ষমাগুণ করবি সাধন ।
প্রতিহিংসা ত্যজি অন্যে করবি পালন ॥

vrksa-sama ksama-guna karabi sadhana
pratihimsa tyaji anye karabi palana

Practise tolerance like a tree. Stop ill-treating others, instead nurture them.

Somebody can be envious of me, somebody can ill-treat me, but I will not do that towards anyone.

জীবন-নির্ব্বাহে আনে উদ্বেগ না দিবে ।
পর-উপকারে নিজ-সুখ পাসরিবে ॥

jivana-nirvahe ane udvega na dibe
para-upakare nija-sukha pasaribe

Do not trouble others for your own upkeep, and forget your own happiness in the course of helping others.

I will not give any austerity, any pain to other jiva souls for my own benefit. We must throw away our happiness for the happiness of others. Do not think about your own happiness—whichever way the Lord keeps you, you must accept it and respect that. Whatever situation the Lord keeps me, I must practise Krishna consciousness (worship the Lord) in that situation. So, we are our own friends, and we are our own enemies. Enemies are not outside—we have six enemies within us: kama (lust), krodha (anger), lobha (greed), moha (illusion), matsarya (envy). We have six urges: vakya-veg, mana-veg, krodha-veg, jihva-veg, udar-vega, upastha-veg (urge of speech, mental urge, urge of anger, tongue, stomach, genitals). We sing in the kirtan,

ঠাকুর বৈষ্ণবগণ করি এই নিবেদন
মো বড় অধম দুরাচার ।

thakura vaisnava-gana kari ei nivedana
mo bada adhama durachara

"O worshippable Vaisnavas, I offer you this prayer. I am very fallen and wicked."

কাম-ক্রোধ আদি ছয় বাটপাড়ে দেয় ভয়
অবসান হৈল আসি বেলা

kama-krodha-adi chaya batapare deya bhaya
avasana haila asi bela

I am attacked by the six highway robbers lead by kama and krodha, and my life is coming to its end...

("Anadi karama-phale" by Srila Bhakti Vinod Thakur)

These six enemies (lust, anger, greed, etc.) pull us in different directions and remove us from spiritual life. They always work for Maya Devi. Maya Devi gets her power from the Lord and uses it to remove us from the service of the Lord, keeping us submerged in the ocean of material life.

That is why, we wake up in the morning and sing Gurvvastakam composed by Srila Visvanath Chakravarti Thakur,

সংসার-দাবানল-লীঢ়-লোক-
ত্রাণায় কারুণ্য-ঘনাঘনত্বম্ ।
প্রাপ্তস্য কল্যাণ-গুণার্ণবস্য
বন্দে গুরোঃ শ্রীচরণারবিন্দম্

samsara-davanala-lidha-loka
tranaya karunya-ghanaghanatvam
praptasya kalyana-gunarnavasya
vande guroh sri-charanaravindam

"I offer my obeisance unto the lotus feet of Sri Guru, the ocean of goodness who assumes the form of a cloud of mercy to deliver the souls burning in the blazing fire of material existence."

(Sri Sri Gurvastakam, 1)

We always live amidst blazing fire, and that is why we always chant kirtan and pray to Vaishnavs.

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

O Lord! I am very wicked-minded and have fallen into this material world, but You have sent a great soul, Your associate (to rescue me).

'Emona Durmati' by Srila Bhakti Vinod Thakur

এক বর দয়া করি' মোরে পতিত দেখিয়া
কহিল আমারে গিয়া ।
ওহে দীনজন শুন ভাল কথা
উল্লসিত হবে হিয়া ॥

(ek bar) daya kari' more patita dekhiya
kahila amare giya
ohe dina-jana suna bhala katha
ullasita ha'be hiya

Seeing me so fallen and being merciful, he came to me and said, “O humble soul, listen to this wonderful message and your heart will rejoice.

তোমারে তারিতে শ্রীকৃষ্ণচৈতন্য
নবদ্বীপে অবতার ।
তোমা হেন কত দীনহীন জনে
করিলেন ভবপার ॥

tomare tarite sri-krsna-chaitanya
navadvipe avatara
toma hena kata dina-hina jane
karilena bhava-para

"Sri Krishna Chaitanya has appeared in Nabadwip to deliver you. He has brought many humble souls just like you to the shore of the ocean of material existence."

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