(6/13) Lost and Languid Souls

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Kolkata (Jatragachhi), 8 February 2021, part 6

We were just singing this kirtan:

ছয় বেগ দমি’, ছয় দোষ শোধি’,
ছয় গুণ দেহ দাসে ।

chhaya vega dami’, chhaya dosa sodhi’,
chhaya guna deha dase

‘Please subjugate my six urges, rectify my six defects and bestow the six good qualities upon this servant.’

(Saranagati, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

What are these urges, what are these defects and what are these qualities? You must remember that you cannot do two things at the same time. If you drink alcohol and at the same time also drink milk, then whatever vitamins there are in that milk are going to be destroyed by the alcohol. This is how the body works, and in our spiritual lives it is also like this. There are six limbs of surrender:

দৈন্য, আত্মনিবেদন, গোপ্তৃত্বে বরণ ।
‘অবশ্য রক্ষিবে কৃষ্ণ’—বিশ্বাস পালন ॥
ভক্তি-অনুকূল মাত্র কার্য্যের স্বীকার ।
ভক্তি-প্রতিকূল ভাব-বর্জ্জনাঙ্গীকার ॥

dainya, atma-nivedana, goptrtve varana
‘avasya raksibe krsna’—visvasa palana
bhakti-anukula matra karyera svikara
bhakti-pratikula bhava—varjanangikara

‘(1) Humility, (2) self-submission, (3) accepting that the Lord is your maintainer, (4) keeping faith that “Krishna will certainly protect”, (5) engaging only in what is favourable to devotion, (6) rejecting what is unfavourable to devotion.’

(Saranagati, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

You do what is favourable, and you must also reject everything that is unfavourable. We sing about this every morning. Surrender (saranagati) is the root of devotion. What is surrender? First, it is necessary to be humble. This is what Mahaprabhu teaches too:

তৃণাদপি সুনীচেন তরোরিব সহিষ্ণুনা ।
অমানিনা মানদেন কীর্ত্তনীয়ঃ সদা হরিঃ ॥

trnad api sunichena taror iva sahisnuna
amanina manadena kirtaniyah sada harih

‘One who is humbler than a blade of grass, more tolerant than a tree and who gives honour to others without desiring it for themselves is qualified to always chant the Holy Name of Krishna.’

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, 3.6.239)

Who has the right and qualification to chant kirtan (to chant the Holy Name of the Lord and glorify the Lord)? Who can chant kirtan? Those who have a good voice? No. Those who can become lower than a blade of grass, have tolerance like that of a tree and can give honour to others – only those who have these three qualities have the right to chant kirtan; nobody else. It does not matter whether one can sing well or not – the main thing is that the person must have no ego (‘who is humbler than a blade of grass, who is more tolerant than a tree and who can give honour to others’).

What else did Mahaprabhu teach? In the outside world, people like to worship Durga and many other gods and goddesses. For example, Saraswati Puja is coming soon – what will everyone say?

ওঁ সরস্বতি মহাভাগে বিদ্যে কমললোচনে ।
বিদ্যারূপে বিশালাক্ষি বিদ্যাং দেহি নমোহস্তু তে ॥

om sarasvati mahabhage vidye kamalalochane
visvarupe visalaksi vidyam dehi namostute

‘O great Goddess Saraswati, the personified knowledge possessing large lotus eyes! I offer obeisance to you, please give me knowledge.’

They offer obeisances to Saraswati and pray, ‘O Goddess of Knowledge, please give me knowledge.’ When it comes to Durga Puja, brahmans recite their prayer: ‘Dhanam dehi, vidyam dehi, rupam dehi, bharyam dehi, kavitam dehi, sundarim dehi, yasam dehi. Give me wealth, give me knowledge, give me beauty, give me a good wife, make me a poet, make me beautiful, make me famous.’ They keep saying, ‘Give me, give me, give me,’ but what did Mahaprabhu say?

ন ধনং ন জনং ন সুন্দরীং কবিতাং বা জগদীশ কাময়ে ।
মম জন্মনি জন্মনীশ্বরে ভবতাদ্ভক্তিরহৈতুকী ত্বয়ি ॥

na dhanam na janam na sundarim kavitam va jagadisa kamaye
mama janmani janmanisvare bhavatad bhaktir ahaituki tvayi

‘O Supreme Lord (Master of the Universe, Jagadiswar)! I do not desire any wealth (religion, money or material desires), any followers (wife, sons, servants or maidservants) or material knowledge (beautiful poetry). My only prayer is that I may birth after birth have pure devotion to You, devoid of seeking any result.’

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, 3.20.29)

‘Dear Lord, I do not want any wealth, followers, women or fame. What do I want? I only wish that I may have unswerving devotion to Your holy lotus feet.’

নাহি মাগি দেহ-সুখ, বিদ্যা, ধন, জন ॥
নাহি মাগি স্বর্গ, আর মোক্ষ নাহি মাগি ।
না করি প্রার্থনা কোন বিভূতির লাগি’ ॥

nahi magi deha-sukha, vidya, dhana, jana
nahi magi svarga, ara moksa nahi magi
na kari prarthana kona vibhutira lagi’

‘O Lord! I am submitting this appeal at Your feet: I do not pray for any bodily pleasures, knowledge, wealth or companions. I do not pray for heaven or liberation, neither do I pray for any godly opulence or powers.’

(Sri Gitavali, Sri Siksastaka, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

Why do we not want heaven? It is explained in both Srimad Bhagavad-gita and Srimad Bhagavatam. If you go to heaven, you will have to come back from there one day. You earn much piety and go to heaven, but once that piety (punya) is finished, you have to again go down. If you commit sins, you go to hell, and the more sins you have committed, the longer you stay there. It is similar to a prison: those who have committed a murder stay in prison longer, and those who have only stolen something get released soon. So, if you commit many sins, you will have to stay in hell for a longer time; and if you do not commit so many sins, you will stay there only for a short time. But, in any case, you will still have to come back here.

Where is the place where you can go and never have to come back from? If you go to your own home, you do not have to come back. Suppose you rent a house. When some problem comes, you have to look for another house. After some time, if another problem comes up in the second house, you will have to look for another house again. If you keep changing houses like this, one day you will think, ‘I am tired of staying at other people’s houses. If I can buy some land and make even a thatched hut, it is better than living like this.’

Therefore, it is said that if you can come to stay in your own house, you will get supreme benefit. So, you must come and live in your own house. But where is your own house? I told you the other day: we are all sons of nectar, we are all sons of God.

Every one of us, everyone who is sitting here, are relatives and belong to one family. The problem is that we have forgotten our family, that is why we become bound by illusory environment time and time again.

মায়ারে করিয়া জয় ছাড়ান না যায় ।
সাধুকৃপা বিনা আর না দেখি উপায় ॥

mayare kariya jaya chhadana na yaya
sadhu-krpa bina ara na dekhi upaya

‘It is impossible to conquer illusory environment and break free from it. I see no other way to get relief except by sadhus’ mercy.’

(Prarthana, Srila Narottam Das Thakur)

You cannot conquer illusory environment without the mercy of sadhus and the guru.

— : • : —

{ 2001  |   2002  |   2003  |   2005  |   2009  |   2010  |   2011  |   2012 }
{ 2013  |   2014  |   2015  |   2016  |   2017  |   2018  |   2019  |   2020  |   2021 }

CLICK TO LISTEN TO THE LECTURE

Size: 40 Mb
Length: 84 min
Language: Bengali

READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Practise Devotion
2) Land of Religions
3) Seva Vidya
4) Conditioned Souls' Inaptitude
5) Choose Your Association
6) Lost and Languid Souls
7) "Make the Teachings of Sri Guru Non-Different from Your Heart"
8) Price of Independence
9) "Come Back to Your Home"
10) Fighting Misconceptions
11) Goloka at Your Home
12) Ekadasi: Devotional Practice
13) Stay Connected