Wrong Idea

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Sri Nabadwip Dham Parikrama, Mahadvadasi
Noon class, 25 March 2021, part 5
Translated from Bengali

Srila Madhavendra Puri went to Vrindavan and lived there alone, chanting the Holy Name. Just think about it—how merciful the Lord is. He is also trying to find you. You see the Deity here and you may think that the Deity is made of stone, wood, or clay and you can do whatever you fancy. It cannot be like that. Gurudev always told that nobody should keep Deities at home emotionally. When we went to Nabadwip for the parikrama, I saw devotees buying a Deity of Gopal, but when you buy this Deity, you have to offer bhog—whatever you all eat at home, you must offer first the Deity. You cannot keep Deities and feed the Deities with air or a glass of water—will that fill anyone's stomach? Gopal eats fifty-six items, He eats a thousands times, His mother cooks and feeds Him so much, and you give Him once a day some air and a glass of water. You will be eating a plate full of rice and Gopal will have a glass of water! Is this how you serve Gopal?

You all like to burn candles at the temple in the morning, but you are spoiling the temple in this way. This is not some candle-burning society here. Everyone likes to make the temple dirty, but nobody likes to clean it. Nobody thinks, "Let me clean the Lord's temple, the Lord's altar." Everyone burns candles and thinks the Lord is going to give them something. People come to see this temple with so many material desires—they burn candles, tie knots and stones to the trees praying, "I want a son," "I want a grandson," "I have a granddaughter, but it would be nice to have a grandson otherwise who will take care of the family?" "I cannot find a good girl, please help me get my son married!" and girls pray, "I cannot find a husband, please send a good husband to me," and so on. People make all these wishes and tie a stone. What was Prahlad Maharaj's example? He prayed, "Please take all my material desires away, make so that I do not want, do not wish for anything," and we are doing just the opposite, are we not? Mahaprabhu taught,

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

"I do not want wealth, I do not want followers, I do not want beautiful women, I do not want to be a poet. I only want causeless devotion to Your lotus feet. Give me that kind of devotion to Your lotus feet so that I could do Your service life after life."

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, Antya-lila, 20.29)

We sing,

নাহি মাগি দেহসুখ 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

"I do not pray for bodily pleasure, learning, wealth, or followers. I do not pray for heaven, I do not pray for liberation, and I do not pray for any supernatural powers."

(Sri Siksastakam, 4.1-2, Srila Bhakti Vinod Thakur)

We pray, "I do not want fame, I do not want position, I do not want to become a king or a prime minister." Some politician called me yesterday and invited me to come to them—I told them I was unwell and could not come. I have to lie otherwise there is no way out, they would force me to come, and when I come there, they will suck my blood and torture me there. I am with the devotees here, I am speaking Hari-katha, and if I go there, I have to mix with all these mayavadis—my heart does not go there, and I do not have time to go there. That is why I do not go to all places. Gurudev also said, "There is a hand from which I eat, and I do not eat from anyone else's hand." Sahajiyas think that Krishna does not eat from anyone else's hand because Radharani is very beautiful, but this is not so.

ভক্তের জিনিষ প্রভু লুটিপুটি খায়
অভক্তের জিনিষ প্রভু উলটি নাহি খায়

bhakter jinish prabhu lutiputi khay
abhakter jinish prabhu ulti nahi khay

"The Lord eats anything and everything when a devotee offers it, but He does not take anything from a non-devotee."

Because devotees serve the Lord very well, the Lord takes food from their hands. The Lord does not eat from everyone's hands...

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