(2/6) Taste for Service

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Sri Krishna Janmastami Adhivas, Tarakeswar
22 August 2019, evening, part 2
Translated from Bengali

You can realise how eager the Lord is to take service from His devotees! He wants to take from His own. So, Krishna sent His dearest friend, Balaram, to the brahmans to bring some food from them. Whatever you see at the temple – the altar, the chamar, the peacock fan, everything is actually Balaram Himself. He serves Krishna with ten bodies. He comes in Kali-yuga as Nitai, in Treta-yuga as Laksman, and in Dvapar-yuga as Balaram.

Just as Mahaprabhu showed His householder pastimes during twenty-four years, we can say that Krishna also showed His householder pastimes but during a longer time. In Treta-yuga, Lord Rama was exiled and His wife, Sita Devi, decided to go to the forest together with Him. However, Vishnupriya Devi did not do that. Even if she did think of doing that, she never even spoke of it. One time, at Srivas Pandit's house, Mahaprabhu assumed His four-armed Vishnu form and started giving out boons to everyone; at that time, Vishnupriya Devi had a glance of that form from the room where all the ladies were. She did not come in front of Mahaprabhu openly. She always stayed at the back. When Mahaprabhu left everything and took sannyas, He first came to Shantipur and stayed at the house of Sri Advaita Acharya Prabhu during a few days. His mother, Sachi Mata, came there at that time, but Vishnupriya Devi did not. She is a very perfect acharya (siddha-acharya). We must learn from her. We must accept these teachings in our own lives.

We must speak about Vishnupriya Devi on her appearance day. We must speak about Lord Balaram on His appearance day. We must remember and speak about the Lord and His associates and devotees every day. Check the calendars and see what day it is, whose day it is, and so on. Always talk about these great souls.

Tomorrow is the appearance day of Lord Krishna. You must fast the whole day. Upavas (fasting) means nikate (near) vasa (staying): staying near the Lord. If somebody's health is not good and they cannot fast the whole day until midnight, then it is another matter – they do not have to observe a very strict fast the whole day (they can take anukalpa earlier). But those who can fast should fast. The fast is all day, from the very morning until midnight. There will be abhisekh (ceremonial bathing of the Lord) at twelve o'clock at night. The abhisekh of the Deities is performed two times on this day (at midday and at midnight). You can mix ghee, honey, curd, camphor, sandal, etc. and use that to bathe the Lord. Everybody who fasts can join in the ceremonial bathing.

You must remember these things. Those who can fast should fast, and those who cannot fast can take some fruit, etc. Apart from the midnight offering, all the usual offerings of bhoga will be made as always, five times, tomorrow. At midnight, you must make a special offering with all the things that the Lord likes: laddus, kachoris, sweets, malpua, cakes (pitha), juice, etc. You can make everything.

Actually, Gopal has everything. His father has 900,000 cows, so Gopal has no lack of butter, curd, etc. What we must always aspire for is to get some service to the Lord. We always want to feel taste for service. By hook or by crook, but we want to get some service, and when you try to serve the Lord, many difficulties and obstacles will come – we must be prepared to put up with everything. It is said about this in Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita as well as other scriptures.

There will be continuous reading of Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita tomorrow. You can start after the morning class and continue throughout the day. This is called 'parayan' reading: reading the whole scripture from the beginning to the end in one sitting. There will also be a class in the evening. This is how the whole day will go – with continuous kirtan and Hari-katha. After midnight, there will be abhisekh, bhoga offering and a midnight arati. Nobody should eat grains on this day – you can take anukalpa (the same kind of prasad that we take on ekadasi) at midnight. This is the rule followed in our temple and all Gaudiya Maths.

You worry how you will stay without food the whole day, but if you do not eat one day, it is not a big deal – after that, you will have many more days to eat. You know, when you are hospitalised, they feed you only saline solution. I heard somebody had a dengue fever – when the man was hospitalised, he received only saline solution for seven days! You can see what one mosquito bite can do to one...

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Size: 19 Mb
Length: 40 min
Language: Bengali

READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Lord's Keen Kindness
2) Taste for Service
3) 'I Have an Idea!'
4) Understanding God
5) Lord Krishna's Inconceivable Glory
6) Esoteric Glory of Rama-Krishna