(3/6) Hanker and Aspire

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Kolkata—Worldwide, 14 February 2021, part 3

[Addressing a devotee] Who lives at the temple and does the puja permanently? Oh, there are different pujaris on different days?… And nobody stays at the temple permanently? And when the Deities are sleeping, nobody is staying there?! It is necessary to have a security guard for the Deities. Minimum one person must always stay at the temple. Somebody has to stay there. If the Deities are thirsty and need some water at night, who will give it to Them? Do you understand what I am saying? It is necessary to keep somebody at the temple.

I have a three-day preaching programme starting this Tuesday. After that, I will come to Kolkata for one day, and the next day I will go to Ekachakra. I will go there very soon. I came from a preaching programme at 4:30 p.m. today because I have job here in Kolkata tomorrow. The potato collection is almost finished. After the Ekachakra festival, I will have to go for collection one more day, and then it will be finished. We have collected almost five hundred bags of potato so far. We went house to house every day, visiting 120–130 houses a day. These are all devotees’ houses, and they are waiting for me to come, that is why I go there. We have had to walk very much these days, but anyhow, for the service of gurudev, it is all happiness.

তোমার সেবায়, দুঃখ হয় যত,
সেও ত’ পরম সুখ ।

tomara sevaya, duhkha haya yata,
seo ta’ parama sukha

‘Even any unhappiness that may come in Your service is my greatest happiness.’

(Saranagati, Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

When there is no service I feel unhappy, and when service comes I feel happiness. I always wait for service; I always hanker and aspire for service.

…When Sriman Mahaprabhu and Srila Svarup Damodar Prabhu left, Srila Raghunath Das Goswami left Puri and wanted to commit suicide: he wanted to climb Govardhan Hill and jump from it. Srila Sanatan Goswami and Srila Rupa Goswami protected him, they gave him some nourishment, and in the end Srila Raghunath Das Goswami said, ‘I have got far more from Srila Rupa Goswami and Srila Sanatan Goswami than even from my gurus (Mahaprabhu and Svarup Damodar).’ This is how Srila Raghunath Das Goswami passed his later life. At the end of his life, he always prayed,

প্রমদ-মদন-লীলাঃ কন্দরে কন্দরে তে
রচয়তি নবযুনোর্দ্বন্দ্বমস্মিন্নমন্দম্ ।
ইতি কিল কলনার্থং লগ্নকস্তৎ দ্বয়োর্মে
নিজনিকট-নিবাসং দেহি গোবর্দ্ধন ত্বম্ ॥

pramada-madana-lilah kandare kandare te
rachayati nava-yunor dvandvam asminn amandam
iti kila kalanartham lagnakas tat dvayor me
nija-nikata-nivasam dehi govardhana tvam

‘You make it possible for the Youthful Divine Couple to enjoy rapt amorous pastimes in Your caves without any reservation, satiating Their hankering for each other’s company. O Govardhan, please give me a residence near You.’

(Srila Raghunath Das Goswami)

It is a very nice sloka about Govardhan. Srila Raghunath Das Goswami lived the last part of his life at Radha Kunda in Govardhan. Every year, when we go for Vrindavan parikrama, we always come there to pay our obeisances at his samadhi-mandir and bhajan-kutir…

If we try to get even a tiny drop of his mercy, that is sufficient for us. We always pray for his mercy because without the mercy of such Vaishnavs we cannot proceed in our spiritual lives. We must try to get his mercy. We say these things, and it is very easy to say them, but it is very hard to actually be like that. Still, we say it for our own purification. I am not saying all this to you only – I am saying it for myself also, for my own purification. I am not giving advice to you only – I am actually giving advice to myself.

Srila Raghunath Das Goswami also got mercy from Sriman Nityananda Prabhu, whose appearance day is coming very soon. I know that you cannot come for the Ekachakra festival this year because of the covid situation, but you must observe this day from your houses. Glorify Nityananda Prabhu, speak about His glories, make some good prasadam for Nityananda Prabhu. Observe this day in this way; it will be good for you. You can make this festival from your houses and remember this day very nicely. The festival is on 25 February, it is Thursday, a working day, but what can you do? Make the festival in the evening or in the morning then, it will be good, but you must remember Sriman Nityananda Prabhu all day, it will be good for you. We are very fallen souls – we cannot proceed in our spiritual lives without Nityananda Prabhu’s mercy. Therefore, we must remember Nityananda Prabhu properly, full day, on His appearance day.

— : • : —

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READ OTHER PARTS:

1) Holy Vasanta Panchami Day
2) Extraordinary Qualities of Srila Raghunath Das Goswami
3) Hanker and Aspire
4) Keep Your Head at Vaishnavs' Lotus Feet
5) "Please Forgive Me"
6) Renounce Pride, Not Practice