Second period of Devotional Practice (2nd Yama Sadhana)

Morning Worship: sādhu saṅge anartha nivṛtti

In this second period we have to associate with bona-fide sadhus, taking shelter of bona-fide Guru and as per his direction to start bhajan. Amongst all kinds of devotion, Nama Sankirtan is the best, by bhajan you can remove all ulterior desires.

First is Sraddha and then in the second period Sadhusanga. Just remaining near Sadhu may not necessarily mean availing his association.

Even to this day I remember that Gokuldas Babaji Maharaj of Sri Caitanya Matha had close friendship of Gaura Kishor Das Babaji Maharaj, they would converse with each other. Gokuldas Babaji Maharaj, for construction of Samadhi mandir of his Gurudeva Sri Prabhupad, would go for collection with a stick in hand and chant Harinam always. He would safe keep his collections under his bed and after some 7-8 days he finds it is not there, some one has taken it. Then he would collect during the day, then keep night watch and no body would come. He was speaking with Gaura Kishor Das Babaji Maharaj. I have not seen this, our Guruji used to say. They were conversing with each other. How are you? I am very fine, but… But what? There is lot of trouble of thieves. I bring collections and some one steals everything. Do you get sufficient food to eat or not? Yes, I do get. One thief gives and the other thief takes away, and in between you benefit, so where is the loss? He is paramahamsa. But because of his efforts Prabhupad and the Lord Sri Gauranga Gandharvika Giridhari are pleased. So what if the thief steals the collection, they fulfilled his desire for service. Now where he was sitting on the cot, there are lot of bed-bugs on his bed. He is lying on the bed and the bed-bugs are associating with him. They are going on drinking his blood, but he is nirvikar, he is undisturbed. We will not be able to sleep even for a minute or even a second. And he is not disturbed and is sleeping comfortably. (I went there, but it was like Britain’s war field). To pl check …. I am not sure whether I heard correctly. Maybe because of bedbugs problem he said so, it is like war field.

In one English article Sridhar Dev Gosvami Maharaj writes about ‘Exploitation’. This is not association of sadhus, this is exploitation of the sadhu. Bugs are there in the bed of Gokuldas Babaji and he is paramahamsa and is lying on the bed and all the bugs are associating with the sadhu by sucking blood. This is exploitation. By remaining near sadhu it is not sadhusanga. From thousands miles off you can associate with sadhus if you follow the inner spirit of the sadhu. Sadhu is preaching for the worship of the Supreme Lord and His Absolute counter-parts Personal associates. He is thinking all the time how to satisfy Krishna, how to satisfy Gauranga Mahaprabhu and His devotees and the bugs are thinking how to suck the blood. Physically very near, but exploiting the sadhus. Sadhu sanga does not happen just by always remaining near sadhu. Remaining near sadhu one tries to derive his own benefits. This is not sadhu sanga. One has to follow his service mood, his conduct in service of the Lord, ‘dadati pratigrhnati guhyam akhyati prcchati bhunkte bhojayate caiva sad-vidham priti-laksanam’ (Srila Rupa Gosvami’s Upadesamrta Verse 4). The six exchanges with sadhus like offering, accepting, speaking and listening, eating and lovingly serving prasad when done with love for the satisfaction, for the pleasure of the sadhu is Sadhu sanga. If these exchanges are done with materialistic persons, then it is materialistic association.

So it is said here do sadhu sanga, follow the sadhu’s words and teachings, act according to the will of the Sadhu for his pleasure, serve him with love and affection. So sadhu sanga, guru-padashray, sadguru or sadhu, suddha bhakta are one and the same. When the sadhu or vaishnavas give teachings, they become siksha guru. Siksha guru can be many, and diksha guru is one. Taking shelter of Guru and perform bhajan. Among various forms of devotion Harinam is the foremost, by performing bhajan all ulterior desires will be removed. How much one will enter into Hari Bhakti, that much in-auspiciousness will go. What is not our necessity we think them our necessity. Bodily comforts, acting according to the mind’s dictates, these are all anarthas. When one really associates with sadhu, these anarthas will not remain.

Gradual procedure, gradual progress, how to get the ultimate goal of Krsna pema, has been given in Bhajana Rahasya. As earlier said, you have to be careful to move. You have to associate with bona-fide sadhus. You have to serve them, submit to them, associate with them without deceitfulness, even without the desire for exploiting the sadhus. Then it is sadhu sanga. Guru-padasray is taking shelter of Guru. Through service you can have contact with him. If there is any other motive then we have not seen Guru, we have seen a human being. If we submit to the will of Guru then that will be service of guru. And by serving Guru and how he has advised us to do bhajan, to do Nama Sankirtan, etc. we have to act according to his advice. Then all ulterior desires will be removed.

nāma grahaner kālākāla-vicāra nāhi
nāma sarvaśakti samanvitā

There is no restriction of time, space, rules and regulations for utterance and remembrance of the Holy Name. Holy Name is All-Powerful.

nāmnām akāri bahudhā nija-sarva-śaktis
tatrārpitā niyamitaḥ smaraṇe na kālaḥ
etādṛśi tava kṛpā bhagavan mamāpi
durdaivam īdṛśam ihājani nānurāgaḥ
(2rd Verse of Sri Shikshastaka)

O Supreme Lord! Certainly Your Holy Name can bestow all kinds of eternal welfare to the conditioned souls. So, You have mercifully manifested in this world with Your Principal transcendental Names like Krishna, Govinda, Gopinath, etc. which have no direct or indirect, positive or negative connection with the non-eternal material world. You have bestowed all powers in these Names and no restriction is imposed to utter the Holy Names. Any time, in any circumstance, at any age and in any place, one can utter and remember the Holy Names. O Lord, You are so merciful to the conditioned souls, how fortunate are the people of Kaliyuga. You are so compassionate.

Kaliyuga people suffer lot of diseases and various kinds of difficulties attack from all the four directions. Whatever food one gets to eat there is adulteration. I was told in Kolkata to drink juice of bottle-gourd as it is good for heart. And I got one big bottle-gourd. All those who drank bottle-gourd juice had stomach upset, but I did not have stomach upset, but it did not have any good effect on my heart’s condition. The bottle-gourd had been grown artificially by injecting some unwanted things, our Vaidya Om Prakash said. The normal sized bottle-gourds had been grown to extra-ordinary size. All adulterated, to make vegetable look fresh and green, they add colors. What we cannot even think of earlier, now the whole atmosphere is vitiated. Such is the present Kali yuga. So, how one is alive is surprising. So in such times chant Harinam, there is no need to do anything else, call Him. When one is unfortunate then he does not have taste for chanting of Harinama and this is due to offenses to the Holy Name. Caitanya Mahaprabhu is expressing His great regret.

Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s pastimes were depicted here in drama, on 20th instant. You may see it (again).

This way Caitanya Mahaprabhu has expressed His extreme regret to see the sad plight of the conditioned souls of the world in spite of their opportunity to worship Krishna so easily by chanting the Holy Name, they are not interested. They advise others, you do, you do, and they themselves do not do. When we shall do it sincerely then we will get it.

aneka-lokera vāñchā — aneka-prakāra
kṛpāte karila aneka-nāmera pracāra
khāite śuīte yathā tathā nāma laya

While eating, while lying, you can do Harinam. This our Param Gurudev Prabhupad through his sevak Ramadas, not a babaji, who was serving cows and in the fields very sincerely. Outside people thought him to be a servant. And one double MA came to Prabhupad and took Harinam. He heard Bhakti Hrday Van Gosvami Maharaj, our Gurudev, and many others give Bhagavata discourses and he also desired to serve like them, but he had no knowledge of siddhanth. He thought I should take lessons, but if I ask others (my god-brothers) they may say we have no time, busy in seva, so he went directly to his Gurudev, Srila Prabhupad. He told I do not know anything, I wish to know siddhanth, please give me teachings on Bhagavata. Others have no time, they are all busy in seva, so if you please enlighten me I will be eternally benefited. If you have desire for study of Bhagavat then go to Ramadas, Prabhupad instructed. He almost fell down from his seat hearing this, Oh he is a fool, what lesson can he give? Prabhupad sent him to Ramadas who was working in the garden. He was surprised, but has to follow the instructions of Gurudev. When working in the garden, Ramadas would be chanting Harinam always. Also when tending to cows he would chant Harinam. He went there and offered pranams to Ramadas. Eh, what are you doing? I have heard so many glories of you. I am an ordinary person, I am nothing, an ordinary servant. No, No. I had been to Guruji to know about Bhagavat Siddhanth (of Gaudiyas) and Guruji sent me to you. Very surprising, I do not even know ‘Bha’ (the first letter) of Bhagavata. I do not know any verse, I have never read any. I work in the garden, I do not know a thing. Oh Yes, I also thought how you could know. He offered pranams to him and returned. After a few days, he again went to Prabhupad with his request. Prabhupad said, I asked you to go to Ramadas. I had been to him, but he said I do not know anything. He only knows, you again go to him, hear from him. Gurupadapadma is sitting inside, and knows that Ramadas is a sincere sevak, working with external senses and chanting always Harinam, and working very sincerely. Sitting inside the math itself Prabhupad knew this. We cannot acquire knowledge through our material senses.

Even in Hyderabad I saw a sevak like him. He was very quiet, had no complaints whatsoever like I did not get a place to sleep and if necessitated will lie down even on the parikrama path. He will not trouble anyone for his needs and will do whatever seva that is entrusted to him. Quietly he came to this world and quietly he left. Who can reach the Lord, I know. The one who give big lectures will only go, it is not so. Like that here devotee Ramadas is very simple and without deceit, this Prabhupad knew very well. Actually one can take teachings on Bhagavat from a real Bhagavat. There is no need to study Bhagavat to give big discourses and get name and fame. So he sent to him to his sevak. Again he went and told Prabhupad got very angry on me and has sent me again to you. Then he spoke, I do not know anything. I work in jthis garden. This garden is owned by Sri Sri Radha Krishna and whatever is produced will go in Their seva. This is not a garden of the material world. We have to serve and have to chant Harinam which is Kaliyuga’s dharma. He was chanting Harinam always. And cows are also Lord’s devotees, all devi-devatas reside in the cows and their milk goes in the offerings for the Lord and in the service of the vaishnavas. So service of the cows is a limb of devotion, comes under the 64 limbs of devotion. While serving, what is the problem in chanting the Holy Names of the Lord? So chant the Holy Names, then it is favourable. Even scriptural verses say this. This garden is Lord’s, my gross body, my subtle body (mind, intelligence and false ego), are Krishna’s. I am His, and by all senses I have to serve Him and along with it always chant the Holy Names of the Lord. Hearing all these highly elevated thoughts of Ramadas, he realised that he is not an ordinary person, he did not do anything to acquire prestige, name and fame, he did seva for the sake of seva. So Prabhupad had sent him to his sevak, go to him and learn, like this.

deśa-kāla-niyama nāhi sarvasiddhi haya,
sarvaśakti nāme dila kariyā vibhāga,
āmāra durdaiva nāme nāhi anurāga

ekānta bhaktera mātra kīrtan-smaraṇa,
anya parve ruchi nāhi haya pravartana,
bhāvera sahita haya śrīkṛṣṇa-sevana,
svārasikī-bhāva krame haya uddīpana

By associating with a pure devotee, a sadhu, who has got one-pointed devotion to Supreme Lord one will get such one-pointed exclusive devotion to the Lord. He has got liking to do only kirtan and smaran, only chanting of the Holy Name and remembering. The goal of all practice (sadhana) is to remember the Lord. ‘smartavyah satatam visnur visamartavyo na jatucit sarve vidhi-nisedah syur etayor eva kinkarah’. When one performs kirtan or any other limb of devotion with no remembrance of the Lord, then it is of no use. The goal is to never forget Him, but to remember always. Mind is the cause of bondage and mind itself is the cause of liberation. The function of the mind is to remember. So they only remember and perform kirtan also. In kirtan there is hearing (Sravan) and because of hearing, remembrance (smaran) too. If we get engaged in speaking worldly matters we get remembrance of the world, and if we engage in speaking of the Lord, then we will have remembrance of the Lord. So, an exclusive one-pointed devotee has such taste, liking for kirtan and smaran, and one who is not a pure devotee, he will not have such a liking. It is shown in their pastimes. He will be performing kirtan and also simultaneously serving the Lord with delightful relation of love, svarasiki-bhava.

ekānta bhakatera kriyā mudrā rāgodita,
tathāpi sei saba nāhi vidhi viparīta

Devout devotees serve being inspired by pure love originating from delightful relation. I am not such a devout devotee because I have no attachment, my heart fears when I get seva, so what will be my fate? ‘phalena phala karana anumiyate’ A pure devotee has taste for serving the Lord all the time. How magnanimous his heart is!! Gadadhar Pandit gosvami serves Gopinath at Tota Gopinath and when is unable to stand to serve Tota Gopinath Himself bent His Head down. Even when the body is not conducive to serve, still they serve because their love for the Lord drives them to serve, ‘sevonmukhe hi jivahdau svayam eva sphuraty adah’. If one is not service inclined, then the transcendental name, form, qualities and pastimes of the Lord are not revealed to him. One may give up desire for wealth and women, but the desire for prestige, name and fame is very dangerous, and to give up that is very difficult. With great effort one has to give up desire for prestige, otherwise it will result in vaishnav aparadh and by it fall down.

prabhate gabhīra rātre madhyāhne sandhyāye,
anartha chāriyā lao nāmera āśraya

Giving up ulterior desires, chant Lord’s Holy Names.

ei rūpe kīrtana smaraṇa jei kare,
kṛṣṇa-kṛpā haya śigrha, anāyāse tare

In this way by kirtan and smaran you will get Krishna’s grace. But how to do it? It should be done sincerely from the core of the heart for Krishna’s satisfaction, and His personal associates or Absolute Counterpart, for the satisfaction of Guru, then Krishna will be gracious to us. You can get the compassion of Krishna. Then you will be rescued from the clutches of maya. If you do some bhajan just because you are told to do, the benefit will be attained much later, after a long time, but if done sincerely then you will be easily rescued from maya, you can attain Krsna-krpa very easily. (To pl check…...Said in Hindi, but could not catch words well even after much hearing)

śraddhā kari’ sādhu sange kṛṣṇa-nāma laye,
anartha sakala jāye niṣṭhā upajaye

With firm faith in the association of Sadhus chant the Holy Names, then all unwanted things (anarthas) leave you and you will get the eligibility to think and meditate on the eternal pastimes of the Lord.

prātaḥakāle nityalīlā karibe cintana,
cintite cintite bhāvera haibe sadhana

When chanting the Names of the Lord, within the Name are His form, qualities, pastimes (rupa, guna lila), and they will manifest. By transcendental mind (aprkrta mana) one can think and meditate.

Morning pastimes of Radha-Krishna:

rādhāṁ snāta-vibhūṣitāṁ vrajapayāhūtāṁ sakhībhiḥ prage
tad-gehe vihitānna-pāka-racanāṁ kṛṣṇāvaśeṣanām
kṛṣṇaṁ buddham avāpta-ḍhenu-sadanaṁ nirvyūḍha-go-dohanaṁ
susnātaṁ kṛta-bhojanaṁ saha-caraistaṁ cātha tāṁ cāśrye
(Sri Govinda-lilaamrta)

It has been shown here clearly that Radharani is always ready to serve. Our Worshipable Lords are Radha-Krishna. What did They show us from Their life?. Early morning after taking bath Radharani adorns Herself in beautiful ornaments. Just by wearing ornaments one cannot be considered sense-enjoyer. I have read here. Our Param Gurudev did not go outside on prachar, outside math, but he sent his associates. One of his associates was Param Pujyapad Bhakti Saranga Gosvami Maharaj, who by nature was simple and a brahmana by birth, and also senior god-brother of our Gurudev. Our Param Gurudev sent him away from him, to London on prachar. He chanted on mala and gave him, gave him mantra diksha and also sannyas. Later (before sending him to London) Prabhupad asked his sevak to get him a very good, costly coat. As India was not independent then, he said seeing your simple clothes the people there will not speak to you and ordered his sevak to make him wear the coat. Maharaj thought, what is this, I have become a sannyasi and I am made to wear coat. But if it is Gurudev’s orders what can I do? Then he said, Eh, not these slippers (padukas), get him a good costly pair of shoes and made him wear them. Maharaj was worried, I became a sannyasi and what I am made to wear, but Gurudev’s orders he has to obey. He said, if you are dressed like this they will speak to you, otherwise not. Now India is still under their rule, if you dress simple they will not speak to you, pay attention to what you speak. Saying thus, he convinced him and made him wear coat. Seeing all this, another devotee Sannyasi thought I will wear even more costlier coat than his and also costlier shoes than his, he purchased it from the shop and wore and came. And Prabhupad said, he is doomed because he gave up his old slippers. He himself adorned one and for another said, he is doomed because the latter one adorned himself by his own desire to show off to the world, and with ulterior motives. And for the other it was not his desire to wear, but accepted it to fulfill Gurudev’s will.