He Gives The Fan to The New Boy Who Has Come

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The year I joined the maṭh, due to some reason Guruji could not come to Vrndavan and I used to wonder when will I have his darshan?  Fortunately the next year Guruji arrived and stayed in the guest house.  I saw Prananatha Prabhu (now Sripad Tyagi Maharaj ) fanning Guruji and I thought when will I get such fortune to serve Guruji? 

Then suddenly Guruji said, "Prananath, give the fan to the new boy who has come," and I felt extremely happy.  He is antaryāmī, not ordinary. Then I fanned him for some time.  Later when I did dandavat-praṇām to him, he said, "Oh! You have come? Very good; you stay now." In my childhood at home, I had darshan of many saints, Guruji among them. He is antaryāmī and so he indicated that the same boy has come.  

When Sacinandan Prabhu (now Bhajanonmukh Maharaj) was serving Guruji prasad, I would somehow maneuver myself into his bhajan-kutir and he would say, "Come, come... why feel shy? Come near me." He stroked me on my back and told me to stay in the maṭh and I will attain peace.  How fortunate am I?  Also, he said, "I heard you are a brahmin's son." I said you are antaryāmī, you know everything. Like this, I joined his seva.  

I would go to the garden and pluck Tulasi. Param Pujyapad Bhakti Prasad Puri Gosvami Maharaj called me to come near him and said,  "Do you what mantra to chant while plucking Tulasi?" I uttered the mantra. He asked how do you know? Harinam has not been bestowed on you as of yet.  He also stroked my head.  So I am fixed here even today.  Otherwise, I would have been caught by maya.  

When coming from home I had brought a photograph of Sri Radha Krishna wrapped in a cloth. I took it and placed it in the mandir. Maṭhuradas Prabhu shouted, "What unclean thing you have kept here?"  I said, "Babaji you please open it and see." He said, why should I?  You open it and show it.  And when I opened it, Puri Maharaj exclaimed "Oh, They are Sri Radha Krishna!"

Our Puri Maharaj gave me a lot of affection.  After I got harinam, he told me your first service is to clean washrooms. I cleaned all the washrooms in the maṭh.  Later he asked if I had done it properly.  I answered,"Yes, Maharaj, by your mercy." Later Puri Maharaj wanted to have a look at the bathrooms I washed. I had washed them so well, so clean that one can sit for eating prasadam there.  He was so happy and called all the brahmacharis and showed how nicely I had done the seva. Then he gave me the service of sweeping the maṭh premises, outside and backyard and I did it so well that not even a small stone or little mud can be seen.  Guruji also was very affectionate to me.    

—Sripad Karunamay Brahmachari (Goalpara)

Excerpt from a transcription-translation from Hindi to English
Listen to original audio on Youtube:  GOKUL INDIA
spoken on 1.5.2020.



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