He Does Not Do Anything According to His Own Will and Desire

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We have to first surrender ourselves to Gurudeva and then we receive mantra from him.  As much as we surrender to him, that much we get. 

Ye yathā māṁ prapadyante 
tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham

(BG 4.11) 

[Translation]: As all surrender unto Me, I reward them accordingly. 

Our Gurudev has given himself one hundred percent to his Gurudeva and so Pūjyapād Kṛṣṇa Keshava Prabhu (our Param Gurudev's god-brother) told us that our Gurudev is tape recorder of Madhav Maharaj, meaning his bhāva (mood) is as it is of Param Gurudev. 

Pujyapad Puri Gosvami Maharaj said whom you see as Śrīla Tirtha Maharaj, I see him Madhava Maharaj. How did he get the bhāva of Param Gurudev? By gurugata-prāṇa (belonging to the spiritual master with one’s whole heart and soul). He knows nothing but guru.  He gave his everything to guru, cent percent. By simply following Gurudev's orders, did not do anything of his own will or desire. Param Gurudev also said Tirtha Maharaj is my heart, he understands my desires.  

There was one instance when Param Gurudev had given some work for Gurudev to go outside, but when he was about to go, Kṛishna Keshav Prabhu told him it is time for prasad, have prasad and then go.  So Gurudev sat down for prasadam and then Param Gurudev came and seeing him, said, “Oh, you did not go outside for that work?” And Srila Gurudev's eyes filled with tears, he got up immediately thinking he was not giving importance to Gurudev's work and sat down to fill his stomach. Feeling remorse, he went to complete the task. We heard this incidence from our guru-varga.  Can we do as he did? With eyes filled with tears, he left prasadam and went. Such was his gurugata-prāṇa. To know about this mood of his, we have to read Param Gurudev's full biography.

When Gurudeva was stationed at Jagannath Puri, efforts were going on for acquiring Prabhupad's birthplace. Some of our maṭh's prestigious persons asked Gurudev, "Is this bhakti to go to court, to go to government offices, and lawyers?" Gurudev said, “I do not know what is bhakti, I do not know whether I will attain bhakti, I only know I should follow the orders of Gurudev and please him.  

kṛṣṇa-bhakte kṛṣṇera guṇa sakali sañcāre

(CC 2.22.75)

[Translation]: All the good qualities of Kṛṣṇa gradually develop in Kṛṣṇa’s devotee.

All the qualities of Param Gurudev, all his mood, descended in Gurudev and so is called tape recorder of Param Gurudev.  Through his conduct, Gurudev has taught us how much we need to be surrendered to Gurudev.  Also, whatever he heard from Gurudev, (śrauta-vani) he would repeat them as per the orders of Param Gurudev; he repeated nothing of his own.  

Once a devotee in Bhatinda stated that Gurudev speaks the same thing always in hari-kathā, he does not know to speak hari-kathā. When those words fell on Gurudeva's ears, then he told, "Daily we sing the same maṅgalācaraṇa and kirtans for mangal-ārati, bhog-ārati, sandhyā-ārati, so do these kirtans become stale, old anytime? One who has not heard hari-kathā, given his mind to it, experienced it will say such words. Hari-kathā never turns stale is always fresh, new.” All other Gauḍīya maṭhs also say our Gurudeva's conduct, ācaraṇ is always ideal, best, nobody can find a fault in it.  The exchange of giving and taking (ādānapradāna) is internal and this exchange brings about loving relation.  

Gurudev gave us his heart's treasure, Kṛṣṇa-nāma.  Is there any difference between Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa nāma?  Pujyapad Sridhar Dev Goswami Maharaj asked Prabhupad, “Gurudev, I am attached to the maṭh for so many years, what did I get?” Prabhupad asked, “Did you get hāriṇam or not? Then what is left? What else do you need?  Hāriṇam is everything.  

yasmin prāpte sarvam idam prāptam bhavati

(Upaniṣads)

[Translation]:  By getting Him, everything is gained.

kṛṣṇa se tomāra, kṛṣṇa dīte pāro,tomāra śakati āche

(Ohe Vaiṣṇava Ṭhākura, Bhaktivinode Ṭhākur)

[Translation]: Kṛṣṇa is yours and you have the power to give Him to me. 

Gurudev gave us Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa-nāma.  So what do we have to give him?  Something that equals kṛṣṇa-nāma, we have to give our rare human birth in Gurudeva's sevā.  


—Śrīla Bhakti Kuśal Padmanābha Maharaj


spoken in Hindi, translated to English

excerpted from a hari-kathā in Mumbai, 21.1.2021 (morning)





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