His Lessons in Identifying an Imitation Sadhu

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Once during Harikatha, Srila Gurudev narrated his own experience from a long time ago. He was in Agra with the prachar party. He explained that sometimes they did kirtan in a park near Taj Mahal. Usually when in Agra, Guru Maharaj and the devotees were welcomed by Matura Prasad Agrawal. He was a wealthy gentleman who owned oil mills. He had a lot of faith in Guru Maharaj and extended an open invitation to visit his house for Harikatha and kirtan anytime. 

On this particular occasion, Guru Maharaj went to Agra without informing Matura Prasad. When he reached his home, he saw four babajis doing kirtan. Without making his presence known, he left. He went back to the prachar party and told them to put their luggage on a horse cart and go to a dharmsala.

In the midst of their moving, Matura Prasad Agrawal saw Guru Maharaj and the devotees from his balcony and came running to him, saying, “Swamiji where are you going? Please come to my house!” Guru Maharaj explained that he thought it was best to not disturb you as we saw you already have guests. He told Guru Maharaj that there were so many rooms in his house and the other guests were leaving soon, so please stay. There was a lot of affection between them so Guru Maharaj could not decline the invitation. 

The babajis were expert mridanga players. Guru Maharaj said he’d never seen like that in Gaudiya math. They were doing asta paharia kirtan for 2 hours. At the conclusion, they were dancing in the kirtan and asked Guru Maharaj to come dance too. 

When the kirtan stopped, one babaji approached Guru Maharaj whom he’d never met or seen before. The babaji directly asked, “Swamiji, will you play the flute?” Guru Maharaj told him, “I don’t know how to play the flute. Please you should, you can.” 

After he had already started to walk away, the babaji suddenly turned back again and whispered in Guru Maharaj’s ear, “Swamiji will you play the flute?” Guru Maharaj repeated, “I don’t know how to play, Please, you play.”

Guru Maharaj thought that he had tried to share his art with him and he refused— it felt bad in his heart. So, he walked out of the house following behind him. As he approached the babaji, he saw that he had brought a cigarette out from his pocket and started to smoke. Immediately when he turned back and saw Guru Maharaj, he was ashamed and started explaining himself.  He told him that this was his habit and he cannot live without a cigarette. “If I don’t smoke a cigarette,” he said,  “I can’t get the energy to play mridanga.” 

Guru Maharaj asked him, is this why you were you asking me to play the flute? is this your flute? Apparently, at this time people used a lot of code words— cigarette was a flute, liquor some other word. 

Guru Maharaj emphasized that just a few minutes before the babaji had been playing mridanga in the public, and right after he could be seen smoking. What kind of impression will that leave? How will people trust sadhus? He told us this incident to warn us that a lot of people are showing they are sadhus, but they aren’t really sadhus. We have to be careful.

—Prahlad Das (Prince)



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