Calcutta, India — Wednesday, July 18th
As luck would have it
In the morning I discover that some devotees arrived late last night, and were given a room on our first floor, above the nat mandir. They leave early in the morning, before breakfast, for Mayapur...
After they have gone, I go out onto the balcony at the end of the corridor, and as I round the corner, I see a crow pecking at the contents of a shiny metal plate that one of the devotees has left out on the balcony wall, next to the garbage can.
I shoo the crow off, and see that it is an untouched plate of prasadam. (I guess these devotees were not very hungry last night.) Not only is this a very nice plate of prasadam — potato subji, a puri, and three different kinds of sweets — but it is maha-prasadam (the puri has a tulasi leaf on it)...
"How unfortunate these devotees are!" I think. How does that verse from the Mahabharat go again?
maha-prasade govinde / nama-brahmani vaisnave
svalpa-punyavatam rajan / visvaso naiva jayate
"Those who have not performed enough good deeds have no faith in maha-prasada, Lord Govinda, the Holy Name, the brahmanas, and the Vaishnavas."
It's funny how karma works, isn't it? These devotees did not have enough faith (visvaso) to properly respect this sanctified food that came from the plate offered directly to the Lord (maha-prasada) because they have not accumulated enough pious credits (punya). And how did this lack of piety play out karmic-ly? They were not hungry last night!
But the crow was hungry. And his hunger gave him such good fortune! Like that other early bird, the fortunate mynah, he is accumulating ajnata sukriti — unconsciously making his life auspicious...
And as for those devotees on their way to Mayapur? Well, perhaps there will be more opportunities for them to "get lucky" (acquire sukriti) as they blunder around the holy dham...
Calcutta, India — Saturday, July 21st
Credit worthy
After the noon arati, when we all go to the prasadam room for lunch, I see the same poor old man from Rich man, poor man sitting patiently on the bench outside, waiting to get a plate of prasadam.
I'm pretty sure it is the same man: obviously down on his luck, no shirt or shoes... only now he is wearing a tattered and torn gumcha instead of the longer lungi. And he is still very respectful, offering his obeisance to all the sannyasis and devotees as they enter the prasadam hall.
Before honoring prasadam — before reverentially partaking of the meal that has been sanctified by first being offered to guru and Krishna — we chant this verse (which is written on the wall of the prasadam room):
maha-prasade govinde / nama-brahmani vaisnave
svalpa-punyavatam rajan / visvaso naiva jayate
"Those who have not amassed sufficient pious credits will never be able to properly honor and respect maha-prasada, Lord Govinda, the Holy Name, the brahmanas, and the Vaishnavas."
And while the poor man patiently waits for his prasadam, outside the temple gate, no doubt, harried businessmen still hurry by, running after riches, unaware of the immense fortune being freely distributed just a few feet away, if only they had accumulated enough pious credits (punya) to realize and to appreciate the value of these things...
Here in our Sree Chaitanya Saraswata Krishnanushilana Sangha the Vaishnavas and the brahmanas, after singing the glories of the Holy Name and worshiping Sri Sri Radha Madana Mohan during the noon arati, respectfully partake of the maha-maha-prasadam that has first been tasted by Srila Gurudeva, and distribute that "grace from guru and God" to all who have enough piety to simply show up to receive this blessing.
Previous | Archive | Tags | Top 10 | Latest Blog | Next
URL: http://www.imonk.net/07/july3.html
Layout by iMonk
— July 21st, 2007.