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A True Servant—A True Master

by Swami Bhaktivedanta Madhava Maharaja | 2021 | 174,865 words

This page relates ‘Remembering verses from Bhagavad-gita maintains one’s composure,...� of book�"A True Servant, A True Master" which offers a collection of 128 handwritten letters by Sri Srimad Bhaktivedanta Vamana Gosvami Maharaja—a revered figure in the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition. This book showcases the profound spiritual insights and practical guidance on executing devotional service and addresses both Sadhakas (male practitioners) and Sadhikas (female practitioners) with equal respect.

Letter 97 - Remembering verses from 󲹲-ī maintains one’s composure,...

One who longs for his master’s īپ (pleasure) is priya (dear to him) � The mercy of guru and ղṣṇ dispels the conditioned soul’s anarthas and 貹󲹲 � Any function is made a success by heartfelt love and attachment � Remembering verses from 󲹲-ī maintains one’s composure

श्री श्री गुरु-गौराङ्गौ जयतः

śrī śrī guru-gaurāṅgau jayata�

Śrī Vinoda-bihārī Gauḍīya Ѳṻ 28 Haldar Bagan Lane, Kolkata�700004 12/10/1988

Ա貹

� No matter where I am for preaching, you are all advised to direct your letters to the Kolkata . Even if there is a delay, the letters etc. are redirected from Kolkata to wherever I am. I found out you were at the Ჹ屹 for seven days. I gather that the ṻ’s peaceful and bhajana-favourable environment has attracted you. It is quite natural that a mother is pleased to receive her son’s affectionate letters.

You want me in Chunchura for your son’s upcoming birthday. Because of my own bad luck, I have not been able to fulfil my mother’s wishes for the past two years, for which I am deeply pained. I keep making a special effort to fulfil your order, but yet this son, due to his own misfortune, ends up breaking his promise from time to time. Still, the hope is that the mother will forgive her son. The mother cannot keep her son at her side on his birthday or her son has been unlucky to lose this golden opportunity–neither of these is a matter of debate any longer, as the mother is situated far away enough to avoid increasing offences by quarrelling with her son.

What you wrote is definitely true: the master’s īپ (pleasure) is what the sevaka or 𱹾 especially longs for. Desiring the pleasure of one’s beloved is indeed what constitutes one’s endearing quality (priyatva) and is the special field and state of love and attachment. Mundane pride, arrogance, and egotism deviate the living entity from the path of bhajana by means of the hankering for personal happiness. It is by the mercy of , guru, and ղṣṇ that the filth of the conditioned souls� anarthas and 貹󲹲, which are contrary to bhajana, are dispelled and their hearts attain immaculate sanctity.

There is no reason for you to be filled with despair due to the enthusiasm and excitement that the devotees from northern Bengal had for guru-ū. Any sort of function is made a success by heartfelt love and attachment and faithful devotion. In your case, it is my well-contemplated opinion that your parental love for your son will grant you fulfilment in this regard. Your moral courage, your zeal and enthusiasm and, above all, your nurturing parental love will adorn your preparations and ceremony with success in every way. There is no reason for any sort of negative thought in this regard. �峾Բ haiyā cā̃da dharār –a dwarf (峾Բ) longing to touch the moon� is one thing, and the loving mother Aditi attracting Upendra-ṛṣṇa in the form of 峾Բ is another sort of affair. Know that neither 峾Բ nor anyone under His supervision has any objection to the aforementioned functions in Chunchura city. You will make all necessary arrangements in this regard.

I understand that you received news of my physical illness from the 󳾲ī during 鲹ٳ-ٰ in 屹ī貹. From the 15th October of 1987 till December I was bedridden both in Kolkata and in Deoghar. Later, during the time of Ratha in 屹ī貹, and again in Barobisha I was bedridden for a week. Right now, this sort of poor health has been written or predestined according to my lunar sign and the ascendant. You have to endure what you do not have a remedy for. 

If I consult various teachings, like the [following] ī’s, I find the aphorisms (yoga-ūٰ) I need to maintain my composure in regard to all these issues.

मात्रा-स्पर्शास� तु कौन्ते� शीतोष्�-सु�-दुःखदा
mātrā-sparśās tu kaunteya śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkhadā [2.14]

“The discomforts of summer and winter, happiness and distress are little more than sensory stimulation� 

And,

दुःखेष्व� अनुद्विग्न-मनाः सुखेषु विगत-स्पृहा�
duḥkheṣv anudvigna-manā� sukheṣu vigata-spṛhā� [2.56]

“One should not let the mind be disturbed by sorrow and be free from desires induced by joy�,

Right now, I am returning to Kolkata to go to an E.N.T. doctor for a check-up of my ears. I can barely hear anything in my right ear. Testing will take up to ten days, and after that, therapy will start. If the cause of the condition is mucous, then medicine will treat it, otherwise, I will end up having to get an operation (micro-surgery). Right now, a full check-up is necessary. My body is very weak. I am nearly sleepless and am hyperventilating. What will I do in this condition? I cannot really figure that out. I do not want to worry and upset you by writing you about my sickness, but it does not work to not tell you anything, because at every step there is an opportunity (place) for blame and criticism. I think it is impossible for me to be completely free of that. I have informed you of my physical condition. Please do not say anything to anyone. I am compelled to go out, even though my body is ill. If I do not go out, I will not collect anything, and it would be very difficult to keep my ṃs running. I have many expenses, and many do not want to understand that. Know you have my well-wishes. Iti

Forever your well-wisher,
Śrī Bhaktivedānta 峾Բ

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