The Building of the Ashram

[suchandra]

Don’t know where in sastra this story about sadhu read below is mentioned, but it is obviously meant to point out how materialy attached we are.

 

HH Sacinandana Swami, address of welcome, Festival Of Inspiration, New Vrindavan: “There was once a very good sadhu, a saint who had the desire to build an ashram so that he could preach about Krishna. But people were not giving donations. The building of the ashram was not taking place. So he asked the Lord to appear and give him a blessing.

And because he was such a good devotee the Lord appeared to him and asked, what do you wish? “I want to have a blessing”. “Ok", said the Lord, "you can bless the people whom you meet that they can go immediately back to Godhead even without a complicated sadhana. The only condition is, they have to go right now.” “Unbelievable”, the sadhu said, “I will get a lot of donations by that method – by giving this promise”. He started with a young couple who just had their marriage. He said, “Good news, you can go back to Godhead, the only condition is that, you have to go right now.” The young couple said, “Oups, we just married and we want our child to come. This is a wrong time really”. We have a newly wedded among us, Ananda-Tirtha.

 

 

 

 

 

“But go to our parents, they’re old and bitter and frustrated with life, they will go back to Godhead very quickly. They will want to go.” So the sadhu went to see the parents but the parents also said, “Are you crazy, finally our good for nothing son has married and now something good will come from him – a child - we want to see this with our own eyes and hold the child in our hands, we’re not prepared to go home back to Godhead. Come later.” The sadhu knew enough. He knew that most probably the most people of the world are too busy to go back to Godhead. He waited and waited until he received news that there was a man who had just merely survived a terrible accident. This man was hovering between live and death. There was a 50% chance that he would die. So the sadhu came to him. The man was lying there bandaged all over. “Good news you can give up all this miserable life of pain – you can go to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1>kingdom</st1><st1></st1></st1:place> of God, only condition is that you have to go right now.” What do you think was the response of the man? You will be shocked to hear his response. His response was: “You should pray that I can stay in this world. Not that I go. I have just made a very promising business deal and I wish it to come through.” The sadhu cried bitter tears of frustration. Then the Lord appeared before him. The sadhu said, “They’re not interested to go back home back to Godhead.” <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> smiled and said, “Never mind, what about you – you know the value of going back home to Godhead. You’re a sadhu, you can go now. The only condition is that you have to go right now.”

“This is not the most opportune time to go right now said the sadhu, I’m just in a project, I want to build your temple and you know, if I’m not staying in the world who will preach your glories? ”Imagine Bhakta Joe, Krishna would appear before you and would say, you can go back home back to Godhead just now, imagine Sadhana Siddhi, this would be before you, what would you say? It’s a good question, would you say, “my dear Lord could you please wait a little, could we not do it after the Festival Of Inspiration? Or after my project, my University project has come through? Or after the process of restructuring this particular part of our movement, could we just wait for this time please, it is more opportune.” The sadhu didn’t want to go and as he turned more and more materialistic he began to preach to the people, “You can go back to Godhead, but according to your choice, whenever you want.”

Yes, Prabhupada has said that most of the people are not interested to go back to Godhead, only a very few men and women are interested in this but those who’re prepared the Lord is eager to help them in all respects.

So I believe that this Festival of Inspiration can bring us in contact with the ultimate things in our lives. Thank you very much.

 

 

 

Lecture transcript from http://www.nectarflow.com/archives/category/media/audio/

[Murali_Mohan_das]

False choice, perhaps?

 

The fully-realized soul can build a temple here on Earth while residing (in consciousness) in Goloka, no?

 

Still, it's a valuable meditation to consider this story, isn't it?

 

 

Don’t know where in sastra this story about sadhu read below is mentioned, but it is obviously meant to point out how materialy attached we are.

 

HH Sacinandana Swami, address of welcome, Festival Of Inspiration, New Vrindavan: “There was once a very good sadhu, a saint who had the desire to build an ashram so that he could preach about Krishna. But people were not giving donations. The building of the ashram was not taking place. So he asked the Lord to appear and give him a blessing.

And because he was such a good devotee the Lord appeared to him and asked, what do you wish? “I want to have a blessing”. “Ok", said the Lord, "you can bless the people whom you meet that they can go immediately back to Godhead even without a complicated sadhana. The only condition is, they have to go right now.” “Unbelievable”, the sadhu said, “I will get a lot of donations by that method – by giving this promise”. He started with a young couple who just had their marriage. He said, “Good news, you can go back to Godhead, the only condition is that, you have to go right now.” The young couple said, “Oups, we just married and we want our child to come. This is a wrong time really”. We have a newly wedded among us, Ananda-Tirtha.

 

 

 

 

 

“But go to our parents, they’re old and bitter and frustrated with life, they will go back to Godhead very quickly. They will want to go.” So the sadhu went to see the parents but the parents also said, “Are you crazy, finally our good for nothing son has married and now something good will come from him – a child - we want to see this with our own eyes and hold the child in our hands, we’re not prepared to go home back to Godhead. Come later.” The sadhu knew enough. He knew that most probably the most people of the world are too busy to go back to Godhead. He waited and waited until he received news that there was a man who had just merely survived a terrible accident. This man was hovering between live and death. There was a 50% chance that he would die. So the sadhu came to him. The man was lying there bandaged all over. “Good news you can give up all this miserable life of pain – you can go to the <st1:place w:st="on"><st1>kingdom</st1><st1></st1></st1:place> of God, only condition is that you have to go right now.” What do you think was the response of the man? You will be shocked to hear his response. His response was: “You should pray that I can stay in this world. Not that I go. I have just made a very promising business deal and I wish it to come through.” The sadhu cried bitter tears of frustration. Then the Lord appeared before him. The sadhu said, “They’re not interested to go back home back to Godhead.” <st1:place w:st="on">Krishna</st1:place> smiled and said, “Never mind, what about you – you know the value of going back home to Godhead. You’re a sadhu, you can go now. The only condition is that you have to go right now.”

“This is not the most opportune time to go right now said the sadhu, I’m just in a project, I want to build your temple and you know, if I’m not staying in the world who will preach your glories? ”Imagine Bhakta Joe, Krishna would appear before you and would say, you can go back home back to Godhead just now, imagine Sadhana Siddhi, this would be before you, what would you say? It’s a good question, would you say, “my dear Lord could you please wait a little, could we not do it after the Festival Of Inspiration? Or after my project, my University project has come through? Or after the process of restructuring this particular part of our movement, could we just wait for this time please, it is more opportune.” The sadhu didn’t want to go and as he turned more and more materialistic he began to preach to the people, “You can go back to Godhead, but according to your choice, whenever you want.”

Yes, Prabhupada has said that most of the people are not interested to go back to Godhead, only a very few men and women are interested in this but those who’re prepared the Lord is eager to help them in all respects.

So I believe that this Festival of Inspiration can bring us in contact with the ultimate things in our lives. Thank you very much.

 

 

 

Lecture transcript from http://www.nectarflow.com/archives/category/media/audio/

[suchandra]

 

False choice, perhaps?

 

The fully-realized soul can build a temple here on Earth while residing (in consciousness) in Goloka, no?

 

Still, it's a valuable meditation to consider this story, isn't it?

Thanks for sharing your thoughts, looks like that this story is made up and not to be found in any Vaishnava literature. Somehow this episode gives the impression that spiritual advancement is equivallent with readiness to give up your present body. A devotee who uses this body for performing devotional service - why should he give up this body as a sign of spiritual advancement?

Rather it should be understood that this is Krishna's arrangement to be here and perform spiritual activities. Why think otherwise, "I better give up this body and go to the spiritual world"? Of course when we consider the activities of a devotees as unneccessary and dispensible one might ask this question, "am I ready to give up this body or am I attached?"

On the other hand a devotee who performs important spiritual activities for uplifting humanity might be attached to the body in that sense that this body enables the execution of devotional activities. To blame a devotee who is fully engaged in transcendental activity that he seems to be attached to his body is somewhat questionable.