I am not...

I am realizing more and more that I am not and never really was a scholar, not in the sense that academics are, gathering interesting facts in enormous detail.

Nor am I a journalist, nor an activist. Nor a preacher.

I only aspire in some lifetime to become a lover of God.

I would just like to be like this description of a Vaishnava by my parama guru, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur:

vaiṣṇava dehete thāke śrī-kṛṣṇera śakti |
sei deha sparśe anye haya kṛṣṇa-bhakti ||52||

Krishna’s potencies take up residence in the Vaishnava’s body
so that by merely touching him, one develops devotion to Krishna.

vaiṣṇava adharāmṛta āra pada jala |
vaiṣṇavera pada-rajaḥ tina mahā-bala ||53||

The remnants of the Vaishnava’s food, water that has washed his feet,
dust from his lotus feet—these are three powerful spiritual substances.

vaiṣṇava-nikaṭe yadi baise kata-kṣaṇa |
deha haite haya kṛṣṇa-śakti niḥsaraṇa ||54||

If one should sit near a Vaishnava for a few moments,
he will feel the spiritual power exuding from his body.

sei śakti śraddhāvān hṛdaye paśiyā |
bhaktira udaya kare deha kāṅpāiyā ||55||

That spiritual potency then flows into a faithful person’s heart,
causing devotion to well up in him and his body to tremble.

ye basila vaiṣṇavera nikaṭe śraddhāya |
tāhāra hṛdaye bhakti ha-ibe udaya ||56||

So anyone who sits down near a devotee with an attitude of faith
will certainly experience the awakening of devotion in his heart.


 prathame āsibe tāra mukhe kṛṣṇa-nāma |
nāmera prabhāve pābe sarva-guṇa-grāma ||57||


 The immediate symptom is that he will begin chanting Krishna’s name;
then, by the influence of the Name, he will obtain all good qualities.

(Bhaktivinoda Thakur, Harināma-cintāmaṇi)

I suspect that Bhaktivinoda Thakur was talking about some mahatma that he met in Puri in 1870-1875, who seems to have impressed him a great deal as an ideal bhajananandi Vaishnava. Perhaps he first felt this power of a bhajananandi Vaishnava then and was remembering that when he wrote this.

Comments

Anonymous said…
" 'I am not, nor am I another; I am only energies.' He should, at every instant, simply through recollection maintain that attitude of mind."

Qt. 22d.1 Page 197 Abhinavagupta - The Kula Ritual: As Elaborated in Chapter 29 of the Tantraloka. Translated by John R. Dupuche.
Monday, 25 May, 2015
Anonymous said…

Prema Prayojana, the goal of life:

vihāyāṣu kumbheṣu kim-artham anudhāvanam ║173║
Monday, 25 May, 2015
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