Letter No. 6

To, Nrisingha Prasad Mukherji & his wife:

     Those who have the fund of prayer and devotion to back them, do not care to be at the beck and call of the Captain, for they have fully paid for their passage but those who are absolutely helpless like me and have not the strength of prayer and devotion to back them, have no other alternative than to take Name of the kind Lord and to sing His praise. Of course, He will be kind to them.

     Intercourse of a Maharaja with a Maharaja, Amir with an Amir, Yogi with a Yogi and a beggar with a beggar will be appropriate; intercourse between any two of different status is decidedly unhappy. Those who are rich in prayer and devotion may talk of Ishwara, Brahma etc; but I who am so poor and helpless must look up to Gouranga who is ever ready to befriend the miserable and helpless, and must seek the company of the shepherd boy (Krishna). Here there is no necessity of prayer, mystical ceremonies, meditation and the like; a little love is all that is required. Krishna is so merciful that He loves the one who does not love Him and is kind to him who has only malice for Him. Why shall I shun Him to beg at the king’s door. It is preferable to live in wilderness in the company of one who is all love. I care not for liberation, neither do I covet the position of Brahma and Indra. All I want is to be the servant of his servants. Moved by mercy for the helpless, the all-merciful Hari showed mercy to all in the form of Gouranga and Nityananda. When we think of the immense trouble our Lord has undergone for us, our heart bleeds.

     When a man becomes a Vaishnava, he is regarded as an outcaste; for being selfless, he lives like an inanimate object. In common parlance, it is said, “When a man loses his caste he becomes a Vaishnava.” When a man’s natural emotions, namely pride, arrogance, temptation, infatuation, desire, shame, fear, abhorrence, malice etc. are present in him, he cannot become a Vaishnava. A Vaishnava runs against the current, and this is what is called the contrary course of Jamuna. Gradually running against the current, he reaches the seat of origin. Beings generally float down with the current and get farther and farther away from the place of safety. They go ducking along and find not a moment of rest. Would that we become Vaishnavas, losing everything! The melody of Krishna’s flute only causes the contrary course of the Jamuna. Running against the current one hears Krishna’s flute and proceeding gradually, he sees the Player and the aim of his life is attained. But to those who run down with the current, the sweet melody of Krishna’s flute becomes gradually fainter until it is altogether lost, and they become the victims of misery that gradually grows in intensity. Hence I ask you to be a mere waif (un-owned person). Be a Vaishnava casting aside caste. Once casteless you will not have to think of others and your meal is ready everywhere. That is why people say, “The four corners of Chaitanya are blank.” (The four corners are Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha).

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