Unmotivated Devotional Service

Date: 2006-04-17 Author: Sajjana Priya das

Hare Krishna Prabhujis and Matajis, Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada and Srila Gurudev.

Srimad Bhagavatam 10th Canto 80th chapter deals with pastime of Lord Sri Krishna with Sudama Vipra. Sudama was such an exalted that he was always maintaining his life in simple devotion to the Lord but in most impoverished condition. One day, Sudama Vipra as directed by his wife decided to meet Lord Shri Krishna to request some wealth to maintain their family. The Vipras wife begged four handful of flat rice from her neighbours and tied in a torn cloth to be offered to the Lord. While going to the Lord, he was thinking that whether I will get the audience of the Lord. But the Lord received him like a saintly person and worshipped him beyond his expectations. After reminiscing the Gurukul days of friendship, the Lord requested him to give the gift the Brahamana has brought. The Lord grabbed the chipped rice from Sudama's hand and put one palm of rice in His mouth. He was about to take the second one, but Rukminidevi interfered and made a wonderful statement,One's prosperity depends simply on Your satisfaction and therefore forbade Him for taking the second one because She Herself does not have enough to offer to Sudama if Krishna had taken another mouthful of that rice.

Sudama was not informed of the prosperity and without this knowledge he went back to his place the next day thinking of the excellent hospitality he has received from the Lord. He was happy that nothing was given by the Lord because the wealth would intoxicate him and make him forget the Lord. But as soon as he entered his place he could see entire prosperity has been showered by the Lord and while contemplating spoke the following verse from SB 10.81.34:

nanv abruvāṇo diśate samakṣaṁ yāciṣṇave bhūry api bhūri-bhojaḥ parjanya-vat tat svayam īkṣamāṇo dāśārhakāṇām ṛṣabhaḥ sakhā me

After all, my friend Kṛṣṇa, the most exalted of the Dāśārhas and the enjoyer of unlimited wealth, noticed that I secretly intended to beg from Him. Thus even though He said nothing about it when I stood before Him, He actually bestowed upon me the most abundant riches. In this way He acted just like a merciful rain cloud.

In the purport Visvanatha Chakravarti Thakura has given a deeper understanding of the Lord's transcendental qualities.

Sri Krishna is bhuri-bhoja, the unlimited enjoyer. He did not tell Sudama how He was going to fulfill his unspoken request because, according to Srila Vishvanatha Cakravarti, He was thinking at the time, My" dear friend has given Me these grains of rice, which are greater than all the treasures I own. Even though in his own house he had no such gift to bring Me, he took the trouble of begging it from a neighbor. Therefore it is only proper that I give him something more valuable than all My possessions. But nothing is equal to or greater than what I possess, so all I can do is give him such meager things as the treasures of , and other demigods." Embarrassed at being unable to properly reciprocate His devotee's offering, Lord Krsna bestowed His favor on the brahmana silently. The Lord acted just like a magnanimous rain cloud which provides the necessities of life for everyone near and far but feels ashamed that its rain is too insignificant a gift to give in return for the abundant offerings that farmers make to it. Out of shame the cloud may wait until nighttime, when the farmers are asleep, before watering their fields.

The chiefs of the Dāśārhas clan, with whom Lord Krsna is identified in this verse, were especially renowned for their generosity.The quality of the Lord in not broadcasting Himself inspite of giving so much opulence to Sudama Vipra is highly worthy of mentioning it. Normally when we give charity to the temples we always desire the name and fame to be inscribed in the temple and our pratiṣṭha āśā is satisfied. Even while doing devotional service we want to be noticed and recognized with the intention of getting appreciation, but Lord Krishna has instructed any activity is to be done as a matter of duty without expectation of results.

Two years back I was on a visit to temples called (nine temples of Vishnu) near South of Madras (). These temples are very old and some were in remote areas not easily accessible and I thought these temples would not be maintained properly. But to my surprise all the temples were beautifully maintained and three times arati and bhoga were being offered to the deities of Lord Vishnu. This is maintained by one of the oldest motor company of south (TVS) without any name inscribed in any of the temples. The priests were all in praise for the company for taking care of them as well as the deities and temple maintenance of the temple very nicely and all the basic facilities for them to stay near the temple itself.

I pray to the Lord and Gurudev that I am engaged in service of the Lord without any motivation, without any desire for name and fame while doing devotional service and without any interruption so that someday this wretched mind of mine would come to senses to do unalloyed devotional service which alone can attract the Lord and nothing else.

Thank you very much. Yours in service of Srila Prabhupada and Srila Gurudev, Sajjana Priya Krishna das Abu Dhabi.