“Prabhu, do you have time to catch up?” The message arrived at 9 a.m.
A few minutes later, a message from another devotee came, “Are you free for a walk today?”
As I was replying to those two messages, a third message came, “I haven’t seen you for a long time. When can we meet?”
One of those three messages was from a devotee who stayed in the ashram not long ago. Now, he lives and works far from the temple. We went on a walk in the village.
Although he has no association with devotees and no temple near him, he began sharing the wisdom he learned in the ashram with the local youth in his town.
Under the guidance of his spiritual master, although very shy by nature, he came out of his comfort zone and took the challenge, namely to share Krishna with others. First, he began with short talks at the university where a few people became interested and wanted to learn more. From one talk a week, he is now doing three programs and inviting people to his home where he feeds them food offered to Krishna, and reads with them from the scriptures. A group of thirty people are now regularly hearing from him.
Although this devotee is not a sannyasi or a big preacher, he shares spiritual knowledge with others. His program is simple. He maintains his purity by following the instruction of his spiritual master and he is sincerely trying to share the knowledge that he received from his seniors.
It was such an inspiring meeting. As we walked into the village, one car stopped next to us. A young English couple, both chubby and slightly intoxicated, pointed fingers at our dhoties and asked, “Who are you guys? You look very interesting!”
“We are Hare Krishna’s” I confidently said, which is very unusual for me to say.
The girl in the car, turning toward her boyfriend said, “Yes, Hare Krishna’s, of course”. They looked at us for a few seconds and drove away.
They had been intrigued by our appearance and inquired about who we are. This is the beginning of their spiritual life.
“Perhaps I’m also sharing spiritual knowledge!” I said to my friend.
Later that day I met the other two devotees who also shared experiences in their spiritual life.
Every devotee has a unique story to share.
In the Srimad Bhagavatam there is a beautiful verse explaining the benefits of speaking Krishna Katha in the association of devotees;
Srimad Bhagavatam 10.1.16: When one asks questions about the pastimes and characteristics of Lord Vāsudeva, Kṛṣṇa, three varieties of men are purified: the speaker or preacher, he who inquires, and the people in general who listen.
Today my friends inspired me with their enthusiasm and determination to practice devotional service. Although they came to me for inspiration, it was I who got inspired by hearing from them.
Ananta Gopal Das
20.10.2024
Bhakti Wisdom 