Devotee: Lord Caitanya said that sincere intelligence is that of one who chants the Lord's name, Hari, and gives up all pretentiousness—stops pretending. Is this what makes the qualified disciple?
Gour Govinda Swami: What do you say?
Devotee: I read yesterday that Lord Caitanya says—I was reading a biography of Gaura Kiśora Dāsa Bābājī, so I don't know the exact quote. It was said that Lord Caitanya explained sincere intelligence is of one who chants the Lord's name and gives up pretending.
Gour Govinda Swami: Yes. Yes. No pretension. That is a true disciple. Guru says, chant the pure name—offenseless name.
If your chanting is offenseless, then it is the pure name, which is non-different from Kṛṣṇa. Then you get Kṛṣṇa. Yes. So that is a true disciple. You'll become happy—no material distress, no unhappiness.
Transcendental pleasure, transcendental happiness—always with Kṛṣṇa, through love, pure love of Kṛṣṇa. Then Kṛṣṇa is always with you. You are dealing with Kṛṣṇa, talking with Kṛṣṇa, dancing with Kṛṣṇa, reciprocating with Kṛṣṇa. Yes. Everything with Kṛṣṇa.
That is the success of human life—human birth. That is, when you can achieve such stage, then one is a true disciple. One is a true disciple. And guru becomes so much... guru becomes so much happy and pleased. "Yes, I achieved success in my guruship." Yes, because one disciple came out. He will feel this, yes.
Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Mahārāja said—just prior to his disappearance—he called all his disciples: "Assemble all disciples. Assemble." Then he gave his last instruction, advice, and he said, "Nobody is my disciple. Nobody."
What is the meaning, such a powerful Vaiṣṇava, you see… [unclear] He said nobody is my disciple, because nobody truly followed his instruction. That is why. They are twisting or adding some deliberation to it.
He said, if one comes out as a true disciple, pure devotee, that means he gets Kṛṣṇa, then I will think that my profession as guru, my guruship, has been successful. I have achieved success, I will think like that. He said like that. You should understand what he says. There is a deep purport in it. Yes.
This means all are pretenders, all are pretending. No true disciple. Follow!
Devotee: I have one question.
Gour Govinda Swami: Yes.
Devotee: Some devotee tell me… This is a stupid question… that we have to follow the guru like a dog.
Gour Govinda Swami: Guru like a dog?
Devotee: No, yes, we are like a dog…
Gour Govinda Swami: That is the whole idea—Vaiṣṇava Ṭhākura, tomāra kukura.
Devotee: I think myself there are three kinds of dog: a dog which goes everywhere; there is a dog with a bad master, who beats him, finishes him; and there is a dog with a good master. He is good because the master is like a friend and the dog is happy.
Gour Govinda Swami: You see, there is no question of the happiness of the dog, there is only question of the happiness of the master. Do you follow? Happiness of the master.
Devotee: [Inaudible]
Gour Govinda Swami: You see, you see… You listen to me—Vaiṣṇava Ṭhākura tomāra kukura. Yes, O Vaiṣṇava Ṭhākura, I’m your dog. Dog means a faithful dog—always ready to execute the order. What master says, he immediately executes it.
Devotee: [Inaudible]
Gour Govinda Swami: Do you follow, Brajeśvarī?
Devotee: [Inaudible]
Gour Govinda Swami: That is dog. A faithful dog sits here, next to the door, very alert—twenty-four hours alert. Even when the master says, "Hat!"—immediately the dog is alert. That is dog. Vaiṣṇava Ṭhākura tomāra kukura.
As you said, there are two types of dogs: one is loitering on the street—a street dog—he doesn’t have a master. But one who has a master, he has a belt around his neck. Then that is recognition that that dog has a master.
So we have put this belt around your neck—that you are a tamed dog, not a street dog who is loitering. Loitering in the street—you have a master. This belt is there. This means you have a master; you cannot go hither and thither according to your free will. No! Always waiting, twenty-four hours alert for what master says, and that you have to do.
Under full control, no free will. Finished. Free will is finished. As soon as you have accepted master and the belt is tied, this free will is finished. Free will works up to that point—to accept a master, that’s it. If you have no free will you cannot accept a master. Free will is granted only to accept a bona fide master, and to become his dog.
As soon as you accept a bona fide master and the belt is tied up—no free will. Free will is now finished. Do you follow, Brajeśvarī? Yes… And the dog works for the pleasure and satisfaction of the master—not for his own pleasure and satisfaction. That is a dog. A true dog.
If my master is pleased, that is a true dog—not for his own pleasure. Twenty-four hours he is alert—yes, twenty-four hours alert. Execute the orders of the master—yes, always alert. A dog has that nature.
And on that matter, we have the same—svāno-nidrā, kākā-snāna, vāpad-dhyāna, svāno-nidrā, alpa-bhojana, videsa-vāsa. Vidyārthī-pañca-lakṣaṇa. Do you follow?
Five. Five symptoms. Five. Five also—there. One is vidyārthī—one who wants to get this education. We are imparting spiritual education—transcendental education. Brahmacārī is a student. So, these five things.
Svāno-nidrā—you should sleep like a dog. That means, dog sleeps, but if there is some sound—gets up. Not sleeping and snoring while an elephant comes to treat you—no. Not to sleep like that. No, not to sleep like Kumbhakarṇa, so lazy—that is wrong. Svāno-nidrā, that is one symptom. He’s always alert. Always alert—even in sleep, still alert. Little sound, or some little whisper, he wakes up—hears it. Do you follow?
Kākā-snāna—don’t spend so much time in bathing. Bath like a crow—a crow, kāka. Crow takes one minute, less than one minute for bathing. Then finished. Not so much time. Just spending so much time for this body—cleaning, changing—that is not the spirit.
Svāno-nidrā, kākā-snāna, vāpad-dhyāna. Bhoka means that [...] piece, with a long leaf. [Unclear] White bird, long, long, long—very long beak—crane. Then vāpasana—what is that you said? Crane? Yes, stork. Stork? Yes. White bird? Long legs, long beak. Stork or crane—yes, crane.
Stands at the pool—concentrating on the tiny fish—then standing still. Concentrating intensely. That’s vāpad-dhyāna. We should have such a concentrated attention as a stork, crane. We should have that—just concentrate like a stork. You understand?
Kākā-snāna, vāpad-dhyāna, svāno-nidrā, alpa-bhojana—little, little food, not heavy. Not heavy, heavy eating daily—no. Little, little food—alpa-bhojana. Then body will be light. You understand?
Four—four things. The fifth is videsa-vāsa—stay in guru’s āśrama. Give up—leave your home, parental home. Life in guru’s āśrama. That is life sentence. Then you can have spiritual education. That is said for any student—vidyārthī.
But when we speak about these brahmacārīs—getting spiritual education—it was more than that. But still, if you don’t control, we become lazy and eat too much. Laziness will develop. No concentration. Fickle mind—mind always fickles.
So much sleep, more than… Six hours sleep, snoring—like Kumbhakarṇa. Spending so much time in taking care of this body—cleaning, bathing—so much. Unnecessary. Where is your time to cultivate this transcendental knowledge and understand Kṛṣṇa? Where is the time?
Then you say, "No time. No time. No time. I'm so busy. So busy. So busy." What business? What business? Resting time—wasting your lifespan. Day by day, it's getting shorter, shorter. So what is it doing? Alright. Thank you. Fine.
That's the last one of… Treat it that that cloth will be removed, new cloth will be put, then new color will be there. Within that period, this work goes on. Then they come out. They say nava-yauvana-veśa—last day before Ratha-yātrā, Guṇḍicā Ratha-yātrā—they give darśana. That is a dress—youthful figure with dress, youthful figure, nice new color. They give darśana.
Next day, they come out to the ratha—car festival. These people also, the system is there. And it is according to Skanda Purāṇa. It's mentioned, all these things, in Skanda Purāṇa. Well, Jagannātha—you understand? Yes. This is according to śāstra. That's what they were mentioning. They want to do it.
Oh, I think in the West they don't do it. They do? Like, go to Jagannātha and leave Him for fifteen days and… what? They don't do? Take out that cloth? That—what is that? Cloth? Plaster? Like a cloth? Yes. Then put the new color over it. They do it. They don’t do it, but we do it here.
That is according to śāstra-vidhi and according to Skanda Purāṇa. We do it here. That is procedure. That should be done. So during that period, they don’t give the darśana. He said no. During that period, Mahāprabhu goes to Ālālanātha. You see? And He was put it up. Off. Off. No? Yes. Yes. Mahāprabhu goes, because He cannot have the darśana of Jagannātha, He goes to Ālālanātha. Yes.
Devotee: Where He goes?
Gour Govinda Swami: Ālālanātha. [Oriya]
But in the West, I think they—they don’t follow it. And they don’t do this Ratha-yātrā in this Ratha-yātrā time. Any day, they—they can do.
Devotee: In Australia, the Deity comes out for the one day, then they put Him away for a whole year, and then He comes out again.
Gour Govinda Swami: Only for Ratha-yātrā.
Devotee: Only for that day. He is not worshiped for the year. No.
Gour Govinda Swami: When the Deities are installed in the temple—installation—they have installed it. And they should do it.
This is the procedure according to the Skanda Purāṇa. We do this in our temple, because this is Jagannātha-dhāma, Puri-kṣetra. We have this. We know. The people know. We know this. We do.
Devotee: For preaching, we can make these compromises. In the name of preaching, we can make… Yes.
Gour Govinda Swami: For preaching—for the attraction of the people—we do some changes, compromise. Yes, that is there. Ācārya can do. One can do according to time, place, and circumstances. He may violate something, little violate something—he can do it. Yes. Ācārya can do it.
Śrīla Prabhupāda has made such things—for the Westerners, Western preaching. Yes. He has done so. That's alright. Yes. Alright. For preaching sometimes, no strict siddhānta is followed. Sometimes a little twisting is there. Some compromise is there. Some violation is also there.
According to time, place, and circumstances—they can do it. Yes. Alright, Bhaktasvarūpa?
Devotee: Yes, Gurudeva.