Transforming ourselves and our environment through dedication to the Lord.

By Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj

We can make the whole environment in our favour. That is necessary and when we will be successful to do that every time all the time, that must be a happy time for us. We shall try to make the whole environment happy for everybody.

Before Jesus Christ was crucified, he prayed to God, “God, they do not know what they are doing. Please forgive their offences.” Jesus was going to be crucified and before that is praying for the sinners: “They do not know what they have done and are doing. But they are unqualified and you are qualified; You forgive their offence.” That is the mood of the Vaisnavas.

I heard one English expression from Guru Maharaj: “To err is human, but to forgive is divine.” Then we will always try to live in the divine plane. Why will we go to the plane of error? That is where we are living. The plane of error means the plane of exploitation. But we will leave that plane and we will transform that plane to the divine plane. It is possible. Srila Bhakti Vinod Thakur said it in his song (Saranagati: 31.6):

ye-dina grhe bhajana dekhi
grhete goloka bhaya
charana-sidhu dekhiya ganga
sukha na sima paya

“When I see that all my children, my husband, my wife, and all the relatives are chanting and serving Lord Krishna, I feel I am living in Goloka Vrndavan.”

Bhakti Vinod Thakur said it in his song. We want to stay in that plane, and that is our real plane, the plane of dedication, the plane of divine dedication.

Diksa, initiation, means we offer ourselves to Krishna. That is called dedication. I want to throw myself in the plane of dedication. And in that throwing nothing will be lost. If I throw one apple from here to there, the apple will lose something when it is hit. But if it is thrown to the lotus feet of Krishna, it will get much energy and life—just the opposite. That is the divine plane, and initiation means surrender to Krishna as well as surrender to Guru.

Guru is Krishna appearing in front of me in the form of a human. That is Guru. I see that Guru is holding a human body and there are many things wrong in the body, but that is not clean vision. Clean vision will come another way; Sanatan Goswami said to Mahaprabhu and Mahaprabhu gave answer to him: “You are a devotee of Krishna, and Krishna is testing Me by putting some skin disease on your body. Krishna is trying to test Me, whether I shall embrace you or not. But I know your body is transcendental and I must embrace you.” Mahaprabhu embraced Sanatan Goswami, and the skin disease disappeared. That is real vision.

Source

Spoken in July of 1992.