Krishna Seva

[Trushna]

JSK,

Good question Sitalji, I beleive a Vaishnav should also be a friend, repectful, merciful, without material possesions, truthful, equal to everyone, indifferent to material acquisition, fixed, peaceful, desireless (aside from Thakorji ofcourse), clean, mild, expert, without false prestige, magnanimous, eats only as much as required.... ummm I know there is more!! Additionaly, in my opinion proper (Tadrushi) Vaishnavs are basicaly faultless because they are surrendered to Krishna and in constant awareness and surrendership of Him alone so they cannot go wrong.
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Yadi Shree Gokuladhisho dhrutah sarvatmana rudhayi, tathi kimparambruhi loukikai vedikai rapi
Jai Shree Krishna

[Nital]

Jai Shree Krishna,

Another important quality is being selfless, where the vaishnav regards Thakorji's happiness as number one priority, so within this, the vaishnav also looks at the happiness of fellow vaishnavs (who are loved by Thakorji).

JSK

[Vasant Punjabi]

Jai Shri Krishna,

Maybe few more but the main one.

Pushtimargiya Vaishnav must have complete Nishtha in Vallabhi Vani and complete faith in Shri Thakurji. Must surrender every action for Shri Thakurji only.
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Vasant Punjabi.

"Shri Vallabh Shri Vithal Sukh-kari naa-me nishpap thai nur-nari,
------Nitya Lila nitya nautam shruti na pame par."----

[Hoshil]

JSK,

What about 'das no das' quality?

JSK
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Jai Shree Krishna

[Sital]

Jai Shree Krishna


Yes I believe that the servant of the servant (Das no Das) is an important quality. When looking back at the varta’s one can read that vaishnavs would go sleep on an empty stomach if they had not fed a bhakta that day. Thakorji loves his devotees he is within them and they are within him, so serving his devotees pleases him immensely.

JSK
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Madhurkomalkant padavali namami
Sital

[Nital]

Jay Shree Krishna

Agreed with Sitalji...that's what I was trying to say in my last posting about keeping other vaishnavs happy because they are loved by Thakorji, so Hoshilji, sorry if this didn't come across very well

JSK

[Sital]

Jai Shree Krishna

Was reading a varta the other day, which confused me a little, was hoping that the vaishnavs on Tibari could help me understand this story in dept?

Seth’s daughter was told by Chachaji to poison her husband so she followed his instructions and her husband died. Her in-laws were told that if they wanted to see their son alive then they would all have to become vaishnavs. They agreed, as they were willing to do anything for their son. As you all now the son was revived and the whole family became vaishnavs

Now the question is that she was told to poison her husband by another vaishnav, isn’t that against vaishnavta? Even though it was acts to equalize karma’s from previous lives and show her family a miracle so they would start having faith, it is still difficult to comprehend. How would one apply this varta to this day and age?

JSK
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Madhurkomalkant padavali namami
Sital

[Trushna]

JSK,

Sitalji I myself found this story difficult to comprehend, however I beleive that often the best way to relate many of the vartas to the modern age is to try and understand their morals and deeper meanings rather than take them literally, in the court of law it is not acceptable to poison your other half on the say so of a so called vaishnav, otherwise this aliby would definately become common. lol

The obvious lessons were to understand the power of Charnamrut which revived the husband. The story depicts the test of faith in her fellow vaishnav, God and Guru that she had to go through. So the lady did show her Vaishnavata by trusting Thakorji and the Vaishnav sent by her Guru, she understood that the consequences of listening to the vaishnav would help her lokik and alokik dharm.

An additional insight is that the varta shows how Thakorji often entices us into pushtimarg through reasons that appear lokik but eventually lead to an alokik purpose....For example in this varta the family get enticed because they believe they are saving their sons life (deha) yet they are actually helping his soul by respecting Chachji and becoming vaishnavs.

There is more to this varta, other vaidhnavs please add your insights, or correct any errors.

Jai Shree Krishna
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Yadi Shree Gokuladhisho dhrutah sarvatmana rudhayi, tathi kimparambruhi loukikai vedikai rapi
Jai Shree Krishna

[jagdish]

Jai Shri Krishna,

i am not entirely certain (please feel free to make any corrections/additional info), but as mentioned earlier, it is more important to learn the real teachings which help us progress...

i think, in the story it clarifies that the husband had poisoned the wife in the previous life and so this time it was the wife's turn to pay back the debt (this has been pointed out in other stories also).

While a jeev still cultivates karmic actions/doshes and has these debts, it is not possible to make real spiritual progress.

Chachaji was a highly exalted vaishnav of very high calibre and could see the karmas of the husband and wife from previous life.

- then we can ask..what is more important... to help the jeev make progress or to let them suffer their karmic actions for a prolonged period of time... ?

- knowingly if one does not do the right thing then one takes on the karmas of the other jeevs and their doshes ?

Hence, to nullify these karmic actions, and free the jeevs quickly out of their karmic bondage, Chachaji advised this, what seems like a 'controversial' action. Otherwise those jeevs would have probably had to take more births to pay off their karmic debts...as we have seen similar examples in other stories

Once no doshes/karmic actions remained, they could all make speedy progress along the path.
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Best Wishes
Jagdish

[jagdish]

Jai Shri Krishna

Although this has been posted under Shri Gokulnathji's Hasya Prasang in response to a query, i felt it should go here, in this section also.

Coincidently, this varta prasang also has Chachaji as the 'Hero' ....

One Doshi (elderly lady) who had become Shri Gusainji's Sevak lived in Raj Nagar. She was nishkinchan, and did not even have a spoon.

She used to cool the samagri before offering. One day it so happened that Shri Gusainji happened to visit her town, and she heard the news...at this point she was in the middle of offering the samagri, however this time the samagri was hot and so she requested Shri Thakorji, that Shri Gusainji is here and she would like to visit him and pay her requests - so she took agya from Shri Thakorji and said that the samagri is hot and to please use this daatan (twig usually from neem tree) to cool the samagri before eating it.

Then she went to visit Shri Gusainji to pay her requests. When she was returning with Shri Gusainji there were four other vaishnavs with them to visit her. Now after returning she offered everyone darshans of her Thakorji. No one said anything at that point after having seen the daatan, but after they went back home they all started offering the same twig to their Thakorji with samagri and this way the whole town started doing it (some 5, some 10 some 25 and so on).

One day when Chachaji was visiting the same town he observed this in some vaishnav's place and asked What is all this that you are doing ? To this the vaishnav replied and seeing the whole town doing the same, Chachaji said, let the Dosi do, what she is doing is right but you all should not copy her and do the same.

Chachaji called all the vaishnavs (the town) together in one place and explained how they were wrongly doing this and to this the vaishnavs requested him to show them the proper way, which he did.

The Dosi thought carefully before doing what she did while the others did not know what she was thinking and never asked.

One should always do seva with bhaav and understanding, not just blindly do it.
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Best Wishes
Jagdish

[palna]

Jai Shree Krishna,

Thank you Jagdishji, I have read that varta before and found it highly amusing that all of the towns Thakorji's were given twigs in his food. It demonstrates a number of things. Can you imagine what Thakorji must have been thinking? hehehe "Hey sevak......what's with the twigs in my food " Baffled or what?? hehehe

Firstly we note how Thakorji accepts and loves his bhaktas seva according to his/her living standards and that he did not object to the stick being used in order to cool his food. She used a stick because she did not have the financial means to buy a spoon, nor did she want to give her Thakorji food that may burn him, as it might have been be too hot. Thus Thakorji was kind in that he accepted the stick because the old lady only did it for the benefit of him.

A notable second point as mentioned by Jagdishji, is that other Vaishnavs should not follow customs, siddhants blindly as even though there are certain common ways of doing seva, each bhakta's seva differs because of their bhav. The towns people unknowlingly echoed the old lady's seva and instead of doing good for Thakorji, you might even say they put shrum on Thakorji.

This backs up Pushtidasji's explanations in that it is vital we build a personal relationship with Thakorji and that he gives us accordingly to how he wishes us to serve him. Therefore every Vaishnav's bhav and seva will differ. Which I personally feel is the beauty of Pushtimarg and is a strong factor which separates it from the conventional orthodox religions. The relationship built between Thakorji and bhakta is individual and personal, thus attempting to copy another's bhav is fruitless.

I am sure there is more to this varta but I thougt I would share my opinions becuase I found it to be a very funny varta yet held important teachings. Please feel free to correct where I may have been mistaken.....
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Prem Bandhan Ajab Gajab, Brahmaganth sami aa ganth, na tutai na chutai

Palna na Koti Koti Jai Shree Krishna

[jagdish]

Jai Shri Krishna,

Palnaji thank you for summarising and illustrating the key points. I tend to agree, that it was an amusing story, but i guess if it wasn't then it would be difficult to remember !

Did you also by any chance read the one about the Dosi who used to weave /spin cotton and how Baal Krishna used to sit with her and play... by making pillows etc out of the cotton and keep handing her small quantities of the cotton as she needed it for the spinning/weaving ? If you did then please do post it...
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Best Wishes
Jagdish

[palna]

Jai Shree Krishna,
Sorry Jagdishji, I am afraid to say that I am unfamiliar with the varta, if another bhavik Vaishnav could please post it that would be very kind. We can then break down the teachings of the varta and discuss it. So we wait.....
Many thanks in advance
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Prem Bandhan Ajab Gajab, Brahmaganth sami aa ganth, na tutai na chutai

Palna na Koti Koti Jai Shree Krishna

[unnati]

Jai jai shri gokulesh,

Jagdishji and Palnaji, R u both looking for this story.... I have tried to translate it.

Story of an old lady spinning/weaving cotton:-

There was an old lady who requested Shri Gusaiji to give her permission to serve Shri Thakoreji. And she started serving Shri Thakoreji. By spinning cotton she used to earn her livelihood. When the old lady used to start spinning the cotton that time Shri Thakoreji used to help her sitting on gadiji and takiyaji, Shri Thakoreji used to give a small pieces of cotton so that old lady can spin it. Whenever Thakoreji used to get hungry he would ask old lady to give him dhani (similar to popcorn but dhani is made up of jawar).

One day Shri Balkrishnaji (3rd son of Shri Gusaiji) saw the lady and her inability of proper comforts for Shri Thakoreji. And asked the lady to give her Shri Thakoreji to him, so old lady did so. But without Shri Thakoreji she was not happy. And Shri Thakoreji could not see the separation of old lady with him, so Shri Thakoreji ordered Shri Balkrishnaji to take back him to the old lady's house and said, "i cannot live without spining". On the same night, Shri Balkrishnaji Gave back Shri Thakoreji to the old lady, and asked her to serve Shri Thakoreji as she used to do previously, as Shri Thakoreji is very happy on u.

She was such a lady without which Shri Thakoreji was unable to live.

Please feel free to correct.
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Shri Vallabha Charan Vina Sharan Koni Jaou.....Shri Vitthala Nam Vina Mantra Kya Thi Paou......Shri Vallabha Charan Vina Sharan Koni Jaou.....
Unnati M. Kadakia

[jagdish]

Jai Shri Krishna,

Unnatiji, yes that is the one.

Thank You.
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Best Wishes
Jagdish