Śrīla Gurudeva relished hearing from Śrīpāda Narottamānanda Prabhu and greed arose in his heart to adopt a lifestyle dedicated to the practice of unalloyed devotional service. That person who has spiritual greed for pure love will have no desire for anything else. Honeybees and hummingbirds are attracted to the nectar of flowers, whereas vultures and jackals feed on carrion. Similarly, saintly men seek the nectar of unadulterated love while the wicked-minded crave gross sense pleasure.
When Śrīla Gurudeva met with Narottamānanda Prabhu, he remembered that as a boy, he had come upon a yogī who told him he would renounce family life after meeting with pure sādhus. He hence asked Śrīpāda Narottamānanda Prabhu about the nature of a genuine saintly person.
“What are the symptoms of a pure sādhu?” Gurudeva asked.
Śrīpāda Narottamānanda Prabhu said, “A bona fide sādhu is steady-minded and always absorbed in thoughts of God. Arjuna asked Kṛṣṇa in the Bhagavad-gītā (2.54): ‘O Keśava! What are the symptoms of a person whose intelligence is fixed in pure consciousness?’
“Kṛṣṇa replies in four verses, saying: ‘O Pārtha, when a person gives up all material desires arising from the mind and when, with his mind thus controlled, he becomes satisfied by the blissful nature of the self alone, he is to be known as a steady-minded sage. One who is not disturbed by the three types of distresses arising from the self, nature, and other living beings, who remains free from desires in the presence of happiness, and who is free from attachment, fear, and anger, is called an equipoised saintly person. One who is devoid of mundane affection, and who neither rejoices in gain, nor despairs in loss, is known to have fixed intelligence. When a person can completely withdraw his senses from sense objects at will, just as a tortoise withdraws its limbs into its shell, his intelligence is firmly fixed. He who identifies himself with his body may artificially restrict his enjoyment by withdrawing the senses from their objects, but his taste for sense pleasure still remains. However, for one who has experienced a higher taste, in other words, realized the Supreme Soul, his taste for sense objects automatically ceases.’”
Continuing, Narottamānanda Prabhu said, “Worldly people have an intense desire to enjoy, and for this they lie, cheat, and sin in various ways. When sādhus are near such people, they mask themselves as foolish so as to not be disturbed by dealing with the wants of materialistic people. Internally, the sādhus are constantly absorbed in God’s service, and when in favorable company, they manifest their service externally as well. To properly understand sādhus, one must pray for the grace of God. By God’s mercy a person meets with a pure sādhu and by that sādhu’s mercy he meets with God.”
Narottamānanda Prabhu then quoted verses from scripture glorifying sādhus:
sādhu-saṅga sādhu-saṅga—sarva-śāstre kaya lava-mātra sādhu-saṅge sarva-siddhi haya
Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya 22.54
‘All revealed scriptures proclaim that even a moment’s association with a sādhu, can grant one perfection.’
tulayāma lavenāpi na svargaṁ nāpunar-bhavam bhagavat-saṅgi-saṅgasya martyānāṁ kim utāśiṣaḥ
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.18.13
‘Ascension to the heavenly planets and liberation from material existence cannot be compared to even a moment’s association with Kṛṣṇa’s pure devotee. What then can be said of material benedictions, which are for those who are meant for death?’
sādhavo hṛdayaṁ mahyaṁ sādhūnāṁ hṛdayaṁ tv aham mad-anyat te na jānanti nāhaṁ tebhyo manāg api
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 9.4.68
‘Lord Viṣṇu said, “The sādhu is always within the core of My heart, and I am always in the heart of the sādhu. My devotees know nothing but Me, and I know only them.’ ”
Narottamānanda Prabhu concluded, “God is present in the hearts of sādhus. By associating with sādhus, attainment of God is guaranteed.”
“This is true,” Gurudeva said. “You are such a sādhu, please bless me.”
“I only follow in the footsteps of a pure sādhu.”
“I am fortunate and joyful to have met you.”
“Śrī Guru-pāda-padma has an ocean of love,” Narottamānanda Prabhu said. “I am only distributing one drop of that nectar.”
“O Prabhu,” Gurudeva said, “please tell me, who is your guru, and where do you reside?”
“I am the disciple of Paramārādhyatama Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda. On his order, I travel to towns and villages, distributing the supreme glories of the mahāmantra in order to give permanent relief from all miseries to those suffering in material life. Now that my beloved Śrī Guru-pāda-padma has re-entered the spiritual world, I am staying in the guidance of his intimate servant, Śrīla Bhakti Prajñāna Keśava Mahārāja, in the Gauḍīya Vedānta Samīti he founded. Śrīla Bhakti Prajñāna Keśava Mahārāja is a fearless preacher of the truth who soundly defeats all doctrines opposed to devotion. Therefore he is known as Ācārya Kesarī—the lion-like preceptor. You should come and meet him. Our headquarters are in Navadvīpa-dhāma, at Devānanda Gauḍīya Maṭha. You are welcome to the temple at any time.”
“Yes, I will certainly come,” Śrīla Gurudeva said.
“Please do,” Narottamānanda Prabhu said. “If you do, I am sure you will become completely satisfied and blissful at heart. Living in the company of pure devotees completely satisfies the self, whereas staying with materialistic people causes only suffering. Worldly people are thirsty for sense enjoyment and are always busily engaged in acquiring material objects to satisfy their desires. As an animal may run far into the desert after the mirage of water without ever being satiated, people in this world have an intense desire to enjoy—yet they are never satisfied. Pure devotees worship Kṛṣṇa empowered with divine love from Śrīmatī Rādhārānī and they spread the process of attaining this love and completely satisfying the self to the people of this world. Caitanya Mahāprabhu advented to drown the world with this love.”
Śrīla Gurudeva spoke with Śrīpāda Narottamānanda Prabhu every evening after the preacher’s public discourses. At the conclusion of the final day, Gurudeva and Narottamānanda Prabhu bade each other farewell. Gurudeva said, “I am fortunate to have met you. I hope to spend more time with you soon.”
“I consider myself favored to have met you,” Narottamānanda Prabhu said. “It is rare to find someone who has greed for pure bhakti. You are qualified and blessed. I am confident you will soon come and join our preaching.”
“How can this be?” Gurudeva thought. “I am from a brāhmaṇa family and have a high government post. How will I beg door to door?”
Śrīla Gurudeva bowed down to the devotees and then departed. He thought of Narottamānanda Prabhu’s advice and steadily his greed to meet Śrīla Bhakti Prajñāna Keśava Gosvāmī Mahārāja increased. Spiritual attraction has great power. Worldly people warn, “Stay at least a hundred yards away from sādhus, for they will destroy your family life and ruin your taste for this world. Wherever the sādhu goes he transforms others into sādhus; therefore, if you value your present life, avoid them at all costs.”
Upon returning to Navadvīpa-dhāma, Śrīpāda Narottamānanda Prabhu told Śrīla Keśava Gosvāmī Mahārāja about Gurudeva, saying, “We met a police officer named Nārāyaṇa Tiwārī. He is a learned brāhmaṇa eager to dedicate himself to spiritual life. Hearing about you, he desired to come for your darśana.”
Pleased to hear this, Śrīla Bhakti Prajñāna Keśava Gosvāmī Mahārāja spoke with certainty, “He will come soon.”