Giving charity to the devotees is also important. That is always just give and share with the devotees because by doing that we can somehow or other overcome our deep rooted material attachment. We just give; we must learn to give than rather than to take, just like Jayananda. Jayananda was Prabhupada’s dear disciple who had done so many wonderful things. And Jayananda, he joined in San Francisco and somehow or other Jayananada was ten yrs older than everybody else and Jayananda was having a profession- he was driving a taxi and he was making good money. So Jayananada would buy the devotees whatever they needed, he would buy them clothes and give it to them as a gift- whatever they would need Jayananda would be there and give. For himself he would not buy anything; he would not spend money on himself, he would buy clothes from the Salvation Army- pair of pants for one dollar and something like that, because he didn’t want to spend money on himself. There’s a story that they told him to go and, “you have to buy some descent clothes! You can not just buy these one dollar pants any longer!” so they sent him to a shop and he put on these pants and he saw like the price and thought “God, how can I spend so much money on myself? I can’t do it!” So he just put over his old pants over the new pants and tried to walk out of the shop and he got caught and anyway the whole thing came to court, quite fast in America! A few weeks later he was in court and in the court he explained the whole story and he explained to the judge how he was a monk and how he has given his whole life and how they forced him and he just couldn’t tolerate to spend so much money… and the way he explained it was so sincere and so feelingly that the shop detective who had arrested him was there as a witness that he said “my honour, I will pay for these pants!” and in that way he didn’t get convicted and somehow or other Jayananada was such a devotee who gave himself completely. Giving in charity means really giving- we must give ourselves in charity. Giving things in charity, the fruits of our labour in charity is one thing but still greater gift is to give ourselves in charity, to dedicate our life to the well being of others and not be so concerned, what, “what’s going to become of me? What will I achieve? I have my plans, I want to do so many things, if I become servant of everyone else then there will be no time left for me to do my things…!” sometimes we have to do my things, little something we have to do, that is true. But the principle is giving in charity. The highest and greatest thing is to give ourselves...
13 June 2008
Giving ourselves in charity...
(Part 2 of a lecture given by HH Kadamba Kanana Swami Maharaja, 13/03/07, Nectar of Instruction, text 4)
Giving charity to the devotees is also important. That is always just give and share with the devotees because by doing that we can somehow or other overcome our deep rooted material attachment. We just give; we must learn to give than rather than to take, just like Jayananda. Jayananda was Prabhupada’s dear disciple who had done so many wonderful things. And Jayananda, he joined in San Francisco and somehow or other Jayananada was ten yrs older than everybody else and Jayananda was having a profession- he was driving a taxi and he was making good money. So Jayananada would buy the devotees whatever they needed, he would buy them clothes and give it to them as a gift- whatever they would need Jayananda would be there and give. For himself he would not buy anything; he would not spend money on himself, he would buy clothes from the Salvation Army- pair of pants for one dollar and something like that, because he didn’t want to spend money on himself. There’s a story that they told him to go and, “you have to buy some descent clothes! You can not just buy these one dollar pants any longer!” so they sent him to a shop and he put on these pants and he saw like the price and thought “God, how can I spend so much money on myself? I can’t do it!” So he just put over his old pants over the new pants and tried to walk out of the shop and he got caught and anyway the whole thing came to court, quite fast in America! A few weeks later he was in court and in the court he explained the whole story and he explained to the judge how he was a monk and how he has given his whole life and how they forced him and he just couldn’t tolerate to spend so much money… and the way he explained it was so sincere and so feelingly that the shop detective who had arrested him was there as a witness that he said “my honour, I will pay for these pants!” and in that way he didn’t get convicted and somehow or other Jayananada was such a devotee who gave himself completely. Giving in charity means really giving- we must give ourselves in charity. Giving things in charity, the fruits of our labour in charity is one thing but still greater gift is to give ourselves in charity, to dedicate our life to the well being of others and not be so concerned, what, “what’s going to become of me? What will I achieve? I have my plans, I want to do so many things, if I become servant of everyone else then there will be no time left for me to do my things…!” sometimes we have to do my things, little something we have to do, that is true. But the principle is giving in charity. The highest and greatest thing is to give ourselves...
Giving charity to the devotees is also important. That is always just give and share with the devotees because by doing that we can somehow or other overcome our deep rooted material attachment. We just give; we must learn to give than rather than to take, just like Jayananda. Jayananda was Prabhupada’s dear disciple who had done so many wonderful things. And Jayananda, he joined in San Francisco and somehow or other Jayananada was ten yrs older than everybody else and Jayananda was having a profession- he was driving a taxi and he was making good money. So Jayananada would buy the devotees whatever they needed, he would buy them clothes and give it to them as a gift- whatever they would need Jayananda would be there and give. For himself he would not buy anything; he would not spend money on himself, he would buy clothes from the Salvation Army- pair of pants for one dollar and something like that, because he didn’t want to spend money on himself. There’s a story that they told him to go and, “you have to buy some descent clothes! You can not just buy these one dollar pants any longer!” so they sent him to a shop and he put on these pants and he saw like the price and thought “God, how can I spend so much money on myself? I can’t do it!” So he just put over his old pants over the new pants and tried to walk out of the shop and he got caught and anyway the whole thing came to court, quite fast in America! A few weeks later he was in court and in the court he explained the whole story and he explained to the judge how he was a monk and how he has given his whole life and how they forced him and he just couldn’t tolerate to spend so much money… and the way he explained it was so sincere and so feelingly that the shop detective who had arrested him was there as a witness that he said “my honour, I will pay for these pants!” and in that way he didn’t get convicted and somehow or other Jayananada was such a devotee who gave himself completely. Giving in charity means really giving- we must give ourselves in charity. Giving things in charity, the fruits of our labour in charity is one thing but still greater gift is to give ourselves in charity, to dedicate our life to the well being of others and not be so concerned, what, “what’s going to become of me? What will I achieve? I have my plans, I want to do so many things, if I become servant of everyone else then there will be no time left for me to do my things…!” sometimes we have to do my things, little something we have to do, that is true. But the principle is giving in charity. The highest and greatest thing is to give ourselves...
