Srivas, Accused of Idolatry # 16

16

For a year now, Nimai has been singing and dancing day and night. He is accompanied by other devotees playing cymbals and drums in the house of Srivas, famous for its gatherings. The profane, the atheists, and the skeptics find the door closed to them. A full year of these festivities has kindled envy in their hearts; to ruin this program, they conspire.

In Bengal, a permanent friction exists between the devotees of Krishna and those of Kali. The majority of Bengalis —particularly those who eat meat and drink alcohol— worship the goddess Kali in her bloodthirsty aspect, wearing a garland of skulls and sticking out her great red tongue. These people are arrogant toward the Vaishnavas.

One night, while the kirtan is taking place as usual, a brahmana named Gopal Chapal —the most audacious and insolent of the belligerent lot— secretly places in Srivas’s courtyard the utensils used by Kali worshippers for their ceremonies: red flowers, a plantain leaf, a pot of wine, and red sandalwood paste. He hopes to defame him by accusing him of being a hypocrite rather than an authentic Vaishnava. If he can show everyone that Srivas secretly leans more toward the goddess than Vishnu, he will prove Srivas’s hypocrisy and the superiority of his own practices. He intends to strip him of his respectability and deliver him to the rejection of the fickle public. Thus, he would pose as a defender of the public interest by tearing away the veil covering Srivas’s "sinister enterprise" which, according to his ravings, consists of destroying ancestral customs.

Gopal counts on the mistrust of a people who fear difference —especially the kind that claims to transcend traditional understanding. To give more "bite" to his machinations, he plans to recruit from among those whose souls have been "kissed by vampires" (the ill-intentioned) to spread crude lies.

At dawn, when Srivas opens his door and sees these compromising objects, he immediately realizes what is happening. Without waiting, he steps into the street and calls out to passersby: "Please, come closer and observe! Let everyone see what goes on in my house. It seems that all night I worship the goddess Kali. Look, here is the proof! I can no longer hide it."

To his surprise, the passersby are horrified: "But what is this? Who could have committed such a pernicious act?" The neighbors are distressed. They have the objects removed and the area cleaned with water and cow dung. No one is fooled by this devilish attempt, and the conspirators prefer to vanish. Gopal Chapala underestimated the virtuous qualities that nature can produce in abundance within a human being —qualities that, though cornered by the compromises of the age, wait noble and diminished to manifest through the cracks of the false ego.

Some time later, as Nimai is going to the Ganges, a leper speaks to him: "Nimai, you do not recognize me because of these disgusting pustules covering my body, but I am your maternal uncle, Gopal Chapal." "Gopal Chapal!?" "Yes, for three days I have lived under this tree because I cannot stay in the village, infected as I am. I suffer terribly. Look at these worms and insects swarming on my limbs! They cause me unbearable distress. My body is like it's being attacked by hungry wasps. I have heard since your birth that you are a divine incarnation, capable of miracles…"

Although Gopal Chapal is a loudmouth and a detestable character, he is ultimately simple-minded. He now believes, like many others, that Nimai is a manifestation of God. He wants to be delivered from his misery. "I beg of you," he implores, "heal me. I know you possess the power. Are you not kind, and am I not a brahmana, a class dear to you?"

But instead of gaining Nimai's favor, he only irritates him: "You are an envious person; you insulted Srivas Thakur by trying to make others believe he worshipped Kali. How could you attack the reputation of my devotee, who is so generous? And now, despite your offense, you come to me to be freed from the consequences of your sins? Know that I have appeared in this form to strike down the demonic nature within and preach the service of God. Not only will I not lift a finger for you, but I will let you suffer like this for millions of years!"

Though severe in appearance, Nimai is compassionate, but he seeks above all to instruct the man so he realizes the cause of his suffering. He leaves the leper to resign himself to his fate.

Much later, upon returning from a trip to Jagannath Puri, Nimai meets this brahmana again, now withered by the disease. This time, he helps him by educating him: "If you had committed an offense against me, I would have excused you without doubt, but I never forgive one who outrages my devotee. The only thing you can do is find Srivas Thakur and beg for his mercy. If he grants it to you, then you will be freed from your sins and you will heal."

Srivas, of course, is moved by pity and forgives him instantly. Thus, thanks to Srivas's benevolence, the brahmana recovers.

A similar situation occurred another time. A brahmana, who wanted to participate in the kirtans but was refused entry to Srivas's house, became so resentful that he felt extreme bitterness. The next day, meeting Nimai on the banks of the Ganges, he grabbed his sacred thread —which adorns the bodies of brahmanas— and, with a cynical attitude, cursed him: "To punish you for yesterday's conduct, I afflict you with a curse that will follow you all your life: you shall forever be deprived of material contentment."

But instead of feeling diminished, Nimai reacted joyfully to this impulsive decision; for at least now he would never fall into the arms of Maya —that illusion which makes material pleasure the primary obsession of this world.

Preceding chapter : The Spiritual Crisis: Chaitanya Meets Ishvara Puri # 15
Next chapter : Would Srivas Be Afraid? # 17