84 Vaishnav Varta 33 - Ramdas Sanchora

Now the sevak of Shri Acharyaji Mahaprabhu, Ramdas Sanchora, resident of Rajnagar—his story’s sentiment is being told.

Bhav Prakash (Revealing the Sentiment): In this divine play, Shri Swaminiji’s companion is Indulekha. Indulekha’s companion is Subhaga. That same Subhaga manifested as Ramdas. And Subhaga’s companion is Subhadra, who manifested as the wife of Ramdas. Both appeared in the homes of Sanchora Brahmin’s in Rajnagar. At that time, Ramdas was nine years old, and his wife was eight years old. Their parents arranged their marriage. But from childhood itself, Ramdas had a disposition of renunciation. He never became attached to anyone, nor did he speak unnecessarily. His parents tried to educate him much, but he did not study anything.

One time, Ramdas was sitting at the pond in Rajnagar. There a Teli (oil-presser) came with ten or fifteen oxen. After giving water to the oxen, one ox drank water and then fell down at the pond and died. The Teli began to weep. Ramdas asked Teli, “Why are you crying?” The Teli replied, “My ox drank water and has just now died.” Ramdas was only ten years old, so he did not understand. He said to Teli, “Why do you say it has died? It has just fallen, so lift it up.” The Teli replied, “Now how can it rise? Its life has departed.” Then Ramdas asked, “In this way will all die?” The Teli said, “Yes, this is the condition, sooner or later, a few days forward or behind.” Hearing this, Ramdas ran away from there. In a few days, he reached Dwarka and had the darshan of Shri Ranchhodji. There, Shri Acharyaji was narrating the katha of Subodhiniji. Ramdas came there and, listening to the katha, became very pleased. In his mind came the thought, “If I stay with Shri Acharyaji for some time and listen to his katha, it would be good. If I could become his sevak, that would be best.”

After Acharyaji had finished the katha, Ramdas bowed down and prayed, “Maharaj! Please give me refuge. Keep me near you so that I may listen to the katha from your lotus mouth for some days.” Shri Acharyaji asked, “Who are you? Where have you come from?” Then Ramdas narrated the entire story: “I live in Rajnagar. I am the son of a Sanchora. There at the pond I saw a Teli’s ox die. Seeing that, detachment came into me. I ran away and here I had your darshan.”

Shri Acharyaji thought, “This soul is indeed divine, but his age is small. If I do not keep him near me, in the world there is bad company, and he may become spoiled. Therefore, let me keep him with me for some time until his detachment becomes firm, then I will let him go.” With this thought, Shri Acharyaji said to Ramdas, “Go, take a bath and come.” Ramdas bathed and came. Then Shri Acharyaji made him hear the Name, performed the initiation (nivedan), gave him Mahaprasad, and kept him near. For some days he stayed, and when Shri Acharyaji departed from Dwarka for the circumambulation of the Earth, Ramdas went along. He looked after the kitchen arrangements and did all the small services. Sometimes Shri Acharyaji, to test Ramdas, would give him little food, sometimes only a single roti. But he always accepted it happily as Mahaprasad. In his mind he never thought, “Why was I not given enough today?” Seeing this, Shri Acharyaji was very pleased. Ramdas carried all the materials, and when on the path there were thorns, he ran ahead to clear the way.

One day, a big thorn pierced Ramdas’s foot. He thought to himself, “If I sit to remove this thorn from my foot, Shri Acharyaji will have to stand and wait for me. That is not good, my dharma will be lost. If I go ahead without removing it, then on the path there are many more thorns, what if some thorn enters the lotus feet of Shri Acharyaji? That too will be my loss of dharma.” With this thought, he did not remove the thorn from his foot, but continued clearing the path. After walking a little distance, Shri Acharyaji stood and said, “Ramdas, remove the thorn from your foot. I am very pleased with you. Ask for whatever you wish.” Ramdas replied, “Maharaj! I have received your shelter. What could be greater than this? Please give me your grace that my refuge in you always remains firm and never wavers.” Shri Acharyaji, being very pleased, said, “So be it. You will receive everything.” Then he said, “Remove the thorn, I am standing. You will never incur any offense.” So Ramdas removed the thorn.

In this way, for ten years Ramdas served with Shri Acharyaji. His love remained always steady. Thus he was a vessel of divine grace. Later, when Shri Acharyaji undertook another circumambulation of the Earth towards the South, there a Brahmin offered a form of Shri Thakurji, saying, “I am unable to do worship.” Shri Acharyaji kept that form with him and did seva for some days. Later, in a village, outside, they stopped. Shri Acharyaji told Krishnadas to go and bring supplies from the village, and from a carpenter get a stand made without nails. Ramdas brought the supplies. Shri Acharyaji prepared the meal, offered bhog, ate, and then told Ramdas, “Take Mahaprasad.” Ramdas took the Mahaprasad and came near Shri Acharyaji.

Prasang 1 – Shri Acharyaji Placed the Form of Shri Thakurji and the Padukas on Ramdas’s Head

At that time, Shri Acharyaji gave that form of Thakurji, bathed in Panchamrit, and placed it on Ramdas’s head. He named the form “Natuva Gopalji.” And he placed the Padukas with the lotus feet on Ramdas’s head.

Bhav Prakash (Revealing the Sentiment): Shri Acharyaji never wore Padukas. He always walked barefoot, to sanctify the Earth and to fulfill the purpose of the Earth. Padukas were given only as grace, to provide seva. Therefore, Shri Acharyaji’s Padukas had no nails. Shri Acharyaji placed Shri Thakurji on Ramdas’s head and said, “Ramdas! Now you do Bhagavad seva. Wherever you stay, you need not fear. Devotion has come to you.” In Ramdas’s mind was the desire to remain always near Shri Acharyaji. But how could he disobey the command? He knew that whatever Acharyaji instructed was for his welfare. Thinking this, he bowed and departed. Many times, overwhelmed with longing, he looked back again and again for darshan, and he kept the form of Shri Thakurji in his heart. Shri Acharyaji’s heart too was filled with emotion, for separation from such a Vaishnav is painful.

Ramdas’s wife was a divine soul, a pativrata (chaste wife). She remained sorrowful in her parents’ home. For her upliftment, Shri Acharyaji bid farewell to Ramdas. For three days Ramdas served Shri Thakurji and the Padukas. The bhog that he offered, he gave to the cow. Out of the grief of separation from Shri Acharyaji, he did not eat the Mahaprasad. On the fourth day, after offering bhog he began to distribute, Shri Acharyaji appeared in darshan and asked, “Why are you not taking Mahaprasad? I am always with you. Therefore, take the Mahaprasad.” Then Ramdas, setting aside the cow’s share, accepted the Mahaprasad.

In this way, sometimes in a detached state here or there, he did not remain in one place. While circumambulating the Earth, he returned to his village Rajnagar. By that time, Ramdas’s parents had died. His wife was living in her parents’ home. Ramdas came to his home. His father-in-law, learning that Ramdas had come, told his daughter, “Your husband has come. If he goes again, you may not get him back. If you wish, go with your husband. If you wish, stay here.” The daughter replied, “Take me to my husband. I want nothing else.” So the father-in-law brought her to Ramdas’s house.

When she came, Ramdas did not accept her as his wife, nor did he speak to her. He remained at home for two or four days, then left for Dwarka. His wife also followed him. But Ramdas did not allow her to come with him and threw stones at her. Yet, the pativrata wife walked at a distance, following. Whatever leftover from Ramdas’s plate she got, she ate. If not, she remained hungry. In this way, after four stages of journey, Shri Ranchhodji spoke to Ramdas: “Why do you not accept your wife? Why did you abandon her?” Ramdas replied, “I am a renunciate, a vairagi. What use have I for a wife?” Shri Ranchhodji said, “Then why did you marry? And you, being the grace-filled sevak of Shri Acharyaji, should not act with such cruelty. And because you are Acharyaji’s sevak, I cannot speak to you harshly. But still, accept your wife.”

Bhav Prakash (Revealing the Sentiment): The reason is that this wife is divine. For her acceptance, Shri Acharyaji himself bade you farewell, so why do you not accept her? Ramdas came to Dwarka because Acharyaji had accepted him there, not merely for Ranchhodji’s darshan. Ramdas travels considering it the connection with Acharyaji. Therefore, Ranchhodji’s words were not an order or punishment, but advice. Hence Ranchhodji said, “You are Shri Acharyaji’s sevak. I cannot command you. I speak only as instructed by him. Therefore accept your wife.”

Later, when they stopped at a resting place, Ramdas called his wife and said, “You keep watch over the bundle, I will go to collect firewood.” His wife became happy, thinking, “Today grace has come upon me.” She said, “I will go to collect the firewood.” Ramdas replied, “This is not a woman’s work, I will collect it.” He brought the firewood, cooked, offered bhog to Shri Thakurji, then after distributing the cow’s share, gave one plate to his wife and kept one for himself. Both partook of Mahaprasad.

In this way, they reached Dwarka and had darshan of Shri Ranchhodji. Ranchhodji said, “If you give your wife a Name, she will be able to prepare water and assist in the kitchen seva.” Ramdas replied, “How can I give the Name? Only Shri Acharyaji giving the Name is proper.” Ranchhodji said, “It is my order, you give the Name.” Later, when Shri Acharyaji arrived, Ramdas narrated everything to him and said, “I am telling this only because it was the command of Shri Acharyaji, not by my own will.” Thus Ramdas gave his wife the Name. She then began to fetch water and assist in the kitchen seva.

Later, leaving Dwarka, Ramdas thought in his mind, “Now it is not proper to keep wandering with my wife. It is better to settle in one place and do Bhagavad bhajan.” With this thought, after some days he came to his home in Rajnagar and began Bhagavad seva.

After some time, Shri Acharyaji came to Rajnagar. Ramdas went forward, bowed, and brought him to his home. He requested, “Maharaj! Please give the Name to my wife.” Shri Acharyaji said, “You have already given her the Name, why do you ask again?” Ramdas replied, “Maharaj! I gave it only because of Shri Ranchhodji’s order, and he too said, ‘Later have it given properly by Shri Acharyaji.’ Therefore, as per your wish, I gave the Name. Without your wish, I would never do anything. And for my wife’s acceptance, you yourself bade me farewell. Therefore, please accept her.”

Then Shri Acharyaji, being pleased with Ramdas, gave her the Name, performed Brahmasambandh. Afterward, in Ramdas’s home, food was prepared and bhog was offered to Shri Thakurji. After Acharyaji took food, he gave the remnants to Ramdas and his wife. Then Acharyaji ordered, “Now both of you stay in one home and do Bhagavad seva together.” Ramdas replied, “Maharaj! This was already in my mind, and now you have commanded it.”

Later, Shri Acharyaji went to Dwarka. Ramdas, with his wife, remained in Bhagavad seva, and in free time narrated to her the sentiments of Bhagavad Varta Granth. Thus both remained absorbed in Bhagavad seva. Therefore, Ramdas, along with his wife, was such a vessel of divine grace. This is where his story is told up to.

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