Did you ever have the impression that someone was hurrying you and trying to get rid of you? I think of a clerk at the information desk of the passport office in Manhattan. Her function is merely to decide who should go where as they try to apply for their passports. If you try to settle your affairs with her or ask her a more detailed question, she gets rid of you with a rude, “Who’s next?” Do we deal with harer nama like that? What to do?
I wrote a note to Madhu asking him for suggestions how I can best use the remainder of my japa retreat. The thing that struck me the most about his reply was his comment, “You want to be fervent—the best goal is not achieved by mediocre practice—practice can lead to contempt/familiarity and destroy fervor.” He mentioned that I might read Raghunatha dasa Gosvami’s Manah-siksa.
(_Begging for the Nectar of the Holy Name_)
JAPA POEM
I state that we should not
move through our japa retreat
like a rude clerk
who is hurrying you
and trying to
get rid of you.
This is an offense
to the holy names.
I ask Madhu how
I can best use
the last days
of my retreat.
He replies, “You
want to be fervent
. . . not mediocre
practice which
leads to contempt
and familiarity and
destroys fervor.”
Good advice.