Sharanagati

Nityananda Prabhu got the instruction to enlighten people about the holy names of Krishna. But how do you think, He was an obedient servant or He had some private opinion? He had private opinion, because He was avadhuta type. He thought: “I have got an instruction to do this, but better I do something else.” Sometimes do you have that feeling also? You got an instruction from your master and then you decide to do another way. Because you know it better, right!? This is when you are coming closer to this avadhuta style: “I know better!”

There was a story when a master told a disciple: “Well, in order to get some training I feel that you need to go to some martial arts, because there you will be disciplined and you will learn something.” All right, next time after half a year again they meet, so the master asks: “Have you gone to martial arts?” and the boy says: “No.” The master says: “How not?! I have told you to go there.” “Yes, you have told, but I was thinking about this and I thought that maybe it is better to practice yoga instead of martial arts.” So the master says: “All right! And did you go to practice yoga?” He said: “No!”

This is the avadhuta style, you do not care practically for anything. Of course we all know that Nityananda Prabhu was an avadhuta type. But here is a little secret. He is not simply neglecting or rejecting the instructions, but He had a special mood. Finally He did not preach about Krishna nam, but He started to preach about something else. How was that mantra? “Bhaja Gourang, kaha Gouranga, laha gourangera nam…” This was His mood, this was His preaching. He did not want to glorify some ancient, faraway God, Krishna, hiding in His places. He wanted to glorify His personal, beloved God.

But if we want to understand the avadhuta style, we have to break the avadhuta code. What is avadhuta? First is A. A is akshara – that means “imperishable”. This is the beginning of avadhuta – you have to be imperishable. VA stands for varenyam – “best, exclusive, extraordinary”. DHU stands for dhuta, or “shaken of”. And finally TA stands for “that”, tat. So avadhuta means who have shaken off the chains of material existence and who is very well versed in the imperishable.

This is the quality of an avadhuta. It is not that he goes against the rules and regulations. Because that is very easy. Even the stupid guys can do that. Even the uncontrolled people outside can have some avadhuta features. But without this – being well versed in the absolute truth and being free from material limitations – you cannot become a real avadhuta. So it is not enough to invent instructions for yourself, like an avadhuta, or change the mantra, but you have to be well versed and you have to be free from contamination.

And this was what Nityananda Prabhu had.