Story 29 Monkey and log
PRABHUPĀDA: Expert means whatever he is doing,
he must do it very nicely; that’s all.
Suppose you are sweeping this room.
You can do it very nicely, to your best knowledge.
That is expert.
The people will say, “Oh, you have very nicely done.”
Any work you do, do it very nicely.
That is expert.
Don’t do it haphazardly.
To your best talent, to your best capacity,
try to finish it very nicely, whatever it may be.
You are entrusted with some work.
Do it nicely.
That is expert.
If you think that you are unable to do that work,
then whatever work you can do, you take.
But do it nicely.
That is expert.
Don’t imitate.
“Oh, I have no capacity to work in that way, but I want to imitate.
Oh, he is doing that.”
I shall do that.
Don’t do that.
That is not expert.
You take up what you can do very nicely and do it nicely.
We have so many works.
Kṛṣṇa is not that He is static.
He is dynamic force.
Just like Arjuna, he was not a Vedantist,
he was not a brāhmaṇa, he was not a sannyāsī.
He was householder.
He was military man.
But he knew his business, how to do it nicely.
So you do your business nicely.
That is expert.
And when it is dovetailed in Kṛṣṇa,
there is no gradation that this business is better and that business is lower,
because everything is for Kṛṣṇa.
So that business becomes Kṛṣṇa.
Do it nicely and Kṛṣṇa is satisfied.
That is your success.
Avyāpare suvyaparam yo naraḥ kartum icchati,
sa-mulo hanyate ’khila pārthiva vānaraḥ [?]
Expert.
There is a very nice story in Sanskrit.
A monkey.
A monkey… You might have some experience, that sawmen, who cut wood?
Sawmen.
So a sawman was cutting wood by the saw.
At the end of business it was half cut so he pulled down a, I mean to say,
a plug so that next day he will come and he’ll again begin sawing.
So went… So one monkey came.
So monkey sat down there,
and began to pull on the plug because monkey’s business is simply mischievous.
So he did not know that his plough [?]
and some portion of his thigh was within the hole,
and when he took out this plug it was, how you say, clipped,
and he could not get out and died.
So the instruction is that… ’Khila pārthiva vānaraḥ, vyāpare suvyaparam. [?]
Avyāpara means a occupation, an occupation which is not fit for you.
That is avyāpara. Avyāpara-suvyaparam.
And one occupation which is not exactly fitting you, you do not know how to do it,
so avyāpare suvyaparam yo kartu…
If one wants to act in a business in which he is unable to do,
then he is killed just like this fool monkey.
Avyāpare suvyaparam yo naraḥ kartum icchati, sa-mulo hanyate.
That foolish person is killed just like this monkey.
The monkey’s business was not to imitate the sawman, but he wanted to imitate.
The result was that he was killed.
So that is not expert.
Expertness is you just try to do which is easily performed by you.
You don’t accept anything heavy task,
because Kṛṣṇa does not want that you have to do this heavy task.
Whatever you know, you just apply it.
You dovetail it in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Kṛṣṇa does not say that you have to become like this, like that, like that.
Then you can serve Him.
Does not say.
Just like this cow.
Just see.
What does it know?
He’s an animal.
You see?
But the calf knows to brush his head and tongue like this, in love.
It is doing and Kṛṣṇa accepting, “Yes.”
That is expert.
First of all find out what is easily done by you.
Don’t take anything which is not easily done by you.
You find out what is your occupation,
what you can very nicely and easily perform,
and do it for Kṛṣṇa.
Subtitles by Pratyatoṣa Dāsa, Causelessmercy.com