Story 44 Yogi burning finger
PRABHUPĀDA: In the Bhakti- rasāmṛta-sindhu, there is a story…
Not story; fact.
It is described there.
That one brāhmaṇa: He was a great devotee.
He wanted to offer very brilliant service, arcanā, in the temple worship.
But he had no money.
But some day he was sitting in a Bhāgavata class and he heard
that Kṛṣṇa can be worshipped even within the mind.
So he took this opportunity because he was thinking since a long time
how to worship Kṛṣṇa very gorgeously, but he had no money.
So he, when he got this point, that one can be worship Kṛṣṇa within the mind,
so after taking bath in the Godāvarī River, he was sitting underneath a tree
and within his mind he was constructing very gorgeous siṁhāsana, throne,
bedecked with jewels and keeping the Deity on the throne,
he was bathing the Deity with water of Ganges,
Yamunā, Godāvarī, Narmadā, Kāverī.
Then he was dressing the Deity very nicely,
then offering worship with flower, garland.
Then he was cooking very nicely, and he was cooking paramānna, sweet rice.
So he wanted to taste it, whether it was very hot.
Because paramānna is taken cold.
Paramānna is not taken very hot.
So he put his finger on the paramānna and his finger burned down.
Then his meditation broken,
because there was nothing; he was simply within the mind he was doing everything.
So… But he saw that his finger is burned.
So he was astonished.
In this way, Nārāyaṇa from Vaikuṇṭha, He was smiling.
Lakṣmījī asked, “Why you are smiling?”
“And one of My devotee is worshiping like this.
So send My men to bring him immediately to Vaikuṇṭha.”
So, the bhakti-yoga is so nice,
that even if you have no means to offer the Deity gorgeous worship,
you can do it within the mind.
That is also possible.
Subtitles by Pratyatoṣa Dāsa, Causelessmercy.com