Text 5

The glory of the virtue of giving respect to devotees is described in the Mukunda-mālā-stotram (35):

शृण्वन् सतो भगवतो गुण-कीर्तनानि देहे न यस्य पुलकोद्गम-रोम-राजिः
नोत्पद्यते नयनयोर् विमलाम्बु-माला धिक् तस्य जीवितम् अहो पुरुषाधमस्य

śṛṇvan sato bhagavato^[1] guṇa-kīrtanāni dehe na yasya pulakodgama-roma-rājiḥ
notpadyate nayanayor vimalāmbu-mālā dhik tasya jīvitam aho puruṣādhamasya

If upon hearing the kīrtana of Śrī Hari’s name, form, qualities and pastimes from the mouths of guru and Vaiṣṇavas, a person’s bodily hairs do not stand erect in ecstasy, his heart does not melt, and tears do not f low from his eyes, then alas! the life of such a wretched person is condemned.

साधु-मुखे येइ जन, कृष्ण-नाम-गुण-गण,
शुनिया ना हैल पुलकित
नयने विमल जल, ना वहिल अनर्गल,
से वा केन रहिल जीवित

sādhu-mukhe yei jana, kṛṣṇa-nāma-guṇa-gaṇa,
śuniyā nā haila pulakita
nayane vimala jala, nā vahila anargala,
se vā kena rahila jīvita

Commentary: Bhajana-rahasya-vṛtti:

Sādhakas performing bhajana condemn their lives and repent in this way: “Alas! Even though I have heard hari-kathā from the mouth of saintly persons, my hard heart does not melt. This is the result of my offences. The heart of one who just once hears the glories of Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s name melts immediately. But my heart has not realised this truth, and thus my life is condemned.”

There is a story in this regard. There was a person who would come to hear hari-kathā in an assembly of saintly persons. Upon hearing the hari-kathā, everyone present would be saturated with bliss, but the heart of this man bore no change. He became very remorseful about this. The next day, while hearing hari-kathā, he rubbed red chilli powder in his eyes, which then poured forth a shower of tears. The Vaiṣṇava speaking the hari-kathā noticed this. When he finished his discourse, he called him over and praised him, saying, “The scriptures say those senses that refuse to perform kṛṣṇa-bhajana should be punished, and today you have put this into practice. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam says, ‘It is useless to keep those senses that are not engaged in the service of the Supreme Lord.’” Upon hearing this, a stream of real tears f lowed from that man’s eyes.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

In other editions of Mukunda-mālā, ‘sato bhagavato’ reads as ‘janārdanakathā’.