This morning he met with Hansaduta and Aksayananda Swamis. Hansaduta seems to generate agitation and controversy wherever he goes. He has been here for only two months and already the devotees have polarized into two camps: those that want him to take over as temple president, and those who don't. There is indeed a general dissatisfaction with the way Aksayananda Maharaja runs things, but although Srila Prabhupada shares this, he made it clear this morning what he wants from each of them.
He sat facing the two sannyasis over his desk; Hansaduta to his left and Aksayananda to his right. Prabhupada addressed Hansaduta first. "You are a sannyasi. Why you are spending such a long time here? You have a bus and you must travel. Sannyasi means that now you have to preach all over the world. Why you should be thinking of becoming the president here? Actually a sannyasi should not remain in one place for more than three days at a time. You have your bus and if the wheels stop turning then it means the preaching is also stopped." Prabhupada gave Hansaduta the example of the Indian railways. "They have a motto: 'The wheels must keep turning.' And it is the business of every employee, whether a train driver, a fireman or a clerk in the office, to do their bit so that the wheels never stop. If the wheels stop, business stopped." So he told Hansaduta that his bus should never stop. "Still," he said, "the temple is nirguna, so you may stay more than three days -- that is allowed. But only if you have business here."
Then Prabhupada turned to Aksayananda Swami. "Now you must stay here in Vrndavana and never leave unless I say so. You must stay and do the management."
We all looked at each other and laughed. Prabhupada is so wonderful that he can give two apparently contradictory instructions and still be absolutely correct.
Prabhupada went on to explain that without Aksayananda's presence, things in the temple were deteriorating. So he must remain to correct the defects.
Gopala Krsna and Harikesa Maharaja joined us, and Srila Prabhupada reiterated his instructions for Gopala Krsna's benefit, first explaining his directions to Hansaduta.
"Sannyasi should go on preaching, preaching, preaching, preaching. Practically, I was sitting here in Vrndavana, in Radha-Damodara temple. So at the age of seventy years, nobody goes out, at least from Vrndavana nobody goes at the age of seventy years. But Krsna asked me. I thought that I must go, Guru Maharaja wanted it, Caitanya Mahaprabhu ... Let me try. So if I had not gone, then this institution would not have developed. So this is practical. Mahatah nirvicaranam. Mahatma, they must move. So when there is absolute necessity they may stay. Otherwise, they must move -- move on, move on, move on, move on, move on. No staying, that is principle. No staying. I am this old age, I cannot move; still I am traveling all over the world. I am simply interested that whatever I have done, it may not be vanquished in my absence. Let me go and encourage them. Otherwise, I have no capacity to move now. But still I am moving. Only for this purpose. So a sannyasi must move. A sannyasi must not stay anywhere more than three days. That is the principle."
Then he indicated Aksayananda and explained why he had to stay. "So he was moving, but his moving is creating disturbances here. Therefore I have stopped. And besides that, a temple is nirguna. A sannyasi is forbidden to stay anywhere else, but in a temple he can stay for more than three days provided there is business. Otherwise, there is no necessity. So this is the exclusion."
Gopala Krsna looked relieved at Prabhupada's decision. "That solves all the problems."
"No, solves or not solves, we shall see later on," Prabhupada told him. "But this is the principle. This is the principle. Solution, if we do not become very simple servant of Krsna, problems will increase. It will never be solved. If you have got any other desire than to serve Krsna, then the problems will increase; it will never decrease. Therefore bhakti begins, anyabhilasita-sunyam. No other purpose than to serve Krsna. This is only purpose. Anukulyena krsnanu-silanam. So our only business is how to satisfy Krsna. Krsna in His original status as Krsna, and in His other status as Caitanya Mahaprabhu. And in both ways, He's insisting to preach. That is a very important business. Neither Caitanya Mahaprabhu nor Krsna has recommended that you become a great devotee and sit down in a place and talk big, big words and simply eat and sleep. Krsna has never said. That is not Krsna's, neither Caitanya Mahaprabhu's, business. That is not required. Boro boro bandolel boro boro phet, lanka dingake mata kore het. 'Big, big monkey, big, big belly, Ceylon jumping -- melancholy.' There are very many big, big bellies in Vrndavana, but if they're asked to preach Caitanya Mahaprabhu's mission all over the world -- melancholy. Melancholy. Big, big monkey, big, big belly."
- From "A Transcendental Diary Vol 4" by HG Hari Sauri Prabhu
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