The following is a class given by His Holiness Jayapataka Swami Maharaja, with Spanish translation on October 4th 1981 in Guadalajara, Mexico.

There was a request that we should discuss about a great devotee of Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

Different devotees took birth to assist Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu in different ways. Some of them were very wealthy; some of them were very poor. Some of them were very simple and some of them were very educated. Some of them were great kings and some of them were clerks. Different types of persons. But all of them were with great unique qualities. Because they had given their lives and soul to Caitanya Mahaprabhu, they were extraordinary in every respect. They had taken birth in these different forms in order to provide an example for the people who could relate with them. So tonight being a very joyful night at the end of our Ratha Yatra festival, I was asked to say something which was also a very joyful pastime of the Lord.

So there was one devotee who was a very simple devotee, but who got the mercy of Caitanya Mahaprabhu. In fact he got the highest benediction. No higher benediction is possible. You see, but everything that a person could desire was at his fingertips. But, however he simply wanted the essence. So this is the devotee called Kolaveca Sridhara. Kolaveca Sridhara made his business from selling banana products; productos# (devotees laugh). You know that banana, you have bananas in Mexico, I think. Plátanos? So, what part of the banana cannot be used?

Devotees: The peel, the banana peel...

Jayapataka Maharaja: No the whole tree, of the whole tree.

The translator : Someone says the trunk. Roots...

Jayapataka Maharaja: So, one answer : trunk. Another answer ?

The devotees : Roots.

One mataji: I think it can all be used.

Jayapataka Maharaja: And it can all be used. Que es correcta# (devotees laugh). Especially in India it can all be used. You know, first of all the banana tree grows; so many leaves are coming out. Then out comes the flower from the centre. And then in that flower, actually the flower petals opens and there are so many small flowers, which become bananas. And then, after the bananas, you see, it forms from the rear of the flower, the rear of the flower, its purple, it comes out and then the bananas come and then gradually the flower becomes smaller and smaller. So they cut-off, when all the bananas have come, then only the flowers come which do not produce bananas. They come, so they cut-off the banana flower, it is called in Bengali the mocha and that is considered to be a great delicacy.

All those small flowers are taken and there is a little spatula that sticks out, and they are pulled out and chopped into little pieces and made into a vegetable. Of course the banana, everyone knows what that can be done. Then you have the trunk of the, then you have the leaves. The leaves are used for eating off, as plates. It describes in the Hari-Bhakti Vilas that there are many different types of auspicious plates. You see, lotus leaf is the most auspicious. Then auro, gold. Then banana. Then there are other type of brass and sliver brass and earthen plates. So banana leaf is considered to be very first class for eating prasadam off.

Prabhupada would put even on top of his marble plates banana leaf and like to take off the banana leaf. Whenever Acaryadeva goes to Mayapur, he always takes off banana leaves. Then the trunk of the tree, that is also made into bows. They share with, in Manipur they make bows.

Also, banana trunk is very good food for elephants and cows. So if you ever have an elephant, then I told you yesterday you should always have lot of plantain trees (devotees laugh) and the very centre of the trunk, there is also rare delicacy that is called thor. It is very sweet – a thor, because the centre, that’s where the banana stalk came out of, so right down to the root that centre is edible. It makes into a vegetable. When it is cut, it has to be cut very thin with a knife. They take off all the trunk and then they just leave the centre part, which is straight and smooth. And so when they cut that, then there is some sticky, gummy substance there. So the ladies, the ladies are expert in cutting, they just take with the finger and they go and snap comes out (devotees laugh). So the root, that is also taken and has eyes on it. That is replanted and that makes more banana trees. So, everything is useful.

So this was the business of Sridhar. He was a banana-leaf-thor-flower centre sales man, you see. But everybody grew bananas in Nabadwip. In every house. So it wasn’t a very rare commodity. So there was a very low profit margin (devotees laugh). So he used to have ripped cloth. In his house he used to have holes in the roof. And he would, by force be eating lots of banana products (laughter). But he was a pure devotee of Krishna. Whatever profit he would make, he would spend 50% on worshipping the Mother Ganges. Because the Ganges is touched by the lotus feet of Krishna and therefore it has become sacred.

So Kolaveca Sridhar, he would make his banana cups, banana leaves and everything, put in a basket and take the basket to the market place and there he would sit and wait for his customers. Those of you who have seen the markets in India, can imagine what it was like. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the golden incarnation of Krishna in His student days, He would go shopping for His mother Sachi. And those days no one knew that He was Krishna. You see, because He was keeping it hidden. You see, only a rare few souls, they knew that. But Lord Caitanya, He wouldn’t look right, He wouldn’t look left. He would go straight for Kolaveca Sridhar. Because he was His devotee, He would say, “How much? Do you have some bananas today?” “I have everyday only these products, here they are, take Your pick.” “How much is this?” “Fixed price, no profit.” (devotees laugh) And he would tell, but he was actually truthful. He would tell the exact market price.

Lord Caitanya would say “Oh! You are trying to make so much profit.” (devotees laugh) “No, no, I am not, this is a reasonable price.” “I know you are buying these banana products very cheap prices, selling for big profit.” (devotees laugh). You see. “You tell me how much you want for this. Tell Me the real price!” Then He would pick up one bunch of bananas. “Yes, I told You the correct price.” “Oh! You are hoarding so much money!” and Lord Caitanya would walk-off with the bananas. Without paying! (devotees laugh). Kolavecha Sridhar would grab them back. “Listen, if You don’t like the price You check the other market people. If they give You better price then You can take it. If I don’t make any profit, how can I worship the mother Ganges. I have to... 50% of my income goes to worshipping Ganges.” Then Lord Caitanya would say, “You think I want to take it for free? I am willing to pay the correct price. But don’t you know who I am? I am the father of your mother Ganges!” “Oh Bishnu, Bishnu, Bishnu, Bishnu! What an offence!” “Sridhar!” (devotees laugh).

“The father of Mother Ganges is Krishna, then how can a living entity be so rash to call Himself God!” So then Lord Caitanya, “All right, are you going to give Me some bananas or not, give Me the correct price.” So then Sridhar, his heart was already melted, he did not know what happened. Every time he came in touch with this Brahmana boy his heart was just melted. “At least I am fortunate that this beautiful Brahmana is coming to me.” Lord Caitanya said, “You took away the bananas from Me! You know what this means...? To take away from a Brahmana? (devotees laugh).” “All right, You take it for half price.” (devotees laugh) Lord Caitanya would pay the conch shells, not even give a penny, give less than a penny and take all his products (laughter). All that He needed, He would take. So this was going on for a long time.

And Kolavecha Sridhar, he would always be thinking of Lord Caitanya... Who is this person; why I am so attracted to Him? And everyday, He would take whatever money he made, 50% he buys food and clothing and another 50% he would buy incense and different things and offer puja to the Ganges. So then, the whole night he would go on chanting Hare Krishna, late into the night. And his neighbors, they become irritated. Why he is singing into the night? (devotees laugh)

Then some other, you see there are so many critical demoniac type people... “Oh! He is so hungry; he can’t sleep, so he is howling into the night.” (devotees laugh). Then, so one of them came the next day and said, “Listen, Kolavecha Sridhar, let me give you some good advice. We hate to see a good boy like you struggling in the world. I would like to advise you to worship demigods and everything, but I know you won’t accept that. Let me give you some good advice. You are spending 50% of your money for worshipping the Ganges. So... but your condition is very poor.”

“No! No!” he said, “I am not poor.”

“No, but your dhoti has got holes in it.” (devotees laugh)

“No, my body is covered, I am not naked.”

“But your house has got holes in it. The rain comes in.”

“It keeps out most of the rain. (devotees laugh) No difficulty.” (devotees again laugh)

“Listen! Let me give some good advice. Just stop worshipping the Ganges for one year. Build up your capital. You see, when you get a lot of money, you can do a big puja for the Ganges. With capital you can get four-five people running with bananas here and there and you can do a big, mass production (laughter). In this way, then after one year you will be a big capitalist and then you can do so much puja and anything you like, no problem. Just stop this puja for one year and then you will be really in a success.” Kolavecha would say, “No, there is no way I can stop the puja.” “Well, just spent 25% on the puja.” “50%, otherwise if I stop what is the guarantee I can start later? If Krishna wants to make me rich, then He will make me rich. There is no guarantee that even if I stop the puja that I will be able to become rich. Because if I stop the puja there is a danger that I may lose or forget Krishna. So I am not going to reduce in any way my devotional service. Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare ''And he went on chanting.

“Fool! Fool! Tonto!”

Devotee : Speaks in Spanish.

Srila Gurudev : Hey! Editorial!! (devotees laugh)

So this was the character of Kolavecha Sridhar. So at that time the pastime I told you this morning about Advaita Gosai happened. Like that Lord Caitanya when He was in the mood as the Supreme Personality of Godhead and as you know Lord Caitanya is Krishna, but He is in mood as a devotee.

Sometimes He would also manifest His original mood as Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So when He was in that mood, He called, He told him, “Now you go, bring Kolaveca Sridhar and the devotees ran out from Srivas Angan and ran down to Kolaveca Sridhar’s house 2 kilometres away or 1 km away. They told, “Kolaveca Sridhar! Lord Caitanya, Lord Gauranga is calling you now”. As soon as he heard Gauranga's name, he fell unconscious. Maybe we should continue tomorrow, everyone looks tired.

Devotees : No!

Lord Caitanya said to bring, He said to bring all the any other devotees, you also can bring him along. Lord Caitanya said to bring other devotees with him. The devotees, they picked up Kolaveca Sridhar and carried him over to Lord Caitanya. He again become conscious and he ran with him to join Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Nobody, none of Lord Caitanya's devotees, not one, they didn’t know the actual quantity of fortune that Kolaveca Sridhar had.

They saw him in a market selling bananas, they knew he was a devotee, but they did not know that how deeper the connection there was there between him and Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. But when he was brought before Caitanya Mahaprabhu... Oh! What a thing! He fell down before Lord Caitanya and offered prostrated obeisance with full devotion.

Then Lord Caitanya called, “Sridhar! So many times I told you that I was the father of the Ganges, but you doubted My words. Now see!” Then He showed His six-armed form, He showed His form as Sri Krishna. And Kolaveca Sridhar was overwhelmed and just crying and paying his obeisances again and again and again and again. Lord Caitanya said, “Look here, here is your worshipable object, here is the Mother Ganges” And Mother Ganges personified came before Kolaveca Sridhar. “All your desires, you see, all your desires today I will satisfy. Kolavecha Sridhar! I am going to give you the eight fold perfections of mystic yoga. Today you will get the ashta-siddhi. Now take it, take these eight mystic yoga powers.”

You know what the eight yogic powers are? Anima, mahima, lagima, prapthi, ishita, basita... You can become smaller than an atom, greater than a mountain, fly anywhere in the universe, take anything from anywhere and just bring it. Do anything within nature or out of nature; immediately you can create a house or a whole planet even. So He is offering.. Lord Caitanya is offering: Immediately you take these mystic powers.

He said, “No my Lord! I don’t have any desire for these mystic powers.

“No, no take the mystic powers. Also take liberation, freedom from birth and death.” Kolaveca Sridhar, he wasn’t agreeing.

“Kolaveca! Come on, you take the mystic powers today! I am giving you! Now tell me what you want?”

Kolaveca Sridhar said, “My Lord!” And with deeply sentimental, deeply emotional heart, he spoke. “Let that Lord, that young Brahmana boy who used to come and take banana products from me, that young Brahmana, who with His restless eyes used to joke with me, that brahmana who is always chanting the holy names of Krishna, let that Brahmana be the Lord of my life, life after life after life after life. That is my only desire. Wherever He goes, let me simply provide Him all His requirements of vegetables and bananas. Let me simply be His servant life after life, there is nothing more I want.”

Lord Caitanya said, “Listen! There is a kingdom waiting for you with so many servants, with so many ministers, everything. You are the king of that kingdom.”

Kolaveca fell at the lotus feet of Lord Caitanya and said, “All I want is the service of your lotus feet, nothing more.”

Then Lord Caitanya said, “Today Kolaveca Sridhara, today I am giving you, not even Brahma and Indra could not get. Today I am giving you your heart’s desire. Today I am giving you pure eternal devotional service unto Me. I am giving you pure Krishna prema, pure bhakti.”

All the devotees who were present, they exploded “Hari Bol! Hari Bol! Hari Bol! Hari Bol!” Everyone started crying and the demigods were throwing flowers at the great mercy of Caitanya Mahaprabhu. The great fortune of Kolaveca Sridhar! He had got what even the demigods could not get. He got pure devotional service which is so rarely given by the Lord. By pure devotional service the Lord, He becomes eternally connected with His servant. Because of pure devotional service Mother Yasoda could tie Krishna.

Krishna became the chariot driver for Arjuna and the gate keeper for Bali Maharaja. He took the wounds of the whipping of Haridas on His own back. You see, by pure devotional service of Lord, He becomes eternally connected with His devotee.

Liberation, mystic powers, material opulence they wait like servants with folded hands at the devotees who have pure devotional service, “What service sir? What service sir?” But the devotee is so busy serving Krishna that he doesn’t have any time for them. Kolaveca Sridhar, humble banana salesman, simple vegetable peddler in the market, he had received the highest benediction imaginable... unimaginable beyond all imagination. All the devotees, their kirtan exploded, and they were crying and just overwhelmed by the great show of devotional opulence.

So, does not matter who one is, if one his dedicated to the lotus feet of Caitanya Mahaprabhu, somehow or other serving His devotees, then one is guaranteed to get the perfection of life. Sometimes even the Lord offers all the opulence. And once if the devotee, he can take all the types of material or spiritual opulence, but the pure devotee who has developed love for Gauranga, he simply wants to maintain that love. So Caitanya Mahaprabhu gives Himself. What can be a greater attainment? What can be a greater achievement? You can get from a rich man some of his possessions. What is more important, the possession or the possessor? When you have Krishna, you have everything. The devotees, they simply want Krishna, they don’t want any of the external or partial manifestations.

Nitai Gaura Premanande Hari Hari Bol!

So, ‘Sri Krishna Caitanya doya koro vichar, vichar kore le cite pave chamatkar’

Meditate on the great mercy of Caitanya Mahaprabhu and you will become filled with astonishment and wonder. Where will you find such mercy anywhere else?! Such wonderful relations?! Such causeless mercy?!

Jai Sri Krsna Caitanya, Prabhu Nityananda, Sri Advaita Gadadhara Srivas adi Gaura Bhakta Vrnda

Therefore we chant the holy names to get the mercy of Caitanya Mahaprabhu. And we follow His instructions to chant the Hare Krishna maha-mantra also to get His mercy. Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare.

Lord Caitanya had rich devotees, poor devotees and He showed that the poor devotee didn’t have to become rich to become liberated, to become fully blessed by Him. Simply he had to keep his devotional service going strong. Similarly, those who were the rich devotees, He didn’t ask them to give up their wealth, but to use it for expanding Krishna consciousness. But they would maintain their same standard of living. But the real thing that Caitanya Mahaprabhu was always seeing was their consciousness. Was their consciousness fully attached to His lotus feet or not? Therefore we should train our mind to simply grab on the lotus feet of Nitai Gaura.

Muchas Gracias# (thank you very much)

Footnotes : 1) productos# Srila Gurudev translates the English word products into Spanish, as the translator doesn't know the Spanish word for products.

2)Que es correcta# Srila Gurudev says “this is correct'' in Spanish.

3)Tonto# Srila Gurudev says “fool'' in Spanish.

4)Muchas Gracias# Srila Gurudev says “thank you very much” in Spanish.

Transcribed by: Ranachora Govinda Dasa, 26 July 2013