PRACTICE BEFORE PREACHING – STORY
A preacher was once giving a class to a large audience in the Temple.
In the course of it he said:
“O People! I tell you the truth. If only you knew the power of the chanting, you would say it before every action of yours. Whoever says these names of Lord before beginning any act will see wonders. One will even be able to cross the flooded river.”
One poor villager, who was sitting close to the preacher, listened to this sermon attentively. Poor villager was a regular visitor to the temple, although his journey from his home was a very difficult one because he had to cross a flooded river on the way.
That Poor villager did not have a boat and often had to wait until someone appeared who could transport him across. The route around the river was extremely long.
However, when the poor villager heard this sermon, he realized that he had found the solution to his problem.
When Poor villager reached the river on his way back, he did not hesitate, but started chanting and stepped onto the water.
By the grace of the Lord he was able to walk steadily in the flood water and soon reached the other side. This became a regular practice for the poor villager.
One day, as he was crossing the river; he realized that he had not thanked the preacher who had given him the solution to his problem.
Poor villager decided to invite him to his house for a meal as a way of showing his gratitude to him.
The preacher accepted the invitation and both of them began walking back to the poor villager’s house. On reaching the river, the poor villager started chanting and stepped out into the water, as was his normal routine.
Poor villager expected the preacher to do the same. But when he looked behind, he found that the preacher was still standing on the bank looking at him in bewilderment.
The man told him to chant just as he had preached.
“My dear villager, I lack the faith that you have,” replied the preacher.
MORAL:
Strong Faith in holy name can be acquired by Simplicity & Humility and not mere Knowledge.
Holy Name of the Lord can take us back home back to Godhead – so walking in the flood water is not a real wonder.
Pure devotees do not want to commit nama-apradha by using the holy name for attaining some material gains. In this story the listener had so much faith in holy name of the Lord whereas the preacher didn’t.
That is why, the teachers always remain teachers, but his students become successful in so many fields depending on their attention, interest and efforts!
(Also read THIS STORY: Poor Brahmana and Vaishak month!)