A Stinky Sewer

By It So Happened on April 18, 2012 | Category: Miscellaneous | Tags: criticism, monastery, Radhanath Swami | 136 Comments

Shyly I walked into Radhanath Swami’s room and occupied a corner. Radhanath Swami, sitting relaxed on a rocking chair at the other end, beckoned me to come closer.  And I sat closer.

He broke into a beautiful smile. “How are you? How are your services going?”

I had joined the monastery a few weeks ago. Being insisted upon by a senior monk, I was here, in Radhanath Swami’s room. The monk had intended to make me feel at home. Yes, now experiencing the gentle smile of the Swami, I felt at home.

“I serve guests who visit our monastery.” I replied. I went on to explain how I liked the service, and the challenges I faced while serving. As I rambled on, at one point Radhanath Swami’s expression grew yucky, as if a stinky sewer had just burst open.  I paused. Did I speak something which I wasn’t supposed to speak? In a flash I realized. Inadvertently, I had criticized a guest.

Diverging to another topic, I saved my skin. I had heard from many that Radhanath Swami hates to speak or hear the criticism of anybody. Today I had gained a first hand experience.

—Manish Rajan

Related Posts:

• The Ugly Cat
• One night at the monastery
• Radhanath Swami and the Knock out Scene
• No Halters on the Cows
• Austerity of Monkhood

136 Responses to “A Stinky Sewer”

1. 

   June 12, 2012 at 12:14 am

   Vinay Malani

   Fault finding & criticising others are two of the biggest impediments on the spiritual path of self-realization. Thank you Radhanath Swami for emphasizing on this fact through this incident.
2. 

   June 12, 2012 at 11:26 am

   anil chhetri

   Criticism is an enemy within all of us…. we should get rid of it….
3. 

   June 14, 2012 at 3:38 am

   Tallam Sita Ramaiah

   Thank you very much for sharing this.
4. 

   June 14, 2012 at 9:55 am

   priti katkar

   HHRSM ki jai. Thank u so much sharing.
5. 

   June 15, 2012 at 12:38 am

   Srikumar das

   Radhanath swami is a genuine follower of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu!
6. 

   June 16, 2012 at 10:07 pm

   vrushali

   Radhanath swami truly has love and compassion for everyone!
7. 

   June 17, 2012 at 3:59 am

   Rahul

   Very wonderful quality of Radhanath Swami shown in this nice article.
8. 

   June 17, 2012 at 7:40 am

   Amit Dusane

   Very inspiring article. Thank you so much for sharing.
9. 

   June 20, 2012 at 5:00 am

   biswajit

   Hare Krishna… Radhanath Swami Ki Jai !
10. 

    June 28, 2012 at 10:21 pm

    Manasa

    Thanks for sharing!
11. 

    July 2, 2012 at 3:34 am

    suresh

    Hare Krishna. Thanks for sharing.
12. 

    July 4, 2012 at 7:12 am

    Guruprasad

    Thank you so much for this article.
13. 

    July 6, 2012 at 11:07 pm

    Swapnil Gaonkar

    We need to overcome this prpensity to criticize others. Radhanath Swami has stressed on this point in many of his lectures
14. 

    July 8, 2012 at 10:26 am

    ASH

    Thanks for sharing.
15. 

    July 8, 2012 at 11:44 pm

    bharat

    Maharaj…you’ve always shown us the virtue of righteousness through your example.
16. 

    July 9, 2012 at 4:54 pm

    madhura

    Thank you for sharing!
17. 

    July 10, 2012 at 4:30 am

    Sunny Hinduja

    Wonderful!!!
18. 

    July 10, 2012 at 7:32 pm

    nandkishor das

    thanks for sharing
19. 

    July 11, 2012 at 6:28 am

    Monika

    amazing. so positive.
20. 

    July 11, 2012 at 8:51 am

    piyush

    Amazing!..thank u v much for sharing this
21. 

    July 12, 2012 at 12:38 pm

    shailesh

    Thank you for sharing . Hare Krsna !
22. 

    July 13, 2012 at 6:12 am

    Jagannath Dham Das

    Thanks for sharing such a beautiful anecdote with Radhanath Swami !
    Hare Krishna !
23. 

    July 27, 2012 at 9:37 am

    Vimal

    HH Radhanath Swami always teaches us not to hate. He sows love in our hearts though we try to justify our hatred for nondevotees. As maharaj teaches, bhakti yoga is all about loving everybody. Thank you very much.
24. 

    July 27, 2012 at 9:16 pm

    Ramnika

    Criticism and envy are the worst enemy which are within us since so many lifetimes
25. 

    August 15, 2012 at 1:56 am

    Mona

    So true thanx for sharing
26. 

    November 10, 2012 at 8:03 am

    Servant

    Hare Krishna
    His Holiness Radhanath Swami has shown the perfect example of how we should lead a life without criticizing others.
27. 

    December 26, 2012 at 11:37 am

    anil manga

    Thanks for sharing. wonderful article.
28. 

    January 17, 2013 at 6:22 pm

    Ramnikapahuja

    H.H.RadhanathSwamiji shows by his examples the love for everyone.within our hearts.
29. 

    January 18, 2013 at 2:11 am

    Nilesh Patel

    Its so inspiring , we should not hear or speak ill of others…Radhanath Maharaja Ki Jai
30. 

    January 28, 2013 at 8:34 pm

    Ramnika Pahuja

    Thanks for sharing such a wonderful article.
31. 

    February 5, 2013 at 12:07 pm

    Yateen

    Radhanath Swami is teaching here us from his personal example how to hate criticism!
32. 

    February 7, 2013 at 8:25 pm

    Ramnikapahuja

    Very positive and amazing
33. 

    March 1, 2013 at 2:05 am

    Abhinav

    Thanks for sharing the wonderful article……
34. 

    March 1, 2013 at 8:58 am

    Sumit Sharma

    Thank you very much Radhanath Swami for this.
35. 

    June 29, 2013 at 6:29 am

    Sanjiv

    This is a a very great lesson, we all can learn from this incident
36. 

    August 16, 2013 at 2:14 am

    VAMSI

    Nice incident