ei-mata sevakera prÄ«ti cÄhi prabhu-pÄya
prabhu chÄá¸Äileha, pada chÄá¸Äna nÄ yÄya
ei-mata - like this; sevakera - of the servitor; prÄ«ti - love; cÄhi - is wanted; prabhu-pÄya - unto the lotus feet of the Lord; prabhu chÄá¸Äileha - even though the Lord causes separation; pada - the lotus feet of the Lord; chÄá¸Äna nÄ yÄya - cannot be given up.
“ ‘The servitor must have love and affection for the lotus feet of the Lord exactly like this. Even if the Lord wants separation, a devotee cannot abandon the shelter of His lotus feet.
The word prabhu, or master, indicates that the Lord is to be continuously served by His devotee. The original prabhu is the Lord, ÅšrÄ« Kṛṣṇa. Nonetheless, there are many devotees attached to Lord RÄmacandra, and MurÄri Gupta is a vivid example of such unalloyed devotion. He never agreed to give up Lord RÄmacandra’s worship, not even upon ÅšrÄ« Caitanya MahÄprabhu’s request. Such is the chastity of devotional service, as stated in the Antya-lÄ«lÄ of ÅšrÄ« Caitanya-caritÄmá¹›ta (4.46-47):
sei bhakta dhanya, ye nÄ chÄá¸e prabhura caraṇa
sei prabhu dhanya, ye nÄ chÄá¸e nija-jana
durdaive sevaka yadi yÄya anya sthÄne
sei á¹hÄkura dhanya tÄre cule dhari’ Äne
In a firm relationship with the Lord, the devotee does not give up the Lord’s service under any circumstance. As far as the Lord Himself is concerned, if the devotee chooses to leave, the Lord brings him back again, dragging him by the hair.
