The following is an excerpt of a speech given by His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati on March 12, 1928 after the departure of one of the devotee associates of Gaudiya Math:
“Happiness, sorrow, and the mixture of these in any situation are the blessing of the Lord on us. He is most compassionate. By making us face the sorrows of the world he is giving valuable instruction for our welfare. He is showing us that the world is not our permanent dwelling place. We have to stay a few days in this material world and other than pleasing Lord Hari, there is no necessity of performing any other foolish endeavor. Many think that by being placed in midst of sorrows the Lord has been most unkind to us. But in real light this is not the case. The actual gift of the Lord is this situation of sorrow. In the wake of sorrow, there is something delightful that our highest welfare can be warranted. We know from the prayers of Sri Kunti Devi who prayed that many obstacles come ceaselessly so that I can get your ultimate vision away from this material world. All high birth, scholarship, wealth, beauty are not the qualification to attain you (SB 1.8.25-26). Then as the verse spoken by Sarvabhauma to Sriman Mahaprabhu: tat te ’nukampāṁ meaning the devotee who is tolerant in spite of all sorts of difficulties will attain the mercy of Krishna. To nullify aversion to the Lord has this sorrow been introduced and the intelligence with the proclivity to aversion to the Lord is the impulse to enjoy the senses. When we understand that both happiness and sorrow are there by the Lord’s mercy, then our actual welfare becomes assured.”
