When Lord Nityananda approached Jagai and Madhai, to ask them to chant Hare Krishna, one of the brothers hit him in the head with a stone, and blood came out.
Lord Nityananda said,
“All right. You have hurt Me. Blood is oozing out. That doesn’t matter. Chant Hare Krishna.”
Lord Nityananda is showing us how we must preach. It is not that we only stay safely somewhere, and chant Hare Krishna. No. We have to go out and meet the Jagais and Madhais. That is Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s mission, because the world is full of Jagais and Madhais.
When Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu heard that one of the brothers had injured Nityananda Prabhu, He became angry—like fire. If a devotee sees Visnu or a Vaisnava insulted, he should be fire like. Lord Caitanya taught that a devotee should be as humble as straw in the street. But when a devotee sees the Lord or the Lord’s devotee insulted, the devotee should not be like a straw—he should be like fire. Caitanya Mahaprabhu showed this by example. He became very very angry,
“I shall kill these two brothers immediately!”
But Nityananda Prabhu entreated,
“Oh, My dear sir, in this incarnation You have promised not to accept any weapon. In Your incarnation as Lord Ramacandra You took up weapons. As Krishna also You took up weapons. But this time You wanted to deliver these poor souls. So don’t kill them. Excuse them. Accept them.”
Nityananda Prabhu is the original guru, and He was showing that the guru’s business is to be very merciful.
Jagai and Madhai fell at Lord Caitanya’s feet and said,
“We are so sinful. We have done wrong. Kindly excuse us.”
Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu made one condition:
“Your life is full of sinful activities. So, if you simply promise, ‘I shall not sin anymore,’ then I can accept you.”
Jagai and Madhai said.
“Sir, we’ll not do these sinful things anymore.”
That vow is required. When you are initiated, you promise:
“No illicit sex, no intoxication, no meat-eating, no gambling.”
Srila Prabhupada said that if you privately do these things, then what kind of person are you? Do not be a cheater. When you promise not to do these things, do not do them again. Then you will remain in goodness. Nobody can disturb you. And if you pollute yourself silently, then goodness will go away.
This is the warning:
“Once you are initiated, on the promise that you shall not do these nonsense things, then you remain perfectly in goodness. Maya cannot do anything. But if you cheat yourself, cheat your spiritual master, cheat God, then you will be cheated by maya.”
In Purport to Caitanya-caritamrta Madhya 16.66 Srila Prabhupada Wrote:
“Lord Caitanya’s mission is to deliver the fallen souls of this age. In this Age of Kali, practically cent percent of the population is fallen. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu certainly delivered many fallen souls,
but His disciples mainly came from the upper classes.For example, He delivered Srila Rupa Gosvami, Sanatana Gosvami, Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya and many others who were socially elevated, but fallen from the spiritual point of view. Srila Rupa and Sanatana Gosvamis were situated in government service, and Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya was the topmost scholar of India. Similarly, Prakasananda Sarasvati was a leader of many thousands of Mayavadi sannyasis.
It was Srila Nityananda Prabhu, however, who delivered persons like Jagai and Madhai. Therefore, Lord Caitanya says, amara ‘duskara’ karma, toma haite haye. Jagai and Madhai were delivered solely by Nityananda Prabhu’s mercy. When they injured Nityananda Prabhu, Lord Caitanya became angry and decided to kill them with His Sudarsana cakra, but Nityananda Prabhu saved them from the Lord’s wrath and delivered them. In the incarnation of Gaura-Nitai, the Lord is not supposed to kill demons but is supposed to deliver them by preaching Krishna consciousness. In the case of Jagai and Madhai, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was so angry that He would have immediately killed them, but Nityananda Prabhu was so kind that He not only saved them from death, but elevated them to the transcendental position. Thus, what was not possible for Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was carried out by Nityananda Prabhu.
Similarly, if one is true to Gaura-Nitai’s service in the disciplic succession, he can even excel Nityananda Prabhu’s service. This is the process of disciplic succession.
Nityananda Prabhu delivered Jagai and Madhai, but a servant of Nityananda Prabhu, by His grace, can deliver many thousands of Jagais and Madhais. That is the special benediction of the disciplic succession. One who is situated in the disciplic succession can be understood by the result of his activities. This is always true as far as the activities of the Lord and His devotees are concerned. Therefore, Lord Siva says:
‘Of all types of worship, worship of Lord Visnu is best, and better than the worship of Lord Visnu is the worship of His devotee, the Vaisnava.’ (Padma Purana)
By the grace of Visnu, a Vaisnava can render better service than Visnu; that is the special prerogative of a Vaisnava. The Lord actually wants to see His servants work more gloriously than Himself. For instance, on the Battlefield of Kuruksetra, Sri Krishna provoked Arjuna to fight because all the warriors on the battlefield were to die by Krishna’s plan. Krishna Himself did not want to take credit; rather, He wanted Arjuna to take credit. Therefore, He asked him to fight and win fame:
‘Therefore, get up. Prepare to fight and win glory. Conquer your enemies and enjoy a flourishing kingdom. They are already put to death by My arrangement, and you can be but an instrument in the fight.’ (Bhagavad-gita 11.33)
Thus, the Supreme Personality of Godhead gives credit to a devotee who performs any heavy task perfectly. Hanumanji, or Vajraìgaji, the servant of Lord Ramacandra, serves as another example. It was Hanumanji who jumped over the sea in one leap and reached the shore of Laìka from the shore of Bharata-varsa. When Lord Ramacanssssssssssdra chose to go there, He paved the way with stones, although by His will the stones were able to float on the sea.
If we simply follow Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s instructions and follow in the footsteps of Sri Nityananda Prabhu, this Krishna consciousness movement can advance, and even more difficult tasks can be performed by the preachers remaining faithful to the service of the Lord.”