78 The Nectar of Devotion

house of a brahmana murmured to himself, “Simply by worshiping
Krsna one can easily achieve all the results of heavenly opulence, lib-
eration, supremacy over the planetary systems of the universe, all the
opulences of this material world, and the mystic power of performing
the yoga system.”

The events leading to Sudama’s murmuring this statement are as
follows: Sri Krsna had ordered His friend Sudama to go to a brah-
mana’s house and ask for some food. The brahmanas were performing
a great sacrifice, and Sri Krsna told Sudama to plead with them
that He and Balarama were feeling hungry and needed some food.
When Sudama went there, the brahmanas refused to offer anything,
but the wives of the brahmanas, upon hearing that Sri Krsna wanted
some foodstuff, immediately took many palatable dishes and went to
offer them to Sri Krsna. In the Visnu-rahasya also, it is stated: ‘Any
person within this world who is engaged in the worship of Visnu can
very easily achieve the ever-blissful kingdom of God, known as
Vaikuntha.”

Rendering Service to the Lord

It is stated in the Visnu-rahasya: “Any person who can arrange for
service to the Lord in the same way that a king is given service by his
attendants is surely elevated to the abode of Krsna after death.”
Actually, in India, the temples are just like royal palaces. They are
not ordinary buildings because the worship of Krsna should be per-
formed in just the way that a king is worshiped in his palace. So in
Vrndavana there are many hundreds of temples wherein the Deity is
worshiped exactly like a king. In the Naradiya Purana it is stated:
“If a person stays in the Lord’s temple even for a few moments, he
can surely achieve the transcendental kingdom of God.”

The conclusion is that those who are rich men in society should
construct beautiful temples and arrange for the worship of Visnu, so
that people may be attracted to visit such temples and thereby be
offered the opportunity of dancing before the Lord, or chanting the
