The infestation was becoming obvious. The carpenter ants were seen
everywhere in the office...especially when it rained. They would swarm on the walls and ceiling and
crawl over the desk...big red carpenter ants carrying their eggs. Carpenter ants are not good because they eat the structure of the house.
They eat wood like termites.
What to do?
I had not been cleaning as regularly as would have been good. So there was
a lot of dust behind the book case and under the lap top computer which sits permanently on a cardboard box to raise its height on the desk.
I lifted the cardboard box and there they were. Hundreds making their home.
Someone who invades the home can be killed. But I used the vacuum cleaner and
scooped them up, carrying them far away and let them loose.
I began to clean more thoroughly. They were back again in a few days. But they were not under the laptop. Where were they?
I began a thorough cleaning of the room hoping that they had not gotten
into the walls. And there they were. Under the cd folders of Srila Prabhupada’s lectures
that I had not listened to or moved for two years. It is not that I am not
hearing but I am using online resources so the physical cds are lying there
unused. But still the message was becoming clear.
The cleaning of Gundica temple took on a whole new meaning. There is a need
for house cleaning. If not, then entities will come and devour the house or make
it uninhabitable. It is not just that little pieces of dirt or little pieces or straw are the only things that need to be cleaned. Or even that one only has to
clean their own heart of material lust. But the society of devotees also must
do a thorough housecleaning from time to time to remove the destructive
elements in the society.
This is the Kshatriya’s duty.
We are wondering where is varnasrama society?
This is varnasrama society. Kshatriya removes the enemies of the society… the
ones who will destroy the house. The carpenter ants if you will.
But there was another realization from this practical life experience. When
it rains it is great mercy. The plants and trees grow so nicely but so do other
things. The unwanted plants must be removed if there is to be a fruitful garden
but there is something else…much more insidious. Mold and mildew inside the
house. Both of these cause serious problems…weakening those who live
in the house…asthma, respiratory problems, headaches and loss of energy to name
a few…and even mental confusion to the point of insanity.
Weeds come from seeds that scatter here and there. And mold comes if there
is a flood disaster and there is not a thorough cleanup. But mildew which is a type
of mold comes when there are two things... moisture and uncleanliness.
Moisture alone is not really enough for mildew to grow. It needs a food
source also. These are living entities. If there is dirt or dust or greasy
fingerprints mildew is very happy to move in and make everyone sick by sending its
spores into the air.
The society is like that also. The society is the larger house.
Housecleaning must be done. The mercy is pouring down like rain but if the dirt is there then there will be problems.
Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu shed tears profusely as He and His associates
personally carried the dirt out of the temple. He washed the temple
with His own tears. He cleaned twice like this to make way for Lord
Jagannatha's Ratha Yatra.
Dirt in and of itself is innocuous but because it attracts undesirable
living entities it must be removed. The devotee must do this cleaning if he
is to make a way for Lord Jagannatha.
Cleaning himself by bathing and engaging
in devotional service, especially the chanting of the Hare Krishna Maha Mantra.
Cleaning his house and the temple.
And also cleaning the society.
We see King Prataparudra sweeping the
road to make way.
