Nirmama - Not Mine

Hare Krishna Prabhujis and Matajis,
Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada and Srila Gurudeva.

Our scriptures like Bhagavad Gita and Srimad Bhagavatam very nicely reveals to us the nature of devotees and that of demoniac people. In Bhagavad Gita verse 12.13-14 Krishna list the qualities which are very dear to Him. He says,

adveṣṭā sarva-bhūtānāṁ maitraḥ karuṇa eva ca
nirmamo nirahaṅkāraḥ sama-duḥkha-sukhaḥ kṣamī
santuṣṭaḥ satataṁ yogī yatātmā dṛḍha-niścayaḥ
mayy arpita-mano-buddhir yo mad-bhaktaḥ sa me priyaḥ

One who is not envious but is a kind friend to all living entities, who does not think himself a proprietor and is free from false ego, who is equal in both happiness and distress, who is tolerant, always satisfied, self-controlled, and engaged in devotional service with determination, his mind and intelligence fixed on Me – such a devotee of Mine is very dear to Me.

nirmama - Srila Prabhupada translates this word as 'no sense of proprietorship.' Devotees of the Lord are very peaceful even when they don't possess anything materially. Even if they possess the three worlds, they know that they are just servants of Supreme Lord and that the real owner is Krishna. Our beloved spiritual master HH Mahavishnu Goswami Maharaj used to frequently quote that  'sārā bhumi gopal ki'. Pure devotees of the Lord very well know this and they just consider themselves as trustees and not as owners.

Ambarish Maharaj ruled ove the whole planet - but he was never proud of his position. He just considered himself as a servant of Supreme Lord. Sudama was able to happily glorify the Lord amidst all poverty. And later when he bestowed with all riches also, there was no deviation in his  devotional mood. Parikshit Maharaj happily renounced his possessions and post as soon as he came to know that he would be dying within a week.

On the other hand Duryodhana and other Kauravas could not stay peacefully in their royal palace, even after sending away Pandavas in exile to the forests. Demoniac tendency makes one to be unduly attached to land, property etc. In Srimad Bhagavatam verse 3.17.19 Maitreya Muni says to Vidurji 

cakre hiraṇyakaśipur dorbhyāṁ brahma-vareṇa ca
vaśe sa-pālāḻ lokāṁs trīn akuto-mṛtyur uddhataḥ

The elder child, Hiraṇyakaśipu, was unafraid of death from anyone within the three worlds because he received a benediction from Lord Brahmā. He was proud and puffed up due to this benediction and was able to bring all three planetary systems under his control.

Srila Prabhupda very nicely mentions in the purport to the above verse, "One may be very proud of his material advancement in knowledge, but he cannot be immune to the four principles of material existence, namely birth, death, old age and disease. It was the Lord's plan to teach people that even Hiranyakashipu, who was so powerful and strongly built, could not live more than his destined duration of life. One may become as strong and puffed up as Hiranyakashipu and bring under his control all the three worlds, but there is no possibility of continuing life eternally or keeping the conquered booty forever. So many emperors have ascended to power, and they are now lost in oblivion; that is the history of the world."

Maharaj says that if we claim that something belongs to us, then it should come with us, all the time. But practically neither the houses, nor lands come with us everywhere, both during our stay in this material world and later in our final journey as well. So it is important for us to appreciate, accept and practise this truth that - "Everything belongs to Krishna."  

Thank you very much.
Yours in service of Srila Prabhupada and Srila Gurudeva,
Sudarshana devi dasi.