Excerpt from Chaitanya-charitamrita Antya-lila (6.193 text & purport) Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu said, “The mercy of Lord Krishna is stronger than anything else. Therefore the Lord has delivered you from the ditch of materialistic life, which is like a hole into which people pass stool.”

PURPORT

According to the law of karma, everyone is destined to suffer or enjoy according to a certain material standard, but the mercy of Lord Krishna is so powerful that the Lord can change all the reactions of one’s past karma, or fruitive activities. Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu specifically drew attention to the mercy of Lord Krishna. That mercy is more powerful than anything else, for it had saved Raghunatha dasa from the strong bondage of materialistic life, which the Lord compared to a hole where people pass stool. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu gave His verdict that those addicted to the materialistic way of life are like worms that are living in stool but cannot give it up. A griha-vrata, one who has decided to live in a comfortable home although it is actually miserable, is in a condemned position. Only the mercy of Krishna can save one from such misery. Without Krishna’s mercy, one cannot get out of the filthy entanglement of materialistic life. The poor living entity cannot give up his materialistic position on his own; only when granted the special mercy of Krishna can he give it up. Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu knew very well that Raghunatha dasa was already liberated. Nevertheless He emphasized that Raghunatha dasa’s life of material comfort as a very rich man’s son with a very beautiful wife and many servants to attend him was like a ditch of stool. The Lord thus specifically indicated that ordinary men who are very happy with material comforts and family life are in no better position than worms in stool.