Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura praying to Lord Nrisimhadeva in "Sri Navadvipa Bhava Taranga"
e dusta hrdaye kama adi ripu chaya
kutinati pratisthasa sathya sada raya
hrdaya-sodhana ara krsnera vasana
nrsimha-carane mora ei to' kamana
Within my sinful heart the six enemies headed by lust perpetually reside, as well as duplicity, the desire for fame, plus sheer cunning. At the lotus feet of Lord Narasimha, I hope that He will mercifully purify my heart and give me the desire to serve Lord Krsna.
kandiya nrsimha-pade magibo kakhana
nirapade navadvipe jugala-bhajana
bhaya bhaya paya yan'ra darsane se hari
prasanna hoibo kabe more daya kari
Weeping, I will beg at the lotus-feet of Lord Narasimha for the benediction of worshipping Radha and Krsna in Navadvipa, perfectly safe and free from all difficulties. When will this Lord Hari, Whose terrible form strikes fear into fear itself, ever become pleased and show me His mercy?
yadyapi bhisana murti dusta-jiva-prati
prahladadi krsna-bhakta-jane bhadra ati
kabe va prasanna ho'ye sa krpa-vacane
nirbhaya karibe ei mudha akincane
Even though Lord Narasimha is terrifying toward the sinful souls, He offers great auspiciousness unto the devotees of Lord Krsna headed by Prahlada Maharaja. When will He be pleased to speak words of compassion unto me, a worthless fool, and thereby make me fearless?
svacchande baiso he vatsa sri-gauranga-dhame
jugala-bhajana hau rati hau name
mama bhakta-krpa-bale vighna jabe dura
suddha cite bhajo radha-krsna-rasa-pura
He will say, "Dear child! Sit sown freely and live happily here in Sri Gauranga-dhama. May you nicely worship the Divine Couple, and may you develop loving attachment for Their Holy Names. By the mercy of My devotees, all obstacles are cast far away. With a purified heart, just perform the worship of Radha and Krsna, for such worship overflows with sweet nectar."
ei boli' kabe mora mastaka-upara
sviya sri-carana harse dharibe isvara
amani jugala-preme sattvika vikare
dharaya lutibo ami sri-nrsimha-dvare
Saying this, will that Lord delightedly place His own divine lotus-feet upon my head? I will experience sublime love for the Divine Couple Radha-Krsna and undergo the ecstatic transformations called sattvika. Falling on the ground, I will roll about at the door of Sri Narasimha's temple.
(Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, - "Sri Navadvipa Bhava Taranga", 36-40)
A dear devotee has left at Govardhana...
Gopiparanadhana Prabhu left his body yesterday at Govardhana, where he lived with his wife and son. He is a disciple of Srila Prabhupada and a sanskrit scholar who performed some tremendous service in translating, amongst other valuable work such as Mukunda-mala-stotra and Narada-bhakti-sutra, the last three Cantos of Srimad Bhagavatam and Sri Brihad Bhagavatamrita by Sanatana Goswami. Please check: http://www.bbt.se/publication_others_bb.html
He was currently working on the presentation of Srila Jiva Gosvami’s Tattva-sandarbha and Srila Rupa Goswami’s Laghu-bhagavatamrta.
On his desk was a framed picture with the following words:
“Do not hear from mouths of persons lacking proper conduct. If your conduct is below par you should not publicly preach about the Lord. Close the door and preach to yourself. Bhajan really begins when one’s outside and inside are the same.”
He was currently involved in preaching in China and other places around the world.
Let us rest assured that such an examplary vaishnava is eternally sheltered at the lotus feet of his revered and beloved spiritual master, Abhay Charan Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada and has surely joined him, to assist him in his nitya lila, be it on this earth planet to assist him furthermore in his preaching mission of rescuing the fallen souls, or in Goloka Vrindavana in the service of the servants of the divine couple, Sr-Sri Radha-Shyamasundara...
Giri Govardhana-dhari ki Jaya
Sriman Gopiparanadhana Prabhu ki Jaya
Our thoughts and prayers are with his dear wife and son, as well as with all his dear Godbrothers and Godsisters and friends...
Hare Krishna
Srila Prabhupada's poem:Vrindavana bhajan
Srila Prabhupada's poem Vrindavane Bhajan written in Bengali not long before he took sannyasa:
Doing Bhajan in Vrindavan
I am sitting alone in Vrindavan Dham
In this mood I am getting many realizations.
I have my wife, sons, daughters, grandsons, everything,
But I have no money so they are a fruitless glory.
Krishna has shown me the naked form of material nature,
By his strength it has all become tasteless to me today.
yasyāham anugṛhṇāmi hariṣye tad-dhanaṁ śanaiḥ
“I gradually take away all the wealth of those upon whom I am merciful.”
How was I able to understand this mercy of the All-merciful?
Verse 2.
Everyone has abandoned me, seeing me as penniless,
Wife, relatives, friends, brothers, everyone.
This is misery, but it gives me a laugh. I sit alone and laugh.
In this māyā-saṁsāra, whom do I really love?
Where have all my loving father and mother gone to now?
And where are all my elders, who were my own folk?
Who will give me news of them, tell me who?
All that is left of this family life is a list of names.
Verse 3.
Like the froth on the sea water mixes again in the sea,
Māyā-saṁsāra‘s play is just like that.
No one is mother or father, or personal relative,
Just like the sea-foam they remain but a short time,
Just as the froth on sea water mixes again in the sea,
The body made of five elements meets with destruction.
How many bodies does the embodied soul take in this way;
His relatives are all simply related to this temporal body.
Verse 4.
But is not everyone your relative, brother, on the spiritual platform?
This relationship is not tinged with the smell of māyā.
The Supreme Lord is the soul of everyone,
In relation to Him, everyone in the universe is the same.
All are your relatives, brother! All the billions of jivas.
When seen in relation to Krishna they are all in harmony.
Forgetting Krishna, the jiva desires for sense gratification,
And as a result he is firmly grasped by māyā.
Verse 5.
As a result of past activities he takes on different types of body.
Absorbed in that dress he remains forgetful of Shri Hari.
Therefore māyā gives him so many kinds of miseries.
And although he bobs up and down in this ocean of misery,
he still thinks that he is happy.
Lying on a bed, suffering greatly, having been sick a long time,
He says, “I am very well today,” and laughs.
I get a laugh out of his “feeling very well”!
This is the way the soul conditioned by māyā feels “well.”
Verse 6.
How many plans they have to remain “well,”
But time and time again nature destroys them.
daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī — that is the Supreme Lord’s māyā.
Try to understand exactly the meaning of their “feeling well”;
No one is well in the whole world, but still they are saying it.
In this way māyā cheats the conditioned soul.
But, ignorant of being deceived, he remains absorbed in māyā;
And although māyā kicks him, he will not give up his mistaken conception.
Verse 7.
Again and again making plans, and again and again they are destroyed.
Sometimes he falls on the dry earth and sometimes in the mud.
In this way the universe is filled with wandering jīva souls
who finally by the grace of Guru and Krishna get bhakti — the eternal wealth.
Gaining that wealth if they can give up all other so-called wealth,
Then very easily he crosses over the ocean of saṁsāra.
There on the other side is unparalleled spiritual variety
where he enjoys in eternal happiness and peace.
Verse 8.
The mad say, “There everything is formless,
Without special features, like a kind of nothing.”
Krishna is actually the storehouse of spiritual tastes—raso vai sah
The intelligent knowers of rasa serves him becoming his subordinate
Śānta, dāsya, sakhya, vātsalya are those tastes,
And the best of them, mādhurya, is the essence of them all.
In the spiritual world all these tastes are relishable,
Whereas the material tastes are just shadow reflections and are all contemptible.
Verse 9.
One who worships Krishna is clever,
Whereas one who worships māyā is a pauper.
Becoming a pauper one engages in temporary pastimes;
Without knowledge of the true relationships of things
He simply becomes bound up in māyā’s knot.
Arjuna and Duryodhana both fought in the same war,
But Arjuna was the greatest devotee and Duryodhana died.
On the same battlefield both the dear and the detestable –
One who is intelligent will be able to understand.
Verse 10.
One who fights the war of life knowing his true relationship,
Will remain alive while all others perish.
One who does not know his relationship and takes up some other path
Will never attain love of God, and his whole life is useless.
First understand properly your relationship with Krishna
And then keeping that relationship, go and fight with māyā.
Other than this all the heroes of jnana and karma
Never attained liberation; they were all uncertain.
Verse 11.
In name only they were great sober and unaffected men,
None of them were truly peaceful.
Desiring liberation, sense gratification or mystic powers, all had uncontrolled senses.
The uncontrolled senses don’t answer to the potency of yoga.
How many yogis and munis there were, and always the senses remained independent.
Without service of the master of the senses, there can be no sense control.
All of them return to material activities after a short term of peace.
By the process of yoga, no one ever attains sense control.
This is explained extensively in the Vedas and Puranas.
Verse 12.
Vishwamitra sat on the yogic āsana
But he desired the pure beauty Shakuntala.
In this way the yogis fall down, what to speak of the jṣānīs
And the karmīs are all just asses, suffering in all respects.
The one to whom Krishna is merciful and gives his instruction,
Becomes equally as fortunate as Arjuna.
But one who fights for his own happiness’ sake
He, like Duryodhana, dies along with his family.
Verse 13.
One who always fights on behalf of Krishna,
Wealth, power, knowledge are all within his grasp.
Understand properly the Gītā’s message
You will attain Krishna’s service and will worship Shri Hari,
The devotees are endowed with all qualities,
So what are “non-violence” or “freedom from anger” to them?
Shri Hari teaches the living entities by means of his devotees,
one such helper is Pārtha.
Verse 14.
Arjuna acted just like a conditioned soul;
Like one bewildered was the Pandava brother.
Violence to his relatives and then enjoyment of the Kingdom —
Could this be happiness? Arjuna displayed lamentation.
This though, was all dehātma-buddhiḥ identification with the body
one who is a kshatriya gives up such family affection on the battlefield.
Krishna, seeing his illusion, chastised him
Therefore Arjuna accepted the position of disciple
Verse 15.
Becoming a disciple he listened to the Bhagavad-gītā.
All his ignorance dissipated as well as his material bondage.
His material bondage was cut, but he was not dressed as a sannyāsī.
The householders understand the Gītā’s meaning this way.
The perfection of mantras, kariṣye vacanaṁ tava, “I will do as you tell me.”
Therefore the war that he fought brought him an increase in fame.
“Vaishnavas have no desire, they just chant japa on their beads.”
So what kind of Vaishnava is this Arjuna in the middle of saṁsāra?
Verse 16
“The Vaishnava freed from duality simply chants japa on his beads,”
So say those who are eating the mind’s bananas.
The Vaishnava is without desire, and amicable by nature,
But he is not a forceless weakling as people foolishly think.
In the two great Indian wars, two great personalities
Were leaders amongst the Vaishnavas and became victorious.
They did not fight out of a desire for the satisfaction of their own senses,
And so are famed throughout the world as Vaishnavas.
Verse 17
Those who do not see the real Vaishnavas say that a Vaishnava is inactive.
But the Vaishnava is always active in the service of the Lord.
The lifeless kaniṣṭha-adhikārīs don’t perform any service.
For profit adoration and prestige they stay in their lonely place,
Nityananda prabhu, who is worshipable by the Vaishnavas
Suffered blows, but still distributed love of God in every way he could.
Gaura Hari came with the chakra in his hand and set things straight,
After which the Vaishnava haters were subdued.
Verse 18.
The Lord himself sets the example in order to teach the jīvas,
So one who performs nirjana bhajana simply cheats himself.
The world has now become full of Jagāis and Mādhāis,
The Nityānanda Vaṁśa has increased its following of disciples.
But eating, sleeping, wearing the dress, and remaining so unconcerned —
It is not proper for the Vaishnavas to remain so uncompassionate.
Vishwanath Chakravarti Thakur sang the Mādhurya Kādambinī:
Look at his conclusion and see what is his judgement.
Verse 19.
Devotional service is causeless and self-manifesting;
It is an eternally perfect substance but has become covered over.
The madhyama-adhikārī Vaishnava, being compassionate,
Gives mercy to the innocent souls by awakening devotion in them.
The Supreme Lord acts according to the will of the Vaishnavas,
Therefore by the mercy of the Vaishnavas the bewildered can be awakened.
The Vaishnavas can awaken the sleeping world
By their mercy the sinful can all become devotees.
Verse 20.
Therefore they do not perform nirjana bhajana,
That is the world-deceiving process of the kaniṣṭha-adhikārī
All the great and famous Vaishnavas were in and assembly
When a foreign priest came in to meet them.
He asked some questions about Krishna’s līlā in Vrindavan,
But even that company of Vaishnavas was not able to explain the truth to him.
The kaniṣṭha-adhikārīs do not really understand the scriptures,
But in the guise of doing solitary bhajan, they are only thinking of their next meal.
Verse 21.
Our spiritual master said these are all kaniṣṭhas
Now I can understand the truth of what he said.
One well versed in the scripture and who has strong faith
Is an uttama-adhikārī and can deliver the whole world.
He is the deliverer of the most fallen and is famous through the world.
Now, save this fallen one and thus become really famed.
In the Kali-yuga the jīvas are all fallen and the lowest of mankind.
Seeing they do not see the different activities
Verse 22.
The Supreme Lord Gaurasundara is the most magnanimous
And His instructions are all full of nectar.
One who has taken his birth in the land of Bharata
Should engage in welfare activities according to his instructions.
The Supreme Lord’s līlā was to relish mellows in solitude,
But it is not the play of Vaishnavas to imitate these activities.
This transcendental service cannot be tasted by the non-Vaishnava.
In the material body one cannot relish this transcendental nectar.
Verse 23.
One who has the material concept that the body is his self
Cannot relish spiritual mellows.
But those who have conceptions of the Vaishnavas in terms of birth etc.
Are very bold when it comes to relishing the līlās of the Lord.
Like the clerk in the post office, one caste goswami.
The bābājīs all pay their obeisances to him a lot.
The Gosai Thakur has false pride in his birth
Which Nityānanda Prabhu cut into pieces.
Verse 24.
I see all these things going on in Vrindavan
Therefore I can understand that there is some work to be done here
The prākrita-sahajiyās all commit adultery
Taking someone else’s wife they go to “relish transcendental līlā.”
This is not Vrindavan as always think like this my dear mind
Remember the lotus feet of the Six Goswamis.
The Six Goswamis came and preached religious life
They saved the process of devotional service on the order of Lord Chaitanya.
Verse 25.
They are all the Lord’s eternally associates and always remember Rādhā and Krishna;
Remembering them all the conditioned souls sins are cleared away
But if he tries to imitate them taking on their dress and characteristics
He becomes the plaything of māyā and does not cross over the material ocean
Always preach! From jīva’s door to door
Your life will be successful as a result of your preaching.
Shri Dayita Das prabhu gave this instruction
“Chant Hare Krishna loudly, this is my initiation:
Verse 26.
Kirtan is not just drums and karatālas
The sound of kirtan is not this modern system
Anything favorable for devotional service is all Madhava
And the only enjoyer of the three worlds is Yadava
Māyā’s pride and joy, the radio sound
Destroy them all by forceful kirtan.
Māyā’s is all these newspapers
Preach that throughout the whole world.
Verse 27.
Sitting alone in your room shouting, you may increase your bile’s secretion
But in ten million births Shri Hari won’t be pleased.
Shri Hari is no one’s father’s property
Come out of your cage, stop making objection
Everything belongs to Shri Hari and Shri Hari belongs to everyone.
Chant the Hare Krishna mantra loudly
By the performance of such sankirtan there will come remembrance automatically
Then nirjana bhajana will be spontaneously manifested in the heart.
Srila Prabhupada's poem Vrindavan Bhajam...
Srila Prabhupada's poem Vrindavane Bhajan written in Bengali not long before he took sannyasa:
Doing Bhajan in Vrindavan
I am sitting alone in Vrindavan Dham
In this mood I am getting many realizations.
I have my wife, sons, daughters, grandsons, everything,
But I have no money so they are a fruitless glory.
Krishna has shown me the naked form of material nature,
By his strength it has all become tasteless to me today.
yasyāham anugṛhṇāmi hariṣye tad-dhanaṁ śanaiḥ
“I gradually take away all the wealth of those upon whom I am merciful.”
How was I able to understand this mercy of the All-merciful?
Verse 2.
Everyone has abandoned me, seeing me as penniless,
Wife, relatives, friends, brothers, everyone.
This is misery, but it gives me a laugh. I sit alone and laugh.
In this māyā-saṁsāra, whom do I really love?
Where have all my loving father and mother gone to now?
And where are all my elders, who were my own folk?
Who will give me news of them, tell me who?
All that is left of this family life is a list of names.
Verse 3.
Like the froth on the sea water mixes again in the sea,
Māyā-saṁsāra‘s play is just like that.
No one is mother or father, or personal relative,
Just like the sea-foam they remain but a short time,
Just as the froth on sea water mixes again in the sea,
The body made of five elements meets with destruction.
How many bodies does the embodied soul take in this way;
His relatives are all simply related to this temporal body.
Verse 4.
But is not everyone your relative, brother, on the spiritual platform?
This relationship is not tinged with the smell of māyā.
The Supreme Lord is the soul of everyone,
In relation to Him, everyone in the universe is the same.
All are your relatives, brother! All the billions of jivas.
When seen in relation to Krishna they are all in harmony.
Forgetting Krishna, the jiva desires for sense gratification,
And as a result he is firmly grasped by māyā.
Verse 5.
As a result of past activities he takes on different types of body.
Absorbed in that dress he remains forgetful of Shri Hari.
Therefore māyā gives him so many kinds of miseries.
And although he bobs up and down in this ocean of misery,
he still thinks that he is happy.
Lying on a bed, suffering greatly, having been sick a long time,
He says, “I am very well today,” and laughs.
I get a laugh out of his “feeling very well”!
This is the way the soul conditioned by māyā feels “well.”
Verse 6.
How many plans they have to remain “well,”
But time and time again nature destroys them.
daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī — that is the Supreme Lord’s māyā.
Try to understand exactly the meaning of their “feeling well”;
No one is well in the whole world, but still they are saying it.
In this way māyā cheats the conditioned soul.
But, ignorant of being deceived, he remains absorbed in māyā;
And although māyā kicks him, he will not give up his mistaken conception.
Verse 7.
Again and again making plans, and again and again they are destroyed.
Sometimes he falls on the dry earth and sometimes in the mud.
In this way the universe is filled with wandering jīva souls
who finally by the grace of Guru and Krishna get bhakti — the eternal wealth.
Gaining that wealth if they can give up all other so-called wealth,
Then very easily he crosses over the ocean of saṁsāra.
There on the other side is unparalleled spiritual variety
where he enjoys in eternal happiness and peace.
Verse 8.
The mad say, “There everything is formless,
Without special features, like a kind of nothing.”
Krishna is actually the storehouse of spiritual tastes—raso vai sah
The intelligent knowers of rasa serves him becoming his subordinate
Śānta, dāsya, sakhya, vātsalya are those tastes,
And the best of them, mādhurya, is the essence of them all.
In the spiritual world all these tastes are relishable,
Whereas the material tastes are just shadow reflections and are all contemptible.
Verse 9.
One who worships Krishna is clever,
Whereas one who worships māyā is a pauper.
Becoming a pauper one engages in temporary pastimes;
Without knowledge of the true relationships of things
He simply becomes bound up in māyā’s knot.
Arjuna and Duryodhana both fought in the same war,
But Arjuna was the greatest devotee and Duryodhana died.
On the same battlefield both the dear and the detestable –
One who is intelligent will be able to understand.
Verse 10.
One who fights the war of life knowing his true relationship,
Will remain alive while all others perish.
One who does not know his relationship and takes up some other path
Will never attain love of God, and his whole life is useless.
First understand properly your relationship with Krishna
And then keeping that relationship, go and fight with māyā.
Other than this all the heroes of jnana and karma
Never attained liberation; they were all uncertain.
Verse 11.
In name only they were great sober and unaffected men,
None of them were truly peaceful.
Desiring liberation, sense gratification or mystic powers, all had uncontrolled senses.
The uncontrolled senses don’t answer to the potency of yoga.
How many yogis and munis there were, and always the senses remained independent.
Without service of the master of the senses, there can be no sense control.
All of them return to material activities after a short term of peace.
By the process of yoga, no one ever attains sense control.
This is explained extensively in the Vedas and Puranas.
Verse 12.
Vishwamitra sat on the yogic āsana
But he desired the pure beauty Shakuntala.
In this way the yogis fall down, what to speak of the jṣānīs
And the karmīs are all just asses, suffering in all respects.
The one to whom Krishna is merciful and gives his instruction,
Becomes equally as fortunate as Arjuna.
But one who fights for his own happiness’ sake
He, like Duryodhana, dies along with his family.
Verse 13.
One who always fights on behalf of Krishna,
Wealth, power, knowledge are all within his grasp.
Understand properly the Gītā’s message
You will attain Krishna’s service and will worship Shri Hari,
The devotees are endowed with all qualities,
So what are “non-violence” or “freedom from anger” to them?
Shri Hari teaches the living entities by means of his devotees,
one such helper is Pārtha.
Verse 14.
Arjuna acted just like a conditioned soul;
Like one bewildered was the Pandava brother.
Violence to his relatives and then enjoyment of the Kingdom —
Could this be happiness? Arjuna displayed lamentation.
This though, was all dehātma-buddhiḥ identification with the body
one who is a kshatriya gives up such family affection on the battlefield.
Krishna, seeing his illusion, chastised him
Therefore Arjuna accepted the position of disciple
Verse 15.
Becoming a disciple he listened to the Bhagavad-gītā.
All his ignorance dissipated as well as his material bondage.
His material bondage was cut, but he was not dressed as a sannyāsī.
The householders understand the Gītā’s meaning this way.
The perfection of mantras, kariṣye vacanaṁ tava, “I will do as you tell me.”
Therefore the war that he fought brought him an increase in fame.
“Vaishnavas have no desire, they just chant japa on their beads.”
So what kind of Vaishnava is this Arjuna in the middle of saṁsāra?
Verse 16
“The Vaishnava freed from duality simply chants japa on his beads,”
So say those who are eating the mind’s bananas.
The Vaishnava is without desire, and amicable by nature,
But he is not a forceless weakling as people foolishly think.
In the two great Indian wars, two great personalities
Were leaders amongst the Vaishnavas and became victorious.
They did not fight out of a desire for the satisfaction of their own senses,
And so are famed throughout the world as Vaishnavas.
Verse 17
Those who do not see the real Vaishnavas say that a Vaishnava is inactive.
But the Vaishnava is always active in the service of the Lord.
The lifeless kaniṣṭha-adhikārīs don’t perform any service.
For profit adoration and prestige they stay in their lonely place,
Nityananda prabhu, who is worshipable by the Vaishnavas
Suffered blows, but still distributed love of God in every way he could.
Gaura Hari came with the chakra in his hand and set things straight,
After which the Vaishnava haters were subdued.
Verse 18.
The Lord himself sets the example in order to teach the jīvas,
So one who performs nirjana bhajana simply cheats himself.
The world has now become full of Jagāis and Mādhāis,
The Nityānanda Vaṁśa has increased its following of disciples.
But eating, sleeping, wearing the dress, and remaining so unconcerned —
It is not proper for the Vaishnavas to remain so uncompassionate.
Vishwanath Chakravarti Thakur sang the Mādhurya Kādambinī:
Look at his conclusion and see what is his judgement.
Verse 19.
Devotional service is causeless and self-manifesting;
It is an eternally perfect substance but has become covered over.
The madhyama-adhikārī Vaishnava, being compassionate,
Gives mercy to the innocent souls by awakening devotion in them.
The Supreme Lord acts according to the will of the Vaishnavas,
Therefore by the mercy of the Vaishnavas the bewildered can be awakened.
The Vaishnavas can awaken the sleeping world
By their mercy the sinful can all become devotees.
Verse 20.
Therefore they do not perform nirjana bhajana,
That is the world-deceiving process of the kaniṣṭha-adhikārī
All the great and famous Vaishnavas were in and assembly
When a foreign priest came in to meet them.
He asked some questions about Krishna’s līlā in Vrindavan,
But even that company of Vaishnavas was not able to explain the truth to him.
The kaniṣṭha-adhikārīs do not really understand the scriptures,
But in the guise of doing solitary bhajan, they are only thinking of their next meal.
Verse 21.
Our spiritual master said these are all kaniṣṭhas
Now I can understand the truth of what he said.
One well versed in the scripture and who has strong faith
Is an uttama-adhikārī and can deliver the whole world.
He is the deliverer of the most fallen and is famous through the world.
Now, save this fallen one and thus become really famed.
In the Kali-yuga the jīvas are all fallen and the lowest of mankind.
Seeing they do not see the different activities
Verse 22.
The Supreme Lord Gaurasundara is the most magnanimous
And His instructions are all full of nectar.
One who has taken his birth in the land of Bharata
Should engage in welfare activities according to his instructions.
The Supreme Lord’s līlā was to relish mellows in solitude,
But it is not the play of Vaishnavas to imitate these activities.
This transcendental service cannot be tasted by the non-Vaishnava.
In the material body one cannot relish this transcendental nectar.
Verse 23.
One who has the material concept that the body is his self
Cannot relish spiritual mellows.
But those who have conceptions of the Vaishnavas in terms of birth etc.
Are very bold when it comes to relishing the līlās of the Lord.
Like the clerk in the post office, one caste goswami.
The bābājīs all pay their obeisances to him a lot.
The Gosai Thakur has false pride in his birth
Which Nityānanda Prabhu cut into pieces.
Verse 24.
I see all these things going on in Vrindavan
Therefore I can understand that there is some work to be done here
The prākrita-sahajiyās all commit adultery
Taking someone else’s wife they go to “relish transcendental līlā.”
This is not Vrindavan as always think like this my dear mind
Remember the lotus feet of the Six Goswamis.
The Six Goswamis came and preached religious life
They saved the process of devotional service on the order of Lord Chaitanya.
Verse 25.
They are all the Lord’s eternally associates and always remember Rādhā and Krishna;
Remembering them all the conditioned souls sins are cleared away
But if he tries to imitate them taking on their dress and characteristics
He becomes the plaything of māyā and does not cross over the material ocean
Always preach! From jīva’s door to door
Your life will be successful as a result of your preaching.
Shri Dayita Das prabhu gave this instruction
“Chant Hare Krishna loudly, this is my initiation:
Verse 26.
Kirtan is not just drums and karatālas
The sound of kirtan is not this modern system
Anything favorable for devotional service is all Madhava
And the only enjoyer of the three worlds is Yadava
Māyā’s pride and joy, the radio sound
Destroy them all by forceful kirtan.
Māyā’s is all these newspapers
Preach that throughout the whole world.
Verse 27.
Sitting alone in your room shouting, you may increase your bile’s secretion
But in ten million births Shri Hari won’t be pleased.
Shri Hari is no one’s father’s property
Come out of your cage, stop making objection
Everything belongs to Shri Hari and Shri Hari belongs to everyone.
Chant the Hare Krishna mantra loudly
By the performance of such sankirtan there will come remembrance automatically
Then nirjana bhajana will be spontaneously manifested in the heart.
Srila Prabhupada's poem Vrindavane Bhajan
Srila Prabhupada's poem Vrindavane Bhajan written in Bengali not long before he took sannyasa:
Doing Bhajan in Vrindavan
I am sitting alone in Vrindavan Dham
In this mood I am getting many realizations.
I have my wife, sons, daughters, grandsons, everything,
But I have no money so they are a fruitless glory.
Krishna has shown me the naked form of material nature,
By his strength it has all become tasteless to me today.
yasyāham anugṛhṇāmi hariṣye tad-dhanaṁ śanaiḥ
“I gradually take away all the wealth of those upon whom I am merciful.”
How was I able to understand this mercy of the All-merciful?
Verse 2.
Everyone has abandoned me, seeing me as penniless,
Wife, relatives, friends, brothers, everyone.
This is misery, but it gives me a laugh. I sit alone and laugh.
In this māyā-saṁsāra, whom do I really love?
Where have all my loving father and mother gone to now?
And where are all my elders, who were my own folk?
Who will give me news of them, tell me who?
All that is left of this family life is a list of names.
Verse 3.
Like the froth on the sea water mixes again in the sea,
Māyā-saṁsāra‘s play is just like that.
No one is mother or father, or personal relative,
Just like the sea-foam they remain but a short time,
Just as the froth on sea water mixes again in the sea,
The body made of five elements meets with destruction.
How many bodies does the embodied soul take in this way;
His relatives are all simply related to this temporal body.
Verse 4.
But is not everyone your relative, brother, on the spiritual platform?
This relationship is not tinged with the smell of māyā.
The Supreme Lord is the soul of everyone,
In relation to Him, everyone in the universe is the same.
All are your relatives, brother! All the billions of jivas.
When seen in relation to Krishna they are all in harmony.
Forgetting Krishna, the jiva desires for sense gratification,
And as a result he is firmly grasped by māyā.
Verse 5.
As a result of past activities he takes on different types of body.
Absorbed in that dress he remains forgetful of Shri Hari.
Therefore māyā gives him so many kinds of miseries.
And although he bobs up and down in this ocean of misery,
he still thinks that he is happy.
Lying on a bed, suffering greatly, having been sick a long time,
He says, “I am very well today,” and laughs.
I get a laugh out of his “feeling very well”!
This is the way the soul conditioned by māyā feels “well.”
Verse 6.
How many plans they have to remain “well,”
But time and time again nature destroys them.
daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī — that is the Supreme Lord’s māyā.
Try to understand exactly the meaning of their “feeling well”;
No one is well in the whole world, but still they are saying it.
In this way māyā cheats the conditioned soul.
But, ignorant of being deceived, he remains absorbed in māyā;
And although māyā kicks him, he will not give up his mistaken conception.
Verse 7.
Again and again making plans, and again and again they are destroyed.
Sometimes he falls on the dry earth and sometimes in the mud.
In this way the universe is filled with wandering jīva souls
who finally by the grace of Guru and Krishna get bhakti — the eternal wealth.
Gaining that wealth if they can give up all other so-called wealth,
Then very easily he crosses over the ocean of saṁsāra.
There on the other side is unparalleled spiritual variety
where he enjoys in eternal happiness and peace.
Verse 8.
The mad say, “There everything is formless,
Without special features, like a kind of nothing.”
Krishna is actually the storehouse of spiritual tastes—raso vai sah
The intelligent knowers of rasa serves him becoming his subordinate
Śānta, dāsya, sakhya, vātsalya are those tastes,
And the best of them, mādhurya, is the essence of them all.
In the spiritual world all these tastes are relishable,
Whereas the material tastes are just shadow reflections and are all contemptible.
Verse 9.
One who worships Krishna is clever,
Whereas one who worships māyā is a pauper.
Becoming a pauper one engages in temporary pastimes;
Without knowledge of the true relationships of things
He simply becomes bound up in māyā’s knot.
Arjuna and Duryodhana both fought in the same war,
But Arjuna was the greatest devotee and Duryodhana died.
On the same battlefield both the dear and the detestable –
One who is intelligent will be able to understand.
Verse 10.
One who fights the war of life knowing his true relationship,
Will remain alive while all others perish.
One who does not know his relationship and takes up some other path
Will never attain love of God, and his whole life is useless.
First understand properly your relationship with Krishna
And then keeping that relationship, go and fight with māyā.
Other than this all the heroes of jnana and karma
Never attained liberation; they were all uncertain.
Verse 11.
In name only they were great sober and unaffected men,
None of them were truly peaceful.
Desiring liberation, sense gratification or mystic powers, all had uncontrolled senses.
The uncontrolled senses don’t answer to the potency of yoga.
How many yogis and munis there were, and always the senses remained independent.
Without service of the master of the senses, there can be no sense control.
All of them return to material activities after a short term of peace.
By the process of yoga, no one ever attains sense control.
This is explained extensively in the Vedas and Puranas.
Verse 12.
Vishwamitra sat on the yogic āsana
But he desired the pure beauty Shakuntala.
In this way the yogis fall down, what to speak of the jṣānīs
And the karmīs are all just asses, suffering in all respects.
The one to whom Krishna is merciful and gives his instruction,
Becomes equally as fortunate as Arjuna.
But one who fights for his own happiness’ sake
He, like Duryodhana, dies along with his family.
Verse 13.
One who always fights on behalf of Krishna,
Wealth, power, knowledge are all within his grasp.
Understand properly the Gītā’s message
You will attain Krishna’s service and will worship Shri Hari,
The devotees are endowed with all qualities,
So what are “non-violence” or “freedom from anger” to them?
Shri Hari teaches the living entities by means of his devotees,
one such helper is Pārtha.
Verse 14.
Arjuna acted just like a conditioned soul;
Like one bewildered was the Pandava brother.
Violence to his relatives and then enjoyment of the Kingdom —
Could this be happiness? Arjuna displayed lamentation.
This though, was all dehātma-buddhiḥ identification with the body
one who is a kshatriya gives up such family affection on the battlefield.
Krishna, seeing his illusion, chastised him
Therefore Arjuna accepted the position of disciple
Verse 15.
Becoming a disciple he listened to the Bhagavad-gītā.
All his ignorance dissipated as well as his material bondage.
His material bondage was cut, but he was not dressed as a sannyāsī.
The householders understand the Gītā’s meaning this way.
The perfection of mantras, kariṣye vacanaṁ tava, “I will do as you tell me.”
Therefore the war that he fought brought him an increase in fame.
“Vaishnavas have no desire, they just chant japa on their beads.”
So what kind of Vaishnava is this Arjuna in the middle of saṁsāra?
Verse 16
“The Vaishnava freed from duality simply chants japa on his beads,”
So say those who are eating the mind’s bananas.
The Vaishnava is without desire, and amicable by nature,
But he is not a forceless weakling as people foolishly think.
In the two great Indian wars, two great personalities
Were leaders amongst the Vaishnavas and became victorious.
They did not fight out of a desire for the satisfaction of their own senses,
And so are famed throughout the world as Vaishnavas.
Verse 17
Those who do not see the real Vaishnavas say that a Vaishnava is inactive.
But the Vaishnava is always active in the service of the Lord.
The lifeless kaniṣṭha-adhikārīs don’t perform any service.
For profit adoration and prestige they stay in their lonely place,
Nityananda prabhu, who is worshipable by the Vaishnavas
Suffered blows, but still distributed love of God in every way he could.
Gaura Hari came with the chakra in his hand and set things straight,
After which the Vaishnava haters were subdued.
Verse 18.
The Lord himself sets the example in order to teach the jīvas,
So one who performs nirjana bhajana simply cheats himself.
The world has now become full of Jagāis and Mādhāis,
The Nityānanda Vaṁśa has increased its following of disciples.
But eating, sleeping, wearing the dress, and remaining so unconcerned —
It is not proper for the Vaishnavas to remain so uncompassionate.
Vishwanath Chakravarti Thakur sang the Mādhurya Kādambinī:
Look at his conclusion and see what is his judgement.
Verse 19.
Devotional service is causeless and self-manifesting;
It is an eternally perfect substance but has become covered over.
The madhyama-adhikārī Vaishnava, being compassionate,
Gives mercy to the innocent souls by awakening devotion in them.
The Supreme Lord acts according to the will of the Vaishnavas,
Therefore by the mercy of the Vaishnavas the bewildered can be awakened.
The Vaishnavas can awaken the sleeping world
By their mercy the sinful can all become devotees.
Verse 20.
Therefore they do not perform nirjana bhajana,
That is the world-deceiving process of the kaniṣṭha-adhikārī
All the great and famous Vaishnavas were in and assembly
When a foreign priest came in to meet them.
He asked some questions about Krishna’s līlā in Vrindavan,
But even that company of Vaishnavas was not able to explain the truth to him.
The kaniṣṭha-adhikārīs do not really understand the scriptures,
But in the guise of doing solitary bhajan, they are only thinking of their next meal.
Verse 21.
Our spiritual master said these are all kaniṣṭhas
Now I can understand the truth of what he said.
One well versed in the scripture and who has strong faith
Is an uttama-adhikārī and can deliver the whole world.
He is the deliverer of the most fallen and is famous through the world.
Now, save this fallen one and thus become really famed.
In the Kali-yuga the jīvas are all fallen and the lowest of mankind.
Seeing they do not see the different activities
Verse 22.
The Supreme Lord Gaurasundara is the most magnanimous
And His instructions are all full of nectar.
One who has taken his birth in the land of Bharata
Should engage in welfare activities according to his instructions.
The Supreme Lord’s līlā was to relish mellows in solitude,
But it is not the play of Vaishnavas to imitate these activities.
This transcendental service cannot be tasted by the non-Vaishnava.
In the material body one cannot relish this transcendental nectar.
Verse 23.
One who has the material concept that the body is his self
Cannot relish spiritual mellows.
But those who have conceptions of the Vaishnavas in terms of birth etc.
Are very bold when it comes to relishing the līlās of the Lord.
Like the clerk in the post office, one caste goswami.
The bābājīs all pay their obeisances to him a lot.
The Gosai Thakur has false pride in his birth
Which Nityānanda Prabhu cut into pieces.
Verse 24.
I see all these things going on in Vrindavan
Therefore I can understand that there is some work to be done here
The prākrita-sahajiyās all commit adultery
Taking someone else’s wife they go to “relish transcendental līlā.”
This is not Vrindavan as always think like this my dear mind
Remember the lotus feet of the Six Goswamis.
The Six Goswamis came and preached religious life
They saved the process of devotional service on the order of Lord Chaitanya.
Verse 25.
They are all the Lord’s eternally associates and always remember Rādhā and Krishna;
Remembering them all the conditioned souls sins are cleared away
But if he tries to imitate them taking on their dress and characteristics
He becomes the plaything of māyā and does not cross over the material ocean
Always preach! From jīva’s door to door
Your life will be successful as a result of your preaching.
Shri Dayita Das prabhu gave this instruction
“Chant Hare Krishna loudly, this is my initiation:
Verse 26.
Kirtan is not just drums and karatālas
The sound of kirtan is not this modern system
Anything favorable for devotional service is all Madhava
And the only enjoyer of the three worlds is Yadava
Māyā’s pride and joy, the radio sound
Destroy them all by forceful kirtan.
Māyā’s is all these newspapers
Preach that throughout the whole world.
Verse 27.
Sitting alone in your room shouting, you may increase your bile’s secretion
But in ten million births Shri Hari won’t be pleased.
Shri Hari is no one’s father’s property
Come out of your cage, stop making objection
Everything belongs to Shri Hari and Shri Hari belongs to everyone.
Chant the Hare Krishna mantra loudly
By the performance of such sankirtan there will come remembrance automatically
Then nirjana bhajana will be spontaneously manifested in the heart.
Srila Prabhupada's taking sannyasa...
Srila Prabhupada accepts Sannyasa, 1959
(Circa 1945 AD.)
“One night, Abhay had an unusual dream. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta appeared before him, beckoning. He was asking Abhay to leave home and take sannyasa. Abhay awoke in an intensely emotional state, “How horrible!” He thought. He knew it was not an ordinary dream, yet the request seemed so difficult and unlikely. Take sannyasa! At least it was not something he could do immediately. Now he had to improve the business, and with the profits he would print books. He went on with his duties, but remained shaken by the dream.” (Satwarup Goswami. 1980. Prabhupada Lilamrta. Page 118.)
In 1948, Abhay closed his Lucknow factory. He had fallen behind in employees’ salaries, and since 1946 he had been paying past rent in installments. But when sales dropped off, continuing the factory became impossible. He lost everything.
Srila Prabhupada: I started a big factory in Lucknow. Those were golden days. My business flourished like anything. Everything in the chemical business knew. But then, gradually, everything dwindled.
With the help of some acquaintances in Allahabad, he opened a small factory there, in the same city where his Prayag Pharmacy had failed fifteen years before. He moved to Allahabad with his son Brindaban and continued manufacturing medicines. While the rest of the family remained at Banerjee Lane in Calcutta, Abhay continued his travelling; but now he was often sway for months at a time.
And then he had the dream a second time. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati appeared before him; again he was beckoning, indicating that Abhay should take sannyasa. And again Abhay had to put the dream aside. He was a householder with many responsibilities. To take sannyasa would mean to give up everything. He had to earn money. He now had five children. “Why is Guru Maharaj asking me to take sannyasa?” he thought. It is not possible now.
The Allahabad business was unsuccessful. “At present, the condition of our business is not good,” he wrote his servant Gouranga, who had asked to rejoin him. “When the condition gets better and if you are free at that time I will call for you.” He worked earnestly, but results were meagre.
As with everything else, Abhay saw his present circumstances through the eyes of scripture. And he could not help but think of the verse from the Srimad Bhagavatam:
yasyaham anugrihnriami
harishye tad-dhanam shanaih
tato ‘dhanam tyajanty asya
sva-jana dukha-duhkhitam
“When I feel especially merciful towards someone, I gradually take away all his material possessions. His friends and relatives then reject this poverty-stricken and most wretched fellow”.
He had heard Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati quote this verse, and now he thought of it often. He took it that his present circumstances were controlled by Lord Sri Krishna, who was forcing him into a helpless position, freeing him for preaching Krishna consciousness.
Srila Prabhupada: Somehow or other, my intention for preaching the message of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu increased, and the other side decreased. I was not disinclined, but Krishna forced me: “You must give it up.” The history is known – how it decreased, decreased, decreased.
In the Srimad Bhagavatam, Queen Kunti had also prayed, “My dear Lord Krishna, Your Lordship can easily be approached, but only by those who are materially exhausted. One who is on the path of (material) progress, trying to improve himself with respectable parentage, great opulence, high education, and bodily beauty, cannot approach You with sincere feeling.”
Srila Prabhupada: So in 1950 I retired, practically. Not retired, but a little in touch with business – whatever is going on. Then almost it became nil. Whatever was there, all right. You do whatever you like. (Satwarup Goswami. 1980. Prabhupada Lilamrta. Pages 140-141.)
One night Abhay had a striking dream, the same dream he had had several times before, during his days as a householder. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati appeared, just as Abhay had known him, the tall, scholarly sannyasi, coming directly from the spiritual world, from Krishna’s personal entourage. He called to Abhay and indicated that he should follow. Repeatedly he called and motioned. He was asking Abhay to take sannyasa. Come, he urged, become a sannyasi.
Abhay awoke in a state of wonder. He thought of this instruction as another feature of the original instruction Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati had given him at their first meeting in Calcutta, the same instruction that his spiritual master had later solidified in a letter; become an English preacher and spread Krishna consciousness throughout the Western world. Sannyasa was for that end; otherwise, why would his spiritual master have asked him to accept it? Abhay reasoned that his spiritual master was saying, “Now take sannyasa and you will actually be able to accomplish this mission. Formerly the time was not right.”
Abhay deliberated cautiously. By accepting sannyasa, a Vaishnava dedicates his body, mind and words totally to the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, renouncing all other engagements. He was doing that already. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati had offered sannyasa to his leading disciples so that they could continue his mission; they hadn’t done it. Preaching in the West had proved perilous even for the Gaudiya Math’s most recognised sannyasis. How could he, a mere householder, presume he could succeed where the others had failed? He was hesitant. The helpless, incapable feeling he had expressed in his “Viraha-ashtaka” was there. But now his spiritual master was beckoning him – over all other considerations, even over natural humility. Now, although he was elderly and alone, the desire to preach just as his spiritual master had preached remained within him, a fierce though sometimes quietly expressed determination.
The Vedik standard and the example set by the previous acharyas was that if one wanted to lead a preaching movement, sannyasa was required. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati had taken sannyasa to facilitate his missionary work. Lord Chaitanya had taken sannyasa to further his sankirtan movement. Of course, Lord Chaitanya was the Supreme Personality of godhead, but when His young students had been disrespectful towards Him, treating Him as an ordinary man, He had taken sannyasa. Because a sannyasi is automatically respected, Lord Chaitanya’s acceptance of sannyasa was a calculated tactic; as son as He began travelling throughout India as a sannyasi, he immediately attracted thousands of followers to the sankirtan movement.
Knowing that many cheaters would accept the saffron dress and abuse the respect given to sannyasis, Lord Chaitanya had advised against accepting sannyasa in the Age of Kali-yuga. He knew that cheaters, in the guise of sadhus, would act immorally, accumulate funds for their own sense gratification, and make many followers simply to enhance their own prestige. Posing as swamis, they would cheat the public. Because the people in Kali-yuga are unable to follow the rules and regulations of sannyasa, Lord Chaitanya had recommended that they simply chant Hare Krishna. However, if a person could actually follow the rules, and especially if he had to spread the sankirtan movement, sannyasa was necessary.
Abhay first had to approach one of his Godbrothers for permission. He decided to turn to Bhaktivilas Tirtha Maharaj (formerly Kunjavihari) the leader of the Chaitanya Math in Calcutta. Abhay still thought of the Caitanya Math as the headquarters of his spiritual master’s mission. During the heated legal disputes, the Chaitanya Math had been the most prized acquisition, and since 1948 it had been under the legal ownership of Bhaktivilas Tirtha Maharaj. Now, although each sannyasi had his own place or places, the Chaitanya Math and Bhaktivilas Tirtha Maharaj legally represented the Gaudiya Math entity. Abhay felt that if he were to take sannyasa and go preach in America, he should give the Chaitanya Math the first opportunity to support the work. In April 1959, Abhay wrote to Tirtha Maharaj, inquiring about sannyasa as well as about the Chaitanya Math’s printing some of his manuscripts. And since no one was going abroad, he volunteered to do so on behalf of the Chaitanya Math.
Bhaktivilas Tirtha Maharaj replied that Abhay should first join the Caitanya Math. He mentioned the strife that still lingered; “Those who are against Chaitanya Math, they are motivated by their individual ambitions.” Anyone who was against the Chaitanya Math, he said was acting illogically and against the instructions of Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati. So according to Tirtha Maharaj, the thing for Abhay to do, the thing he had neglected to do for so many years, was to join the Chaitanya Math and act under his direction. Tirtha Maharaj mentioned several members of the Chaitanya Math who had recently accepted the sannyasa order, and he said that Abhay could become one – in time. He invited Abhay to come reside at the Chaitanya Math; “The house that we have, there are rooms that are airy and well lit. We will treat you exclusively. There won’t be any difficulty. We will take care that no inconveniences are caused”. But as for printing books:
We are eagerly awaiting to print the books like Satsandarbha, Vedanta, based on devotional service, and many other rare books by the Goswamis. First we will print them. Books written by you will be checked by the editorial staff, and if the funds can be raised, then they can be printed according to priority. The books will be printed only if they are favourable for the service of the Chaitanya Math. Therefore, if the fund is raised, then there is a plan to go abroad as well.
Abhay was not encouraged. The main difficulty, he felt, was the Chaitanya Math’s shortage of funds.
Srila Prabhupada: I was working with my broken typewriter. I went to our Tirtha Maharaj: “You give me a room and print my books. Give me some money. I will join you.” I had thought, “This is Guru Maharaj’s institution.” He did not say no, but the printing of books was a difficult task for him. He had no money. He was hardly collecting for maintaining. Printing of books is a big job, and there is no guarantee of sale.
Without printing books and going to the West, sannyasa did not have meaning for Abhay. And who knew when Tirtha Maharaj would sanction his taking sannyasa? There was no point in going to Calcutta just to reside in an airy, well-lit room; that he had already in Vrindavan. Abhay wrote back to Tirtha Maharaj, mentioning his direct order from Srila Bhaktisiddhanta to preach to the English-speaking people. He wanted to go to the West right away, and he had thought that Chaitanya Math would welcome his offer. Both Abhay and tirtha Maharaj had their responsibilities, but perhaps they could work together to carry out the desire of their spiritual master. Abhay asked Tirtha Maharaj to reconsider.. On May 7th, 1959, Bhaktivilas Tirtha Maharaj wrote back.
My suggestion is don’t make any hasty decisions. For the time being you stay with us and engage yourself in the service of the society and then accept tridandi (sannyasa). The purpose of accepting tridandi is to serve the society.
If that is your desire, then Sri Chaitanya Math will decide about your going to America to preach and make all the arrangements. It can never be the principle of the society to let one act according to his individual attempt or desire. The society will decide after consulting with the heads what is to be done by whom. That is what I want to say. First of all, it is necessary to identify oneself with the society.
In order to preach in America or in other foreign countries, it is important to have a dignified organisation in the background and secondly it is necessary to establish one’s self in India before going to preach in the foreign countries.
Now it is that there are no conferences or meetings in the West as before. Communication is done through the media of television.
Abhay could understand the needs and priorities of the Chaitanya Math, but he could not allow them to overrule what he considered the highest mandate; preaching as Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati had ordered. Abhay had offered his services to the leaders of the Chaitanya Math, thinking they might also see things his way. He thought that with the world’s crying need for Krishna consciousness staring them in the face, they might see that this Abhay Babu was convinced and enthusiastic and so should be sent right away with whatever he required. But they had other priorities.
Abhay next turned to Keshava Maharaj in Mathura, and Keshava Maharaj told Abhay to take sannyasa immediately. After corresponding with Tirtha Maharaj, Abhay had felt some uncertainty about accepting sannyasa, and now that he was being encouraged so strongly, he resisted. But Keshava Maharaj was insistent.
Srila Prabhupada: I was sitting alone in Vrindavana, writing. My Godbrother insisted to me “Bhaktivedanta Prabhu, you must do it. Without accepting the renounced order of life, nobody can become a preacher.” So he insisted. Not he insisted: practically my spiritual master insisted. He wanted me to become a preacher, so he forced me through this Godbrother: “You accept.” So, unwillingly I accepted.
--------
Keshavaji Gaudiya Math was located in the midst of one of Mathura’s downtown bazaars. Its main entrance, an arched doorway, led into a courtyard, open to the sky through a metal grating above. The architecture was similar to that of the Vamshi-gopalaji temple. The atmosphere was secluded, as in a monastery. Abhay was a familiar, welcomed figure here. He had lived here, written and studied in the library here, edited the Gaudiya Patrika, and donated the Deity of Lord Chaitanya who stood on the altar beside the Deities of Radha and Krishna (Sri Sri Radha Vinodavihariji). But his visit during September of 1959 was not an ordinary one. He entered the matha dressed in white, Abhay Babu, but he would soon be leaving dressed in saffron, a swami.
Abhay had been living as a renunciate for nine years; there was no need for him to observe a ceremony or to proclaim himself a sadhu by changing to saffron dress. But it was the parampara system that a man take tridandi-sannyasa at the end of his life. He was aware of the cheating sannyasis; even in Vrindavana he had seen so-called sadhus who did not preach but simply spent their days hunting for chapatis. Some “swamis” of Vrindavana even indulged illicitly in what they had supposedly come here to reject: sex life. Such persons were making a mockery of sannyasa. And there were the caste goswamis also, who lived like ordinary householders, running temples as a business to support their families and accepting honour and donations from the public on the false basis of birth. Abhay knew of these abuses of sannyasa, but he also knew the real purpose of sannyasa. Sannyasa was for preaching.
On the morning of September 17th 1959, in the fifty-by-twenty-five-foot Deity room on the second floor of the Keshavaji Math, a group of devotees sat before the Deities of Radha-Krishna and Lord Chaitanya. The Deities were colourfully dressed in royal clothing and silver crowns. Radharani’s right hand faced palm-forward in benediction for the worshipper; at Her side, Her left hand held a flower for Krishna. Krishna stood like a dancer, placing His right leg in a casual tiptoe pose before His left, playing His long silver flute, which He held gracefully to His red lips. His long black hair reached down past His shoulders, and the garland of marigolds around his neck reached down to His knees. On His right stood the Deity of Lord Chaitanya, His right arm raised, left arm at His side, His body straight, feet together. He was a soft golden colour, and He had large eyes, a well-formed red mouth, and straight black hair down to his shoulders. One level below the Deities were pictures of the spiritual masters in disciplic succession: Jagannath dasa Babaji, Bhaktivinoda Thakura, Gaurakishora dasa Babaji, Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati, Bhaktiprajnana Keshava Maharaj.
Abhay sat on a mat of kusha grass beside ninety-year old Sanatana, also to receive sannyasa that day. Sitting opposite the two candidates, Narayana Maharaj, Keshava Maharaja’s disciple, prepared to conduct the ceremony of mantras and offerings of grains and ghee into the fire. Akinchana Krishnadasa Babaji, Abhay’s Godbrother, known for sweet singing, played mrdanga and sang Vaishnava bhajanas. Sitting on a raised asana, His Holiness B.P. Keshava Maharaj presided. Since there had been no notices or invitations, only the matha’s few residents attended.
Narayan Maharaj chanted the required mantras and then sat back silently while B.P. Keshava Maharaj lectured. Then, to everyone’s surprise, Keshava Maharaj asked Abhay to speak. Abhay had not expected this. As he looked around at the gathering of devotees, he understood that the common language was Hindi; only Keshava Maharaj and a few others spoke English. Yet he knew he must speak in English.
After Abhay’s speech, each initiate received his sannyasa-danda, the traditional head-high staff made of four bamboo rods bound together and completely enwrapped in saffron cloth. They were given their sannyasa garments: one piece of saffron cloth for a dhoti, and one for a top piece (uttara), and two strips of cloth for underwear (kaupins). They also received Tulasi neck beads and the sannyasa mantra. Keshava Maharaj said that Abhay would now be known as Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj and that Sanatana would be Muni Maharaj. After the ceremony, the two new sannyasis posed for a photo, standing on either side of their sannyasa-guru, who sat in a chair.
B.P. Keshava Maharaj didn’t impose any strictures on Abhay; he simply encouraged him to go on preaching. Yet Abhay knew that to become A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami did not mean merely that he was giving up family, home comforts, and business. That he had done five years ago. Changing from white cloth to saffron cloth, from Abhay Babu to Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj, had a special significance: it was only a matter of time before Bhaktivedanta Swami would travel to the West as Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati had ordained. This was Bhaktivedanta Swami’s realization of his new sannyasa status.
The Gaudiya Patrika’s account of the sannyasa initiation included a biographical sketch of Sri Srimad Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj, listing the major events of his life. The article concluded:
Seeing his enthusiasm and ability to write articles in Hindi, English and Bengali, Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Maharaj gave him the instruction to take tridandi-sannyasa. For nearly one year he had been ready to accept sannyasa. In the month of Bhadra, on the day on which Vishvarupa accepted sannyasa, Bhaktivedanta Swami at the Sri Keshavaji Gaudiya Math accepted sannyasa from the founder of the Vedanta Samiti, Bhaktiprajnana Keshava Maharaj. Seeing him accept his ashram of renunciation, seeing this pastime for accepting the renounced order of life, we have attained great affection and enthusiasm.
(Satwarup Goswami. 1980. Prabhupada Lilamrta. Pages 225-231.) Caritamrta
Special thanks to Jaya Tirtha Caran Prabhu, for compiling this information.
The significance of Ekadasi
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Adi-lila, Chapter 15
Text 8
eka dina matara pade kariya pranama
prabhu kahe, mata, more deha eka dana
One day Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu fell down at the feet of His mother and requested her to give Him one thing in charity.
Text 9
mata bale,tai diba, ya tumi magibe
prabhu kahe, ekadasite anna na khaibe
His mother replied, "My dear son, I will give You whatever You ask." Then the Lord said, "My dear mother, please do not eat grains on the Ekadasi day."
Text 10
saci kahe, na khaiba, bhala-i kahila
sei haite ekadasi karite lagila
Mother Saci said, "You have spoken very nicely. I shall not eat grains on Ekadasi." From that day, she began to observe fasting on Ekadasi.
What is Ekadasi?
The Sanskrit word Ekadasi literally means eleven. Ekadasi is the eleventh of the fifteen-day lunar month. In one of the lunar months (called the light month) the moon grows from new moon to full moon and in the following lunar month (called dark month) it diminishes from full moon to no-moon. Thus every calendar (solar) month there are two Ekadasis, the light Ekadasi that occurs on the eleventh day of the waxing moon, and the dark Ekadasi that occurs on the eleventh day of the waning moon. It is recommended that all Vaisnavas should fast on this day of Ekadasi. Such austerity will be greatly beneficial for their devotional life.
Origin of Ekadasi
In the fourteenth chapter of Padma Purana, in the section named Kriya-sagara-sara, Srila Vyasadeva explains the origin of Ekadasi to Sage Jaimini as follows:
At the beginning of the material creation, the Supreme Lord, for the purpose of punishing the sinful human beings, created a personality whose form was the embodiment of sin (Papapurusha). The different limbs of this personality were constructed of the various sinful activities. In order to control Papapurusha, the personality known as Yamaraja came into existence along with the different hellish planetary systems. Those living entities that are very sinful are sent after death to Yamaraja, who will in turn, according to their sins, send them to a hellish region to suffer.
The living entities, according to their karmic activities thus began to enjoy or suffer. Seeing so many souls suffer in hellish condition, the compassionate Lord began to feel sorry for them. In order to help them He manifested from His own form the deity of the lunar day Ekadasi. Thus, Ekadasi is the personification of the vow to fast on the eleventh day of the lunar month. Therefore Ekadasi is the selfsame form of the Supreme Lord Vishnu. Sri Ekadasi is the utmost pious activity and is situated at the head among all vows.
Afterwards the different sinful living entities began to follow the vow of Ekadasi and were then elevated quickly to the abode of Vaikuntha. Following the ascension of Sri Ekadasi, Papapurusha (sin personified) gradually saw that his own existence was being threatened. He approached Lord Vishnu praying that, 'O Lord, I am your created progeny, and it is through me that you wanted distress given to the living entities who are very sinful.
But now, by the influence of Sri Ekadasi, I have become all but destroyed. You please save me from the fear of Ekadasi. No type of pious activity can bind me. But Ekadasi only, being Your own manifested form, can impede me. I cannot find a place where I can be free from fear of Sri Ekadasi. Oh my Master! I am a product of Your creation, so therefore very mercifully direct me to a place where I can reside fearlessly.'
After this, Lord Vishnu, observing the condition of the Papapurusha began to speak thus: 'Oh Papapurusha! Rise up! Don't lament any longer. Just listen, and I'll tell you where you can stay on the auspicious lunar day of Ekadasi. On the day of Ekadasi, which is the benefactor of the three worlds, you can take shelter of foodstuff in the form of grains. There is no reason to worry about this any more, because My form as Sri Ekadasi Devi will no longer impede you.' After giving direction to the Papapurusha, the Supreme Lord Vishnu disappeared and the Papapurusha returned to the performance of his own activities. According to the instructions of Lord Vishnu, every kind of sinful activity that can be found in the material world takes its residence in this place of foodstuff (grains). Therefore those persons who are serious about the ultimate benefit for the soul will never eat grains on the Ekadasi day.
Observing Ekadasi
All Vedic scriptures thus strongly recommend observing complete fast on the day of Ekadasi (without drinking water). Every one from the age of eight to eighty, irrespective of varna-ashram, gender, or any material consideration is recommended to fast on this day to make spiritual progress.
For those who cannot perform the austerity of complete fasting, it is recommended that one can follow Ekadasi by eating once a day at midday, or eating once a day in the evening. However under no conditions should one eat grains in any form on this day.
Devotional service on Ekadasi
Ekadasi with all its benefits should be understood as some thing that is there to support the ultimate goal of every living entity, devotional service to the Lord. By the mercy of the Lord, this day has become extremely auspicious for the performance of devotional service. Freed from so many sinful desires a devotee can execute unalloyed devotional service and receive the mercy of the Lord.
So, for devotees, fasting on Ekadasi is a means to progress on their path of sadhana-bhakti. The process of fasting is purifying to the consciousness and it frees up the devotee from so many material considerations. Since devotional service performed on this day is several times more effective, devotees like to engage themselves as much as possible in chanting, kirtan, discussing the pastimes of the Lord and performing other forms of devotional service.
Srila Prabhupada recommended that devotees should try and chant at least twenty-five rounds on this day, read about the Lord pastimes and minimize material affairs. However, understanding that devotees who are already fully engaged in active service of the Lord (like book distribution, preaching etc.) he made some concessions, like eating and drinking liquids in the day as long as there is no grains in them.
Glories of Ekadasi
In the Bhakti-sandarbha, by Srila Jiva Gosvami, there is a quotation from the Skanda Purana admonishing that a person who eats grains on Ekadasi becomes a murderer of his mother, father, brother and spiritual master, and even if he is elevated to a Vaikuntha planet, he falls down. It is strictly forbidden for one to accept any kind of grain on Ekadasi, even if it is offered to Lord Vishnu.
In the Brahma-vaivarta Purana it is said that one who observes fasting on Ekadasi day is freed from all kinds of reactions to sinful activities and advances in pious life. The basic principle is not just to fast, but to increase one's faith and love for Govinda, or Krishna. The real reason for observing fast on Ekadasi is to minimize the demands of the body and to engage our time in the service of the Lord by chanting or performing similar service.
The best thing to do on fasting days is to remember the pastimes of Govinda and to hear His holy name constantly.
TABLA - FUENTES - FONTS
- SOUV2P.TTF - 57 KB
- SOUV2I.TTF - 59 KB
- SOUV2B.TTF - 56 KB
- SOUV2T.TTF - 56 KB
- bai_____.ttf - 46 KB
- babi____.ttf - 47 KB
- bab_____.ttf - 45 KB
- balaram_.ttf - 45 KB
- SCAGRG__.TTF - 73 KB
- SCAGI__.TTF - 71 KB
- SCAGB__.TTF - 68 KB
- inbenr11.ttf - 64 KB
- inbeno11.ttf - 12 KB
- inbeni11.ttf - 12 KB
- inbenb11.ttf - 66 KB
- indevr20.ttf - 53 KB
- Greek font: BibliaLS Normal
- Greek font: BibliaLS Bold
- Greek font: BibliaLS Bold Italic
- Greek font: BibliaLS Italic
- Hebrew font: Ezra SIL
- Hebrew font: Ezra SIL SR
Disculpen las Molestias
Conceptos Hinduistas (1428)SC
Aa-Anc · Aga - Ahy · Ai - Akshay · Akshe - Amshum · Ana - Ancie · Ang - Asvayu · Ata - Az · Baa-Baz · Be-Bhak · Bhal-Bu · C · Daa-Daz · De · Dha-Dry · Du-Dy · E · F · Gaa-Gayu · Ge-Gy · Ha-He · Hi-Hy · I · J · K · Ka - Kam · Kan - Khatu · Ki - Ko · Kr - Ku · L · M · N · O · P · R · S · Saa-San · Sap-Shy · Si-Sy · Ta - Te · U · V · Ve-Vy · Y · Z
No hay comentarios:
Publicar un comentario