All Glory to the Divine Master and the Supreme Lord Sri Krsna Chaitanya

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Vaishnava o in t Spring 4
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Śrī Chaitanya Sāraswat Maṭh

Śrī Dhām Purī —Orissa

A Publication o f the Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math — London Chapter

 A ll G lory to Śrī Ś rī Guru and Gaurāṅga

counterpoint
A Journal for the Vaishnava Community

co u 'n terpoint n.(Mus.) Melody added as

accompaniment to original melody
E d it o r ia l (Concise O xfo rd D ictio n a ry)
C ounterpoint Journal o f Gauḍīya-
Vaiṣṇava thought, meant to accompany
t is difficu lt to sit down before a blank page, or in my case, a the Original sweet melody o f the Śrī

I blank computer screen, and write the opening lines to a journal

containing the thoughts o f such great spiritual luminaries as
Śrīla Ṭ h āku r B haktivinoda, Śrīla Bhakti Rakṣak Śrīdhar Dev
Kṛṣṇa-Saṅkīrttan o f Śrī Chaitanya
Mahāprabhu.
© A ll rights reserved by the President-
Āchāryya, Śrī Chaitanya Sāraswat Maṭh,
Nabadwip and Internationally.
Goswāmi and Śrīla Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev Goswām i. What
should I write, what style should I adopt, do I even have anything Enquiries, Correspondence, and
o f value to say? I t certainly would not be possible for me to add Subscriptions:
anything to what they and the other great Vaiṣṇavas have already Counterpoint
66 Peters Path
said, the only purpose o f this journal after all, is to present their Wells Park Road
words to the W orld. Still, even I want to do something good for Sydenham
others and I am always earnestly looking for ways to gain the London SE26 6LE
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blessings and good wishes o f all Vaiṣṇavas. Every reader o f
Counterpoint, I am sure, is aspiring for Kṛṣṇa Consciousness and C ounterpoint is published by Śrī
everyone can say som ething about that. W e have all heard Chaitanya Sāraswat M aṭh — London
Chapter, as a humble offering to our
something from Śrī Guru and Vaiṣṇava that has helped us and that
Divine Masters Śrī Śrīla Bhakti Rakṣak
can help others. Śrīdhar Dev-Goswāmi Mahārāj & Śrī
Śrī Kṛṣṇa Saṅkīrttan is the pure religion especially for this Śrīla Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-
Kali-Yuga and it is for all and everyone. It is the religion o f the Goswāmi Mahārāj

H o ly Name o f God and is most efficacious when practiced in

C h ie f E d it o r ia l /S id d h ā n t a A d v is o r :
co m m u n ity. W hatever our p o sitio n , we should give up our Śrīpād Bhakti Ānanda Sāgar Mahārāj
prejudices and come together in the Name o f Śrī Śrī Guru and — Missionary-in-Charge, London
Gaurāṅga and happily sing the glories o f our Lord. In this happy
E d it o r :
company we may get the opportunity to hear about Śrī Kṛṣṇa from Śrī Devāśis Dāsādhikārī
the lotus lips o f true saints, and anoint ourselves with their holy
remnants. This w ill give us enthusiasm and strength to attempt to PROOFREADERS:
Śrī Nabadwip-Chandra Dās
serve H ari-G uru-V aiṣṇava w ith faith. Genuine h u m ility , real
Śrīmatī Karuṇā-Kaṇā Devī Dāsī
tolerance and the ability to properly honour all, w ill guarantee us
success. Śrīla Rūpa Goswāmīpād has written that those who are TYPING ASSISTANT:
Śrīmatī Karuṇā-Kaṇā Devī Dāsī
afflicted w ith the jaundice o f avidyā cannot taste the natural
sweetness o f the H o ly Name o f Kṛṣṇa, but still that very Name is PHOTOGRAPHY:
the only medicine. The Śrī Chaitanya Sāraswat M aṭh exists for the Śrī Jai Kṛṣṇa Dās
dispensation o f that medicine, and there it is freely available. Seeing Śrī Devāśis Dāsādhikārī
Śrī Mukunda Dāsādhikārī
the increasing health o f the inmates there, I feel more and more Śrī Rathīndranāth Dāsādhikārī
encouraged to take that medicine in greater and greater dosage. We
already have the p re scrip tio n , the best doctors, the healing
environment and the medicine. W hy then should we remain ill?

M ay Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa bless us. Devāśis D ās


E m o tio n o r D evotio n?
H is D iv in e Grace
Ś rī Ś rīla B h a k ti S undar G ovinda D ev-G osw ām ī M ahārāj
From an inform al talk at the London Ś rī Chaitanya Sāraswat M aṭh — 2 6 October 1993
Devotee: I want to know i f it is okay to
read the higher books by the Goswāmīs,
describing the intimate pastimes o f Rādhā
and Kṛṣṇa?
Śrīla Govinda Mahārāj: W e are not doing
that. In m y fo rty tw o years w ith Śrīla
G uru Mahārāj (Śrīla Śrīdhar Mahārāj) I
never once heard him give permission for
that to us. I know many o f the books you
are speaking of, very well; that is my posi­
tion was somewhat different. Śrīla Guru
Mahārāj is a paramahaṁsa Vaiṣṇava and I
was his personal servant up u n til about
1983, when I engaged some others for his
personal service. A t that tim e m y seva
responsibility increased in such a big way
that I was unable to always serve G uru
Mahārāj in person, still I was always look­
ing after his health. From 1973 I was
treating Śrīla G uru Mahārāj as his doctor.
Guru Mahārāj was so ill that all the doc­
tors had said that no medicine could work
in his body, and they were sure that w ith ­
in a few days or a week at most he would
leave his body. O f course G uru M ahārāj’s
body is siddha body, b ut still all the most
qualified doctors said that i t was beyond
their capacity to treat him. Then one day, I
was taking m y bath and I was crying, and I
called to Lord Śiva, “ O h Lord Śiva, you
have said that I am your son, and really I
feel that I am. You are the master o f all
medicine, so please my Lord give me some
medicine for my Guru Mahārāj.” After my
desperate prayer I heard the name o f a med­
icine, as i f from the air. A t first I thought I
had mistaken the sound o f the water from
the shower as the name o f the medicine, so I
prayed again, “ Please let me hear that name
again so that I may be sure.” And again the
sound o f that medicine came. I knew that
medicine because at that time I was practic­
ing as a doctor o f Homeopathy to the peo­
ple, but u ntil now I had never treated Śrīla
Guru Mahārāj. This was because firstly I
was not always staying w ith Guru Mahārāj,
and secondly I had never considered myself
to be a very good doctor. I was able to give
some help to the poor but I felt that was as
much as I could do. In any case after hear­
ing the medicine from Lord Śiva, I felt very
free in m y m ind and I knew that G uru
Mahārāj w ill not leave us now. In the mean­
time Hari Charan prabhu called me on the
telephone, “ Śrīla Guru Mahārāj is sinking
fast, he has no pulse, only a slight heartbeat,
and no blood pressure.” I told him , as a
matter o f fact, “ Prabhu, don’t worry, I have
ju st now been given a medicine by Lord
Śiva, give it to Guru Mahārāj and he w ill be
cured, I am coming right away.” I took the
last train from Calcutta, which was late, and
arrived at the M ath at about 12 O ’clock
m idnight, and when I arrived I saw Guru
M ahārāj s ittin g in his chair and taking
prasadam w ith his own hand. I asked Guru
Mahārāj, “ W hat happened? H ari Charan
prabhu told me you were s in kin g .” And
Guru Mahārāj replied, “ Yes, I was but Hari
Charan prabhu gave me the medicine that
you told him, and now you can see.” Then
his pulse came back and blood pressure
became normal, and Guru Mahārāj said,
“ From this day you w ill be my
d o c to r.” A ll o f G u ru
M ahārāj’s doctors consented,
b u t s till I was th in k in g that
Guru Mahārāj is so great that
somebody w ill chastise me,
“ W h y are you not calling the
doctor, w hy are you treating
Guru Mahārāj.” I was a little
a fra id and s till I could not
consider myself as a very good
doctor. Then G uru Mahārāj
said, “ A ll the doctors have
already said that no medicine
can work for me, so now hap­
p ily you can treat me.” So I
became G uru M ahārāj’s doc­
tor, and after that his main ill­
ness was chronic headache. He
had s u ffe re d fro m this
headache from the age o f sev­
enteen, and from twenty two
it became very strong. When
G uru M ahārāj was suffering
w ith this headache he could
n o t eat a n y th in g . O n ly he
w o u ld take w ater and con­
s ta n tly th ro w in g up.
Sometimes this would last for
three days, sometimes six days,
and sometimes up to twelve
days. So I began researching,
and fin a lly I to ld G u ru
Mahārāj, “ Mahārāj, now your
headache must go. I can treat
yo u and fo re v e r i t w ill be
gone.” A ll the H om eopathic doctors who
had treated Guru Mahārāj had prescribed
Nux-Vom ica and administered it from 30
to M M potency, b u t none had had the
desired effect. As they had all prescribed
this same medicine, I concluded that Nux-
Vomica must be Guru Mahārāj’s constitu­
tio n a l m e d ic in e . I th en w e n t to an
Allopathic doctor and asked him what is the
dosage o f N ux-Vom ica mother tincture in
Allopathy. I t was eight drops maximum, so
I decided to give Guru Mahārāj five drops.
When the first signs o f the headache came I
administered the five drops o f the mother
tincture and the headache was reduced to a
standby position. I was confident that now
this headache w ill go because previously no
medicine could check it. The only other
m edicine that could give G uru Mahārāj
relief from his co ndition was Cafergot, a
type o f Ergotamine. Ergotamine is a very
serious drug, and through taking this, all of
Guru Mahārāj’s health problems came, but
it was the only relief possible before now.
After about two or three hours again the

Śrīla Govinda Maharaj with Śrī Kṛṣṇa-Bandhu prabhu (left) and Śrī Līlā-sundar prabhu
(centre) having just received Brā hmiṇical initiation from His Divine Grace
headache came and so I gave Guru Mahārāj
1/4 th dose o f the Ergotamine, and again after
a b o u t a n o th e r six hou rs the headache
returned and I gave the N ux-V om ica. In
this way alternating between the two, and
then after twenty four hours I stopped the
Ergotamine and continued w ith the Nux-
Vom ica along w ith Lord Śiva’s medicine,
and two other homeopathic medicines I had
selected. T hat headache was then complete­
ly gone forever and so in this way I was the
doctor o f Śrīla G uru Mahārāj. Still i f I was
not at the M ath I left
instruction that i f the
need arose th e n the
A llo p a th ic d o c to r
“Śrīmad Bhāgavatam has declared that lust will
should be called. Once
Guru Mahārāj was suf­
be driven out of the heart, and one’s conscious­
fering from bronchitis
and so H a ri C haran
ness will come to the level of Kṛṣṇa-Prema”
prabhu called the top
doctor o f Nabadwip, the president o f the
district medical board. He came and after
seeing G uru Mahārāj prescribed some medi­
cine. Guru Mahārāj flatly told him, “ No, I
w ill n o t take y o u r m e d ic in e . G o vin d a
M ahārāj is m y d octo r and o nly after he
comes and says, w ill I take your medicine.”
Then the doctor was very angry and said,
“ Then why did you call me?” Guru Mahārāj
said, “ I did not call you, H ari Charan called
y o u .” So the d o cto r asked H a ri Charan
P ra bh u, w ho e xp la in e d , “ I called you
because Govinda Mahārāj said I should.”
The doctor replied, “ Do not call me again,
i f Guru Mahārāj w ill not take my medicine
then why should I come?” And angrily the
doctor left. W hen I arrived, I asked Guru
Mahārāj what had happened and he told me
the events, so I w ent to see the doctor.
When I reached there the doctor was still
angry and he said, “ Oh, Govinda Mahārāj
you have come. It is not necessary to come,
I shall not go w ith you. I shall not see Guru
Mahārāj as my patient.” I told him, “You
m ust co n tin u e to see G u ru M ah ā rā ja .”
“W hy should I come, he w ill not take my
medicine. N o !” I said, “He w ill not take
your medicine, that is the tru th . T ha t is
because you yourself have said that your
medicine w ill not work on him. I am calling
you because I am not a very good doctor
and you are the best d o c to r in a ll o f
Nabadwip, and i f you w ill examine G uru
Mahārāj and give your diagnosis and pre­
scription, then im m e d ia te ly I can under­
stand from your medicine what homeopath­
ic medicine I should give instead o f that.
This is why I call you, and you have love for
Guru Mahārāj, so you must come.” Then
the doctor was quiet and said, “ Yes, i f that is
the cause, then I shall come.” Anyhow this
was the history. I could not always stay with
Guru Mahārāj and so I engaged some others
for that. But before that, Guru Mahārāj had
no other servant, and so we heard many
things during our association. And not only
that, it was the desire o f Guru Mahārāj to
tell something about the pastimes o f Kṛṣṇa,
o f Rādhārāṇi, and others, so we heard from
him, but always he told us in a very cautious
way. Never did he tell us to read U jjvala-
nīlam aṇi or similar books, but some things
he told us, and I know many ślokas from
U jjv a la -n īla m a ṇ i, V idagdha-m ādhava,
Lalitā-m ādhava and others. T hat is, Guru
Mahārāj had me study kāvya (sanskrit com­
position), and it is necessary to read these
verses to understand the many varieties o f
sanskrit metre, language, beauty, alaṅkāra,
etc. But I can say it is a special case, it is not
fo r a ll. These books are no d o u b t the
supreme books o f our Sampradāya, but they
are n ot fo r all and everyone’s reading. I f
anyone w ill read these books then they w ill
become prākṛta-sahajiyā, and what w ill be
for them? We do not want that our brother
and sister w ill become that, so we must be
very serious about our practicing life. You
have left everything; your culture, your alle­
giance to country, community, your habits,
everything you have left to try and practice
Kṛṣṇa Consciousness, so you w ill have to be
serious. And you also need the result. To
only practice, that is not your life’s goal you
need the end result — Kṛṣṇa Consciousness
— and how w ill you get that result? I t is
necessary to first understand this. We are
c h a n tin g H are Kṛṣṇa b u t we have n o t
become perfect. Why? W e must research
this. W h y is it not happening, why is the
feeling not coming inside? I f it were merely
a cheating matter then it would be no prob­
lem. But it is not a cheating matter, it is
proven in the scriptures o f India; the Veda,
Vedānta, Upaniṣad, Purāna, there is five
thousand years o f culture, there are munis
and ṛṣis who have all got the result. I f you
study the scriptures like M ahābhārat you
w ill say that all the advices are very good
and you w ill see that so many have gotten
the result. Then why are we not getting the
result? The time has come for us to know
w hy. Śrīla A. C. B h aktive d ān ta Swami
Mahārāj Prabhupād has come to this world,
Ś rīla G u ru M a h ā rā j has come, Śrīla
Prabhupād Saraswatī Ṭ h ā k u r has come,
Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭ hākur — their books
and everything are w ith us, all the property
o f Śrī Chaitanyadev's Sampradāya is w ith
us, but it is not fru itfu l to us. W hy is this? It
is necessary to know . We do n ot want to
cheat anybody, we want to do something
good for others, and i f we cannot do any­
thing good then at least we w ill not do any­
thing bad to others. So we must be serious
about our practicing life, and that means we
must fo llo w the directives given by Śrīla
Guru Mahārāj. Before approaching the rasa-
tattva, the serious, high pastimes o f Śrī Śrī
Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa, we must prepare ourselves for
that, otherwise that w ill n ot give us the per­
fect sentiment.
In Śrīmad Bhāgavatam it is written;
vikrīḍ ita ṁ vraja-vadhūbhir idaṁ ca viṣṇoḥ
śraddhānvito 'nuśṛṇuyād atha varṇ ayedyaḥ
bhaktiṁ parāṁ bhagavati pratilabhya kāmaṁ
hṛd-rogam āśv apahinoty acireṇa dhīraḥ
(Bhāg. 10.33.39)
“ I f you hear the pastimes o f Kṛṣṇa w ith the
Gopīs, especially th e Rāsa-līlā, etc.,— which
have been revealed in this mundane world
by the grace o f Kṛṣṇa — i f you hear w ith
fu ll fa ith fro m a b o n a -fid e G u ru or
Vaiṣṇava, and i f you subsequently describe
that to others, then you w ill get the topmost
supreme devotion to Kṛṣṇa. The conjugal
play o f Kṛṣṇa w ith the Gopīs in paramour
Love — w h ich He tastes in a variety o f
ecstasies — i f you hear that, then youṛ heart
disease o f lust w ill be expelled forever.” So
why is i t that when we contemplate that
L īlā we are getting d iffic u lty and we are
going to a hellish position? This we must
research carefully, and that knowledge has
been given by B h a ktivin o d a Ṭ h ā ku r and
especially by Śrīla Saraswatī Ṭhākur. Śrīmad
Bhāgavatam has declared that the lust w ill
“Oh Hari-nām, I cannot properly chant Your
Holy Form, so please reveal Yourself within
my heart and purify me”
be driven out o f the heart, and one’s con­
sciousness w ill come to the level o f Kṛṣṇa-
Prema — bodily consciousness w ill be for­
gotten and that w ill be overtaken by Prema
consciousness. One must get that position.
So why are we not getting it? H ari-nām is
transcendental vibration non-different from
Kṛṣṇa. W e are chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa
M ahām antra, b ut in w hich way shall we
chant? The Mahāmantra manifests Him self
by appearing in your heart and dancing on
your tongue, but i f H ari-nām is transcen­
dental, then I cannot chant w ith my mun­
dane tongue. This is the truth, the mundane
cannot play w ith the transcendental. O nly
when the mundane becomes itself transcen­
dental can it come in touch w ith the tran­
scendental Name. It is very clear, so some­
how or another we must make
ourselves transcendental.
There is a very nice analogy o f
the moon. The moon is always
in the sky but sometimes it is
obscured by the clouds.
Sometimes we can see it and
sometimes we cannot. So the
position o f H ari-n ām is like
that. Like the cloud we are
always coming and going, and
according to our standard o f
chanting sometimes Hari-nām
may reveal a g lim pse and
som etim es He w ill rem ain
covered, then finally He w ill
reveal him self in our Hearts.
W e are g ettin g some result,
then we can say yes, i t is the
truth. But i f we get nothing
then we w ill become hopeless
and think, why should I spend
my time for that? But behind
that we w ill have to see that
the reason is because I cannot
chant pro pe rly. W e can see
that in every religion there is the chanting getting some result, no doubt, otherwise we
o f the Lord’s Name in one form or another, w ould give up chanting H ari-n ām . Also,
so they cannot all be w rong. So we can Bhaktivinoda Ṭ h ā k u r has said that i f we
understand that there is great benefit in cannot avoid the Nāmāparādha, offence to
ch a n tin g the L o rd ’s Nam e, there is no the Name, and in all probability we w ill not
doubt. A nd fu rthe r, in the scriptures o f be able to avoid, but i f our intention is to
India it is recorded that i f you chant this try to avoid that, then we should pray to
particular mantra then you w ill get this par­ H ari-nām , “ O h H ari-nām , I cannot proper­
ticular result, another mantra, another par­ ly chant Your H oly Form, so please reveal
ticular result. The ancient ṛṣis and munis Yourself w ith in m y heart and p urify me.”
And Bhaktivinoda Ṭ hākur has
said, “ C h a n tin g , c h a n tin g ,
ch an ting , c h a n tin g — some­
how, in any way, we need to get
the a tte n tio n o f th a t H o ly
Name.” In this way we must get
the desired result, I can say it is
so. O therw ise i f i t were only
have discovered and proven this. A ṛṣ i is he cheating then I would have left it long ago.
who can discover something in the field o f M y nature is lik e that. I do n o t w ant to
Vedic religion, a ‘Ph.D.’ o f religion, and a cheat anybody, I cannot beg from anybody,
m uni is he who is successfully practicing the and I cannot cheat others. But sincerely I
Vedic religion. The ṛṣis and munis are all say to you, that you w ill get that result; i f
chanting the Lord’s Name. Lord Śiva, Lord you chant in this way, following the process
Brahma, the demi-gods and gods, all are o f M ahaprabhu, and ca re fully guarding
chanting the Lord’s Name. Then inside o f against m a k in g any o ffe nce to the
the chanting, like the Nux-Vomica, there is Vaiṣṇavas. Then we should pray to Śrī H ari­
the medicine for us. This K ṛṣṇa-nām is a nām, “ Oh; my Lord you are transcendental,
Form o f Kṛṣṇa, and i f you chant the Holy and I am living w ithin this mundane world.
Name o f your Lord, then you must get the I am jiva-soul, and so I am also transcen­
result. So what is the process to chant prop­ dental by nature, but due to misuse o f my
erly? Śrīman Mahaprabhu has given the finite independence, I am covered by illu ­
three-fold process: H u m ility , Tolerance, sion, covered by ego. Please be kind upon
and Honouring others. I f we cannot chant me. Oh H ari-nām , give me your mercy and
properly then in some way we are not fol­ reveal Yourself w ithin my heart.” This must
lowing that process. It is our ego. We are be our mood o f prayer. I heard from Śrīla
Guru Mahārāj, that when his Godbrother,
 Śrī mad Parvat Mahārāj was a young boy he prabhu hāsi’ kahe, — “swāmī nā māne yei W h y are you rem aining here? Come for­
used to live in the house next door to Śrīla jana ward w ith me, otherwise why spend my
Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākur. He told us, “ In my veśyāra bhitare tāre kariye gaṇana" time?” I asked him , “Are you satisfied with
young age, I heard every night from about (Cc Antya 7.115) my answers?” He replied, “ Yes Mahārāj, I
2 a.m. until the morning, Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Then everywhere there is harmony, some am very satisfied.” “ Then what w ill you do
Ṭhākur would chant the M ahām antra on adjustment, and with full consciousness we w ith my answers? I f that does not reflect in
his rooftop, b ut you could hear that his shall try to ch a n t the Hare Kṛṣṇa your life, then all your questions are useless,
chanting was more like calling, a heartfelt M ahām antra. U nder proper guidance we and all o f my answers are useless to you. M y
call to his L o rd .” So we m ust be serious can read everything. W e have a rig h t to time is wasted and your time is wasted. If
about our chanting, and we m ust make read, but that must be under the guidance you are satisfied w ith my answers then why
obeisance to Guru and Vaiṣṇava. We should o f a perfect person who knows fu lly that are you n o t c o m in g w ith me? Then he
k n o w our G u ru as perfect, b u t w ho is plane, then no offence w ill come to us in replied, “ O h Mahārāj, I have no money, I
Vaiṣṇava, that we do not know, and to what any way, and we shall not become prākṛta- cannot come right now.”
extent one is a Vaiṣṇava, that we also do not sahajiyās. We must be very serious in our practicing
know. Someone may be twenty five life, then I can give you a guaran­
percent, another seventy percent, tee that you must get your goal.
and another may be one hundred You are in the line o f Śrīla Guru
percent, or only five percent, we do Mahārāj, you have the mercy o f
not know. But we should know that Śrīla Swami M ahārāj and Śrīla
everybody has some good qualities P rabhupād Saraswatī Ṭ h ā k u r,
whether they are demon or a saint, then you m ust get it, b u t you
b u t w ho is Vaiṣṇava we do n o t m u st be very conscious about
know. So we must give honour to your practicing life. I have seen
all and be respectful to everyone many in our line who think they
and be surrendered to the w ill o f are proceeding very happily and
God, then the Vaiṣṇavas m ust be practicing very happily, but they
kind to us. That is the process given are not seeing themselves through
by Śrīla B haktivinoda Ṭ hā kur. It my eyes. Once, I said, “W hat is
may be hard to follow that, but i f devotion and w hat is emotion?
we really need the true result, then Are you under emotion or are you
we must proceed only in this way. under devotion? You cannot see.”
And proper adjustment w ill be con­ H e a rin g th is Ś rīpad Janārdan
stantly required. Suppose someone Mahārāj said, “ O h Mahārāj, you
w ill kick m y father in front o f me. I f are chastising me.” Actually it is
I w ill tolerate that and be humble, not to chastise anyone, I want to
then he m ay k ill m y father. M y be serious fo r everyone and for
father is to be protected by me, I am m yself also. A lready sixty fo ur
his young son, and he is old and years o f my life have passed and
weak, therefore it is my duty to pro­ how much longer I shall live I do
tect him . So w hat is h u m ility and n ot know. I f we are under emo­
w hat is tolerance, everything w ill tion, then we must leave that and
need to be a d ju ste d . A n d Ś rīla try to go to devotion. Heart and
Prabhupād, Saraswatī Ṭ hākur has soul I am trying. Guru Mahārāj
given that adjustment. He says that gave me some service. Previously
Śrīla Govinda Mahārāj on the occasion of his holy
to just make some show o f being appearance day 1993 — Śrī Dhām Nabadwip in the tim e o f G u ru M ahārāj
very humble, lower than a blade o f whatever service I did he would
grass, w ill n o t be s u ffic ie n t. O f digest. I f I did rig h t or i f I did
course that is the fact, but some substance wrong, he is digesting that and my service is
must be w ithin your heart, and that must be nowledge just for its own sake has getting some position, but now all my good
the perfect substance. In every situation you
must have some realisation. Should some­
one abuse your Guru in your presence, then
K no real value and w ill not give us our
real goal. I recently met one old
friend in New York, he is a disciple o f Śrīla
and bad is coming to me, and so I must be
even more serious. And all the devotees are
really very good, otherwise why are they
what w ill you do? I f you think, “ I am very Swami Mahārāj Prabhupād and famous as a coming in the line o f Kṛṣṇa Consciousness?
humble and I shall be tolerant o f h im ” , then pandit. He is accumulating much scriptural Then I m ust be serious fo r them also. I
that is not real tṛ ṇād api sunīcena. We find knowledge and learning, and he is constant­ must teach them, “ Please come this way,
the proper response in the person o f Śrīman ly questioning me, and all very taxing, com­ don’t go that way.” That is my duty given
Mahaprabhu who preaches this philosophy. plex, scriptural questions. Finally I told him, by Śrīla Guru Mahārāj, and i f I can do that
W hen Śrīdhar Swami, the original com­ “ Prabhu what are you doing? You are ques­ seriously and w ith all sincerity, then they
mentator o f Śrīm ad Bhāgavatam, was insult­ tioning me and I am giving you answers, w ill get the result, I w ill get the result and
ed by V a lla b h ā c ā ry ya, then Mahaprabhu b ut then are you proceeding or are you viśvaṁ p ū rṇ a ṁ sukhāyate — the whole
said, “ O h, you do not give recognition to remaining in your present position? I f you world w ill be benefited.
Śrīdhar Swami? W ho w ill not give respect to think you are getting any benefit from me,
their Swami, they are a prostitute." then why are you n o t com ing w ith me?
Ja g a n n ā th d e v
Braja-rasa in Dwārakā
H is D iv in e Grace
Ś rī Śrī la B h a kti Rakṣak Śrī dhar D ev-G osw ām ī
om etim es there is a conception amongst the
S
Queens o f Dwārakā that, “A lth o u g h we have
Kṛṣṇa as our Husband, we feel that somehow
H e is n o t K ṛṣṇa in H is fullness. H e always
seems absent m in d e d , as i f H is heart is n ot
w holly w ith us.” Pondering th e cause o f this, th e Queens
came to kn ow that previously Kṛṣṇa had some very sweet
c o n n e c tio n w it h V ṛn d ā v a n a n d th e G o p īs th e re .
T h in k in g this to be the key to Kṛṣṇa’s absent m inded
mood, they began searching fo r an o p p o rtu n ity to find
out how Kṛṣṇa was liv in g in Vṛndāvan. They wanted to
know about H is pastimes there w ith the Gopīs, and to
hear the descriptions fro m H is ch ild h o o d . B alarām ’s
m o the r R o h iṇ ī had lived in V ṛndāvan d u rin g Kṛṣṇa’s
childhood, and although she is situated in vātsalya-rasa
(parental relationship), she had heard many things about
Kṛṣṇa’s L īlā w ith the Gopīs. So meeting her privately the
Q ue e ns re q u e s te d h e r, “ Please d e scrib e K ṛṣ ṇ a ’ s
m ādhuryya-līlā in Vṛndāvan to us.” R o h iṇ ī was unable to
avoid the Queens’ sincere request, and so posting Kṛṣṇa’s
sister Subhadrā to keep watch, she began to narrate about
His L īlā w ith the M ilkm aids o f Vraja.
I t so happened that at that same time, Kṛ ṣṇa and
Balarām were ta k in g rest in a nearby ro o m , and as
R o h iṇ ī was describing the V ṛn dā va n-līlā, T hey became
aware o f w h a t was ta kin g place. C o m in g to the door
where Subhadrā was standing guard, Kṛṣṇa and Balarām
c o u ld h e a r th e ta lk o f R o h iṇ ī, and re m e m b e rin g
Vṛndāvan, the Gopīs and all these things, a great inten­
sity o f feeling came over Them . A great change o f feeling
came over Kṛṣṇa and Balarām, so great that T h e ir bodies
also began to change; just as M ahāprabhu had shown
when H e fell at the gate o f the Jagannāth M a n d ir and
His arms and legs entered into H is body. Such a change
in the body is possible according to some particular feel­
ing o f ecstasy, and feeling the ecstasy o f Vṛndāvan, Kṛṣṇa
and Balarām were undergoing such a tra nsform ation.
A nd Subhadrā, although She had not lived in Vṛndāvan,
seeing H e r Brothers in this way, She also experienced
some sort o f sympathetic transform ation. Internally that
feeling came to H e r and externally She was also trans­
fo rm e d . T h e cause o f T h e ir d is fig u r a tio n was the
V ṛn d ā v a n sta te m e n t o f R o h iṇ ī. R e m e m b e rin g th a t
V ṛn d ā v a n -līlā and feeling th a t, such change came in
T h e ir bodies. S u d d e n ly the g ro u p o f R o h iṇ ī c o u ld
understand that Kṛṣṇa and Balarām were there listening
to their talk, and so im m ediately they stopped. T he L īlā
thus suspended, the d is fig u re d fo rm a tio n o f K ṛṣṇa
remained, and H e fell into a trance. N o th in g could be
done to reverse the situation, and so in desperation Kṛṣṇa
was taken to the Nava-Vṛndāvan; a replica o f Vṛndāvan
that had been created in Dwārakā by Brahm ā for Kṛṣṇa’s
pleasure. A lthough Kṛṣṇa was awake H e could not come
o ut o f th a t m e n ta lity, th a t trance, u n til H e could be
taken to that Nava-Vṛndāvan. There in H is trance He
could only see Baladev, and all others present were elim i­
nated from His vision. Seeing Baladev, Kṛṣṇa was happy
that He was in Vṛndāvan. Then He saw R o h iṇī, “ O h yes,
it is Vṛndāvan.” Mannequins o f all the other residents o f
Vṛndāvan were also arranged there, and the Queens were
follow ing from a distance to see what w ill happen. After
seeing Baladev, Kṛṣṇa sees H is cowherd friends Śrīdām
and Sudām are also there. In another part the Gopīs are
there, and in one part Ś rīm a tī Rādhārāṇī is standing.
Seeing H e r m annequin Kṛṣṇa ran and embraced Her,
and when Satyabhāmā saw this, some disfigurem ent also
came in H er body. W hile Kṛṣṇa was in this
temperament, Baladev was able to go to
H im and gradually he was able to bring
K ṛṣṇ a back to the consciousness o f
D w ārakā. T he sudden sto p p in g o f H is
experience o f Vṛndāvan caused H is condi­
tio n and o n ly by a gradual process, H is
m entality was again taken to Dwārakā.
his sort o f tale is there, and when
Vṛndāvan is all im portant. The attraction
fo r that V rndāvan-līlā — when that was
suddenly stopped the result was a great
change in the physical plane. O f course it is
not physical, but for the purpose o f expla­
n atio n we can say physical. T h a t check
caused the disfigurem ent o f the external
plane. I t is something like when there is an
earthquake. The internal movement o f the
Earth disfigures the surface, so the internal
and there Dhṛtarāṣṭ ra is naming the main
incidents o f Mahābhārat, and lam enting
that, “ Because o f this in cid e n t and that
in
cid e n t I kn ow th a t m y party must be
defeated” . But at this stage o f Mahābhārata
none o f these incidents had taken place. So
how can D hṛtarāṣtra speak o f these in ci­
dents at the beginning o f the narration? It
is because it is nitya, eternal. The beginning
o f the L īlā and the end o f the L īlā cannot

T Dwārakā and Vṛndāvan mix, that is

J a g a n n ā th .
H e is m a in ly in
disturbance that was created by the recol- be differentiated. I t is in a cyclic order and
it is eternal. That is
a ve ry d if fic u lt
D w ā ra k ā , b u t the th in g to under­
posing o f Vṛndāvan stand. T o adjust to
is there. He has in fi­ the eternal
nite forms o f L īlā , so Everywhere begin­
what can we trace or n in g , everyw here
know w ith our finite e n d . E ve ryw h e re
capacity? In there is centre and
D w ā ra k ā -S a ṁ h itā n o w he re is th e re
we fin d th a t there circumference. T h is
was an arrangement is the m eaning of
of R ā s a -līlā in in f in it e . T h is i s
D w ārakā also. T he N i t y a - l ī l ā
Q ueens had heard Everywhere begin­
th a t in V ṛn d ā v a n n in g , everywhere
there was the Rāsa- end, and all coexis­
līlā and th a t i t is te n t at the same
most w on de rful. So tim e . K ṛṣṇadās
when on one occa­ K a v irā j Goswāmī
The Simha-dvara Gate at the Temple of Jagannāth, where Śrīman
s io n the w h o le has represented this
Mahāprabhu fell in ecstacy, His arms and legs entering His body
Vṛndāvan party was in a particular way
invited to Dwārakā, lection o f Vṛ ndāvan-līlā, that caused a great H e has given the
they privately approached Kṛṣṇa and peti­ transform ation in the superficial appear­ example th a t the sunrise is to be fo u n d
tioned H im , “ The Gopīs have come, and ance. A n d w he n th a t was s u d d e n ly always in one place or another. N ow it is
fo r a long time it is our heart's desire that checked, that appearance remained. T hat here, now there, and so on in this way. So
you w ill show Your R āsa-līlā to us. W ill has been p ic tu re d and sh ow n in like the sun K ṛṣṇa-līlā is moving, the b irth ,
You request them?” Kṛṣṇa replied, “ I f they Jagannāthdev. W hen the higher prospect is the childhood, being shown here and then
w ill give th e ir consent then I have no suddenly checked, then the reaction comes. extended to another brahmāṇḍa, another
objection.” The Queens made their request So Jagannāth is a reactionary stage between universe. T hat is the aspect o f Bhauma-līlā.
to the G o p īs and the R ā s a -līlā was V ṛn d ā v a n and D w ārakā . T h e c o n flic t And in another aspect, in Goloka, we find
arranged. W hen it was complete, a ll that between the emotion o f Swayaṁ-Bhagavān that every L īlā is also nitya. I t is reflected
saw i t were astonished, and the Queens and the Vaibhava-vilās o f Kṛṣṇa. I t is some­ here in th is w o rld and the reflection is
went to the camp o f the Gopīs to express thing like rasābhās. In higher ecstasy also, revolving like the sun. I t may be traced
their wonder. “ W h a t we have seen is the rasābhās is possible. The clash o f two differ­ here, now here, now there— a question of
most w onderful thing, it is impossible to ent waves o f rasa. The train may be pro­ space, but in Goloka, in the central place it
conceive even. W e cannot properly express ceeding in a particular m otion and the car­ is all there simultaneously. I t is also no less
such a th in g .” A n d Ś rīm a tī R ādhārāṇī riage along w ith it. B u t i f suddenly the in the heart o f the devotees. When a devo­
made this statement in reply, “ W hat have train should brake, then the contents inside tee remembers a L īlā , it may be V raja-līlā,
you seen? T hat was nothing — an almost the carriage w ill be thrown into a great dis­ and now D w ārakā-līlā, but what is reflect­
dead representation. Where is the Yamuna? order. It is something like that. ed in the heart o f a devotee, that is also
Where is the kadamba tree, the peacock, true. So in this way it is coexistent and it is
the deer, and all these things? There in ādau yad dvāro ’p la vate, c o n tin u in g always. Every L īlā and every
Vṛndāvan that was a natural stage, and that sindhuḥ p ārer apauruṣaṁ part o f L īlā is always present, coexistent.
was performed there in our youth. W hat T his verse says that the Jagannāth m ū rti Succession and coexistence both harmo­
you saw, that is nothing, a sham, a mere has been there from the very conception, nized.
m o c k e ry .” T h e n the Q ueens began to from the most ancient time. So every L īlā
reflect, “ I f w hat we saw is o f such lower o f the Lord is eternal. Every part o f the Devotee: Maharaj, is Guru-paramparā also
order, then w hat type o f superior quality in fin ite is eternal. In the b e g in n in g o f part o f Līlā?
L īlā m ust be found in the Original? I t is Mahābhārat there is “ Dhṛtarāṣṭra-vilāp”,
totally inconceivable.” So the psychology o f
 He can make o r m a r .
B h a k tiv in o d a Ṭ h ā k u r has
w ritten in his Tattva-sūtra,
that by H is w ill, even the
existence o f the jīva-soul may
be extinguished. This is not
the general case, b u t s till
Absolute Power is with H im .
C haitanya’s child ho od , when one could
not trace anything o f Kṛṣṇa, it was there,
and in different ways He was creating the
background for d is trib u tin g K ṛṣṇ a-līlā to
others.
kṛṣṇa-nāma dhare kata bala
(Śrī -Nām a-M āhātm ya — Ś rīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākur)

Śrīla Śrīdhar M aharaj: O f c ourse. I t is the
L īlā o f Kṛṣṇa. But not only that, M āyā and
Everything is designed and
destined by H im , that is the
expression o f swarūp-śakti.
kṛṣṇa-līlāmṛta-sāra,
tāra śata śata dhāra’
daśa-dike vahe yāhā haite
se caitanya-līlā haya,
sarovara akṣaya,
mano-haṁsa carāha’ tāhāte
C haitanya-līlā is the In finite
sweetness from Chaitanya—
whatever is w ithin and what­
ever is com ing from H im ,
that is all the high nectar o f
K ṛṣṇa-līlā and nothing else. C haitanya-līlā
means the centre from w hich K ṛṣ ṇ a -līlā
This sound “ Kṛṣṇa” what is its value? Śrīla
Rūpa Goswām i has explained that Kṛṣṇa
has fo ur unique, special qualities. Every
jīv a has f if t y in n a te q u a litie s . C erta in
devatās have fifty-five , the five additional
qualities p a rtia lly m anifest in them. Śrī
Nārāyaṇ has sixty qua litie s in fu ll, and
Kṛṣṇa has four more qualities not found in
Nārāyaṇ. Those four qualities are; rūpa-
m ādhurya (sweet fo rm ), veṇu-m ādhurya
(sweet flu te ), līlā - mādhurya (sweet pas­
times), and parikara-m ādhurya (sweet asso­
ciates). Śrīla Rūpa Goswāmi has established
the speciality o f K ṛṣṇa-līlā in this way. And
this is only found in Vṛndāvan. Vāsudev-
Kṛṣṇa has no flute, and it has been men­
tio n e d th a t even D w ā ra ke śa -K ṛṣṇ a is
charmed to search for the rūpa-mādhurya

“The voluntary distribution of Kṛṣṇa-līla, of different

nectarine tastes; that is Śrī Chaitanya Mahāprabhu”
everything else is included in L īlā from H is
standpoint. It is H is sweet w ill, H is inde­
pendence.
mayā tatam idaṁ sarvaṁ, jagad avyakta-
m ūrtinā
m at-sthāni sarva-bhūtāni, na cāhaṁ teṣv
avasthitaḥ
(Bg 9.4)
“ Everything is in Me, yet nothing is in Me.
I am everyw here and I am n o w h e re .”
Everything w ill come w ith in this concep­
tion. He can even interfere w ith the free
w ill o f the jīv a , but still He doesn’t. He is
w ith in and He can control, yet H e does
n o t . He may choose not to control. H e has
this independence. This sort o f conception
we shall have to indent. This is the concep­
tion o f Śrī Chaitanya Mahāprabhu and this
is what separates H is conception from the
Hegelian philosophy and the philosophy o f
Aurobindo. M āyā is not a necessary part o f
existence, and by Kṛṣṇa’s w ill M āyā may be
finished, and i f He so desires, again recreat­
ed.
koṭi-kāmadhenu-patira chāg i yai che mare
ṣaḍ-aiśvarya-pati kṛṣṇera māyā kibā kare?
(C .c.Mad. 15 179)
flows in different forms, oozing from all
sides and even from every pore. N o th in g o f V ṛn d ā va n -K ṛṣṇ a , the sweet L o rd o f
but Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa-līlā, B ra ja -līlā embodied Braja, Reality the Beautiful.
in H im , and coming out to
help the public. The volun­
tary distribution o f K ṛṣṇa-līlā
o f different nectarine tastes;
th a t is Śrī C h a ita n y a
Mahāprabhu. He has no sep­
arate existence fro m the
Nāma, Guṇa, Rūpa, and L īlā
o f Kṛṣṇa, Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa, and
this includes Yaśodā and all
others w ithin the relativity o f
Kṛṣṇa. I f one is there then all
others m ust necessarily be
there. So K ṛṣ ṇ a -līlā means
Kṛṣṇa w ith H is group. Also
V ṛn d ā va n — the w ater, the
forest, the animals, the birds,
all are included in Kṛṣṇa-līlā,
B ra ja -līlā . A n d th a t and
n o th in g else is all com ing
from Śrī Chaitanya. That is
Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa in self distrib ­
u tin g n a tu re . W h a te ve r
comes from H im — that is all
K ṛṣṇa. Even in Śrī
T he Tem ple o f
Jagannath at P u ri
O ṁ V iṣṇu p ād Śr ī la Sachchidānanda
Bhaktivinoda Ṭ hākur
an essayfir s t published September 15th 1871

here is n ot a H in d u who has not heard the name

T o f this temple. T he old and the young, the male

and the female, the Rajah and the ryot, and the
weak and the stout, all visit this temple out o f a religious
curiosity. Three hundred and one miles south-west o f the
Vice-Regal palace at Calcutta, stands this famous temple
close to the seashore affording an object for a telescopic
observation to the new-comer on board the ship bound
for Bengal. I t stands on a platform measuring 20 cubits
in height from the level o f water. The platform itself is
375 cubits by 400 cubits made o f huge stone cemented
w ith a m ortar composed o f lim e and sand. The temple
itse lf is 92 cubits in height o f a structure purely Indian.
The p ilg rim sees its tow ering head from the distance o f 7
miles where the shrewd Panda takes a rupee from him by
showing him the holy Chakra. This temple was erected
by Raja Ananga Bhim deb about 800 years ago in place o f
a n o th e r one, then in a state o f d ila p id a tio n . In old
accounts we find this temple styled N ila d ri or the blue
h ill. From this it appears that the form er temple which
was p ro b a b ly ra ise d by th e e m ig ra tin g R ajah
In d ra d y u m n a was a b lu e o r d a rk c o lo u re d one.
O therwise we cannot account for the name N ilachala
unless we take it for granted that the name was after the
N ilg ir i H ills , a sm all range w h ich runs th ro u g h this
Province from one end to the other. The Utkalakhanda
in th e Puranas, the N ila d ri M ahodadhi, and th e M a tla
Panjee (an account regularly kept by the temple officers)
declare th a t Jagannath is a very a n c ie n t in s titu tio n
amongst the Hindus. Whatever may be the value o f the
authorities quoted, we are inclined to believe that Puri
was considered sacred even at the tim e when the Puranas
were w ritte n , because we fin d in W ils o n ’s copy o f the
Vishnu Purana that one Kandu Rishi resorted to a place
called Purushottama fo r the purpose o f divine contem ­
plation. A t all events Rajah Indradyum na, to w hom the
whole affair is generally ascribed, lived a long tim e before
R ajah V ik ra m a d ity a , the co n te m p o ra ry o f A ugustus
Caesar o f Rome. W e are sure, that Puri is n o t so old as
Benares and Gaya, o f w hich repeated m ention is made in
all th e Puranas and th e Mahabharata, yet it is n ot a place
o f recent origin created after the commencement o f the
C h ris tia n Era. W e cannot believe th a t th e in s titu tio n
originated in pure stu p id ity o f the religious sentiment;
fo r we cannot b ut observe a great deal o f wisdom in the
man w ith whom the idea o f Jagannath first originated.
W e do n ot profess to belong to any o f th e sects o f re li­
gion under the sun, because
w e b e lie v e th e a b s o lu te Those who are anxious for the blessings of God
F a ith , fo u n d e d upon
in s tin c tiv e lo v e o f G o d ,
are our brothers in faith, whatever error there may
natural in all hum an souls. be in their ideas and forms of worship
There are two great sects o f
re lig io n all over the w o rld w ho fig h t w ith each other
w ith o ut any advantage whatever. O ne o f them holds that
it is absolutely necessary to believe that G od is w ith o u t
any fo rm whatever and believers in the fo rm are but,
idolatrous. T he other class maintains th at G od has out o f
kindness shown H is form to th e pious in order to be
worshipped by them. Both o f them are wrong, because
both o f them fig h t on a purely material p o in t. T he most
unsectarian view on the p o in t is, that G od is neither a
form nor a formless object but is purely sp iritu al. M atter
alone can embrace the idea o f form ; consequently all pos­
itive and negative assertions w ith regard to it must natu­
rally be material. Those who worship the form and those
who describe G od as formless, are b o th idolatrous and
superstitious, and consequently can never form an idea o f
the s p iritu a l D e ity . Sectarians o f the same class are
expected to hate each other, but those, w ho have nothing
in com m on w ith them, have no reason fo r hatred. W e
therefore cannot, like the fanatics o f the formless class
consider all idols as unsacred and hold the worship o f a
formless D e ity (id e n tify in g H im w ith som ething like
space and eternity) to be the natural worship o f God. We
go so far as to m aintain that the worshipper o f the spiri­
tual God in an idol is in fin ite ly superior to a mere believ­
er in a formless existence who considers that formlessness
is one o f the attributes o f the Spirit. S p irit is not exactly
the opposite o f matter, but it is certainly something d iffer­
ent from it. I t is d iffic u lt indeed to decide what is the
exact relation o f the S pirit to matter, space and tim e, and
it is n o t given to us to know . I t w ould indeed be the
height o f error to conceive that all the opposite qualities
o f matter, space and tim e are in Spirit. Hence we must
look to some other attributes fo r S pirit. Love and wis­
dom are certainly spiritual attributes which are not oppo­
site qualities o f matter. M an must be wise and love God.
T h is is the re lig io n o f the soul. A ll debates about the
essence o f God (e.g. God is formless or w ith a form ) are
but sectarian. N o w we allow men to love God wisely, i.e.
sp iritu ally while the ir eyes are on an idol as well as while
they are contem plating an In fin ite thing like the space.
W hen the soul worships, the m in d also finds an employ­
ment. The m in d can never conceive o f anything that is
n ot material. I t is therefore exceedingly d iffic u lt for man
in his present state to separate h im s e lf fro m id o la try.
W h a t man is obliged to do, is his lot and hence we must
p ut o ff the meaning o f id o latry to some other process.
W e therefore conclude that he that worships the id o l as
G od (whether the idol be formlessness or form ) is idola­
trous, b ut he that worships the spirit in wise love (howev­
er near he may be to an idol o f form or o f no form ) is a
w orshipper o f S p irit. B u t we go fu rth e r to tolerate all
these classes i f they be sincere. God accepts th e worship
o f all th ose who worship their highest ideal, whether it is
form , formlessness or S pirit, and it is under some regular
processes that the idea o f God becomes purer and purer
in every soul and not by fits and starts. T h a t man has no
heart fo r his brother and consequently for G od also, who
sneers at the highest ideal o f another behind h im , is id o l­
atrous. A war against the idol worshippers either in words
o r action is n ot a crusade but a fit o f rash, loveless and
ambitious fanaticism o f a very unphilanthropic character.
W e therefore, w ith all o u r due attempts at the s p iritu a l
reform ation o f our erring brothers, tolerate all classes o f
id o latry from the worshippers o f formlessness to the w o r­
shippers o f man, or matter as God. W e are opposed to
the atheists alone who live and enjoy fo r themselves.
Those who are anxious fo r the blessings o f G od are our
brothers in faith, whatever error there may be in their
ideas and forms o f worship. Love o f God, however m isdi­
rected i t m ay be, does by fo rce o f its o w n n a tu ra l
strength, rise higher and higher in the scale o f spiritual
progress. Its want is the degradation o f the soul alone.
Those who do not love God have an
opposite course from us and are objects
o f pity w ith all classes o f theists. God,
save them.
We were led to these remarks by
a desire to show that we are candid
exam iners o f the
in s titu tio n of
Jagannath w ithout
that hatred to the
idolatrous (who are
not prepared to
understand the
p h ilo s o p h y of
Purushottam
T a ttva ) w h ich is
perceivable in the
short sighted and
rash reformers o f
our country. The
system of
Jagannath is
viewed in two d if­
ferent ways. The
superstitious and
the ignorant take it
as a system o f idolatry by worshipping
the idols in the temple as God Almighty
appearing in the shape o f a carved wood
for the salvation o f the Urias. But the
Saragrahi Vaishnavas find the idols as
emblems o f some eternal truth which
has been explained in the Vedanta Sutras
o f Vyasa. W ith in the temples in which
are to be found the idols o f Bim ala,
Shiva, Ganesha and Surya, the big, tow­
ering temple o f Jagannath stands in the
middle o f the compound. Those who
have examined the system o f H in d u
Theology w ith a philosophic eye, are
well aware that there are five different
forms o f faith comprised therein. The
first form o f faith is Shaktaism or the
worship o f nature as God. The second is
the worship o f Surya or the sun which is
identified with heat; the only active ele­
ment in lifeless matter. The third teaches
one to worship the S pirit in its most
unsatisfactory form o f development in
the lower animals. In this form, the ele­
phant-man or Ganesha is the object of
worship. Man is the object o f worship in
the fourth stage o f Hinduism. The soul,
well developed as it is in the man, is
w orshipped in Shiva in w hom the
human souls is said to be observed after
salvation. In the fifth stage alone, the
Infinite God distinct from the human
soul, is perceived and worshipped. Here
commences Vaishnavism. In these five
stages are shown the whole history o f
Hindu Theology, nay, the whole history
o f Theology in general. A ll sorts o f
creeds that have come to existence since
the creation o f man, are included in
these five stages. Name any system o f
faith that man has discovered and we
will find no difficulty in classing it with
any one o f the five, viz. M aterialism ,
Elementalism, Fetishism, M an worship
and God worship.
This is summing up o f all sys­
tems o f faith philosophically and not
instructing people to believe in any one
o f them except the last. The visitor o f
the temple o f Jagannath will find a simi­
lar display o f these systems in their prop­
er places. Consequently we find the tem­
ple o f Jagannath in the middle o f the
compound, and our remarks w ill now
relate to Jagannath exclusively.
e have several times entered
W the shrine o f Jagannath, and,
approaching the sandal bolts,
have observed in the middle room an
elevated seat on which stand four differ­
ent forms viz. Jagannath, Balaram,
Subhadra and Sudarsana. According to
the Vedanta, God is without a second,
but He has infinite energies and attrib­
utes which are not fully known to man.
But then man perceives only three ener­
gies in God, because he has no other
corresponding sides to understand the
other powers. From one o f the energies
proceeds matter in all its different forms
and properties and this energy is styled
Maya Shakti o f God. From the second
energy proceeds all spiritual creation, in
all its relations and phases. This power is
entitled the Jiva Shakti o f God. T he
th ird energy per­
ceivable by man is
the energy o f W ill
w h ic h is called
C h it Shakti. God
moving in creation
is what is meant
by this in fin ite
energy. Jagannath
is the emblem of
God having no
o th e r form than
the eyes and the
hands. They mean
to show that God
sees and knows
and creates.
Balarama is the
source o f Jiva
S h a kti o f God;
Subhadra, the M aya S hakti, and
Sudarsana is the energy o f W ill. We can­
not form any idea o f God separated
from the ideas o f these energies and
hence it is worship o f Jagannath that
depends upon the collection o f these
four forms on the same platform. Here
we see God analyzed in the shape of
forms for the sake o f those who want to
conceive o f Him . It is the same thing to
see Jagannath as to study the Vedanta in
all its branches. The temple and its insti­
tution appear to me to be a book for
those who can read it, to the foolish the
institution is certainly useless except as a
means o f reminding them o f the Deity
who created the world.
There is one more thing in the
temple which explains the philosophical
superiority o f Jagannath over all other
H in d u in s titu tio n s . W e mean the
Mahaprasad system. Rice dedicated to
Jagannath is sold in the Bazaar to all pil­
grims. Brahm ins and the Khettries,
Vaishnavas and the Shaktas, the Sanyasis
and the Grihastas, all accept it without
any hesitation whatever. Brahminical
aristocracy has no rule in the temple.
This shows that when people get wise,
they need not obey the foolish dictates
o f the B rahm ins w h ich are m ainly
intended for those who are unable to
chalk out ways for themselves. W hen
man admits the superiority o f Love to
God to all other systems o f rule and
ethics, he is not bound to work accord­
ing to the Shastras intended for lower
order o f men. The common bonds o f
the inferior Dharma Shastras o f Manu
and Jagnyabalkya have no influence on
the free Vaishnavas who are God’s own
soldiers in the crusade against evil. The
system o f M ahaprasada is n o t o n ly
emblematic o f the superior life o f the
Vaishnavas, but it is a part o f worship
w h ich o rd in a ry theists cannot fu lly
understand. The ordinary men are too
much inclined to preserve the superiori­
ty o f Reason over the intuitive feelings
o f man to the God o f Love. We must
now proceed to show w ith healthy argu­
ments that our intuitive feelings want us
to offer everything we eat to
the God o f our heart.
We cannot express the joy we often felt when we
e m ust firs t took the holy Mahaprasada in the temple! The
W examine the
arguments o f the
antagonist. The Rationalist
holiness we attach to it is its sweetness, and often
we pray that all men may enjoy it
holds that God is in fin ite
and w ith o u t wants, and
consequently it is foolish to offer eata­
bles to such a Being. I t is sacrilege to
offer created things to the creator and
thereby to degrade the D ivin ity o f God
in to hum anity. These are reasonable
arguments indeed, and one who has
heard them w ill be certainly inclined to
declare to others “down w ith the
Mahaprasada.” These conclusions, how­
ever reasonable, are dry and destructive.
They tend to separate us from all con­
nections w ith God in the form o f wor­
ship. When you say, that the In fin ite
wants nothing you forbid all contempla­
tion and prayer. The Infin ite does not
want your grateful expression or, in
other words, flattery. U tter a word to
the Unconditioned and you are sure to
degrade H im into a conditioned Being.
H ym ns, prayers and sermons are all
over. Shut the tem ple door and the
church gate, because our Rationalist has
advised you to do so. Believe a creating
principle and you have done your duty.
O h. W hat a shame. W hat a dreadful
fall. Theists, beware o f these degrading
principles.
Now the Rationalist appears in
another shape and admits prayers, ser­
mons, psalms and church goings, saying
that these things are wanted fo r the
improvement o f the soul, but God does
not want them at all. We are glad that
the Rationalist has come towards us and
w ill make further approaches in course
o f time. Yes, the progressive Rationalist
has admitted a very broad principle in
Theology, i.e. whatever we do towards
God is for our own benefit and not for
the benefit o f God, who is not in want
o f any such thing. But the Rationalist is
a Rationalist still and w ill continue to be
so, as long as he w ill seek self interest.
W e kn o w fo r certain that R e lig io n
promises to give eternal felicity to man
and it is impossible to conceive o f any
Religion which has not at its bottom
self-interest. This view, however, smells
o f Utilitarianism and can never claim to
be Theistic. We must love God for God’s
sake however unreasonable our action
may be. O ur love must be without any
object whatever that concerns ourselves.
This love must be a natural emotion to
the Deity as our Lover without inference
or experience. Salvation, dear as it is,
should not be the object o f this love;
what then about other shapes o f felicity?
“ Love to G o d ” is its ow n reward.
Salvation as a concomitant consequence,
must be a hand-maid o f Love, but we
must not look on it as its main object. I f
the Rationalist be prepared to believe
this, he becomes a T h e ist o f the
Vaishnava class; but the mere assuming
o f the name is o f no consequence.
Though we are fu lly aware that the
unconditioned has no conditions what­
ever, yet our holy and sweet principle o f
Love takes a quite different view o f the
matter. Reason says one thing but love
prescribes its contrary. Reason tells me
that God has no sorrow, but the Love
sees God in tears for those o f His sons
that are misled to evil. Reason tells me
that the strict laws o f God reward and
punish me in a cold manner but Love
reveals that God slackens His laws to the
Repentant and loving Soul. Reason tells
me that with all his improvements, man
w ill never touch the absolute God; but
Love preaches that on the conversion o f
the soul into a state o f spiritual woman­
hood, God, unconditioned as He is,
accepts an eternal marriage w ith the
conditioned soul o f man. Reason tells
me that God is in in fin ite space and
time, but Love describes that the all
beautiful God is sitting before us like a
respected relative and enjoying all the
pleasures o f society. As a father in his
amusements w ith his young children,
God is spreading all sorts o f delicious
food all over the earth and expecting
that H is sons would gather them for
their own benefit; but the loving chil­
dren out o f their holy and unmixed love,
gather all the scattered blessings and,
without the exercise o f reason in conse­
quence o f a strong feeling o f love, offer
all the blessings to the father whom they
love more than their lives. The Father
again, in reply to their kind feelings,
gives back the blessings to the children
and tells them these kindlier words. “ Oh
M y children. These are blessings intend­
ed for thee. Out o f your natural love you
bring them to me for my enjoyment;
but I have naturally no wants to supply.
But then I have accepted that part o f
your offering which corresponds w ith
me viz. your unmixed love and disinter­
ested affections for w hich alone I am
exceedingly anxious. Take back these
sweet things and enjoy them .” T h is
process o f disinterested love, which dry
reason can never break, sanctifies the
food we take, and leaves us to harmless
enjoyment for all the days o f our natural
life. This is a system o f sincere worship
which Theists o f a higher class alone can
act upon. We can not express the joy we
o fte n fe lt when we too k the h o ly
Mahaprasada in the temple! The h o li­
ness we attach to it is its sweetness, and
often we pray that all men may enjoy it.
 T o the Saragrahi Vaishnava, the
temple has such th rillin g charms w hich
the ordinary Rationalist can never under­
s ta n d . W e d o n o t m ean to say th a t
Reason is a foolish principle. O n the con­
trary we do n o t fin d better admirers o f
Reason than our humble selves. W e hold
that m a n s' superiority amongst all creat­
ed beings consists in man’s possessing the
noble g ift o f Reason. W h a t we m aintain
is this, th a t independent o f th is noble
p rin cip le there is another higher g ift in
m an w h ich goes by the name o f Love.
Reason helps Love to m aintain its proper
bounds in the Spiritual w orld. Love often
tends to degrade itse lf by exercising its
functions on objects other than G od and
converts itself into lust fo r wom an, wine,
meat and gold. Here Reason advises her
to rise higher till she reaches her proper
sphere above. T h u s we fin d th a t th e
object o f Reason is to help Love and not
to create it. Reason m ay be p ro p e rly
To the Saragrahi Vaishnava, the temple has such
thrilling charms which the ordinary Rationalist can
never understand
styled as the servant o f Love and m ust
always be subject to her in all her hopes,
a s p ira tio n s and h o ly w o rk . The
R a tio n a lis t o n the c o n tra ry considers
Reason as all in all. This is a degradation
o f hum anity. T he progressive Rationalist,
on the other hand, believes in the p rin c i­
ple o f love, b u t attempts to make her the
m aidservant o f Reason. T his is another
error. H e makes spiritual love sometimes
a prisoner in the Jails o f Reason. Love
wants to soar on her spiritual wings to a
realm where the Jailor (Reason) cannot
go and the la tte r is sure to tie up her
wings fo r fear lest she goes to an unw or­
th y place. Love utters sounds o f a sp iritu ­
al c h a ra c te r p e c u lia r to h e rs e lf, b u t
Reason, having no previous experience o f
it, mistakes it fo r a disease and adm inis­
ters m edicines fo r her cure. T h u s it is
that the natural strength o f the Queen o f
o u r Soul is crippled by artificial adminis­
trations o f the d ry p rin cip le o f Reason
and she rests in us as i f a bird taken in a
cage. O h . W h a t a havoc d o th Reason
c o m m it b y abuse o f h is p o w e r. O h .
Shame to the Rationalist. G od, help th e
man. Theists take care o f those amongst
you who m ix w ith you o nly by assuming
th e n am e o f T h e is t b u t are in fa c t
Rationalists o f a very d ry character. T hey
are d iv is ib le in to tw o classes viz. the
designing and the dupe. T he designing
T heist is he w ho is in fact a Rationalist
b u t by assuming the name o f a T h e ist
wants to degrade the sincere by his bad
influence. H e that calls h im self a Theist
in o rd e r to get r id o f th e nam e o f a
Rationalist b u t s till holds Love in subjec­
tio n to Reason is a dupe because he is
unable to fin d o u t his ow n position. T he
sincere T heist should however take care
o f both o f them and preserve the sover­
eignty o f Love over Reason and his com­
rades. W e w ill n ow show th a t others,
w ho have allowed their Love to degrade
w ith o u t ca ring fo r the p ro p e r in s tru c ­
tions o f Reason on the other hand, have
gone d ow n to a gross idolatry and super­
s titio n . T h e T e m p le o f J a ga nn ath is
under the superintendence o f the local
R ajah o f P u ri w h o m the fo o lis h m en
w orship as an incarnation o f the D eity.
U n d e r his superintendence there are 36
classes o f servants at the temple who are
styled the Chhatrisha Niyoga. There are
six hundred families o f Suars (Soopakars)
o r cooks in the temple. I t is needless here
to enumerate all these classes o f servants.
Several Pandas, P a riharis, Pashupals and
Suars send their servants to different parts
o f In d ia to collect pilgrim s to the temple.
These agents o r Gomasthas (as they are
called) v is it the gentlemen o f the places
th e y go to and g ive some sw eetm eat
M a h a p ra s a d p ro p o s in g th a t th e y are
ready to take pilgrim s to Puri under th eir
care. By this means, the agents collect a
large n um be r o f souls (am ongst w hom
the greatest n u m b e r are w om en o f an
advanced age) and march o n w ith the
sound o f H a rib o l. W e m ust a dm it that
the Pandas and their Gomasthas (gener­
ally o f the Kayestha class) take a great deal
o f trouble fo r the sake o f th eir pilgrim s
and sometimes advance money fo r th eir
expenses on the road. The Bengal Ja ttris
generally v is it P u ri at the Snana J a ttra
and the Ratha Ja ttra festivals b ut the up­
co un try men come to Puri at all times in
the year. W h e n the pilgrim s arrive at Puri
the Panda, whose agent b ro ug ht them ,
visits them w ith some Mahaprasada near
the N arendra T a n k at the approach o f
the tow n. T he pilgrim s see Jagannath on
the very day that they arrive and perform
the cerem ony o f Pancha T irth a on the
fo llo w in g day o r the day after that. By
Pancha T irth a is m eant the business o f
bathing in the Tanks o f M arkandeya and
Indradyoom na and in the sea and, after
perform ing Sradha in those three places,
seeing th e em blem s o f Jagannath and
Balarama in the tem ple. T h e Panda all
along keeps silent, b ut on the last day he
is sure to take everything that the p ilg rim
has and sometimes to take a bond fo r an
am o un t according to the circumstances
o f the p ilg rim . T h a t day the Panda w ith
all his usual g ravity takes the p ilg rim to
an elevated ro o f in the northern part o f
the tem ple called K o ili V a iko o n th a and
th e re u tte rs h is
M ahabakya and Shufala
in order to persuade the
p ilg rim to pay whatever
he o r she has w ith h im
o r her. Thus the p ilg rim
re tu rn s to h is n a tiv e
place w ith o u t a nything
b u t a p a ta ra o f sweetmeat Mahaprasada
and a few slips o f Jagannath’s likeness in
rude paintings!
In fact the temple servants, one,
a n d a ll, are n o t a b it b e tte r th a n
B ra h m in ic a l priests w ho deal w ith the
next w o rld as a means o f gain. T hey are
rude in the extreme and quite ignorant o f
H in d u Theology. T hey never attem pt to
teach o r learn, b u t often rove in quest o f
money. M o s t o f them are fond o f d rin k ­
in g a liq u o r prepared fro m Bhang and
hence they have (nearly a ll o f them ) a
swelling o f th e ir legs sometimes com ing
up to the stage o f the disease called ele­
phantiasis. W ith all their gains, the tem­
p le s e rv a n ts can n e v e r s to re w e a lth
because they are very careless. Besides the
temple they generally keep a place called
an A khra where they meet together fo r
the purpose o f d rin k in g Bhang and seeing
the dance o f young boys clad in the dress
o f females! W e w ill tr y to give you an
account o f all the Akhras in P uri in m y
next paper, and as this paper has become
m uch longer than we at firs t intended,
we take leave o f you fo r the present.
 The A dvent o f Śrī Śrī G aurasundar
fro m the Ś rī C haitanya-C haritāmṛta o f Ś rīla K ṛṣṇadās K a v irā j Goswām ī
translated fro m the o rig in a l Bengali by
Śrīpād B hakti Ā nanda Sāgar M ahārāj
he F u ll M o o n Ś rī
T
G a u ra H a ri g ra ­
c io u s ly rose on the
Eastern H o riz o n th a t is the
blessed place o f Nadia. W ith
the rising o f that F u ll M o o n ,
all the g lo om o f the sins o f
the w o rld was dispelled, and
w ith the tu m u ltu o u s v ib ra ­
tio n o f ‘ H a r i ’ , th e H o ly
Name o f the Lord, the three
worlds became ecstatic.
J u s t th e n Ś rī A d v a ita
Rāya in his hom e su ddenly
arose and danced w it h jo y.
H e to o k Ś rī H a rid ā s w it h
him , and they sang fro m the ir hearts
the H o ly Name. W h y they danced,
no one understood.
W ith great d e lig h t they saw the
L u n a r eclipse and came q u ic k ly to
the bank and h appily bathed in the
Ganges. T a k in g this chance, on the
p re te x t o f the L u n a r e c lip s e they
gave m any g ifts to the Brāhm aṇas
sim ply by the ir strength o f m ind.
Śrī Haridās was astounded to see
the ecstatic state o f the universe, and
he m ade m a n y h in ts to A d v a ita
Prabhu, “ There is some inner hidden
meaning to this ‘play’ o f yours, and
the indescribable jo y that awakens in
my heart.”
T he hearts o f Śrī Ā c h ā r y aratna
and Ś rī Ś rīn iv ā s w ere fille d w ith
ecstasy as they went to bathe in the
h o ly w aters of th e G anges.
O v e rw h e lm e d w it h jo y , th e y to o
m entally offered many gifts through
the outpouring o f their hearts.
In the same way, at this very tim e
in v a rio u s places and c o u n trie s
throughout the w orld, all the surren­
dered devotees felt the great power o f
D iv in e Love in th e ir hearts, and
overwhelmed in ecstasy they chanted
the L o rd ’s Name, danced, and gave
benedictine gifts through the joy o f
their pure hearts.
T he Brāhmaṇas, the true devo­
tees, the good wives— all fille d new
pots and plates w ith varieties o f aus­
picious offerings and brought these
presentations. They were so happy to
see the beautiful child w ith His lustre
o f ra w g o ld , and a ll gave t h e ir
best blessings.
S āvitrī, G au rī, Saraswatī,
Śachī, Rambhā, A ru n d h a tī —
all the wives and ladies o f the
heavenly plane came down in
the guise o f Brāhm aṇa ladies.
B ringing all varieties o f auspi­
cious offerings they too came
to have th e d arśan a o f (to
behold) the D ivin e C hild.
I n th e s k y th e Devas,
S iddhas, G an d ha rvva s and
Chāraṇas sang the Glories o f
th e L o r d a n d danced in a
g ra nd festival o f m usic and
so ng ; and a ll th e dancers,
m u s ic ia n s and m in s tre ls o f Ś rī
N a b ad w ip came and danced in the
ecstasy o f Love.
W h o was c o m in g , w h o was
going, w h a t were they singing and
how they danced! W h o could under­
stand the great G lo ry o f that raptur­
ous festival? Al l the g rie f and sorrow
o f the w o rld was destroyed as the
hearts o f all bloomed in ecstasy. And
Śrī Jagannāth M iś ra ’s jo y knew no
bounds.
Ś rī Ā c h ā ry y a ra tn a and Śrī
Śrīnivās met Śrī Jagannāth Miśra and
re m in d e d h im of th e p ro p e r
Scriptural duties and functions to be
perform ed for the b irth o f the child;
and Ś rī M iś r a th e n m ade m any,
many offerings o f gifts and presenta­
tions as appropriate.
 A ll th e p re s e n ta tio n s he had
received as well as articles already in
the house — he g ifte d his w ealth to
the Brāhm aṇas. In fact he gave his
respect to all, d istrib u tin g his wealth
to the dancers, singers, minstrels and
the poor.
W ith great jo y Ś rīm a tī M ā lin ī,
the good w ife o f Ś rī Śrīvās, along
w ith the good w ife o f Śrī Āchāryya­
ratna, offered w o rsh ip to the baby
w it h v e r m illio n , tu r m e r ic , o il,
parched rice, plantain and many vari­
eties o f fruits.
A n d ta k in g th e o rd e r o f Ś rī
A d v a ita Ā c h ā ry y a , Ś r īm a tī S ītā
Ṭ h ā k u rā ṇ ī, w h o is revered by the
entire universe as his venerable con­
sort, w ent to see th a t crest-jewel o f
b a b ie s, b r in g in g w it h h e r m a n y
offerings.
She b ro u g h t gold earrings, toe­
rings made o f silver coins, and gold
a rm le ts a n d b ra c e le ts ; g le a m in g
conchshell ornaments fo r each arm,
tw is te d s ilv e r a n k le ts , and m a n y
necklaces o f gold coins;
tig e r-n a ils s tu d d e d w ith g o ld ,
silken cord to adorn the w aist and
lo in s , and every type o f o rn a m e n t
im aginable fo r the hands and feet;
beautiful coloured silken clo th (sā ṙīs) ,
shirts and chādars o f b ea u tifu l b or­
dered silken cloth; and a great trea­
sure o f gold and silver coins;
th e a u s p ic io u s grass D ū rv v ā ,
paddy, Gorochanā (scent), turm eric,
K u ṁku m , sandl e— the most venera­
ble c o n so rt o f Ś rī A d v a ita P rabhu
fille d new plates and containers w ith
all such pure and a uspicious sub­
stances. She m o u n te d h e r v e ile d
p a la n q u in and was b ro u g h t to the
hom e o f Ś rīm a tī Śachī D e vī, along
w ith her maids and attendants. She
b ro u g h t all the clothes and o rn a ­
ments in a great basket.
She also b ro u g h t a b o u n ty o f
foods and delightful gifts. Thus the
venerable Ṭ h ā k u rā ṇ ī arrived at the
house o f Śrīm atī Śachī Devī. A nd she
beheld the P erfe ct B ea u ty o f the
c h ild — H e was d ir e c tly K ṛṣ ṇ a
H im s e lf o f G okula, the only d iffe r­
ence being in H is colour.
H is every lim b was p e rfe c tly
formed like an image o f gold, and all
auspicious signs appeared in every
p a rt o f his body. She was u tte rly
charmed by the D ivine Effulgence o f
the baby boy and her heart m elted
w ith parental affection for H im .
She offered Dūrvvā and paddy to
H is head, giving her blessings, “ M ay
b o th b ro th e rs (th e L o rd and
Viśvarūpa) live long.” A nd to arrest
any fear o f witches and evil spirits
she dubbed H im ‘N im ā i’ .
A nd also on the day o f th e m o th ­
er and son’ s b a th in g Ś rīm a tī Sītā
Ṭhākurāṇī came and offered clothing
and o rn a m e n ts in h o n o u r o f Ś rī
Jagannāth M iśra and his son. A fte r
h ap p ily accepting the veneration o f
Śrīm atī Śacī D evī and Śrī Jagannāth
M iś r a , Ś rīm a tī S ītā Ṭ h ā k u r ā ṇ ī
returned to her home.
Such it was th a t Ś rīm a tī Śachi
and Śrī Jagannāth M iśra had the fu l­
fillm e n t o f their every aspiration by
getting the L o rd o f Lakṣm ī as the ir
son. T h e ir house was fille d w ith
w e a lth and ric e -p a d d y , and th e
respect o f the people was always
th e irs fo r the ta k in g . D a y by day
their jo y grew and grew.
Ś rī M iś ra was a h u m b le
Vaiṣṇava— peaceful, chaste, pure and
self-controlled. N o trace o f any wish
fo r a life o f w ealth o r in d ulg e nce
to u c h e d his heart. S till, so m uch
w ealth came spontaneously by the
D ivine power o f his son; and he gave
th a t all to the B rāhm aṇas fo r the
T ra n s c e n d e n ta l P leasure o f the
Supreme Lord Viṣṇu.
J o y fu lly Ś rī N īlā m b a ra
C h a k ra v a rttī d re w up the bab y’ s
horoscope. T hen he secretly said to
Śrī Jagannāth M iśra , “ I see tha t in
H is b o d y a nd a c c o rd in g to the
m o m e n t o f H is b irth there are the
signs o f a M ahāpuruṣa, a Supreme
P ersonality; y o u r c h ild , it is clear,
w ill deliver the whole universe.”
In this way the L ord so gracious­
ly made H is A dvent in the home of
M o th e r Śachī. A n d the fortun a te
souls w h o f a it h f u lly hear o f t h i s
D ivin e A dvent — we must know that
the M e rc ifu l Śrī Gaura Prabhu w ill
surely bestow H is Grace upon them
and they w ill obtain the Service of
H is Lotus Feet.
A nd whoever got this b irth o f a
h u m a n , y e t does n o t hear o f t h e
T ra n s c e n d e n ta l G lo rie s of
Ś rī G aura — such persons’ lives are
passed in vain. Rejecting the ocean of
nectar they d rin k filth from the p its
o f m undanity. Alas! W h y d id n ’t they
die as soon as they were born?
A nd so, I, Kṛṣṇadās, take on my
head th e L o tu s Feet of Śrī
C h a ita n y a d e v , Ś rī N ity ā n a n d a
Prabhu, Ā chā ryya Advaitachandra
Śrī Svarūpa and Śrī Raghunāth Dās
know ing the Service o f their Feet as
the treasure o f m y life, I have sung
this song o f the A dvent Pastimes of
o ur Lord Śrī Śrī Gaurasundar.
Ś rī C haitanya-C haritām ṛta
Ā d i līlā , Ch. 13 verses 98 to 124.
Śrī Śrī Gaura-Pūrṇimā,
27th M arch, 1994
 isto rica lly there

H are fo u r

m e d i e v a l
trin e is also know n as
Svābhāvika-bhedābheda,
or natural oneness and
difference. N im b ā rk a ’s
schools, or Sampradāyas
special contribution was
o f Vaiṣṇava thought, said
his em phasis on the
to have descended from
necessity to reconcile
four deities. The Rudra
both oneness and differ­
Sampradāya is acknowl­
ence, and he successfully
edged as being founded
harm onized the appar­
by Mahādev, Lord Śiva; ently contradictory state­
the Sanaka or H a ṁ sa ments o f the Śruti, which
Sampradāya by the Śr ī Madhva Ś rī R ām ānuja sometimes support one­
C h a tu ḥ san or the fo u r
ness and sometimes d if­
Kum āras, d iv in e boy-
ference. In this respect Nimbārka’s philoso­
sages; the Śrī Sampradāya by Śrī Lakṣmidevī, phy is perhaps closest to th a t o f M ahā­
the D ivine C onsort o f Nārāyaṇ; and the prabhu, but N im bārka tried to prove the
Brahm a-Sam pradāya by fo u r headed relation between oneness and difference by
Brahmā, the first living being and father o f citing examples o f the part and the whole, or
the gods. o f cause and effect. Although these examples
Each o f the four schools establishes show a sim ultaneous
the u ltim a te re a lity — coexistence o f oneness
G o d — as the Suprem e and difference, as in the
Person Śrī Viṣṇu, and pre­ sun and its rays (the rays
scribes the m eth od s o f Śrī
being one w ith the sun as
practice for awakening our Chaitanya
Mahāprabhu its parts, b ut simultane­
eternal relationship w ith ously different from the
H im through the science sun), it does not explain
o f B h a k ti or D e v o tio n . the re la tio n s h ip its e lf
Accordingly each school is especially when applied
identified w ith its foremost to the re la tio n s h ip o f
Ā chāryya and the doctrine G o d and the w o rld or
taught by them. Each o f God and the jīv a and it
Śrī Viṣṇuswāmī Śrī Nimbārka
the fo ur Ā c h ā ry yas made c e rta in ly
significant does n o t
c o n trib u ­
tio ns to
The F ifth Vaiṣṇava Sampradāya prove it
to be so.
the w o rld This rela­
o f theistic by D evāśis D ā sād hikārī tio n s h ip
th o u g h t by its very
and there­ natu re is
by success­ false, V iṣṇusw āmī says that the w o rld is A ch in tya (in con ce iva ble ), and although
fu lly defeated the erroneous doctrine o f Brahma, w ith the qualities o f consciousness Nimbārka implies this, it is not explicit in
K e va lā d va ita vā d p ro p o u n d e d by Śrī (chit), and blissfulness (ānanda) obscured. his d o c trin e . T h e d o c trin e o f Śrīm an
Śaṅkarāchāryya. Sim ilarly, he describes the jīv a as Brahma Mahāprabhu, on the other hand, holds this
T h e Ā chāryya o f the R udra w ith the quality o f blissfulness obscured. principle o f Achintya as its very foundation.
Sampradāya is Śrī Viṣṇuswām ī and his phi­ And although he identifies the jīv a purely as This Achintya should not be confused with
losophy is known as Śuddhādvaita or pure being one w ith God, he says that identity is the inconceivability as spoken o f by Śaṅkara
monism. A t first glance it may appear that like that o f the part w ith the whole. So (anirvacanīya) as that w hich is indescrib­
the doctrine o f Viṣṇusw ām ī is m uch the although this implies, a oneness-in-differ­ able— the Scriptures are fu ll o f descriptions
same as Śaṅkara’s as both state that nothing ence, this is not openly adopted in the doc­ o f the Spiritual Reality. Neither should it be
exists except Brahma. There are however, trine o f Viṣṇuswām ī . It is also worth men­ thought o f as a convenient way o f explaining
major differences in their thought. Śaṅkara tioning that Śrīpād Śrīdhar Swāmī, who was away “ grey areas” o f Vaiṣṇava ideology,
describes Brahma as devoid o f any qualities, recognised by Mahāprabhu, as the original ra th e r, A c h in ty a is u n d e rs to o d in the
variegatedness or m ovem ent, a plane o f commentator o f Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, was Chaitanya school as the positive quality
undifferentiated, homogenous conscious­ also a member o f the Rudra Sampradāya. which exists in the Supreme Lord signifying
ness, whereas V iṣṇ usw ām ī describes the Śrī N im b ā rk ā c h ā ry y a is the the marriage o f opposites, the synthesis o f
Brahma as a Person embodying the essence Ā chāryya o f the Sanaka or H a ṁ sa contradictions w ithin the Absolute, leading
o f sat (existence), chit (consciousness), and Sampradāya, and his philosophy is known as to a higher and fuller unity. The concept of
ānanda (blissfulness). Viṣṇuswāmī sees the Dvaitādvaita or dualistic monism. Nimbārka A chintya is born o f respect and faith for
plain o f Brahma as a background fo r the emphasised three entities; the chit or con­ scriptural authority and revelation, which
progressive play o f the Absolute in all its rich scious living entities, the achit or the mun­ ignores the mundane law o f contradiction.
variety. The other significant difference is dane world, and Brahman or God. His doc­ R ām ānuja, p o ssib ly the most
that whereas Śaṅkara says that the world is
 famous o f all Vaiṣṇava Āchāryyas, is the Āchāryya
o f the Śrī Sampradāya. His Teaching is known
as Viśiṣṭādvaita or qualified monism. Rāmānuja
taught that Reality i s “ One” but made up o f
three distinct categories; chit (conscious living
beings), achit (the material world), and Īśvara
(God or V iṣṇu). These three principles are all
real and eternally distinct from one another, yet
together they form the One Reality, therefore
the doctrine is known as qualified monism.
Rāmānuja stated that although all three are
equally real, only Īśvara is independent, the jīva
and the world being fully dependent on Him. In
his commentary on Vedānta-Sūtra, Rāmānuja
admits that there can never be total oneness and
there can never be total difference between the
three and he advocates identity-in-difference
stressing the difference being that the jīv a is
always subordinate brahma and the Ī śvara is
always independent Parabrahma. Although
Rāmānuja accepts both oneness and difference,
he also cannot adequately explain the relation­
ship between both. The great Śrī
Yāmunāchāryya was also from the Śrī
Sampradāya and was substantially the Guru of
Rāmānuja. Many o f the devotional texts written
by Yāmunāchāryya are quoted in Ś rī Ś rī
Prapanna-jī vanāmṛtam by our own Gurudev Śrī
Śrī mad Bhakti Rakṣak Śrīdhar Dev-Goswāmī
Mahārāj.
Madhvāchāryya is the Āchāryya of the
Brahma-Sampradāya and he has expounded the
philosophy o f dualism o r D vaitavād or
Tattvavād as it is known. Madhva insists on five
absolute distinctions between God, the jīva, and
the mundane world. These are; 1) God and the
jiva are eterna lly different, 2) God and the mun­
dane world are eternally different, 3) each jiv a is
eternally different from any other jīva , 4) the
jīva and the mundane world are eternally differ­
ent, and 5) one mundane inanimate object and
another is different. These five differences are
real and beginningless. Madhva states that the
Spiritual Reality is Śrī Viṣṇu, who creates the
world which is eternally distinct from Him. He
also creates the jīvas who are His reflected coun­
terparts also eternally d istin ct from Him .
Although always different from Him, the world
and the jīvas are always fully dependent on Him.
History places Śrī Chaitanyadev in the
line o f Śrī Madhvāchāryya, by His acceptance of
Śrī Ī śvara Purī as His Spiritual Master. The
Sampradāya o f Śrī Chaitanya however, is pro­
foundly distinct from that o f Madhva.
Ī śvara Purī was the disciple o f Śrī
Mādhavendra Purī o f the Brahma-Mādhva-
Sampradāya. Mādhavendra Purī expressed
symptoms o f Madhura-rasa (relationship in con­
sorthood) and the Kṛṣṇa conception previously
not attributed to the Mādhva community and it
was this which paved the way for the develop­
ment o f Śrī Chaitanya’s doctrine. To be accept­
ed as an Āchāryya, even o f a new or different
conception, one must be accepted as belonging
to one o f the recognised Sampradāyas, and it was
for this reason that Mahāprabhu, Śrī
Chaitanyadev, accepted in itia tio n into the
Mādhva line. Madhva himself was initiated into
the Sampradāya o f Śaṅkarāchāryya and subse­
quently refuted Śaṅkara’s doctrine and estab­ Sampradāya. Therefore the Sampradāya o f Śrī
lished his own opposing school o f theism. It is Chaitanya Mahāprabhu cannot be considered as
evident from His own history that Mahāprabhu a branch o f any other Sampradāya.
regarded His doctrine as different from that o f H is to ric a lly however, it was Śrī
Madhva. In his conversation with the Āchāryya Baladev Vidyābhūsaṇ who established the
o f the M ādhva-Sampradāya as recorded in Gauḍ īya Sampradāya as a recognised school
Chaitanya-charitamṛta (Madhya 9. 276-277) we independent o f the Mādhva line. During the
find; time of Śrī Viśvanāth Chakravartī Ṭhākur a con­
troversy arose surrounding the worship o f Śrī
prabhu kahe,— karmmī, jñānī,— dui bhakti-hīna Govindajī, the Deities o f Śrīla Rūpa Goswāmī,
tomāra sampradāye dekhi sei dui cihna being worshipped in Jaipur. The Gauḍ īya
sabe, eka guṇa dekhi tomāra sampradāye Vaiṣṇavas, who were in charge o f the temple
satya-vigraha k a ri' īśvare karaha niścaye under the auspices o f the Mahārāj o f Jaipur,
were giving precedence to Govindajī over the
Mahāprabhu said, “ Both the elevationist and the worship of Śrī Nārāyaṇ, and this was causing a
dry philosopher are known to be against pure great dispute with the Vaiṣṇavas o f the other
devotion, and I see the symptoms o f both in Sampradāyas who regarded Nārāyaṇ as holding
your Sampradāya. In fact the only redeeming the superior position. The Mahārāj o f Jaipur
quality I see in your Sampradāya is that you called a conference o f pandits to resolve the dis­
accept the transcendental form o f the Lord as pute. When news reached Vṛndāvan, Śrīla
Truth.” By using the expression tomāra sam­ Viśvanāth C hakravartī sent Baladev
pradāye (your Sampradāya) twice, Mahāprabhu Vidyābhūsaṇ to represent the Gauḍīya school.
has deliberately separated Himself from the Before Baladev was allowed to speak he was
Mādhva school. required to prove that the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavas
In principles o f doctrine Mahāprabhu were a recognised Vaiṣṇava community autho­
differed with Madhva on many points. Madhva rised to take part in the conference. Baladev
asserted that the ultimate object o f worship is Śrī showed the authority o f the Gauḍīya school by
Nārāyaṇ o f Vaikunṭha, while Mahāprabhu has establishing its links w ith the M ādhva-
proven that Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the ultimate, Nārāyaṇ Sampradāya and was allowed to speak in the
being only a partial manifestation o f Kṛṣṇa. assembly. It soon became apparent during the
According to Madhva, devotion must always be discussion that the doctrine o f the Gauḍīya
in accordance with Varṇāśram Dharmma (Vedic Vaiṣṇavas was quite d istin ct from that o f
Socio-religious system) whereas Mahāprabhu Madhva and the other three Vaiṣṇava schools.
shows that devotion is above Varṇāśram and The conference could not therefore, accept the
finds its highest expression crossing scriptural Gauḍīya School as representing the Mādhva
injunction in the free spontaneity o f Love. Śrī community and historical precedent required
Chaitanya shows that the highest devotees o f that to be recognised as an independent school it
Godhead are the Braja-Gopīs who are His must be supported by an independent commen­
Swarūp-śakti in their most selfless and pure tary on Brahmasūtra, so by the order o f Śrī
expression. Madhva on the other hand is unable Govindajī, Baladev Vidyābhūsaṇ wrote his com­
to accommodate the Gopī-līlā o f Śrī Kṛṣṇa and mentary, Govinda-bhāṣya. The assembly
describes them as Apsaraḥ-strī or heavenly maid­ applauded Baladev's work as the true commen­
ens who worship Kṛṣṇa for the satisfaction of tary on Brahmasūtra and thus the Gauḍīya
th eir own desires. Madhva also considers Sampradāya o f Śrī Chaitanya Mahāprabhu was
Brahmā, the founder o f the Sampradāya, to be recognised by the Vaiṣṇava communities as the
the highest devotee and he is therefore also fifth Vaiṣṇava Sampradāya.
unable to accommodate that Brahmā was illu­ W ith in four hundred years o f the
sioned by Kṛṣṇa when he stole the Calves and appearance o f Śrī Chaitanyadev, His
Cowherd boys. Sampradāya became almost obscured, the gener­
The school o f Śrī Chaitanyadev in al people thinking that the sahajiyā cults with
effect, takes the essential truths o f all o f the four their immoral behavior, thought and degraded
Vaiṣṇava schools and synthesizes them and at imitation of Kṛṣṇa’s Līlā, were the followers of
the same time develops them to their natural Śrīman Mahāprabhu, mainly due to their prac­
conclusion— Achintya-bhedābheda, the philoso­ tice o f uttering the Names o f Chaitanya and
phy o f inconceivable simultaneous oneness and Nitāi. But nothing could be further from the
difference. Mahāprabhu also shows the position truth, and it was only when the great Ṭhākur
o f Śrī Kṛṣṇa as the Avatārī or the Original source Bhaktivinode appeared during the second half of
o f all Avatārs including Śrī Nārāyaṇ, and refutes the nineteenth century that the genuine pur­
the commonly accepted misconception that ports of the life and teachings o f Śrī Chaitanya
Kṛṣṇa is the Avatār o f Viṣṇu. He has developed again came to light. It was Śrīla Bhaktivinoda
the understanding o f Rasa-tattva to its natural Ṭhākur who began the propogation o f the
culmination showing the M ādhuryya-līlā o f Gauḍ īya teachings in the English speaking
Kṛṣṇa to be the highest spiritual attainment. World. His mission was continued and expand­
Śrīman Mahāprabhu has in fact established the ed by his son, the renowned disciple o f Śrīla
fifth Vaiṣṇava Sampradāya which is actually the Gaura Kishora das Babaji, Śrī Śrīla
Original Sampradāya. As Śrīman Mahāprabhu is Bhaktisiddhānta Saraswatī Ṭhākur Prabhupād,
Himself the Original Personality o f Godhead who founded the Gauḍīya Math, the true voice
and all Avatārs are included in Him, similarly all o f the Gauḍīya Sampradāya. Amongst the stal­
Sampradāyas must be included in His wart followers o f Śrīla Saraswatī Ṭhākur,
 emerged the empowered World preacher o f Śrī
Chaitanya's Sampradāya, Śrī Śrīla A.C.
Bhaktivedānta Swāmī Mahārāj Prabhupād who
established the doctrine o f Śrīman Mahāprabhu all
over the globe converting followers from all races A ll Glory to the D iv in e Master
and creeds, thus proving that the worship o f Śrī
and the Supreme L ord
Kṛṣṇa is the Universal Religion o f all souls (jaiva
dharmma). Śr ī K ṛṣṇa Chaitanya
Unique amongst all the followers o f
Śrīla Saraswatī Ṭhākur, is Śrī Śrīla Bhakti Rakṣak f we take
Śrīdhar Dev-Goswāmī Mahārāj, the illustrious
founder o f the Śrī Chaitanya Sāraswat Math.
Hailed unanimously by all his Godbrothers as the
true successor-head o f the Gauḍīya Sampradāya,
acknowledged as the inspiration behind the preach­
I shelter
w ith o u r
fu ll unalloyed
ing o f Śrīla A.C. Bhaktivedānta Swāmī Mahārāj,
and recognised as śāstra-nipuṇa (scriptural genius) d e v o tio n to
by Śrīla Saraswatī Ṭhākur himself, Śrīla Śrīdhar
Mahārāj’s contribution to the Sampradāya o f Śrī
the lotus feet
Chaitanya remains unsurpassed. His commen­ o f Śrī K ṛṣṇa,
taries on the chatuḥ-ślokī o f Śrī mad Bhagavad-gītā
and Śrīla Rūpa Goswāmīpād’s Bhakti-rasāmṛta- th e n K ṛṣṇa
sindhu are remarkable in that they develop the m ust be m e rcifu l to us; and
thought o f Śrī Chaitanyadev to its fullest conclu­
sion. His Sanskrit composition Śrī Ś rī Prema­ that gives us some hope. It is
dhāma deva stotram must surely be Śrīman
Mahāprabhu manifest in the form o f poetry, and
up to the sweet w ill o f Kṛṣṇa,
Ś rī Ś rī Prapanna-jī vanāmṛtam has become as b u t in th is way we can get
essential to the lives o f the followers o f Śrī
Chaitanya as its subject matter, śaraṇāgati or some position and enter in to
unconditional surrender. Śrīla Śrīdhar Mahārāj’s
the Transcendental W orld.
commentary on the Brahma-gāyatrī mantra is a
revelation never before manifest in the theistic Śrīla Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev Goswāmī M ahārā j
world. No less important are his books in the
English language, beginning with “The Search for
Śrī Kṛṣṇa — Reality the Beautiful” , which have
opened a new world o f Kṛṣṇa consciousness for
devotees o f all ranks and from all quarters.
Today, the Gauḍ īya Sāraswata
Sampradāya is represented by Śrī Śrīla Bhakti Publications available from
Sundar Govinda-Dev Goswāmī Mahārāj, the per­ Śrī Chaitanya Sāraswat M aṭh
sonally chosen successor and foremost disciple o f
Śrīla Śrīdhar Mahārāj who continues to expand
the realm o f Gauḍīya thought and practice, the Search for Śrī Kṛṣṇa— Reality the Beautiful
World over. From the pre-historic words o f the Śrī Guru and His Grace
sages, the medieval teachings o f the ancient The Golden Volcano o f Divine Love
Sampradāyas, to the spiritual renaissance o f Śrī Srimad Bhagavad-gītā — The Hidden Treasure o f the Sweet Absolute
Chaitanyadev, and on to the modern day, the reli­
Loving Search for the Lost Servant
gion o f Vaiṣṇavism has never been more devel­
oped or more widely practiced. The Original Śrī Śrī Prapanna-jīvanāmṛtam — Positive and Progressive Immortality
Sampradāya, the school o f Divine Revelation Subjective Evolution — The Play o f the Sweet Absolute
established by the Supreme Lord Himself in His The Guardian o f Devotion
most magnanimous aspect, is poised to enter the Sermons o f the Guardian o f Devotion Vols I, II, III, IV
twenty-first century. While man attempts to move
Home Comfort — An Introduction to Inner Fulfilment
into outer space we shall remember the aphorism
from the Upaniṣads coined by our Divine Master Śrī Śrī Prema Dhāma Deva Stotram
Śrī Śrīla Śrīdhar Mahārāj, and be happy with our Śrī Brahma Saṁhitā — Quintessence o f Reality the Beautiful
inward journey back to home, back to God. The Divine Servitor
Dignity o f the Divine Servitor
“O you sons o f nectar, sons o f the nectarine ocean
Golden Reflections
sea; Please listen to me. You were born in nectar.
You were born to taste nectar. You must not allow Exclusive Guardianship — Concise Conclusions o f Devotional Life
yourself to be satisfied by anything but nectar. The Mahāmantra
Awake! Arise! And search for that nectar. Search The Bhāgavat
for Śrī Kṛṣṇa— Reality the Beautiful.” Śrī Chaitanya Mahāprabhu — His Life and Precepts
Śrī Gauḍiya Darśan — periodical — Nabadwī p
Śrī Vaiṣṇava Toṣaṇi — periodical — California
Śrī Kalyāṇa Kalpataru — periodical — Australia