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    SRILA BHAKITSIDDHANTASARASVATI

    THE ACARYA SUN, THE RAY OF VISNU, THEVAIKUNTH MAN THE SIMHA GURU

    r guru-vandan korithra caraa dhori

    rbhaktisiddhnta prabhupda

    ra yata ikgurusabe vcch-kalpa-taru

    kp kara ghucuka vida

    I offer obeisances unto my spiritual master, rlaBhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat Prabhupda and take hold of his lotusfeet. And, unto my various ik gurus who are all like desiretrees, I pray, "Please be merciful, and remove all my sorrows."{Magalcarana of rla Prabhupda's Gtra-gana, verse 1]nama o viu-pdya ka-prehya bh-

    talermate bhaktisiddhnta-sarasvatti nmine

    I offer my respectful obeisances unto His Divine GraceBhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat, who is very dear to Lord Ka,having taken shelter at His lotus feet.

    r-vrabhnav-dev-dayitya kpbdhayeka-sambandha-vijna-dyine prabhave

    nama

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    r-vrabhnav-dev-dayityaunto r Vrabhnav-dev-dayita dsa, the servant of the lover of rmat Rdhrn;kp-abdhayewho is an ocean of mercy; ka-sambandha(of) the relationship with Ka; vijna(of) the science;

    dyinewho is the deliverer; prabhaveunto the master;namaobeisances.

    I offer my respectful obeisances to rVrabhnav-dev-dayita dsa [another name ofrla Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat], who is favoredby rmat Rdhr and who is the ocean oftranscendental mercy and the deliverer of the

    science of Ka.In Radha-Govinda's eternal pastimes in Goloka Vrndavana, SrilaSarasvati Thakura serves as Nayana-mani manjari. His pushpasamadhis are at Radha-kunda and Radha Damodara.{Samadhis book}

    mdhuryojjvala-premhya-r-rpnuga-bhaktida

    r-gaura-karu-akti-vigrahya namo 'stute

    mdhuryaconjugal; ujjvalabrilliant; premalove; hyaenriched with; r-rpa-anugafollowing rla Rpa Gosvm;bhakti-dadelivering devotional service; r-gaura(of) LordCaitanya Mahprabhu; karu(of) the mercy; aktienergy;vigrahyaunto the personified; namaobeisances; astulet

    there be; teunto you.

    I offer my respectful obeisances unto you, the personifiedenergy of r Caitanya's mercy, who delivers devotionalservice which is enriched with conjugal love of Rdh and

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    Ka, coming exactly in the line of revelation of rlaRpa Gosvm.

    Follows the path of Rupa Gosvami Rupa manjari in sadhaka

    form thus he emphasizes the path of Rupa. His teaching basedupon this. Ray of Visnu.

    namas te gaura-v-r-mrtaye dna-trie

    rpnuga-viruddhpasiddhnta-dhvnta-hrie

    namaobeisances; teunto you; gaura-vteachings of LordCaitanya; r-mrtayeunto the personified; dna(of) thefallen; trieunto the deliverer; rpa-anugathe philosophywhich follows the teachings of rla Rpa Gosvm; viruddhaagainst; apasiddhnta(of) unauthorized statements; dhvntathe darkness; hrieunto you who are removing.

    I offer my respectful obeisances unto you, who are

    the personified teachings of Lord Caitanya. You arethe deliverer of the fallen souls. You do not tolerateany statement which is against the teachings ofdevotional service enunciated by rla RpaGosvm.

    Deliverer - He would say in Bengali, "Pr che yr, se hetupracr:" "A person must have life to be a preacher-a dead man

    cannot preach." When some of his preachers who had gone tochant and speak reported that no one had attended theirmeeting, rla Bhaktisiddhnta replied, "That doesn't matter. Thefour walls will hear you. That is sufficient. Don't be disappointed.Go on chanting." And in commenting on the fact that some of hisdisciples had fallen away: "Some of the soldiers will die," he said.

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    Compassion like a surgeon. Acupressure, medicine,punishment. He made many enemies particularly amongst thecaste gosvamis, the caste barhmanas, the sahajiyas, followers ofRdhramaacaraa Dsa Bbj in Puri, Siddhnta Sarasvat

    began to preach publicly and strongly against these misconceivedteachings, proclaiming that the mah-mantra is for both japa andkrtana, and that krtana is ultimately superior to japa.the mayavadis, babajis (Vrndavana and siddha pranali) and thematerialists. He did not compromise.

    I wish that every selfless, tender-hearted person of GaudiyaMath will be prepared to shed two hundred gallons of blood forthe nourishment of the spiritual corpus of every individual of this

    world.

    Let me not desire anything but the highest good for my worstenemies

    The fact is that I am the only one in India who is openlycriticizing, not only demigod worship and impersonalism, buteverything that falls short of complete surrender to Krishna. MyGuru Maharaja never compromised in His preaching, nor will I nor

    should any of my students. We are firmly convinced that Krishnais the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and all other are His partand parcel servants. This we must declare boldly to the wholeworld, that they should not foolishly dream of world peace unlessthey are prepared to surrender fully to Krishna as Supreme Lord.(to Giriraja )

    When my Guru Maharaja was present even big, big scholars

    were afraid to talk with His beginning students. My Guru

    Maharaja was called "Living Encyclopedia'', he could talk withanyone on any subject. He was so learnedso we should be likethat as far as possible. No compromiseRamakrishna, avataras,yogis, everyone was enemy to Guru Maharajahe nevercompromised. Some God-brothers complained that this preachingwas chopping technique and it would not be successful. But wehave seen that those who criticized, they fell down. For my part I

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    have taken up the policy of my Guru Maharajano compromise.All these so called scholars, scientists, philosophers who do notaccept Krsna are nothing more than rascals, fools lowest ofmankind etc..

    Definition of a sadhu

    Simha Guru.

    The ray of Visnu

    VYASA PUJA OFFERING POEM

    Yes, we were saved by Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Road. We shallalways expect to be saved by His Divine Grace SrilaBhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Goswami Maharaja Prabhupada.Always pray to His Lotus Feet. Whatever success we have had inpreaching Lord Caitanya's mission all over the world it is only dueto his mercy.{ Letter to: Acyutananda London 14 August, 1971}ADVENTOn the fifth day of the dark lunar fortnight of the month of

    Govinda [corresponding to February 6th, 1874 A.D. by thewestern calendar], at 3:30 in the afternoon, Bimala Prasd Datta,later to be known as rla Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat hkura,appeared in Puri as the fourth son of rla Bhaktivinoda hkuraand ryukta Bhagavati Devi,At the time of his birth all thirty-two bodily symptoms of a mah-purua, a great personality, were pointed out by an experiencedastrologer.Furthermore, the boy was born with his umbilical cord wrapped

    around his neck like a Brahmin's thread.The astrologer commented at his birth, "I have done manyhoroscopes in my life, but I have never before seen such ahoroscope filled with all the signs of a great personality. This childwill become world famous as a brilliant teacher of life's ultimategoal."Garland falls from Lord Jagannatha 6 month old.

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    Grain ceremony on cart - he immediately embraced the rmad-Bhgavatam, indicating his future as a preacher.Line of Narottama, Bharadvaja,Bimala Prasada stayed in Jaganntha Pur for ten months. Moved

    to Ranaghata2-3 yrs old mango. This is mine." rla Bhaktivinoda hkuragot up and said in a grave voice, "What is this? New fruit hascome into the house. It has not been offered to Giridhr and youhave taken it first? Remember, new fruit is to be given first to theLord. Without giving the first share to the Lord, nothing is to betaken."The child was very repentant and exclaimed, "Oh, what evilthoughts I have had! Throughout my whole life I shall not eat

    these again. This is the right punishment for one ruled by greed."He made the promise and observed it throughout his whole life.EDUCATIONAt 7 he started worshipping Kurma Deity found in the ground ofBhakti Bhavan constructionWould listen with rapt attention to his father speak Krsna Katha by 7 he memorized Bhagavad Gita and could explain it. Trained inpublishing proof- reading and editing. Sruti Dhara. Studiedastrology, maths. He would not study his school books but the

    scriptures. Yet he could immediately answer any questions histeachers would ask and get excellent in exams. Debate on anysubject. never defeated.Invented a short hand named bicanto when he was 11.At 13 chanted on tulsi.At 16 writing books on astrology. At 16 formed the Augustassembly discuss religion and take vow of celibacy.18 entered Sanskrit college and studied all 6 branches of Vedicknowledge. Praised for his learning he replied: "My life is for the

    single-minded cultivation of the teachings of r Caitanya, not forthe cultivation of grammar. I have only studied the Vedas, thebranches of the Vedas and their related parts in a secondarymanner."At 21 he left the college to avoid entanglement and householdpressures.

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    Discussed with learned persons on astronomy and publishedmagazines and surya siddhanta.At the request of rla Jaganntha dsa Bbj he composed ther Navadvpa Pajik, a Ka-ized almanac in which the

    months, lunar fortnights, days, lunar days, stars, etc. were allgiven names of Viu.He was also employed by the royal kings of Tripura from 1895 to1905 in various services editing and teachingIn 1897 he started to follow caturmasyaINITIATION -humility"..... The most merciful Supreme Lord r Gaurasundara, seeingme in such a lamentable condition at such a time of adversity,gave permission to His two dearmost devotees rla Bhaktivinoda

    hkura and rla Gaura Kiora dsa Bbj to grant theirblessings to me. Because I was always intoxicated with a worldlyfalse ego, wanting again and again self-appraisal, I deprivedmyself of my own real benefit. But because of the influence of myprevious births' activities in devotional service, I came into theassociation of rla Bhaktivinoda hkura, who was the form ofmy spiritual well-wisher. My spiritual master [rla Gaura Kioradsa Bbj] would go and visit rla Bhaktivinoda hkura, andmany times would reside with him. rla Bhaktivinoda hkura,

    out of his compassion for other living entities, pointed out myspiritual master, rla Gaura Kiora dsa Bbj. Upon seeing myspiritual master, the extent of my worldly false ego diminished. Iknew that all the other living entities who have taken the humanform of life were also fallen and low like myself. But by graduallyobserving the spiritual character of my master, I realized thatonly a Vaiava could reside in this material world and be ofexemplary character."Approached for initiation in the month of Mgh of the year 1900.

    rla Gaura Kiora dsa Bbj expressed reluctance to accepthim, knowing Siddhnta Sarasvat to be a great scholar. Finally,when Siddhnta Sarasvat pleaded with him for initiation, GauraKiora dsa Bbj replied, "Mahprabhu will be asked. If Hegives permission, your desire will be fulfilled." On another daySiddhnta Sarasvat approached him again and asked, "What

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    was Mahprabhu's order?" Gaura Kiora dsa Bbj replied, "Iforgot to ask." The third time Bbj Mahrja was requested, hereplied, "I asked. I did not receive the command of Mahprabhu."Siddhnta Sarasvat then stood up, his heart breaking, and said,

    "You [r Caitanya Mahprabhu and rla Gaura Kiora] are bothworshippers of Ka, the Crest Jewel of Debauchees, thereforewhy will you take mercy on someone dedicated to ordinarymorality like me? In His pastimes as the exemplary teacher,Mahprabhu has given instructions on the worship of Ka, theCrest Jewel of Debauchees. Therefore, why will He give thecommand to take mercy on me? But,

    gurudeva!kp-bindu diy, koro' ei dse, tpekh ati hna

    sakala-sahane, bolo diy koro nija mne sph-hna

    Gurudeva! By a drop of your mercy, make this servant of yourshumbler than a blade of grass. Giving me strength to bear alltrials and troubles, make me devoid of all desires for personalhonor.

    sakale sammn, korite akati, deho' ntha!

    jathjathatabe to' gibo, harinma-sukhe, apardha ha 'behata

    O lord and master! Please give me the power to properly honorall living beings. Only then will I sing the holy name in greatecstasy and all my offenses cease.

    kabe heno kp, lobhiy e jana, ktrtha hoibe,ntha!

    akti-buddhi-hn, mi ati dn, koro' more tma-stha

    O lord and master! When will this devotee, obtaining your mercy,become blessed? Devoid of all strength and intelligence, I amvery low and fallen. Please make me your own servant.

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    jogyat-vicre, kichu nhi pi, tomra karu srakaru n hoile, kiy kiy, pra n rkhibo

    raUpon examining my value, I find that I have none; your mercy is

    essential to me. Therefore, if you are not merciful I will constantlyweep and I will not maintain my life any longer.

    karun n haile kndiy kndiy prna n rakhibe ra-If there is no mercy,weeping and weeping, I can sustain my life no more. If I do not receive yourmercy I do not see any need in holding onto life."After thus indicating his readiness to take his life, Siddhnta Sarasvatbegan to cry. rla Gaura Kiora dsa Bbj's heart was melted to see this,so he told him to take bath in the Sarasvat and then come back to him. Atthe time of initiation, he gave Siddhnta Sarasvat the name: r

    Vrabhnav-dev-dyita dsa.IN PURIHe compiled an encyclopedia of vaisnavism and called it Vaiava-Maj-Samhiti, and it was later published in four volumes. A Vaiava scholarcommented on it by saying, xxxxxxx ============="This work is onlypossible for a supra-mortal, a great personality like Prabhupda rlaSarasvat hkura. Even if 25 to 30 scholars and 10 to 15 men taking thetreasury of a king began the work, they would be unable to edit it." He alsostudied the books of rla Madhvcrya and rla Rmnujcrya andpublished some of them in Bengali. He also published biographies of these

    and other Vaiava saints in the Sajjana-Toa magazine of rlaBhaktivinoda hkura.He toured South India in 1904 and again in 1905.He studied the Ramanujas and their worship. He became renowned for hisdebating and scholars were fearful of him. However, in Pur, SiddhntaSarasvat experienced such severe oppression and censure due to hispreaching against the rhyming krtana and sakhibheki doctrine of thepopular Rdhramaacaraa Dsa Bbj that finally rla Bhaktivinodahkura instructed him to go and perform bhajana near the Yogapha, thebirthsite of r Caitanya Mahprabhu.NMA-BHAJANA

    In 1905, at the age of 31, he began his great vow, following the example ofNmcrya Haridsa hkura, of chanting three lakhs of names (192rounds) per day. He determined that at the rate of 300,000 names daily, itwould take about 9 years to complete one billion names. He strictly followedhis vow and observed Cturmsya, cooking rice (which had been dried in thesun) in ghee and eating it from the floor in the manner of a cow. He wouldtake rest lying on the ground, never using any pillows and constantly chant

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    and study the scriptures. Seeing his renunciation, his Gurudeva, rla GauraKiora Dsa Bbj Mahrja said, "I observe that the renunciation of rRpa-Raghuntha is manifest in my Prabhu." He used to address his discipleas "my Prabhu."Xxxxxx ===== In commenting on this period rla Prabhupda states,

    "From childhood he was a strict brahmacr, Bhaktisiddhnta SarasvatGosvm Mahrja. And he underwent very severe penances for startingthis movement: world-wide movement. That was his mission."1906 first disciple - he never regarded his disciples as his disciples, but heused to see them as being that which was received from the lotus feet of hisguru. He used to address them as "Prabhu." In his address to the GauyaMath's first Vysa-pj, he has addressed his disciples as, "My friends,rescuers from danger." He also wrote, "If a Vaiava does not do the workof a guru, then the spiritual Vaiava lineage will stop. Again, if he does thework of a guru, then he becomes a non-Vaiava. For if a guru thinks, 'I ama guru.' then the first 'u' letter in the word guru disappears (the wordbecomes 'garu' or cow). A real guru does not make disciples and thusremains a guru. Here we see Siddhnta Sarasvat giving a very strongwarning about entertaining the conception of overlordship or being themaster of anyone.Placing his feet on Sarasvatis head rla Gaura Kiora dsa Bbj advisedhim, "... to preach the Absolute Truth and keep aside all other works."Siddhnta Sarasvat said of this occasion: "On receiving just a touch of thelotus feet of my r Gurudeva, I lost all sense of this external world. I donot know whether any transcendental agent equal to him in greatness hasever appeared in this world. How may those, who are busy with the lust,

    anger, etc. of the world ever know him?"VAIAVAS & BRHMAASIn 1911, - Midnapre controversy. SBT was bedridden "Is there no onemanifest in the Vaiava world who is capable of meeting with them and bythe conclusions and original logic of the scriptures put an end to their lowlyactivities, which are nothing but the frenzied dance of the three materialqualities?"At this, Siddhnta Sarasvat then wrote an essay entitled, Brhmaa oVaiavera Taratmya Visayaka Siddhnta, or The Conclusion Concerning theComparison of Brahmins and Vaiavas. He then read it to rla

    Bhaktivinoda hkura. The hkura was so ecstatic when he heard thepowerful logic and scriptural evidences put forward by his brilliant son thathe sat up and proclaimed, "Sarasvat, truly, truly Sarasvat! Truly, truly heis the crya-sun illuminating the face of the Vaiava world. By the light ofthese judgements the darkness of the Karmajada Smrtas' doctrine willcertainly soon be dispelled!"THE GAURA MANTRA

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    Later in 1911 another controversy surfaced, challenging that the nameGaura in the Gyatr mantra chanted by Gauya Vaiavas was not aneternal name of Godhead, was not found in the original Vedas, and that LordCaitanya was not an incarnation of Godhead, but rather, by His ownadmission, a devotee of God.

    He defeated all the arguements and established LCM position and worship."My Guru Mahrja's contribution is that he defeated the caste gosvms.He defeated this brahmanism. He did it the same way as CaitanyaMahprabhu did. As Caitanya Mahprabhu said, kiba vipra, kiba nys, drakene naya, yei ka tattva-vett, sei 'guru' haya: 'There is no considerationwhether one is a sannys, a brhmaa, a dra, or a ghastha. No. Anyonewho knows the science of Ka, he is all right, he is gosvm and he isbrhmaa.'"This was my Guru Mahrja's contribution. And for this reason, he had toface so many vehement protests from these brhmaas of the castegosvms."Once they conspired to kill him-my Guru Mahrja told me personally. Byhis grace, when we used to meet alone he used to talk about so manythings. He was so kind that he used to talk with me, and he personally toldme that these people, 'They wanted to kill me.'"They collected twenty-five thousand rupees and went to bribe the policeofficer in charge of the area, saying, 'You take these twenty-five thousandrupees. We shall do something against Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat, and youdon't take any steps.' He could understand that they wanted to kill him. Sothe police officer frankly came to Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat: 'Of course, weaccept bribes, and we indulge in such things, but not for a sdhu, not for a

    saintly person. I cannot dare.' So, the police officer refused and said to myGuru Mahrja, 'You take care. This is the position.' This was because he sovehemently protested.On the 6th of February, 1913, he established the Bhagavat Printing Press-the r Bhagavat-yantra, so that he could begin to publish the importantliteratures of the Gauya Vaiavas. He called the press the BrihatMridanga, explaining that an ordinary krtana party could be heard for onlya few blocks, but this mdaga could be heard far and wide. The press wasmoved to Vrajapattana in 1914, and later in 1915 it was moved toKrishnanagar.

    THE DISAPPEARANCE PASTIMES OF RLA BHAKTIVINODAHKURA AND RLA GAURA KIORA DSA BBJOn June 22nd in 1914 at the Bhakti Bhavan in Calcutta, rla Bhaktivinodahkura performed his pastime of disappearance.On November 17, 1915, rla Gaura Kiora dsa Bbj Mahrja left themortal world on the Utthan Ekda."After the departure of Bbj Mahrja there were many types of opinionsand disturbances over who would give his samdhi. In apprehension of a

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    breach of peace, Navadvpa's Inspector of Police was then present at thatplace."After much controversy the Bbjs said, 'Sarasvat hkura is not asannys, therefore he does not have the eligibility to give the samdhi for aperson who has renounced his home.' In reply to that, Prabhupda said in a

    loud voice like thunder, 'I am the only disciple of' Paramahasa BbjMahrja. Even though I have not accepted sannysa, I am a celibatebrahmacr, and, by the grace of Bbj Mahrja. I am not secretlyaddicted to abominable habits or involved in fornication as some monkey-like people are. If there is someone amongst the people present who is arenunciate of truly stainless character, then he can give Bbj Mahrja'ssamdhi. We have no objection to that. He who within the last one year, orthe last six months, three months, one month or at least within the lastthree days has not had any illicit contact with a woman will be able to touchthis spiritually blissful body. If anyone else touches it, he will be completelyruined.' Hearing these words, the Inspector of Police said, 'How will evidencebe had for this? Prabhupda said, 'I will have faith in their word.' We becameamazed at seeing them all-after Prabhupda's words, the people presentwearing the attire of Bbjs, one by one, turned their backs. The Inspectorof Police was speechless."Then, according to rla Prabhupda's instructions, we had the goodfortune to carry the spiritually blissful body of Paramahasa BbjMahrja, which was lying on the ground. Some people gave advice to us:'When Bbj Mahrja was manifest he said that his body should bedragged through the streets of rdhma Navadvpa so that it may bebathed in the dust of this holy land. It is befitting to observe the command

    of Bbj Mahrja.' Prabhupda then said, 'Although we are fools,inexperienced and offenders we will still not be disinclined to understand thetrue meaning of those humility-filled words which were spoken by myGurudeva in order to destroy the pride of worldly-minded people, for evenKrishnachandra personally thinks Himself to be successful if He carries myr Gurudeva on His head or shoulders. After the departure of hkuraHaridsa, r Gaurasundara took the spiritually blissful body of the hkuraon His lap and danced. What dignity He adorned it with! Therefore, followingin the footsteps of rman Mahprabhu, we shall also bear BbjMahrja's spiritually blissful body on our heads."

    In 1914 Kujabihr Vidybhana, who later took sannysa and was namedBhakti Vilsa Trtha Mahrja, had come to Mypur and heard from rlaBS. After some days of hearing, Kujabihr asked for initiation and was thenencouraged Sarasvat hkura to preach. "How shall I preach to the worldthe pure message of r Caitanya and establish the heart's desire of mygurus? I have no support of people, no support of wealth and I do not haveany learning or intelligence which can attract the common people."

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    He took rest that night, and at that time he saw in a visionary trance thePaca-tattva and their sakrtana associates, entering from the East into thenatyamandira of the temple of the r Yogapha, the site of LordCaitanya's appearance, their effulgence lighting up the whole scene. Withthem were Vaiava Srvabhauma rla Jaganntha dsa Bbj Mahrja,

    rla Bhaktivinoda hkura, rla Gaura Kiora dsa Bbj Mahrja, andother previous cryas. They gave him many assurances and told him,"Don't you worry at all. With supreme enthusiasm preach the conclusion ofpure devotion, in intense earnestness chant the glories of the Name, Abode,Form, Attributes, Associates and Pastimes of Godhead at various places. Allof us will help you. There is no need to worry. The support of unlimitedpeople, countless wealth and boundless learning await the blessing of beingengaged in the service of your preaching. They will be received when theyare necessary. No type of worldly hindrance or danger will be able to makeany obstruction for this great work of yours. We are always with you."SANNYSAIn Vrajapattana, Mypur, on the full-moon day of Phlguna, the 29th ofMarch, 1918, Siddhnta Sarasvat took sannysa and took the name rBhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat Gosvm Mahrja.The thread is not to signify brahminical pride that "I am meant to be servedby everyone." But rather it is a sign that one has been purified by the lotusfeet of a guru. The thread is meant to indicate eternal service to the Lord,not egoism. And as far as accepting sannysa is concerned, that is forincreasing one's serving mood-to serve the Lord with one's mind, body andwords.He showed example to follow varnasrama for preaching and place oneself in

    humble position below the paramahamsa..He travelled and preached wentinto vipralambha in the forest near llantha, He would often exhibitecstasy.SPIRITUAL ORGANIZATION: THE VIVA-VAIAVA-RJA-SABHAND THE GAUYA MATHIn November of 1918 rented in UltadungaIn December of 1918 he travelled and preached in what is now BDrla Sarasvat hkura personally went door-to-door with his followers inthe mood of Lord Nitynanda in His dealing with Jagi and Mdhi, beingvery compassionate towards their unfortunate state.

    On the 5th of February, 1919, at the Appearance Day celebration of rVishnupriya, rla Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat hkura re-established ther Viva-vaiava-rja-sabh( refers to the society which is composed ofthose Vaiavas who are the kings (the foremost) of all the Vaiavaspresent in this world.)The living situation at the Bhaktivinoda sana at Ultadanga Road was thatBhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat hkura lived on the roof in one nice room, andfour household couples lived below. The sannyss and brahmacrs stayed

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    in another area, begged from door-to-door, worshipped the Deities,performed krtana, and preached in various places. In 1920 the sana wasrenamed the Gauya Math and in 1922 began the publishing of a weeklymagazine in Bengali, called the Gauya, which was filled with preachingand glorification of the Lord. It was there, of course, in 1922 that the fateful

    meeting with His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupda tookplaceOn June 27th, 1919, the deity form of rla Bhaktivinoda hkura wasinstalled in Godruma-dvpa at Svnanda-sukhada-kuja, at which time rlaSarasvat hkura gave a profound lecture about service to the guru andworship of the deity form of the crya. He also arranged for the completionof the Vaiava-viswakosh, an encyclopedia of Vaiava vocabulary, whichwas the fulfillment of a desire of rla Bhaktivinoda hkura, and for whichrla Sarasvat hkura had been collecting material since 1900. In 1921,in Pur, he published a book called Achar and Acharya which served as agreat shock for so-called Vaiavas who had been making a business ofreligion. As is mentioned in rla Prabhupda-llmta Vol. I: rlaBhaktisiddhnta condemned temple proprietors who made a business ofshowing the Deity for a living. To be a sweeper in the street was morehonorable, he said. He coined a Bengali phrase, alagrma-dvr bdabhaga: "The priests are taking the alagrma D`eity as a stone for crackingnuts.' In other words, if a person shows the alagrma form of the Lord (orany form of the Deity) simply with a view to make money, then he is seeingthe Deity not as the Lord but as a stone, a means for earning his livelihood."He revived the circurnambulation of Navadvpa-dhma in the same year andgave an amazing lecture in Dacca giving 30 interpretations of a single verse

    of the Vednta-stra. He toured Vrajamaala during, this period, trying tostart a center there. In 1923 he attended the Pur Ratha-ytr and dancedbefore the Lord in ecstasy. He began to send out many preaching parties topropagate the message of Lord Caitanya. In 1923 he also set up theGauya Printing Works in Calcutta and began to publish the rmad-Bhgavatam part by part with word for word meanings, translations andpurports.THE FOUR SAMPRADYASIn 1923 at Vrajapattana, work was begun on a beautiful, twenty-ninepinnacled temple in which the four Vaiava sampradyas and their main

    cryasIn 1925, rla Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat hkura and his followers wereperforming the circumambulation of Navadvpa-dhma, which had been aregular practice since 1921. While rla Sarasvat hkura was proceedingwith the roaring procession with the Deities of r r Rdh Govinda, avicious crowd attacked the procession throwing hundreds of stones andbricks. Demonic persons, agitated by the preaching of rla Sarasvathkura (who had refuted the various bogus doctrines of the 13 Sahajiy

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    sects like the Aulas, Baulas, etc.) had instigated the local people againsthim. rla Sarasvat hkura had also debunked, as he would throughouthis preaching, the nonsense practices of compulsory fees for viewing Deitiesand the worship and recital of rmad-Bhgavatam for money. He stronglyopposed the conversion of the Deities and the rmad-Bhgavatam into

    some sort of merchandise. Therefore, these persons who tried to profit bythese practices, led and instigated the local populace to commit violence onthe procession. rla Sarasvat hkura, the Deities and the pilgrims wereall pelted by these demons, but the procession continued, unbowed. Thiswas a living example of the adage, "The jackals may howl, but the caravanwill pass.He preached widely and started dioramasIn rla Sarasvat hkura's 1924 Vysa Puja Address, the followingpassage highlights a theme that arose frequently in discussions withscholars:"We do not find God in this world. The devotees, who serve God, out of theirmercy show themselves to us. We should follow their conduct and teaching.It is the only path to our well-being. Due to our meagre education and smallexperience, to most of us the ideas and ways of thinking of the devotees ofGod appear to be unedifying 'slave mentality'. Let us not indulge in suchprofane ravings under the urge of mental aberration. On the contrary, ourline of thought should be, 'Let the censorious (critical,disapproving) peoplecalumniate us to their hearts' content. We will not mind them. Let us roll inthe dust and forget everything in the ecstasy of intoxication by excessivedrinking of the strong and tasty wine of the Love of Lord Hari.'"TRIUMPH OF THE GAUYA MATH

    In 1929 establishing 108 pda-pha memorials of the footprints of the LordCaitanya.His preaching work was increasingly more organized. His teams wouldcanvass from door to door, asking for contributions, selling subscriptions totheir magazines, starting centers, making devotees, etc. rla Sarasvathkura was making lecture tours, talking with intellectuals and scholars ofthe day, presiding over installations of Deities, initiations and festivalsorganized for diorama exhibitions, temple openings, prasdam distribution,etc. Meanwhile, his presses were rolling, producing books. He was evenmeeting with the English governors, viceroys, Indian kings, etc. and

    encouraging them to assist in the opening of his temples and projects..... hisidea was to involve and purify everyone in the flood of the sakrtanamovement of r Caitanya Mahprabhu.In February of 1930 a tremendous diorama exhibition called the SreedhamMypur NavadwipOn October of 1930 there was a magnificent installation ceremony of rRdh Madana-mohana, Rdh Govinda and Rdh Gopntha at theGauya Math in Baghbazar, Calcutta. A palatial marble temple had been

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    constructed with the help of a wealthy Vaiava merchant. Preach in thecities. Yukta vairagya cars, overseas, clothes, books using money,anything that could further the mission o LCM"materialistic demeanour cannot possibly stretch to the TranscendentalAutocrat."

    In October and November of 1932 the circumambulation of Vraja Maalawas held, accompanied by many thousands of pilgrims. rla Sarasvathkura toured all of the sacred places of Krsna's pastimes and engagedconstantly in chanting the name and glories of the Lord on the actual sites ofthe Lord's pastimes. The pilgrimage required massive organization withmany tents, a moving kitchen, stage equipment, animals, etc. The pilgrimswould rise early, chant and proceed in a huge procession with krtanaaccompanying the Deity of Lord Caitanya, a police band, a lead horse, flagbearers and all of the followers. At night a city of tents would be erected,krtana and discourse areas would be set up, along with the kitchen, andthere was even a system of guards for the tents.However, the pilgrimage encountered opposition in the form of theVndvana temple proprietors, the caste gosvms, who objected to rlaSarasvat hkura's awarding of brahminical status to those not born inbrhmaa families. Although rla Bhaktisiddhnta had established thispractice strictly in accordance with the teachings of the Hari-bhakti-vilsa byrla Santana Gosvm, who was one of the founding fathers of thepresent town of Vndvana, still the paitas did not approve what theyconsidered the deviation of giving brhmaa and sannysa initiation tomembers of lower castes."Actually one who takes to chanting Hare Ka mantra offenselessly

    immediately becomes situated transcendentally and therefore he has noneed of being initiated with sacred thread, but Guru Maharaj introduced thissacred thread because a Vaiava was being mistaken as belonging to thematerial caste. To accept a Vaiava in material caste system is hellishconsideration (nrak buddhi). Therefore, to save the general populace frombeing offender to a Vaiava, He persistently introduced this sacred threadceremony and we must follow His footsteps ... This system introduced by myGuru Maharaj is a chance for all the members of the society, scientificallybased and applied, apart from the exploitative sentiment of birthright 'caste'system, to become actually situated on the transcendental platform.

    The paitas met with rla Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat hkura and adiscussion took place. Although the paitas appeared satisfied with thetalks, when the parikrama reached the seven main temples, the doors wereclosed. Shopkeepers closed their shops, and some people even threw stonesat them. Finally, they reached Kosi. It was at this point of the pilgrimagethat rla Prabhupda met rla Sarasvat hkura, having traveled fromAllahabad, and he sat with rapt attention hearing him speak for many hours.

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    And it was at this time that rla Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat hkuramarked him, "He likes to hear. He does not go away.rla Sarasvat hkura's preaching was going on in a big way. He hadteams of sannyss and brahmacrs constantly travelling and preaching,distributing magazines and books, establishing centers, arranging programs,

    etc. A core of 18 sannyss were organizing things. His propagandaattracted so many people that Subhas Chandra Bose, the famous nationalistand a former classmate of rla Prabhupda's at Scottish Churches' College,met with rla Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat hkura and complained, "Somany people you have captured. They are doing nothing for nationalism."The reply: "Well, for your national propaganda you require very strong men,but these people are very weak. You can see, they are very skinny. So don'tput your glance upon them. Let them eat something and chant Hare Krsna.In January of 1933 a large diorama exhibition was opened in Dacca(presently the capital of Bangladesh, it was then a part of India). Called SatSiksha, it featured toys, dolls, etc., and rla Bhaktisiddhnta gavediscourses there for one month to large crowds of learned and respectablepeople.THE MESSAGE IS SENT TO THE WESTOn the 18th of March rla Sarasvat hkura gave instructions to two ofhis sannys disciples and a third disciple in a special meeting in Madraswhich served as a farewell address."The happy day has come when we are destined to spread the message ofour Great Master [Sr Caitanya Mahprabhu] to distant corners of the earth.The spiritual service to which we are dedicated has now passed the bud-stage and blown fully into a flower whose aroma we have to carry across the

    seas with that willingness which characterised r Hanuman when he leaptover the wide ocean with the message of r Rma. This extension of rCaitanya Mahprabhu's spiritual gift to foreign countries is our humbleoffering at His Feet..."The Words of instruction of r Gaurasundara are verily His beautiful body;the preachers of His Word through the ages are His secondary limbs; theteaching of r Gaurasundara is His potent weapon; and the Grace of rHari Himself established in the Word of r Caitanya, is His eternalassociate. Therefore, for the purpose of truly presenting r Gaurasundara,the Lord of the Gauya, to the aliens, I am addressing these few words of

    mine to the preachers who are about to proceed to countries beyond India.""We find the following great precepts (Mahvkya) in the body of theTeaching that has been vouchsafed to us by the Supreme Master of allMasters: 'To chant constantly the discourse of Hari by being (1) extremelymore humble than the blade of grass, (2) by being as forbearing as the tree,(3) by seeking no honour for oneself and (4) by offering due honour to allentities, is the highest natural function of the unalloyed individual souls(jvas).' The lotus-feet of my r Guru-deva attracted me to his service by

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    his manifestation as the living embodiment of these four great precepts. Myfriends will be in a position to attract all souls of the world to the foot-stoolof the Real Truth by purchasing the same unfailing method."The crest-jewel of the order of the Sannyasis of the triple-staff, rlaPrabodhnanda Sarasvat Gosvmpda, has taught the same process to

    those who assume the triple-staff of renunciation, in the following words: 'Isay this by holding the straw between my teeth, by falling at your feet anduttering hundreds of the humblest entreaties: All ye good souls, by throwingoff everything to a distance, practice love to the Feet of r Caitanya Who isso surpassingly Beautiful.' Following in the foot-steps of all the formerdevotees I am making my submission to them to pursue the identicalmethod of propaganda."r Ka Caitanya Deva is the Supreme Teacher of all teachers of thisworld and the ideal possessor of intelligence that is the highest of all. Itshould be our only duty to constantly chant those words regarding thecleansing of the mirror of the heart of which He speaks in His Eight Precepts(Shikshastakam). We are only the bearers of the Transcendental Word. Weshall never in any way hesitate to offer every honour and facility, for whichthey are eligible, to all persons of this world. We must pray to all for theboon of aptitude for the service of Ka. We shall come across manypersons in this world, possessing an endless variety of characters, disposedor hostile to the service of Ka. But we should not slacken in our lovingservice of the Lord of our hearts and should offer due honour to all persons."We will have opportunities, as we approach different persons in all parts ofthe world with the vendor's bag of the discourse of Hari, to see a good manysights, to hear much and to seek to derive much benefit from our

    experience. May we never forget that all entities of this world are essentiallyproteges of the Lotus-feet of r Guru for helping the expansion of Hisservice. May we always remember that they are excellent only if they areprepared to wait with the utmost eagerness on the particle of dust of thelotus-feet of my r Guru and that otherwise they are merely the miragedevised by the deluding potency for our ruin. I wish to remind those friendsof mine who are proceeding to the west for preaching the words of rCaitanya, the two precepts of my Master r Rpa: (1) 'The constantendeavour for cultivating relationship with Ka of a person who, being freefrom all mundane affinity, enjoys the entities of this world, having due

    regard to the propriety of each case, in pursuance of his purpose, is calledthe proper kind of renunciation.' (2) 'The abnegation, by persons desirous ofliberation, of entities that have an affinity with Hari, in considering theirmundane nature, is termed renunciation possessing little real value.'"We are not the operators of the instrument, but only the instruments. Wemust always bear this in mind. The triple-staff Bhikshus are the livingmdagas of r Caitanya. We must constantly give forth our music at thelotus-feet of r Guru. We should practice the function of the peripatetic

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    (roaming) preacher (pari-vrjaka), of carrying aloft the victorious banner ofthe Commands of Divine r Gaurasundara by constant submission to rGuru and the Vaiavas, fixing our eye on the pole-star of the heardtranscendental Voice. We must always bear in mind that we have beeninitiated in the vow of the peripatetic preacher for the sole purpose of

    promulgating the Heart's Desire of r Guru and Gaurga. If we areconstantly inspired with the duty of discoursing about the Truth under theguidance of r Guru, no hankering after travelling, nor any veiled form ofdesire other than chanting of Hari-nma, will ever strike any terrors into ourhearts."It will be our only duty, to proclaim to all the people that complete relianceon the Transcendental Absolute Truth is by far the highest form of freedomand one that is Infinitely superior to the partial independent mastery overthe distorted reflected entity in the shape of this mundane world. By holdingthe straw between our teeth in supplication we shall carry aloft the banner ofthat real freedom to all persons. We should be constantly engaged inchanting the exhilarating Name of r Hari by adopting as our fundamentalenlightening principle that the highest path is the path of submission,endorsed by r Rpa with the further exhortation to cherish the unwaveringfaith that He will always protect us."1933 TO 1936In August of 1933, the second annual diorama exhibition was held inKuruketra and was called the Gauya Exhibition.In September of 1933 rla Sarasvat hkura went on a sakrtana tourwith his disciples, preaching and chanting in different places aroundNavadvpa, utilizing two motor launches called "Leela" and "Suradham".

    Temples here and there srivas angan, centres all over diorama exhibits inmany cities.On June 13th of 1934, while the foundation of the Mypur YogaphaTemple was being dug, a four-armed Adhokaja Deity was discovered andidentified as the household Deity of Jagannath Mira, the father of LordCaitanya. Everyone on hand was amazed and excited at this event, whichonly further confirmed the absolute authenticity of the site discovered byrla Bhaktivinoda hkura. In July the deity form of rla Gaura Kioradsa Bbj was installed in his samdhi temple accompanied bytremendous sakrtana.

    In October rla Sarasvat hkura and many disciples stayed in Mathurafor more than a month, strictly executing the Krttika vow. During this time,he spoke on the topics of Ka's asta-klika-ll (the pastimes of the Lordexecuted during the day's eight divisions.)In January of 1935 the Governor of Bengal, Sir John Anderson came toMypur and heard about the Holy Dhma from rla BhaktisiddhntaSarasvat hkura.

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    In June he broadcast, for perhaps the first time, by radio, HarinmaSakrtana from the Indian Broadcasting Service Center in Calcutta. This ledto regular Sunday broadcasts of various Gauya functions like livebroadcasts of sakrtana and bhajana from different parts of CalcuttaIn September the complete edition of the rmad-Bhgavatam was

    published in 12 Cantos with elaborate indexes, word meanings, Bengalitranslation, rla Vivantha Cakravart hkura's Srtha Daricommentary, rla Madhvcrya's purports and rla BhaktisiddhntaSarasvat hkura's own Vivriti commentary.In October rla Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat hkura stayed in Rdh-kua, Vndvana, "gun jvalbe": "There will be fire", in connection with thefighting over rooms which had broken out amongst rla BhaktisiddhntaSarasvat hkura's disciples at the Baghbazar Gauya Math. "When wewere living in a rented house," he said, "if we could collect two hundred orthree hundred rupees we were living very nicely at Ultadanga. We werehappier then. But since we have been given this marble palace in Baghbazar,there is friction between our men. Who will occupy this room? Who willoccupy that room? Who will be the proprietor of this room? Everyone isplanning in different ways. It would be better to take the marble from thewalls and secure money. If I could do this and print books, that would bebetter." Then he turned to rla Prabhupda and said, "mar icch chilakichu bai karn": "I had a desire to print some books. If you ever getmoney, print books." Thus, important seeds were planted.1936 was to be the last year of the intense preaching which had resulted in64 temples being established in India and abroad. During this final yearrla Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat hkura met with many scholars, installed

    Deities, established more temples and preached widely in Mypura,Cuttack, Pur (for 100 days), llantha, Dacca, Kuruketra, Darjeeling,Mathur, Vndvana (where he established a bhajana kutir at Govardhana)and then back to Calcutta, where he was constantly engaged in preaching. Adoctor named ivapada Bhacrya tried to restrain him from so muchlecturing, due to his heart condition, but rla Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvathkura replied to his entreaties, "Life is for the glorification of topics onHari. If that is stopped, then what need is there to carry on life." In thatsame year in discourses in Dacca he had made some revealing remarks inthe same line:

    THE FINAL DAYSIn October rla Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat hkura went to JagannthaPur, and there he exhibited his pastime of illness for some time.

    He also said pointedly, "You all take to sincere Hari-bhajana. There are notmany more days." He gave lectures in Pur for about a month and a half,and then on December 6th he left Pur for Calcutta.

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    Gauya Math at Baghbazar. There he gave a lecture which lasted over anhour, and he covered many profound topics. He spoke of the importance ofgood association, the mystery of Lord Caitanya's madness-in-separation inPur during the last days at the Gambhr in the association of rlaSvarpa Dmodara and rla Rmnanda Rya. He spoke of the guru's

    vision of seeing his guru everywhere: of avoiding vaisnava aparadha,particularly describing the dangerous creepers of adoration, profit anddistinction. He quoted from rla Bhaktivinoda hkura's aragati fromthe Dainya (Humility) section, which begins mra jvana sad ppe ratanhiko puyera lea-"I am an impious sinner and have caused others greatanxiety and trouble",Again the theme of ridding oneself of anrthas was strongly being preachedby rla Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat hkura. Compassionately, he wasurging everyone to give up pride and envy and simply immerse themselvesin spreading the glories of the Lord. His mission had become an immensevehicle for this.On December 23rd, eight days before entering the eternal pastimes of theLord, he made the following remarks:"I have given anxiety to many people, as I have been compelled to speakgenuinely truthful words, and as I have told people to worship Hari withoutany hypocrisy. There are possibly many people who even consider me to bean enemy. So that they may become eager to perform the sincere service ofr Krishna, freed from other desires and deceitfulness, I have given varioustypes of anxieties to numerous people. One day or another they willcertainly be able to understand this.'Taking a blade of grass between my teeth I fall down and again and again

    pray that I may become the dust at the feet of rmad Rpa birth afterbirth:DISAPPEARANCE-NITYA LILAOn the morning of December 31, 1936, rla Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvathkura requested rpda B. R. rdhara Mahrja to sing r RpaMajar by rla Narottama dsa hkura and rpda Navin KrishnaVidyalankar to sing the ikaka. In the forenoon he requested the Editorof the Gauya magazine to see to it that the Vaiava Manjusha (Casket ofVaiava Vocabulary) would be compiled and published.In his last days he had specifically requested that his disciples form a

    Governing Body Commission (GBC) of 10 or 12 devotees to manage theSociety's affairs.Thus, the great crya, the siha-guru, the uncompromising sdhu, the"Vaikuntha man" as rla Prabhupda once described him the tirelesspreacher of the pure teachings of r Caitanya Mahprabhu left this materialworld uttering the name of Ka at about 5:30 A.M. on Thursday, January1st, 1937, and entered the pastimes of the Supreme Lord, having firmlyestablished the foundation of a spiritual movement, which would be carried

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    around the world by his pure servant, His Divine Grace A.C. BhaktivedantaSwami Prabhupda, the Founder/crya of the International Society forKrishna Consciousness.Thus, the "crya-sun", as he had been called by his father rlaBhaktivinoda hkura, passed from earthly vision, and he entered the

    eternal pastimes of the Lord.rla Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat hkura established many presses andprinted thousands of books. In 1928 he even established a daily newspapercalled the Nadia Prakash. When challenged how it was possible to publish adaily newspaper about God, rla Bhaktisiddhnta Sarasvat hkuraexplained how this world was a small place, only one quarter of the creation,compared to the spiritual world which comprises the other three quarters.He further replied, "Here in this world there are thousands of newspapersand magazines reporting the stale, repetitious happenings of this limitedspace. So for reporting the news of the unlimited spiritual realm, concerningthe eternal, ever-fresh Supreme Personality of Godhead, we could publish anewspaper at every second, what to speak of daily."He published the following magazines: Sajjana Toa, established in 1881by rla Bhaktivinoda hkura (later taken over by rla BhaktisiddhntaSarasvat hkura and re-named The Harmonist, an English monthly); TheGauya, his first magazine, established in 1922 as the official weeklyjournal of the Gauya Math; The Nadia Prakash, established in 1926initially as a English/Bengali magazine, but later a daily newspaper; TheBhgavata, established in 1931, as a Hindi fortnightly; The Paramarthi,established in 1932, a fortnightly Oriyan magazine; and Krtana, establishedin 1932, an Assamese monthly.

    He personally wrote over 108 essays and books and aside from these, healso published hundreds of articles in the Sajjana Toa, Nivedana,Gauya, and Nadiya Prakash.Apart from his own writing, he also published many other books:rla Sarasvat hkura always emphasized krtana and talks about Kaand called his press the Brihat Mdaga, meaning the Greater Mdaga,which could be heard far and wide, as opposed to just a few blocks.His physical appearance was tall. He had long arms, a slender body, broadforehead, aquiline nose, intense eyes, golden complexion, and he was full ofecstatic love of God. His presence was amiable and majestic. He was well-

    versed in all subjects and scriptures, having devoured and memorized manylibraries, and was called the "Living Encyclopedia". He knew Sanskrit,Bengali, English, Astronomy, and many other branches of knowledge. Hewas very courageous, had unlimited capacity for preaching, and wasnaturally decorated with all 26 qualities of a pure devotee. rla Prabhupdaonce commented when asked about His Divine Grace BhaktisiddhntaSarasvat Gosvm Mahrja, "What can I say? He was a Vaikuha man!"

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    view by neglecting the method by which I may be enabled to serve the Lordand His devotees. No language can describe the havoc that is wrought inhuman life by such arrogance. I make this submission with all humility, 'Mayyou kindly refrain from merely imitating the conduct of the Vaiavas. Mayyou always follow their line of thought.' There is no relationship for us other

    than with the devotees of Viu. Relationship with other persons can onlyaggravate the desire for sensuous gratification."Many a year has now passed over me one by one. I at last realise thatthere is no other help for me than the mercy of the holy feet of theVaiavas. Every one of my acts is fit to be attacked. I pray to those, wholook down upon me, that if they consider that it is allowable for me to followthe conduct and the teachings of the Vaiavas, they would no longermaintain that attitude. They will kindly impart to me the needful strengthand fitness to communicate their power to those who are stupid andignorant and devoid of all strength."One who serves Lord Hari counts himself as the least of all entities. One islifted to the highest order of the Vaiavas when one can feel himself theleast of all. One can then proclaim out the message of the highest devotionto Lord Hari."'The best of all persons deems himself to be less than all others.' Such isthe great dictum."It is necessary for the best to scrutinize one's ineligibility. Why should aperson be anxious to pry into the defects of other when he does not seek toscrutinize his own conduct?"Not one among the paths of this material world is a path of the service ofthe Divinity. The idea that one should be master of God's devotees leads to

    inferno. It is harmful to follow any worldly path. To follow the devotees ofGod is the only path that leads to one's real good. Whatever method isfollowed by the devotees is worthy of being cherished with utmost love andreverence."Holding the blade of straw between my teeth I pray time and again for thisonly boon, that I may be a particle of dust of the lotus-feet of the mostrevered r Rpa Gosvm Prabhu. Let there be birth after birth for us thatwe may walk in the path of the followers of Sr Rpa by being the particlesof dust on the lotus-feet of the devotees of God. The root of it all is humilityor the due realisation of one's own ineligibility. If the conviction of our

    unfitness for the service of God is revealed to us either automatically or bythe instruction of other persons, we are only then in a position to appreciatethe beauty of the lotus-feet of God's devotees.We do not find God in this world. The devotees, who serve God, out of theirmercy show themselves to us. We should follow their conduct and teaching.It is the only path to our well-being. Due to our meagre education and smallexperience, to most of us the ideas and ways of thinking of the devotees ofGod appear to be unedifying 'slave mentality'. Let us not indulge in such

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    profane ravings under the urge of mental aberration. On the contrary, ourline of thought should be, 'Let the censorious people calumniate us to theirhearts' content. We will not mind them. Let us roll in the dust and forgeteverything in the ecstasy of intoxication by excessive drinking of the strongand tasty wine of the Love of Lord Hari."'

    There is no dharma for the living being other than krtana, chanting of theholy name of God. To the extent that one disbelieves in bhakti, devotionalservice, as denoted by krtana or the holy namein other words if onethinks that all wants cannot be fulfilled by krtanato that extent one isnstika, atheistic. The degree of help one gives in propagating bhakti asdenoted by krtana is the sole measure of ones belief in God. On the otherhand, a man is a nstika, disbeliever, to the extent that he obstructskrtana. Since the name has to be chanted every moment, even whileeating or sleeping, since bhakti denoted by krtana is the only dharma of theliving being, since there is no dharma but this, where then is the time to getrid of flood or famine or found hospitals? Those who claim to be positivistsbut forget the greatest of all facts, death, those who are fallen, like the blindman led by the blind, and who under the spell of the enchantress loiterabout like travelers without an objectiveit is such people who have time forwork other than hari-krtana, chanting of the holy name of Ka. All effortsexcept hari-krtana cause sasra, the worldly sojourn, the road leadingnot to the east but in the opposite direction. On the other hand, by all-timehari-krtana one turns away from every other direction to face the east, orjourney homeward.We Will Not Listen to YouThe Hare Ka movement is the missionary of this all-time krtana. The

    movement asks not that all efforts of the world be destroyed but that theybe deflected in their course. The Hare Ka movement begs every one ofus to offer his all to Ka. The opulence of the Hare Ka movement is forthe sole purpose of making all efforts of the world ka-para, havingKa as their goal. The offering to Ka comes first, and after theoffering has been made, bhakti begins. The Hare Ka movement says,Make the offering to Ka first, and after that has been done profess to bea bhakta, a devotee.The Hare Ka movement says, Do not imitate the krtana-kr (one whodoes krtana). Anukra, imitation, is a mere burlesque. By arraying oneself

    in the trappings of a devotee like a harlequin one may deceive people, butone does no good either to oneself or to others. It is those who follow thekrtana-kr that are really their own benefactors or properly alive to self-interest. They are also benefactors of others and mindful of others interests.They are not blinded by considerations of undue personal advantages, nordo they cheat others. They are therefore truly disinterested. It is by krtanaalone that the claims of self-interest, the interests of others, anddisinterestedness are simultaneously satisfied.

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    STANDARDS - JAPA KIRTAN

    SERVICE TO DEVOTEESSimple serving the Mathas devotees with love and devotion, our taste for

    chanting the holy names ill increase and we will be qualified to chant theholy names.(SBSM)SERVICE TO GURUIn other words true humility means to develop a taste for chanting and tobecome a true servant of the holy name. Service to guru and the Vaisnavasit the gateway through which we develop such taste. Give up duplicity. I ama servant of guru and Krishna. Showing compassion to others.

    "In order to overcome nmbhsa and get the pure name, the jva mustserve the bona fide guru with great attention. By doing this the anarthas willdisappear and the pure name endowed with all spiritual potency will danceon the devotee's tongue. At that time, he will never give up the stream ofsweet nectar emanating from the holy name; the jva will chant constantly,mad with the sweetness of the name. In joy the name will dance, the jvawill dance, and the treasure of love of God will dancethe whole universewill dance and my will flee.

    SBSM We should also remember that we cannot possibly learn to chant ifwe do not offer sincere and loving service to our spiritual master who is anAcarya of the holy name.When by serving guru and Krishna the heart becomes purified, the Lords

    pure name will appear in the heart. Otherwise, we will continue to commitoffenses against the name.

    SRILA BHAKTISIDDHANTA SARASVATI QUOTESHARI NAMAI am overjoyed to hear of your enthusiasm for chanting is increasing. As ourcontaminations are removed by chanting, the Lords form, qualities andpastimes will be revealed to us in the holy name. There is no point in makinga separate effort to artificially remember the Lords form, qualities andpastimes. The Lord and His name are the same. This will be understood

    clearly when the coverings in your heart are removed. By chanting withoutoffenses you will personally realize that all perfections come from the holyname. Through chanting the distinction that exists between the self and thegross and subtle bodies is gradually effaced and one realizes ones ownspiritual form. Once aware of the spiritual body, as one continues to chant,one sees the transcendental nature of the Lords form. Only the holy namereveals the spiritual form of the living being and then causes him to beattracted to Krsnas form. Only the holy name reveals the spiritual qualities

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    of the living being and then causes him to be attracted to the Krsnasqualities. Only the holy name reveals the spiritual activities of the livingbeing and then causes him to be attracted to Krsnas pastimes. By service tothe holy name we do not only mean the chanting of the holy name; it alsoincludes the other duties of the chanter. If we serve the holy name with the

    body, mind and soul, then the direction of that service spontaneouslyappears manifests like the sun in the clear sky of the chanters heart. Whatis the nature of the holy name? Eventually all these understandingsspontaneously appear in the heart of one who chants the holy name. Thetrue nature of hari-nama is revealed by listening to reading and studyingscriptures. It is unnecessary to write anything further on this subject. Allthese things will be revealed to you through chanting.

    "The materialistic demeanour cannot possibly stretch to the TranscendentalAutocrat who is ever inviting the fallen conditioned souls to associate withHim through devotion, the eternal serving mood. The phenomenalattractions are often found to tempt sentient beings to enjoy the variegatedposition, which is opposed to undifferentiated monism. People are so muchapt to indulge in transitory speculations, even when they are to educatethemselves on a situation beyond their empiric area or experiencingjurisdiction. The esoteric aspect often knocks them to trace out immanencein their outward inspection of transitory and transformable things. Thisimpulse moves them to fix the position of the Immanent to an IndeterminateImpersonal Entity, no clue of which could be discerned by moving earth andheaven through their organic senses.Assuming Responsibility of Being Guru

    We have taken upon ourselves the responsibility of welcoming this gravecharge. All the audience have accepted ordinary seats, I alone have beenprovided with a lofty seat. All are being told in effect-"Do have a look at abig animal from the Zoo-gardens. What arrogance! So foolish! So wicked!Have you ever seen such a big brute? Garlands of flowers have been putround his neck! What laudations! What bombastic long-drawn, andhyperbolic adjectives! And how complacently too he is listening to the praiseof his own achievements, how intently, and with his own ears! He alsoevidently feels delighted in mind! Is he not acting in plain violation of theteaching of Mahprabhu? Can such a big brute, so selfish and insolent, be

    ever reclaimed from brutishness?"I happen to be one of the greatest of fools. No one offers me good advice onaccount of my arrogance. Inasmuch as nobody condescends to instruct me Iplaced my case before Mahprabhu Himself. The thought occurred to methat I would make over the charge of myself to Him and see what He wouldadvise me to do. Then r Caitanyadeva said to me:"Whom-so-ever thou meet'st,instruct him regarding Ka,

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    By My command being Guru deliver this land;In this thou wilt not be obstructedby the current of the world;Thou wilt have My company once again

    at this place."In these verses is to be found the proper explanation of the apparentinconsistency noticed above. He whose only teaching is humility greater thanthat of a blade of grass, said-"By My command being guru save this land!"In this instance Mahprabhu Himself has given the command. His commandbeing "Perform the duty of the guru, even as I do it Myself. Also convey thiscommand to whom-so-ever you chance to meet." Caitanyadeva says, "Tellthem these very words, viz. By My command being Guru save this land.Deliver the people from their foolishness." Now who-so-ever happens to hearthese words would naturally protest with palms joined-"But I am really agreat sinner; how can I be Guru? You are Godhead Himself, the Teacher ofthe world. You can be Guru." To this Mahprabhu replies:"In this thou will not be obstructedby the current of the world;Thou wilt have My company once againat this place.""Do not practice the craft of a guru for the purpose of injuring othersthrough malice. Do not adopt the trade of a guru in order to get immersed inthe slough of this world. But if you can, indeed, be My guileless servant youwill be endowed with My power-then you need not fear."I have no fear. My gurudeva has heard this from his gurudeva. And it is forthis reason that my gurudeva has accepted even such a great sinner asmyself and has told me: "By My command being guru save this land." It isonly those who have never heard these words of Gaursundara who say "Howodd! To listen to one's own praise!" While the guru is instructing his disciplein the eleventh Skandha of the Bhgavatam what a great sin, in theiropinion, is he not perpetuating! What is the crya to do when he has toexplain the loka, crya m vijaniyat: Never disregard the crya; neverentertain the idea that the crya is your equal in any sense." These are thewords of r Ka Himself by which the jiva is to be benefitted. Is the guruto take himself off, to desert his seat-the seat of the crya-from which

    these words are to be explained? That office his gurudeva has conferred onhim. If he does not act up to its requirements he is doomed to perdition byreason of his offense against the holy Name in the shape of disrespecttowards the guru. He has to do it in spite of the fact that such procedure isapparently open to the charge of egoism.When the guru imparts the mantram to the disciple should he not tell him bythis mantram to worship the guru? Should he say instead, "Give the guru a

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    few strokes of the shoe or the horse-whip?" The guru is never to be decried.The guru is the abode of all the gods. Should the gurudeva abstain fromcommunicating these words to his disciple while reading the Bhgavatam tohim? "To him alone who possesses guileless spiritual devotion, similar to thetranscendental devotion that is due to Ka Himself, to the gurudeva, the

    holy mysteries are manifested." Is the gurudeva not to tell these things tohis disciples? Athau gurupuja: the worship of the guru has precedence overall others." The guru is to be served just as Ka is served. The guru is tobe worshiped in a particular way. Is the guru to desert his seat withouttelling all these things to the disciple? In the angle there is always the defectin the shape of absence of the fullness, the evenness of level, of 180degrees or of 360 degrees. But in the plain surface, in 360 degrees, there isno such defect. That in the emancipated state no defect is possible, thissimple truth ordinary foolish people entirely fail to grasp.As the saying goes, "Having started on the dance it is no use to draw closethe veil." I am doing the duty of the guru, but if I preach that no one shouldshout "Jai" to me, that is to say, if I say in a round about way, "Sing Jai tome," it would be nothing short of duplicity. Our Gurudeva has not taught ussuch insincerity. Mahprabhu has not taught such insincerity. I have to serveGod in the straightforward way. The word of God has come down to thegurudeva; I have to obey it in all sincerity. I will not disrespect the guru atthe instance of any foolish or malicious sectarians. Especially as rGurudeva has directed me saying, "By My command being guru save thisland." This command has my gurudeva preached. My gurudeva in his turnhas conveyed the command to me. I will not be guilty of any insincerity incarrying out that command. In this matter I will not accept the ideal of

    ignorant, insincere, pseudo-ascetic sectarianism. I will not learn insincerity.The worldly-minded, the malicious, the pseudo-renunciationists, the selfishcannot understand how the devotees of God, spurning at everything of thisworld by command of God, never, not even for a second, deviate from theservice of God through all the twenty-four hours.Hypocritical sectarians, pseudo-Vaiava sects, those sects that cherishinternally the longing for earthly fame, naturally enough think "What ashame it is for one to listen to the eulogies of disciples occupying the seat ofthe guru." But every Vaiava regards everyone of the Vaiavas as theobject of his veneration. When hkura Haridsa exhibits the attitude of

    humility Mahprabhu says-"You are the greatest of the world, the crest-jewel of the world. Be agreeable, let us have our meal together." He carriedin His arms the body of hkura Haridsa which is eternally existent, self-conscious and full of spiritual bliss. In the community that follows r Rpa,the qualities of desiring no honor for oneself and of readiness to duly honorothers are fully present. Those who detect any disparity are, like the owl,blind while the sun shines. They commit an offense by such conduct.

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    If I disobey the law which has come down to me through the chain ofpreceptorial succession, the offense due to omission to carry out thecommand of the guru will sever me from the lotus-feet of r Gurudeva. Ifin order to carry out the command of the Vaiava guru I have to bearrogant, to be brutish, to suffer eternal perdition, I am prepared to

    welcome such eternal damnation and even sign a pact to that effect. I willnot listen to the words of other malicious persons in lieu of the command ofthe gurudeva. I will dissipate with indomitable courage and conviction thecurrents of thought of all the rest of the world, relying on the strengthderived from the lotus feet of r Gurudeva. I confess to this arrogance. Bysprinkling a particle of the pollen of the lotus-feet of my Preceptor crores ofpeople like you will be saved. There is no such learning in this world, no suchsound reasoning in all the fourteen worlds, in no man-gods, that can weighmore than a solitary particle of the dust of the lotus-feet of my gurudeva.Gurudeva in whom I have implicit trust can never spite me. I am by nomeans prepared to listen to the words of any one who wants to hurt me orto accept such a malicious person as my perceptor.


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