Dignity of Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Sri Nabadwip Dham
26 March 2016

(2) POWERFUL AND BONA FIDE

What is the main conception, what is the main teaching of Chaitanya Saraswat Math?

সাধুসঙ্গ, নামকীর্ত্তন, ভাগবতশ্রবণ ।
মথুরাবাস, শ্রীমূর্ত্তির শ্রদ্ধায় সেবন ॥

sadhu-sanga, nama-kirtana, bhagavata-sravana
mathura-vasa, sri-murtira sraddhaya sevana

"One should associate with devotees, chant the Holy Name of the Lord, hear Srimad-Bhagavatam, reside at Mathura and worship the Deity with faith and veneration."

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, Madhya-lila, 22.124)

Sadhu-sanga. Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur told,

মাতল হরিজন কীর্ত্তন-রঙ্গে ।
পূজল রাগপথ গৌরব-ভঙ্গে ॥

matala hari-jana kirtana-range
pujala raga-patha gaurava-bhange

"From afar we shall worship the raga-patha, the path of spontaneous affectionate service, while we ourselves shall live within the Vedic guideline."

Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj wrote so many things about Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur. Every day we sing these songs,

সুজনার্ব্বুদরাধিতপাদযুগং
যুগধর্ম্মধুরন্ধর-পাত্রবরম্ ।
বরদাভয়দায়ক-পূজ্যপদং
প্রণমামি সদা প্রভুপাদপদম্

sujanarvuda-radhita-pada-yugam
yuga-dharma-dhurandhara-patra-varam
varadabhaya-dayaka-pujya-padam
pranamami sada prabhupada-padam

"My master, Prabhupad Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur, established the religion of the age, Krishna-sankirtan, and is the chief minister of the universal assembly of leading Vaisnavas. His lotus feet are worshipped by millions of virtuous souls and fulfil the desires of those who dispel souls' fears. Eternally I offer my obeisance to my master's worshippable feet."

কৃপয়া হরিকীর্ত্তনমূর্ত্তিধরং
ধরণীভরহারক-গৌরজনম্ ।
জনকাধিকবৎসলস্নিগ্ধপদং
প্রণমামি সদা প্রভুপাদপদম্

krpaya hari-kirtana-murti-dharam
dharani-bhara-haraka-gaura-janam
janakadhika-vatsala-snigdha-padam
pranamami sada prabhupada-padam

"He is the embodiment of Hari-kirtan. He mercifully relieves Mother Earth of the burden upon her. He is an associate of Sri Gaura, and more kind and affectionate than a father. Eternally I offer my obeisance to my master's feet."

This is how Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj preached for his Guru, for his Prabhupad, and he preached very much. He also wrote,

জয়রে জয়রে জয় গৌর-সরস্বতী ।
ভকতিবিনোদান্বয় করুণামুরতি ॥

jayare jayare jaya gaura-saraswati
bhakativinodanvaya karuna murati

'All glory, all glory to Sri Gaura–Saraswati, the holy embodiment of mercy in the line of Sri Bhaktivinod Thakur'.

প্রকাশিলে গৌরসেবা ভূবনমঙ্গল ।
ভখতিসিদ্ধান্ত শুদ্ধ প্রজ্ঞান উজ্জ্বল ॥

prakasile gaura-seva bhuvana mangala
bhakatisiddhanta suddha prajnana ujjvala

'Revealing service to Sri Gaura, which spreads auspiciousness in this world, you presented devotional teachings (bhakti-siddhanta) that radiate self-effulgent pure transcendental knowledge'.

He wrote Sri Bhakti Vinod Viraha Dasakam and also this pranam-mantra about Srila Bhakti Vinod Thakur,

গুরুদং গ্রন্থদং গৈরধামদং নামদং মুদা
ভক্তিদং ভূরিদং বন্দে ভক্তিবিনোদকং সদা

guru-dam grantha-dam gaura-dhama-dam nama-dam muda
bhakti-dam bhuri-dam vande bhakti-vinodakam sada

"I perpetually offer my obeisance unto Srila Bhakti Vinod Thakur. Guru-dam: he is the bestower of Sri Guru (Bhagavan Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur). Grantha-dam: he is the author of numerous commentaries, treatises, articles, novels and songbooks. Gaura-dhama-dam: he is the revealer of the abode of Sriman Mahaprabhu. Nama-dam: he is the giver of the Name. Bhakti-dam: he is the granter of pure devotion. Bhuri-dam: he is the bestower of an abundance of divine fortune."

(Sri Laghu-chandrika-bhasya, 1.8)

He wrote so many things and Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur was happy with him. Srila Prabhupad himself said (after reading Sri Bhakti Vinod Viraha Dasakam), "What Srila Sridhar Maharaj wrote is impossible to write. Bhakti Vinod Thakur himself exists in his heart, that is why Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj can write these kinds of things."

Being so happy with him, Srila Prabhupad crossed many senior devotees like Kunja Babu, Bhakti Vilas Tirtha Maharaj, Bhakti Prajnan Keshav Maharaj and others, and gave sannyas to Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj.

So, we can understand that this is a real place, and we have come to such a beautiful place and have taken shelter of such a beautiful, such a great, bona fide Guru. We cannot do anything ourselves, we have no power to do anything, but our Guru is so powerful that he can take us from the illusory environment. This is our prayer and hope.

This is how our conception and preaching are going on. These are pure things. You can hear our songs and see our singing style—our preaching style is a little different from the Gaudiya Maths. Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj knew what Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur wanted. If you read his and Gurudev's books (Prapanna-jivanamritam, Golden Volcano of Divine Love, Sri Guru and His Grace, Search for Sri Krishna Reality the Beautiful, Revealed Truth, and others), you can see what kind of conception they wanted to give all over the world. We are very happy with that.

They are very merciful—just like Mahaprabhu they are going door to door, they do not think about themselves. Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj lived a simple life, he does not like a very gorgeous life, and Gurudev's life was also like that.

There was a time when Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj went to live in Vrindavan. There he got an akash-dhvani (a message from the sky) from Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur, "What have you come to Vrindavan for? Nirjan-bhajan is not my style. You are living in Pavan-sarovar, in Nanda-gram, but this is not going door to door. Go to Nabadwip, preach Krishna consciousness!" When he heard that, he came back.

Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj, Bhakti Kamal Madhusudan Maharaj, Bhakti Aloka Paramahamsa Maharaj, and other intimate disciples of Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur all took sannyas from Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj, then we can understand that Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj was not a simple person, was not a simple sadhu. He is so highly qualified...

When Bhakti Vichar Jajavar Maharaj, Bhakti Pramode Puri Goswami Maharaj, Bhakti Kamal Madhusudan Maharaj went to Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj's birthplace in Hapaniya, they all admitted it was not a simple place. Also, Srila Krishna Das Babaji Maharaj always went to see where Srila Sridhar Maharaj was born, in which playground Srila Sridhar Maharaj played football, in which pond Srila Sridhar Maharaj used to bathe, which school he went to, and so on. Srila Sridhar Maharaj asked him, "You are my godbrother, you love me and you go to my birthplace, it is not a problem, but why do you go to so many places like this? Why do you want to know which playground I played football in, which pond I bathed in?" Srila Krishna Das Babaji Maharaj replied, "Maharaj, looking at the slokas that you write, I am thinking it is not written by an ordinary person. I think Srila Rupa Goswami himself wrote these slokas!" So, you can understand from this how much honour and respect all of the godbrothers gave to Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj.

You can also see A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj. When he went to preach in the foreign countries, before starting his preaching tour, he came here to ask Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj for mercy, and when he came back from his foreign tour, he would come Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj and tell him everything about the preaching abroad. Also, do you know who first declared that Srila Swami Maharaj was a saktya-vesa-avatar? Who is saktya-vesa-avatar? It is Nityananda Prabhu. Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj was first to declare, "Srila Swami Maharaj Prabhupad is not an ordinary person—he is a saktya-vesa-avatar of Sriman Nityananda Prabhu."

When Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj came here in Nabadwip, at first he did not want to make so many disciples, he was that kind of person, but many godbrothers pressed him so much asking him to give initiations. Then one time he went to Ekachakra where he prayed to Nityananda Prabhu for mercy, but Nityananda Prabhu told him, "You are coming to ask Me for mercy, but you already have so much mercy from Srila Prabhupad Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur. First distribute that mercy, then I will think about it." This is how he gradually started making disciples.

This is aparadh-bhanjan-pat, Koladwip, and we are very fortunate that we can stay and live in this kind of place and that we have come to such a powerful and bona fide teacher...

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