Appeal of
Spiritual World
'We want eternity, we want love, we want affection, we want mercy and
ecstasy. These are our hankerings, but this mundane world cannot successfully
give any of these things to us. You can find some love in this world, but it
is temporary and selfish. Real love comes from above, from the spiritual
world.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (19.7 Mb, 42 min | Bengali | 8 December
2020)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Six Good
Qualities
"You must always make yourself busy with the service of the Lord, with all
kinds of devotional activities. When we pray in the Vaishnav song, we ask for
six good qualities, and it is necessary to have such qualities."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2 Mb, 5 min | 10 May 2020)
Today in the calendar:
Krishna Dvitiya. Disappearance of Tridandi-swami Srimad Bhakti Vilas Tirtha
Maharaj [a dear disciple, associate, and Mission Manager of Srila Bhakti
Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur; his previous name is Sri Kunja Bihari Prabhu,
affectionally called 'Kunja Babu'].
His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj: "Even if you do
not know anything about the Vaishnav mentioned in the calendar, you must
still give them 'jay' on this day. We must always remember disappearance and
appearance days of all Vaishnavs. If we can remember such personalities, such
great souls, it will bring a great benefit to our spiritual life."
"We should always check the calendar, and when we see some dates mentioned
there, even if we do not know anything about the Vaishnav or events mentioned
there, we can at least give 'jay' to them—that also brings some good sukriti,
some purification to us. Seeing the calendar and taking devotees' names early
in the morning, from the beginning of the day, is very good for all
devotees."
In honour of Srila Bhakti Vilas
Tirtha Maharaj:
His Divine Grace Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj:
"When Kunja Babu [later, Srila Bhakti Vilas Tirtha Maharaj] came to meet
Srila Prabhupad, Srila Prabhupad could recognise that this young man would be
able to help him a great deal. Our Guru Maharaj's nature was like that of a
philosopher—he did not like to mix with the public, but Kunja Babu filled
that side as he could mix with public and bring persons to Srila Prabhupad,
enabling thus Srila Prabhupad to speak about the sastra. Srila Prabhupad
wanted to speak about Mahaprabhu, but his temperament was such that he did
not like to become involved with inviting people and taking responsibility
for looking after them or their accommodation, feeding, etc. So, when Kunja
Babu joined, he took up that responsibility. Srila Prabhupad got educated
society ready to hear his speech about Mahaprabhu, and his style of speaking
was a little philosophical, so he preferred educated society as his
listeners. Kunja Babu did that service—he took the trouble of inviting,
accommodating, and feeding the public. All these troublesome burdens were
taken on by Kunja Babu.
"Gaudiya Mission had gradually grown from this combination—the
material help of Kunja Babu and the spiritual work of Srila Prabhupad. They
were the father and the mother of the mission, the cofounders of Gaudiya
Math. The practical, material side of the service was done by Kunja Babu.
Srila Prabhupad once said in Benares (I heard it directly from his mouth), 'I
only want a good audience, and Kunja Babu has done that service to me the
best. Amongst all my disciples, Kunja Babu has served me the best by bringing
to me a good audience. I only want a good audience, nothing else, in this
world, and in that direction, Kunja Babu has helped me greatly.'
"In the end, Srila Prabhupad Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur's order was
to form a governing body of ten or twelve, and Kunja Babu had to manage as
long as he lived. 'Kunja Babu's intelligence excells that of all,' this was
told about him. We took it as Kunja Babu was the manager during Prabhupad's
lifetime, but he was actually managing the whole institution, so he should be
respected even though he was a grihastha and we were sannyasis. Later, many
complaints were heard against him, but Srila Prabhupad had told us that Kunja
Babu had to manage as long as he lived and that he should be respected. Srila
Prabhupad did not select anyone as his follower acharya, that is why there
was eventually a difference of opinion amongst us. There were also many
ambitious sannyasis who were eager to go on as acharyas themselves.
There were generally two parties, one accepting Vasudev Prabhu as the
acharya, and the other one accepting Kunja Babu..."
His Divine Grace Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj:
"Sri Bimala Prasad got initiation from Srila Gaura Kishor Das Babaji
Maharaj and later, when he took sannyas, he became known as Bhagavan Sri
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur. At some point, he promised that he
would complete chanting one hundred crores Holy Names and after that
start preaching Mahaprabhu's proper conception, but as he was chanting the
Holy Name, one day Sri Sri Guru Gauranga Gandharva Giridhari came in front of
him and Srimati Radharani said, 'You must preach pure conception of Gauranga
Mahaprabhu, the combined form of Radha-Krishna.' Srila Bhaktisiddhanta
Saraswati Thakur said, 'I am alone, how will I preach?' After that so many
great scholars (dig-pals) came to help him—our Param Gurudev Om
Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj, Srila A.C.
Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj, Srila Bhakti Vilas Tirtha Maharaj, Srila Bhakti
Dayita Madhav Goswami Maharaj, Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj, Srila
Bhakti Prajnan Keshav Maharaj, Srila Bhakti Kamal Madhusudan Goswami Maharaj,
Srila Bhakti Vichar Jajavar Maharaj, Srila Bhakti Kumud Shanta Maharaj and
many others. This is how Prabhupad started preaching the proper conception in
this world.
"In Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswat Thakur's time, the secretary of
Chaitanya Math was a grihastha, his name is Kunja Bihari Prabhu
(affectionately known as Kunja Babu), later he became Srila Bhakti Vilas
Tirtha Maharaj. Kunja Babu could not always stay at the temple, but he always
served Chaitanya Math from his householder life. Moreover, when he would come
to visit Chaitanya Math, to see Prabhupad, at that time almost all
sannyasis would give him their full obeisance.
Mon, 2 October 2023
Search
for Reality the Beautiful
'Only when it comes to believing in God are we very unfortunate. Come to the
faithful level and try from there. Srnvantu visve amrtasya putra: you
are all the sons of nectar; you must search for Sri Krishna, Reality the
Beautiful, and you will get everything.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (19.7 Mb, 42 min | Bengali | 8 December
2020)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
"May I
Always Remain a Disciple"
"Actually, what I am telling is not so easy to practise, but I am also
thinking that I must speak about it—if I keep telling about it again and
again, then if I listen to it myself all the time, I will be able to practise
it properly one day, too."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.5 Mb, 4 min | 10 May 2020)
Tue, 3 October 2023
Faith Is Not
Idleness
'Search for Sri Krishna, Reality the Beautiful, and you will get everything:
the transcendental world will manifest itself to you, and you can get one of
the five kinds of relationship with the Lord.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (19.7 Mb, 42 min | Bengali | 8 December
2020)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Be in Good
Association and Be Good Association
"(1) Sometimes, we are staying with some bad
association, sometimes we may live together, but we must ignore and avoid
such kind of association. (2) It is
necessary to be a proper mother—to be a mother like Yasoda, a mother like
Sachi Mata, not a mother like Kaikeyi."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.6 Mb, 4 min | 10 May 2020)
Wed, 4 October 2023
Supreme Religion
'The supreme religion for all humanity is that by which men can attain to
loving devotional service unto the transcendental Lord. Such devotional
service must be unmotivated and uninterrupted to completely satisfy the
self.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (7.3 Mb, 16 min | English | 6 December
2020)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Krishna's
Arrangement
"Krishna is always powerful, Krishna can do anything. Even what is meant to
happen may not happen, and what is not mean to happen may happen. It is not
necessary to be worried about it. Who will commit suicide, who will leave,
who will stay—everything is Krishna's arrangement."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.2 Mb, 8 min | 10 May 2020)
Thu, 5 October 2023
Eternal
Memory of Nabadwip
'You must learn these things by heart. If anybody asks you about the nine
islands of Nabadwip and which kind of devotion resides where, you must be
able to tell it. Otherwise, it means that you do the parikrama of the
nine islands, and you only walk and look around, gaping at nice
buildings.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (10.8 Mb, 24 min | Bengali | 15 December
2020)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
First
Requirement
"Your mind tells you, 'Oh, it is necessary to relax'—do not listen to your
mind. Tell yourself, 'I have service, and I must do that service first.' It
is necessary to do what is required, and your first requirement is your
service."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.2 Mb, 3 min | 10 May 2020)
—{ Sri Hari-Kirtan Mahatmya }—
Samsara-davanala
'I offer my obeisance unto the lotus feet of Sri Guru, by pleasing whom one
can please the Lord and without pleasing whom there is no other way; I sing
and meditate on his glory at the three junctions of the day.'
'If you do not understand the meaning of kirtans, it will not stay in
your mind then. When you chant, you must understand the meaning of the
kirtan, then it will stay in your heart. Common people do not
understand the meaning of kirtans: they listen to kirtan bands,
enjoy the tune, etc., but this is not the way to practise kirtan. When
you chant kirtan, you must understand the meaning of what you are
singing – some devotional feeling must come to your heart.'
—Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj
'Some gentleman was singing a song of Srila Narottam Das Thakur. When he
finished singing, Srila Vamsi Das Babaji Maharaj remarked, "You have only
superficially repeated the sound, but the real influence, the real
impression, the inner voltage is unknown to you. Those who are hit by strong
feeling suggested by this song can know the power underlying it, but you are
merely repeating the sound physically, you do not feel the volt, the energy
within it. The voltage of the meaning of this song has not struck your
heart." He remarked like that. Ordinary men who exist on the surface only
repeat sounds, but those whose hearts have been touched by the deep
underlying meaning, they can understand what that song contains...'
—Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj
Fri, 6 October 2023
Siksastakam
in Nutshell
'If our hearts are not clean, we cannot understand who we are, neither can we
give place to the Lord in our hearts. We chant so much, we hear so many
things from our guru, we hear so much about Krishna, but our hearts do
not change even after hearing it.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (10.8 Mb, 24 min | Bengali | 15 December
2020)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Mahaprabhu's
Teachings (1): No False Renunciation
"A house is not a place for only enjoyment—your house is Krishna's house,
Vaishnavs' house, guru-varga's house, your house is meant for the
service of the Lord. It is not necessary to show monkey renunciation—you can
keep your house, enjoy your life but without material attachment. Be sincere
in your heart, practise with heart and soul."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.9 Mb, 7 min | 17 May 2020)
—{ Sri Hari-Kirtan Mahatmya }—
Sri
Guru-charana-padma
'Make the teachings coming from Sri Guru's lotus mouth one with your heart
and do not keep any desires. Attachment to Sri Guru's holy feet is the
highest path: all aspirations are fulfilled by his mercy.'
'If you do not understand the meaning of kirtans, it will not stay in
your mind then. When you chant, you must understand the meaning of the
kirtan, then it will stay in your heart. Common people do not
understand the meaning of kirtans: they listen to kirtan bands,
enjoy the tune, etc., but this is not the way to practise kirtan. When
you chant kirtan, you must understand the meaning of what you are
singing – some devotional feeling must come to your heart.'
—Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj
'Some gentleman was singing a song of Srila Narottam Das Thakur. When he
finished singing, Srila Vamsi Das Babaji Maharaj remarked, "You have only
superficially repeated the sound, but the real influence, the real
impression, the inner voltage is unknown to you. Those who are hit by strong
feeling suggested by this song can know the power underlying it, but you are
merely repeating the sound physically, you do not feel the volt, the energy
within it. The voltage of the meaning of this song has not struck your
heart." He remarked like that. Ordinary men who exist on the surface only
repeat sounds, but those whose hearts have been touched by the deep
underlying meaning, they can understand what that song contains...'
—Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj
Sat, 7 October 2023
Enriched with
Service
'So many phone calls have been coming the whole day from early in the
morning – they are giving me so many good wishes. It is giving me much
inspiration and enthusiasm for service. I am getting power and much energy
from the devotees.'
Internal
Inconsistencies
'We say humbly that every jiva soul is part of the Lord, but
sometimes, along with the Lord, there can also be some bad thoughts, some
devil working in our hearts. That is a big problem. These things depend upon
one's devotion and faith.'
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Mahaprabhu's
Teachings (3): No Caste Consideration
"Those who come from a lower caste, who come from a mlechha family, who come
from some bad family, are not unfit to worship the Lord—they also have the
qualification, the right to chanting the Name of the Lord."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.4 Mb, 6 min | 17 May 2020)
Mon, 9 October 2023 (Tomorrow is Indira Ekadasi)
Big Temple Is Not
All
'Even if there is a small temple, a small place with five–ten people staying
there, but if they always glorify Gurudev, always singing the songs of
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and preach about Mahaprabhu, that is sufficient for us
and that is more important for us.'
In honour of the forthcoming
divine appearance day of our beloved Sri Gurupadpadma His Divine Grace Om
Vishnupad Jagad-Guru Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj:
2010
My Joy and My Plight
"I have never wanted this—that I would sit in one place and everybody would
come, pay obeisance to me. Never. I want to go and chant and dance
everywhere, preach in the villages—this is my life. It is impossible for me,
it is actually an austerity for me, but I have to keep Gurudev's word."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.6 Mb, 8 min | 8 October 2010)
"I Need Your Mercy!"
"I am here today to get your mercy—I am here today to worship you, I have not
come to take worship. I only want to serve the Vaishnavs, I have no other
desire. I do not want anybody to do my puja, I want to serve you all."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.8 Mb, 8 min | 8 October 2010)
2011
Sri Vyasa Puja Day: A Happy
Day
"Today is a very happy day for me: everybody is giving their mercy to me.
Also, I can see all the devotees today, they are happily enjoying the
programme and glorifying Gurudev. That is my thing—I do not want my
glorification, I always want to glorify my Guru."
• Download
(1.3 Mb, 4 min)
Fending Maya Off: Nourish
Others, Protect Yourself
"Call devotees and bring them to the temple, help them keep connection.
Maya is very powerful, but when devotees are with devotees,
maya always runs away. We must worry about our quality. We can be
small, but our line should be perfect."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.2 Mb, 4 min)
Kirtans Vandana • Gurudev krpa bindu diya • Oh vaisnava thakura dayara
sagara • Akrodha paramananda Nityananda Ray • Avatara sara Gora
avatara • Hare Krishna maha-mantra.
•
Download / listen to the audio (6.6 Mb, 20 min)
My Great Fortune and Hope
"Actually I do not know when my birth day is, but Gurudev told me, 'This is
your birth day,' and that is why devotees celebrate this day. Celebrating
means what? Celebrating means devotees are giving mercy to me on this day and
I am becoming indebted to them."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.2 Mb, 7 min)
Sankirtan Yajna—Soul of
Preaching
"Where it is allowed, you must do sankirtan in the street—there may be
only five of you, but if you do sankirtan, people will come, even
birds, beasts, trees will get benefit through your kirtan. If you sit
in your house, no one will come—start the fire, wind will come."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.7 Mb, 5 min | 28 September 2011)
"I bow my head in eternal obeisance to my Gurudev, the best of acharyas,
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj. He is the ever vigilant, stalwart
guardian of the current of pure devotion whose highest form flows from our
most worshippable Sri Rupanuga Guru-varga in their exclusive dedication to
Mahabhav, Srimati Radharani."
Dear Devotees, Friends, and Well-Wishers:
Please accept our humble obeisance at your holy feet.
We would like to extend a humble invitation to your holy self to join the
celebration of the divine appearance day of Sri Gurupadpadma Om Vishnupad
Jagad-Guru Sri Srimad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj that is manifested
this year on 15 October 2023 (Sunday).
We earnestly pray that all devotees of Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math may find a
possibility to observe this day immersed in Sri Hari-katha, Hari-kirtan
and Hari-seva, which are so extremely dear to our Sri Gurupadpadma, who
continues to guide, protect and watch over us, albeit unseen to our mundane
eyes. On this holy day, as far as possible, please join and render assistance to
the festivals observed in your communities and focus eternally in your lives
on contributing the core ingredient of every service endeavour—your entire
being, mind, heart and soul. In the words of His Divine Grace, "Gurudev's
lila is going on, but only the fortunate souls can see it, that is why
we must engage everybody in service on his appearance day. Whatever capacity
we have—in kaya, mana, vakya (body, mind and speech)—we
must serve his appearance day."
Taking your feet dust on our heads, we humbly pray that this supremely
worshippable divine appearance day of Sri Gurupadpadma, celebrated with much
joy and grandeur by the fortunate souls throughout the entire manifest
creation, may pass auspiciously in every house and heart.
Your aspiring servants,
on behalf of SCSMathInternational.com
Satisfying the Lord
"Bali Maharaj asked Vamanadev, 'O brahman, what do you want? Tell me,
and I can give You anything you wish.' Vamanadev replied, 'I do not want
much. I know you have everything, but I want only something small.'"
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.7 Mb, 7 min | 30 August 2020)
Guidance, Volume Four (English)[PDF, 4 Mb]
A holy book composed by Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj and
published from Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math on the holy appearance day of Sri
Gaurasundar in 2020 (835 Gaurabda). Translated into English and published, on
the order of His Divine Grace, on the holy appearance day of Sri Gaurasundar
in the same year.
"Sri Gurudev is the only shelter for a disciple. Those who
have become disciples live in complete adherence to their guru. If one
retains independence, they cannot be called a 'disciple'—they can take the
mantra, they can take initiation, but if they do not accept guidance or
disciplining of Sri Gurudev, they cannot be called a real disciple. Gurudev
has a vast wealth. Those who are born into his lineage, can get the right for
his wealth. Gurudev's wealth is not temples, buildings, houses, money; his
wealth is faith, devotion and love.
"What happens after initiation? It is necessary to practise
hearing and chanting, worship Deities and do service. You must serve with
love, affection, extracting loving devotion from your very being. You must
always think about what makes Him happy. You must be anxious to make Him
happy and always be alert and conscious of His happiness. Sacrifice your
selfish interests for His happiness, serve for His happiness."
Favourite Preparations
When asked, His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya
Maharaj replies, "When devotees give me something with affection, I take
that." The following, however, is a list of preparations favourite to His
Divine Grace that was provided by the servitors of His Divine Grace.
Tue, 10 October 2023 (Sri Indira Ekadasi)
Servitor's Pride
'Gurudev always told that in this Age of Kali, it is very difficult to
conquer Maya, the illusory environment, and it is very difficult to conquer
pratistha (name and fame). You can conquer kanak (thirst for
money) and kamini (attraction to women), but it is very hard to give
up pratistha.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (8.2 Mb, 20 min | English | 17 October
2020)
In honour of the forthcoming
divine appearance day of our beloved Sri Gurupadpadma His Divine Grace Om
Vishnupad Jagad-Guru Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj:
2013
Sri Vyasa Puja Day: My
Mood and Request
"Every day is a service day for me, but today is the day when I must serve
devotees more. I do not know how much I can surrender, but Gurudev made me
his dog, and that is why I am serving as his dog—I am still serving and
protecting the temple as a dog..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.5 Mb, 5 min | 6 October 2013)
Sri Vyasa Puja Day:
Appreciating Mercy
"You have already got it from Gurudev. We have lost our address and Krishna
sent Gurudev to take us to our address. So, we already understand what is our
real home. Always be successful in your spiritual life, always proceed in
your spiritual life."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.1 Mb, 3 min | 6 October 2013)
Sri
Vyasa Puja Day: My Only Prayer
"I am very happy to see you all. You are celebrating this festival, but
actually for me this day is not a day to take puja from others, but
today is the day when I must give puja to all the devotees..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1 Mb, 3 min | 6 October 2013)
2014
Part 1:
How to See the Guru: Mercy
Clear guidance on how to understand who the Guru is, and how a sincere
disciple should see the Guru: the Guru is not only a mahabhagavata (a great
devotee), he is nondifferent from Krishna Himself.
•
Download / listen to the audio (6.4 Mb, 14 min | 25 September 2014)
Part 2:
How to See the Guru: Chastity
The main quality of a sincere disciple explained by several examples:
one-pointed attention, rejecting the unfavourable, intense attachment to
service and devotees, faith, and careful choice of association.
•
Download / listen to the audio (7 Mb, 15 min | 25 September 2014)
Sri Ekadasi Guidance Guidelines on how to observe and honour this holy day: Ekadasi takes an
indispensible part in the life of a sincere practitioner. At Sri Chaitanya
Saraswat Math, Ekadasi and paran are observed with affection and without
fail according to the dates given in the Calendar.
Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj about fasting on ekadasi and
accepting material facilities:
"One time, a devotee came here from Vrindavan on the day of
ekadasi. He reached in the evening and, after taking a bath in the
Ganges, attended kirtans, danced, circumambulated the temple and so
on. Then, I asked him whether he would take any anukalpa [non-grain
prasadam that is allowed to be taken on ekadasi]. He replied,
'Generally, I do not take anything, but if you like, then, of course, I must
like anukalpa. Your will is greater than my fasting.' That was his
decision.
"My Guru Maharaj (Srila Prabhupad Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur)
always wanted maximum energy: you should take good food and do good service.
That was his maxim. Krishna is not a liquidated party: take full
prasadam and do full service. Do maximum service, and you should take
whatever is necessary for that. You are to take it for the cause of Krishna,
not for your own cause. You are Krishna's, so if you grow weak, His service
will be hampered, and both you and Krishna will be losers thereby. 'My
soldiers will be well-fed and well-working.' That was our Guru Maharaj's
principle. Napoleon said, 'One full-fed soldier is equal to ten half-fed
soldiers.'
"So, prasad-seva: if it is service, then it must be taken in a
serving mood, of course. But, at the same time, the individual position of a
devotee should be taken into consideration. Sahajiyas do not fast on
ekadasi at all: "Oh, we are in Vrindavan, and there is no fasting in
Vrindavan." But Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur, Srila Prabhupad did not like
that—it is sahajiya (imitation) if you go on feeding your senses in
the name of Krishna-bhakti (devotion to the Lord). For the service to
Krishna, it is necessary to keep up the body and to provide nourishment to
it, so we must take what is necessary for service. We do not like it if by
fasting, a loss of energy is effected. If fasting does not hamper your
service, you may go on fasting—perhaps, your Gurudev wanted
that...
"For service, I must accept what is necessary to make me physically
fit so that I can render more service. So, accepting material things is not
objectionable. It is fruitful, not detrimental. Rather, it produces something
of a pure character, which helps everyone. This is how a disciple receives
and accepts things. At that same time, he may even blame himself, 'I cannot
go on with my worldly life without the help of this or that!' He will blame
himself, but the underlying spirit must be, 'If I do not take it, I shall be
unfit; I will not be able to do my bit of service to the Lord, to my
Gurudev.'
"Moreover, by taking up renunciation, I will be a loser. I will incur
a loss for myself, for the world, and my Guru's service will be hampered. In
this spirit, devotees are to take everything. For the cause of Krsna, for the
cause of his Guru, they will accept anything.
"Suppose there is a very miserly karmachari (manager). Because
he does not want to spend money, he may not attain a particular result; then,
some difficulty comes, and the opportunity is lost. This manager will be
responsible to the proprietor: 'Why did you not spend money? Why are you
afraid of spending money from my store? Because of your miserly habit,
the opportunity has been lost!' 'Why should you not spend My money for My
interest?' So, to render service to Krishna, to my Gurudev, to Vaishnavs, to
the world, to everyone, I must keep up this mundane body, and I am entitled
to take something for that.
"Miserliness is mayavada; it is the renunciation spirit, and it
will mar Krishna's interest. What we need is yukta-vairagya: I shall
take from the store of Krishna to keep myself fit and to do service. It is
Krishna's account, and if I do dot do that, I should be a separationist, a
mayavadi, a renunciationist. I shall render maximum service to
Krishna, and I must take without any hestitation whatever is necessary to
make myself fit for the service; otherwise, I shall be
punishable."
•"Sri Ekadasi"
(Sri Sri Prema Vivarta)
"One day, Gaurahari left the Gundicha Temple and sat in the Jagannath
Vallabha garden. It was pure Ekadasi, and the Lord spent the whole day and
night chanting the Name of Krishna..."
•SONG:
Suddha-bhakata |
শুদ্ধ ভকত-চরণ-রেণু "I carefully observe the holy days related to Madhava, they are the mother
of devotion."
•SONG:
Sri hari-vasare |
শ্রীহরি-বাসরে হরি "On the holy day of Sri Hari, Sriman Mahaprabhu, the life and
soul of the universe, began dancing..."
"You do not need to know the meaning of each ekadasi tithi because if
you know it, you will want to get this result, that result, etc."
(Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj)
Wed, 11 October 2023
Practise, Preach
and Proceed
'We must always be careful. We must preach Mahaprabhu's message properly, and
we must go door to door distributing His message everywhere. This is the main
duty in our lives. If you make big buildings, big houses, what is the use if
devotees do not live there?'
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.6 Mb, 9 min | English | 17 October
2020)
In honour of the forthcoming
divine appearance day of our beloved Sri Gurupadpadma His Divine Grace Om
Vishnupad Jagad-Guru Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj:
12 October 2015 (Adhivas)
Sri Vyasa Puja, Adhivas Day(Bengali; the English is translation
below)
His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj is speaking on the eve
of His Divine Appearance Day.
•
Download / listen to the audio (32.5 Mb, 95 min)
Your Fortune, My Fortune
"You have assembled here today for this occasion to give mercy to a fallen
soul like myself. I feel humbled and very fortunate. It is very difficult to
get the darshan of Vaishnavs. When I am giving initiation, do you know
what I am remembering?..."
Be Conscious and
Cautious
"To live eternally in Vraja, you must enter a relationship with your Guru,
after that if you practise, you can understand your destination. How can we
make Gurudev happy? If we can understand it step by step, then we will be
able to understand the main teaching."
Greatness Is Not Measured by
Cloth
"Religion means we must bring the jiva souls to Krishna consciousness.
Gurudev gave this duty to me, and this is not only my responsibility, it is
your responsibility too. Gurudev said, 'One does not become a sannyasi
just by wearing a sannyasi's clothes.'"
Surrender: Eye-Opener
"'Do you not know who this is? Can you not recognise Him? He is the Guru of
all, He is Lord Krishna Himself! He has come to this world to awaken the
souls. He took sannyas from Keshav Bharati.' Sarvabhauma Bhattacharya
did not believe it."
Mercy Means Anugatya
"It is necessary to always think about the order of your Guru. Guru's mercy
means following the order of the Guru—if you follow the order of your Guru,
then you get his mercy. You can go to the market, buy chanting beads and
chant on them—but it is not the same."
Neither Cry nor
Laugh
"You must ask yourself first, 'Do you love yourself or your Guru more? Do you
love the Lord or yourself more?' Examine yourself. How long will you sleep in
the lap of Maya? How long will you choke and struggle in the waters of
Maya?"
Pure Current
"This Name was chanted in many villages, but with offence, and Bhaktivinod
Thakur, holding the current of devotion, preached the pure Holy Name to this
world just as Maharaj Bhagirath brought the Ganges to this world."
Thu, 12 October 2023
'I Am at Your Service'
'I have seen how many times Gurudev went abroad to reach out to you all, to
touch your heart and how much love and affection he gave to you all. Gurudev
chose me as his perfect dog for his service, and I am always at your service:
you can use me in any way, in any place.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.7 Mb, 8 min | English | 17 October
2020)
In honour of the forthcoming
divine appearance day of our beloved Sri Gurupadpadma His Divine Grace Om
Vishnupad Jagad-Guru Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj:
2017
My Service Day
"I am always with the devotees, I am always thinking about the devotees and I
am always thinking about Gurudev. Actually, this day is my service day. I
must serve my Gurudev more, I want to serve the devotees—this is how I want
to celebrate this day. This is my happiness."
•
Download / listen to the audio (0.5 Mb, 1 min | 20 September 2017)
2018
Meaning of Guru Puja
"We must understand the meaning of 'guru-puja.' If you only offer some
arati to Gurudev, this is not guru-puja. Guru-puja means
guru-seva. We must always think, "How can I please my Guru? What does
Gurudev want? What does he like?" We must understand this and fulfil
Gurudev's most cherished desires."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.3 Mb, 7 min | Bengali | 9 October 2018)
Key to Guru Puja
"Gurudev had explained and taught me that when you make a festival not much
is necessary—a festival means Vaishnav seva, bhakta-seva.
Guru-seva is not engaging your Guru in service—it means serving your
Guru, serving his devotees."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.6 Mb, 7 min | Bengali | 9 October 2018)
Service Consciousness
"If we always practise and if we always serve Vaishnavs, then we can become
worthy of a particle of dust from the lotus feet of Vaishnavs—that is
sufficient for us. If you fast and offer some flower to your Guru but do not
take part in service—it means you think about yourself, not about
others."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2 Mb, 6 min | Bengali | 9 October 2018)
Sri Vyasa
Puja Speech
"Actually, all the devotees have come here from all over Bengal and many
countries also and they are celebrating my birthday, but I am not thinking
about my birthday because I do not want to take any puja from
devotees. I always want to be servitors' servitor, I do not want to take any
service from others."
•
Download / listen to the audio (5.5 Mb, 16 min | 10 October 2018)
Servitor's Livelihood
"Everything we have actually comes from our Guru. Without Gurudev's mercy we
are nothing, we have no power. We are only instruments. I do not think that I
am a Vaishnav, nor do I want to be a Vaishnav. I want to be a servant of the
servant of Vaishnavs. That has been my desire from the beginning, since the
time I started my temple life in 1992."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.1 Mb, 8 min | 12 October 2018)
On Chastity
"Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj had many qualified scholarly pandit
disciples, but he chose Gurudev. You can read many scriptures many times, you
may know many things, but the Guru can understand who can follow his
conception, who has chastity for him."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.1 Mb, 6 min | 12 October 2018)
Mercy of Guru
"Without the mercy of the Guru, without the instruction of the Guru you
cannot cross, you cannot overcome the illusory environment. We must
understand clearly what is the mercy of the Guru."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.8 Mb, 5 min | 12 October 2018)
Sat, 14 October 2023 (Sri Vyasa Puja Maha-Mahotsav Adhivas)
Serve Carefully
'You cannot proceed in your spiritual life, you cannot prosper in your
spiritual life without service to Vaishnavs and devotees. It is necessary to
serve devotees. This is the main thing in our lives. This is our Vaishnav
culture.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (10.8 Mb, 23 min | English | 17 October
2020)
In honour of the forthcoming
divine appearance day of our beloved Sri Gurupadpadma His Divine Grace Om
Vishnupad Jagad-Guru Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj:
2020
"Inconceivable,
Unbelievable, and Unimaginable"
"Everybody is giving their love and affection and all together making this
day for me. Actually, I am getting shy to make my birthday festival, but
devotees are always enthusiastic to make this festival, even in this pandemic
situation..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (4.1 Mb, 10 min)
Clearing
Contradictions
"Everybody's vision and feelings are not the same. Sometimes, you look like a
man, but at other times, you deal or talk with others like a demon. Krishna
lives in all living entities. However, we sometimes see there is also a demon
living in the heart of the jiva soul."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.4 Mb, 8 min)
A Very Busy Day
"Phone calls have been coming today from all over the world starting from
3:30-4 o'clock in the morning. Everyone is calling me continuously. Not only
in foreign countries they are making big festivals today, but also in all the
temples, centres here in India..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.5 Mb, 4 min)
Service with Full
Enthusiasm
"The most important thing is that all the devotees are with me. 'Maharaj,
where you are, that is Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math—and we will go wherever
you are!' When I hear devotees say this, my heart overflows."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.3 Mb, 8 min)
"I bow my head in eternal obeisance to my Gurudev, the best of acharyas,
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj. He is the ever vigilant, stalwart
guardian of the current of pure devotion whose highest form flows from our
most worshippable Sri Rupanuga Guru-varga in their exclusive dedication to
Mahabhav, Srimati Radharani."
Dear Devotees, Friends, and Well-Wishers:
Please accept our humble obeisance at your holy feet.
We would like to extend a humble invitation to your holy self to join the
celebration of the divine appearance day of Sri Gurupadpadma Om Vishnupad
Jagad-Guru Sri Srimad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj that is manifested
this year on 15 October 2023 (Sunday).
We earnestly pray that all devotees of Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math may find a
possibility to observe this day immersed in Sri Hari-katha, Hari-kirtan
and Hari-seva, which are so extremely dear to our Sri Gurupadpadma, who
continues to guide, protect and watch over us, albeit unseen to our mundane
eyes. On this holy day, as far as possible, please join and render assistance to
the festivals observed in your communities and focus eternally in your lives
on contributing the core ingredient of every service endeavour—your entire
being, mind, heart and soul. In the words of His Divine Grace, "Gurudev's
lila is going on, but only the fortunate souls can see it, that is why
we must engage everybody in service on his appearance day. Whatever capacity
we have—in kaya, mana, vakya (body, mind and speech)—we
must serve his appearance day."
Taking your feet dust on our heads, we humbly pray that this supremely
worshippable divine appearance day of Sri Gurupadpadma, celebrated with much
joy and grandeur by the fortunate souls throughout the entire manifest
creation, may pass auspiciously in every house and heart.
Your aspiring servants,
on behalf of SCSMathInternational.com
Satisfying the Lord
"Bali Maharaj asked Vamanadev, 'O brahman, what do you want? Tell me,
and I can give You anything you wish.' Vamanadev replied, 'I do not want
much. I know you have everything, but I want only something small.'"
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.7 Mb, 7 min | 30 August 2020)
Guidance, Volume Four (English)[PDF, 4 Mb]
A holy book composed by Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj and
published from Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math on the holy appearance day of Sri
Gaurasundar in 2020 (835 Gaurabda). Translated into English and published, on
the order of His Divine Grace, on the holy appearance day of Sri Gaurasundar
in the same year.
"Sri Gurudev is the only shelter for a disciple. Those who
have become disciples live in complete adherence to their guru. If one
retains independence, they cannot be called a 'disciple'—they can take the
mantra, they can take initiation, but if they do not accept guidance or
disciplining of Sri Gurudev, they cannot be called a real disciple. Gurudev
has a vast wealth. Those who are born into his lineage, can get the right for
his wealth. Gurudev's wealth is not temples, buildings, houses, money; his
wealth is faith, devotion and love.
"What happens after initiation? It is necessary to practise
hearing and chanting, worship Deities and do service. You must serve with
love, affection, extracting loving devotion from your very being. You must
always think about what makes Him happy. You must be anxious to make Him
happy and always be alert and conscious of His happiness. Sacrifice your
selfish interests for His happiness, serve for His happiness."
Favourite Preparations
When asked, His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya
Maharaj replies, "When devotees give me something with affection, I take
that." The following, however, is a list of preparations favourite to His
Divine Grace that was provided by the servitors of His Divine Grace.
Sun, 15 October 2023 (Sri Vyasa Puja Maha-Mahotsav: Grand Festival)
'My Actual Happiness'
'It is the quality that matters: devotees are giving themselves, giving their
hearts to their guru... When I see devotees all over the world bowing
themselves down at the lotus feet of Gurudev, that is my actual happiness,
this is what actually pleases me.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (10.8 Mb, 23 min | English | 17 October
2020)
GUIDANCE, Year 2021[epub, 13
Mb]
On this supremely auspicious day, we are presenting a full compilation of
Hari-katha of His Divine Grace spoken during 2021, the last year of his
manifest pastimes. We pray this treasure trove of divine discourses may
eternally nourish and sustain devotees' hearts and souls. In the words of His
Divine Grace, 'How can you get Gurudev's association? If you listen to
Gurudev's Hari-katha, if you read his books, if you read the scriptures, then
you will easily get his association! If you follow his order, you will get
his association, you will get the energy – only like this, not in any other
way.'
"I bow my head in eternal obeisance to my Gurudev, the best of acharyas, Srila
Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj. He is the ever vigilant, stalwart guardian of
the current of pure devotion whose highest form flows from our most
worshippable Sri Rupanuga Guru-varga in their exclusive dedication to
Mahabhav, Srimati Radharani."
"I offer my respectful obeisances to Swami Bhakti Nirmal Acharya, who is
energetically inspiring all of Eastern and Western disciples on the path of
pure devotion."
Autobiography of Srila B.N. Acharya
Maharaj To try to describe the unlimited glories of a genuine Vaishnav or Guru
is a very challenging task, especially because Sri Guru exists on the plane
beyond what we can grasp with our material intelligence or perceive with our
material senses. Still, to remember the drops of the divine pastimes and
transcendental glories of Sri Gurupadpadma, we present here an
autobiographical discourse of His Divine Grace, begging him for his causeless
mercy in the form of eternal service to his holy lotus feet.
In honour of the divine appearance
day of our beloved Sri Gurupadpadma Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya
Maharaj:
Sri
Guru-Tattva: The Captain of Your Boat
"If you serve your Guru properly, if you have devotion to the Guru, then you
will be able to remove the bondage with the modes of material nature, and
through that relationship with your Guru you can get service to the Lord and
finally reach your destination."
•
Download / listen to the audio (8 Mb, 24 min | 22 July 2013 | Mostly
Bengali)
Part 1:
How to See the Guru: Mercy
Clear guidance on how to understand who the Guru is, and how a sincere
disciple should see the Guru: the Guru is not only a mahabhagavata (a great
devotee), he is nondifferent from Krishna Himself.
•
Download / listen to the audio (6.4 Mb, 14 min)
Part 2:
How to See the Guru: Chastity
The main quality of a sincere disciple explained by several examples:
one-pointed attention, rejecting the unfavourable, intense attachment to
service and devotees, faith, and careful choice of association.
•
Download / listen to the audio (7 Mb, 15 min)
Mon, 16 October 2023
Always Chant
'When you are resting, taking prasadam or even going to the bathroom,
you can also chant the Holy Name at that time but without beads. Always chant
loudly; when you see devotees, say, "Hare Krishna!" Always chant Krishna's
Name, it is good for you.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (10.8 Mb, 23 min | English | 17 October
2020)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Mahaprabhu's
Teachings (4): Pillars of Renunciation
"At first, Mahaprabhu told Srila Raghunath Das Goswami to go back to his
house, but after that his house became unfavourable to practising Krishna
consciousness, so Mahaprabhu arranged for Srila Raghunath Das Goswami to come
and meet with Him. At that time, Mahaprabhu gave him advice, 'What will a
vairagi do?'...."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.3 Mb, 6 min | 17 May 2020)
Tue, 17 October 2023
Beauty of
Lord's Incarnation
'When religion diminishes and irreligion comes into prominence, the Lord
personally comes to this world, and when He cannot come, He sends somebody
else. When the Lord comes, He assumes different forms. You must remember all
incarnations by heart.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (26.1 Mb, 63 min | 21 April 2021 | Mostly
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Mahaprabhu's
Teachings (5): Exclusive Dharma
"We must know the message of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, and we must know what
for we must practise, what is necessary in our spiritual life, what are the
main things in our spiritual life. Actually, there are not so many main
things."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.4 Mb, 8 min | 17 May 2020)
Today in the calendar:
Gaura Tritiya. Departure of Sriyukta Radharani Devi Chaudhurani.
His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj: "Even if you do
not know anything about the Vaishnav mentioned in the calendar, you must
still give them 'jay' on this day. We must always remember disappearance and
appearance days of all Vaishnavs. If we can remember such personalities, such
great souls, it will bring a great benefit to our spiritual life."
"We should always check the calendar, and when we see some dates mentioned
there, even if we do not know anything about the Vaishnav or events mentioned
there, we can at least give 'jay' to them—that also brings some good sukriti,
some purification to us. Seeing the calendar and taking devotees' names early
in the morning, from the beginning of the day, is very good for all
devotees."
"Wake up, look into the calendar and give 'jay' to your Guru and
Vaishnavs. Always pay obeisance to your Guru and Vaishnavs when you wake up
in the morning, always give them 'jay'. Always keep faith and show
respect to them. Always see the calendar—whose appearance day it is, whose
disappearance day it is. Even if you cannot make a festival, at least you can
give them 'jay', it will bring you benefit. When you give 'jay'
to your Guru and Vaishnavs, it brings you sukriti. For example, today
is the disappearance day of a Vaishnav—give 'jay' to him, remember
him. We must always remember the words of Vaishnavs. If I remember the words
of Vaishnavs, I get some benefit, some deposit through that."
Wed, 18 October 2023
Sevya and Sevak
'Why is Lord Krishna called sampurna-bhagavan (complete form of the
Lord, or Supreme Personality of Godhead)? Because all five spiritual
relationships are found in His pastimes, but you will not find this in the
pastimes of Lord Rama.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (26.1 Mb, 63 min | 21 April 2021 | Mostly
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Questions and Answers • Can a lady lead Nagar-sankirtan?
• What is the difference between Gokula
and Goloka?
• Guru as Radharani or Guru as
Nityananda Prabhu?
• Diksa-guru and siksa-guru
• Ratha-yatra
• Daily kirtans.
•
Download / listen to the audio (4.5 Mb, 11 min | 17 May 2020)
Today in the calendar:
Gaura Chaturthi. Disappearance of Tridandi-swami Sripad Bhakti Dayita Damodar
Maharaj (a disciple of Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj and a sannyas
disciple of Srila B.S. Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj).
His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj: "Even if you do
not know anything about the Vaishnav mentioned in the calendar, you must
still give them 'jay' on this day. We must always remember disappearance and
appearance days of all Vaishnavs. If we can remember such personalities, such
great souls, it will bring a great benefit to our spiritual life."
"We should always check the calendar, and when we see some dates mentioned
there, even if we do not know anything about the Vaishnav or events mentioned
there, we can at least give 'jay' to them—that also brings some good sukriti,
some purification to us. Seeing the calendar and taking devotees' names early
in the morning, from the beginning of the day, is very good for all
devotees."
"Wake up, look into the calendar and give 'jay' to your Guru and
Vaishnavs. Always pay obeisance to your Guru and Vaishnavs when you wake up
in the morning, always give them 'jay'. Always keep faith and show
respect to them. Always see the calendar—whose appearance day it is, whose
disappearance day it is. Even if you cannot make a festival, at least you can
give them 'jay', it will bring you benefit. When you give 'jay'
to your Guru and Vaishnavs, it brings you sukriti. For example, today
is the disappearance day of a Vaishnav—give 'jay' to him, remember
him. We must always remember the words of Vaishnavs. If I remember the words
of Vaishnavs, I get some benefit, some deposit through that."
Thu, 19 October 2023
Dasarath's Morality
'In Krishna's pastimes, rules and moral obligations had no value because when
you are bound by love to the Lord, you will not see any rules and
regulations. The only rule and regulation is the service to the Lord.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (26.1 Mb, 63 min | 21 April 2021 | Mostly
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Our Mantra
"Our main mantra is this: we must concentrate our mind, all our
senses, our everything in one place—at the lotus feet of Srila Gurudev. Srila
Gurudev is our only hope, we have no other way. Only Sri Gurudev can take us
to the Lord and engage us in the service of the Lord. We must have a greatest
desire for that, then one day we will get an opportunity to engage in
service."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.2 Mb, 6 min | 24 May 2020)
Fri, 20 October 2023
Love and Rupture
'The secret purpose of Rama-lila is to set an example of these moral
principles. Wherever Sri Ramachandra performed His pastimes—be it in Ayodhya,
in Lanka, Dandakaranya or when slaying demoness Tadaka—He never broke the
moral etiquette. But in Krishna's pastimes, rules and regulations have no
value; this is the peculiarity of His pastimes.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (26.1 Mb, 63 min | 21 April 2021 | Mostly
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Exclusive
Devotional Life
"Always keep yourself engaged in the services of the Lord from the beginning
of the day, from the mangal-arati early in the morning, until you go
to sleep. We must think, 'How can I serve devotees more? How can I follow
Gurudev's guidance properly?'"
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.8 Mb, 7 min | 24 May 2020)
Sat, 21 October 2023
Spiritual Sincerity and Chastity
'Gurudev often spoke about is chastity and sincerity. Sincerity means, "I am
doing this service, so I will do it every day." "Today I do it, tomorrow I
will not do it." You cannot be like that. You know what chastity means in its
material sense, in relation to the material world. But in the spiritual
sense, it means being chaste to your gurudev.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (22.2 Mb, 43 min | 13 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Dham-Seva
"There are many ways you can do dham-seva. Our guru-varga make
temples in many holy places, and you can help and serve those places in
whichever way you can, depending on how much capacity you have. Not everybody
has the capacity to give money, but if everybody gives their heart, their
support, that is sufficient."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.7 Mb, 9 min | 24 May 2020)
Sun, 22 October 2023
Half-Hen Ill
Logic
'We say that we respect Srila Govinda Maharaj, but we do not respect the
person whom he seated as the guru – we do not respect and do not
listen to the person whom he left to nurture and take care of you all. What
is this? How does this work?'
•
Download / listen to the audio (22.2 Mb, 43 min | 13 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Dealing with
Misconception
"When you go to sell your things, you will always preach in favour of your
things. Every shopkeeper always praises his own shop—one shopkeeper says, 'My
shop's sweets are very nice,' and other shopkeepers will also say, 'My sweets
are very nice,' and you can decide which is better only if you taste the
sweets."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.3 Mb, 8 min | 24 May 2020)
Mon, 23 October 2023
Purpose of Birth
'There is another thing you must always remember. Having gone through all
those births, we have now got this birth in India. The meaning of this life
is to do good for others. What does it mean? "Doing good for others" means
that we must practise Krishna consciousness.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (22.2 Mb, 43 min | 13 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Sri Ramananda Sambad
"Raya Ramananda is actually an incarnation of Visakha. Mahaprabhu meet
Ramananda Raya for the first time on the bank of the Godavari in South India.
Mahaprabhu was sitting and waiting for him..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.6 Mb, 6 min | 24 May 2020)
Tue, 24 October 2023 (Tomorrow is Papankusa Ekadasi)
Transform Your Life Inside and Outside
'It is my prayer to you all to leave your petty attachments and practise
Krishna consciousness. If you serve the Lord, then whatever you do, you will
do it for the Lord, and your whole life will become Krishna-centred. It is
necessary to become Krishna conscious.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (22.2 Mb, 43 min | 13 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Questions and Answers
(1) • Do we come to this line by our free
will or is it a pre-defined fate?
• Raya Ramananda's service
• Building temple against government rules?
• Drinking milk and suffering cows?
• Using Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math's
name for preaching?
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.8 Mb, 7 min | 24 May 2020)
Today in the calendar:
Gaura Dashami. Vijay Utsav of Sri Ramachandra. Appearance of Sri
Madhvacharya.
His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj: "Even if you do
not know anything about the Vaishnav mentioned in the calendar, you must
still give them 'jay' on this day."
Niti and Priti
"It was Ramachandra's vijay utsav yesterday, and we would like to
clarify some things about Rama-tattva and Krishna-tattva. In Rama-lila, rules
and regulations are the highest, and love and affection go down, but this is
not the highest ideal..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.7 Mb, 9 min | 9 October 2019)
In honour of Srila Madhva
Acharya:
"Madhva Acharya also stayed here with his disciples for some time as a
resident of the Nabadwip Dham. Gauranga-sundar mercifully revealed His most
enchanting form to Madhva Acharya in a dream. Smiling, Gaurachandra said to
Madhva Acharya, 'Everyone knows that you are My eternal servant. When I
appear in Nabadwip, I will follow your lineage. Now, carefully eradicate
illusionism and false scriptures from all regions, and establish the glory of
the Lord's Deity form. Later, I will develop your pure conception.' Saying
this, Gaurachandra disappeared. Madhva Acharya awoke and then fainted. Madhva
Acharya then cried, wondering, 'Will I ever see that beautiful golden form
again?' Then a divine voice came from the clear sky, 'Serve Me secretly, and
you will come to Me.' Madhva Acharya became resolute and defeated the
mayavadis in all directions."
Foundation of
Surrender
"It is a very auspicious day today—the holy appearance day of Sri
Madhvacharya, also today is vijaya maha-mahotsav of Lord Ramachandra.
It is a very auspicious day, and we are getting some chance to speak some
Hari-katha, to practise sravanam, kirtanam."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3 Mb, 9 min)
Wed, 25 October 2023 (Sri Papankusa Ekadasi)
Run behind Krishna
'Genuine devotees do not run behind money – rather, money run behind them.
Devotees have the Lord. By seeing Him, you will not want to see anything
else. He is so beautiful and so merciful that the whole world is mesmerised
by it.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (22.2 Mb, 43 min | 13 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Questions and Answers
(2) • Reading scriptures on our own?
• News after the recent cyclone amphan
• How to keep service enthusiasm?
• Can we sew a white outfit for Srimati
Radharani?
• How to recognise who is a Vaishnav?
• What does 'prabhu' mean in Srila Guru
Maharaj's arati song?
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.4 Mb, 8 min | 24 May 2020)
Sri Ekadasi Guidance Guidelines on how to observe and honour this holy day: Ekadasi takes an
indispensible part in the life of a sincere practitioner. At Sri Chaitanya
Saraswat Math, Ekadasi and paran are observed with affection and without
fail according to the dates given in the Calendar.
Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj about fasting on ekadasi and
accepting material facilities:
"One time, a devotee came here from Vrindavan on the day of
ekadasi. He reached in the evening and, after taking a bath in the
Ganges, attended kirtans, danced, circumambulated the temple and so
on. Then, I asked him whether he would take any anukalpa [non-grain
prasadam that is allowed to be taken on ekadasi]. He replied,
'Generally, I do not take anything, but if you like, then, of course, I must
like anukalpa. Your will is greater than my fasting.' That was his
decision.
"My Guru Maharaj (Srila Prabhupad Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur)
always wanted maximum energy: you should take good food and do good service.
That was his maxim. Krishna is not a liquidated party: take full
prasadam and do full service. Do maximum service, and you should take
whatever is necessary for that. You are to take it for the cause of Krishna,
not for your own cause. You are Krishna's, so if you grow weak, His service
will be hampered, and both you and Krishna will be losers thereby. 'My
soldiers will be well-fed and well-working.' That was our Guru Maharaj's
principle. Napoleon said, 'One full-fed soldier is equal to ten half-fed
soldiers.'
"So, prasad-seva: if it is service, then it must be taken in a
serving mood, of course. But, at the same time, the individual position of a
devotee should be taken into consideration. Sahajiyas do not fast on
ekadasi at all: "Oh, we are in Vrindavan, and there is no fasting in
Vrindavan." But Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur, Srila Prabhupad did not like
that—it is sahajiya (imitation) if you go on feeding your senses in
the name of Krishna-bhakti (devotion to the Lord). For the service to
Krishna, it is necessary to keep up the body and to provide nourishment to
it, so we must take what is necessary for service. We do not like it if by
fasting, a loss of energy is effected. If fasting does not hamper your
service, you may go on fasting—perhaps, your Gurudev wanted
that...
"For service, I must accept what is necessary to make me physically
fit so that I can render more service. So, accepting material things is not
objectionable. It is fruitful, not detrimental. Rather, it produces something
of a pure character, which helps everyone. This is how a disciple receives
and accepts things. At that same time, he may even blame himself, 'I cannot
go on with my worldly life without the help of this or that!' He will blame
himself, but the underlying spirit must be, 'If I do not take it, I shall be
unfit; I will not be able to do my bit of service to the Lord, to my
Gurudev.'
"Moreover, by taking up renunciation, I will be a loser. I will incur
a loss for myself, for the world, and my Guru's service will be hampered. In
this spirit, devotees are to take everything. For the cause of Krsna, for the
cause of his Guru, they will accept anything.
"Suppose there is a very miserly karmachari (manager). Because
he does not want to spend money, he may not attain a particular result; then,
some difficulty comes, and the opportunity is lost. This manager will be
responsible to the proprietor: 'Why did you not spend money? Why are you
afraid of spending money from my store? Because of your miserly habit,
the opportunity has been lost!' 'Why should you not spend My money for My
interest?' So, to render service to Krishna, to my Gurudev, to Vaishnavs, to
the world, to everyone, I must keep up this mundane body, and I am entitled
to take something for that.
"Miserliness is mayavada; it is the renunciation spirit, and it
will mar Krishna's interest. What we need is yukta-vairagya: I shall
take from the store of Krishna to keep myself fit and to do service. It is
Krishna's account, and if I do dot do that, I should be a separationist, a
mayavadi, a renunciationist. I shall render maximum service to
Krishna, and I must take without any hestitation whatever is necessary to
make myself fit for the service; otherwise, I shall be
punishable."
•"Sri Ekadasi"
(Sri Sri Prema Vivarta)
"One day, Gaurahari left the Gundicha Temple and sat in the Jagannath
Vallabha garden. It was pure Ekadasi, and the Lord spent the whole day and
night chanting the Name of Krishna..."
•SONG:
Suddha-bhakata |
শুদ্ধ ভকত-চরণ-রেণু "I carefully observe the holy days related to Madhava, they are the mother
of devotion."
•SONG:
Sri hari-vasare |
শ্রীহরি-বাসরে হরি "On the holy day of Sri Hari, Sriman Mahaprabhu, the life and
soul of the universe, began dancing..."
"You do not need to know the meaning of each ekadasi tithi because if
you know it, you will want to get this result, that result, etc."
(Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj)
Thu, 26 October 2023
Power of Kirtan
'If you chant the Holy Name earnestly, loudly, your kirtan will reach
Goloka and the Lord – then the Lord will pull you out of here and bring you
to Him! If we can attain this, we will not have to return from there to this
world ever again.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (22.2 Mb, 43 min | 13 December 2020 |
Bengali)
Today in the calendar:
Gaura Dvadasi. Ekadasi paran is at 5:41:26–7:56:45. Disappearance of Srila
Raghunath Das Goswami, Srila Raghunath Bhatta Goswami and Srila Krishnadas
Kaviraj Goswami.
His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj: "Even if you do
not know anything about the Vaishnav mentioned in the calendar, you must
still give them 'jay' on this day. We must always remember disappearance and
appearance days of all Vaishnavs. If we can remember such personalities, such
great souls, it will bring a great benefit to our spiritual life."
"We should always check the calendar, and when we see some dates mentioned
there, even if we do not know anything about the Vaishnav or events mentioned
there, we can at least give 'jay' to them—that also brings some good sukriti,
some purification to us. Seeing the calendar and taking devotees' names early
in the morning, from the beginning of the day, is very good for all
devotees."
"Wake up, look into the calendar and give 'jay' to your Guru and
Vaishnavs. Always pay obeisance to your Guru and Vaishnavs when you wake up
in the morning, always give them 'jay'. Always keep faith and show
respect to them. Always see the calendar—whose appearance day it is, whose
disappearance day it is. Even if you cannot make a festival, at least you can
give them 'jay', it will bring you benefit. When you give 'jay'
to your Guru and Vaishnavs, it brings you sukriti. For example, today
is the disappearance day of a Vaishnav—give 'jay' to him, remember
him. We must always remember the words of Vaishnavs. If I remember the words
of Vaishnavs, I get some benefit, some deposit through that."
In honour of Srila Raghunath Das
Goswami:
Raghunath Das
Goswami's Path
"We have no qualification to serve the Vaishnavs. If we do not got mercy from
Vaishnavs, we cannot get service from the Vaishnavs. That is why we always
make Vaishnavs' disappearance festivals and remember such days."
• Download
(3.7 Mb, 9 min | 8 October 2011)
Highest
Designation
"We do not want to be a master, we do not want to be a Guru—we want to be a
servant of the servant. This is the most important thing in our spiritual
life. If we can become a servant of a Vaishnav, that is the highest, that is
the best qualification..."
• Download
(1.3 Mb, 3 min | 8 October 2011)
Raghunath Das Goswami's
Pastimes: Nectar of Devotion
"In Mahaprabhu's time, and even after that, everybody wanted to be a servant.
Das Goswami Prabhu, Jiva Goswami Prabhu, and others, were all servants. If
you hear about Srila Raghunath Das Goswami's pastimes you will get
nectar."
• Download
(1.8 Mb, 4 min | 8 October 2011)
Humble and Chaste
Service
"Wherever they are living now, we only want them to allow us to serve their
associates, associates of our Gurudev, and our Guru. We do not want to enter
their party, but we only want their service as a dog..."
• Download
(2.4 Mb, 6 min | 8 October 2011)
Wholehearted
Engagement
"This day is a day of Vaishnav seva. Srila Raghunath Das Goswami
Prabhu taught us what must be the quality of a Vaishnav and what must be the
quality of your practising. What Das Goswami Prabhu showed, how he himself
practised, is an example for us."
• Download
(2.7 Mb, 8 min | 9 October 2011)
Two Oceans of
Pastimes
His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj is speaking about
the glories and pastimes of Srila Raghunath Das Goswami and Srila Krishna Das
Kaviraj Goswami on their disappearance day.
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.8 Mb, 9 min | 5 October 2014)
Srila Raghunath
Das Goswami: Breaking Free
"He wanted to take a roundabout zigzag route, avoiding Nityananda Prabhu and
going directly to Mahaprabhu, but every time he went to Mahaprabhu,
Mahaprabhu rejected him and sent him back to his home...."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.7 Mb, 5 min | 25 October 2015)
Real Mercy,
Real Service
Real mercy: "Getting mercy means getting service: if you have service, you
have mercy." Real service: "Practise properly, keep proper association,
and always avoid the Nama aparadh, seva aparadh, dham aparadh, Vaishnav
aparadh. Chant the Holy Name properly, without deceit, and with proper
attention and service mood."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1 Mb, 2 min | 30 May 2015)
A Separation Day
"Srila Raghunath Bhatta Goswami was born in Benares. His father's name is
Tapan Mishra, he was a very good searcher and devotee of Krishna. Srila
Raghunath Bhatta Goswami got an opportunity to serve Mahaprabhu, and
Mahaprabhu was very affectionate to Raghunath..."
In honour of Srila Krishna Das
Kaviraj Goswami:
Bhukti,
Mukti, Bhakti
What is mukti and what is bhakti? His Divine Grace Srila B.N. Acharya
Maharaj is reading from Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, Adi-lila,
Chapters 8 and 10, noting the exceptional character of devotion of Srila
Krishna Das Kaviraj Goswami and Srila Raghunath Das Goswami.
•
Download / listen to the audio (8 Mb, 17 min | 6 November 2010)
Two Oceans of
Pastimes
His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj is speaking about
the glories and pastimes of Srila Raghunath Das Goswami and Srila Krishna Das
Kaviraj Goswami on their disappearance day.
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.8 Mb, 9 min | 5 October 2014)
"I offer my respectful obeisances unto the Six Goswamis, namely Sri
Rupa Goswami, Sri Sanatan Goswami, Sri Raghunath Bhatta Goswami, Sri
Raghunath Das Goswami, Sri Jiva Goswami, and Sri Gopala Bhatta Goswami, who
are always engaged in chanting the Holy Name of Krishna and dancing. They are
just like the ocean of love of God, and they are popular both with the gentle
and with the ruffians, because they are not envious of anyone. Whatever they
do, they are all-pleasing to everyone, and they are fully blessed by Lord
Chaitanya. Thus they are engaged in missionary activities meant to deliver
all the conditioned souls in the material universe."
•SONG:
Ei-bara karuna kara |
এইবার করুণা কর "O worshippable Vaisnava, be merciful to me this time. O saviour of the
fallen, without you there is no one. In every birth I aspire for the dust of
your feet."
•SONG:
Ohe Vaisnava
Thakur |
(ওহে) বৈষ্ণব ঠাকুর "O worshippable Vaishnav, ocean of grace, be merciful to this servant.
Give me the shade of your feet and purify me. I clasp your feet. You can give
Krishna, you have that power. Calling, 'Krishna!' 'Krishna!', I run after
you."
•SONG:
Ki-rupe paiba seva |
কিরূপে পাইব সেবা "I am so wicked, how will I ever get service? I do not have any attachment to Sri Guru and Vaishnavs! Prabhu, you see no fault in others, you are the saviour of the fallen. Please deliver Narottam this time!"
•SONG:
Dhana mora nityananda |
ধন মোর নিত্যানন্দ "The feet dust of the Vaishnavs is where I sport and take bath, Vaishnavs'
name is the water oblation. My mind is intently fixed upon the remnants of
Vaishnavs, and I am elated hearing the name of Vaishnavs."
•SONG:
Ye
anila prema-dhana |
যে আনিল প্রেমধন "Where has Advaita Acharya gone? Where are my Svarup, Rupa, Sanatan? Where
is my Raghunath? Where are the saviours of the fallen souls?"
Fri, 27 October 2023
Become a Servant
'The Lord will certainly know you! If you can become His servant
(das), the Lord will bring you to Himself, but if you call yourself
Goldar, the Lord will not recognise you. Become a servant (das), not a
Goldar, then the Lord will know you.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (22.2 Mb, 43 min | 13 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Your Love and
Affection
"I can see devotees' faces and remember Gurudev. When I see them, when I
remember their good association, good things always come to my heart, to my
mind. Because everybody is giving so much love and affection to me, I am
alive and I can survive."
• Download/listen to
the audio (2.2 Mb, 5 min | 31 May 2020)
Sat, 28 October 2023 (Beginning of Sri Kartik Month)
Beg for
Spiritual Life
'Our minds should always stay in holy places, where there are talks about the
Lord, where there is Hari-katha, where Vaishnavs are. Our minds must be in
the kirtan of the guru and Vaishnavs, in the Hari-katha of the
guru and Vaishnavs.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (22.2 Mb, 43 min | 13 December 2020 |
Bengali)
Today in the calendar:
Purnima. Saradiya Rasa-Yatra of Lord Sri Krishna. Disappearance of Srila
Murari Gupta. Lunar eclipse 01:05–02:24 a.m. (Nabadwip time). Beginning of
urjja-vrata, damodar-vrata, kartik-vrata or niyom-seva.
His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj: "Even if you do
not know anything about the Vaishnav mentioned in the calendar, you must
still give them 'jay' on this day. We must always remember disappearance and
appearance days of all Vaishnavs. If we can remember such personalities, such
great souls, it will bring a great benefit to our spiritual life."
"We should always check the calendar, and when we see some dates mentioned
there, even if we do not know anything about the Vaishnav or events mentioned
there, we can at least give 'jay' to them—that also brings some good sukriti,
some purification to us. Seeing the calendar and taking devotees' names early
in the morning, from the beginning of the day, is very good for all
devotees."
"Wake up, look into the calendar and give 'jay' to your Guru and
Vaishnavs. Always pay obeisance to your Guru and Vaishnavs when you wake up
in the morning, always give them 'jay'. Always keep faith and show
respect to them. Always see the calendar—whose appearance day it is, whose
disappearance day it is. Even if you cannot make a festival, at least you can
give them 'jay', it will bring you benefit. When you give 'jay'
to your Guru and Vaishnavs, it brings you sukriti. For example, today
is the disappearance day of a Vaishnav—give 'jay' to him, remember
him. We must always remember the words of Vaishnavs. If I remember the words
of Vaishnavs, I get some benefit, some deposit through that."
Damodar Month
"This Kartik month (Damodar month) is Krishna's dearmost month. There is
Radha-Damodar temple near our Vrindavan temple and every Kartik we go for
parikrama in Vrindavan. This year also we have a great wish to start
Vrindavan parikrama in Damodar month."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.4 Mb, 7 min | 25 October 2018)
Month of
Service—Life of Service
"Today Kartik-vrata, or niyom-seva, starts. Our temple observes it from
purnima to purnima, and some other temples do it from
dvadasi to dvadasi. One day I asked Gurudev what
niyom-seva meant..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (6.4 Mb, 14 min | 13 October 2019)
Damodarastakam
"We sing Damodarastakam about the pastimes of the Lord written by
Satyavrata Muni every Kartik month. That is a very important song in our
spiritual life."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.3 Mb, 7 min | 25 October 2018)
Attend to
Kirtan—Attain Kirtan
"Who can understand these songs? We cannot even understand 'trnad api
sunichena...' then can we proceed to the other songs? If we want to chant
the Name of Krishna, then we must become like this—trnad api
sunichena...—as we sing in this kirtan."
• Download
(0.7 Mb, 2 min | 7 November 2012 | Bengali)
Siksastakam
"We are singing the Siksastakam songs every day [in Kartik month].
Mahaprabhu is Radha-Krishna's combined form and Siksastakam is His
teaching. It is very nice. We must practise these songs."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.1 Mb, 7 min | 25 October 2018)
In honour of Sri Murari Gupta:
'Murari Gupta was a great devotee of Lord Ramachandra. When Mahaprabhu heard
Lord Ramachandra's glories from his mouth, He immediately wrote on his
forehead "Rama-dasa" [an eternal servant of Lord Ramachandra].'
'Sri Murari Gupta wrote a book called Sri Chaitanya-charita. He
belonged to a vaidya physician family of Srihatta, the paternal home
of Lord Chaitanya, and later became a resident of Nabadwip. He was among the
elders of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Lord Chaitanya exhibited His Varaha form
in the house of Murari Gupta (described in Sri Chaitanya-bhagavata,
2.3). When Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu exhibited His maha-prakasa form,
He appeared before Murari Gupta as Lord Ramachandra.
'When Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Nityananda Prabhu were sitting together in
the house of Srivas Thakur, Murari Gupta first offered his respects to Lord
Chaitanya and then to Sri Nityananda Prabhu. Nityananda Prabhu, however, was
older than Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, and therefore Lord Chaitanya remarked that
Murari Gupta had violated social etiquette, for he should have first shown
respect to Nityananda Prabhu and then to Him. In this way, by the grace of
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Murari Gupta was informed about the position of Sri
Nityananda Prabhu, and the next day he offered obeisances first to Lord
Nityananda and then to Lord Chaitanya. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu gave chewed
pan, or betel nut, to Murari Gupta.
' Once Sivananda Sena offered food to Lord Chaitanya that had been cooked with
excessive ghee, and the next day the Lord became sick and went to Murari
Gupta for treatment. Lord Chaitanya accepted some water from the waterpot of
Murari Gupta, and thus He was cured. The natural remedy for indigestion is to
drink a little water, and since Murari Gupta was a physician, he gave the
Lord some drinking water and cured Him.
'When Chaitanya Mahaprabhu appeared in the house of Srivas Thakur in His
chaturbhuja murti, Murari Gupta became His carrier in the form of
Garuda, and in these pastimes of ecstasy the Lord then got up on his back. It
was the desire of Murari Gupta to leave his body before the disappearance of
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, but the Lord forbade him to do so (described in Sri
Chaitanya-bhagavata, 2.20). When Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu one day
appeared in ecstasy as the Varaha murti, Murari Gupta offered Him prayers. He
was a great devotee of Lord Ramachandra, and his staunch devotion is vividly
described in Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita (2.15.137–157):'
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu embraced Murari Gupta and began to speak about his
firm faith in devotional service. This was heard by all the devotees. He
said, 'Previously I induced Murari Gupta again and again to be allured by
Lord Krishna. I said to him, "My dear Gupta, Lord Sri Krishna,
Vrajendra-kumar, is the supreme sweetness. He is the Supreme Personality of
Godhead, the origin of all incarnations and the source of everything. He is
pure transcendental love itself, and He is the reservoir of all pleasure.
Krishna is the reservoir of all transcendental qualities. He is like a mine
of gems. He is expert at everything, very intelligent and sober, and He is
the summit of all transcendental humors. His character is very sweet, and His
pastimes are melodious. He is expert in intelligence, and thus He enjoys all
His pastimes and mellows."
'I then requested Murari Gupta, "Worship Krishna and take shelter of Him. But
for His service, nothing appeals to the mind." In this way, he heard from Me
again and again. By My influence, his mind was a little converted. Murari
Gupta then replied, "I am Your servant and Your order-carrier. I have no
independent existence."
'After this, he went home and spent the whole night thinking how he would
have to give up the association of Raghunath (Lord Ramachandra). Thus he was
overwhelmed. Murari Gupta then began to pray at the lotus feet of Lord
Ramachandra. He prayed that death would come that night because it was not
possible for him to give up the service of the lotus feet of Raghunath. Thus
Murari Gupta cried the entire night. There was no rest for his mind;
therefore he could not sleep but stayed awake the entire night.
'In the morning Murari Gupta came to see Me. Catching hold of My feet and
crying, he submitted an appeal. He told Me, "I have sold my head unto the
lotus feet of Raghunath. I cannot withdraw my head, for that would give me
too much pain. It is not possible for me to give up the service of
Raghunath's lotus feet. At the same time, if I do not do so I shall break
Your order. What can I do?" In this way Murari Gupta appealed to Me, saying,
"You are all-merciful, so kindly grant me this mercy: Let me die before You
so that all my doubts will be finished."
'Hearing this, I became very happy. I then raised Murari Gupta and embraced
him. I said to him, "All glories to you, Murari Gupta! Your method of worship
is very firmly fixed — so much so that even upon My request your mind did not
turn. The servitor must have love and affection for the lotus feet of the
Lord exactly like this. Even if the Lord wants separation, a devotee cannot
abandon the shelter of His lotus feet. Just to test your firm faith in your
Lord, I requested you again and again to change your worship from Lord
Ramachandra to Krishna." In this way, I congratulated Murari Gupta, saying,
"Indeed, you are the incarnation of Hanuman. Consequently you are the eternal
servant of Lord Ramachandra. Why should you give up the worship of Lord
Ramachandra and His lotus feet?"'
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu continued, "I accept this Murari Gupta as My life
and soul. When I hear of his humility, it perturbs My very life."
(Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj Prabhupad)
Sun, 29 October 2023 (Sri Kartik Month)
Uncling from Maya
'We may hear only two things from our gurudev, but that can, and must,
guide and mould our whole life. But the problem is that we cannot leave
material world... We only want to eat well, dress well, live well, sleep
well. This is how we are becoming deha-rami – we live only for
pleasing our senses.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (11.8 Mb, 23 min | 13 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Sacred
Chamber of Devotional Mood
"When a country's soldiers join the military life, they promise that they
will give their life for the country. In the same way, when we join Krishna
consciousness, we must promise that we will give our life for Gurudev. This
life is not for others! This life is for Gurudev."
• Download/listen to
the audio (2.1 Mb, 5 min | 31 May 2020)
Damodar Month
"This Kartik month (Damodar month) is Krishna's dearmost month. There is
Radha-Damodar temple near our Vrindavan temple and every Kartik we go for
parikrama in Vrindavan. This year also we have a great wish to start
Vrindavan parikrama in Damodar month."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.4 Mb, 7 min | 25 October 2018)
Month of
Service—Life of Service
"Today Kartik-vrata, or niyom-seva, starts. Our temple observes it from
purnima to purnima, and some other temples do it from
dvadasi to dvadasi. One day I asked Gurudev what
niyom-seva meant..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (6.4 Mb, 14 min | 13 October 2019)
Damodarastakam
"We sing Damodarastakam about the pastimes of the Lord written by
Satyavrata Muni every Kartik month. That is a very important song in our
spiritual life."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.3 Mb, 7 min | 25 October 2018)
Attend to
Kirtan—Attain Kirtan
"Who can understand these songs? We cannot even understand 'trnad api
sunichena...' then can we proceed to the other songs? If we want to chant
the Name of Krishna, then we must become like this—trnad api
sunichena...—as we sing in this kirtan."
• Download
(0.7 Mb, 2 min | 7 November 2012 | Bengali)
Siksastakam
"We are singing the Siksastakam songs every day [in Kartik month].
Mahaprabhu is Radha-Krishna's combined form and Siksastakam is His
teaching. It is very nice. We must practise these songs."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.1 Mb, 7 min | 25 October 2018)
Mon, 30 October 2023 (Sri Kartik Month)
Surrender or Lose
'You have your mind, heart, body; what else do you have? Money, wealth,
houses, cars – these are all temporary things. You must surrender your mind,
heart and body to the Lord, you must surrender to the holy feet of the Lord,
then only will we get genuine benefit. There is no other way to get such
benefit.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (11.8 Mb, 23 min | 13 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
"How Much Will
You Sacrifice?"
"This human life is not for behaving like animals. We are not animals. We
have some other service here. There are so many services. Do not be lazy.
Krishna has given you this opportunity to pay more attention to the service
of the Lord in your house."
• Download/listen to
the audio (3.1 Mb, 8 min | 31 May 2020)
Control Yourself
'If you cannot control the urge of speech, the urge of anger, the urge of
lust, the urge of stomach, what to speak of getting any result – whatever you
have earned, or achieved, will all be destroyed.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (11.8 Mb, 23 min | 13 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Service
Abode of Eternal Happiness
"When transcendental feeling comes to you, you will not think about any
disease or anything else. There is no suffering in the eternal abode of
Goloka Vrindavan. We should realise the nature of that happiness. It is
possible to understand that happiness through service. Pure spiritual souls
are always happy."
•
Download/listen to the audio (1.9 Mb, 5 min | 31 May 2020)
The only path for us is to surrender and take association of a Vaishnav, but if we
cannot recognise Vaishnavs with our eyes, what can we then recognised them with?
Krishna Dvitiya. Disappearance of Tridandi-swami Srimad Bhakti Vilas Tirtha
Maharaj [a dear disciple, associate, and Mission Manager of Srila Bhakti
Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur; his previous name is Sri Kunja Bihari Prabhu,
affectionally called 'Kunja Babu'].
Favourite Preparations
•
SONG:
Suddha-bhakata |
শুদ্ধ ভকত-চরণ-রেণু
"We should always check the calendar, and when we see some dates mentioned
there, even if we do not know anything about the Vaishnav or events mentioned
there, we can at least give 'jay' to them—that also brings some good sukriti,
some purification to us. Seeing the calendar and taking devotees' names early
in the morning, from the beginning of the day, is very good for all
devotees."
His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj: "Even if you do
not know anything about the Vaishnav mentioned in the calendar, you must
still give them 'jay' on this day. We must always remember disappearance and
appearance days of all Vaishnavs. If we can remember such personalities, such
great souls, it will bring a great benefit to our spiritual life."
"Wake up, look into the calendar and give 'jay' to your Guru and
Vaishnavs. Always pay obeisance to your Guru and Vaishnavs when you wake up
in the morning, always give them 'jay'. Always keep faith and show
respect to them. Always see the calendar—whose appearance day it is, whose
disappearance day it is. Even if you cannot make a festival, at least you can
give them 'jay', it will bring you benefit. When you give 'jay'
to your Guru and Vaishnavs, it brings you sukriti. For example, today
is the disappearance day of a Vaishnav—give 'jay' to him, remember
him. We must always remember the words of Vaishnavs. If I remember the words
of Vaishnavs, I get some benefit, some deposit through that."