Adjustment of Consciousness
"You are the property of your Guru, you are not anybody else's property. Devotees always practise wherever they go. If you are staying with some nondevotees for some purpose, you are not going to stay there for a long time, so stay there but you must practise there—you must chant, etc."
• Download / listen to the audio (2.3 Mb, 6 min | 26 July 2020)

Royal Road to Success
"As many days we are alive, we will always remember our Guru, we will always chant the Holy Names and we will always concentrate our mind on the service of the Lord. That is the main thing for us, and this is what everybody should follow."
• Download / listen to the audio (3.6 Mb, 9 min | 26 July 2020)

Step Up Your Service
"We should not waste our time on our own enjoyment, we must give our time for the enjoyment and happiness of our Lord, our Gurudev. I know everybody will be working, it is Monday, the first day of the week days, but we must still do some service for Baladev Prabhu's appearance day. Remember this. If you only fast and give some flower to Gurudev, that is not sufficient."
• Download / listen to the audio (3.8 Mb, 9 min | 2 August 2020)

Disciple's Core Quality
"To receive and digest chastisement, it is necessary to have tolerance. How many devotees can tolerate chastisement? Very few. When Gurudev chastises you, you must be quiet—you have no right to say a single word."
• Download / listen to the audio (1.4 Mb, 4 min | 2 August 2020)

On Cows and Baladev-Tattva
"(1) Krishna likes cows, and if we can make cows happy, Krishna will always be happy. (2) Sachi Mata understood that Nityananda Prabhu was non-different from Baladev—that Baladev Himself had come as Nityananda Prabhu."
• Download / listen to the audio (2.3 Mb, 6 min | 2 August 2020)

Sweeter Than the Sweetest
"Krishna's pastimes are very sweet. Krishna's beauty, Krishna's pastimes, Krishna's love, Krishna's smile, everything about Him is sweet, sweeter, and sweeter than the sweetest..."
• Download / listen to the audio (1.7 Mb, 5 min | 2 August 2020)

Prasadam—Pivot of Practising
"You are not to take what is not offered to the Lord. Always take prasadam, then all your diseases will be removed. Always cook with care and always make sure what you have cooked is edible. If the cooking is not good, then neither Krishna, nor Gurudev will be happy."
• Download / listen to the audio (2.8 Mb, 7 min | 2 August 2020)

In honour of Srila Devananda Pandit:

Learn Proper Conception
"Sometimes we can unconsciously make an offence, but through good association we can hear and understand the proper guidance, proper etiquette. If we do not know it, then no matter how much we practise, how much we chant and how much service we do, we can still sometimes be doing some aparadh."
• Download / listen to the audio (1.4 Mb, 4 min | 26 May 2019)

Learn to Give Honour
"Without thinking, we write something, we do something, we think something, and we consider that what we think is the highest. This is Vaishnav aparadh. You must learn to give honour to others. Even if the person is junior, even if they do not know anything, we must learn to give honour to others."
• Download / listen to the audio (1.2 Mb, 3 min | 29 May 2019)

Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj about fasting on ekadasi and accepting material facilities:

"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."

"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)

Clear Conception
"You can read Srila Sridhar Maharaj's book Sri Sri Prapanna-jivanamritam and remind yourself of many good things (practise smaran). I have also given you books—Guidance 4, Guidance 3. You can read all these books and you can get everything in them."
• Download / listen to the audio (3.4 Mb, 8 min | 2 August 2020)

Ideal Service Mood
"In this world, there are all sorts of misconceptions prominent all over the world, but you must establish the conception of Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math, the conception of Srila Sridhar Maharaj, Prabhupad Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur. When you get some pleasure in your heart through service, then no matter how much disturbance comes, nothing will be able to stop you—you will still feel more and more enthusiasm, attachment and enjoyment through that service."
• Download / listen to the audio (3.4 Mb, 9 min | 2 August 2020)

Festival of Sheltered Souls
"What is our goal in the age of Kali? We worship Radha-Krishna's combined form that comes in Kali-yuga as Gauranga Mahaprabhu. However, first, before worshipping Gauranga Mahaprabhu, we are to take shelter of Gurudev. First we must take shelter of Gurudev, only then will we worship Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu."
• Download / listen to the audio (2.1 Mb, 5 min | 9 August 2020)

"I Am Very Proud of You"
"I am very proud of you all because our Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math devotees have humility, tolerance, they give honour to others, and they show others perfect behaviour, perfect practice and perfect mood. Humility, tolerance, etc. is the religion of Vaishnavs. It is their quality, their ornaments, their glory. Vaishnavs are always humble, they always emanate lustre and delight."
• Download / listen to the audio (3 Mb, 7 min | 9 August 2020)

Blossomed Relationship
"I know very well 'my parents,' 'my sister,' 'my husband,' 'my wife'—these are mine, but we do not think that the Lord is mine, that Gurudev is mine. How many per cent devotees can feel that?"
• Download / listen to the audio (1.8 Mb, 5 min | 9 August 2020)

In honour of Srila Lochan Das Thakur:

About Srila Lochan Das Thakur
"We must pray to Vaishnav Thakur, 'Wherever you are, Prabhu, please bestow your mercy on this fallen and low soul so that I may live this life serving you.' Srila Lochan Das Thakur composed Sri Chaitanya-mangala that contains even more pastimes of the Lord than Sri Chaitanya-bhagavata..."
• Download / listen to the audio (5 Mb, 12 min | 2 February 2021 | Bengali)

Srila Lochan Das Thakur Mahasay
"Srila Lochan Das Thakur is a follower of Sriman Nityananda Prabhu—he belonged to His line. Srila Lochan Das Thakur was born in Burdwan district and he was a disciple of Sri Narahari Thakur. The name of Srila Lochan Das Thakur's father is Sri Kamalakar Das, and his mother's name is Sri Sadanandi..."
• Download / listen to the audio (3.7 Mb, 9 min | 25 October 2020)

• 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: 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."

Composed by Srila Lochan Das Thakur:

• SONG: Akrodha paramananda | অক্রোধ পরমানন্দ
"The anger-less, prideless, supremely joyful Nityananda Ray wanders throughout the towns. Going from door to door to the homes of the lowly and fallen souls, He distributes the Hare Krsna mahamantra."

• SONG: Nitai gunamani amara | নিতাই গুণমণি আমার
"Nitai, the jewel of all good qualities, my Nitai, the jewel of all good qualities, brought a flood of divine love and inundated the earth. Lochan Das says, 'Anyone who did not serve Nitai knowingly committed suicide.'"

• SONG: Parama karuna | পরম করুণ পহুঁ দুই জন
"Nitai and Gaurachandra are the two most merciful Lords, the crest-jewels of all Avatars, the only source of joy. 'Fallen into samsara, I never aspired for Their feet. Now Yamaraj subjects me to my karma,' says Lochan Das."

• SONG: Ke yabi ke yabi bhai | কে যাবি কে যাবি ভাই
"The Lord's Names are the ferryboat, Sri Guru is the captain, and the outstretched arms in the sankirtan are the oars. All souls have been delivered by the winds of divine love, only Lochan Das has remained behind..."

Realm of Inconceivable Pastimes
"Bad things, good things happen, but we harmonise—we think that everything happens by the will of the Lord. If you practise properly, then you can step by step proceed to your real goal and enter the real nitya-lila—then you will see Radha-Krishna's pastimes everywhere."
• Download / listen to the audio (3.5 Mb, 9 min | 9 August 2020)

Primary Advice
"We have some consciousness in this human body, we must use it properly. Our duty is to do our service properly, to try more and more and more, to do more and more for our Guru's happiness, to try to make our Guru happier and happier. We will always try our best."
• Download / listen to the audio (2.3 Mb, 6 min | 9 August 2020)

In honour of Srila Jiva Goswami Prabhu:

• Srila Jiva Goswami Prabhu
"I have no power to say what kind of devotion to his Guru Jiva Goswami had. Jiva Goswami's service cannot be compared to anyone's service. Whatever order he would get, he would place it on his head and do it all the time—his mind never went to any other place."
• Download / listen to the audio (8 Mb, 23 min | 2012)

• Srila Jiva Goswami Prabhu: The All-Rounder
"Srila Jiva Goswami Prabhu did everything alone—he cooked, did puja, cleaned the temple, brought water from the Yamuna, and also did personal service to his Guru. He was busy with his service from morning to night, and did everything alone."
• Download / listen to the audio (0.6 Mb, 2 min | 9 September 2011)

• Protected Journey
Srila B.S. Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj explains the pranam-mantra of Srila Jiva Goswami in the book Dignity of the Divine Servitor: "I offer my full dandavats unto the lotus feet of Srila Jiva Goswami who is the protector of our spiritual life. He rescues us from the whole illusory environment..."

• Srila Jiva Goswami Prabhura Sochaka
A song composed by Srila Narahari Thakur in glorification of Srila Jiva Goswami Prabhu's life, character, and service. Bengali verses and English transliteration.

About Sri Jagadish Pandit:

Sri Jagadish Pandit
"Born in Guwahati, Assam, Sri Jagadish Pandit came to live in Nabadwip. Sri Jagadish Pandit and Hiranya lived together on the bank of the Gages near Sri Jagannath Misra's house, and Mahaprabhu would often come to visit them."
• Download / listen to the audio (4.5 Mb, 11 min | 24 January 2021)

"Jagadish Pandit was formerly a great dancer in Krishna-lila and was known as Chandrahasa. He belonged to the village of Yasada-gram, in the district of Nadia near the Chakadaha railway station. His father, the son of Bhatta Narayan, was named Kamalaksa. Both his father and mother were great devotees of Lord Visnu, and after their death, Jagadish, with his wife Duhkhini and brother Mahesa, left his birthplace and came to Sri Mayapur to live in the company of Jagannath Misra and other Vaisnavas. Lord Chaitanya asked Jagadish to go to Jagannath Puri to preach the Harinam sankirtan movement. After returning from Jagannath Puri, on the order of Lord Jagannath he established Deities of Jagannath in the village of Yasada-gram."

"Sri Jagadish is described in the Gaura-ganoddesa-dipika (192) as follows: 'Sri Jagadish and Hiranya previously appeared as the wives of the yajnic brahmans of Vraja. The Lord asked for the grains they offered to Vishnu on the day of Ekadasi. Chandrahasa, the expert dancer and knower of the mellows of Vraja, has now appeared as Sri Jagadish Pandit.' Sri Nityananda Prabhu with His associates are the life and wealth of the most effulgent Sri Jagadish Pandit."

Jagadish Pandit and Hiranya Pandit—lived in Godrumadwip. Their house was some distance from the Lord's house. On the day of Ekadasi they arranged a large offering for the Lord. The injunction for fasting on Ekadasi is meant only for the living entities, but Lord Vishnu is beyond the jurisdiction of the rules and regulations that He has established. Since He is not bound to observe fast on Ekadasi, and since He alone is the enjoyer of all sacrificial offerings, all types of foodstuffs should be offered to Him on Ekadasi. On the day of Ekadasi the Vaisnavs give up all kinds of enjoyment and do not accept the injunction for honoring prasada as on other days, but Lord Sri Hari, the protector of the devotees, accepts the foodstuffs offered by His devotees on His day, Hari-vasara. Sri Gaura-Narayan also revealed His desire to eat those foodstuffs.

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, Sri Chaitanya-bhagavata)

In honour of Sriman Maharabhu's last day in Nabadwip:

In a lecture about Sriman Mahaprabhu's sannyas-lila, Srila Govinda Maharaj commented: "We have seen that Srila Guru Maharaj was always deeply intoxicated with Mahaprabhu’s sannyas-lila. He established as a rule in Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math that for the three days [after Mahaprabhu takes sannyas and leaves Nabadwip] the devotees will live very simply and eat only some rice and dalma (dal cooked with mixed vegetables)."

Heart-Breaking Decision
"Mahaprabhu's mother, Gadadhar, Brahmananda, Chandrasekhara, and Mukunda. Mahaprabhu told Nityananda Prabhu, 'Nobody except them knows about it.' Sri Sachi Mata cried so much and other devotees also tried to dissuade Mahaprabhu in so many ways..."
• Download / listen to the audio (3.1 Mb, 8 min)

Srila Lochan Das Thakur Mahasay
"Srila Vrindavan Das Thakur did not write in Sri Chaitanya-bhagavata very clearly or broadly about the time prior to Sriman Mahaprabhu's taking sannyas, but in his Sri Chaitanya-mangal, Srila Lochan Das Thakur, for example, tells about the talk between Sriman Mahaprabhu and Vishnupriya Devi."
• Download / listen to the audio (3.7 Mb, 9 min | 25 October 2020)

Vishnupriya Devi's Sacrifice
"We must remember in our life the sacrifice that Vishnupriya Devi made. This life is not for enjoyment, this life is for service. We should learn from the sacrifice of Vishnupriya Devi..."

"If You Love Me..."
"Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu said, 'You think I am going to take sannyas and go far away from Nabadwip, but this is not so. You are always with Me. If you love Me, if you have any love and affection for Me, then always think about Krishna, always chant Hare Krishna and tell others to chant it.'"
• Download / listen to the audio (1.4 Mb, 4 min | 11 October 2020)

The Pain of Broken Hearts
"We always remember Srimati Radharani, Her associates and other Vraja gopis, but we forget about Nanda Maharaj and Mother Yasomati. It has come out of Radharani's mouth: 'We do not consider our heart's pain, but when we see Mother Yasoda's face and Mother Yasoda's situation without Your presence, our heart is breaking after breaking after breaking.' In Mahaprabhu's pastimes, we can see a similar situation."
• Download / listen to the audio (9.2 Mb, 36 min | 14 June 2007)

Ditching the World
"We have come here by a great fortune. Not everybody can come here. We must take the dust of this place, we must take prasad at this place. Do you see our condition? We must cry, 'When will material attachment be removed from my heart? When will that happen?'"
• Download / listen to the audio (5.2 Mb, 15 min | 29 January 2018 | Bengali)

According to solar calculation, it was on the day of Makara-sankranti, an auspicious conjunction of the stars, that Nimai Pandit went to Katwa to take sannyas, the renounced order of life. After this, He would become known as Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Just before this, He told only a few of His friends, including Nityananda Prabhu, Gadadhara Pandit, Mukunda, and others, "The time when I will accept the robe of renunciation is very near."

Just a few days before this, an opposition party had been raised against Nimai Pandit. Those who believed that material nature is the highest principle, and that consciousness is a product of matter, began to abuse Nimai Pandit. He thought, "I came to deliver the lowest of men, but if they commit offenses against Me, there will be not hope for their upliftment." Suddenly, He said, "I came with that medicine which gives the greatest relief, but now I find that their disease is rapidly growing worse and seems beyond treatment. It will take its own course towards doom. The patients are committing offenses by abusing their doctor. They are making arrangements to insult Me. They take it that I am a family man—their nephew. They take Me as one of them. I came with the best medicine for the present degraded age, but now I find that they are plotting against Me. Now they are doomed. At least I have to show them that I am not one of them." He thought, "I shall leave family life and take sannyas and wander from village to village, town to town, preaching the Holy Name of Krishna." That was His decision, and within a few days He went to take sannyas at Katwa from Kesav Bharati Maharaj.

Just the day before He left to take sannyas, from the afternoon until the evening, there was a spontaneous gathering of devotees in the home of Nimai Pandit. Every year in Bengal, that day was celebrated as Laksmi-puja, worship of the goddess of fortune, when special cakes are prepared and distributed. Nimai, knowing that early the next morning He would leave Navadwip to take sannyas, attracted His followers in such a way that almost every leading devotee came to see Him that evening.

They came with flower garlands and many other offerings to be presented to the Lord. Nimai accepted their garlands and then placed them on the necks of the devotees who gave them. Only four of His most intimate devotees knew He was leaving; the ordinary devotees did not know this would be His last night in Navadwip. With His own hands He garlanded the necks of His devotees and appealed to them, "Always chant the name of Krishna. Under no condition should you give up this krsna-nama. And don't do anything else. While working, eating, sleeping or walking, day or night—in whatever you do—continuously take the name of Krishna. Always talk about Krishna—nothing else. If you have any real attraction for Me, then don't do anything without chanting the name of Krishna.

"Cultivate Krishna consciousness. Krishna is the origin of us all. He is our father; we have come from Him. The son who shows no gratitude towards the father is sure to be punished birth after birth. Always chant these names of the Lord:

hare krsna hare krsna krsna krsna hare hare
hare rama hare rama rama rama hare hare

No other religious principle is required. Chant Hare Krishna. This is not an ordinary mantra, but this is the maha-mantra, the greatest of all the great mantras, the very essence of all the mantras known to the world. Only take to this, always. No other prescription is to be followed.

"Remember your Lord, your home. This is a foreign land; you have nothing to aspire after here. Try always to go back home, back to Godhead." In this way, the Lord spoke, and all His devotees intuitively came because it was Nimai Pandit's last night in Navadwip.

Late at night, one devotee named Kholaveca Sridhara arrived. He used to make trade on the plantain tree and its fruit. He would sell the fruit, ripe or green, and the big leaves which are used as plates. Sometimes Nimai would pay him less for his fruits than what they were worth, and sometimes He would snatch the best fruits from him. Sridhara came to see Him late at night to offer Him a choice lau (calabash/bottle gourd). And Nimai thought, "I have spent almost My whole life snatching so many things from him, and now, on this last night he has brought this wonderful lau. I can't resist." He asked Sacidevi, "Mother, Sridhara has given me this lau. Please think of how it can be prepared." At bedtime, someone came with some milk. Nimai said, "Mother, with this milk and this lau, please prepare some sweet-rice." So Sacidevi prepared some lau sweet-rice: lau boiled with milk, rice and sugar.

Late at night, at about three o' clock in the morning, Nimai went away.

From Golden Volcano of Divine Love

Service, Karma, and Devotion
"You cannot buy guru-bhakti with money. Guru-bhakti comes through love and affection, it comes from within one's heart—it comes by practising, by giving your heart. Those who are surrendered souls, are always busy with service—maya cannot attack them."
• Download / listen to the audio (2 Mb, 5 min | 9 August 2020)

Today's events:

Clearing the Obstacles
"When Mahaprabhu left His family, do you know who came at that time? Kalanidra. Kalanidra came to the Lord and asked, 'Prabhu, I have come. Why did You call me? What is my duty?' Mahaprabhu told her, 'Now do your duty.'"
• Download / listen to the audio (1.5 Mb, 5 min | 12 December 2010)

Late at night, at about three o' clock in the morning, Nimai went away. He left Visnupriya Devi asleep in bed. His mother Sacidevi, sensing what was to come, was staying awake all night guarding the door. Nimai bowed down to her and went away. And like a stone figure, Mother Sacidevi sat there by the gate as Nimai left. She could not say anything, but was struck dumb.

The ordinary public was very much enraged, saying to Kesav Bharati, "We can't allow you, Swamiji, to give sannyas to this young boy. It is impossible! If you do, then we shall smash your ashram." Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu began performing kirtan, chanting Hare Krishna and dancing madly. And the angry mob grew, sometimes creating a disturbance. In this way the whole day passed with no decision. The night passed in sankirtan.

From Golden Volcano of Divine Love

Recommendation
• Is "Madhava-tithi" only ekadasi? • What is your advice to those who want to take initiation? • What do we read on Janmastami day? • Is it possible to take medication on Janmastami?
• Download / listen to the audio (1.2 Mb, 3 min | 9 August 2020)

Today's events:

Will-O'-the-Wisp of Worldly Wishes
"If you give Maya chance, then Maya will attack you. As soon as you get a weak spot, Maya will attack you. It does not matter whether you are young or old. If you try to control your elements, you can control them from a young age."
• Download / listen to the audio (4.1 Mb, 10 min | 5 July 2020)

...The next day, Nimai's will prevailed, although there was still some opposition.

In this way, the sannyas of Nimai Pandit took place. What is the meaning of His sannyas?....

From Golden Volcano of Divine Love

Proper Line—Proper Success
"We always run behind false renunciation, false ego, we have so many bad elements, so many desires. If you think in a proper way and practise under the guidance of a bona fide guru, you will succeed. Those who have proper quality and qualification, can surrender within one minute."
• Download / listen to the audio (1.3 Mb, 3 min | 9 August 2020)

In memory of today's events related to Sriman Mahaprabhu's sannyas-lila:

Memorable Day In Bamunpara
"One morning Gurudev went to Bamunpara. Only Gurudev, his driver, me, and Gurudev's servant who cooked for him, went at that time. That day, Gurudev showed me that place in Bamunpara where Mahaprabhu passed after taking sannyas..."
• Download / listen to the audio (1.7 Mb, 4 min)

Remembering Mahaprabhu's Sannyas-Lila
"Srila Param Guru Maharaj said that during this time Nabadwip was covered by thick clouds—there was no sun in the sky and everything was very dark. Even the sun too cried because the Lord had left Nabadwip. It was such a sad time, everybody felt very deep separation."
• Download / listen to the audio (2.4 Mb, 6 min)

Ten Days in Shantipur
"...When Mahaprabhu came to Shantipur and the news about it spread everywhere, so many devotees started coming there—so many boats, full of people, came to Shantipur to see Mahaprabhu..."
• Download / listen to the audio (2.2 Mb, 6 min)

Heart-Breaking Decision
"Mahaprabhu's mother, Gadadhar, Brahmananda, Chandrasekhara, and Mukunda. Mahaprabhu told Nityananda Prabhu, 'Nobody except them knows about it.' Sri Sachi Mata cried so much and other devotees also tried to dissuade Mahaprabhu in so many ways..."
• Download / listen to the audio (3.1 Mb, 8 min)

Sannyas Lila: Roaming the Land
"Mahaprabhu would go in a zigzag way—sometimes He went to the East, sometimes to the West, and the devotees followed Him not knowing where He was going..."
• Download / listen to the audio (7.5 Mb, 25 min)

Sri Nimai Sannyas (English, Bengali, an audio recording)
Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj's poem expressing the grief-stricken hearts of the residents of Nabadwip: "Vishvambhar, the son of Jagannath Mishra, who resides in Nabadwip, Sachi's Nimai, has taken sannyas. A tumult of cries filled the sky—Sachi's Nimai has taken sannyas!"

Prayerful Meditation
"Lord Krishna and Srimati Radharani are our meditation, we always worship Them, but we do not want to become sahajiyas—it is not cheap, it is the highest attainment! We must pray to the Lord today. We must express what is our present position. We are in this situation at present—how can the Lord rescue us from this kind of situation?"
• Download / listen to the audio (2.5 Mb, 6 min | 12 August 2020)

"Passing through the tract of land known as Rarhdesh, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu recited the following verse in ecstasy:

etam sa asthaya paratma-nistham
adhyasitam purvatamair mahadbhih
aham tarisyami duranta-param
tamo mukundanghri-nisevayaiva

"Avanti Brahman said, 'I shall cross over the insurmountable ocean of nescience by being firmly fixed in the service of the lotus feet of Krishna. This was approved by the previous acharyas who were fixed in firm devotion to the Lord, Paramatma, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.'"

(Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita, 2.3.4-5)

Misconceptions about Lord Krishna's Appearance
"Without Lord Krishna's appearance life is meaningless. If you read Srimad Bhagavad-gita, you can easily understand the meaning of Janmastami and who Krishna is. People can say many things, but our vision is not like that—we see it in a different way."
• Download / listen to the audio (8.1 Mb, 20 min | 12 August 2020)

Mahaprabhu's Stay in Shantipur
"Nityananda Prabhu understood devotees' feeling and somehow managed to take Mahaprabhu to Shantipur instead of taking Him straight to Vrindavan. In Shantipur, Mahaprabhu gave lecture, He sang and danced the whole day and night without stop..."
• Download / listen to the audio (2.7 Mb, 8 min | 26 January 2018)

Entering Another Plane
"If you can fulfil Gurudev's desire, if you can follow everything and become a 100% devotee, a surrendered soul, then you will have the strongest faith that what Gurudev said ('If you follow Krishna consciousness properly, you will not have to come again') is the truth."
• Download / listen to the audio (1.2 Mb, 3 min | 12 August 2020)

Approaching Krishna's Pastimes
'Gurudev told us to follow the rules set by Srila Sridhar Maharaj, so we read Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita all day on this day. In the evening, after chanting some songs, at 9 or 9.30 p.m., you can read something about the pastime of Krishna's appearance.'
• Download / listen to the audio (29.4 Mb, 55 min | English | 12 August 2020)

Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj about fasting on ekadasi and accepting material facilities:

"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."

"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)

Account of Krishna's Appearance
'I am telling you what Sri Sukadev Goswami spoke from the tenth canto of Srimad Bhagavatam. This is a chapter about the mystery of Baladev's and Krishna's appearance to destroy Kamsa.'
• Download / listen to the audio (29.4 Mb, 55 min | English | 12 August 2020)

Devotees' Character
'Can an ordinary devotee appeal to Krishna to help or protect them just as Prahlad Maharaj appealed to Sri Nrisinghadev? If we should never ask the Lord for protection, then what about "avasya raksibe krsna visvase palan", which is one of the six limbs of surrender?'
• Download / listen to the audio (29.4 Mb, 55 min | English | 12 August 2020)

Always Remember, Always Serve
'You will all go to your homes after this festival, but you must serve Krishna not for this moment only. Remember Krishna always, at every moment. Do not forget Krishna. Always remember Krishna, always chant His Holy Names and chant about His beautiful pastimes.'
• Download / listen to the audio (29.4 Mb, 55 min | English | 12 August 2020)

Thorns of Spiritual Life
"We think there is so much suffering, so many problems outside, but we do not think that we have some problems inside us. Sometimes, some good symptoms come to us in our service, but at this moment some bad elements come and Maya takes us away from the service."
• Download / listen to the audio (5.4 Mb, 13 min | 16 August 2020)

Surrendered Existence
"Practise all this, then you will understand what is necessary for your spiritual life and what this human body is for. You have got this human body by a great mercy of the Lord, and you must use this human body, every part and parcel of this body, for the service of the Lord."
• Download / listen to the audio (2.6 Mb, 6 min | 16 August 2020)

Practising Deficiency
"We sometimes do not understand why we lose our faith, why we cannot give our heart, mind, everything to the service of the Lord—this happens because there is practising deficiency. Many things can come, that is why we can lose our faith, lose our Krishna consciousness life."
• Download / listen to the audio (2.5 Mb, 6 min | 16 August 2020)

Do Not Get Swayed
"When Maya attacks you, when Maya gives so much trouble to you and so many problems come to you, will you remember Me or will you forget Me? It is up to you. If you can remember the Lord despite any difficulties, then it is very good."
• Download / listen to the audio (2 Mb, 5 min | 16 August 2020)

In honour of Srila Gopal Bhatta Goswamipad:

Srila Gopal Bhatta Goswami's Miracle
"You have heard about the Deity of Sri Radha-Raman in Vrindavan. When Gopal Bhatta Goswami lived in Vrindavan, he every day worshipped twelve pieces of Govardhan sila..."
• Download / listen to the audio (1 Mb, 3 min | 7 September 2013 | Bengali)

Strongest Faith (2) Gopal Bhatta Goswami
"You have eyes in your heart, and if you have such feeling towards the Deity in your heart and do your service with such faith, then you can easily see Krishna everywhere, hear Krishna-nama everywhere, nothing else besides Krishna-nama will enter your ears..."
• Download / listen to the audio (1.3 Mb, 4 min | 10 March 2015)

Prayers to Sri Vaishnav Thakur:

• 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 Thakura | (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."

In honour of Srila Ramachandra Kaviraj's disappearance:

Power of Good Association
"You must see the sadhu with your ears. Every day you sing, 'Ramachandra-sanga mage Narottama Dasa: Narottam Das prays for the association of Ramachandra Kaviraj.' What does this mean? Why does Narottam Das always ask for the association of Ramachandra?"
• Download / listen to the audio (1 Mb, 3 min | 12 March 2017 | Gaura Purnima)

Priorities In Spiritual Life
"If every householder devotee says, 'I have some job in my house, I cannot do it,' then who will serve at the temple? Even if you live in a house, you must live as a proper householder devotee. Turn your house into a temple."
• Download / listen to the audio (2.6 Mb, 7 min | 16 August 2020)

In honour of Sripad Yadavendu Bhakti Chandan:

Sripad Yadavendu Bhakti Chandan [GaudiyaDarshan.com]
"...He was a senior man, he was very experienced and honourable, but he treated me with humility and all his other good qualities. Later, I was his servant for one month in Vrindavan. Sometimes Srila Guru Maharaj told me, 'In the evening, give him a garland.' Guru Maharaj gave him the title 'Bhakti Chandan'."

In Remembrance of Sri Bhakti Chandan Prabhu [GaudiyaDarshan.com]
"Today, being separated from the direct affection of Srimat Yadavendu Bhakti Chandan Prabhu, we are bearing jewel-less hearts. Personally, I received so much of his auspicious association. When we have teeth, we do not understand their value. Today, if I could meet him again, then, just by getting a touch of his good association, I would attain even greater good fortune."

Spiritual Sustenance: Association and Service Mood
"Wherever there is a Vaishnav, wherever there is connection with a Vaishnav and great devotees, it will always be good for us. So, we must be always determined, always intent on good association. It is necessary to have a good intention to become a good devotee."
• Download / listen to the audio (2.1 Mb, 5 min)

Spiritual Sustenance: Exclusive Mood
"Devotee must be always careful and serious about their service—devotees always think about Krishna. Any time, all the time think about Krishna. You must utilise your heart, your, everything for the service to the Lord."
• Download / listen to the audio (1.6 Mb, 4 min | 23 August 2020)