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MONTHLY ARCHIVE OF UPDATES

MAY 2024

 

Wed, 1 May 2024

Where Are You Rushing?
'Many of you took prasad today in the afternoon and wanted to leave. I hid in my room and locked the door because I could not imagine that they would leave immediately as soon as the parikrama finished...'
Download / listen to the audio (23.3 Mb, 46 min | 20 March 2019 | Bengali)

 


গুরুর লোভ, শিষ্যদের লোভ (১ জানুয়ারি ২০২১)
"এই জগতে বিত্তহরণকারী গুরু অনেক পাবেন । বিত্তহরণকারী গুরু কে ? সেটা ধন-সম্পত্তি নেওয়া গুরু । অনেক গুরু দেখবেন দিক্ষা দিয়ে চলে যায় আর বছরে একবার আসবে । আপনাদের জমি যেমন খাজনা বছরে বছরে দিতে হয় বা পঞ্চায়েত বা মুনিসিপালিটির ট্যাক্স দিতে হয়, তেমন জগতে অনেক গুরু আছে যে আপনাদের প্রতি ট্যাক্স বসিয়ে দেয় ।"

Шри Баракона Гхат и Шри Мадхай Гхат
«Таким образом, придя в этот гхат сегодня, мы должны предложить поклоны этому месту и молиться о том, чтобы такие никчемные и грешные души, как мы, смогли каким-то образом однажды обрести беспричинную милость Нитьянанды Прабху и служение Его преданным. Это всё, на что мы уповаем».


 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Forgetting Yourself
"Give respect to everybody. Basically, tridandi sannyas means to be humble, tolerant, and give honour to others. However, I am bound to say that sometimes they take sannyas or saffron, and their ego becomes very big. They forget that they must serve more. It makes me very sad."
Download / listen to the audio (3.2 Mb, 8 min | 8 November 2020)

 

Thu, 2 May 2024

Limited but One-Pointed Life
'How can you get good association? You do not get the association of saints by staying or sleeping at the same place with them. You must read saints' books. If you read their books every day, if you watch and listen to their programmes (lectures) every day, it will bring you much benefit. This is how you must live.'
Download / listen to the audio (23.3 Mb, 46 min | 20 March 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Joy of Good Association
"I do not want to go preaching alone, when there are only two-three devotees. I always want devotees' association. 'Ekaki amara nahi paya bala hari-nama-sankirtane. When I am alone, I get no strength to chant.' Devotees' enthusiasm gives me inspiration."
Download / listen to the audio (5.2 Mb, 13 min | 8 November 2020)

 

Sat, 4 May 2024 (Fast on Sri Varuthini Ekadasi)

Eternal Faith, Eternal Patience
'Have faith in the Lord, He will look after everything. If you have no faith in the Lord, then where will you get patience? After you take initiation, you must wait day after day, day after day. This is the meaning of being a disciple. You cannot think, "Oh, I have come to take initiation, so gurudev will be sitting and waiting for me." I am not such a guru!'
Download / listen to the audio (19.7 Mb, 39 min | 21 March 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Sri Gadadhar Das Goswami
"Sri Gadadhar Das Goswami is an eternal associate of Sriman Mahaprabhu and Sriman Nityananda Prabhu. At first, he lived in Katwa, and later, after Mahaprabhu's disappearance, he moved to a village on the bank of the Ganges...."
Download / listen to the audio (1.6 Mb, 4 min | 22 November 2020)

 

All Glory to Sri Sri Guru Gauranga

— · Announcement · —


Disappearance Festival of Om Vishnupad Paramahamsa
Parivrajakacharya-varya Ashtottara-sata-sri
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj


pujya-sri-guru-varga-vandita-mahabhavanvitayah sada
paurvaparya-parampara-prachalita-prajya-pramurtakrteh
bhakter nirmala-nirjharasya nibhrtam samraksakam sadaram
vande sri-gurudevam anata-sira acharya-varyam nijam

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.

prerakam prachya-paschatya-sisyanam bhakti-vartmani
bhakti-nirmalam-acharya-svaminam pranamamy aham

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.

Dear Devotees, Vaishnavs and Well-Wishers,

Bowing down at your holy feet, we would like to extend to you a humble and earnest invitation to join the observance of the divine disappearance day of our beloved Sri Gurupadpadma Om Vishnupad Jagad-Guru Sri Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj, manifesting this year on 7 May 2024 (Tuesday).

On this worshippable day, fraught with sorrowful remembrance of His Divine Grace's withdrawal from this world that plunged us into abysmal, pathetic darkness yet pleased the hearts of Sri Sri Guru Gauranga Gandharva Govinda-sundar for They regained the company of Their beloved associate in Their eternal pastimes, we pray for forgiveness of our offences that prevent us from rejecting the illusory charms surrounding us and embracing His Divine Grace's instructions exclusively, as our all-in-all. May the merciful teachings of His Divine Grace reign forever victorious in our hearts. We hope all devotees find an opportunity to observe this holy day for the satisfaction of Sri Gurupadpadma, keeping his divine Guidance on their heads: 'Always sit amidst fire blazing on all four sides. This fire is Hari-katha, kirtan, service to the Lord, and service to the guru. You must progress in your practising life keeping the sacrificial fire of your service ablaze.'

Your aspiring servants,
On behalf of SCSMathInternational.com


Observing Festivals
His Divine Grace many times advised how to hold special programmes and taught it many times by his own example. In summary, such programmes usually consist of kirtan glorification, Hari-katha, arati, pushpanjali (offering of flowers to a photograph) and prasad-seva (cooking a special offering, offering it at the altar and lovingly distributing it to devotees).

Favourite Preparations
When asked, His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj replies, 'When devotees give me something with affection, I accept it.' Presented on this page, however, is a list of preparations favourite to His Divine Grace that was provided by the servitors of His Divine Grace.

 

 


Today in the calendar: Krishna Ekadasi. Fast on Varuthini Ekadasi. Disappearance of Sriyukta Saurindranath Bhakti Varidhi Prabhu.

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."


 

Sripad Saurindranath Bhakti Varidhi Mahodaya
"By attaining one drop of the firm constancy for endeavouring to serve Sri Gaura Krishna under the guidance of Srila Prabhupad and His associate—the Acharya of Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math—that was observed in his life and up until his last moment, even a fallen soul like myself could become qualified for eternal good fortune and be supremely blessed."

 


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 bath in the Ganges, attended kirtans, danced, circumambulated the temple and so on. Then, I asked him whether he would take any anukalpa. He replied, 'Generally, I do not take anything, but if you like, then, of course, I must take 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 Krishna, for the cause of their 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 held responsible by 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 not do that, I should be a separatist, a mayavadi, a renunciationist. I shall render maximum service to Krishna, and I must take without any hesitation 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..."

ADDITIONAL READING:

"Observing Ekadasi"
"Ekadasi Vrata: Make Your Guru Happy"
"No Other Shelter"
"Mahadvadasi"
"Ekadasi and liberation"
"Ekadasi Tithi: One of the Practices"
"Yogini Ekadasi"
"Ekadasi: Historical Background"
"Ekadasi: Main Focus Is Service"
Ekadasi Struggle?
"Make the Teachings of Sri Guru Non-Different from Your Heart"
Ekadasi: Devotional Practice
Ekadasi Struggle?

 

"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)

 

Fri, 3 May 2024 (Disappearance of Srila Vrindavan Das Thakur)

Exclusive Discipleship
'If somebody takes sannyas from another temple, it means that they have left, giving up Srila Sridhar Maharaj's line – Gurudev said that such persons cannot be considered members of Chaitanya Saraswat Math. This is what I wanted to tell you today.'
Download / listen to the audio (23.3 Mb, 46 min | 20 March 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Core of Life
"We always want the association of the grantha-bhagavat and Vaishnav-bhagavat—if we can get this kind of association, it is very good for us. All Vaishnavs, all guru-varga come to this world to give nourishment to such fallen souls as myself. Otherwise, if such personalities did not come to this world, what hope would we have?"
Download / listen to the audio (3.9 Mb, 10 min | 22 November 2020)

 

 


Today in the calendar: Krishna Dasami. Disappearance of Srila Vrindavan Das Thakur.

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 Sri Chaitanya-Vyas Srila Vrindavan Das Thakur:

~ Pranam-mantra ~

dasa-vrndavanam vande krsna-dasa-prabhum tatha
chhannavatara-chaitanya-lila-vistara-karinau
dvau nityananda-padabja-karuna-renu-bhusitau
vyakta-chchhannau budhachintyau vavande vyasa-rupinau
sri-guru-gaura-gandharva-govindas cha ganaih saha
jayanti pathakas chatra sarvesam karunarthinah

"I offer my obeisances to Srila Vrindavan Das Thakur and Srila Krishna Das Kaviraj Goswami, who made public the pastimes of the hidden avatar, Sri Chaitanya. They were both adorned with the mercy-dust of the lotus feet of Nityananda. I offer my obeisances to these two inconceivable sages who assumed the form of Vyasadeva, one—explicitly (Vrindavan Das Thakur), another—hiddenly (Krishna Das Kaviraj Goswami). Sri Sri Guru Gauranga Gandharva Govinda and Their associates are ever victorious and we, the students, pray for Their mercy."

(Composed by Srila B.S. Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj)

Srila Vrindavan Das Thakur
His holy birthplace (Mamgachhi), his holy Deities (Sri Sri Gaura Nitai), his holy pastimes place (haritaki tree), and his holy samadhi (Denur)...

 

 

Land of Childhood Pastimes of Srila Vrindavan Das Thakur [From Sri Nabadwip Dham Mahatmya-Mukta-Mala] [75 Mb]
An extensive chapter about the pastimes and glory of Srila Vrindavan Das Thakur and two special profound dedicated articles presented in the book from the previous publications of our Math.

 

Under a Haritaki Tree
"Vrindavan Das Thakur's mother's name is Narayani, and she was a niece of Srivas Pandit. Mahaprabhu always held kirtans in the house of Srivas Pandit, and Narayani lived in that same house. When she was very little, she got Mahaprabhu's mercy..."
Download / listen to the audio (2.6 Mb, 8 min | 31 December 2012)

Clasping Nityananda Prabhu's Feet
"Nityananda is nondifferent from Guru-tattva: without mercy of the Guru you cannot get the mercy of Krishna. When will Nityananda Prabhu give me some mercy? When will He be compassionate to me and relieve me from the mundane illusion?"
Download / listen to the audio (2.1 Mb, 6 min | 20 October 2015)

Vrindavan Das Thakur: A Life of Chastity
"Vrindavan Das Thakur is a disciple of Sriman Nityananda Prabhu and is the main servitor of Nityananda Prabhu. He has so much chastity for Him..."
Download / listen to the audio (1.5 Mb, 5 min | 18 May 2015)

 

Composed by Srila Vrindavan Das Thakur:

SONG: Nitai amara dayara avadhi | নিতাই আমার দয়ার অবধি
"O brothers! My Lord Nitai's mercy is limitless! Bestowing His mercy upon the souls of this world He wanders from place to place perpetually offering the great treasure of ecstatic spiritual love to all."

SONG: Bimala hema-jini | বিমল হেমজিনি
"His spotless figure defeats pure gold! Various flowers garlands adorn Him highlighting His beauty, and, in His ecstatic thrill, the hairs on His body standing erect defeat the stamens of kadamba flowers! His body is covered with drops of perspiration..."

 

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."

 

Sun, 5 May 2024 (Paran Ekadasi is at 5:05:06–9:23:52 a.m.)

Service Is Privilege
'Everybody should try to serve according to their capacity, according to their service qualification, or right. Satisfying the whims of your mind on pretext of practising spiritual life is not what is called spiritual life. If something comes to your mind and you do it, this is not spiritual life.'
Download / listen to the audio (19.7 Mb, 39 min | 21 March 2019 | Bengali)

 


প্রবঁচক ও প্রবঁচিত (১ জানুয়ারি ২০২১)
"যিনি ভোগের মধ্যে থাকেন — স্ত্রী, পুত্র নিয়ে বাস করে এবং কোনটা কর্তব্য ও কোনটা অকর্তব্য সেটা তার কোন সুবুদ্ধি নাই — আর শুদ্ধভক্তি বিধি তিনি করেন না, তিনি ইতরপন্থানুগামী ব্যক্তি । নামে-মাত্র-গুরু হইলেও তাঁহাকে পরিত্যাগ করাই বিধি । যিনি আচার্য্য বেশ ধরেছে কিন্তু সব সময় শাস্ত্র বিরুদ্ধে কথা বলেন আর যিনি শিষ্যরূপে অন্যায়ভাবে তাঁকে শ্রবণ করেন, তাহলে তাঁহারা উভয়েই অনন্তকাল ঘোরনরকে থাকেন ।"

Шри Йогапитх (часть 1)
«Приняв прибежище у Шри Джаганнатха Мишры и Шачи Маты, Шриман Махапрабху появился в этом месте, где мы сейчас находимся. Слава Йогапитха бесподобна: на земле нет другого места, нет другого святого места паломничества, которое могло бы сравниться с Йогапитхом».


 

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Appearance of Acharya Srinivas
"Having received Mahaprabhu's blessing and mercy, Chaitanya Das and his wife returned to their house in Gaura-desh. Their son was born and, seeing his beautiful son, Chaitanya Das immediately declared, 'I will give this son to the lotus feet of Mahaprabhu for His service.'"
Download / listen to the audio (1.5 Mb, 4 min)

 

Mon, 6 May 2024 (Om Vishnupad Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj's Tirobhav Mahotsav Adhivas)

Service Insight
'Devotees know what gurudev needs, so they try to supply that. This is what service is. You must always remember this. You can do so much with just some simple small service. It is not necessary to do something big.'
Download / listen to the audio (19.7 Mb, 39 min | 21 March 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Acharya Srinivas: Collecting Mercy
"Srinivas Acharya received Sri Narahari Thakur and Govinda Gosh Thakur's mercy from his childhood. Later, when Acharya Srinivas's father left his body, Srinivas and his mother then came to his mother's family house in Jajigram..."
Download / listen to the audio (2.1 Mb, 5 min)

 

'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)

Cannot Have Foot in Both Camps
'Why will we leave Krishna consciousness? Why do we go to surrender to Maya? If we surrender to Gurudev, then Gurudev will engage us in the service of the Lord as surrendered devotees. But if we surrender to Maya, she will keep us as her prisoners.'
Download / listen to the audio (54.2 Mb, 105 min | 7 November 2020)

Do Not Compromise with Maya
"So many problems came in their time, and they did not back off—they spoke the truth; but we are ready to compromise our principles—we compromise what Mahaprabhu teaches us with other things. Srila Sridhar Maharaj saw a big dream that Mahaprabhu's proper conception would be preached all over the world by Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math, and that is happening now. We must not surrender to maya."
Download / listen to the audio (3.8 Mb, 11 min | 7 June 2019)

Tue, 7 May 2024 (Om Vishnupad Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj's Tirobhav Tithi)

Service Mishaps
'If you want to do service, even a small thing is sufficient – the main thing is that you must supply what is required and when it is required. If you do something for your own pratistha or for your own benefit, this is not service.'
Download / listen to the audio (19.7 Mb, 39 min | 21 March 2019 | Bengali)

 

pujya-sri-guru-varga-vandita-mahabhavanvitayah sada
paurvaparya-parampara-prachalita-prajya-pramurtakrteh
bhakter nirmala-nirjharasya nibhrtam samraksakam sadaram
vande sri-gurudevam anata-sira acharya-varyam nijam

"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."

 

 

 

 

"A disappearance day is also called viraha-tithi, a separation day. Viraha, separation, comes if there is relation—if you have some relation with the person, then separation comes. When and how does relation come? It comes through service. If you have no service, you have no relation; if you have service, then you have relation, and when there is relation, separation comes. No service—no relation. Remember this."

"You must always listen and speak about the Lord. Where will you find Gurudev? Gurudev has gone now. But you can get his association if you read his books. When I am not here, where will you get my association? I have books – if you read those books, you can get the darshan of your Gurudev and get his association every day. Guru is always with us; he always gives us instruction. If we remember his instructions, his words, if we read his books, we will always get his association through that."
~Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj

 

Autobiography of Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj
To try to describe unlimited glories of a Vaishnav is a very challenging task, and because the nature of Guru is beyond what we can grasp with our material intelligence and beyond what we can perceive with our material senses, it makes the task even harder. Presented here is an autobiographical discourse of His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj, the current Acharya and Sevaite of Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math.

PHOTO ALBUM
The photographs presented in this dedicated photo album are only a few glimpses into a particle of the service and contribution that His Divine Grace has made. May they however become a source of inspiration for the service and dedication to the lotus feet of Sri Gurudev that His Divine Grace embodies.

 

My Grief [22 March 2016 | Part 1]
"Today, by the mercy of Sri Gurupadpadma, by the mercy of Gaura Hari, you have successfully, beautifully and without any obtacles completed Sri Nabadwip Dham parikrama. It is a very happy, joyful day, but at the same time it is also a sorrowful day..."

Who Will Understand This? [22 March 2016 | Part 2]
"This relationship is not a two-day connection, this connection is not just to take initiation and go away, no. You must not only think like this, but you must understand it. What is the love of Guru? What do you receive from your Guru? You must always think about it."

The last recorded Hari-katha and Guidance of Sri Gurupadpadma:

Take Care of Yourself [2 May 2021 | Part 1]
"...This is the situation now—we must all be careful. We must chant more and more, we must preach more and more, and we must practise more and more. Always continue following all the rules and regulations—we must distribute the teachings that we have got from our Gurudev to others."

Sadhus' Fight [2 May 2021 | Part 2]
"This is a battlefield. We will not run away from the battlefield—we will always stand and fight against Maya. You can see everywhere that finally demons are always defeated by the sadhu. Om is always at the side of a sadhu. Please you all take care yourself. In this situation, everybody should practise on their own, do not be disheartened."

Be Exclusive, One-Pointed [2 May 2021 | Part 3]
"If you think about good things, then all bad things will automatically be removed from you. Do not worry so much about this. When you think some anartha is coming, you must give more and more attention to practising—concentrate your mind on practising."

শ্রীগুরুপাদপদ্মের শেষ-কথা (ওঁ বিষ্ণুপাদ শ্রীল ভক্তি নির্ম্মল আচার্য্য মহারাজের হরি-কথামৃত)
[২ মে ২০২১] "এটা যুদ্ধক্ষেত্র । আমরা যুদ্ধক্ষেত্র থেকে কখনও পালিয়ে যাব না—আমরা দাঁড়িয়ে থাকব আর মায়ার বিরুদ্ধে যুদ্ধ করব । সর্বত্রই দেখতে পাবেন যে, অসুররা সব সময় সাধুর দ্বারা পরাজিত হন । যেদিকে সাধু, সেইদিকে সব সময় ওঁ থাকে । দয়া করে নিজেদের দেখাশোনা করুন । এই অবস্থায় সকলের নিজেই সাধন করতে হয়, নিরুৎসাহিত হন না ।"

 


KIRTANS:
Gurudev! krpa-bindu diya | গুরুদেব! কৃপাবিন্দু দিয়া
"When I examine myself for qualifications, I find none. Your mercy is everything. If you are not merciful to me, then, crying, I will no longer maintain my life."

 

Samsara-davanala | সংসার-দাবানল
"I offer my obeisance unto the lotus feet of Sri Guru, the ocean of goodness who assumes the form of a cloud of mercy to deliver the souls burning in the blazing fire of material existence."

 

Sri-guru-charana-padma | শ্রীগুরুচরণ-পদ্ম
"I carefully offer my obeisance to Sri Guru's lotus feet, which are the sole abode of devotion. O brother! By his mercy we cross over this world and reach Krishna."

 

Krsna haite chatur-mukha | কৃষ্ণ হৈতে চতুর্ম্মুখ
"Srila Govinda Maharaj's dear successor, who is devoted to practising and preaching his teachings, is Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj. All the Gurus in this succession are associates of Sri Gauranga—I pray for their remnants."

 

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! It is not possible to conquer maya by engaging in maya. I see no other way to get relief except for the mercy of sadhus."

 

 

Sri Rupa-manjari-pada | শ্রীরূপমঞ্জরী-পদ
"The lotus feet of Sri Rupa Manjari are my wealth, my bhajan (service), my puja (worship), the wealth of my life, and whatever ornaments I may have. Her lotus feet are the very life of my life."

 

 

Amara jivana | আমার জীবন
"My life is always engrossed in sin. There is not a trace of piety within it. I have caused others so much anxiety and trouble. Such a sinner as I is shunned by devotees, and is a constant offender."

 

 

Gurudev bada krpa kari | গুরুদেব! বড় কৃপা করি’
"When, O master, will you mercifully grant this servant the qualification to do this? Then my heart will become steadfast, I will tolerate everything, and I will serve the Lord sincerely."

 

 

SONG: Ye anila prema dhana | যে আনিল প্রেমধন
"I will break my head on a rock, I will enter into fire. Not finding the association of Sri Gauranga, who performed His Pastimes with all these associates, Narottam Das weeps."

 


Guidance Vol 1
(PDF, 1.5 Mb)
Traducción ESPAÑOLA
Русский перевод

Guidance Vol 2
(PDF, 3.8 Mb)
Traducción ESPAÑOLA
Русский перевод

Guidance Vol 3
(PDF, 3.7 Mb)
Traducción ESPAÑOLA
Русский перевод


Guidance Vol 4
(PDF, 4.7 Mb)
Traducción ESPAÑOLA
Русский перевод
 

Sri Upadesh 1
(Bengali)

Sri Upadesh 2
(Bengali)

Sri Upadesh 3
(Bengali)

Sri Upadesh 4
(Bengali)
 

Sri Puri Dham
Mahatmya-mukta-mala

(Bengali)

Sri Nabadwip Dham
Mahatmya-mukta-mala

(Bengali)

Sri Nabadwip Dham Mahatmya-Mukta-Mala (English)
[PDF, 24 Mb]

Wed, 8 May 2024 (Appearance of Sri Gadadhar Pandit Goswami)

Listen and Follow
'If you have faith in your guru, if you have firm devotion to your guru, then all those nonsense talks will not even enter your ears – you will not even think about material life or any material things; you will only think about Mahaprabhu, about spiritual life, you will only serve the Lord. If you follow this in your life, you will get benefit.'
Download / listen to the audio (19.7 Mb, 39 min | 21 March 2019 | Bengali)

Service to Gaura-Gadadhar (By Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj)
"Is worship of Gaura-Gadadhar a completely madhurya conception? Yes, and more than that. This worship is rather related to separation, or union in separation. Gadadhar Pandit represented Radharani's bhava, but though he is the possessor of that wealth, it was taken up by Mahaprabhu, so he stood empty."

 


গুরুদেবের তিরোভাব (১ম ভাগ | ২৪ এপ্রিল ২০২১)
"আজকে মদীয় গুরুপাদপদ্ম ওঁ বিষ্ণুপাদ জগৎগুরু শ্রীল ভক্তিসুন্দর গোবিন্দ দেবগোস্বামী মহারাজের শুভ তিরোভাব তিথি । গুরুপাদপাদ্ম এই দিনটাকে ছেড়ে চলে গিয়েছেন । খুব বিরহের দিন তবু আমরা আড়ম্বরভাবে গুরুদেবের তিরোভাব তিথি পালন করে থাকি । বৈষ্ণবের তিরোভাব আর আবির্ভাব একই বস্তু কারণ বৈষ্ণবগণ হচ্ছেন ভগবানের নিজজন ।"

Шри Гададхар Пандит Госвами (часть 1)
«С самого детства Шри Гададхар Пандит был рядом с Махапрабху. Его отца звали Мадхав Мишра, а маму — Ратнавали Деви. Они жили рядом с домом Шри Джаганнатха Мишры в Маяпуре, и Ратнавали Деви относилась к Шачи Деви как к старшей сестре. Являя лилу своих детских деяний, Шри Гаура Хари всегда играл вместе с Гададхаром Пандитом».


 

Today in the calendar: Amavasya. Appearance of Srila Gadadhar Pandit 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."

 


 

In honour of Srila Gadadhar Pandit Goswami:

— { Pranam mantra of Sri Gadadhar Pandit Goswami } —

nilambhodhi-tate sada sva-viraha-ksepanvitam bandhavam
srimad-bhagavati katha madiraya sanjivayan bhati yah
srimad-bhagavatam sada sva-nayanasru-payanaih pujayan
gosvami-prabaro gadadhara-vibhur-bhuyat mad-eka-gatih

"On the shore of the broad blue ocean Gadadhar Pandit used to read Srimad Bhagavatam to Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who was suffering from the great internal pain of separation from Himself (Krishna). Gadadhar Pandit supplied the wine of Krishna-lila to intoxicate his afflicted friend and give Him relief. As he read, tears would fall from his eyes like flower offerings onto the pages of Srimad Bhagavatam. May the pleasure of that brilliant personality, Gadadhar Pandit, the best of the Goswamis, be my only object in writing this book."

(Composed by Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj)

Sri Gadadhar Pandit Goswami
(A chapter from Srila Acharya Maharaj's Bengali book Sri Nabadwip Dham Mahatmya-mukta-mala)
"Sri Gadadhar Pandit stayed with Mahaprabhu from his childhood. His father's name was Madhav Misra, and his mother's name was Ratnavali Devi. They lived in Mayapur near Jagannath Misra's house. Mahaprabhu could never stay without Gadadhar Pandit, and Gadadhar Pandit could not stay without Mahaprabhu even a moment too..."

Sri Gadadhar Pandit: Mahaprabhu's Shadow
(A chapter from Srila Acharya Maharaj's Bengali book Sri Puri Dham Mahatmya-mukta-mala)
"Sri Gadadhar Pandit stayed with Mahaprabhu from his childhood. His father's name was Madhav Misra, and his mother's name was Ratnavali Devi. They lived in Mayapur near Jagannath Misra's house. Mahaprabhu could never stay without Gadadhar Pandit, and Gadadhar Pandit could not stay without Mahaprabhu even a moment too..."

At Sri Chatak Parvat and Sri Tota Gopinath Temple
His Divine Grace is speaking at the bhajan-kutir of Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur and Sri Tota Gopinath temple on the first day of Sri Puri Dham parikrama, telling the pastimes of Srila Haridas Thakur's disappearance and Srila Gadadhar Pandit.
Download / listen to the audio (4.9 Mb, 13 min | 14 July 2015 | Bengali)

Sri Gadadhar Pandit's Life in Puri
A special discourse given by His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj for Sri Gaudiya Darshan, 1995, dwelling on "Puri Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math" and "Jagannathdev and His Dham." Later, this article was included in the compilation of lectures Affectionate Guidance (Chapter 23).

 

পণ্ডিত শ্রীগদাধর গোস্বামী ["Pandit Sri Gadadhar Goswami," the original Bengali article]
শ্রীল ভক্তিরক্ষক শ্রীধর দেব গোস্বামী মহারাজের প্রবন্ধ: "পণ্ডিত গোস্বামী চরিত্র নিজ প্রিয়তমের উদ্দেশ্যে একটী নীরব পূর্ণ-আত্মোৎসর্গময় উপটোকন বিশেষ । লক্ষ্মীদেবীর স্কন্ধ ভিক্ষার ঝুলি দর্শনে যাঁহারা বিরোধালঙ্কারের চমৎকারিতা হৃদয়ঙ্গমে যে অপূর্ব্ব সুখাস্বাদনে সমর্থ, তাঁহারাই শ্রীমৎ পণ্ডিত গোস্বামী অপূর্ব্ব ব্যক্তিত্বের অসাধারণ মহিমা অনুভবের অধিকারী ।"

 


 

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: Thakura vaisnava-gana | ঠাকুর বৈষ্ণবগণ
"O worshippable Vaisnavas, I offer you this prayer. I am very fallen and misbehaved. Destiny has immersed me in the fearsome ocean of material existence. Please grab me by the hair and pull me to the shore."

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
"Nityananda is my wealth, Gaurachandra is my lord, my very life is the Divine Couple. Advaita Acharya is my strength, Gadadhar is my family, and Narahari is my play and pastimes."

 

Thu, 9 May 2024

Irreconcilable Difference
'People come from all temples, but that Math people always go to the temple over there. They do not come here. That is why I also offer obeisance to them from far. As Srila Janardan Maharaj said, "If somebody does not like Gurudev, if somebody does not like Gurudev's line, I will offer obeisances to them from ten thousand miles away."'
Download / listen to the audio (19.7 Mb, 39 min | 21 March 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Acharya Srinivas: Rescuing Scriptures
"So many things are written about Acharya Srinivas. There is a famous pastime of Srila Srinivas Acharya and Raja Birhambir. Srila Srinivas Acharya, Srila Narottam Das Thakur, and Srila Shyamananda Prabhu were once travelling with all the books of Srila Rupa Goswami, Srila Sanatan Goswami, and others..."
Download / listen to the audio (2.2 Mb, 5 min | 22 November 2020)

 

 


Today in the calendar: Gaura Pratipad. Appearance of Tridandi Swami Srimad Bhakti Aloka (Bhaktyaloka) Paramahamsa Maharaj (his brahmachari name is Sri Mahananda Prabhu; a diksa disciple of Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur Prabhu and a sannyas disciple of Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj, founder of Sri Paramahamsa Gaudiya Math in Sri Dham Mayapur).

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."

 


 

Fri, 10 May 2024

Entering the Right Current
'I will take two–five minutes more to address those who are going to take initiation, and when you come upstairs, I will give you the beads. Please listen carefully to what I will say. We must remember our line.'
Download / listen to the audio (19.7 Mb, 39 min | 21 March 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Take Care of Yourself
"Always do service, always think about your Guru, think about your spiritual life. This is what I want from you. Devotees go to work, but they must think about their spiritual life—they must set some time for their spiritual life, spiritual benefit."
Download / listen to the audio (2.3 Mb, 6 min | 22 November 2020)

 

 


Today in the calendar: Gaura Dvitiya. Appearance of Tridandi-swami Srimad Bhakti Vichar Jajavar Maharaj (a disciple of Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur Prabhupad and a dear associate of Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj). Gaura Tritiya (falls on the same day). Aksaya Tritiya (an auspicious day to start some works). Beginning of the 21-day Chandan Yatra of Sri Sri Jagannathdev.

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 Bhakti Vichar Jajavar Maharaj:

— { Pranam mantra } —

saumyam suddha-tanum sudhamsu-vadanam sarasvatam sundaram
namananda-puram prasanta-manasam samsara-santarakam
abalayad-bhagavat-padabja-madhupam dinarti-ham daivatam
vande bhakti-vicharakam prabhu-varam yayavara-svaminam

"I offer my obeisance unto my great master, the worshippable Srimad Bhakti Vichar Jajavar Maharaj. He is a beautiful follower of Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur and has been a bee in the lotus feet of the Lord since his youth. He has a divine form and a moonlike face. He is filled with the Name's ecstasy and his heart is tranquil. He is gentle, he relieves the fallen of their distress, and he delivers the world."

(Composed by Srila B.S. Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj)

Sripad Bhakti Vichar Jajavar Maharaj (by Srila B.S. Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj, spoken on Srila Jajavar Maharaj's disappearance day)
"Srila Jajavar Maharaj joined the Gaudiya Mission of Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur at a very young age. He could sing nicely, and he looked very simple—there was not a shadow of inauspiciousness in his body..."
Download / listen to the audio (8.4 Mb, 25 min)

 

Sat, 11 May 2024

Keep Your Vision Straight
'You must always avoid criticising and disrespecting Vaishnavs. I have heard many people speak like that, and I have heard somebody say this today, too. It reminded me of one time when one of Gurudev's godbrothers came to Gurudev and complained about me.'
Download / listen to the audio (37.2 Mb, 73 min | 21 March 2019 | Bengali, English, Spanish)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Ongoing Agenda
"By the mercy of Gurudev, I am today in Nrisingha Palli. I know that it is our zoom programme today, but I also had so much service here at the construction site today and there is still much left to do tomorrow—and it turned out that the connection here is very nice. So, I am giving this online class today from here."
Download / listen to the audio (1.7 Mb, 4 min | 29 November 2020)

 

Sun, 12 May 2024

Eagerness for Connection
'Many people took initiation today – they take initiation and think, 'I have become a king!' They do not keep in touch with their gurudev after that. They never call and speak to their gurudev. It is necessary to keep connection. You must make an effort.'
Download / listen to the audio (37.2 Mb, 73 min | 21 March 2019 | Bengali, English, Spanish)

 


সবকিছু অন্ধকারে ডুবে গেল (২য় ভাগ | ২৪ এপ্রিল ২০২১)
"যখন গুরুদেব এই জগৎ থেকে চলে গেলেন তখন মনে হচ্ছিল আর বকা দেওয়ার কেউ থাকল না । সুখ-দুঃখের কথা সব সময় গুরুদেবের সঙ্গে আলাপ করতাম আর গুরুদেব যখন এই জগৎ থেকে চলে গেলেন, একটা ছায়া—যেন একটা আবরণ—চলে গেল । কি হচ্ছে, কি হবে কিছুই বুঝতে পারছিলাম না । মনে হচ্ছিল যে, আমি একা !"

Шри Йогапитх (часть 2)
«Блаженная земля Индии, которая несёт на себе святые отпечатки стоп святого Господа и Его преданных, является обителью религии на этой земле. Один из семи городов, расположенных в Индии и способных даровать освобождение, — это Шри Маяпур в Шри Дхаме Навадвип, который неотличен от Шри Матхура-мандалы. На самом деле в мире не существует возвышенного места, которое могло бы сравниться с Навадвипом, потому что именно здесь появился Шри Гаура-хари, океан чистого сострадания и милости».


 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Sober Householder Life
"Even if you live as a householder, you can still try to preach. It is possible. I am telling to everyone—the minimum requirement for all householders is that you must give 50% of your labour to your family and minimum 50% to your Gurudev. You must spend minimum 50% of your time on service and spiritual life."
Download / listen to the audio (2.8 Mb, 7 min | 29 November 2020)

 

 


Today in the calendar: Gaura Panchami. Appearance of Sripad Sankaracharya. Disappearance of Tridandi-swami Srimad Bhakti Vilas Gabhastinemi 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."


 

In honour of Sri Sankar Acharya:

Hearing the name of Sri Sankar Acharya, Paramahamsa Babaji Mahasay offered his prostrate obeisance and said:

‘O great soul! “Sankarah Sankarah saksat” (Sankar is Mahadev-Sankar, Lord Siva, himself) – always remember these words. Sankar is a Guru of Vaishnavs, that is why Mahaprabhu spoke of him as an Acharya. Sankar is a perfect Vaishnav. When he made his advent in India, there was a very urgent need in a guna-avatara like him. At that time, discussions of Vedas and practices of varnasrama-dharma had become almost obliterated by the influence of Buddhist voidism, which is extremely atheistic. Although Buddhist doctrine contains some truth about jiva souls, that religion is quite temporal (non-eternal). At that time, almost all brahmans had become Buddhists and had almost completely given up Vedic religion. Filled with wondrous power, the advent of Sankar’s incarnation established the honour of Vedic scriptures and changed voidism into brahmanism. The work he performed is wonderful. India is eternally indebted to Sri Sankar for this great work. All works in the world can be divided into two types. Some works are related to some particular time (temporal), and some are not related to any time (timeless, eternal). The great work of Sankar’s incarnation is temporal, and many good results emerged from it. Sankar’s incarnation created a foundation upon which the incarnations of Sri Ramanuja, Sri Madhva and other great teachers later built the palace of pure Vaishnavism. Therefore, Sankar’s incarnation is the greatest friend of Vaishnavism and a predecessor acharya.

Sri Sankar revealed a conceptual path in this world, and to this day, Vaishnavs easily take advantage of its wealth. Sambandha-jnana (knowledge of the relationship) is extremely necessary for material conditioned souls. Vaishnavs and Sankar Acharya believe that gross bodies existent in this material world are different and separate from transcendental matter, but spiritually, there is no difference between a jiva soul’s internal and external identity. Both agree that giving up material world is called liberation (mukti), and up until attaining liberation, there is very much similarity between Sri Sankar and Vaishnav Acharyas. Sankar Acharya teaches that it is possible to purify one’s heart and attain liberation by practising God consciousness (by serving and worshipping the Lord), but only Sankar is silent about the transcendental path jiva souls face after attaining liberation. Sankar knew very well that if a jiva soul can progress on the path of liberation by serving the Lord, it will gradually, bound by the happiness of spiritual life, become a pure devotee. Therefore, when Sankar showed the path, he did not further reveal the mystery of Vaishnavs. Those who read and consider his commentaries very carefully can understand Sankar’s profound intention. But those who pass their time reading only the external parts of his teachings become driven away from proper Vaishnavism.

(From Jaiva Dharma by Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur)

 

Mon, 13 May 2024

Join Service Connection
'You cannot stay alone. You will get association if you keep connection with me. You have taken initiation and will go back each to your own village. If each of you arranges a programme in your own village and calls me, I will come. This is connection.'
Download / listen to the audio (37.2 Mb, 73 min | 21 March 2019 | Bengali, English, Spanish)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Sober Householder Life
"Even if you live as a householder, you can still try to preach. It is possible. I am telling to everyone—the minimum requirement for all householders is that you must give 50% of your labour to your family and minimum 50% to your Gurudev. You must spend minimum 50% of your time on service and spiritual life."
Download / listen to the audio (2.8 Mb, 7 min | 29 November 2020)

 

Tue, 14 May 2024

Keep Trying
'If you serve the Lord, He will arrange everything. To cross the River, you must leave all shame, all shyness when it comes to our Lord. We must leave everything and go. It is necessary to make an effort towards the Lord.'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Superficial Speculation
"(1) This is what is said in the scriptures. If your position is like this or you can bring yourself to this position, or level, then, yes, Krishna will hear your prayer. (2) Why was it necessary? What is the reason of it? We cannot judge what is necessary and what is not necessary. If something is to happen by the will of Krishna, who can stop it? It does not depend on us or anybody else."
Download / listen to the audio (1.9 Mb, 5 min | 29 November 2020)

 

Wed, 15 May 2024

Highest Realm of Devotion
'Always remember Mahaprabhu's conception. Those of you who have taken initiation must understand that we are not devotees of Krishna. Whose devotees are we?'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

 


Шри Йогапитх (часть 3)
«В Маяпур-дхаме, в особенности в Шри Йогапитхе, происходит множество деяний и игр Господа. Мы молим вас всех: живёте вы дома или в лесу, пожалуйста, всегда помните о месте рождения Махапрабху, о преданных Махапрабху, о божественном послании Махапрабху и Его удивительных деяниях».


 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Cow's Milk
"What makes you think you can take such a decision not to offer milk to the Lord? I do not support this. You must offer milk to the Deities, and if you personally do not like to take milk, that is your decision. We do not take any food—we take prasadam."
Download / listen to the audio (3.1 Mb, 8 min | 29 November 2020)

 

 


Today in the calendar: Gaura Saptami. Jahnu Saptami: Sri Jahnavi Puja (worship of the Ganga).

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 Sri Jahnavi Puja (Sri Ganga Puja):

"...While speaking, they went to Jan Nagar and saw the beauty of the hermitage of Jahnu Muni. Nityananda Prabhu said, 'This charming abode is known as Jahnudwip and Bhadravan. Jahnu Muni performed austerities here and saw the golden form of Gaura. Once, when Jahnu Muni sat here to perform his evening meditation, His copper vessel fell into the swiftly flowing River Ganga. The copper vessel fell into the river and floated away. Jahnu Muni then drank all the water of the Ganga with his palm. Maharaj Bhagirath thought, "Where did the Ganga go?" Bewildered, he began to think over the situation. Understanding that Jahnu Muni had drunk all the water of the Ganga, Maharaj Bhagirath became concerned. Sober Maharaj Bhagirath worshipped the sage for some time, and eventually the Ganga broke out of the sage's body. Thereafter, she became known as Jahnavi. The whole world now calls her 'Jahnavi'.'"

(Sri Nabadwip Dham Mahatmya, chapter 13)

 

Visiting Holy Places: Pleasure Hunting?
"'The trouble of visiting holy places is simply a mental delusion—all possible perfection is the feet of Govinda.' You can ask me, 'Maharaj, then why are you going there, why are taking us with you?' Do you know the answer?"
Download (1 Mb, 3 min | 7 November 2012 | Bengali)

 

Glory of Manasi Ganga
"This Haridev Temple is located to the south of Manasi Ganga. When it came to the temple of Asadi Purnima, Nanda Maharaj, Mother Yasoda and other Vraja-basis wanted to travel to the Ganges to bathe in her water..."
Download (4.3 Mb, 11 min | 6 Nov. 2018 | English & Bengali)

 

Thu, 16 May 2024

Bribing and Increasing Stool
'There is Jesus in Christianity; there is Buddha in Buddhism; there is Allah in Islam; but in Hinduism, there is Laksmi, Kali, Ganesh, Durga, Krishna, Siva, Parvati, Kartik and many others! Why is it like that?'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Danger of Deviation
"This is the first explanation Krishna gives. When Arjuna heard it, he was not happy—he still did not want to fight. Only when Krishna spoke about bhakti-yoga did Arjuna gradually start to understand it and eventually changed his mind. However, we think in another way..."
Download / listen to the audio (1.9 Mb, 5 min | 29 November 2020)

 

Fri, 17 May 2024

What Is a Soul?
'It is very popular to say, 'Do jiva-seva! Serve others!' People give food, money, clothes to others and call this service to jiva souls. But neither Srila Prabhupad Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur, nor Mahaprabhu did that.'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

My Solace
"Gurudev is always in my heart, and I think and understand that I am also always in Gurudev's heart, then they can only try to throw me out of a building, but they can never throw me out of Gurudev's heart and out of devotees' hearts. That is my solace."
Download / listen to the audio (2.7 Mb, 7 min | 29 November 2020)

 

 


Today in the calendar: Gaura Navami. Appearance of Sri Jahnava Devi (Sri Nityananda-sakti) and Sri Sita Devi (Sri Rama-sakti).

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 Sri Sita Devi:

"Lord Ramachandra said to Sri Sita Devi, 'Loving devotion to Me is relished in two ways. O Sita, please hear My words. The joy felt during union with Me is called sambhoga. The joy felt during separation from Me is called vipralambha. My devotees, My eternal associates, desire sambhoga, and by My grace, they experience vipralambha. Devotees know that the sadness felt for My sake during vipralambha is actually the greatest joy. When sambhoga occurs after vipralambha, the happiness felt is ten million times greater than before. Separation from Me is the cause of that happiness. Accept this as truth; the four Vedas affirm it. During My Pastimes as Sri Gauranga, Mother Kausalya, who is known in the Vedas as Aditi, will appear as Sachi Devi. You will serve Me as Visnu Priya. In separation from Me, You will make a Deity of My golden form. In separation from You, I will make a golden Sita and worship You in Ayodhya. In exchange, You will make a Deity of My golden form and worship Me in Nadia. O Sita, these profound topics are very confidential. They will not be revealed to the public now. Nabadwip is very dear to Me: neither Ayodhya nor any other place is equal to it.'"

(Sri Nabadwip Dham Mahatmya, chapter 14)

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 Sri Jahnava Devi:

Lord Nityananda Prabhu's Sakti
"The Lord has tried to save the souls bounded by maya in so many ways in this Kali-yuga. He was the only child of Hadai Pandit and Padmavati Devi and He left them when He was twelve. Later, He was introduced to Jahnava Devi."
Download / listen to the audio (4.7 Mb, 14 min | 29 January 2018 | Bengali)

Nityananda Prabhu's Marriage
"Everybody says that for the devotees Nityananda Prabhu never marries, but He has two saktis, Jahnava and Vasudha. They were actually daughters of Surya Das, Gauri Das Pandit's brother..."
Download / listen to the audio (1.2 Mb, 3 min | 20 September 2009)

 

Sat, 18 May 2024

Service with Faith and Love
'Whatever you see in this world is not created to make you happy – everything is created to love the Lord. When you worship the Lord, you must do it out of love for the Lord, out of desire to serve Him. You must serve holy Deities of the Lord with faith, with love, not for your own enjoyment.'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Soul's Ultimate Happiness
"It is important and necessary for us to hear these things—how we must practise, how we will get our real benefit. These are the main things in our spiritual life. Sixty thousand rishis asked Srila Suta Goswami a question, 'What is ultimately good for a jiva soul?'"
Download / listen to the audio (8.6 Mb, 21 min | 6 December 2020)

 

Sun, 19 May 2024 (Fast on Sri Mohini Ekadasi)

Core of Devotion
'When Mahaprabhu took sannyas and came to Puri, He told Srila Sarvabhauma Bhattacharya, who was the head of the Jagannath Temple, that He wanted to travel to some places around India. Srila Sarvabhauma Bhattacharya told Him, "Prabhu, there is another devotee like You living in South India. When You go there, You should meet him. His name is Ramananda Ray."'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

 


সেবার দিকে খেয়াল (৩য় ভাগ | ২৪ এপ্রিল ২০২১)
"গুরুদেব কী খেতে পছন্দ করতেন, কী ভালোবাসতেন, আমি সেটা জানতাম । সব বাজার থেকে নিয়ে আসতাম । ভাবে গুরুদেবের এই সব দিকটা খেয়াল রাখতাম—আমি সব দিকটায় জানতাম কি করে গুরুদেবকে খেয়াল রাখতে হবে ।"

Шривас Анган (часть 1)
«В ангане Шриваса Пандита жили четыре брата: Шривас, Шрирам, Шрипати и Шринидхи. Среди них Шривас Пандит питал к Махапрабху особенно сильную преданность, влечение и любовь. С первых дней, когда Шриман Махапрабху низошёл в Шри Навадвип-дхаму, у Него со Шривасом Пандитом сложились очень близкие, глубокие отношения».


 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Burning One's Own Fortune
"If somebody thinks they came to the temple and wasted their life there, it means they do not see their own fault. Use your eyes to see your own faults, not others'. Those who have tolerance can stay longer, can practise more, whereas those who stay at the temple but think about material things, material enjoyment, leave the temple and go to another life."
Download / listen to the audio (3.8 Mb, 10 min | 6 December 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 bath in the Ganges, attended kirtans, danced, circumambulated the temple and so on. Then, I asked him whether he would take any anukalpa. He replied, 'Generally, I do not take anything, but if you like, then, of course, I must take 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 Krishna, for the cause of their 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 held responsible by 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 not do that, I should be a separatist, a mayavadi, a renunciationist. I shall render maximum service to Krishna, and I must take without any hesitation 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..."

ADDITIONAL READING:

"Observing Ekadasi"
"Ekadasi Vrata: Make Your Guru Happy"
"No Other Shelter"
"Mahadvadasi"
"Ekadasi and liberation"
"Ekadasi Tithi: One of the Practices"
"Yogini Ekadasi"
"Ekadasi: Historical Background"
"Ekadasi: Main Focus Is Service"
Ekadasi Struggle?
"Make the Teachings of Sri Guru Non-Different from Your Heart"
Ekadasi: Devotional Practice
Ekadasi Struggle?

 

"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)

 

Mon, 20 May 2024 (Ekadasi paran is at 4:56:50–9:20:56)

Set Your Heart for Govinda
'Why does Govinda rest in devotees' hearts? Because devotees want to serve the Lord to bring Him satisfaction, not for their own happiness. They serve the Lord for the Lord's happiness. Always do what is favourable to devotion and reject what is unfavourable.'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Dhenukasur's Fate
"If you have the means (the capacity) to spend money for the Lord, you must do it. Otherwise you will reap the fate of those trees that were cursed and had to be born in a forest where not even birds or beasts entered, only some demon donkey lived there."
Download / listen to the audio (2.1 Mb, 5 min | 6 December 2020)

 

 

Some guidance regarding the forthcoming grand festival in honour of Lord Sri Nrisinghadev's Appearance and the holy Vyasa Puja festival of His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Tilak Niriha Maharaj:

According to the rules established at Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math by our worshippable Sri Guru-varga, the holy day of Lord Sri Nrisinghadev's appearance is observed in the following way:

Sri Nrisingha-chaturdasi adhivas: devotees follow the daily programme of the temple engaging in various services and prepare for the festival (decorating the temple, purchasing and collecting bhoga, inviting honourable guests, etc.).
Sri Nrisingha-chaturdasi day: devotees follow the daily programme of the temple, reading scriptures, engaging in various services, and observe a complete fast until sunset.
Sri Nrisingha-chaturdasi evening (sunset): the evening programme starts before the evening arati (around 4 p.m.) following which an opulent bhoga is offered to the Deities in the evening, containing various grain and non-grain preparations (the grain preparations are made in small quantities, just for the offering of the Deities). At sunset (the time of Lord Nrisinghadev's appearance), the Deities are offered the evening arati and devotees honour anukalpa prasadam (non-grain, similar to what is taken on ekadasi) before finishing the rest of the services and retiring for rest. His Divine Grace comments that anything can be offered on this day, mentioning that our Temple always makes a nice preparation of sweet rice using best ingredients (best rice, milk, raisins and nuts) on this day and that dub, fresh coconut water, can also be offered to provide soothing coolness to the Lord on His appearance day.
The next day morning and afternoon: the morning daily programme continues as usual; paran (breaking the fast) is at 4:55:45–9:20:41 a.m. this year, so after offering bhoga to the Deities in the morning, devotees break the fast with the grain maha-prasadam remnants from the day before and from the morning offering. After that, devotees engage in various services and a little later hold a Vaishnav Seva festival programme starting from 9–10 a.m. until midday. Following the main programme of Hari-katha and Hari-kirtan, the Deities are offered another special opulent offering of bhoga at noon as well as the noon arati, after which everyone is lovingly served festive maha-prasadam.

Because the holy appearance day of Lord Nrisinghadev coincides with the divine appearance of His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila B.T. Niriha Maharaj, devotees observe these auspicious days by remembering both the Lord and His associate, following the programme outlined above.

Below is an extensive collection of photographs taken during the festival in 2019 which was observed in the shelter and under the guidance of our beloved Sri Gurupadpadma Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj at Sri Nrisingha Palli, Sri Nabadwip Dham, in 2019:

Preparation to Sri Nrisingha Chaturdasi: Bhoga Collection
(17 May 2019 | 11 photographs, 1 Mb)
Sharing first few glimpses from the temple of Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math in Sri Nrisingha Palli where the preparation to the festival is well under way. Arriving in Sri Nrisingha Palli, His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj personally selects and collects bhoga for the festival.

Sri Nrisingha Chaturdasi Adhivas
(17 May 2019 | 39 photographs, 3.4 Mb)
Photographs taken during the eve of the festive programme of Lord Nrisinghadev's appearance and the Temple inauguration anniversary spent by the fortunate devotees in the shade of the holy lotus feet of His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj.

Sri Nrisingha Chaturdasi Festival
(18 May 2019 | 39 photographs, 5.2 Mb)
Holy Vaishnavs and devotees observe the appearance of Lord Nrisinghadev and the inauguration anniversary of Sri Sri Nitai Gauranga and Sri Laksmi Nrisinghadev Sri Prahlad Maharaj under the guidance and in the association of His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj.

Sri Nrisingha Chaturdasi: Vaishnav Seva
(19 May 2019 | 64 photographs, 3.4 Mb)
Photographs taken during the morning and afternoon programmes following Sri Nrisingha-chaturdasi at Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math, Sri Nrisingha Palli arranged by His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj: morning class, first and second initiations, noon programme attended by holy Vaishnavs of Gaudiya Maths, arati and grand prasadam distribution. With all the devotees striving heart and soul to please Sri Gurupadpadma and serve all the Vaishnavs, the festival passes gloriously and gorgeously.

 


 

[Addressing a devotee who did not go to the temple but made a festival at home.] Why did you have a home festival? You should have gone to the festival at the temple. If there is a temple in your city or nearby, you must go to the temple. How do you make a festival alone at home? You only cook, offer some bhog, and take prasadam—it basically means cooking too much and eating it yourself... You must always go to the temple. What did Gurudev make the temple for? For preaching, to arranging festivals and for giving you a place where you can gather and take devotees' association. It is necessary to understand this. Everybody have a right to stay at the temple, everybody has a right to go to the temple, and everybody must follow the rules and regulations of the temple—be humble, tolerant, and give honour to others. Follow the rules and regulations that Gurudev has established, that will be perfect. We cannot make our own rules, it is not good. The rules must be always the rules and regulations that Gurudev has set. Always behave very nicely with the devotees, be humble, tolerant, and give honour to others. This is what Gurudev teaches us, these are the main qualities we must have. Be humble, tolerant, and give honour to others, and you must also have proper surrender—do not be a hypocrite, do not practise false renunciation; surrender must be proper.

(Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj, Perfect Rules)

 


 

— { DAILY PRACTICE } —
Pages dedicated to the spiritual practices that are recommended for the spiritual health of a disciple comprised of eternal instructions emanating from the holy lotus mouths of our Sri Guru-varga:

Introduction
Setting up the altar
Arati
Daily kirtans
Bhog, cooking, offering
Observing Ekadasi
Observing Festivals
Tulasi Devi
Four regulative principles
Scriptural regulations

 

Tue, 21 May 2024 (Sri Nrisingha Chaturdasi Adhivas)

Think and Learn
'You must remember these things by heart. I will die one day, and if what I am telling you goes in one ear and out the other, then what is the use? You must listen carefully and try to understand these things. Listen with your heart. If you listen, listen and listen, then one day devotion to Lord Krishna will come to you and you will be able to serve the Lord.'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Internal Purity
"Mercy is always necessary, and we must always try to be good. We must listen properly from our Guru, we must give ourselves to the service of our Gurudev without any second thoughts. Gurudev always says that you must have a good character, you must always tell the truth, and follow his instruction, you must not follow your mind."
Download / listen to the audio (3.3 Mb, 8 min | 6 December 2020)

 

Wed, 22 May 2024 (Sri Nrisingha Chaturdasi; fast until sunset, then anukalpa)

Think about Your Soul
'You must think about the benefit of the soul! You must not think only about this body. I and this body is not one and the same thing – this is what we must think about. First understand, "Who am I?" and "What is this body?". I am not this body. Remember this.'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

Sri Nrisingha Palli [From Sri Nabadwip Dham Mahatmya-mukta-mala]
"The story of Sri Sri Nrisimhadev and Prahlad Maharaj is very important. You must listen to it very attentively and always remember it. This is what our Guru Maharaj said, and what he taught was very important. I still remember what he told me, and I am telling it to you now for your eternal spiritual benefit."

শ্রীনৃসিংহপল্লী (ওঁ বিষ্ণুপাদ শ্রীল ভক্তি নির্ম্মল আচার্য্য মহারাজের হরি-কথামৃত)
"শ্রীনৃসিংহদেব ও প্রহ্লাদ মহারাজের কথা খুব গুরুত্বপূর্ণ কথা, আপনাদের এই কথাগুলো মন দিয়ে শুনতে হবে এবং সব সময় মনে রাখতে হবে । যে শিক্ষা শ্রীল গুরুদেব আমাকে দিয়েছেন, সেটা অত্যন্ত গুরুত্বপূর্ণ শিক্ষা । যে কথাটা তিনি বলেছেন, সেটা আমি এখনও মনে রাখি এবং আপনাদের মঙ্গল প্রদান করবার জন্য এখন বলে দিচ্ছি ।"

 


Today in the calendar: Gaura Chaturdasi. Sri Nrisimha Chaturdasi: appearance of Lord Sri Nrisimhadev. Full fast until sunset; then no grains (anukalpa). Sri Vyasa-puja festival in honour of the divine appearance day of Om Visnupad Paramahamsa Parivrajakacharya-varya Astottara-sata-sri Sri Srimad Bhakti Tilak Niriha Maharaj, the current successor President-Acharya of Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math. Manifestation anniversary of Sri Sri Guru Gaura Nityananda Prabhu and Sri Prahlad Maharaj and Sri Sri Laksmi Nrisimhadev at Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math in Nrisingha Palli.

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj: "We must fast from morning until sunset in the evening. Before sunset, you must read about the glories of Prahlad Maharaj and Lord Nrisinghadev, you can read about the appearance of Sri Nrisinghadev from Srimad Bhagavatam or any other book you have."

"It is necessary to offer a daab (a coconut with coconut water) with the bhog in the evening because Nrisinghadev is sweating very much and very angry because He had just killed an asura..."


 

About His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Tilak Niriha Maharaj
Holy Guidance of Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj: "Those who are fit to be disciplined are called disciples. They want to be chastised, they get chastised—such disciples become gurus. If somebody wants to be chastised, has been chastised, and if Gurudev has made and is making a disciple from them, then such a disciple has the qualities of a guru."


"Guru is the divine messenger of immortal hope and joy in this mortal and miserable world. His advent is the most auspicious and happy event to the suffering animation and can be compared to the rising of the morning star that can guide the traveller lost in the desert. A gentle touch of Sri Guru's merciful hand can wipe away the incessant tears from all weeping eyes. Oh the day when this poor soul realises the causeless grace of Sri Gurudev."

(Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj, Sri Guru and His Grace)

 

In honour of Sri Nrisinghadev, Sri Prahlad Maharaj:

ito nrsimha parato nrsimho
yato yato yami tato nrsimhah
bahir nrsimho hrdaye nrsimho
nrsimham adim saranam prapadye
"Nrsimha is here, Nrsimha is there—Nrsimha is wherever I go. Nrsimha is outside, Nrsimha is within my heart. I am surrendered unto that primeval Lord Nrsimha."
Download / listen to the audio (2.4 Mb, 7 min)


Festival of the Lord—for the Lord
His Divine Grace speaking on the adhivas of Sri Nrisingha chaturdasi in 2015: "You have all come here to observe this festival tomorrow. Amidst so many things you have come here thinking about the Lord. You have been planning it, you have been thinking about it..."
Download / listen to the audio (1.4 Mb, 4 min | 2 May 2015 | Bengali)

Lord Nrisinghadev
"'Please, remove the obstacles to pure devotion and bad elements from our society'—that is our only prayer to Lord Nrisinghadev."
Download / listen to the audio (0.6 Mb, 2 min | 5 may 2012)

Using / Serving
"You cannot use Nrisinghadev for your own purpose or benefit—you must serve Nrisinghadev. We must give something to our Guru and the devotees, we should not take so much from our Guru or take anything from the devotees..."
Download / listen to the audio (1.5 Mb, 4 min | 21 May 2016)

Entrance to Service Planet
"The main lesson today is to pray to the Lord and ask Him to remove material desires from our hearts. That is the glory of Nrisinghadev's appearance at Nrisingha Palli. I remember one time Gurudev asked devotees, 'What do you want?'"
Download / listen to the audio (1 Mb, 3 min | English and Bengali)

Lord's Care For His Devotee
"The Lord comes whenever His devotee calls for Him. To protect His devotee, the Lord took the form of Nrisingha—when it comes to protecting His devotees, the Lord does not remain idle."
Download / listen to the audio (1.4 Mb, 4 min | 2 May 2015 | Bengali)

Sri Vyasa Puja Speech
"I hear now they say that I have deviated from the Gaudiya siddhanta because I installed the Deities of Nrisinghadev in Nrisingha Palli in Nabadwip, Godrumdwip. What am I? Who am I? Is it possible for me to install Deities?"
Download / listen to the audio (5.5 Mb, 16 min | 10 October 2018)

Sri Nrisingha Palli [From Sri Nabadwip Dham Mahatmya-mukta-mala]
"The story of Sri Sri Nrisimhadev and Prahlad Maharaj is very important. You must listen to it very attentively and always remember it. This is what our Guru Maharaj said, and what he taught was very important. I still remember what he told me, and I am telling it to you now for your eternal spiritual benefit."

 


 

শ্রীশ্রীনৃসিংহ-চতুর্দ্দশী (১৯৯০ সাল)
শ্রীল ভক্তিসুন্দর গোবিন্দ দেবগোস্বামী মহারাজ ভগবান শ্রীশ্রীনৃসিংহদেবের লীলা আর মহিমা বর্ণনা করিতেছেন এবং শ্রীমদ্ভাগবতম্ থেকে পড়িতেছেন ।
(Extensive Bengali lecture of Srila B.S. Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj, spoken in May 1990, describing the Pastimes of the Lord in His form of Sri Nrsimhadev and reading from Srimad Bhagavatam, Canto 7)
Download / listen to the audio (27.5 Mb, 81 min)


(Evening of 22 May 2005)
২২ মে ২০০৫: শ্রীল গুরুমহারাজের বাংলা পাঠ এই শুভ দিনে । রেকর্ডিংটা ডাউনলোড বা অনলাইন শুনতে পারেন (ডানদিকে)।

Glories of Sri Nrisingha and Sri Prahlad Maharaj
[Bengali Class] His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj relates the pastimes of Lord Sri Nrisinghadev and reads from the scriptures on the holy day of Sri Nrisingha-chaturdasi on the evening of 22 May 2005, in the assembly of holy Vaishnavs at Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math in Nabadwip.
Download / listen to the audio
(20.1 Mb, 56 min | 22 May 2005)

Kirtan
His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj chants kirtan on the evening of 22 May 2005, in the assembly of holy Vaishnavs at Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math in Nabadwip: the Hare Krishna maha-mantra and glories of Sri Prahlad Maharaj and Sri Nrisinghadev.
Download / listen to the audio (1.4 Mb, 4 min | 22 May 2005)


Sri Dasavatar Stotram | দশাবতারস্তোত্রম্
"As if crushing a wasp, You rip apart Hiranyakasipu's body with the amazingly sharp nails of Your beautiful lotus hands. O Kesava who assumes a half-man, half-lion form! Glory to You, O Lord of the universe, O Hari!"
Download / listen to the audio (4.5 Mb, 14 min)

Sri Nrisingha Palli Arati:
(1) Sri Sri Nitai Gauranga arati (Nrisingha Palli) | জয় জয় গুরুদেব করুণাসাগর
"Glory to Srila Gurudev, Sri Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj, an ocean of mercy. He manifested the effulgent service of Sri Nitai Sri Gauranga-dev in Sri Nabadwip Dham for the benefit of the entire world."
Download / listen to the audio (2.4 Mb, 7 min | 16 March 2019)

(2) Sri Sri Laksmi Nrisinghadev Arati | শ্রীনৃসিংহ, জয় নৃসিংহ, জয় জয় নৃসিংহ
"All glories to Nrisinghadev! All glories to Nrisinghadev, who is the Lord of Prahlad Maharaj and, like a honeybee, is always engaged in beholding the lotus face of the goddess of fortune."
Download / listen to the audio (5.3 Mb, 16 min | 16 March 2019)

 

Thu, 23 May 2024 (Chaturdasi paran is at 4:55:45–9:20:41; Sri Buddha Purnima)

Sadhya-Sadhan-Tattva
'We forget that we are eternal servants of the Lord. Sadhus, guru and Vaishnavs travel place to place and speak Hari-katha to remind us about that. We must come to them and listen to what they say. What is the highest end? How can it be attained? Mahaprabhu and Ramananda Ray discussed all these questions.'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

 


Today in the calendar: Purnima. Nrisimha Chaturdasi-vrata paran is at 5:05:43–9:24:07. Sri Krishna’s Phul-dol and Salila-vihara. Buddha Purnima: appearance of Lord Buddha. Disappearance of Srila Paramesvari Das Thakur. Appearance of Srila Srinivas Acharya.

"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 Lord Buddha's appearance:

SONG: Sri Dasavatar Stotram | দশাবতারস্তোত্রম্
"Showing compassionate heart for killed animals, You decry lamentable scriptural injunctions for sacrifices. O Kesava who assumes the form of the enlightened (Buddha)! Glory to You, O Lord of the universe, O Hari!"

"At the beginning of Kali-yuga, the Lord will appear as Lord Buddha, the son of Anjana, in the province of Gaya, just for the purpose of deluding those who are envious of the faithful theist." (Srimad Bhagavatam, 1.3.24)

 

In honour of Srila Srinivas Acharya Prabhu:

Time for Sravan
"You must see the sadhu with your ears, because you cannot see a sadhu with your eyes. This is actually not a place for play or tourism, this is a place for sravan and kirtan. You must listen with your heart. One time, Acharya Srinivas was sitting with Narottam Das Thakur in one place..."
Download / listen to the audio (2.4 Mb, 7 min)

In Praise of Srila Narottam Das Thakur (From Affectionate Guidance, chapter 17)
Narottam Thakur's close associates and peers were Syamananda and Srinivas. These three great devotees were sent back to Bengal to continue the preaching of Mahaprabhu. The Bengali Vaisnavas were very eager to read the writings of Sri Rupa, Sanatan, Raghunath, Krishna Das Kaviraj, Lokanath Goswami, Gopal Bhatta Goswami, Prabhodananda Saraswati and the other Goswamis; so Narottam, Syamananda and Srinivas travelled from Vrindavan towards Bengal with many copies of those great books...

Composed by Srila Srinivas Acharya:

SONG: Sri Sad-Goswamy-Astakam | শ্রীশ্রীষড়্­গোস্বাম্যষ্টকম্
Download / listen to the audio (4.5 Mb)

"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."

 

Fri, 24 May 2024

With Faith and Surrender
'If a piece of iron is very rusty, a magnet will not be able to attract it. In the same way, Krishna attracts us, but because our hearts are so dirty and rusty, we do not feel that attraction. We think that we have understood so many things, that we know so many things. The problem is that we have no surrender.'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Stay In Gurudev's Heart
"You must try to stay in Gurudev's heart through your service, good behaviour, and good practice. We are alive in this world now, and we are suffering from so many diseases and elements, so we must always practise Krishna consciousness—we must always remember our Gurudev, Guru Maharaj, Prabhupad, as well as the Supreme Personality of Godhead."
Download / listen to the audio (3.8 Mb, 9 min | 6 December 2020)

 

 


Today in the calendar: Krishna Pratipad. Disappearance of Tridandi-swami Srimad Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj (a great prominent disciple of Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur Prabhupad, and a sannyas disciple of Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar 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."


 

About Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj:

divyam dirgha-bhujaravinda-nayanam sarasvatam sundaram
tejo-dipta-vapur budhaika-suhrdam karbura-garvapaham
pasandasura-chanda-danda-dalanam dambhadri-dambholikam
vande vandya-kulabja-bhaskara-vibhum saranga-gosvaminam

"I offer my obeisance unto the beautiful follower of Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur, Srimad Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj. He has a radiant form, long arms, and lotus eyes. He crushes the pride of the wicked and squashes the cruel oppression of the heretics and demons. He is like a thunderbolt on the mountain of hypocrisy. He is the sole friend of the intelligentsia and a shining sun above the lotus of the aristocracy."

(Composed by Srila B.S. Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj)

 

"You should know who Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj is and what is our connection and relationship with him. You must remember this connection because without the knowledge of the relationship (sambandha-jnana), you will develop neither the knowledge of abhidheya (means to attain the goal) nor the knowledge of prayojana (the goal).

"Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj (his brahmachari name was Sri Aprakrita Prabhu) was a prominent disciple of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur. When Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur entered his eternal pastimes, Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj (Aprakrita Prabhu at the time), although a very senior brahmachari preacher, left the brahmacharya asram and went back to his house in great distress. His was born in a village called Patrasayer (our Betur temple is situated nearby). After some time, Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj come to Sri Aprakrita Prabhu and said, 'Prabhu, you are living a family life now, let it be, but if you stay here, who will preach the conception of Mahaprabhu and Srila Prabhupad in this world? You have so much qualification for service and preaching – you must come back.' Then, Srila Aprakrita Prabhu said, 'If you give me sannyas, I will leave my home and family and come back.' Srila Sridhar Maharaj agreed and gave him sannyas and the name Sri Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj. From that time, he came back to his preaching services.

"Srila Goswami Maharaj began to preach in various places. Trying to fulfil the earnest desire of Srila Prabhupad to spread Krishna consciousness all over the world, Srila Goswami Maharaj even went to London, where he kept preaching and, eventually, after much effort and having tolerated much austerity, managed to open a small centre. He also has temples in Kolkata, Jalpaiguri and other places. In his lifetime, he established twenty-four centres in various places, among which is the temple in Imlitala, Vrindavan, where Krishna was sitting when He decided that He would steal Radharaṇi's heart and halo and come as Gauranga Mahaprabhu.

"Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj always helped our Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math in various ways, especially during parikramas and with collection. Later, he finally established this temple here, at the place where the first meeting of Sri Sri Gaura Nityananda Prabhu took place. Srila Sridhar Maharaj had come here together with Srila Goswami Maharaj to see the land, and he gave Srila Goswami Maharaj much advice on what kind of temple to make, on the size of the nat mandir and other aspects.

"There is much that can be said about Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj. After taking sannyas in 1940, he always kept in touch with Srila Sridhar Maharaj. Our Srila Gurudev, Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj, said:

"'Once, Srila Goswami Maharaj gave a very special lecture. He explained that he and other great preachers were active in all directions, but they all waited to see what Srila Sridhar Maharaj thought about the quality of their preaching style. He used the phrase simha avalokana (a lion's glance), saying, "We are preaching over the whole world, but from time to time we look back to see whether Srila Sridhar Maharaj is happy with our preaching activities." "Simha avalokana" means when a lion goes some distance, it stops and looks behind to check the environment, then proceeds further, then again looks behind, and so on. In this way, Srila Goswami Maharaj described how all the preachers again and again looked towards Srila Guru Maharaj to see if their preaching had his approval. Srila Goswami Maharaj was the dearmost disciple of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Goswami Thakur – Srila Saraswati Thakur depended on his service. At the same time, although Srila Goswami Maharaj takes a unique position in Gaudiya Mission, he was very affectionate to our Srila Guru Maharaj. I have never seen him go against any decision of our Guru Maharaj; we can say he almost blindly followed whatever Guru Maharaj decided, but he was not a blind man – he had much faith in Guru Maharaj.'

"Moreover, one year, during the circumambulation of Vrindavan, Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj personally worshipped Srila Sridhar Maharaj with one hundred and eight lamps, incense and other paraphernalia on the occasion of Srila Sridhar Maharaj's appearance day. Srila Goswami Maharaj performed this function, joined by many of his disciples and other godbrothers.

"Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj was Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj's godbrother and sannyas-guru, but it is remarkable what kind of respect he had for Srila Guru Maharaj. Every year, Srila Goswami Maharaj's disciples would arrange a very fine Vyasa-puja celebration on the appearance day of Srila Goswami Maharaj, and Srila Goswami Maharaj would personally go to Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math to invite Srila Sridhar Maharaj to come to his temple on that day. Srila Sridhar Maharaj usually did not go to other temples, but he would always come to the temple of Srila Goswami Maharaj (this very temple where we are sitting now). Srila Goswami Maharaj not only invited Srila Guru Maharaj – he would give whatever presentations, whatever donations or gifts he had received from his disciples on that day to his sannyas-guru, Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj.

"One year, showing a pastime of feeling unwell, Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj could not come to the festival in honour of Srila Goswami Maharaj's appearance, and that day Srila Goswami Maharaj said, 'Srila Sridhar Maharaj has been coming every year, and I have been getting one more year of life, but since he could not come this year, I think I will not be alive next year.' And this is what happened – a few months later, on 26 May 1964, Srila Goswami Maharaj entered his eternal pastimes."

(From Sri Nabadwip Dham Mahatmya-mukta-mala by Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj)

 


 

Reviving Srila Prabhupad's Preaching
"...At that time Srila Sridhar Maharaj decided to go to Vrindavan and do bhajan, but when he got some akash dhvani, "What did I give you sannyas for? For your own self?" he hurried away from Vrindavan..."
Download / listen to the audio (1.2 Mb, 4 min)

The Root of Our Fortune
"Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj came in this world to rescue us, and he created our Guru—by his grace we have got shelter of our bona fide Guru. So, we must worship his lotus feet."
Download / listen to the audio (7.6 Mb, 22 min)

Godbrothers' Bond
His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj tells about the close and reverent relationship that Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj had with his godbrothers, Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj, Srila Bhakti Kamal Madhusudan Maharaj, and Srila Krishna Das Babaji Maharaj.
Download / listen to the audio (1.7 Mb, 4 min | 19 September 2009)

 


 

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: 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! It is not possible to conquer maya by engaging in maya. I see no other way to get relief except for the mercy of sadhus."

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: 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?"

 

Sat, 25 May 2024

Surrender and Learn
'Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur says that the Lord sends His own associate to this world as a guru, so we must come to him, surrender to him and learn everything from him. We must always remember this. We must live in this way.'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Do Away With Gossiping
"We do service, we have so many good qualities, we worship the Lord and His devotees, but if we at the same time nurture some bad qualities inside us, we cannot progress in our spiritual life. Never speak bad about anybody. It is not necessary to say such things."
Download / listen to the audio (6.1 Mb, 15 min | 13 December 2020)

 

Sun, 26 May 2024

Bhakta-Seva Pravritti
'Why must we serve or worship the Lord? Why must we take shelter in the Lord? We must understand this. Our main goal is to take shelter in our Gurupadpadma and enter the family of the Lord to serve Him. But if you do not understand what it means to serve devotees, how can you get devotion?'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

 


সেবার মাইলস্টোনগুলো (৪র্থ ভাগ | ২৪ এপ্রিল ২০২১)
"গুরুদেব আমাকে মানুষ করেছেন । কামার যেমন একটা লোহাকের পুড়িয়ে হাতুড়ি বা দা বা কাঁচি তৈরি করে, তদ্রূপ আমাকেও গুরুদেব অল্প বয়স থেকে তৈরি করেছিলেন । আমি জীবনে কোন দিন কঠিন কষ্টেও চোখের জল ফেলি নি, কিন্তু যে গুরুদেব যাওয়ার দিন, সে দিন শুধু চোখের জল ফেলেছি । আর এই গুরুদেবের বিরহ তিথি হলে আমি নিজেকে ঠিক রাখতে পারি না ।"

Шривас Анган (часть 2)
«Нам несказанно повезло, что мы пришли сегодня сюда, в дом Шриваса Пандита. Помещая пыль этого в высшей степени почитаемого места себе на головы, мы должны всегда помнить обо всём, что мы обсуждали, и молиться о том, чтобы в одном из будущих рождений нам посчастливилось стать членами семьи преданных и участвовать в их служении».


 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Be Part of Krishna Consciousness Movement
"You always charge the battery of your phone, and in the same way you must charge your spiritual 'battery'. I am telling this to everybody through you. Every country must have programmes in this way. Everybody must join Krishna-sankirtan movement."
Download / listen to the audio (3.1 Mb, 8 min | 13 December 2020)

 

Mon, 27 May 2024

See Good and Do Good
'We must always live engaging ourselves in the service to the Lord. It is not that you will only chant the Holy Name and not trouble yourself with anything else. The Lord has given you hands, legs, ears, nose, and everything else – you must use everything in service!'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Be Part of Krishna Consciousness Movement
"You always charge the battery of your phone, and in the same way you must charge your spiritual 'battery'. I am telling this to everybody through you. Every country must have programmes in this way. Everybody must join Krishna-sankirtan movement."
Download / listen to the audio (3.1 Mb, 8 min | 13 December 2020)

 

Tue, 28 May 2024 (Disappearance of Srila Ramananda Ray)

See Through It
'We go from one birth to another, from one family to another. A father raises his daughter for twenty years and then arranges her marriage – after the wedding, when she is taken away to her husband's house, the girl cries so much leaving her parents. Our situation is also like that. This is a temporary life, a temporary family, but we cannot leave the attachment to this illusory family – we always have a soft spot for it.'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

Soul's Svakiya and Parakiya (By Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj)
"Informal respect comes according to the gradation of His dispensation and according to the gradation of my acceptance of that higher light (my attainment of the goal). We may give somebody formal respect, but there can be informal recognition towards another person also (that is an absolute consideration)."

 

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Initiation: Beyond Formality
"If you only take the initiation and a few days later forget your guru, forget the service of your guru, then how can you be happy through that? If you do not think about all this and just take initiation, what will be the result?"
Download / listen to the audio (0.9 Mb, 2 min | 13 December 2020)

 

 


Today in the calendar:
Krishna Panchami. Disappearance of Srila Ramananda Ray.

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 Ramananda Ray Prabhu:

sri-svarupa-raya-sanga-gambhirantya-lilanam
dvadasabda-vahni-garbha-vipralambha-silanam
radhikadhirudha-bhava-kanti-krsna-kunjaram
prema-dhama-devam eva naumi gaura-sundaram

Diving deep into the reality of His own beauty and sweetness, Lord Govinda stole the mood of Radharani and, garbing Himself in Her brilliant luster, appeared as Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. For the last twelve years of His manifest Pastimes He was deeply absorbed in union and separation, and He shared His heart's inner feelings with His most confidential devotees such as Swarupa Damodara and Ramananda Ray. Volcanic eruptions of ecstasy flowed from the heart of Sri Gauranga in the agony of separation from Krishna. This Golden Lord, who appeared like an intoxicated elephant, is none other than Lord Govinda. I offer my obeisances to that beautiful Golden Lord, Gaurangasundar, the divine form of Krishna prema.

Sri Ramananda Ray Prabhu
[By His Divine Grace Srila B.S. Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj]
"Ramananda Ray was very strong and a very good administrator. He controlled the whole situation and the whole atmosphere after Mahaprabhu's disappearance and gave full nourishment to the devotees. Ramananda Ray stayed alive until finally, today, when everything had become peaceful and settled, he also disappeared..."

Hari-Katha in Sri Kovvur (Godavari): Part One
"We are very fortunate to be able to come here for the first time, to be able to visit this place. I have no qualification, I am a very fallen soul, but by the mercy of devotees, I have come here with you all and I can pay obeisance such a great place as this..."
Download / listen to the audio (3.5 Mb, 10 min | 5 January 2019)

Hari-Katha in Sri Kovvur (Godavari): Part Two
"Today we are briefly reading the chapter that describes the meeting of Raya Ramananda and Mahaprabhu. Listen to it properly, it is the highest conception. 'Mahaprabhu was bathing and chanting the Holy Name, and at that time Ramananda Ray came—he came very gorgeously, with a band and party.'"
Download / listen to the audio (1.8 Mb, 5 min | 5 January 2019)

Hari-Katha in Sri Kovvur (Godavari): Part Three
"Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu then embraced Sri Ramananda Ray very firmly. Their natural love for each other was awakened in them both, and they embraced and fell to the ground."
Download / listen to the audio (1.4 Mb, 5 min | 5 January 2019)

Hari-Katha in Sri Kovvur (Godavari): Sri Ramananda Sambad
"Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu ordered Ramananda Ray, 'Recite a verse from the revealed scriptures concerning the ultimate goal of life.' Ramananda replied, 'Devotion to the Lord is the execution of the prescribed duties of one's social position'..."
Download / listen to the audio (4.1 Mb, 12 min | 5 January 2019)

Hari-Katha in Sri Kovvur (Godavari): Sri Ramananda Ray's Answers
"Later, Mahaprabhu again met with Ramananda Ray, and this time Mahaprabhu asked questions and Ramananda Ray gave answers... In the end, Ramananda Ray said, 'My dear Lord, please give up all these serious talks. Please do not conceal Your real form from me.'"
Download / listen to the audio (2.4 Mb, 7 min | 5 January 2019)

Hari-Katha in Sri Kovvur (Godavari): Sri Ramananda Ray's Expertise
"Later, when Ramananda Ray stayed in Puri, one day a brahman named Pradyumna Misra came to Mahaprabhu and asked Him if he could hear Krishna-katha from Him. Mahaprabhu replied, 'I do not know Krishna-katha. Go to Ramananda Ray...'"
Download / listen to the audio (1.4 Mb, 4 min | 5 January 2019 | + Kirtan)

 

At Ramananda Ray's Garden
"Pradyumna Misra came to Mahaprabhu and asked, 'Prabhu, can You speak some Krishna-katha?' Mahaprabhu replied, 'I do not know so much, but Ramananda Ray knows more than Me...'"
Download / listen to the audio (0.8 Mb, 3 min)

Chapter 16: Reality the Beautiful
[From Search for Sri Krishna, Reality the Beautiful]
Ramananda Raya was a married man, but he was recognized by Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu as a master of his senses to the extreme degree. Once a brahmana priest named Pradyumna Misra came to Mahaprabhu and told Him, 'I would like to hear about Krishna from Your lips'..."

 

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: 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! It is not possible to conquer maya by engaging in maya. I see no other way to get relief except for the mercy of sadhus."

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: Ye anila prema-dhana | যে আনিল প্রেমধন
"Where has Srinivas Acharya Thakur, my Lord who has very mercifully brought the wealth of divine love to this world, gone?"

 

Wed, 29 May 2024

'Lord Exists for Those Who Have Devotion'
'Kirtans are not chanted for others – you chant kirtan for yourselves. The world of vision exists for those who have the sight; the world of sound exists for those who have ears – in the same way, the Lord exists for those who have devotion.'
Download / listen to the audio (42.7 Mb, 86 min | 11 January 2019 | Bengali)

 


Шри Адвайта Ачарья Бхаван
«Шри Адвайта Ачарья Прабху является частью Верховной Личности Бога, Махавишну (первопричинной, всеведущей Верховной Личности Бога); следовательно, будучи неотличным от самого Господа, он относится к вишну-таттве. Господь Вишну является воплощением благости. Он — источник всего мироздания, поэтому у Него самого нет создателя. Никто не является Его создателем или отцом. Несмотря на то, что Он сам, по сути, является отцом всех живых существ, Он нисходит в облике сына преданных».


 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Fight Your Ego
"They are Gurudev's devotees, they must do something for their practising life. If you always search others' faults, the whole life will finish and one day death will come and you will not be able to overcome it. If they think, 'We know everything!' they have a big problem."
Download / listen to the audio (1 Mb, 3 min | 13 December 2020)

 

Thu, 30 May 2024

Power of Mindful Service
'There are sixty-four limbs (practices) of devotion, how is it possible to practise all of them? They are not practised all together simultaneously. At the same time, it can also be possible...'
Download / listen to the audio (25 Mb, 50 min | 12 January 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

Sober Interaction
"If you follow our guru-varga, then 'sweet relationship' means you sometimes talk with others, but you talk for service. Except for Krishna-katha, everything else is nonsense talks. So, it will be better if you talk with others only about Krishna-katha. Try to avoid other kinds of relationship, it will be good for you, good for everybody also."
Download / listen to the audio (2.4 Mb, 6 min | 13 December 2020)

 

Fri, 31 May 2024

Service Is All About Mood
'There are many religions in this world, but Srimad Bhagavatam says that all these religions are mere cheating. That is why you must listen most attentively, listen with your heart. Satisfying the whims of your mind is a show of service, it is not service.'
Download / listen to the audio (25 Mb, 50 min | 12 January 2019 | Bengali)

 

—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—

'You Are My All-In-All'
"Everybody should remember Gurudev's appearance day, always think about it every day. When Gurudev left this world, I thought my head, shoulders, everything was gone, I was like a doll, or a statue, but when I see you all, I get back my life, my heart, etc."
Download / listen to the audio (1.7 Mb, 4 min | 13 December 2020)

 

 

 

 

 

 · · • • • · ·

 

 

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OFFLINE READING, ePub:
(All lectures of His Divine Grace Om Visnupad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj posted here on the website)
Issue #1 (31 Dec '14)
Issue #2 (2015/1)
Issue #3 (2015/2)
Issue #4 (2015/3)
Issue #5 (2015/4)
Issue #6 (2016/1)
Issue #7 (2016/2)
Issue #8 (2016/3)
Issue #9 (2016/4)
Issue #10 (2017/1)
Issue #11 (2017/2)
Issue #12 (2017/3)
Issue #13 (2017/4)
Issue #14 (2018/1)
Issue #15 (2018/2)
Issue #16 (2018/3)
Issue #17 (2018/4)
Issue #18 (2019/1)
Issue #19 (2019/2)
Issue #20 (2019/3)
Issue #21 (2019/4)
Issue #22 (2020/1)
Issue #23 (2020/2)
Issue #24 (2020/3)
Issue #25 (2020/4)
Issue #26 (2021/1)
Issue #27 (2021/2)
Issue #28 (2021/3)
Issue #29 (2021/4)
Issue #30 (2022/1)

 


 

A Lesson on Surrender
'Aren't you ashamed?! You have already given this body to Me, then how can you want to spoil My property? This is not your property!'—pastimes of great Vaishnavas are not just stories, we have learn from them.

 

Gurudev said, 'If you criticise somebody, that fault will come to you.'
He did not want to hear anybody criticising or anybody being criticised.

HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE | HARE RAMA HARE RAMA RAMA RAMA HARE HARE