Pure Rupanuga-Dhara

His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad
Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj's
Disappearance festival, Dum Dum Park, Kolkata
1 August 2019, part 3

Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj is very learned. Born in Hapaniya, Bardhaman district, he comes from a Sanskrit-speaking family. Srila Gurudev was also born in Bardhaman district, in Bamunpara (you know this place, you have been there many times). How much Srila Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj pleased his Guru Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur! How happy he made him!

Everybody sings today, and we sang it today also,

সুজনার্ব্বুদরাধিতপাদযুগং
যুগধর্ম্মধুরন্ধর-পাত্রবরম্ ।
বরদাভয়দায়ক-পূজ্যপদং
প্রণমামি সদা প্রভুপাদপদম্

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

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

Who composed this song? Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj. Every temple sings it. I do not know if every temple sings it every day or not, but we sing it every day in our temples. Srila Bhakti Prajnan Keshav Maharaj said to the effect that nobody could ever copy (imitate, or compete with) two things—Srila Sridhar Maharaj's temple domes and his Prema-dhama Stotram.

কৃষ্ণ-কৃষ্ণ-কৃষ্ণ-কৃষ্ণ-কৃষ্ণনাম-কীর্ত্তনং
রাম-রাম-গান-রম্য-দিব্য-ছন্দ-নর্ত্তনম্ ।
যত্র তত্র কৃষ্ণনাম-দান-লোক-নিস্তরং
প্রেম-ধাম-দেবমেব নৌমি গৌর-সুন্দরম্ ॥

krsna-krsna-krsna-krsna-krsna-nama-kirtanam
rama-rama-gana-ramya-divya chhanda-nartanam
yatra-tatra-krsna-nama-dana-loka-nistaram
prema-dhama-devam eva naumi gaura-sundaram

Later, the Supreme Lord travelled to the holy places of pilgrimage in South India with the clever intention of delivering the fallen souls. Appearing as a beautiful young renunciate, He distributed the sweet Names of the Lord, singing: "Krishna Krishna Krishna Krishna Krishna Krishna Krishna he," as He strolled down the different pathways, entered temples, and visited homesteads during the sacred pilgrimage. Infused with an inconceivable type of divine inspiration, the Lord freely chanted "Rama Rama" and joyfully danced with the most charming gestures. Irrespective of time or personal qualification, the assembled bystanders were delivered by the Lord, who inspired them to chant Krishna's Holy Names. I offer my obeisances to that beautiful Golden Lord, Gauranga Sundar, the divine form of Krishna prema.

(Prema-dhama-deva Stotram, 22)

Srila Sridhar Maharaj composed seventy-two slokas about Sriman Mahaprabhu. This is the Prema-dhama Stotram.

You have heard also when Prabhupad, Bhagavan Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur, was going to leave his body at the age of sixty-four, he was in Bagh Bazar Gaudiya Math, surrounded by all of his twenty-two sannyasis and all of his brahmacharis. The sannyasis divided their service to Srila Prabhupad and it was decided that each sannyasi would stay with Srila Prabhupad for a two-hour shift. At that time, no one wanted to take the shift from 2 a.m. to 4 a.m. because it was the hardest time when everybody wanted to sleep (everybody also went to mangal arati at 4 a.m.), but Srila Sridhar Maharaj accepted that service. One night, when Srila Sridhar Maharaj finished his shift at 4 a.m. and another sannyasi came to serve Srila Prabhupad, Srila Sridhar Maharaj went to his bathroom to take shower and then go directly to the mangal arati. At that time, Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur, who had not spoken for a few days, suddenly spoke—he said, "I want to hear Sri Rupa-manjari-pada song from Sridhar Maharaj." (We sang this song today also.) Somebody went to call Srila Sridhar Maharaj, but he was in the bathroom, so the manager of the temple told Srila Prabhupad, "Srila Sridhar Maharaj is not coming out from his room," and told another devotee, who was a good singer and even sang on the radio, to start singing. When that devotee started singing, Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur immediately stopped him, "Stop it! I do not want to hear the tune, I want to hear the song Sri Rupa-manjari-pada—from Srila Sridhar Maharaj." Everybody was astounded and there was pin-drop silence in the room. Then, Srila Sridhar Maharaj came—he was not a good singer, but, crying, he sang that song. When he finished the song, Srila Prabhupad left his body.

That was a sign, a signal for the whole world. Srila Prabhupad did not make any will, he did not name any particular successor. Actually, anyone can manage a temple, but who did Srila Prabhupad make his acharya (successor) from within his heart? Who could preach the pure conception? Who was the pure Rupanuga-dhara? That is Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj.

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