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Our Disciplic Succession:
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"The Sun Never Sets on Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math":
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Sat, 9 December 2023
Beyond
Material Bondage
'If everyone could come to the temple, it would be good, but you are living
in material bondage. That is why, whether you are staying in a house or in a
forest, whatever your situation is, you can practise Krishna
consciousness.'
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Sri Guru Purnima
Address
"My body is here, but my heart, my mind, my everything is with you. I am
always thinking about you, I am always thinking about your good, how you can
become better and better, how you can run the mission more and more
successfully. Any service I can help you with, I will always try to do it,
and I will try my best. That is my promise on this Guru Purnima day."
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Download / listen to the audio (4.4 Mb, 11 min | 5 July 2020)
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Today in the calendar:
Krishna Dvadasi. Ekadasi paran is at 10:32:00–16:46:22. Disappearance of
Srila Narahari Sarkar Thakur and Srila Kaliya Krishnadas.
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 Narahari
Sarkar Thakur:
Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj: "Narahari Sarkar belongs to the
section of devotees who are more fond of Krishna-lila. Their vision is, 'We
do not recognise You to be a sannyasi! You are that Krishna of Vrindavan, we
know You well! Here, You have only put on a garment—You are wrapping Yourself
in the garment of a sannyasi—but it is Your external acquaintance. We know
well who You really are and we must admit that we do not like this forged
identity of Yours.' This is their temperament. Rather, they feel much pain,
'What is the necessity for You to be practising penances as a sannyasi, going
through so many hardships, not taking food properly, not resting in a proper
bed, etc.? Our hearts are aching, but You do not care for that. How can we
tolerate all these things?' That is their nature and complaint to Mahaprabhu.
They feel that it is all a sham."
Strongest Faith (3) Raghunandan Thakur
"Mukunda's son Raghunandan also has full faith. One day, when he was ten
years old, his mother said to him, 'Raghunandan, I am very busy today. I have
cooked the offering, but I have no time to offer it to the Deities. You can
offer today...'"
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Download / listen to the audio (1 Mb, 3 min | 10 March 2015)
Srila Jiva
Goswami Prabhura Sochaka
A song composed by Srila Narahari Thakur in glorification of Srila Jiva
Goswami Prabhu's life, character, and service. Bengali verses and English
transliteration.
In honour of Srila Kaliya
Krishnadas:
Srila B.S. Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj: "Nityananda Prabhu accepted
everyone but would chastise those who were offensive. Mahaprabhu showed some
caution in distributing Krishna-nama and Krishna-prema: He followed the rules
and regulations of sannyas life very strictly and because of this Mahaprabhu
could not give shelter to offenders. When Mahaprabhu went to South India He
took Kaliya Krishna Das with Him. In Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita he is
referred to as Kala Krishna Das. On their tour Kaliya Krishna Das suffered
some disturbance with some women and Mahaprabhu rescued him from that. Later
when they returned to Jagannath Puri Mahaprabhu said, "I want to leave this
boy Kaliya Krishna Das, he was irresponsible and greatly disturbed our
mission. I don't want to keep him with Me. I do not want to be responsible
for him." Kaliya Krishna Das, as an eternal parsad devotee (of Sri Nityananda
Prabhu), played this role in the Lord's drama. At that time Nityananda Prabhu
did not leave him, He told Mahaprabhu, "If You do not want to keep him it is
no problem, I will take him. I will send him to Nabadwip to give news to
Sachi Mata and the other devotees that You have come back from South India."
In this way Nityananda Prabhu showed His extreme mercy and Kaliya Krishna Das
spent the rest of his life with Nityananda Prabhu. So even when Mahaprabhu is
angry, Nityananda Prabhu keeps devotees at His lotus feet. The conditioned
souls can have much hope when they see the very deep and merciful character
of Sri Nityananda Prabhu."
(The Divine Pastimes of Sri Nityananda Prabhu)
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Fri, 8 December 2023 (Sri Utpanna Ekadasi)
Old Service,
Spoilt Service
'Whatever the situation is, you must always give up what is unfavourable to
devotion. You want to drink milk to get nutrients and you also eat tobacco –
you will not get any benefit like that. We must always remember what is
unfavourable to devotion.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (12.3 Mb, 30 min | 16 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Sri Guru
Purnima: Remembrance Day
"Today is a very good and auspicious day, the day of Sri Guru Purnima. On
this day, we can pray to our Gurudev that he may engage us in service more
and more, so that we could progress in our spiritual life, so that we could
submit ourselves to him as a devotee."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.4 Mb, 8 min | 5 July 2020)
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Sri Ekadasi Guidance
Guidelines on how to observe and honour this holy day: Ekadasi takes an
indispensible part in the life of a sincere practitioner. At Sri Chaitanya
Saraswat Math, Ekadasi and paran are observed with affection and without
fail according to the dates given in the Calendar.
Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj about fasting on ekadasi and
accepting material facilities:
"One time, a devotee came here from Vrindavan on the day of
ekadasi. He reached in the evening and, after taking a bath in the
Ganges, attended kirtans, danced, circumambulated the temple and so
on. Then, I asked him whether he would take any anukalpa [non-grain
prasadam that is allowed to be taken on ekadasi]. He replied,
'Generally, I do not take anything, but if you like, then, of course, I must
like anukalpa. Your will is greater than my fasting.' That was his
decision.
"My Guru Maharaj (Srila Prabhupad Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur)
always wanted maximum energy: you should take good food and do good service.
That was his maxim. Krishna is not a liquidated party: take full
prasadam and do full service. Do maximum service, and you should take
whatever is necessary for that. You are to take it for the cause of Krishna,
not for your own cause. You are Krishna's, so if you grow weak, His service
will be hampered, and both you and Krishna will be losers thereby. 'My
soldiers will be well-fed and well-working.' That was our Guru Maharaj's
principle. Napoleon said, 'One full-fed soldier is equal to ten half-fed
soldiers.'
"So, prasad-seva: if it is service, then it must be taken in a
serving mood, of course. But, at the same time, the individual position of a
devotee should be taken into consideration. Sahajiyas do not fast on
ekadasi at all: "Oh, we are in Vrindavan, and there is no fasting in
Vrindavan." But Srila Bhaktivinod Thakur, Srila Prabhupad did not like
that—it is sahajiya (imitation) if you go on feeding your senses in
the name of Krishna-bhakti (devotion to the Lord). For the service to
Krishna, it is necessary to keep up the body and to provide nourishment to
it, so we must take what is necessary for service. We do not like it if by
fasting, a loss of energy is effected. If fasting does not hamper your
service, you may go on fasting—perhaps, your Gurudev wanted
that...
"For service, I must accept what is necessary to make me physically
fit so that I can render more service. So, accepting material things is not
objectionable. It is fruitful, not detrimental. Rather, it produces something
of a pure character, which helps everyone. This is how a disciple receives
and accepts things. At that same time, he may even blame himself, 'I cannot
go on with my worldly life without the help of this or that!' He will blame
himself, but the underlying spirit must be, 'If I do not take it, I shall be
unfit; I will not be able to do my bit of service to the Lord, to my
Gurudev.'
"Moreover, by taking up renunciation, I will be a loser. I will incur
a loss for myself, for the world, and my Guru's service will be hampered. In
this spirit, devotees are to take everything. For the cause of Krsna, for the
cause of his Guru, they will accept anything.
"Suppose there is a very miserly karmachari (manager). Because
he does not want to spend money, he may not attain a particular result; then,
some difficulty comes, and the opportunity is lost. This manager will be
responsible to the proprietor: 'Why did you not spend money? Why are you
afraid of spending money from my store? Because of your miserly habit,
the opportunity has been lost!' 'Why should you not spend My money for My
interest?' So, to render service to Krishna, to my Gurudev, to Vaishnavs, to
the world, to everyone, I must keep up this mundane body, and I am entitled
to take something for that.
"Miserliness is mayavada; it is the renunciation spirit, and it
will mar Krishna's interest. What we need is yukta-vairagya: I shall
take from the store of Krishna to keep myself fit and to do service. It is
Krishna's account, and if I do dot do that, I should be a separationist, a
mayavadi, a renunciationist. I shall render maximum service to
Krishna, and I must take without any hestitation whatever is necessary to
make myself fit for the service; otherwise, I shall be
punishable."
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"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..."
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SONG:
Suddha-bhakata |
শুদ্ধ ভকত-চরণ-রেণু
"I carefully observe the holy days related to Madhava, they are the mother
of devotion."
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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:
"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)
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Thu, 7 December 2023
Spread Gurudev's
Mercy
'When a devotee receives Vaishnavs' mercy, they extend, or spread, the
influence of that mercy onto others. It is necessary to preach about our
gurudev, about his glories and qualities.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (12.3 Mb, 30 min | 16 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Abode of Highest
Pastimes
"Whether Vrindavan is a village or a town, it does not matter. What matters
is that Vrindavan is the highest place because, firstly, our guru-varga has
said so, and, secondly, because we can see what pastimes go on in
Vrindavan."
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Download / listen to the audio (2.2 Mb, 6 min | 28 June 2020)
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Wed, 6 December 2023
Mahaprabhu
Settles in Puri
'Mahaprabhu visited various places, arranged everything with Srila Rupa
Goswami, Srila Sanatan Goswami; having settled everything all over India, He
lastly came to Puri and stayed there. He spent His last eighteen years in
Puri, performing His internal pastimes during the last four years.'
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Download / listen to the audio (12.3 Mb, 30 min | 16 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Waning Values
"Gurudev said that the storekeeper or the temple manager will be the one who
always thinks about everybody. A manager is a great servant, a big guardian.
You must be a real mother. But this kind of love and affection is not there
any more..."
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Download / listen to the audio (1.8 Mb, 5 min | 28 June 2020)
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Tue, 5 December 2023
Baladev's Care
'Baladev is asraya-vigraha, the giver of power. His position is such
that He is present within the temple and all service paraphernalia of the
Lord. Whatever is required for the Lord's service, Nityananda Prabhu assumes
the required form and serves the Lord.'
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Download / listen to the audio (12.3 Mb, 30 min | 16 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Applying
Intelligence
• Is it important to study the meaning of slokas and scriptures? • We
should ask our guardian, but I do not want to bother you; • How can we avoid
quarrelling and fighting? • If somebody speaks bad about our guru-parampara,
speaks nonsense, or does nonsense, how do we see Krishna in that?
•
Download / listen to the audio (4.8 Mb, 12 min | 28 June 2020)
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Mon, 4 December 2023
Change of Mood
'After He took sannyas, Mahaprabhu's mood became different. Even when
He took first initiation, His mood also changed. When Mahaprabhu went to Gaya
and took initiation from Ishwar Puri, His whole mood and nature changed.'
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Download / listen to the audio (12.3 Mb, 30 min | 16 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Emotion and
Devotion
"Practise and practise, and when you make yourself perfect, then it will
manifest in your dealings, in your behaviour, in your humility, etc. that you
have become perfect—then you can easily understand what is the difference
between emotion and devotion."
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Download / listen to the audio (5.9 Mb, 14 min | 28 June 2020)
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Sun, 3 December 2023
Appreciate
Prasad-Seva
'We are alive, so we have to eat something, but what should we take?
Prasad. If you make something yourself and offer it the Lord, the Lord
will be happier. So, you can bring something from the market, cook it and
offer it.'
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Download / listen to the audio (33 Mb, 79 min | 15 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
On Ego and Envy
"Ego can also be good if you think, 'I am a servant of devotees.' However,
envy is much worse than ego—envy is not given any place. Envy takes one to a
helpless position. If you have envy or jealousy, it is easy for you to go to
hell."
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Download / listen to the audio (2.3 Mb, 6 min | 28 June 2020)
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Sat, 2 December 2023
Preserving
Purity
'In those days, Gaudiya Vaishnavs' line had very great devotees, but now
there are many sahajiyas among Gaudiya devotees who corrupt this line
by chanting lila-kirtans, who speak without siddhanta, who
chant "Radhe Radhe" without having this right.'
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Download / listen to the audio (33 Mb, 79 min | 15 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Turn Your House
Into Temple
"You can turn your house into a temple. Your house can be Goloka Vrindavan.
What kind of house is that? It is a house where proper practising is going on
every day. You can practise all the things that proper householders practise.
What is the problem?"
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Download / listen to the audio (2.5 Mb, 6 min | 28 June 2020)
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Fri, 1 December 2023
Do Not Deflect
'Unless you praise somebody, it is not necessary to say anything about
anybody. We must not say anything except for praise about them. If you say
anything, you must speak about the siddhanta.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (33 Mb, 79 min | 15 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Be
Responsible for Your Spiritual Life
"We must be responsible for our service and for our spiritual life, otherwise
Guru and Vaishnavs will not be happy. Being responsible for your service is
one of the main qualities of a servitor. It is necessary to have proper
dedication and to always accept the advice of your guardian. We should not
follow our mind. If we can follow all these things, then it can give a proper
solution to all our problems."
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Download / listen to the audio (3.4 Mb, 9 min | 28 June 2020)
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Thu, 30 November 2023
Glories of Great
Souls
'You must always glorify Vaishnavs; never criticise them. We must glorify
their qualities (engage in guna-kirtan). You cannot get anywhere
without attaining the mercy of gurus and Vaishnavs. We must speak
about all their great qualities.'
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Download / listen to the audio (33 Mb, 79 min | 15 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Asadhu-Sanga Saps Spiritual Strength
"If there is some fault in your heart, if you do some wrong and, thinking
that nobody can see you doing it, you continue doing wrong, then it will
slowly increase, and it will harm your spiritual life. We must always avoid
bad association."
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Download / listen to the audio (3.6 Mb, 9 min | 28 June 2020)
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Wed, 29 November 2023
Do You Ever Think
of It?
'A day without Hari-katha is a bad day, and we must always try to reduce the
number of such days in our lives. The water that is necessary for the seeds
to grow is sravan and kirtan. We must always practise it. It is
necessary to read scriptures more, it is necessary to hear Hari-katha
more.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (33 Mb, 79 min | 15 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Dangerous Query
"Different Vaishnavs have different vision. They are all our
guru-varga and we cannot make any offence to our guru-varga. We
must give respect to what they do. That is our simplicity and our tradition.
We do not think, 'Why did he do this?' What they have done is final for
us."
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Download / listen to the audio (3 Mb, 7 min | 23 June 2020)
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Tue, 28 November 2023
Do Not
Overstep Your Limit
'It is said that only three and a half devotees served Mahaprabhu: Svarup
Damodar, Ray Ramananda, Sikhi Mahiti and his niece, Srimati Malini Devi. Not
even Nityananda Prabhu or Rupa-Sanatana are among them, and only three
persons were with Mahaprabhu in Gambhira. So, how can we dare enter
there?'
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Download / listen to the audio (33 Mb, 79 min | 15 December 2020 |
Bengali)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Eternal Humble
Prayer
"'When will You place Your lotus feet on my head? I have no quality, no
qualification, I am such a tiny thing—please accept me as Your dog.
Please...' Always pray and cry to the Lord in this way. You say, 'Yes, I am
giving everything to you,' but in the meantime you always keep the key with
you. This is not surrender."
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Download / listen to the audio (3 Mb, 8 min | 23 June 2020)
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GUIDANCE 2021 (epub)
(Last update: 24 Nov. '23)

Odd and Ends (5)
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Several educating excerpts from the lectures of His Divine Grace Srila
Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj that were not included in the main
posts:
• 'He will arrange' • Initiation & Sisya's karma
• No beads in the bathroom • Prerequisite for initiation
• Acharya Board's function • 'I am not doing anything'
• Prasadam like nectar • Deceit-free service
• A change of dress • No tilak, burning ghat
• Depend upon your Guru..
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CALENDAR FOR 12/2023
KESHAVA
8 DECEMBER (FRI).
Krishna Ekadasi.
Fast on Utpanna Ekadasi.
Departure of Sriyukta Dhananjay Das Prabhu.
9 DECEMBER (SAT).
Krishna Dvadasi.
Ekadasi paran is at 10:32:00–16:46:22. Disappearance of Srila Narahari
Sarkar Thakur and Srila Kaliya Krishnadas.
10 DECEMBER (SUN).
Krishna Trayodasi.
Disappearance of Srila Saranga Thakur.
12 DECEMBER (TUE).
Amavasya.
Disappearance of Srestharya Srila Jagabandhu Bhakti Ranjan.
18 DECEMBER (MON).
Gaura Sasthi.
Sri Sri Jagannathdev’s Odan-Sasthi.
Manifestation Anniversary of Sri Sri Nitai Chaitanya at Sri Chaitanya
Saraswat Math, Sri Puri Dham.
20 DECEMBER (WED).
Gaura Astami.
Disappearance of Srila Madhusudan Das Babaji Maharaj.
21 DECEMBER (THU).
Gaura Navami.
Appearance of Tridandi-swami Srimad Bhakti Kamal Madhusudan Maharaj.
22 DECEMBER (FRI).
Gaura Dasami.
Disappearance of Tridandi-swami Srimad Bhakti Kusum Sraman Maharaj.
23 DECEMBER (SAT).
Gaura Ekadasi.
Fast on Moksada Ekadasi.
24 DECEMBER (SUN).
Gaura Dvadasi.
Ekadasi paran is at 6:19:52–6:36:32.
26 DECEMBER (TUE).
Purnima.
NARAYAN
28 DECEMBER (THU).
Krishna Dvitiya (tithi lasts two days).
Grand festival in honour of the appearance day of Om
Visnupad Paramahamsa Parivrajakacharya Sri Srimad Bhakti Sundar Govinda
Dev-Goswami Maharaj.
30 DECEMBER (SAT).
Krishna Tritiya.
Festivals at Bamunpara and Nadan Ghat, the places of Om Visnupad Srila Bhakti
Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj’s holy appearance and childhood
pastimes.
31 DECEMBER (SUN).
Krishna Chaturthi.
Festival in honour of the disappearance of Bhagavan
Sri Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Goswami Prabhupad.
JANUARY 2024
7 JANUARY (SUN).
Krishna Ekadasi.
Fast on Saphala Ekadasi.
Disappearance of Srila Devananda Pandit and Srimad Bhakti Prakas Aranya
Maharaj.
8 JANUARY (MON).
Krishna Dvadasi.
Ekadasi paran is at 6:23:27–9:56:25. Disappearance of Sripad Bhakti
Bhudev Srauti Maharaj.
9 JANUARY (TUE).
Krishna Trayodasi.
Disappearance of Srila Mahes Pandit and Srila Uddharan Datta Thakur.
11 JANUARY (THU).
Amavasya.
12 JANUARY (FRI).
Gaura Pratipad.
Appearance of Srila Lochan Das Thakur.
14 JANUARY (SUN).
Gaura Tritiya.
Disappearance of Srila Jiva Goswami Prabhu and Srila Jagadis
Pandit.
15 JANUARY (MON).
Gaura Chaturthi.
A three-day remembrance fesitval in honour of Sriman Mahaprabhu’s sannyas-lila.
21 JANUARY (SUN).
Gaura Ekadasi.
Fast on Putrada Ekadasi.
Appearance of Srila Jagadis Pandit.
22 JANUARY (MON).
Gaura Dvadasi.
Ekadasi paran is at 6:25:07–10:00:19.
25 JANUARY (THU).
Purnima.
Pusyabhisek Yatra of Sri Krishna. Departure of Sripad Bhakti Saran Vaisnav
Maharaj.
MADHAV
28 JANUARY (SUN).
Krishna Tritiya.
Appearance of Srila Gopal Bhatta Goswami Prabhu and disappearance of
Srila Ramachandra Kaviraj.
29 JANUARY (MON).
Krishna Chaturthi.
Disappearance of Sripad Yadavendu Bhakti-Chandan.
FULL CALENDAR >>
Sri Gaudiya Calendar 2023-2024 (pdf)
THE TEN OFFENCES TO THE HOLY NAME:
1) Criticise sadhus, Vaishnavs
2) Consider Lord Siva and gods to be independent of Lord Krishna
3) Consider Guru to be an ordinary mortal man
4) Criticise scriptures
5) Interpret the Name with the help of a dictionary, etc.
6) Consider the Name imaginary.
7) Sin and chant to remove the sin.
8) Consider chanting equal to pious activities.
9) Instruct faithless people in chanting, inattentive chanting.
10) Remain attached to things, your body, etc.
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HARE KRISHNA HARE KRISHNA KRISHNA KRISHNA HARE HARE |
HARE RAMA HARE RAMA RAMA RAMA HARE HARE
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