Look for
Service, Not Excuses
'We must chant kirtan and we must do service every day. We must chant
the Holy Name all the time, incessantly, at every moment. We must always
serve the Lord. Even when we drink water, we must think about the Lord.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (47 Mb, 97 min | 7 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Adjusting
with Others and Yourself
"If somebody preaches, it is good! Why will we criticise them? People come
for Krishna consciousness and we do not care who comes from what country, who
is lower, who is lowest. Only if somebody is bad association, you must always
avoid such association."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.3 Mb, 6 min | 20 September 2020)
SURRENDER AND SERVE
'It is necessary to see what should be the one target in our lives, and that
is service to Guru and Vaishnava. This is the main thing of value in our
lives. To get a position or to get a chair is very easy. Anyone, anywhere,
can make a chair for himself. But to receive mercy from Guru and Vaishnava is
very difficult, although that is the wealth of our lives, and that is what we
need for our practising life. Our only hope is that our Gurudev, his
Godbrothers, and other Vaishnavas will not leave us. They are always giving
us causeless mercy and we are able to maintain our spiritual lives with
that.'
All Glory to Sri Sri Guru Gauranga
Disappearance Festival of Om Vishnupad Paramahamsa
Parivrajakacharya-varya Ashtottara-sata-sri
Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj
gurvvabhista-supurakam guru-ganair asisa-sambhusitam
chintyachintya-samasta-veda-nipunam sri-rupa-panthanugam
govindabhidham ujjvalam vara-tanum bhakty anvitam-sundaram
vande visva-gurun cha divya-bhagavat-premno hi bija-pradam
I offer my obeisance to him who perfectly fulfils his gurudev’s most
cherished desires; who is fully adorned with the blessings of his gurudev’s
associates; who is expert in all conceivable and inconceivable aspects of
Vedic knowledge; who is a pre-eminent follower of Srila Rupa Goswami Prabhu’s
line; who is known as ‘Govinda’ (Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami
Maharaj); whose beautiful, effulgent, exalted form is suffused with pure
devotion; who is the guru of the entire universe; and who is the giver of the
seed of divine love for the Supreme Lord.
Dear Devotees, Vaishnavs, and Well-Wishers,
Bowing down at your holy feet, we would like to extend a humble and earnest
invitation to your holy self in eternal memory of our worshippable Sri
Gurupadpadma, Om Vishnupad Jagad-Guru Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj, to
join the observance of the divine disappearance day of the supremely
worshippable Om Vishnupad Jagad-Guru Sri Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda
Dev-Goswami Maharaj, that manifests this year on 9 April 2025
(Wednesday).
His Divine Grace Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj has many times instructed on how to hold special
programmes and taught it many times by his own example. Usually such
programmes consist of: kirtans, lecture or reading of scriptures, arati,
pushpanjali (offering of flowers to a photograph), and prasad-seva (cooking a
special offering, offering it at the altar or to a photograph, and
distributing it to devotees).
We hope all devotees find an opportunity to observe this holy day for the
satisfaction of Sri Gurupadpadma, keeping the 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
Satisfying the Lord
"Bali Maharaj asked Vamanadev, 'O brahman, what do you want? Tell me,
and I can give You anything you wish.' Vamanadev replied, 'I do not want
much. I know you have everything, but I want only something small.'"
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.7 Mb, 7 min | 30 August 2020)
Note:
Some of the many preparations known to be favourite to His Divine Grace
Srila B.S. Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj include rice, mung or chana dal,
stir-fried karela, sak, posto bora, aloo siddho (boiled potato, mashed with
chilli and salt), cauliflower pakoras, singara (samosa), mixed vegetable
subji, paneer rasa, tomato chutney, achar (pickle), avocado salad (with a
little salt and olive oil), cucumber salad, mango, paramanna (sweet rice),
rasagullas, sandesh, a cake, vanilla ice-cream.
Wed, 2 April 2025
Short Time,
Short Life
'We spend all our time with our fathers, mothers, friends, brothers, sisters,
wives, children and other relatives, but we never think about He who has
creates us! We do not think about God. That is our only fault. Do not forget
the Lord! You must always chant the Lord's Holy Names.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (47 Mb, 97 min | 7 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Bhakta-Bhav
"We should always remember devotees' service mood. Embracing
bhakta-bhav, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu appeared as a devotee and He
shows what is the mood of a devotee. We can see His teachings and realise
what is necessary to have if we want to have the mood of a devotee."
•
Download / listen to the audio (10.7 Mb, 26 min | 27 September 2020)
THE LIVING LIFE
'If we can engage proper intelligence for the service of the Lord then we
must certainly be the gainer. Proper intelligence is necessary, and that
comes with the association of the devotees. Our mind is always going this
way, that way and every way, but when we get the association of the devotees
we shall automatically and always talk about Krishna consciousness.'
Today in the calendar:
Gaura Panchami. Appearance of Sripad Ramanuja Acharya. Appearance of
Tridandi-swami Srimad Bhakti Hriday Bon Maharaj (a diksa and sannyas disciple
of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur Prabhupad, the first Gaudiya Math
preacher in the West).
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 Sri Ramanuja Acharya:
•Service: Faith
and Surrender "Gurudev told the story of Dhanur Das and his wife, Ramanuja Acharya's
disciples, and how they maintained their family life..."
•How
to See the Guru: Chastity "Ramanuja Acharya heard there was a Guru in Alwar (South India). He came
to that Guru and asked, 'You know one mantra that can give liberation.
I want to get this mantra...'"
•Odds and Ends:
Ramanuja Acharya's bed "One time Ramanuja Acharya he went to Tirupati and stayed one month at one
ashram there. He had a good servitor called Govinda who always served
him..."
In honour of Sripad Bhakti Hriday Bon Maharaj:
Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj remembers:
When I got sannyas, Sripad Bon Maharaj was present there, as well as many
others also. Sripad Bon Maharaj remarked, "Prabhupad has got a high
satisfaction by giving you sannyas. We have never seen so much satisfaction
in him at the occasion of any other sannyasi. He is highly satisfied with
conferring sannyas to you."
....When Sripad Bon Maharaj returned from England, he put so many disturbing
questions to our Guru Maharaj (Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur
Prabhupad), "What do you know about that country? They are so brave, so
gorgeous! Staying here, we cannot have any proper estimation of the
civilisation in London at present. We are all ignorant. If we are to preach
in London or Europe, we will have to be trained in a different way!" That was
his advice to our Guru Maharaj, and Guru Maharaj, being pressed, rather
attacked by his own disciple in such a way, withdrew himself by saying, "This
is not our way of thinking. Our Guru Maharaj, Srila Gaura Kishor Das Babaji
Maharaj, did not even know how to sign his name, but we think that all the
scholarship, wealth, everything is there in a nail of his toe." Guru Maharaj
represented himself in a mild and humble way, but there was also professor
Sanyal present there, and he came out like a tiger at our Bon Maharaj, "Have
you lost all you have got from Guru Maharaj?! You are bold enough to talk in
such a boisterous way? Have you forgotten how to behave with your Divine
Master?" He was furious; Bon Maharaj had to check himself. Anyhow, Prabhupad
said about him, "Bon Maharaj went to preach in my first year in
England and in my second year in England." Prabhupad had gone through
it using Bon Maharaj.
So, when I heard that Sripad Bon Maharaj had returned from Europe and put
forth so many arguments of the Western persons saying that they could not be
answered, I wanted to hear what those questions were that could not be
answered. He reluctantly spoke about the arguments he had had to face there,
and I began to answer them one by one. Then, when Sripad Bon Maharaj could
not say anything more, Srila Swami Maharaj [Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami
Maharaj], who was present at that round table meeting, said, "Here, Europe is
defeated by Asia!"
* * *
...At that time, all the preachers had been taken back from the compass of
the country and were concentrated to work in Kolkata—they used to have to go
door to door collecting bhiksa (alms, donations). Sripad Bon Maharaj's
party, he and one or two brahmacharis, went to some part of Kolkata for
collection. Generally, seeing some gentleman standing by, one of the members
of the party would run up to him and say something like, "We come from
Gaudiya Math, we want to make some collection. Dear sir, you are a devoted
person of this locality, please make some contribution." So, one time, Bon
Maharaj asked some gentleman to give him some addresses of good benevolent
gentlemen whom they could approach to get some money for their purpose. The
gentleman showed Bon Maharaj the way saying, "Just go to that house, you will
find the right person there." Bon Maharaj went there in good faith. When he
knocked on the door, the door was open. A lady came out. Seeing him, she
said, "Oh, you are a sadhu! What do you want from me?" The gentleman who had
directed Bon Maharaj there, was laughing behind him—the lady was a
prostitute. Bon Maharaj was perplexed—it was a lady. Anyhow, he still gave
her the letter of invitation saying, "We have got such and such festival, we
want you to come and we want to ask you for some contribution." I do not know
if the lady had given him anything or not, but all the people around were
laughing. After that, Bon Maharaj came back to Prabhupad and said,
"Prabhupad, I will not go for any collection again." Prabhupad asked him,
"Why? What has happened?" Bon Maharaj related the incident saying that some
rogues had guided him to a prostitute's house. After that, Prabhupad
delivered a lecture: "There are many of you who have left their own property,
but still I send you out for collection. Do you think that I am doing wrong?
I am not. The visayi (materialists) always want to entrap us within their
material life, but we must learn to utilise everything and anything in the
service of Krishna, then only are we saved; otherwise, if we leave, give
everything away, all this visaya (material elements) will be left there and
as soon as it gets any chance, it will come to bite me. So, whatever comes to
us, we should deal with everything in such a way that rather, 'Whatever I
shall come across, it will give me some impression to remember
Krishna—everything should utilise me for a particular service to Krishna.' If
left there, they will be enemies, but they should all be turned into friends.
They will help me, remind me, excite me in the service of Krishna. We must
have this kind of adjustment in this world. So, nothing should be left off.
'Nirbandhah Krsna-sambandhe yuktam vairagyam uchyate: when one is not
attached to anything, but at the same time accepts everything in relation to
Krishna, one is rightly situated above possessiveness.'"
Thu, 3 April 2025
Maya's Domain
'We forgot all about it! Why? Because of our ignorance – ignorance means
Maya. What is Maya like? You may wonder, 'What is Maya like? What is Maya?' I
will give you an example to show you what Maya is like.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (47 Mb, 97 min | 7 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
"My Nature"
"Whenever I get time, I like to read books. To this day, I still like
reading. I have a habit to always read. Whenever some new books come out, I
read it. Actually, I do not want to teach anybody, I want to learn myself
more and more. That is my nature."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.5 Mb, 6 min | 27 September 2020)
SWEET SUCCESS ASSURED
'Sometimes we achieve what we want and sometimes we do not. But service life
is not like that. We must not involve ourselves with any mundane matter. We
must involve ourselves with service and we must try to fulfil our service,
but the result is in the hand of Krishna. Whatever comes may be good or may
be bad but as much as possible I must always try to be successful. This is
our life, and joyfulness and success must finally come to us.'
Fri, 4 April 2025
Genuine
Connection
'What do you take initiation for? Because you want to know the guru?
No. Initiation is taken to serve the guru. Serving the
guru does not mean washing his feet, doing this, that – this is not
service; if you follow what your guru says, that is called
service.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (47 Mb, 97 min | 7 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Good News
"I have got some good news today, not everybody may have heard it, so I want
to tell you about it... I have been praying to Krishna for that—and now they
have filed a case, I am sure one day justice will happen."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.3 Mb, 6 min | 27 September 2020)
ANSWERS THROUGH LETTERS
'After the disappearance of Srila Guru Maharaj, in his separation so many
inauspicious things have happened, and due to that I am really too much
shocked both mentally and bodily, but by the will of Krishna, there is no
other way to spend a single moment without His seva programme.
Nirjan-bhajan may be possible singlely but sankirtan is not
possible without Vaishnava association; in that way we are in the proper line
of our Srila Guru Maharaj. Until death we must try to maintain our joyful
sankirtan life.'
Today in the calendar:
Gaura Saptami. Appearance of Tridandi Swami Srimad Bhakti Vilas Tirtha
Maharaj [a dear disciple, associate, and Mission Manager of Srila Bhakti
Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur; his previous name is Sri Kunja Bihari Prabhu,
affectionally called 'Kunja Babu'].
His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj: "Even if you do
not know anything about the Vaishnav mentioned in the calendar, you must
still give them 'jay' on this day. We must always remember disappearance and
appearance days of all Vaishnavs. If we can remember such personalities, such
great souls, it will bring a great benefit to our spiritual life."
"We should always check the calendar, and when we see some dates mentioned
there, even if we do not know anything about the Vaishnav or events mentioned
there, we can at least give 'jay' to them—that also brings some good sukriti,
some purification to us. Seeing the calendar and taking devotees' names early
in the morning, from the beginning of the day, is very good for all
devotees."
In honour of Srila Bhakti Vilas
Tirtha Maharaj:
His Divine Grace Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj:
"When Kunja Babu [later, Srila Bhakti Vilas Tirtha Maharaj] came to meet
Srila Prabhupad, Srila Prabhupad could recognise that this young man would be
able to help him a great deal. Our Guru Maharaj's nature was like that of a
philosopher—he did not like to mix with the public, but Kunja Babu filled
that side as he could mix with public and bring persons to Srila Prabhupad,
enabling thus Srila Prabhupad to speak about the sastra. Srila Prabhupad
wanted to speak about Mahaprabhu, but his temperament was such that he did
not like to become involved with inviting people and taking responsibility
for looking after them or their accommodation, feeding, etc. So, when Kunja
Babu joined, he took up that responsibility. Srila Prabhupad got educated
society ready to hear his speech about Mahaprabhu, and his style of speaking
was a little philosophical, so he preferred educated society as his
listeners. Kunja Babu did that service—he took the trouble of inviting,
accommodating, and feeding the public. All these troublesome burdens were
taken on by Kunja Babu.
"Gaudiya Mission had gradually grown from this combination—the
material help of Kunja Babu and the spiritual work of Srila Prabhupad. They
were the father and the mother of the mission, the cofounders of Gaudiya
Math. The practical, material side of the service was done by Kunja Babu.
Srila Prabhupad once said in Benares (I heard it directly from his mouth), 'I
only want a good audience, and Kunja Babu has done that service to me the
best. Amongst all my disciples, Kunja Babu has served me the best by bringing
to me a good audience. I only want a good audience, nothing else, in this
world, and in that direction, Kunja Babu has helped me greatly.'
"In the end, Srila Prabhupad Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur's order was
to form a governing body of ten or twelve, and Kunja Babu had to manage as
long as he lived. 'Kunja Babu's intelligence excells that of all,' this was
told about him. We took it as Kunja Babu was the manager during Prabhupad's
lifetime, but he was actually managing the whole institution, so he should be
respected even though he was a grihastha and we were sannyasis. Later, many
complaints were heard against him, but Srila Prabhupad had told us that Kunja
Babu had to manage as long as he lived and that he should be respected. Srila
Prabhupad did not select anyone as his follower acharya, that is why there
was eventually a difference of opinion amongst us. There were also many
ambitious sannyasis who were eager to go on as acharyas themselves.
There were generally two parties, one accepting Vasudev Prabhu as the
acharya, and the other one accepting Kunja Babu..."
His Divine Grace Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj:
"Sri Bimala Prasad got initiation from Srila Gaura Kishor Das Babaji
Maharaj and later, when he took sannyas, he became known as Bhagavan Sri
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur. At some point, he promised that he
would complete chanting one hundred crores Holy Names and after that
start preaching Mahaprabhu's proper conception, but as he was chanting the
Holy Name, one day Sri Sri Guru Gauranga Gandharva Giridhari came in front of
him and Srimati Radharani said, 'You must preach pure conception of Gauranga
Mahaprabhu, the combined form of Radha-Krishna.' Srila Bhaktisiddhanta
Saraswati Thakur said, 'I am alone, how will I preach?' After that so many
great scholars (dig-pals) came to help him—our Param Gurudev Om
Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj, Srila A.C.
Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj, Srila Bhakti Vilas Tirtha Maharaj, Srila Bhakti
Dayita Madhav Goswami Maharaj, Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj, Srila
Bhakti Prajnan Keshav Maharaj, Srila Bhakti Kamal Madhusudan Goswami Maharaj,
Srila Bhakti Vichar Jajavar Maharaj, Srila Bhakti Kumud Shanta Maharaj and
many others. This is how Prabhupad started preaching the proper conception in
this world.
"In Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswat Thakur's time, the secretary of
Chaitanya Math was a grihastha, his name is Kunja Bihari Prabhu
(affectionately known as Kunja Babu), later he became Srila Bhakti Vilas
Tirtha Maharaj. Kunja Babu could not always stay at the temple, but he always
served Chaitanya Math from his householder life. Moreover, when he would come
to visit Chaitanya Math, to see Prabhupad, at that time almost all
sannyasis would give him their full obeisance.
Sat, 5 April 2025
Thoughtful
Existence
'We must understand these things, but the problem is that we, in this world,
do not understand anything. We forgot the Lord and have been living in this
world since time immemorial. When I see how people live in this world, I feel
much pain.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (47 Mb, 97 min | 7 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Father-Son
Pastime
"It is stated in Sri Hari-bhakti-vilas that those who observe this
ekadasi attain a liberated form upon leaving their body. I will be
reading about a pastime of Sri Govinda from Gopal-champu by Srila Jiva
Goswami Prabhu. Listen to it properly. This is a pastime of Nanda Maharaj and
Lord Krishna, and it happened tomorrow, the day after ekadasi."
•
Download / listen to the audio (10.3 Mb, 25 min | 27 September 2020)
TREASURES: SHORT EXCERPTS FROM LETTERS
'Outer space is a foreign place to us and it is only possible to survive
there in a carefully protected space-capsule. Similarly we are to lead
spiritual life in this world in an environment carefully protected by
devotion.'
Sun, 6 April 2025 (Sri Rama Navami; fast until midday)
Mature
Vision
'After such a long time, your ears have become full of rust. Unless you have
clean ears, you will not be able to hear. We turned away from the Lord and
have been averse since time immemorial, but do you ever think about anything?
The time is passing! The sun is rising in the morning and setting in the
evening – one after another, days are passing.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (47 Mb, 97 min | 7 April 2019)
Today in the calendar:
Gaura Navami. Sri Rama Navami: Appearance of Lord Sri Sri Ramachandra.
Fast until noon.
•"Lord Ramachandra became King
during Treta-yuga, but because of His good government, the age was like
Satya-yuga. Everyone was religious and completely happy." • "He was a saintly king, and
everything in His character was good, untinged by qualities like anger. He
taught good behavior for everyone, especially for householders, in terms of
varnasrama-dharma. Thus He taught the general public by His personal
activities." • "Lord Ramachandra's spotless
name and fame, which vanquish all sinful reactions, are celebrated in all
directions, like the ornamental cloth of the victorious elephant that
conquers all directions."(Srimad Bhagavatam,
9.10–11)
In honour of Lord Ramachandra's
appearance:
Rama-Avatar
"Today is a very good day—the appearance day of Lord Ramachandra. There are
different kinds of moods—santa, dasya, sakhya, vatsalya, madhura-rasa.
Moreover, the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the Lord are also different.
You can easily understand it from the difference between Rama-lila and
Krishna-lila."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.7 Mb, 9 min | 2 April 2020)
Reading from Guidance 4
"I am writing here something comparing the pastimes of Ramachandra and the
pastimes of Krsihna-chandra, as well as Nanda Maharaj and Vasudev's
vatsalya-rasa..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (5.3 Mb, 13 min | 2 April 2020)
Peculiarity
of Lord's Pastimes
"I have read Ramayan, but I am telling you the gist point... There are
many incarnations—Narayan, Ramachandra, Vamanadev, Balaram, and others, but
Krishna is the full Supreme Personality of Godhead. However, Gaura-lila is
even higher..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (7.6 Mb, 18 min | 2 April 2020 | Class and Kirtan)
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)
Laksman's Grudge
"Sita Devi was crying so much, and Laksman could not bear the thought of
doing it, but because Ramachandra was his worshippable Lord and his elder
brother, he had to do it—but Laksman could not forget the kind of pain he got
at that time..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.5 Mb, 4 min | 9 October 2019)
Hanuman's Service
Drive
"I will give you some example of Hanuman's love for Rama, of his desire to
serve Rama. We can see how much Ramachandra loves Hanuman and how much
Hanuman loves Him. It is necessary to have such service desire."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.3 Mb, 6 min | 2 March 2020)
•Sri Dasavatara Stotram |
দশাবতারস্তোত্রম্ 'To fulfil the wish of great sages, You mercifully fight a battle,
pleasing everyone with the tribute of Ravan's ten heads! O Kesava who assumes
the form of Lord Rama! Glory to You, O Lord of the universe, O Hari!'
Mon, 7 April 2025
Places to Be
Avoided
'It is necessary to follow the rules and regulations. First, you must
understand what the four places of Kali are. Gambling, intoxication, illicit
sex and meat-eating. There is also the fifth place, gold, but I am not even
mentioning it because many cannot follow it. If you can avoid it, it is
good.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (47 Mb, 97 min | 7 April 2019)
In honour of the forthcoming disappearance festival of His Divine Grace Om
Vishnupad Jagad-Guru Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj:
Gurudev's Early Days at
the Temple
'Actually, day by day our time is going. Gurudev has left his body here... He
told us many things about his pastimes and his vision... You know that many
things happened when Gurudev joined this mission. Gurudev spoke about it many
times.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (18 Mb, 40 min | 1 April 2010 |
English)
Gurudev's Love for the
Temple
'Gurudev always thought about his temple from his young age when he joined
the temple. He also protected his temple, fighting so much. So many things
happened. Gurudev loved his temple and personally handled so many
things.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (18 Mb, 40 min | 1 April 2010 |
English)
Gurudev's Love and
Affection
'Gurudev told us many things about service and service decision. He always
thought about devotees and about how to give them relief. He showed very much
patience and tolerance in his life. And I saw how much love and affection he
had for his godbrothers. That love and affection were incomparable.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (18 Mb, 40 min | 1 April 2010 |
English)
Our Desperate Hope
'Our only bad fortune is that Gurudev has left... But his mercy is above us.
We must follow his line, follow his instruction, then his mercy will easily
come to us. That is our hope. Gurudev told me many times that it is necessary
to be a sincere seeker and it is necessary to have chastity. Everybody is a
sincere seeker, but it is very rare to see chastity in anyone.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (18 Mb, 40 min | 1 April 2010 |
English)
Our Hopeful
Determination
'We have done many things wrong, it is not like we are washed Tulasi leaves –
all of us have some bad qualities. So, what hope is there for us? We follow
the will and the order of our gurudev, and we must have desire and
determination to serve gurudev. This is our only hope.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (18 Mb, 40 min | 1 April 2010 |
English)
The Seeds of
Discord
"This animosity, these things have not grown overnight—it has been growing
and increasing day by day, day by day. You did not see what was happening
inside, and now that tree has grown very big!"
•
Download / listen to the audio (3 Mb, 9 min | 30 March 2010)
Strong Faith and
Chastity
"He may not be able to talk now like before, but he can see everything, and
he is watching everything. I think those who say Gurudev is not here anymore
have not got any connection with Gurudev. That is why it is necessary to have
a strong faith."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.9 Mb, 6 min | 30 March 2010)
"I Want to Forget"
"I want to go somewhere—I want to get some relief. When I am sitting in the
office, I get some relief, but as soon as I go to my room, I again start
remembering everything. I want to forget it, but I cannot... It is impossible
to forget this. Such is my situation."
•
Download / listen to the audio (0.9 Mb, 3 min | 30 March 2010)
Festival: Vision
and Focus
"Gurudev's disappearance festival means Vaishnav seva. Vaishnav is the
main focus for us. Appearance and disappearance look different, but following
Vaishnavs' vision we think that on these two tithis Gurudev always
takes worships from us."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.8 Mb, 5 min | 16 April 2013)
Tue, 8 April 2025 (Sri Kamada Ekadasi)
Do Not Be
Afraid to Give
'I will tell you a story and then finish. This story shows what happens when
you give something to the Lord. The Lord does not take your things. Do you
understand it now? If you offer bhog to the Lord, He cannot eat it
Himself without giving anything to His devotee. Therefore, always offer
bhog to the Lord.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (47 Mb, 97 min | 7 April 2019)
In honour of the forthcoming disappearance festival of His Divine Grace Om
Vishnupad Jagad-Guru Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj:
Separation Day
"Our supreme Gurudev, Om Vishnupad Jagad Guru Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda
Dev-Goswami Maharaj accepted this day as the day to leave this world for his
eternal abode, and he has left us, fallen souls, here to chant his
glories..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3 Mb, 9 min | Bengali)
Make Service Your Goal,
Means, and Sustenance
"Sacrificing his own life, forgetting his own happiness and comfort, Gurudev
would go door to door preaching the message of Mahaprabhu: be merciful to the
souls, chant the Holy Name, and serve the Vaishnavs. Besides this, there is
no other religion."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3 Mb, 9 min | Bengali)
Overpowered by Service
"You may have everything, but if you do not have mercy of your Guru, then you
have nothing. Gurudev gave you all his blessings, and if we can serve him, we
will get supreme benefit. You must always live remembering Gurudev's
words."
•
Download / listen to the audio (4.1 Mb, 12 min | Bengali)
Spiritual
Mockery
"Actually, we took initiation from a Guru, but it is not a real initiation—we
only pretend to be disciples. The temple that Srila Guru Maharaj made and
that Gurudev served is not for enjoyment—it is for service."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.2 Mb, 4 min | 7 April 2019)
Painful Day
"Our Gurudev's disappearance festival is very soon, that day is coming soon,
next dvadasi. It is a very sad day for me. It is the most painful day in my
life, and this very painful day comes every year..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (0.5 Mb, 2 min)
The Worst Day
"Today, my Gurupadpadma Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami
Maharaj's tenth disappearance festival, tirobhav-tithi. I had never thought
that this day when Gurudev leaves would come in my life one day. I lost the
dearest personality in my life on this day..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (5.2 Mb, 13 min | 16 April 2019 | Bengali)
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..."
"You do not need to know the meaning of each ekadasi tithi because if
you know it, you will want to get this result, that result, etc."
(Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj)
Wed, 9 April 2025 (Holy disappearance day of His Divine Grace
Om Vishnupad Srila B.S. Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj)
'I Cannot
Forget This Day'
'I try to forget that day, and I try to keep myself happy by serving him. The
day when Gurudev left is a very bad day in my life. Those who do not have a
relationship with their gurudev cannot understand this. They can never
understand the pain of losing one's guru...'
•
Download / listen to the audio (29 Mb, 60 min | 16 April 2019)
Today in the calendar:
Gaura Dvadasi. Ekadasi paran is at 5:25–9:34. Festival in honour of the
disappearance of Om Visnupad Paramahamsa Parivrajakacharya-varya
Astottara-sata-sri Sri Srimad Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj.
Lord Krishna's Damanaka-ropana festival.
The Seeds of
Discord
"This animosity, these things have not grown overnight—it has been growing
and increasing day by day, day by day. You did not see what was happening
inside, and now that tree has grown very big!"
•
Download / listen to the audio (3 Mb, 9 min | 30 March 2010)
Strong Faith and
Chastity
"He may not be able to talk now like before, but he can see everything, and
he is watching everything. I think those who say Gurudev is not here anymore
have not got any connection with Gurudev. That is why it is necessary to have
a strong faith."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.9 Mb, 6 min | 30 March 2010)
"I Want to Forget"
"I want to go somewhere—I want to get some relief. When I am sitting in the
office, I get some relief, but as soon as I go to my room, I again start
remembering everything. I want to forget it, but I cannot... It is impossible
to forget this. Such is my situation."
•
Download / listen to the audio (0.9 Mb, 3 min | 30 March 2010)
Unthinkable
Situation
"Today is our Gurudev's disappearance tithi. Actually, never in my
life did I expect that this day could come. When this tithi is coming,
I always try to stay alone, but Gurudev gave me service to take care of you
all, then how can I be cruel and stay alone?"
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.1 Mb, 8 min | 5 April 2020)
"Gurudev Is My
Everything"
"We must not misinterpret what Gurudev told. Devotees all over the world can
realise easily what is Srila Sridhar Maharaj's conception, what is Gurudev's
conception, and they can understand whether they are following it or not.
Your main focus must be always to please your Guru properly. Name and fame is
for your guru—you must not preach for your name and fame, you must preach to
please your guru."
•
Download / listen to the audio (5.8 Mb, 14 min | 5 April 2020)
Tirobhav kirtans His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj sings:
• Gurudev krpa bindu diya • Emona durmati • Ye anila prema dhana • Sri rupa manjari pada • Hari haraye.
•
Download / listen to the audio (9.6 Mb, 23 min | 5 April 2020)
Gurudev's
Disappearance[24 April 2021 | Part 1]
"Today is the holy disappearance day of Om Vishnupad Jagad Guru Srila Bhakti
Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj. He chose this day and left our sight on
this day, at 4:20-30 in the morning. He is present now in his samadhi
form, and he is bestowing his mercy upon us from there. He always stays
within his eternal pastimes...."
"Everything
Plunged Into Darkness"[24 April 2021 | Part
2]
"When Gurudev left this world, I thought, 'Now there is no one left in this
world who will chastise me.' I always spoke to Gurudev heart to heart, I told
him about all happy and unhappy things, and when Gurudev left this world, I
could not understand anything—what was going on, what was going to happen,
everything plunged into darkness for me..."
Service Alertness[24 April 2021 | Part 3]
"I was always alert towards Gurudev—I know everything, what he likes, what he
eats, etc. I knew what Gurudev liked to eat, and I would go to the market the
day before his arrival, buy everything and have it kept in his kitchen.
Gurudev always liked trees and cows..."
Service
Milestones[24 April 2021 | Part 4]
"Gurudev brought me up, he taught me everything. Gurudev told about Vaishnav
seva—how one must serve Vaishnavs, how one must serve devotees, how to manage
the temple, etc. I have learnt everything from Gurudev. I always did whatever
Gurudev told me."
Service
Challenges[24 April 2021 | Part 5]
"In my life I had to do all these hard, hard, very difficult jobs, and I was
always successful. Anyhow but I did it. Whether it was getting building plans
approved, whether it was any other job, everything was unhampered in the
end."
Gurudev's Insight[24 April 2021 | Part 6]
"I have heard and learned a lot from Gurudev. Gurudev gave me so many
instructions how to maintain the temple, and Gurudev is dur-darasi—he
has a great foresight. He always managed everything very tactfully."
Gurudev's Loving
Affection[24 April 2021 | Part 7]
"Sri Sivananda Sen understood it, Sri Jagadananda Pandit understood it, and
Srila Sanatan Goswami also realised what is called Guru and Vaishnav's
blessing in the world of devotion. I myself realised and understood it
gradually too."
Nurturing
Gurudev's Mission[24 April 2021 | Part 8]
"You cannot become a disciple just by taking a mantra from a guru. It is
necessary to have and show your love, affection for your Guru, to take him as
your own. If you care for and think about your Guru and Vaishnavs, then your
Guru and Vaishnavs will care for and think about you..."
"Always engage yourself in Bhagavat-kirtan, in hearing and glorifying the
Lord. Our Gurudev has left, so where can we find him now? If we read his
books, we can get his association. When I leave, where will you get my
association? I have books – if you read these books every day, you will be
able to get your gurudev's darshan and you will be able to have his
association.
"It was Mahaprabhu's order for all householder
devotees that not a single day shall pass without chanting the Holy Name and
without vaisnav-seva. How can you serve Vaishnavs when you are at
home? If you read Vaishnavs' scriptures, this is also service to Vaishnavs.
If you think about Vaishnavs and devotees, that is also service to
Vaishnavs."
—Srila Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj
Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Sundar
Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj's Books
In honour of Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj:
gurvvabhista-supurakam guru-ganair asisa-sambhusitam
chintyachintya-samasta-veda-nipunam sri-rupa-panthanugam
govindabhidham ujjvalam vara-tanum bhakty anvitam-sundaram
vande visva-gurun cha divya-bhagavat-premno hi bija-pradam
"I offer my obeisance to him who perfectly fulfils his gurudev’s most
cherished desires; who is fully adorned with the blessings of his gurudev’s
associates; who is expert in all conceivable and inconceivable aspects of
Vedic knowledge; who is a pre-eminent follower of Srila Rupa Goswami Prabhu’s
line; who is known as ‘Govinda’ (Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami
Maharaj); whose beautiful, effulgent, exalted form is suffused with pure
devotion; who is the guru of the entire universe; and who is the giver of the
seed of divine love for the Supreme Lord."
"Do Not Despair"
"You have come to see me. I am your friend, your master, or your everything,
I can feel that you feel it. There are so many devotees from different
countries here. Different countries means different languages, different
cultures, different lifestyles, different food—everything is different; but
our conception is one, and that is Krishna consciousness. We have been
practising for a long time, then we must have some Krishna-conscious
mentality and we can proceed with that to our goal, which is the life of a
servitor."
The Pain
of Broken Hearts
"We always remember Srimati Radharani, Her associates and other Vraja
gopis, but we forget about Nanda Maharaj and Mother Yasomati. It has
come out of Radharani's mouth: 'We do not consider our heart's pain, but when
we see Mother Yasoda's face and Mother Yasoda's situation without Your
presence, our heart is breaking after breaking after breaking.'"
Biography of Srila B.S.
Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj
A glorification article that sprang forth from the interpretation of the
Pranam-mantra of His Divine Grace and was originally published as
an Appendix to the Revealed Truth.
Sri
Samadhi Mandir Verses
A series of pages containing the verses that were selected to adorn the
samadhi-mandir of His Divine Grace Srila B.S. Govinda Dev-Goswami
Maharaj. May these pages please and nourish the Vaishnavs' hearts.
Prayers to Sri Gurupadpadma:
•SONG:
Sri Guru Parampara "All the Gurus in this succession are associates of Sri Gauranga. I pray
for their remnants."
•SONG:
Gurudev!
krpa-bindu diya "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."
•SONG:
Gurudev bada
krpa kari "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:
Samsara-davanala "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."
•SONG:
Thakura vaisnava-gana "Narottam Das says, 'Seeing and hearing about my situation, I am stricken
with fear. Please rescue me and keep me by your side.'"
•SONG:
Nitai-pada kamala "Always aspire for Nitai's feet. Narottam is very sad: 'O Nitai! Make me
happy. Keep me beside your reddish feet.'"
•SONG:
Emona durmati "O Lord! I am very wicked-minded and have fallen into this material world,
but You have sent a great soul, Your associate (to rescue me)."
•SONG:
Ki jani ki bale "I do not know by what force I have taken shelter within Your abode.
Surely it is by Your mercy alone, for You are ever seeking the purification
and deliverance of the fallen souls."
•SONG:
Sri Rupa-manjari-pada "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."
•SONG:
Ye anila
prema-dhana "Where has Advaita Acharya gone? Where are my Svarup, Rupa, Sanatan? Where
is my Raghunath? Where are the saviours of the fallen souls?"
Presented below is a collection of 51 recordings of Srila Govinda Maharaj
chanting kirtans in various years between 1988 and 2009. May this nectar of
Sri Hari-Kirtan from the holy lotus mouth of His Divine Grace nourish and
massage the hearts of the entire Devotional Family of Sri Chaitanya Saraswat
Math.
THE LINK TO THE FILES—for download or listening online (not all mobile devices may support online playback, but the files can be downloaded). DOWNLOAD ALL FILES (.zip)(134 Mb)—for listening offline and comfortable upload to mobile devices.
CONTENTS:
00"Jaya Dhvani" 01"Vandava" 02"Jaya Guru Maharaj yati-rajesvara" 03"Jaya jaya Gaurachander arati" 04"Yasomati nandana vrajabara" 05"Namo namah Tulasi Maharani" 06"Kabe Sri Chaitanya more karibena" 07"(Ohe) Vaishnava Thakur dayara" 08"Ei bara karuna kara vaishnava" 09"Gurudev krpa bindu diya" 10"Sri guru charana padma" 11"Emona durmati samsara bhitare" 12"Ki jani ki bale tomara dhamete" 13"Bhajahu re mana" 14"Janama saphala ta'ra" 15"Hari he dayala" 16"Durlabha manava janma" 17"Manasa deha geha" 18"Bhuliya tomare samsara asiya" 19"Dhana mora Nityananda" 20"Akrodha paramananda" 21"Nitai pada kamala" 22"Parama karuna pahu dui jana" 23"Yadi Gaura na haite" 24"Avatara sara Gaura avatara" 25"Gaurangera duti pada"
26"Bimala hema jini" 27"Kali ghora timire" 28"Sri radhara bhave yini" 29"Ki jani ki bole," "Emona durmati" 30"Jaya Radhe Jaya Krishna" 31"Radha bhajane yadi" 32"Jaya Radha Madhava" 33"Radhika charana padma" 34"Radha Krsna prana mora" 35"Radhe Jaya Jaya Madhava Daite" 36"Radha kunda tata" 37"Gopinath mama nivedana suna" 38"Suno he rasika jana" 39"Sri Dasavatar Stotram" 40"He deva bhavantam vande" 41"Gaya Gaura madhur svare" 42"Sujanarvuda radhita pada yugam" 43"Jayare jayare jaya paramahamsa" 44"Bhaya bhanjana jayasamsana" 45"Sri Daita Dasa Dasakam" 46"Sri Nityananda Dvadasakam" 47"Raghunath Das Goswami Sochaka" 48"Sri Rupa manjari pada" 49"Ye anilo prema dhana" 50"Jaya Radhe jaya Krsna jaya Vrndavan", "Hari Haraye"
Thu, 10 April 2025
Who Is Gurudev?
'Gurudev is not a man of this world – he is not an ordinary man. When we
think of Gurudev as of an ordinary man, we commit an offence, we make a
mistake. Gurudev is the Lord Himself. The Lord personally comes in the form
of guru to bestow His mercy upon us.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (29 Mb, 60 min | 16 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
"Try Your Best"
"You must depend upon Gurudev in everything – give everything to your Guru.
All Vraja gopis gave everything, their deha (body) and
dehi (the very soul), to fulfil the desire of Lord Krishna. Our
guru-varga are not ordinary persons. I am sure that those who follow
Gurudev and have taken shelter at the lotus feet of Gurudev will reach their
destination."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.7 Mb, 7 min | 4 October 2020)
FOREWORD
'Home is there where the environment will take care of us, our fortune, and
our comfort, independent of our consideration. The affectionate paraphernalia
there will help us very affectionately and lovingly. So we should make good
use of this opportunity to go back to God, back to home, our sweet, sweet
home.'
Fri, 11 April 2025
Poisonous Trees Within and Without
'Whenever Gurudev chastised me, I did not mind it. But I cannot tolerate
those who disrespected Gurudev, and I have not mixed with them to this day.
Many people say, "Oh, why are you not going to Nabadwip?" You can judge it
yourselves.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (34 Mb, 70 min | 16 April 2019)
First part of this class, published earlier:
The Worst Day
"Today, my Gurupadpadma Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami
Maharaj's tenth disappearance festival, tirobhav-tithi. I had never thought
that this day when Gurudev leaves would come in my life one day. I lost the
dearest personality in my life on this day..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (34 Mb, 70 min | 16 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Surrendered
Soul's Solace
"Through our qualification, we will not get anything, but we can get
everything by the mercy of the Guru. Yet the problem is that some material
things always come to our life. We are supposed to be surrendered souls—if
you are a surrendered soul, then what should be your thoughts?"
•
Download / listen to the audio (1 Mb, 1 min | 4 October 2020)
(1) EARLIER DAYS
'After the breakup of the Gaudiya Math Srila Guru Maharaj was not very
enthusiastic to preach. He did not want to make another mission and therefore
went alone to Vrindavan. The devotees then lost track of him, but all Srila
Guru Maharaj’s Godbrothers were very enthusiastic to take him preaching, so
they repeatedly searched in many places to try to locate him. Finally some
Godbrothers discovered Srila Guru Maharaj in Nabadwip...'
Sat, 12 April 2025
Undistorted
Line
'Everybody can be what they like, but if somebody calls Gurudev a liar, if
somebody says bad things about Gurudev, if they leave the temple and then
somebody brings them back, how can I talk to them? How can I even see their
faces? I would rather stay in a jungle or under some tree; it is much
better.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (34 Mb, 70 min | 16 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Approaching
Bhagavatam
"One must not read Bhagavatam or give Bhagavatam class for
money, wealth, property, pratistha, etc. You must listen to Srimad
Bhagavatam from a pure Vaishnav who knows Bhagavatam and who knows
the meaning of Bhagavatam."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.4 Mb, 4 min | 4 October 2020)
(2) BEHIND THE SCREEN
'I feel that everything can come to us when there is necessity in our service
life. What is necessary for us is to keep ourselves in a clean devotional
mood and position of service, then everything will come to us. Actually one
moment can give us our full wealth, and also one inauspicious moment can give
us our full destruction. I have seen this in my life. One second, if it comes
in a bad way can destroy everything we have, and one second coming in a good
way can give us everything.'
Today in the calendar:
Purnima. Vasanta Rasa of Sri Krishna. Rasa Yatra of Sri Sri Balaram.
Appearance of Srila Vamsi-vadananda Thakur and Srila Syamananda
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."
In honour of Sri Syamananda
Prabhu:
"Srinivas Acharya, Narottam Das Thakur, and Shyamananda Prabhu
started for Vrindavan to have the darshan of Srila Rupa Goswami, Srila
Sanatan Goswami, Srila Gopala Bhatta Goswami, Srila Raghunatha Bhatta Goswami
and others who were there.
"When they were only a few miles away from Mathura, they heard that Sanatan
Goswami had passed away. People were saying that that great Sanatan Goswami
who was the prime minister and who had captured all people in the whole of
Vrindavan within his heart—that Sanatan had passed away, a great disaster for
the country. What to do then? Rupa, Raghunath, Jiva and Gopala Bhatta were
still living, so Srinivas, Narottam, and Shyamananda dragged somehow on.
When they reached Mathura, they heard that Srila Rupa Goswami had left the
night before that. Sanatana left on an ashari purnima, and Srila Rupa Goswami
left after that on next dvadasi. They thought, "What hopeless and cursed
souls we are! We have come so near, yet we could not see those two generals
of Mahaprabhu!" Mahaprabhu sent two of his generals to Vrindavan to carry out
His orders and establish the kingdom of the Gaudiya Vaishnavs there... So,
they dragged their bodies to Vrindavan and came to Govinda Mandir. When they
reached it, they found that an evening aroti was going on there in a very
great splendour. There was a great crowd there—Srila Rupa Goswami had just
passed away, so with that feeling of high bereavement, everybody was chanting
his name madly. Srinivas, Narottam, and Shyamananda Prabhu were there, but
Srinivas Acharya could not stand that sort of sentimental wave—he was
standing aside and he fainted. When he regained his consciousness, he saw
Srila Jiva Goswami with some of his followers...
In this way, Srinivas Acharya, Narottam Das Thakur, and Shyamananda Prabhu
stayed in Vrindavan for one year—Srinivas Acharya took initiation from
Gopala Bhatta, Narottam Thakur from Lokanath Goswami, and Shyamananda Prabhu
from Srila Jiva Goswami Prabhu..."
(Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj)
"Sri Gauri Das Pandit is one of the twelve cowherd friends of Krishna in
Vrindavan. Shyamananda Prabhu was his disciple and followed him in the
sakhya-bhav (transcendental mood of friendship with the Lord), however when
he later entered the association of Srila Jiva Goswami Prabhu, who was a
follower of Sri Rupa Goswami, he exhibited madhura-bhav (transcendental mood
of paramour relationship with the Lord). Shyamananda Prabhu was promoted to
the manjari group by the mercy of Lalita Devi. Later, Shyamananda Prabhu went
to preach with Srila Narottam Das Thakur and Srila Srinivas Acharya. Srila
Narottam Das Thakur preached in Bangladesh, Srila Srinivas Acharya Prabhu
preached in the north, and Srila Shyamananda Prabhu preached in Midnapore.
They preached and protected our line, Rupa Goswami's line, the main
conception."
(Srila B.N. Acharya Maharaj)
Sun, 13 April 2025
Chaste
Submission Is Key
'I think that this is the most important advice that we all must follow to a
T. I have seen many devotees and many things happening during all these many
years, and there is only one thing we really need. We may or may not know
anything, we may or may not understand anything – it is not necessary to be
scholars or to do anything big – the only thing we must remember is that we
must practise spiritual life in submission to our gurudev.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (46 Mb, 96 min | 16 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Disciples'
Dedication
"Devotees always want to learn—they want to know more. It is necessary to
have desire to learn, to practise more and more; it will be good for us all.
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu Himself comes as a devotee and shows us what is
necessary and how we must be practising. If we learn His teachings properly,
we will get so much benefit through that."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.7 Mb, 4 min | 4 October 2020)
(3) STEP BY STEP
'There are many devotees—and many different natures. As an example you can
see in our own Sri Guru-varga that Srila Bhakti Vinod Thakur has one
kind of nature, Srila Gaura Kisor Das Babaji Maharaj has another kind of
nature, Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur’s nature is of another type,
and Vamsi Das Babaji Maharaj’s nature is yet another. But they are all
siddha-mahapurusas—perfected souls. Also Srila Jagannath Das Babaji
Maharaj has another type of nature, and our Srila Guru Maharaj yet another.
So who are you to follow? You cannot follow the activities of anybody, but it
will be good for your practitioner’s life if only you take the guidelines
from your Gurudeva and do not try to imitate anyone.'
Mon, 14 April 2025
Busy
Yourself with Service
'If you want to come, I am inviting everybody. At the same time, you must
understand though that coming for a festival is not just an opportunity to
take prasad – coming for a festival means coming to hear some
Hari-katha and get some sadhu-sanga.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (46 Mb, 96 min | 16 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Restaurant Devotion
vs Pure Devotion
"We work outside, we do not cook and take some food in a hotel (shop, cafe,
restaurant) where they mix veg and non-veg food. It is a problem. It is
possible to do this for one-two days as an exception, but if you do it every
day saying, 'Oh, I have no energy to cook!' This is wrong. It is better if
you cook and do the offering, then it will be pure devotion."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.8 Mb, 5 min | 4 October 2020)
(4) THE SOLUTION IN NUTSHELL
'You joined in the Krishna consciousness movement in the last chapter of
Srila Guru Maharaj’s Pastimes, therefore you did not hear actually three
fourths, but what you heard was the last chapter, the final chapter. Before
reading other lessons if you read the final lesson, that can sometimes be
very harmful to digest.'
Value of
Chastity
'Do not get involved in any hodgepodge. We must have chastity and sincerity.
Gurudev did not go to random places, and he never liked when anybody did
that. This is the devotional line of our Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math within
the current of Sri Rupa-Saraswati.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (46 Mb, 96 min | 16 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Unimaginable
"Separation is a very high thing, you cannot imagine it. What sort of
separation is there in Vrindavan? When Uddhav Maharaj heard about it, he was
astounded. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu showed this separation mood in
Gambhira..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.3 Mb, 6 min | 4 October 2020)
(1) UTILISING
OUR FORTUNE
'We must be conscious, therefore, about our position and about our service,
then we will not be deviated from our position. But even if some deviation
does come, if we are sincere we can emerge from that position also. When we
live within this body, there is the possibility of deviation everywhere.
Deviation will not come to attack us if we do not listen to the demands of
our mental and physical bodies—otherwise, deviation is possible for
everyone.'
Wed, 16 April 2025
Plan Your
Journey
'There are thousands of trains departing from the Howrah station, but we must
get on the train that goes to Vrindavan – all the other trains will not take
us there. Other trains will take us to Kashi, Prayag or some other place.
Another thing is that even if you take the train to Vrindavan – under whose
guidance will you stay there?'
•
Download / listen to the audio (46 Mb, 96 min | 16 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Loving Care and
Service
"There is love and affection in Vaishnavism. This is what Mahaprabhu showed
by His own example. Krishna shows it too—He is merciful even to those who
come to kill Him. This is what true religion is. You should understand that
Vaishnavism comes from the original source."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.9 Mb, 10 min | 4 October 2020)
(2) ON THE WAY
TO SRI PURI DHAM
'We are not going sightseeing but we are going to a place of pilgrimage, a
holy place. Going there will purify us—body, mind, and soul. You all pray to
Lord Jagannath that He will take us safely there and then bring us all back
safely to where we are doing our respective seva. This is our only
prayer today. We have nothing else to pray for.'
Thu, 17 April 2025
Avoid
Religious Hypocrisy
'It is greed that drives people to do so many atrocious things. We do not
need to be part of that. We have come to practise Krishna consciousness. We
are not dharma-dhvaji (pretenders who show off religion in a
hypocritical way or use it for politics). We must live as Vaishnavs.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (46 Mb, 96 min | 16 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
"Please Be
Careful"
"Please be careful. I am concerned about you all because if your health is
good, then you can do more and more service. We have this body and disease
will come, but we must not 'invite' disease ourselves. This is my request for
everybody. If you can do what I am saying, I will be very happy."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.6 Mb, 4 min | 11 October 2020)
(3) ON THE WAY
TO SRI VRINDAVAN DHAM
'Even to see the outside of the Dham is beneficial, but if we make
aparadh, offence, it is detrimental to our spiritual life. And if we
cannot see properly the real transcendental Dham, at least we should
try not to see the opposite thing—to see it as only mundane. The Dham
is covered by illusion, but even so, there is some brilliance, and that glow
or brilliance of the Dham may touch us if we stay there without offence. But
if we stay there too long we may become overly familiar and then that glow
may leave us.'
Fri, 18 April 2025
Fight for
Your Aspiration
'If Maya Devi does not let you go – you must keep trying, you must keep
fighting. You must fight against Maya Devi, 'I must practise real spiritual
life! I must come to this line!' To do that, you have to give up small
things. If you want to get something great, you have to give up small
matters.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (46 Mb, 96 min | 16 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Sincere
Chanting
"This Hare Krishna maha-mantra is not just alphabet letters—it is the
pure Name. So, it must be chanted with service mood. If you always show that
you are chanting japa, but your mind always goes to bad elements, your
heart is covered by bad elements—that is not good."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.6 Mb, 4 min | 11 October 2020)
(4) WITHIN THE
HOLY DHAM
'Here is one question. Do we want that or not? We hear about Vrindavan Dham,
but we hear through our mundane senses and with our mundane feelings. Some
essence, however, is coming through that and we express, “We like Vrindavan
Dham.” But, like Sri Harinam mahamantra, Vrindavan Dham is also
transcendental. If we want to enter there, we need some special mercy of
Srimati Radharani through Her associates, and we can only get that with our
super-hankering mood.'
Today in the calendar:
Krishna Panchami. Disappearance of Srila Krishnadas Babaji 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."
"I am offering my obeisance to Sri Krishna Das Prabhu, whose form is very
beautiful and auspicious, who always smiles and has a very melodious voice;
who day and night chants the Holy Name in a very beautiful way, bringing
about the nectar of Lord Krishna; who resides in Vraja during the pastimes of
Lord Krishna and in Mayapur during the pastimes of Gaura; and who sports in
devotion with proper renunciation."
The
Root of Our Fortune
"Srila Krishna Das Babaji Maharaj was a good kirtaniya and a good
singer, and that Krishna Das Babaji Maharaj would walk from Nabadwip to
Hapaniya and chant Srila Sridhar Maharaj's song..."
• Download
(7.6 Mb, 22 min)
Get
Cracking
"'Time has passed as I have been busy in my material life, and I have got
nothing—only became burdened. What sort of world is this?' In this world
there is no want of food, no want of money, no want of anything except only
one thing..."
• Download
(1.8 Mb, 6 min)
Sat, 19 April 2025
Guru's Care
'My Gurudev is always giving his blessing to me, even now. Even now he is
helping me, he is looking at me from above. No matter what problems and
difficulties come, he is always taking care of me. He takes care of
everything in my life, that is why I do not have any problems.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (46 Mb, 96 min | 16 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Parts of Service
Life
"(1) Mahaprabhu said, "Follow pure ekadasi." If the ekadasi day
becomes viddha, there is no fast on this day. (2) Someone will say
that this is too much, this is fanaticism, but this is what real chastity is.
(3) You have all these bad things in you, but if you surrender properly, you
can transform everything into service."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.8 Mb, 5 min | 11 October 2020)
(5) THE LAND
OF SPIRITUAL GEMS
'Sometimes a few devotees have some intention to stay in Vrindavan, but they
are staying in Vrindavan like a bee on the outside of a bottle of honey. What
are they doing? Vrindavan is infinitely great and it is inconceivable by our
intelligence. We only see the mundane cover and we are not getting admission
within the transcendental world of Sri Vrindavan Dham. We need admission, and
it is our hope that one day we shall get that real vision.'
Sun, 20 April 2025
Learning the
Ropes
'Gurudev chastised me many times, he taught me many times, many things, and
every time I accepted what he taught me. He taught me everything, from
cooking to doing worship, to how we must serve devotees. He taught me every
single thing.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (46 Mb, 96 min | 16 April 2019)
Maya's Test(By Srila B.R. Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj) Question: When we start chanting the
maha-mantra Hare Krishna, it seems that in the beginning we get more
realisation, more of the mantra, whereas as time goes it seems more
and more difficult. Many devotees have mentioned that they have this feeling
that it becomes more difficult. Why does this happen?
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Cruelty-Free
Service Life
"We must give love and affection for everybody. There is a soul existing in
the body of every bird, beast or any other living entity, and therefore
Krishna is also present there. We have got this human body after 8,400,000
births, but our bad fortune is that we still cannot understand it."
•
Download / listen to the audio (2.1 Mb, 5 min | 11 October 2020)
(6) SWEET
SERVICE, SERVICE, SERVICE
'We can see the Guru’s position in many ways, but it is all within the
play of Krishna. Krishna means the conjugal Power and the Powerful, and that
is full Krishna. It is from that plane that Krishna comes down and says,
acharyam mam vijaniyan, “I am Guru.” When Krishna says, “I am
your Guru,” that is not the full conception of Krishna.'
Today in the calendar:
Krishna Saptami. Disappearance of Srila Abhiram 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."
From a purport found in Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita:
"Sri Ramadas, later known as Abhiram Thakur, was one of the twelve
gopals, or cowherd boyfriends, of Sri Nityananda Prabhu. The
Gaura-ganoddesa-dipika (126) states that Sri Ramadasa was formerly Sridam.
By the order of Sri Nityananda Prabhu, Abhiram Thakur became a great
acharya and preacher of the Chaitanya cult of devotional service. He was a
very influential personality, and nondevotees were very much afraid of him.
Empowered by Sri Nityananda Prabhu, he was always in ecstasy and was
extremely kind to all fallen souls. It is said that if he offered obeisances
to any stone other than a salagrama-sila, it would immediately fracture. It
is also said that Abhiram Thakur had a whip and that whoever he touched with
it would immediately become an elevated devotee of Krishna. Among his many
disciples, Sriman Srinivas Acharya was the most famous and the most dear,
but it is doubtful that he was his initiated disciple."
Mon, 21 April 2025
Run behind the
Lord
'You will be astonished to hear what happened about a week ago. One person
approached me. The Lord sent him to me – I do not know, maybe it was Lord
Brahma himself or Lord Siva, or maybe it was Lord Indra himself...'
•
Download / listen to the audio (46 Mb, 96 min | 16 April 2019)
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 }—
"If You Love Me..."
"Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu said, 'You think I am going to take sannyas
and go far away from Nabadwip, but this is not so. You are always with Me. If
you love Me, if you have any love and affection for Me, then always think
about Krishna, always chant Hare Krishna and tell others to chant it.'"
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.4 Mb, 4 min | 11 October 2020)
(7)
HAND-CARVED GEMS
'Here in Nabadwip so many activities are going on, but all is for the
satisfaction of Srila Guru Maharaj. Also you can think that in the capital
city of a country there are many duties that cannot be done there in the
capital. The provinces, the smaller towns, and the villages all have their
part to play in serving the centre. They grow paddy, vegetables, spin cotton,
make fabrics and clothing, keep cows and produce milk, butter, yoghurt, as
well as many other duties. In this way all over the world fortunate souls can
engage in service to the central Mission of our Srila Guru Maharaj in
unlimited ways. This varied service-life to the Centre is the basis of the
whole spiritual world of joyful activity.'
I bow my head in eternal obeisance to my Gurudev, the best of acharyas, Srila
Bhakti Nirmal Acharya Maharaj. He is the ever vigilant, stalwart guardian of
the current of pure devotion whose highest form flows from our most
worshippable Sri Rupanuga Guru-varga in their exclusive dedication to
Mahabhav, Srimati Radharani.
I offer my respectful obeisances to Swami Bhakti Nirmal Acharya, who is
energetically inspiring all of Eastern and Western disciples on the path of
pure devotion.
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 26 April 2025
(Saturday).
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.
Tue, 22 April 2025
Gurudev's
Abundant Blessing
'Our Sri Gurupadpadma has given us so much blessing – he has made such
wonderful arrangements for us all. What is there for us to be afraid of? We
have taken shelter at his lotus feet, and if we can genuinely serve his holy
lotus feet, then we have nothing to be afraid of.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (46 Mb, 96 min | 16 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Service
Aspiration
"Serving your Guru, serving the Lord is the main thing. I have already shown
you how you can go to the spiritual world. Whether you get there or not does
not depend upon your age or life duration—it only depends on your service, it
depends on your heart."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.3 Mb, 8 min | 11 October 2020)
(1.1)
VAISHNAVA THAKUR
'I don’t know to what extent the disciples of Srila Guru Maharaj and other
devotees all over the world are aware of just how much they are also indebted
to Sripad Bhakti Sundar Govinda Maharaj. So this is a wonderful opportunity
that we could all come together and show some appreciation on this day.'
Wed, 23 April 2025
Life in
Hari-Kirtan
'We always want to hear about the Lord, to glorify the Lord, to chant the
Lord's Names. Just as we eat every day, go to the bathroom every day, we pass
stool every day, we take a shower every day – in the same way, we must chant
the Lord's Names and glories every day.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (20 Mb, 42 min | 18 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
"Inconceivable, Unbelievable, and Unimaginable"
"Everybody is giving their love and affection and all together making this
day for me. Actually, I am getting shy to make my birthday festival, but
devotees are always enthusiastic to make this festival, even in this pandemic
situation..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (4.1 Mb, 10 min | 17 October 2020)
(1.2)
THE ORIGINAL CURRENT
'From the very beginning of our coming to Srila Guru Maharaj he taught us the
glories of Srila Govinda Maharaj. On his own Vyasa-puja day, the day after
the sannyasa of Srila Govinda Maharaj, Srila Guru Maharaj said,
“Furthermore I want to say one thing, tadiyanam samarchanam, if you
serve who is beloved of me, that is more than service to me.”'
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)
•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."
Thu, 24 April 2025 (Sri Varuthini Ekadasi)
Busy Lives
'You always think about your temporary, perishable bodies. This is how this
world is. But nobody actually thinks about their own interest. Nobody thinks
about themselves, about their souls and about their souls'
benefit...'
•
Download / listen to the audio (20 Mb, 42 min | 18 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Clearing
Contradictions
"Everybody's vision and feelings are not the same. Sometimes, you look like a
man, but at other times, you deal or talk with others like a demon. Krishna
lives in all living entities. However, we sometimes see there is also a demon
living in the heart of the jiva soul."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.4 Mb, 8 min | 17 October 2020)
(1.3)
SRILA GURU MAHARAJ'S DIVINE DESIRE AND DIRECTIVES
'Hereby, I do reveal my final desire and directives unto all my Eastern and
Western lady and gentlemen disciples, as well as to the faithful souls
devoted to the Divinity, that: they must respect him as the exclusive Acharya
and President, and remain faithful to him and cooperate with him in the
service duties of the Math. If anyone cannot honour these directives and this
final desire of mine, then they shall be bound to disassociate themselves
from my established Maths.'
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..."
"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, 25 April 2025 (Sri Gurupadpadma's tirobhav mahotsav
adhivas)
Your
Responsibility
'If you want to make your hearts pure, you must associate with sadhus.
When your heart becomes clean, gurudev will plant the seed of the
devotional creeper in it. After that, your job is to nurture this seed with
sravan and kirtan and make it grow into a strong tree.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (20 Mb, 42 min | 18 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
A Very Busy Day
"Phone calls have been coming today from all over the world starting from
3:30-4 o'clock in the morning. Everyone is calling me continuously. Not only
in foreign countries they are making big festivals today, but also in all the
temples, centres here in India..."
•
Download / listen to the audio (1.5 Mb, 4 min | 17 October 2020)
(2.1)
DESCENT OF KNOWLEDGE
'Everywhere in Srila Guru Maharaj’s books and Srila Swami Maharaj’s books
there is advice and descriptions for our benefit, and if you can capture the
essence and understand that properly, you will receive everything. The only
cause of not capturing that essence is a deficiency of transcendental
knowledge. Our deficiency lies there, and our necessity is to take the help
of an expert.'
Sat, 26 April 2025 (Sri Gurupadpadma Om Vishnupad Srila Bhakti
Nirmal Acharya Maharaj's Tirobhav Mahotsav)
No Shortcuts
'The people of this world run with bogus ideas. They host asta-prahar
kirtans at homes spending much money on the arrangements and on feeding
people, but it is all a waste. This is as useless as an elephant's bathing.
They will chant kirtan and go away, but what is it to you? If
you chant kirtan and the Holy Name yourselves, then you will
get benefit.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (20 Mb, 42 min | 18 April 2019)
'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)
"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
"This day is very painful for me. In happy or unhappy times, he was always
with me. I always received help and advice from him. I did not feel any fear
towards him. Many devotees were afraid to go to Gurudev, but I have never
felt any fear. I always went to him unobstructed, and I could tell him
everything without any hesitation, and I always knew that I had somebody. But
now I have lost this person... This day gives me very much pain. Those who do
not have a relationship with their gurudev cannot understand this.
They can never understand the pain of losing one's guru... Only those
who have a relationship with gurudev can understand this pain of
losing one's guru. We mostly forge only bodily relationships in this
world, but when it comes to the relationship with your guru, this is
something of the heart – that attraction, that pull comes from the heart
(this is not some bodily attraction). The real attraction comes from the
heart. Gurudev is my dearest person, my most worshippable person, my closest
friend. This is whom I lost..."
~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."
108 KIRTANS recorded and collected throughout
His Divine Grace's manifest pastimes, chanted among his associates, devotees
and fortunate souls at various festivals, programmes and devotional
assemblies. We pray this compilation can nourish devotees' hearts and its
glory may continue to forever resound throughout the world.
His Divine Grace elaborates on transcendental significance of Hari-kirtan in
Guidance 4:
'What does Krishna-sankirtan mean? Playing the mridanga, karatals and
singing songs together with many people is not kirtan. If you sing together
with some radio artist or a musician, you may practise music skills, but
through radio kirtans you can neither taste the nectar of divine love that
was described above, nor will such kirtan destroy your material bondage. It
has to be pure sankirtan. It takes a pure great soul to bring and introduce
such pure sankirtan. A pure great soul is a soul who has been captured by
devotion through chanting of the Holy Name, and who has been accepted by
Bhakti Devi. If you can join and assist the chanting, the dancing of such
pure Vaishnavs, then when you see such chanting of the Holy Name, when you
hear it, or speak about it, it will destroy your material existence, paralyse
your material desires – your heart will become pure, and you will get to
taste or realise this ocean of entire ecstasy. If you have an open mind, if
your heart is clean, and if you do not have enmity or hostility, then all
this will clearly appear before your eyes – maha-sankirtan will be resounding
in your ears, and you will realise what a beautiful kirtan devotees do and
how much joy they do it with.'
! The audio files can be listened to or downloaded by clicking on each
kirtan below or accessed through: Google Drive (and
download all together as a zipped archive – 360 Mb). (It is possible to save the files on most mobile devices;
otherwise, they can be downloaded on a computer and then uploaded to the
device.)
'It is said, “Krishna personally appears in Hari-sankirtan." That is the
result of Hari-sankirtan. The Name, form, qualities, pastimes of Krishna
reveal themselves. Those who can chant such kirtan or hear such kirtan will
get the realisation that the Lord is full of love and mercy. Suppose there is
a discussion about Krishna – if one’s heart does not get attracted to Him or
the desire to serve Krishna does not arise in the listeners after hearing
such a discussion, then you must understand that it is not the proper
sankirtan. In the proper, pure Hari-sankirtan, you will feel in your heart
that Sri Nam Prabhu is sach-chid-ananda (eternal, cognisant, and blissful).
"Nama amani udita haya, bhakata-gita-same – when devotees chant the Holy
Name, the Holy Name arises on its own." If the desire to know about Him and
the inclination to serve Him awakens within you, then you must understand
that you have heard the proper Hari-sankirtan.
'Sri Nityananda is the father of sankirtan, He is the presiding Deity of
sankirtan. If you get taste for kirtan, you get the mercy of Nitai. "Kirtan"
does not mean gratification of one’s own senses – when Sri Nityananda Prabhu
hears chanting of the Holy Name, He becomes very happy. It is a matter of a
great fortune and it a very great thing to become qualified to give joy to
Sri Nitaichand, to attain the right to chant the Holy Name, and to feel
happiness when chanting the Holy Name. This happiness comes by His mercy. If
Nityananda Prabhu relishes someone’s kirtan, if He likes it, if He becomes
happy, then His happiness is reflected onto the person chanting kirtan, i.e.
the person who is chanting will also feel happy. "Kirtan" is not some melody,
tune, or showing off music skills. Ecstasy of kirtan is born from a lustrous
heart, purified by pure goodness. This is a very high attainment. Unless pure
goodness appears in one’s heart, the ecstasy of kirtan can never appear
there.'
Sun, 27 April 2025 (Appearance of Sri Gadadhar Pandit
Goswami)
Sacrifice to
Thrive
'Practise Krishna consciousness. The problem is that you cannot give up greed
for some trifle things. One who is subservient to the tongue and who thus
goes here and there, devoted to the genitals and the belly, cannot attain
Krishna.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (20 Mb, 42 min | 18 April 2019)
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."
"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 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..."
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."
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 ।"
Шри
Гададхар Пандит Госвами
«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».
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."
Mon, 28 April 2025
No Double
Standards
'For the service to the Lord, you should be ready to even commit an offence.
But this is what we do not understand. When it comes to the Deities, you
follow all the rules, but when it comes to you and your interests, then there
are no rules! Always practise Krishna consciousness.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (20 Mb, 42 min | 18 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Service with
Full Enthusiasm
"The most important thing is that all the devotees are with me. 'Maharaj,
where you are, that is Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math—and we will go wherever
you are!' When I hear devotees say this, my heart overflows."
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.3 Mb, 8 min | 17 October 2020)
(2.2)
LESSONS IN GIVING
'Always we must try to offer ourselves to our Guru; and the Guru’s nature is
that he always sends everything immediately to the lotus feet of his Guru,
and in this way through the preceptorial line everything very quickly reaches
Krishna.'
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 Prabhupad
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."
His Divine Grace Om Vishnupad Srila B.S. Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj
remembers [mentioned in Centenary Anthology: "There was a very dear disciple of Srila
Saraswati Thakur who lived in the same room with Srila Saraswati Thakur and
received much affection from him—his name was Mahananda Brahmachari. We saw
that lastly he came to Srila Guru Maharaj and said, 'Maharaj, I want to take
sannyas from you. Please give me sannyas.' Srila Guru Maharaj
gave it very happily and his name became Srila Bhakti Alok Paramahamsa
Maharaj."
Tue, 29 April 2025
Selfless
Devotion
'We must be humbler than a blade of grass; we must be more tolerant than a
tree. It is necessary to have patience, but the problem is that we have very
little patience: we get angry at the smallest matters. Do not be like that.
Be humbler than a blade of grass, be more tolerant than a tree and give
honour to others. These are our rules, these are Mahaprabhu's teachings.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (20 Mb, 42 min | 18 April 2019)
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Practise, Preach
and Proceed
'We must always be careful. We must preach Mahaprabhu's message properly, and
we must go door to door distributing His message everywhere. This is the main
duty in our lives. If you make big buildings, big houses, what is the use if
devotees do not live there?'
•
Download / listen to the audio (3.6 Mb, 9 min | 17 October
2020)
(2.3)
PROTECTED JOURNEY
'Yesterday someone asked, “How do we see that Baladev Vidyabhusana is in the
line of Visvanath Chakravarti and Rupa Goswami?” Actually they are protectors
of our sampradaya from the illusory environment created by the
pandit section.'
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).
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."
"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)
Wed, 30 April 2025 (Aksaya Tritiya)
Serve with Heart
and Soul
'They come to the shop, give ten rupees and expect to get a hundred grams of
oil for the money. This is trading – there must be no such give-and-take or
ask-and-get relationship with the Lord. We must serve the Lord with heart and
soul. This is not something you show externally. If you put on tilaks, wear
neckbeads, etc. but inside your nature is not like that, you cannot get
anything like this. You must call Lord Govinda with heart and soul; you must
serve the Lord with heart and soul.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (20 Mb, 42 min | 18 April 2019)
Today in the calendar:
Gaura Tritiya. Aksaya Tritiya (an auspicious day to start some works).
Beginning of the 21-day Chandan Yatra of Sri Sri Jagannathdev.
—{ Sri Gurupadpadma's Worldwide Address }—
Serve
Carefully
'You cannot proceed in your spiritual life, you cannot prosper in your
spiritual life without service to Vaishnavs and devotees. It is necessary to
serve devotees. This is the main thing in our lives. This is our Vaishnav
culture.'
•
Download / listen to the audio (10.8 Mb, 23 min | English | 17 October
2020)
(2.4)
ADJUSTING TO HIS ACCOUNT
'At the present time we cannot do pure service and we cannot chant Krishna’s
Name properly. For example, we know from Guru, Vaishnav, and
sastra that Krishna and Krishna-nama are the same; why then do
we not receive the result of Krishna Himself appearing within our hearts when
we chant Krishna-nama? We must consider this point. The result of
chanting real Krishna-nama is that Krishna will appear in the heart,
but Krishna is not appearing within our hearts, therefore we know we are not
engaging in real Krishna-nama. Therefore, in our present position we
are in the stage of practising, and this is also true for other forms of
service. By practising here, the force of our habit will put us in good
standing. If we practise chanting the Hare Krishna maha-mantra, then
even while sleeping, that Hare Krishna mantra will appear within us.
If we practise doing service, then also while sleeping we shall think of
service.'
'When I see some eighty-year-old lady walking before me and faster than me, I
get so much energy from them. They get strength through chanting of the Holy
name—this is the kind of change that comes. If you chant the Holy Name,
the Holy Name will take you.'