The program began with traditional and ancient songs sung by the Nandagaon and Varsana panditas. After that the various representatives of each village performed the puspa abhiseka ("bathing" with a shower of flowers) of Srila Narayana Gosvami Maharaja. All the heads of the various communities representatives threw flowers on Srila Maharaja's divine body and honored him by placing garlands on him. Svami Shamaji, the head of the World Religions Parliament, gave Srila Maharaja an upper cloth, a special cloth for the Yuga Acarya. A certificate was then presented to Srila Maharaja by Deepak Raja Bhatta, who is the head of Vrajacarya Pith.
Lord Krsna became pleased when He heard Sri Damodarastakam - the prayer of Satyavrata Muni - and told him, "You may ask for any benediction." Satyavrata Muni replied, "You are the king of all gods and demigods. You have the power to give any benediction You like. But I don't desire any benediction of this world, within or outside the entire universe, or in Siva-loka...
Today is a very auspicious day. It is the appearance day of param-pujyapada nitya-lila-pravista om visnupada Srila Bhakti Sri Rupa Siddhanti Gosvami Maharaja. He was born and brought up in East Bengal. He was a learned scholar and a good writer. When he first came to Srila Prabhupada Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, he saw that all the brahmacaris in the temple were very learned, and he thought, "I am not learned, so I should return to my home. There I will study Sanskrit, law, and other subjects, and then I will join and serve Srila Prabhupada...
Our Guru Mahārāja also gave bābājī-vesa, and Śrīla Prabhupāda Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura also gave bābājī-vesa to some, but they never changed anyone from sannyāsa to bābājī... We should not change...
Some persons have false pride and false ego because they have taken birth in Vrndavana and think themselves to be Vrajavasis. However, if they do not have the internal moods of Nanda Baba, Yasoda-maiya, and all of the eternal associates of Krsna, they are not Vrajavasis. Real Vrajavasis are those who have the mood of Vrajavasis like Nanda Baba, Yasoda-maiya, Krsna's sakhas, (boyhood friends) and especially the mood of the dasis (maidservants) of Sri Radha...
by Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Svāmī Mahārāja
[O Krsna!] Although I have been ordered to accomplish this mission, I possess no qualification to do it, being very fallen and incapable. Since You are the wisest of all, I now beg for Your mercy so that I may become worthy...
Try to follow the teachings and actions of Srila Svami Maharaja – not following blindly and not imitating. Simply copying will not do. We should try to deeply follow his siddhanta, behavior and moods. ....
Not only here, but wherever I go throughout the world, whether in the East or the West, I see the result of the inspiration he has given. In a very remote place in Canada, in a deep forest in the mountains, I went to a devotee village named Saranagati; and I was so pleased to see the many devotees there following varnasrama-dharma and the principles of bhakti. I also went to a remote village in Australia, also among the hills, in a very beautiful setting...
Srila Narayana Maharaja was happy to share his fond memories of this long-standing and affectionate relationship. Excerpts from a variety of Maharaja's informal interviews and statements have been used. We also have lightly edited his often ambiguous and misunderstood English. If he had presented these memories and appreciations in Hindi, his native tongue, the details and heartfelt explanations would be far more eloquent, clear, and detailed. However, time and circumstances have not yet permitted this...
Memories of Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktivedānta Vāmana Gosvāmī Māhārāja
Once, the day before pūjyapāda Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja was to arrive in Kolkata from his first preaching tour abroad, Guru Mahārāja said to everyone, “Go and decorate the temple very nicely. Also nicely decorate the room that Śrīla Mahārāja will be staying in.” In the evening Guru Mahārāja went to the temple for darśana and saw that it had not been decorated. “If none of you have the time to do it, I will personally collect the flowers.” Hearing him say this, the brahmacārīs immediately went to the market and brought many kinds of flowers and other decorations. They nicely decorated Ṭhākurajī’s temple and then went to Guru Mahārāja’s room to decorate it. Guru Mahārāja said, “First ṭhākura-sevā, after that, vaiṣṇava-sevā, and after that, my sevā. Even though there is no need to decorate my room, if Nārāyaṇa Mahārāja sees it not decorated [but that his own room is decorated], it will make him feel uneasy. Our only aim is the pleasure and satisfaction of guru and Vaiṣṇavas, so decorate my room as well.” ...
We have lost one of the pillars of the Gaudiya Vedanta Samiti today, but I feel some relief knowing that he left during this Kartika month, during niyama-seva-vrata, and that he was in Navadvipa Dhama. Also, he left at the time of amrta-yoga, an auspicious time of the day according to the movement of the sun and moon, and it was also tritiya-tithi, one of the most auspicious days of the month. He inspired us to observe Annakuta Mahotsava...
According to the degree of love and affection towards someone, one will experience that much separation for a person. The gopis had so much affection for Sri Krsna, and that is why they felt so much separation when He went to Mathura. We have read about the various stages of their separation in the Srimad-Bhagavatam and other scriptures...
We have heard from Vedic scriptures and Guru that when a high-class Vaisnava is speaking hari-katha, we should think, "It is better not to perform parikrama of Govardhana, or Navadvipa, or anywhere else. Better that I hear hari-katha." Sri Giriraja Govardhana will give us His mercy only after the Vaisnavas have given us their mercy. Govardhana will not speak to us or instruct us, and therefore our hearts will not be so rapidly purified...
Whether or not maha-aisvarya is present, if Krsna's pastimes are nara-lila, then it is madhurya. On the other hand, if by the presence of maha-aisvarya Krsna knows that, "I am Isvara, God," and His bhakta also knows that He is God, that is aisvarya-lila.
We are very lucky that by the causeless mercy of our Gurudeva, Gauranga, Nityananda Prabhu, and Radha-Vinoda-bihari we have now completed our parikrama of Vrndavana, Madhuvana, Talavana, Kumudavana, and Bahulavana, and then Bhadravana, Bhandiravana, Matavana, Baelvana, Lohavana, and Mahavana under the guidance of Vaisnavas.
Once Krsna wanted to go to the earthly realm. Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura has described this pastime of Srimati Radhika’s and Krsna’s conversation in Goloka Vrndavana in his Svapna-vilasamrta. When Srimati Radhika understood Krsna’s intentions, She said, “Will You take Me with You as well?”
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