15 August 1996 Mathura
[Hari-katha spoken by Nitya Lila Pravista Om Visnupada Astottara Sata Sri Srimad Bhaktivedanta Narayana Gosvami Maharaja Srila Gurudeva]
Please click on this link to listen to the class:
https://sbnmcd.org/All_mp3/1996/19960815VRINDAVAN.mp3
Srila Gurudeva: Yesterday was the tirobhava-tithi (disappearance day) of our Pujyapada Srila Bhakti Raksaka Sridhara Gosvami Maharaja. He was the godbrother and sannyasa-guru of our Gurudeva. I offer my heartly obeisances at his lotus feet. He was one of the dearest disciples of Jagat-Guru Nitya Lila Pravista Om Visnupada Sri Srimad Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Thakura. So, Srila Prabhupada Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura gave him the title, “Bhakti Raksaka Sridhara Swami.”
Sometimes, I used to explain the Gayatri. I used to say that in the word, “A-U-M,” A indicates Krsna. He is rasika-shekara (the connoisseur of all transcendental mellows) and sarva-saktimana (the possessor of all potencies). He can do everything; He can do the impossible. So, He is sarva-saktimana. He is so beautiful. He is an ocean of rasa (transcendental mellows). His many incarnation(s) like Garbhodayasi Visnu can create this world in a moment. Krsna doesn’t deal with this world directly. But, He does everything indirectly. So, Krsna denotes that Parabrahma.
A - karenocyate krsnah sarva-lokaika-nayakah
U - karenocyate radha ma-karo jiva-vacakah
In the word A-U-M, U denotes Srimati Radhika. She is sarva-saktimati (the presiding Goddess of all potencies). Her expansions are Lalita, Visakha, and the other gopis. They are Her kaya-vyuha (bodily expansions). The queens of Dvaraka like Rukmini, Satyabhama, and the others are Her manifestations. Srimati Radhika is also the source of Laksmi and all other potencies who reside in Paravyoma. So, Srimati Radhika is sarva-saktimati.
M indicates all the jivas who are the servants or maidservants of Krsna. The sun shines and illuminates this world. But how can the sun illuminate the power of Sri Krsna i.e. Srimati Radhika? Dhimahi means to meditate. We are meditating.
tat savitur varenyam bharga devasya
Who is the potency of Krsna? Who is She? She is Srimati Radhika. Just as the sun illuminates this world by the potencies of heat and light; similarly, we meditate on Srimati Radhika, the root of all of Krsna’s potencies. She should manifest Herself in our hearts. Jiva Gosvami has given this explanation and I am explaining in brief.
When I went to the United States Of America, I heard one disciple of Parama Pujyapada Srila Sridhara Maharaja quoting one sloka written by Sridhara Maharaja himself. The sloka conveyed the same mood. In his explanation, Sridhara Maharaja said that bharga devasya means hladini-sakti. Srimati Radhika is the root of all illumination. So, She should manifest in our hearts with Krsna. I became so glad that Sridhara Maharaja Swami explained the sloka this way. I have never heard any Vaisnava explain like this. So I became so happy.
Our Guru Maharaja took sannyasa from Srila Prabhupada Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati first. Where? In Navadvipa. Do you know how? When the ruffians of Kuliya attacked Srila Prabhupada and his parikrama party, our Guru Maharaja at once exchanged his clothes with Srila Prabhupada. Srila Prabhupada wore the white dress of our Guru Maharaja, and he gave his own clothes, and danda (sannyasa-staff) to Guru Maharaja. Only the name was not given.
[Laughter]
Otherwise, Srila Prabhupada gave everything on that day to our Guru Maharaja. I think that our Gurudeva took actual sannyasa on that day. And, Srila Prabhupada had himself told our Gurudeva to take sannyasa three times.
Appearing in our Gurudeva’s dreams, Srila Prabhupada said, “Why are you not taking sannyasa at once? If you don’t do so my preaching mission will be spoiled. So, you must take sannyasa at once.”
After Srila Prabhupada appeared in our Gurudeva’s dreams for the third time, our Gurudeva decided to take sannyasa. He thought, “Although Srila Prabhupada has given sannyasa to me internally, I should now take sannyasa externally.” But from whom would he take sannyasa?
So, he thought, “Sripad Bhakti Raksaka Sridhara Maharaja is quite qualified to give sannyasa.”
Guru Maharaja and Sridhara Maharaja would sometimes exchange their thoughts and siddhanta (established philosophical truths). They would cut each other’s arguments. Our Guru Maharaja would at once cut Sridhara Maharaja’s citations and logic by his arguments. And when our Guru Maharaja used to establish any siddhanta, Sridhara Maharaja would cut his statements. All our very learned Gaudiya Vaisnavas used to listen to their conversations so patiently.
I myself have witnessed many such conversations. I was with my Gurudeva after he had already taken sannyasa from Sridhara Maharaja. Pujyapada Vamana Maharaja, Pujyapada Trivikrama Maharaja, and I would always go to see Sridhara Maharaja. Every year after the Navadvipa parikrama, our Gurudeva would go to pay respect to Sridhara Maharaja although Sridhara Maharaja was junior to my Guru Maharaja. He was so much junior. Even Vamana Maharaja is senior to Pujyapada Sridhara Maharaja. He joined before Sridhara Maharaja. But Vamana Maharaja was a very little boy when Sridhara Maharaja came after him.
What is it?
Devotee: When did Vamana Maharaja take harinama?
Sripad Madhava Maharaja: 1930
Devotee: But Sridhara Maharaja took initiation in 1926.
Srila Gurudeva: Then it may be. I have heard like so. But I will inquire more.
Then Guru Maharaja decided to take sannyasa from Pujyapada Sridhara Maharaja although he was junior to him. Our Guru Maharaja joined Prabhupada’s matha in 1916 and accepted harinama from him. He took diksa from Prabhupada in 1918. He then became a brahmacari his entire life. There were few brahmacaris and matha-vasis (residents of the temple) when our Guru Maharaja joined. He joined very early i.e. when there was no matha anywhere.
So, he decided that “I should take sannyasa only from Pujyapada Sridhara Maharaja.”
He proposed this and they at last decided to go to Katwa. Guru Maharaja took sannyasa from Sridhara Maharaja in the same place where Caitanya Mahaprabhu took sannyasa (Katwa). Guru Maharaja told all the facts to Pujyapada Sridhara Maharaja that Prabhupada gave him sannyasa in a dream.
Guru Maharaja said, “Prabhupada gave me the name, ‘Bhakti Prajnana Kesava.’”
Sridhara Maharaja replied, “This name is very good.”
Prajnana means vijnana. Prajnana means prakrsta rupena jnana and vijnana means visesa rupena jnana. It refers to bhakti, krsna-tattva, and all the siddhantas. So, this name was kept. Sridhara Maharaja used to glorify our Gurudeva to us when we used to go to him. He would speak on so many of his glories. I have heard so much of my Guru Maharaja’s life sketch from Pujyapada Sridhara Maharaja.
Sridhara Maharaja told us, “When I joined the Gaudiya Matha, I saw a boy of little age sitting on the chair and shaking his feet. His feet were on the desk. A very good horse stood beside him. He also had a very good cane in his hand. He wore very good dresses. He wore a Santipuri dhoti. The sannyasis would come and bow down to him. He would answer their questions and give them orders.
I thought, ‘Who is he?’”
Sridhara Maharaja had left the law college and he had come to only see what the Gaudiya Matha was. And, he saw our Gurudeva.
He asked someone, “Who is he?”
“He is Vinoda Brahmacari. He is the manager of this place. He has taken all these places from the Mohammedans. He has cleared all their graves and made all these places very beautiful and interesting.”
The places mentioned here are the ones which are near Prabhupada’s Samadhi. When we used to go to Sridhara Maharaja, Maharaja would always speak on so many good bhakti-siddhantas (the established philosophical truths of bhakti). He was famous for his darsanic siddhanta-vicara. If anyone had any doubt in siddhanta-vicara, they would go to our Gurudeva and Sridhara Maharaja. Among all the devotees, they would especially go to Pujyapada Sridhara Maharaja and our Gurudeva.
Yesterday was his disappearance day. We want to offer our puspanjali at the lotus feet of Pujyapada Sridhara Gosvami Maharaja. He should be pleased. We know that he cannot die. He was the highest class of uttama-adhikari vaisnava. Any vaisnava does not die. So, we pray that his mercy should come to us because he was so merciful. We pray that by his mercy, we can serve our Gurudeva like how our Acaryas have served their Gurudeva.
