Day 1 - 2017

Day 1- Jan 30th 2017
Bhajan Kutir of Srila Bhakti Siddanta Saraswati Thakur and Tota Gopinath Temple

- Guru puja + SB class by Gurudeva

SB – 10.2.31

O Lord who resemble the shining sun, You are always ready to fulfill the desire of your devotee and therefore You are known as a desire

Mood of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was to follow the acaryas. Pasttime with Balavabhatta who visited the devotees regularly and was engaged in conversation, he was writing commentaries and he suggested that his commentary was better than Sridhar Swami. When Mahaprabhu heard this, He was disturbed and commented that anyone who doesn’t follow Sridhar Swami is a prostitute. This is how we should have the mood of following our acaryas – by Sruti, Smrit and Shastra.

Rupa Gosvami quotes in BRS – dev which doesn’t follow in the Sruti, Smriti and Shastra is a disturbance to society. In the above pastime, he showed that the mood of the followers is to always be respectful to the mood and the method of the previous acaryas. This verse also says this. It is very difficult to cross the ocean of nescience  but anyone can cross the ocean of nescience just be following acaryas. Example – a child following older devotees has its effect. Sometimes we might be concerned of the prospect of advancing in dev service and how difficult it is and to develop this taste. We are always hankering to get to the state of having this taste. Krsna knows (from this verse), that we are trying to follow the previous acaryas. 6^th canto its mentioned that we should just follow the footsteps of the acaryas.

The mode of operation in the material world is – we don’t follow any authority and if someone is in authority then they become envious. Ex – 2 friends talking about the other friend and are envious of his growth. Premise of advancing in dev serv is to notice the great souls and these great souls are glorified in the SB, these great acaryas and we need to follow the life of these acaryas. Tat tat karma pradanyat – specifically they have given us their life path and how we can follow them to go back home back to Godhead. They leave that also behind and Krsna accepts them leaving that behind.

2^nd canto famous verse – the munis worshipped the Supreme Personality because they knew that He is faultless and they could derive the greatest benefit by following them. We can also benefit by just following their lives. Even people who are far far away from the vedic life, all those people become eligible by just following the lives of the Vaishnavas, just find out what they think you should do. Just by following them you will become successful. Even Mahaprabhu in His leela he showed how we can accept the previous acaryas.

Mahaprabhu went to Gaya where people go to give Shraddha to the souls left. There He met Isvara Puri and was smitten by him and then asked him for initiation. Isvara Puri knew He was the Supreme Personality of Godhead and to provide Him some service gave Him diksha. Just by receiving the mantras, Mahaprabhu had a visible transformation and He went to Navadwip and all devotees knew He had become a Vaisnava. Mahaprabhu followed in the mood of this verse to show people how to make the journey back home back to Godhead. Mahaprabhu accepted a Spritiual Master and then had a transformation. The boat is set before us as 1. Detailed instruct ructions from our previous acaryas (NOD, BG, SB, CC)  Just by these we can understand the mood and method of the previous acaryas of how to follow them and make our lives successful.

In whatever situation we are if we follow these instructructions propely we can make our lifetime successful. Even if we can’t do everything, if we keep the mood by just trying to follow – then we will become successful. Even if we can’t follow everything properly, if they are trying to follow properly then one will gradually make progress in dev service.

Just when we make the mood to follow these instructions of our previous acaryas which is just like a boat to cross the ocean of neiceanse,  when we try to even step into that boat the entire ocean shrinks like the water in the hoof of a calf. SP also says, how the process is so simple, we should have faith that this simple process can actually lead us to Krsna. Just have faith and follow the instructions of SP our previous acarya. Even if we take the instruction of 1 verse of BG and implement, it’s amazing how much advancement we can make in our dev life.

This mood of following – anugraha – anu means to follow and graha mean to grab – someone who grabs you and tells you to follow this method. This is mercy – SP did this for the whole world and he gave the mercy to everyone on how they can all go back home back to Godhead.

The process is open and it doesn’t mean you have to take a big step, but the mood is you have to take at least A step and it’s all about krame krame and never to stop, keep going sp by step. Follow the Shastra and try to see from those eyes.

Bhajan Kutir of HH Bhakti Saraswati Thakur = Sri Sri Radha Vinodmadhav (after His Madhava deity), He also established Gadhadhara pandit. He liked this place a lot.

Started with Kirtan Gauranga Karuna Karo

-          Narottam Das Thakur is saying I’m the most fallen and I don’t even want the mercy. Please give it to me forcefully.

-          I’m the most fallen, I’m on the bottom, I’m the most fallen and hence Gauranga, please give me the mercy as I’m the most fallen.

-          Always have the mood that everyone is better than me and I’m the most fallen. Example of the business man who wanted to get initiated by the sadhu and couldn’t find anybody more fallen than him.

-          He calls out Gauranga’s name with grass between his teeth

o   Why? As having something between teeth and calling out isn’t very loud.

§  Because this means we aren’t calling out from our lips, but from our heart

§  Another meaning – being very humble and not calling out without any excuses.

o   The reason you have to give me mercy first is because I’m the most fallen and you have to give me the boat of your lotus feet and save me.

o   My ticket to get on the boat is my Gurudeva.

o   This is the mood of entering the dhaam.

o   Mood of Gurudeva – empower devotees so they can also be engaged in SP’s service.

o   Gurudeva has given us the love and mercy, We have to be kritagya. It means we should be grateful. When we are grateful, then the person gives us blessings.

o   So Gurudeva has empowered us, but how can we empower him? Ex - Govind deo in Jaipur is so effulgent, why is He more effulgent than our deity, because we give them more love. When we give more love, they become more effulgent. Same way we can empower our Gurudeva is by giving them our ear, hearing their instruction, follow their instructions and then they become more empowered and effulgent.

-          About this place by HG Madhavananda Pr.

o   Mahaprabhu was going to the ocean everyday. After taking bath he was coming back with many devotees. Mahaprabhu is still here doing His pasttimes.

o   Mahaprabhu started singing the verse from the 10^th canto (Hanta radhika vraktacandra…) and He became unconscious. Devotees woke Him up with the HK mantra. When He woke up, he said He was in Govardhan.

o   This is our place of origin = Chata parvat in Jagganath Puri Dhaam. Bhakti Siddanta Saraswati Maharaj was doing his bhajan here up the hill.

o   Nija nitaka nivasam Govinda Govardhana Sri Sacinanda

o   When BSST was living here, his Grahasta devotee from Bombay wrote to him. He said I can’t serve you directly like your other disciples, Dec 1936 he got that letter. 9^th 1968 Dec, SP spoke about this. He said no body knew how I met my Gurudeva, how I met the devotees in America etc, it’s all K’s mercy.

o   He wrote back in the letter and said preach in English that will help you -  preach to everyone and it will also bring you people who will be able to help you.

o   It was at this place BSST wrote back to SP.

o   BSST left this world at this place, Mahaprabhu left at this place – very imp place.

o   It was at this place, that devotees also help the disappearance festival of SP.

o   This is a place of mercy for us, this is the place where we give our gratitude and this is the place where we get blessings of our Gurudeva.

o   Start the yatra with an attitude of Kritagya. We have come here so we can feel empowered, so we can fulfill the order of SP, BSST and ultimately the order of Mahaprabhu. It was here where important things and pasttimes happened here.

o   Wherever we are in the world, always remember this is our home and feel empowered to be connected to these great souls so we can carry on the order of our acaryas.

Glories of BSST by Gurudeva

-          Final instructions to devotees BY Srila BSST maharaj.

-          When there are many communication/letter exchanges between acaryas, just by studying them and we make it our life and soul, then we forcefully get pulled by the internal potency by the words of the acaryas for us to follow.

-          SP’s instruction – print as many books in as many languages and then distribute them all over. This is how the whole cycle is getting complete:

o   BSST said print books and preach in English

o   SP followed and then after following the words of the acaryas it is amazing to see how his mission is coming full circle as we distributed his books in oriyan in Orrisa.

o   Hence, it is so imp to follow in the footsteps of our Gurudeva to distribute these books.

o   SP tooks devotees to – Gaya, Kumba Mela and then SP got sick and went to Remuna and then they played in the ocean,  here – BSST Bhajana kutir and then to Tota Gopinath. Where Mahaprabhu entered the body.

o   This was the place where Mahaprabhu thought it was Govardhan hill and fell unconscious.

o   BSST’s instructions on chanting purely:

§  As our contamination is removed by chanting, the Lord’s name, form, pasttimes are revealed.

§  There is no other point required to think of the Lord’s pastitmes

§  Just by chanting without any offenses, everything comes from the Holy Name. We realize we aren’t mind and body and then our true identity.

§  Once we are aware of our spiritual body, as we continue to chant we see the Lord’s body, pasttimes, form etc. Just with reverence and attention.

Tota Gopinath Temple

By HG Madhavananda Pr:

1.       When we say Hare Krsna, Krnsa I love you (Divine Love) – do we really mean it?

2.       We think we know what Love is.

3.       When we chant for 10-12 years we should start realizing what Love is. If we don’t that means not chanting with sincerity.

4.       What is real love – unmotivated and never stops. Anyabilashita Sunyam.That is what fully satisfies the self not skin love or common activity love.

5.       Gopis of Braj they understand true love.

6.       Even though we are not qualified to understand the Gopis and their activities, still SP said don’t ever bycott the gopis.

7.       The Gopis love is spotless, they don’t want anything for themselves but they want to please Krsna. All they wanted to do was to please Krsna. K reciprocates with the person how they surrender to K. As Gopis had surrendered everything for K’s pleasure, hence he said the Gopis, I am a debtor, I can’t repay you. So then to repay them, he tried to dress as a Gopi and wanted to serve Radha Rani, so Radha Rani could help him understand how to server Him.

8.       Then you go and beg - He begged Radha for love. But that also didn’t work, so the only thing left was to steal, so he entered into Radha;s Rani’s heart.

9.       He melted Radha’s heart how by putting Vipralambha agni and then once it melted, He went into her heart and then tried to steal her mood of servitude.

10.   When he stole her heart, he became Gaurasundar.

11.   Krsna had to pay in the same currency what He stole which was the debt of Love and he had to repay as Love.

12.   Mahaprabhu was able to relish the love of Radharani here at Jagannath Puri but not at Nawadwip.

13.   When K wanted to taste the love of Radharani but Radha wasn’t helping so he took the help of his 2 sakhis – Swaroop Damodar and Ramananda Raya.

14.   Gadhadhara Pandit was reading SB at Tota Gopinath. They read about Dhruva and Prahalad. External – for loka siksha (In the beg, middle and end it’s all about K hence we don’t have to jump to the 10^th canto) Our message is we should read SB everywhere; Internal – Mahaprabhu is in the mood of Radha and hence Radha wants to read these pasttimes as Radha had her MIL and SIL – Kutila and Jatila and hence she wanted to get strength from the SB stories.

15.   He tasted the 3 reasons at Gambira, Tota Gopinath and

16.   Gopinath is the start of Gaura Lila.

17.   So hence K had to come as Mahaprabhu to repay the debt of Radharani’s love. Hence it’s the beginning and the end. It’s here Mahaprabhu also disappeared from Puri.

18.    Tota Gopinath is the beg and the end of our movement. Mahaprabhu came as Gopinath to repay the debt and also entered Gopinath.

19.   Anyone preaching has already entered the Gauranga pastime.

Evening class by Gurudeva

Mood of the Vaisnava is to be lower than the grass. No one if fully qualified. We should understand that whatever position we are in we just start from there. Krsna is within giving intelligence. Gajendra in his prayers is saying Lord is never inattentive, even before we offer our prayers, K is eagerly awaiting for us to help us and aware of our situation. Anyone who takes up dev service from whatever state devotee is in will make spiritual progress. Devotee is humble and considers being lower than the blade of grass, but from the society takes up some service even if there is an austerity to be able to assist the Lord and please him.

The devotee has great responsibility to take devotional service seriously and preach it to others. When someone becomes a Guru, his responsibility doubles both internal and external. Everyone should try to become a Guru in whatever condition they are which means double the responsibility.

If you are a doctor even if you aren’t very qualified and if there is an epidemic and you have the medicine even if you aren’t very qualified, still you will save them. Same way we all try to give this medicine to everyone. The most imp challenge of a Guru is setting an example and giving that instruction to everyone.

Cream of the essence of life is to hear and chant constantly, at least once a day. We have so less days in this human life and it’s very important to utilize every moment and hence very wrong to miss even a single day. Over time as we keep doing our regular prayers we get wealthy – spiritually wealthy. Hence, important to chant the dasavathara strotram.

Devotees live to be corrected. I live to be corrected. Kamalakanta Visvas wrote that Advaita Acarya is incarnation of Maha Visnu, he has incurred a debt of 300 rupees. This letter somehow came into the hands of Mahaprabhu, He then became angry at Kalamakanta Visvas that at one point he says he’s Maha visnu and then he says he has a debt, that is rasa bhasa and Mahaprabhu shunned him. Advaita Acarya actually wanted to be chastised by Mahaprabhu and hence Advaita taught wrongly saying Jnana is higher than Bhakti and when Mahaprabhu started beating him due to this, Advaita was so ecstatic that he was chastised and started dancing.

Sanatana Gosvami was concerned that Mahaprabhu chastised Jagadananda because he shared Santana could go to Vrindavan as Santana had sores on his body and he didn’t want to commit offenses to Mahaprabhu who was hugging him multiple times and because of that the pus from the sores was going on Mahaprabhu’s body.

To advance in dev service always be ready to be chastised and when chastised, try to become humble and chant and pray to K. Be open to chastisement and it’s very important aspect to progress in dev service. Usually when chastised it means there is some intimacy between Guru and disciple. 

Pictures from Day 1:
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