Pita Dasji's story - Page 3

atma · 04-14-2003, 01:31 AM

Thank you Pita dasji for your nice memories. I also had nice experiences in Bangkok and Calcutta was my home for many years.By the mercy of Srila Prabhupada and Adridharan I was pujari of Sri Sri Radha Govinda, Lord Caitanya, little Radha-Gopinath and Jagannath, Baladeva and Subhadra Maharani. I dressed Them in the mornings, did aratiks, offerings, put Them to rest at night. I think Calcutta was the only temple in India were women were allowed to to be full time pujaris.

Another thing I have to say here, I saw a comment about Adri the other day and one thing is sure, for Adri was better politically to remain in Iskcon, Harikesa offered him to be GBC but Adri didn't compromise in his beliefs just to get a position and situation. Materially speaking his family is very wealthy so he didn't need Iskcon's laxmi.
He fought so hard to have the temple on the lake as Srila Prabhupada wanted but most of the GBC's went against him and told him many times that was something impossible.
I didn't agree with Adri in many issues but I really think he is a devotee of Srila Prabhupada and his motives weren't political because if he wanted name, fame and glory he would easily be quiet and just suck up to the big guys.

I loved the verandah in the temple and every day I sat there to get the breeze coming from the lake. Every day we sat there listening Bhagavatam class while we cut sabzi for the morning prasada. Life was very austere and simple but somehow we were happy.

Pita Dasji, Adridharan bought the property, upstairs and downstairs and even constructed a Guest House in the back with nice kitchen,prasadam hall and offices. He made Srila Prabhupada's room very nice with original items from Srila Prabhupada.

Now the temple is run by Mayapur and I don't have much contact but I do miss the Deities and my service to Them.

One evening I was lost in Burra Bazar, the largest wholesale market in Asia (at least that is what Pancharatna told me) and walking through the streets I heard ringing of bells and I walked right into the temple of Radha-Govindaji that Srila Prabhupada used to visit as a child. It was very easy to be Prabhupada conscious in Calcutta.
Every time I saw the Victoria Memorial I remembered Srila Prabhupada because there are pictures of him walking there with his disciples and in his biography said that he bicycled from his house towards the Maidan many times.
Nice memories.

04-17-2003, 04:47 PM

Yes Calcutta temple is very sweet .Please feel free to add any details I have forgotten about temple life there
Like I was sure of weither Lord Jaganatha was then on the altar? So I didnt include this now ofcourse I can see Him there with all His glory.
ys
pita das

04-17-2003, 07:02 PM

After a few days time Satya Naranya Prabhuji came to Callcutta Radha Govinda Mondir to meet me.

Satya Naranya Prabhu was intent on first visiting afew temples in side Calcutta which being maintained by some of Srila Prabhupadas god brothers and we visited together one then.

Im very sorry that I cant remenber which godbrother of Srila Prabhupada this was ?
.
What I do remenber was when we got to this temple Srila Prabhupadas god brother was very near death lieing on a bed inside the nath mondira of the temple.

Satya Naranya Prabhu had come to offer assitance from the charity trust for this temple.

There was only Srila Prabhupadas godbrother and a very young girl there takeing care of him

Satya Naranya told me that the young girl had been raised by Srila Prabhupadas god brother sence she was an infant.

This young lady was extermly beautiful.

As Satya Naranya Prabhu explained our service then was very simply ,all that was needed was for us to visit the holy places of Lord Chaitanya's pastimes and record what was there.

What is lupa still there and what is gupta now gone or almost gone.

Was there any worship going on and did the temples need any repair or maintance money.?

We were to just report back

I was authorized to inform the temples that 10,000 rupees could be given at once to any temples that needed the money.

This money tho was only advailble to according to Srila Parbhupadas insructions

First to Srila Sridhar Maharajas Shree Chaintanya Sarawati Math in Nanbadipa and then to the lost or hidden holy places in Bengal of Lord Chaitanya and his direct assoicates.

After a few days while reading Shree Chaitanya Charitum Rita I understood that there was a temple of Shree Shree Radha Krishna just outside of Calcutta in the town of Dukaneshwara which Lord Nityananda had performed pastimes.

At this temple to the left side back on the temple grounds are two small ponds with bathing ghats.

These ponds were dug directly by the hands of Lord Nityananda Prabhu himself and the temple was established by Lord Nitayanandas direct disclip.

Unforgentaly I dont have Shree Chaintaya Charitum Rita with me now to say which dislip this was but it is my feeling that maybe the disclips name was Symananda.?

The best way to this temple in Dukaneswarah was by bus so I went to the bus stand in Calcutta one afternoon to go there.

I went into the bus station and found the bus empty waiting for service and being the first person on choose whatever seat I wanted within the mens section of the bus.

Soon tho this bus filled to overflowing and still did not move.

After an hour finally the driver came and the bus left the station but after about 2 hours this bus had hardly gotten afew hundreds yards outside of the station so i got off going back to the temple telling SatyaNaranya Prabhu it was impossible to go to Dukaneswar by bus.

"Oh Prabhuji Stayanaranya told me you can only go there by the first bus at 6am" and there was a place near the temple where I could catch this bus the next morning which I did the next day.

The bus trip in the morning to this place was very easy
with the bus crowed but not overly so.

As we enter Dukaneshwar the famous temple of Goddess Kaili came up on the left side of the bus this is the temple where the folk hero of Bengal Rama Krishna used to serve as a pujari.

When I had first come to Calcutta many persons seeing a westerner in devottee dress would often come up to me and say "Ah you must now the name of Rama Krishna Paramahumsa ?"

"Yes Rama and Krishna we worship but Rama Krishna Paramahumsa I dont know"???

The Bengalli people would then look so confushed that I did not know who Rama Krishna Pramahumsa was?

"Rama Krishna and his disclip Vivikananda Have converted the whole west to Hinduism they told me!!!!!!"

"No the west is Christian I would tell them"!!!!

"No one in the west knows of Rama Krishna Paramahumsa but every one does know HARE KRISHNA"!!!!

"Oh where are you from in America they would ask me?

Chicago

I would say ,knowing very well that Chicago was the place that the Rama Krishna mission had been established.

While in Chicago one day myself and Kaili das went and visited that place.

We were greeted by older american men in thier 70s who were all lived there running the Vedanta Society as they called it but were complelty western in thier dress and habits all tho they had spiritual names of sanyassis.

There were very musty aromas of old things staled air and no veg cooking.

There was a book shop and these old men there were just selling these books.

Srila Prabhupada had told us that "Because of Rama Krishna and Vivikananda all of Bengal were going to hell"

It was widely beleved by the Bengali people Rama Krishna was an incarnation of Lord Chaintaya Mahaprabhu but in his incarnation as Rama Krishna he had a compeltly diffrent philisophy.

It seemd that the mission of Rama Krishna was to erase Krishna Bhakti in Bengali and replace it with worship of Ma Kali.

There are statements of Rama Krishna of "why should one water the Tusli Plant? Better to water the eggplant.
Then you might have something to eat."

Some times Rama Krishna would also try to imatate the mood of Lord Chaitanya and dress like a gopi and then cry he was in misery suffering menstral pains.

I knew tho that the people had invested a termenous amount of faith in this folk hero haveing very little real information/understanding in Lord Chaitanya .

Srila Prabhupada had told us that before Rama Krishna all of Bengal worshipped Goura Nitai but now tho It was only the effect of Srila Prabhupada that was reversing this
which then and maybe even today still hasnt been reversed in West Bengal compeltly.

I got off the bus at the Dukaneshwar temple and started to walk near to the Ganga which was not a very long walk away

The next temple I came to on the left side of the road was SRF Self Realization Fellowship the instution of Pramamsha Yoganada.

This place I was intrested to see and i went inside this huge compound they have there which was compeltly empty acceapt for a small shrine of Goddress Kaili and a purari serving her.

I spoke with this purari asking him what did he ofter to Goddess KailI?

All I offer her are these red hibuscus flowers he told me
her favorite flower nothing else."

Then I entered these huge mancured grounds with very huge and long 4 or 5 stories building in a semi circle over nicely moaned lawns over looking the Ganga.

There was no one else there so I walked out of that temple and down the small road to the temple I had come to visit that day.

This temple was also to the side of the Ganga or very near

At that time the temple was newly white washed, a white with a blueish tint.

Eentering this immaculatley very well preserved temple I was able to take Darshan of Shree Radha Krishna

with Shree Krishna appearing in Black Marble and Srimate Radharani in Bronze 5 mentals so nicely taken care of and so clean.

Many many salagrams of Lord Nitais assoicates were also being worshipped on the altar.

One older and wonderful devottee gentlemen approched me and was so kind to me saying the last ISKCON devottee there was Srila Prabhupada and Achutananda Swami themselves

Srila Prabhupada had visited thie temple when His Divine Grace was translating Shri Chaitanya Charitum Rita.

So much warm affection this saintly GOSWAMIji offered me that day and such wonderful prasada he filled me with.

Goswami ji showed me the ground beside and behind the temple and the two ponds which Lord Nityananda had dug

One of these ponds was aleast 100 yards across with a bathing gat and the other to the side of the temple half that size.

On going back inside the temple with this saintly Goswamiji he showed a room with a bed and told me His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada took rest in this bed and I would like you to also take rest there also.

"Oh no ,if Srila Prabhupada took rest in this bed I can not rest there I can tho lay on the floor beside the bed "!!!

As the heat of the day and the effects of being filled with the wonderful Maha Prasada were makeing us sleeply .

No Goswami ji told me I insist that you sleep in this bed and not on the floor ,look here "and there was a picture of Rama Krishna also on the wall of this room

This is our Guru Rama Krishna Pramahumsa he is Lord Chaitanyas incarnation Goswami ji declared to me"

"Please take rest and after the heat of the after noon I will take you accross the Ganga to the temple of Lord Jaganatha and Radha Krishna,we donot need Srila Prabhupadas Charity Trust assitance here at our temple but they may ?"

Then Goswami ji told me he hadnt been across the Ganga for al least 20 years.

I did take rest in this bed and waited untill Goswamiji came and asked me to come with him to these temples he very much so wanted to show me.

As we left the temple Goswami JI showed me a place where there was a raft that took people accross the Ganga and we cross The Ganga there.

Then we walked to the temple of Lord Jaganatha Baladeva and Subadra.
The temple had become a club house a meeting place of young men and ladies there was no worship going on at all

but Lord Jangaanath Lord Baladeva and Lady Subdra were all there on a small altar which was very dusty and unclean.
with boys sleeping around the dieties in the heat of the sun

I didnt say a word but Goswamiji was shocked ,why was it like this ?
How had things become so degraded ?

Come I will show the temple of Radha Krishna near by
and when we got there there was no Srimate Radharani ???

Goswamiji started to cry "I donated this diety of Radharani to this temple in my youth he told me.!!!!"

Now thieves have come and stolen her for the price of metal????

One last temple Goswami Ji showed me also of Radha Krishna in need of repair and haveing a puari but Goswamji told me Only the temple of Lord Jagganath was ancient

before there used to be huge ratha Yatha from this temple
but there was no one looking after the temple when we visited Lord Jagganatha that day only young boys and girls playing within the building.

As the Sun went down Goswami ji showed where I could catch the bus back to Calcutta and we parted that day

Such a sweet devottee he was.

Finally arriving back to Radha Govinda Mondir Satyanayan Prabhu was happy to see me.

"Oh we were all afarid you may never get back ."

Its so dangerous to ride the busues here !!!!"

Why I did'nt think so ??????

my day was unforgetable

07-01-2003, 09:08 PM

Oh, please don't stop posting now! I only recently found this, and if its all right with Pita prabhu, I would like to include some of it in my newsletter. But mostly, I just want to read it! Brings back the old mood of ISKCON! Thank you so much for this!

YS,
Prtha dd

09-18-2003, 10:47 PM

The temple I was deiscribing visiting was the temple of
Sri Gadadahara Das
Shree Chaitanya Caritam Rita
Adhi Leela chapter 10 text 53
Sri Gadadahara dasa,the twenty thrid branch,was understood to be the topmost,for he induced all the Muslim
Kazis to chant the holy name of Lord Hari

In His Divine Graces Bhaktivedanta Purport of this verse
Srila Prabhupada explains.

Srila Gadadahara dasa is considered to be the luster of the body of Srimate Radharani Herself just as Srila Gadadhara Pandit is an incarnation of Srimati Radaharani Herself.

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is sometimes explained to be radha-bava-dyuti-suvalita,or characaterized by the emotions and the bodily luster of Srimati Radharani.

Gadadahara Dasa is this dyuti or luster.
In the Gaura-ganoddesa-dipika he is discribed to be the expansion of the potency of Srimat Radaharani.
Sri Gadadahara dasa also amoung the assoicates od Shri Gaurahari and Nitayananda Prabhu.
As the devottee of Lord Chaitanya he was one of the assioicates of Lord Krishna is conjugal love,and as the devottee of Lord Nitayanada Prabhu is consiodered to be one of the friends of krishna in pure devotional service.
Even tho he is an assoicate of lord Nitanyanada Prabhu he was not among the cowherd boys but was sitiuated in the tansendenal mellow of conjugal love
Srila Gadadahara Dasa is considered to be a united form of
Candrakanti,who is the effulence of Srimati Radharani and Purnananda,who is the foremost of Lord Balaramas very dear girl friends.
Thus srila Gadadahara Dasa Prabhuwas one of the assoicaties of both Lord Chaitanya and Lord Nitayananda Prabhu

When Gadadahara Pandita was in this village of Endiya he established the worship of Bala Gopala there
Sri Madhava Gosha preformed a drama known as "Dhana-Khanda" with the help of Lord Nitayanada Prabhu and Sri Gadadhara dasa.
This is explained in Shree Chaitanya Bhagavat Antya- leela 5-318-94
Srila Prabhupada in His Divine Graces purports also explains that the Samadhi Tomb of Srila Gadadahara is also present there at this temple along with the Dieties of Shree Shree Radha Kanta and Shree Shree Goura Nitai

Jai Alll Glories to the devottees of Lord Chaintanya
Jai Goura Nitai
your servant
Pita das

Jagat · 09-20-2003, 05:25 PM

Just noticed, Pitadasji, that you have decided to continue with your memoirs. If you want me to edit them for you like before, just send them to me at the yahoo address. The devotees are saragrahis and will accept them in any shape or form, so you don't really need me.

Gauracandra · 09-22-2003, 12:14 AM

Yes, I really do enjoy Pitadasji's stories. Keep them coming as you can. Thanks.

09-22-2003, 03:39 PM

Hare Krishna! Please acceapt my humble obeisances!
All Glories to Sri Sri Guru and Gouranga!
Thank You for your kind assitance I would like to show them to you before posting.
I now have found the CC online and that I need to refer to for the places we visited on the Bhaktivendanta Charity Trust
I hope you are well
Your Servant
Pita das

Priitaa · 12-20-2003, 11:48 PM

Haribol,

Pardon my strong request, but I've posted about this before and I guess no one saw it.

I asked to put Pita dasa's writings in my newsletter, and with no answer but such wonderful experiences, for the sake of preaching I put them in there anyway. Hope thats ok, but no one responded. (Actually, made me wonder if I was ignored because I'm not a guy. Hope I'm wrong.)

Now here is my most important question: Are all the writings here? I thought someone mentioned they were posted on a web site elsewhere, but I'm not sure. If they are not all here, I'm afraid I will miss out, and my readers (of over 200!) will therefore miss out, as I see sometime they are posted and sometimes there are big gaps so it may be incomplete here? If these writings are on the web any place at all, please, please send me the url. I'm pretty sure you can get my email under my profile if you rather do it that way. Tho really, its ok to post a link here because many people dont click on the url, and those that do only do so a couple of times, then stop. So they will still want to read what is posted here too. Either way is fine with me though, just so long as I get the address.

Gauracandra · 12-22-2003, 07:56 AM

My impression was that Pita Das was writing these "in the moment" to these forums. I could be wrong but I don't think they have been formally compiled and put on the web anywhere.

Priitaa · 12-23-2003, 07:13 PM

Thanks Gaurachandra prabhu,

I thought I read on this thread somewhere, that he had put them on another site, but I could be mistaken. Anyway, I started putting them in my newsletter cuz no one answered me with a "no." They are nectar and great preaching.

12-24-2003, 02:44 PM

Dear Pritta D.D.
Hare Krishna !Please acceapt my obeisances All glories to Srila Prabhupada

Im happy that you have liked my writings here and yes

this is how they have been written in the moment is a good way to discribe the process

I will continue them but have had some problems finding this page for some time
Hari Bol
Ys
Pita das

Priitaa · 12-25-2003, 08:01 PM

Pita das prabhu,

PAMHO. AGTSP.

Thanks for letting me know how your writings are being distibuted. I wasn't sure.

Also, I wanted to get your permission. Thanks for that too.

They're a nice addition to my newsletter. Shortly after putting them in, I recieved email how wonderful it is to have stories about Prabhupada and the old days. So yes, I enjoy your writings as do others. I have about 235 readers, and am honored to include this for them.

Ok, will check back here from time to time. Right now I have quite a bit saved, and my newsletter only goes out once or twice a month. Hope you find the page you are looking for tho. Thank you for your wonderful service!

Priitaa · 05-28-2004, 04:46 PM

Just my two cents. I really miss the updates or additions on this story. (Note the date of my last post, cuz tho its right above, it was quite a while ago.) These are such nectar stories! Anyway, thanks for what you 'have' put here. How wonderful!

07-24-2006, 11:11 PM

Dear Prabhuji
hare Krishna I do not know if this tread has been filed away or it can still become active.I am trying to edit and reedit all these memeories that by Srila Prabhupadas Grace I have seen all of them are great ways for my self to understand spiritual life I hope for myself eventully.
I have placed them now all together on myspace at the following addressand can also place them here ,if that is possible?
Hare Krishna
May you all get Krishna service and then bless me with some
ys
pita das

Priitaa · 07-26-2006, 09:42 AM

Yes, this thread is still active! Thank you. And the more you post, the easier it is to access. However, if you prefer the myspace link, please put it here. You gave me permssion some time back (in previous posts) to use your stuff in my newsletter, and I have been! People love it! So please either keep posting here or kindly share the myspace link. Thank you for your service.

07-28-2006, 02:57 PM

I am unable to post an url until i make 15 entries I have been informed
I am trying to compile all my memeries ,into one which started
with simply daily posts to the Dharma Mela of Rocan's prabhuji harerkrsna.com site then Jagat Prabhu placed here and I am now putting on myspace.
As most I am repeating post which have already been placed on this thread I will place the entries on both here and on my space
Hare Krishna
pita das