The Difference Between Srila Gour Govinda Maharaja and Narayana Maharaja




June 1, CANADA (SUN) — Submitted by a disciple of Srila Gour Govinda Maharaja.


Sometimes some so-called disciples want to falsely promote the idea that Srila Gour Govinda Swami Maharaja instructed his disciples and faithful followers to leave Prabhupada’s ISKCON to join Narayana Mahraja’s camp. Here is an interesting darshan with Srila Gour Govinda Maharaja, given at ISKCON's Krsna Balarama Mandir, (Prabhupada’s Last Founded Project in Bhubaneswar, Orissa) which clearly speaks for itself.

Tape 931105 Bhubaneswar, Orissa, India Darshan:


Prabhupada disciple to Srila Gour Govinda Maharaja: I don't know if what he (Narayana Maharaja) is explaining is actually the highest truth and his disciples don't understand, and I don't understand, or if it’s that he’s changing the teachings that Prabhupada has given us, he’s changing, he’s changing.


Srila Gour Govinda Maharaja: He (Narayana Maharaja) says, No preaching. Book distribution is karma-misra-bhakti. Narayana Maharaja has said, book distribution is karma-misra-bhakti, preaching is bad. Yes, Narayan Maharaja has said.


Disciple: In a book?


Srila Gour Govinda Maharaja: No, what one transcription of his tape said, yes. So preaching, he said to Tamal Krishna, “Give up this preaching. Therefore, Tamal Krishna, that Palace (at Govardana) is there, where Gaura Narayan is staying. “Go there, do bhajan.” Yes, that Narayan Maharaja says. I have the transcription of his tapes, he said to Tamal Krishna and Giriraja, “Give up preaching. Do bhajan.” So? But our activity is preaching. Ours is a preaching mission, yes! Throughout the whole world, (spread) the message of Mahaprabhu. We are gosthy-anandis, not bhajananandis, Do you understand?


Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Goswami says, prana ache ta’r sehetu pracar, he has life therefore he is preaching. His heart bleeds seeing the suffering of the jivas. He goes out, not caring anything for himself. “Let me go out and preach and inculcate Krishna consciousness unto them. Let their suffering be done away with forever.” Yes. This is the heart of a sadhu. Yes. Then he accepts disciples, trains them to continue the preaching mission work, then he retires, then he goes for bhajan. I have asked for this boon, “I’ll go out and preach.” So I have been granted this one. I asked, when Krishna said, “What boon do you want?” I said, “I want this boon, “I’ll go out and preach.” I have been granted. Go out and preach and thereby you’ll achieve the supreme perfection. yes. That boon I have been granted. What shall I say?


Every individual has his own way. Understand? Yes. All individuals are not the same. Temperament is different. Yes. What is one’s temperament, way, he takes that path. You follow your path, my path is different. I am a preacher. I get rejoicing in preaching, yes, blissfulness in preaching. Yes. There is no language to describe what I get when I preach. Yes. And I have been granted. Yes. I have asked for that. I have been granted. “Yes, granted!” Bhaktivinode Thakur, he was very old you see, his eyelids, some would lift them then he could see. He said, “I want to ride on a horse and go out and preach.” Very, very old, like invalid, but such a spirit is there. Do you understand? This is Bhaktivinode Thakur’s dhara. We follow Bhaktivinode Thakur’s dhara. Yes. Understand? So Narayan Maharaja’s dhara is something. Our dhara, Prabhupada’s dhara is different. So we follow this. This difference is there.

I am sick and tired of this site posting articles attacking Srila Narayana Maharja.

I can only think the that admins on this site condone such actions.

Srila Narayana Maharaja's camp distribute alot of Srila Prabhupada's book, and have an arrangement with BBT to do so.

so much for trnad api sunicena......

Where in the writings of the Gosvamis is the following idea promoted:

"Go out and preach and thereby you’ll achieve the supreme perfection. yes. That boon I have been granted." ?


I thougth it was Harinama that gave us the highest perfection.

It's called sankirtana.

So Sripad BV Narayana Maharaja is supposed to have said "give up preaching...do bhajan (instead)".

That's hard to believe since his sanga preaches all over the world like other Vaisnavas sangas.

Malcolm X famously said: "One should check out things for oneself, as one will be loving peope you should be hating and hating people you should be loving."

As Bhativinoda Thakura says: "Truth is truth regardless who is speaking it" and more vaisnavas should check out the facts from ALL parties before posting silly "such and such says" articles.

So I'll check out the information for myself and not rely on hearsay.....

...otherwise one will be hating....etc

I don't see how you consider the posting of a lecture by Gour Govinda Maharaja as attacking Narayana Maharaja.

Shouldn't he be entitled to his own say, especially since the followers of Narayana Maharaja openly claim Gour Govinda Maharaja wanted all his disciples to go to Narayana Maharaja.

Again...this is hearsay. Some followers of Sripad Narayana Mahraja may say this, not all.

Secondly, I know a few Gaura Govinda Maharaja disciples who tell me that they were perosnally told by this great Vaisnava acaraya to go to Sripad Narayana Mahraja. I doubt that he told All of his disciples to go to Sripad Narayana Maharaja. I do believe that he may have told some of them.

Now these disciples who tell me that they were told to go to Sripad Narayana Maharaja, or either liars or telling the truth. It's up to each of us to decide the merit of their claims without prejudice.

Yes Jndas, I do agree the original poster is entilted to his say, but I do question his motivation.

I have to agree with Guest who has noticed the numerous attacks on Sripda Narayana Maharaja on this site.

Here's a thought for you, what if the articles were attacks on Srila Prabhupada? I imagine that there would be a hue and cry if the articles were posted.

The fundamental question that needs to be asked is:

Is Sripad Narayana Maharaja a vaisnava or not?

Of course he is, and as as a result he must be respected as ALL vaisnavas should be.

Since most people on here are claim to be followers of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, lets remember his great instruction:

Do allwho preach do so with proper conduct? If not, then according to our great acarya, it is karma..

But more importantly, is the last part of this great instruction:

Without criticizing the nature of others, one should correct one's self. This is my personal instruction.

Narayan Maharaj is rarely mentioned here and when he is its usually positively by one of his disciples. One post here is made of a lecture by Srila Gour Govinda Maharaj (which was posted on the Sun and copied here). Why not post some nice lectures by Narayan Maharaj?

Stop pretending there are other guests posting in this thread. They are all you with the exception of the original poster. It is against the rules here to glorify your own posts while posing as a different person.

the article posted here is most certainly NOT an attack on Srila Narayana Maharaja. GG Swami merely shows the difference in approach, at least in his view:

"Every individual has his own way. Understand? Yes. All individuals are not the same. Temperament is different. Yes. What is one’s temperament, way, he takes that path. You follow your path, my path is different. I am a preacher. I get rejoicing in preaching, yes, blissfulness in preaching. Yes. There is no language to describe what I get when I preach. Yes. And I have been granted. Yes. I have asked for that. I have been granted. “Yes, granted!” Bhaktivinode Thakur, he was very old you see, his eyelids, some would lift them then he could see. He said, “I want to ride on a horse and go out and preach.” Very, very old, like invalid, but such a spirit is there. Do you understand? This is Bhaktivinode Thakur’s dhara. We follow Bhaktivinode Thakur’s dhara. Yes. Understand? So Narayan Maharaja’s dhara is something. Our dhara, Prabhupada’s dhara is different. So we follow this. This difference is there."

is his view of NM valid? that is another matter. but it is NOT an attack.

I disagree that the original post is not an attack against Sripad Narayana Maharaja.

Sripad Gaura Govinda is not attacking Sripad Narayana Maharaja, but since the article appeared on Sampradaya Sun, it is being used by that site as an attack since the views held by many at the Sun site are anti GM. One only has to go to that site and read the anti GM views posted there....

Another one. Just like the fan of the Iskcon gurus who voted a hundred times on the last poll. Different camp same mentality.

Maybe someone can address this point with Narayana Maharaja's teaching on the subject of preaching.


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moderator's note: post deleated

<TABLE class=tborder cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=6 width="100%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR title="Post 948162" vAlign=top><TD class=alt1 align=middle width=125>Guest</TD><TD class=alt1>From the evidence, Sir Narayana Maharaja is very opinionated and outspoken... </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
the same can be said about Srila Prabhupada... so what?

please, dont turn this subject into another Vaishnava bashing, as it does not help anybody

Where does Sripad Narayana Maharaja specifically make it clear that these "some followers" are clearly wrong?

Sir, with all due respect you took that quote out of context, without which your charge of Vaisnava bashing might actually be legitimate.

We are all being outspoken and opinionated here, which is hardly an issue.

The issue was what he was opinionated and outspoken about, which I qualifed by saying that he "is very opinionated and outspoken in contrary terms to not only Instructions... and what he wrote in his books as well."

Where some might easily construe that Mr. Narayana was Vaisnava Bashing.

So to be balanced, at the end of my post I offered legitimate reasons why he may have done so according to his position, yet claim to be confused about the effectiveness given the prominence of Bhakti Tirtha Swami in Vaisnava Cirlces.

Please withdraw your charge that I am bashing Vaisnavas.

It is not a charge. It is just my wish, that a discussion about differences in mood of prominent and respected Vaishnavas be done in the mood of mutual respect and humility. I do understand the context of your post but some people might easily take it the wrong way.

That is a fine wish, and as this topic is controversial, it begs that we are cautious in uncovering the truth. What Naryayan Maharaj said seemed more than a result of a different mood. They were serious charges, and I wondered if anyone had more information than I as to their validity. That is what I thought a discussion forum was for.

So in the context of bringing up a very public conversation where Sri Narayan Maharaj said what he said, my care was evident as I offered possible explanations to show why a teacher may say things like that in the spirit of inspiring discussion.

Some people will take anything the wrong way, and that should not stop anyone from speaking, especially when simply repeating the words of a revered Spiritual Teacher.

And you begged me not to turn "this' into a Vaisnava bashing, which certainly implies you thought that was my intention from what I had just said.

I believe it is unfair in this case to label me a villain.