LoveroftheBhagavata

aum mṛtyuñjaya mahādeva trāhi māṁ śaraṇāgatam |<O:P</O:P janmamṛtyujarāvyādhi pīḍitaṁ karmabandhanaiḥ ||<O:P </O:P Aum, O Great Lord Mṛtyuñjaya, I take refuge in You, pray protect me; <O:P</O:P And relieve me of the painful experiences of birth, death, old-age and disease.

And also recall that nearly every single Vedic path has its own maha-mantra, some of which are directly traceable to the four original Vedas, such as the PanchAkshara Namah ShivAya mantra. In the Sri Sampradaya, nothing comes close to the beautiful Aum Namo NArAyanAya chant. Likewise, for the Ramanandis, who are a branch of Ramanuja Vaishnavism, but are mainly centred around Ayodhya, the Rama-mantra of Sri RAma Jaya RAma Jaya Jaya RAma reigns supreme. And each of these different schools quotes scripture to prove that THEIR mantra is THE best and most effective means of attaining the Supreme. But yes, I do agree with you that the GAyatrI-mantra lies at the very basis of Vedic dharma, and its importance cannot be over-emphasised. And we should all be forever thankful to Shri Vishvamitra Muni for having blessed humanity with this potent spiritual medicine.

Yes, Sri Rudra is the Lord Shiva expansion who controls the mode of ignorance and dissolves the cosmos at the time of pralaya. There are actually 11 different Rudras to be precise. The original svarupa of Lord Shiva as Bhagavan Sadashiva is eternal and beyond time, and resides in His transcendental abode of Shivaloka. Similarly, the Vishnu of the trimurti is an expansion of Bhagavan Narayana for the purpose of taking charge of sattva-guna and acting as the sustainer of the material creation. The spiritual dhama of Lord Hari is of course, Vaikuntha or Vishnuloka. As for Param-pita Brahma, He is a jiva and as such, is subject to birth and death. He resides in Satyaloka. It is said that in the next srishti period, Sri Hanuman will attain the post of Brahmaji.

Except that your quote from the Brahma-samhita fails to convince anybody other than Chaitanya Vaishnavas. No other Vaishnava sampradaya accepts the BS as scripture, what to speak of non-Vaishnava Vedic traditions. Personally, I have a very inclusive conception of the Divine, and I find truth and beauty in practically every path that is treaded across the vast landscape of Indic traditions, whether Vedantic or tantric. Also, no thoughtful person can deny Buddhists and Jains the position that is rightfully theirs, for nobody can come close to equalling these two religions in terms of the practice of ahimsa, amongst other things. It should also be realised that the Brahma-samhita was unheard of prior to the time of Shri Chaitanya, and whilst the book holds validity for Gaudiyas, it cannot be used to promote the stifling Krishnacentrism of Chaitanya Vaishnavism to non-Gaudiyas, as hardly anyone submits to the authority of this text outside of Bengali Vaishnavism.

That is the case now, but the Asiatic lion roamed all over the Indian subcontinent and as far west as the Middle East just a few hundreds of years ago, what to speak of the situation as it was back in Vedic times, which effectively ended with the start of Kali-yuga in 3102 BCE. By the way, Durga Maa's vahana is not an ordinary lion but an entity residing in higher, finer, ethereal domains of reality. As for the tiger, she is the vehicle of Ambe Mata. Mother Durga proper is always on a lion, no other creature. yA devi sarvabhuteshu mAtri rupena samsthita namastasyai namastasyai namastasyai namo namah yA devi sarvabhuteshu buddhi rupena samsthita namastasyai namastasyai namastasyai namo namah yA devi sarvabhuteshu shakti rupena samsthita namastasyai namastasyai namastasyai namo namah ati-prema se boliye Adya-Shakti Bhagavati DurgA MAtA Ki Jaya!

Gosvami Tulasidasaji Maharaja was a pure devotee of Lord Rama, and a true transcendentalist. Always maintain the highest respect for him. As Sripada Narayana Maharaja would have it, blind following will not do. The Shri Ramacharitamanasa has inspired hundreds upon hundreds of thousands of souls to develop devotion for Lord Ramachandra since its composition some 500 years ago. According to some, Shri Tulasidasaji is an incarnation of Maharishi Valmiki, in the same way that both Svarupa Damodara and Srila Haridas Swami are considered to be incarnations of Lalita-sakhi, and Vrindavana dasa Thakura that of Vyasa Maha-Muni. The votaries of the main branch of Sri Vaishnavism certainly acknowledge that the Ramananda Sampradaya is connected to their line, so there is no doubt whatsoever regarding whether the Ramanandis are bona fide or not. They are very much a genuine spiritual tradition and are as Vedic as one can get, as are the sincere, honest, committed jivas treading the beautiful paths of Shaiva dharma, Shakta sadhana and Brahmavada (I abstain from utilising the term Mayavada, with all its pejorative connotations). God is both formful and formless, and is Hari, Shiva, Shakti as well as Brahman. It is for the individual worshipper/sadhaka to figure out which svarupa of Godhead he or she is more attracted to, and loves more. Haribol Sri Rama Jaya Rama Jaya Jaya Rama Sri Rama Jaya Rama Jaya Jaya Rama Sri Rama Jaya Rama Jaya Jaya Rama Aum Namah Shivaya Aum Namah Shivaya Aum Namah Shivaya

Badger, CA - USA June 29, 1996 Dear Bhakti-vaidurya Madhava Maharaja, Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Sri Sri Guru and Gauranga. I have received your letter dated June 21, 1996. Because I am presently on tour, I was delayed in responding to your letter. Please forgive me for this. I have read your letter, and in this regard I want to say that you should not take My response as that of an opponent, but rather as that of a friend. For about fifty-five years I have had the good fortune to associate with very learned disciples of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura Prabhupada who are deeply conversant with all the conclusions of sastra. As a result, I had the opportunity to hear form and serve many of the most prominent disciples, such as My Gurudeva, as well as pujyapada Sri Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaja, pujyapada Srauti Maharaja, pujyapada Giri Maharaja, pujyapada Gosvami Maharaja, pujyapada Vaikhanasa Maharaja, pujyapada Puri Maharaja, pujyapada Madhava Maharaja and pujyapada Sridhara Maharaja. I consider Srila Swami Maharaja my siksa-guru. I have had his association and have served him since 1946. By virtue of my being his siksa disciple, my faith in him and service to him is no less than any member of ISKCON. As a senior devotee of advanced age and experience, and due to my long-term intimate and affectionate friendship with him, he would show me a preferential respect, superior even to that which he offered his disciples. Kindly take note of all these facts first, and then consider what I am about to explain. I would like to begin by explaining that I did not, as you infer in your letter to me, choose to bring up this discussion in public for the purpose of disparaging or minimizing the authenticity of ISKCON. And I would like it to be known that this current 'controversy' is being stirred up by ISKCON, and not by myself. For your information, Tulasi dasaji was a Vaisnava belonging to the Ramananda Sampradaya, a branch of the Sri Sampradaya. All the four Vaisnava Sampradayas are worthy of our respect. His name, Tulasi dasa, is a Vaisnava name and he wore the vertical (urddhva-pundra) Vaisnava tilaka. He also wore tulasi mala around his neck and was initiated into the sri-rama-mantra, which is a mantra for obtaining perfection. His guru was siddha Narahari (Nrsimha deva) dasa. His worshipful Deities were Sri Sita-Ramacandra, who are incarnations of Sri Radha-Krsna. In his numerous books he often glorified Vrajendranandana Krsna. He explained the prominent glories of sri-nama, especially for the age of Kali. He translated the Sanskrit slokas of the Vedas, Upanisads, Puranas, Srimad-Bhagavatam, and especially the Ramayana, into Hindi poetical verse. He has written on the importance of saranagati, and he accepted bhagavad-prema as the highest goal and object for the jivas. He accepted the nine forms of bhakti described in the Srimad-Bhagavatam. He accepted the jivas to be the separated parts-and-parcels of the Lord, as has been explained in the Gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam. He also accepted the doctrine of acintya bheda-abheda or, in other words, the simultaneous oneness and difference which exists between the omnipotent Lord and His potency (sakti-saktiman). He completely disregarded sayujya-mukti and the other forms of liberation. Throughout his writings he refuted the theory of mayavada. Therefore, he has not expressed mayavada conclusions in any of his writings. It is incorrect to think that Sriman Madhvacarya has accepted only the Valmiki Ramayana as authoritative. In his commentary on a statement from the Skanda Purana he has written as follows (quoted in Gaudiya Kanthahra): rg yajuh samatharvacca bharatam pancaratrakam mula-ramayanan caiva sastram ityabhidiyate yac canukulam etasya tac ca sastram prakirttitam ato 'nya grantha vistaro naiva sastram kuvartma tat "The four Vedas - Rg, Yayur, Sama and Atharva - the Mahabharata, the original Ramayana, and the Pancaratra are all authoritative and bona fide scriptures. Any scriptures which follow in support of them are all accepted as authoritative. All other scriptures apart from these are not accepted as authoritative." Srila Swami Maharaja supports the very same conclusion as seen in the following quotes: "According to Srila Rupa Gosvami, any book which gives enlightenment in the matter of advancing in devotional service is considered to be revealed scripture. Srila Madhvacarya has also defined revealed scriptures as referring to books such as the Ramayana, Mahabharata, Puranas, Upanisads, Vedanta - and any other literature written in pursuance of such revealed scriptures." (NOD Chapter 12) "Therefore we have to gather knowledge from the right source. Indeed, in reality we can get knowledge only from the Vedic sources. The four Vedas, with their supplementary Puranas, the Mahabharata, the Ramayana and their corollaries, which are known as smrtis, are all authorized sources of knowledge. If we are at all to gather knowledge, we must gather if from these sources without hesitation." (CC Adi 5.14 - Purport) "The Rg Veda, Yajur Veda, Sama Veda, Atharva Veda, Mahabharata, Pancaratra and the original Valmiki Ramayana are all Vedic literatures. Any literature following the conclusive statements of this Vedic literature is also to be considered Vedic literature. That literature which does not conform to Vedic literature is simply misleading." (CC Madhya 6.147) The conclusion is that all scriptures which give favorable support to these literatures are also accepted as bona fide and authoritative. Otherwise, all the books of Sri Ramanuja, Sri Rupa Gosvami, Srila Jiva Gosvami and Srila Kaviraja Gosvami could not be accepted as authoritative. There are no learned scholars or acaryas of other sampradayas who wrote commentaries on any of the books of Srila Rupa Gosvami, Jiva Gosvami or Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami. Yet these books certainly cannot be said to be inauthentic. It is irrelevant to say that Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami did not accept evidence from the Ramayana of Tulasi dasa, because at that time it had not yet been published, for Tulasi dasa was a contemporary of Sri Rupa Gosvami. I would like to point out to you that you have also cited the verse of Sri Madhvacarya twice in your letter to me. The first reference you give is from Srila Swami Maharaja's Caitanya-caritamrta Madhya 147, although you neglect to mention what chapter of Madhya-lila it was from. I have also cited Srila Swami Maharaja's translation of this verse above. For some reason when you quoted this statement, you omitted the sentence which would have refuted your argument and which, coincidentally, appears precisely in the middle of Swami Maharaja's translation: "Any literature following the conclusive statements of this Vedic literature is also to be considered Vedic literature." Although we are substantiating the authority of Tulasi Ramayana, the question may be asked why we don't regard it on the same level as the Gaudiya Vaisnava literature. The reason for this is that although, according to Vaisnava siddhanta, it is accepted as bhakti scripture in a routine sense, it does not present a complete description of raganuga (or rupanuga) rasamayi bhakti. In a similar fashion, the Visnu Purana and other sastras do not propound krsna-bhakti-rasa, although they are certainly bhakti scriptures. Therefore we accept Srimad-Bhagavatam and the books of Sri Rupa, Sanatana and other Gosvamis as being the most authoritative and efficacious for us. If, as you wrote in your letter to me, Tulasi dasa's writing in Hindi is a disqualification, then must we conclude that the Caitanya-caritamrta of Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami, and the Gita and Bhagavatam translations and purports of param-pujyapada Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaja, due to being written in Bengali and English respectively, are also inauthentic? The book Prema-sagara is a Hindi translation of Srimad-Bhagavatam, done by the well-known mayavadi Sri Santanu Dvivedi. The Tulasi Ramayana, however, is a book translated by a highly reputed perfected soul of deep spiritual realization. If Srila Tulasi dasa was indeed a mayavadi, then kindly present some concrete evidence to support your conclusion. Blind following will simply not do. It is the duty of the disciple to correctly understand and explain the teachings of his gurudeva. You are all learned research scholars. You can examine the writings of Tulasi dasa for yourself. If you detect any mayavada conclusions in his writings then you should give evidence directly from his statements. I have personally read and studied the Rama-carita-manasa in Hindi, in its entirety, at least ten times. May I ask how many times you have read Tulasi's original Ramayana with scrutiny? I am well acquainted with the conclusions of Vaisnava sastra and have been associating with pure Vaisnavas for a long time. My own conclusions, and the conclusions of other respected Vaisnavas in our line, is that there is no trace of mayavada anywhere in the original work of the Tulasi Ramayana. As I am travelling now, I do not have access to that book; but upon consulting it, I can surely provide you with concrete evidence from the direct statements of the book to support my position. There are numerous statements in Srimad-Bhagavatam and other Vaisnava scriptures which may seem to support mayavada conclusions. In these sastras, the Absolute Truth is sometimes referred to as advaya-jnana, and kaivalya is sometimes spoken of as the ultimate destination. I quote here a verse and translation from Srila Swami Maharaja's Bhagavatam translation (4.22.27), which superficially seems to support the mayavada theory: dagdhasayo mukta-samasta-tad-guno naivatmano bahir antar vicaste paratmanor yad-vyavadhanam purastat svapne yatha purusas tad-vinase "When a person becomes devoid of all material desires and liberated from all material qualities, he transcends distinctions between actions executed externally and internally. At that time the difference between the soul and the Supersoul, which was existing before self-realization, is annihilated. When a dream is over, there is no longer a distinction between the dream and the dreamer." Although this verse and others may be misinterpreted to support the mayavada theory, Srila Swami Maharaja has clearly explained its true Vaisnava conception in his commentary. For a correct understanding, individual verses must be understood in relationship to the overall presentation. Sridhara Swami, the original Bhagavatam commentator, was sometimes accused of having mayavada leanings; yet Caitanya Mahaprabhu accepted him as being most authoritative. He said that anyone who disregarded the commentary of Sridhara Swami should be rejected as a prostitute, or one who does not follow his Swami. Similarly, there may be some statements of Tulasi dasa, which could be misinterpreted as supporting mayavada conclusions, but these then must be reconciled in relationship to his overall presentation of siddhanta. Similarly, your letter has presented certain quotes by Srila Swami Maharaja, but I have here several quotes from him which present a different picture. The first one in fact pre-dates any you have given. In this quote Srila Swami Maharaja seems to suggest a very different conclusion about Tulasi dasa: "So he became a great devotee of Rama, Tulasi dasa. His book, Rama-carita-manasa, 'Thinking always of Rama,' that is his book. It is very famous book, and that is the only important literature in the Hindi language, Rama-carita-manasa." (Room Conversation with Brahmananda, April 12, 1969) And again, in another conversation, this is affirmed: "Devotee: Tulasi dasa said that he wanted to see Rama. Prabhupada: Yes. That is devotee's inclination. That we must have." (Room Conversation SB 6.1.14 Nov 10, 1970 Bombay, India) In two other instances Srila Swami Maharaja describes the conclusions of Rama-carita-manasa as being consistent with Vedic conclusions and based on sastras such as the Gita and Bhagavatam: "And Tulasi dasa, he has also saidÉ Tulasi dasa is big poet in Hindi language. He has written the Rama-carita-manasa. His opinionÉ Not only his opinion, that is the Vedic opinion, thatÉ He says, dhol gamar stri sudra, pasu sudra nari, ei ei sab sasana ke adhikari (?). So this statement will not be very palatable to the Western girls." (Lecture SB 5.6.4 Nov 26, 1976 Vrndavana, India) "The Tulasi dasa Ramayana means Rama-carita-manasa. It is not Ramayana. Rama-carita-manasa. He was devotee of Lord Ramacandra. So as he was thinking of Lord Ramacandra, he has written. So he was a learned scholar, brahmana, he must have read Bhagavad-gita, Bhagavatam. So all his translation is there on the basis of the sastra, especially Bhagavatam and Bhagavad-gita. You'll find many parallel passages. But Gita is the summary of all Vedic literature, and it is spoken by the Personality of Godhead." (Evening Darsana July 8, 1976 Washington DC) Apart from the above quotes, I have also noted at least thirteen times when Srila Swami Maharaja has quoted Tulasi dasa's writings as positive authority in his books or lectures in order to substantiate a preaching point he was making. For brevity I have simply noted the references here and you may consult them at your own leisure. If Srila Swami Maharaja truly considered Tulasi dasa and his writing to be unauthorized, it appears odd that he would quote him so often in his preaching. The following are the references: SB 6.11.4 Purport BG 2.15 August 21, 1973 London Lecture SB 1.16.19 July 19, 1974 Los Angeles, CA SB 2.3.19 July 9, 1974 Los Angeles, CA SB 2.9.7 April 24, 1972 SB 6.1.33 July 18, 1975 San Francisco, CA SB 6.1.39 July 20, 1975 San Francisco, CA SB 6.3.12-15 Lecture Feb 9, 1971 Gorakhpure, India Morning Walk through BBT Warehouse - Feb 10, 1975 Los Angeles, CA Morning Walk - May 25, 1976 Honolulu, HW Arrival Room Conversation - July 2, 1976 Washington, DC Morning Walk - Feb 2, 1977 Bhubaneswar Room Conversation - April 19, 1977 Bombay, India In addition to all the above quotes, I feel it necessary to respond to some of the quotes you have given as evidence against Tulasi dasa. On close inspection it is apparent that almost none of them really have anything negative to say about him or his Rama-carita-manasa. Furthermore, in many of the quotes you have omitted portions, which validate him. Please excuse me for pointing this out, but I think it is necessary to arrive at a proper understanding of the issue. During a lecture in Montreal on Radhastami August 30 in 1968 my Srila Swami Maharaja quoted Tulasi dasa and referred to him as a great devotee: "Éaprameyam anagham nirvana-santi-pradam brahma-sambhu-phanindras tebhyo 'nisam vedanta-vedyam vibhum sura-gurum maya-manusya-harim vande 'ham karunakaram raghu-varam bhu-pala-cudamanim: This is a verse composed by a great devotee, Tulasi dasa. He was a devotee of Lord Ramacandra." You have also quoted a latter portion of the above quote. However, you did not quote it in full: "Our, this respectable Indian lady, she will begin RamayanaÉ This Tulasi, actually it is not Ramayana. It is called Rama-carita-manasa. Ramayana means Valmiki Ramayana, but people have taken it as Ramayana. Actually, Tulasi dasa has expressed his own feelings about his devotion to Lord Rama, and therefore he has named it Rama-carita-manasa, his mind full with service attitude for Lord Rama. That is the real meaning of this book. But people have misinterpreted; they are going on just it is Ramayana. And Ramayana, of course, anywhere where Rama's activities are described, that is called Ramayana. That is another sense. But real Ramayana means the Ramayana composed by Maharsi Valmiki. And this isÉ It is a popular notion that this is Ramayana, but actually this book is called Rama-carita-manasa. So some of the descriptions of Rama are there, but not all the description. Rather there are many differences from the original Valmiki Ramayana. Anyway this is song of a devotee for his Lord Rama. In that sense, you can call it Ramayana, but this book is actually Rama-carita-manasa." This quote does not actually say anything negative about Tulasi dasa or his Rama-carita-manasa. It simply points out that there is a difference between the Valmiki Ramayana and the Rama-carita-manasa. It should be noted, however, that this work was an expression of his mind 'full with service attitude for Lord Rama.' The part of the quote, which you omitted, was the last two sentences: "This is a song of a devotee for his Lord Rama and so it may, in that sense, be called Ramayana." In the next quote given by you, the only point made was that Tulasi dasa's Ramayana is but a partial representative of Srimad-Bhagavatam. The significant point, which you left out, was that Tulasi dasa was a devotee of Lord Rama and he gave his thoughts in his book Ramayana: "From your book Soviet Studies of India I understand that academician Mr. A.P. Baranrikov completed a great translation, working the matter of Tulasi dasa's Ramayana into Russian. Srimad-Bhagavatam is the ripe, mature fruit of the Vedic knowledge, and Tulasi dasa's Ramayana (Rama-carita-manasa) is but a partial representative of Srimad-Bhagavatam. The real Ramayana is Valmiki's Ramayana. Tulasi dasa was a devotee of Lord Rama and he has given his thoughts in his book Ramayana. But the real original thoughts and ideas are in Srimad-Bhagavatam." (Letter to Prof. Kotovsky June 24, 1971) In the next quote given by you (which I have replicated in the next paragraph) there is no mention whatsoever of Tulasi dasa or his Rama-carita-manasa. When Srila Swami Maharaja states that there are many unauthorized Ramayanas, the reader is supposed to infer that he is referring to Tulasi dasa's version. Yet Srila Swami Maharaja goes on to say that five thousand years ago there were many Ramayanas. This part of the quote was not mentioned by you. Since Tulasi dasa's Rama-carita-manasa is a medieval work and was not published five thousand years ago, Srila Swami Maharaja certainly could not be referring to his book as one of the unauthorized versions. Most of the quotes which you give subsequently are in the same vein. There is no mention of Tulasi dasa, but the reader by this time automatically assumes that Rama-carita-manasa is being referred to as unauthorised. "Unless one is tattva-darsi, in complete knowledge of the Absolute Truth, one cannot describe the activities of the Personality of Godhead. Therefore although there are many so-called Ramayanas, or histories of Lord Ramacandra's activities, some of them are not actually authoritative. Sometimes Lord Ramacandra's activities are described in terms of one's own imaginations, speculations or material sentiments. But the characteristics of Lord Ramacandra should not be handled as something imaginary. While describing the history of Lord Ramacandra, Sukadeva Gosvami told Maharaja Pariksit, "You have already hear about the activities of Lord Ramacandra." Apparently, therefore, five thousand years ago there were many Ramayanas, or histories of Lord Ramacandra's activities, and there are many still. But we must select only those books written by tattva-darsis (jnaninas tattva-darsinah), not the books of so-called scholars who claim knowledge only on the basis of a doctorate. This is a warning by Sukadeva Gosvami." (SB 9.10.3) There is one quote remaining which offers a strong criticism of Tulasi dasa and his book. Yet this must be weighed against all of the positive statements. Without seeing the broader siddhantic view, how are we then to reconcile these apparently opposite opinions? How is it that Swami Maharaja has seen fit to give such an appreciation of Tulasi dasa as a bona fide Vaisnava? The letter of 1969 which you quoted in your letter to me also needs to be put in its proper historical perspective: "Regarding the two books you have mentioned, Sri Rama-carita-manasa by Gosvami Tulasi dasa is not very authorized, and Ramayana is authorized. One thing is though, you have got enough other books to study. Did you appear in the examination held on Janmastami Day? Why should you go to Ramayana when you have got Bhagavad-gita, Srimad-Bhagavatam and Teachings of Lord Caitanya? Don't divert your attention in that way. The author of Rama-carita-manasa, Gosvami Tulasi dasa, has a tint of mayavadi philosophy. He belongs to the Ramananda Sampradaya. They are mixed up combination of personalist and impersonalist. Therefore, the author is not considered as pure Vaisnava. Pure Vaisnava is free from all material contamination of fruitive activities and mental speculation. The pure Vaisnava is simply, purely disposed to transcendental loving service to Krsna. The pure Vaisnava rejects anything which has no pure idea of serving the Personality of Godhead." (Letter to: Raktaka, Hamburg, 6 September, 1969) Of all the quotes you have presented as evidence against Tulasi dasa or his Rama-carita-manasa the only one that really stands as a substantial criticism is the one which I have reproduced in its entirety above. Consistent with your approach to discussing this topic you have selected only a portion of the quote. It may be noted also that this quote was made by Swami Maharaja only five months after the conversation in which he stated that Tulasi dasa was a great devotee of Rama and that this book is the only important literature in the Hindi language. Furthermore, this statement was made in 1969 when his disciples were very immature in their spiritual development without even having read Bhagavad-gita. The part of the letter which you omitted was that Swami Maharaja did not want his disciples' attention diverted when they had so many other books to read. It may also be questioned how authentic the English translations were they were reading. When we examine all of the positive statements that Srila Swami Maharaja made about Tulasi dasa and the Rama-carita-manasa, it appears that he simply wanted his disciples to focus on the books he was translating and not questionable translations of other books. This is the real crux of the matter, and not the authenticity of Tulasi dasa's work. There is a misconception that the title of Tulasi dasa's book, Rama-carita-manasa, suggests that it was inspired from the manasa, or mind, of Tulasi dasa, and thus it is not a work of divine revelation. Yet in Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.7.4) we find the exact same word (manasi) used to describe the vision which inspired Srila Vyasadeva to write Srimad-Bhagavatam: bhakti-yogena manasi samyak pranihite 'male apasyat purusam purnam mayam ca tad apasrayam "By the power of bhakti-yoga Srila Vyasadeva, being firmly concentrated in meditation with a purified mind, saw Sri Krsna fully endowed with spiritual effulgence, with His plenary portions, and with His internal potency of svarupa-sakti. His external potency maya, being of an inferior nature, was seen in the background under His control." It is said in this verse 'manasi apasyat,' that he saw the complete Absolute Truth with the mind. Yet Srimad-Bhagavatam is not to be taken as manasi-grantha, but rather as samadhi-grantha, for Vyasadeva's mind was fully absorbed in samadhi and his perception was by the power of bhakti-yoga. Similarly the Ramayana of Tulasi dasa should not be taken as manasi-grantha for it sprung from his purified mind which was absorbed in complete samadhi by the power of bhakti-yoga. Please forgive me if this letter has caused you any discomfort. Vaisnava dasa anudasa, B.V. Narayana

Hari Siddhi Kali Baba Late Sadhu of Nepal The best person who knew Kali Baba is the current Mayor of Dhulikhel, Nepal, Sri Bel Prasad Shrestha. When I met Kali Baba was 1974. Then he was said to be over 100 but no one knew his year of birth. When he was a young boy in South India, near Ingulatchi Devi Mandir (??) his parents were approached for biksha by some sadhus. They had nothing to give. But the sadhus asked about the boy? So the boy was given as bhiksha to the Sadhus. These Sadhu's took him to the Himalayas long before it was open to the world, and named him Kali Baba. He lived in a cave with several generations of sadhus until he was inspired to come to Kathmandi to see Pashupatinathji. When he reached Dhulikhel he stayed on since as long as the mayor can remember, and still he lived until 1995 when he went to Bhaktapur and left his body. Best I can understand he was cremated with all his Rudraksha collection. Almost immediately after he died all hell broke out in Nepal and it's going on even now. Life size bronze bust of Kali Baba in Dhulikhel, Nepal He was the lucky charm of Nepal. And yet there is only one statue of Kali Baba in Nepal, that I paid for, located in the court yard of the school named after him in Dhulikhel. That school is still running today. Sitar Master Manilal Nag, RSB, and Dev with Kali Baba in 1976 Once we held a genuine Srimad Bhagavat Sapatah with real avadhuta reading and Kali Baba presiding like Lord Shiva. The Sukadeva was mauna, but we persuaded him to read the entire 18,000 slokas in 7 days... which he did. And the CDI and whole town of Dhulkhel was present for that 7 days yajna. Kali Baba was mostly smiling and shouting at everyone to come and take tika. Mostly all he ever did was hand out blessings. The meaning of the word, "shiva" means blessed. And even the King held him in high regard and came to see him to get tika. And skinny little Kali Baba was the King himself at Pashupati during Shiva Ratri. All the many sadhus held him in awe. But he would be shouting at the aghoris, "you're a bunch of meat eaters!" Once there was a Nepali gangster who cheated some one and when Kali Baba interviened he was insulted. On the spot he uttered a curse against the man, and the next day that man was killed in an auto accident. These are exactly the kinds of things that Lord Shiva is famous for doing .It seems he was so much like Lord Shiva Himself. Like an incarnation. Like an empowered Shivite. And that is just my personal opinion. Only Lord Shiva can say who is actually who. And it is also not possible to disprove.)

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And I say the exact same thing to you.

JN Dasji has mentioned this on a number of occasions before. Maybe he would be able to guide you to the scriptural references you're looking for.

Srimad Siva-Gita Chapter VII – Vision of the Cosmic Form <O:P></O:P>Rāma said:<O:P></O:P> What was asked by me, O all-pervasive Lord, that stands as such. Here, an answer was not received from You by me at all, O great Lord! 1<O:P> </O:P> Your body, O Lord – being of limited measure – how is it the origination of all beings, their maintenance and dissolution? 2<O:P></O:P> How are the Deities bound to their respective duties stationed in You? How is it that all of them are one with You? How is it that the fourteen worlds (are one with You)? 3<O:P> </O:P> O Lord! Even after hearing it from You, there is a great doubt in me. You must deign to dispel the doubt in my mind which suffers from incomprehension. 4<O:P></O:P> The Lord said:<O:P></O:P><O:P> </O:P> Though the seed of the banyan tree is very tiny, the huge banyan tree always existed in it. Otherwise, how can that tree come out of that seed? 5<O:P></O:P> Similarly, O Rāma, the origination and dissolution of the beings take place in My body. Even a large mass of salt easily dissolves in water and is no more visible, but when (that water is) boiled that salt appears as before. 6<O:P> </O:P> Just as light emanates every dawn from the solar sphere, similarly all the universe originates from Me, exists and then merges in Me. Everything is in Me. O Rāma of noble resolves! Know it thus. 7<O:P></O:P> Rāma said:<O:P></O:P><O:P> </O:P> O great Lord! Just as for a person confused regarding directions, the confusion is not removed even when correctly informed, similar is my delusion. What shall I do? 8<O:P></O:P> The Lord said:<O:P></O:P> O Rāma! I will show you how all this, the moving and the unmoving beings of the world subsist in Me. But you will not be able to see this. O son of Daśaratha, I will endow you with divine vision. Through that, shedding all fears, behold the expanse of everlasting luminosity of Mine. 9-10<O:P></O:P> My majesty cannot be perceived through physical eyes either by human beings or by celestial beings without My grace. 11<O:P></O:P> Suta said:<O:P></O:P><O:P> </O:P> Having said thus, the Lord blessed him (Rāma) with divine vision. Then he (Rāma) saw the form of the Lord resembling subterranean fire. 12<O:P></O:P> Seeing that (form) luminous like millions of lightening flashes and striking intense terror even among the brave, Rāma in sheer fright, collapsed on his knees to the ground. Rāma, the dauntless hero, fell prostrate on the ground and again and again praising (the Lord) then rising, looked as far as he could. Rāma saw the form of the Lord, the Destroyer of Tripura, with sidereal universes inside it looking like she-sparrows, in constellations of luminous blaze. 13-15<O:P></O:P> He saw (within the form of the Lord) the mountains like Meru, Mandara and Vindhyā, the seven seas, the sun and the moon, the Gods and the five elements. 16<O:P></O:P> The son of Daśaratha beheld the forests, the holy mountains, the fourteen worlds and the entire cosmic expanse. He saw the battles between the Devas and the Asuras; those born and yet to be born; the ten incarnations of Viṣṇuand the His sports in those incarnations. 17<O:P></O:P> O dvijas, He saw the defeat of the Devas, the burning of Tripura and the extinction of all that is born and yet to be born. Beholding all this, Rāma filled with fear, prostrated again and again. (At this point) true wisdom dawned on Raghunandana (Rāma), and he extolled Śankara with meaningful hymns that contain the very essence of the Upanishads18-21<O:P></O:P> Rāma said:<O:P></O:P><O:P> </O:P> O Lord! The Destroyer of distress of those who take refuge in You! Be gracious! Be gracious! O Lord of the universe! O, Thou worshipped by the Universe! Be gracious! Thou the Bearer of the <ST1:PLACE st="on">Ganges</ST1:PLACE>, with moon adorning Your crest! Protect me, helpless as I am, from the fear of births and deaths. 22<O:P></O:P> O Lord! This world, indeed, is born only from You, in You alone the created beings live always, O Śambhu! Into You alone they undergo merger, just like trees and creepers into the earth. 23<O:P></O:P> O Wielder of the trident! Brahmā, Indra and Rudra, the Maruts, the Gandharvas, the Yakṣas, Asuras, the community of Siddhas, rivers like the <ST1:PLACE st="on">Ganges</ST1:PLACE>, the oceans, all of them live in the midst of Your person. O Moon-crested One! Everything is illusorily projected by Your māyā. In You alone, the universe attains perceptibility. All this is perceived by the common people mistakenly (as real), just as silver is seen in a seashell or a rope is mistaken for a snake. 24-25<O:P></O:P> Filling the entire universe with Your splendour, manifesting things by Your own resplendence, O God of Gods, without Your light, this universe cannot be perceived even for a moment. 26<O:P></O:P> Great things do not rest on flimsy support. One single atom cannot support the Vindhyā mountains. This universe rests on Your person through Your māyā alone. I am convinced now about this. 27<O:P></O:P> Just as a fear-causing snake appearing in the rope has not really come into being, nor exists, nor undergoes destruction, similarly is the universe too taking shape in You, through that sheer māyā of Yours, O Nilakaṇṭha. 28<O:P></O:P> When it is enquired as to Your body assuming the nature of being, the very basis for the world of manifestation, that itself is seen to be certainly due to my ignorance. Thou art wholly the nature of Consciousness and Bliss. 29<O:P></O:P> O Destroyer of Tripura, Thou alone, being praised, bestow upon the enjoyers the fruits of the eminently meritorious acts, performance of Vedic sacrifices and charitable acts. But even this statement is not fully true because there is nothing different from You at all. 30<O:P></O:P> The Sages declare those as deluded by ignorance who mistakenly think that Śiva, Lord of the <ST1:PLACE st="on">Himālayas</ST1:PLACE>, is pleased by external acts of worship and services. How can there be any desire for pleasure for one who is formless? 31<O:P></O:P> O Supreme Lord! Even the sovereignty of all the three worlds, You bestow as a reward on those people who offer You a leaf or a little water. I deem it all as the work of ignorance. 32<O:P></O:P> You pervade all the quarters and the intermediate directions. Thou art the universe, secondless, the infinite and the eternal. Even when this universe become extinct, there is no loss to You, just as there is no detriment to space (within a pot), when the pot is broken. 33<O:P></O:P> Just as the one, single Sun in the sky gets its many reflections in various vessels of water, so Thou, O Lord, art (variously) reflected in different minds. 34<O:P></O:P> There is nothing to be done by You even when the world is created, protected and dissolved. Even then, You bestow heaven etc. on the souls beginninglessly embodied according to their mortal fruits. It all happens as in a dream. 35<O:P></O:P> O Śambhu! For the two inert bodies, the subtle (sūkṣma) and the gross (sthūla) there could be no consciousness without the Self. Therefore, the scriptures, O enemy of Tripura, speak of pleasure and pain experienced through Your reflection in them. 36<O:P></O:P> Prostrations to Thee, O Swan in the ocean of Existence and Consciousness; prostrations to Thee, O Blue-Throated One, the very form of Time; prostrations to Thee, the Destroyer of all sins; prostrations to Thee, the one (witness) experiencer of the functions of the mind, which after all is illusory. 37<O:P></O:P> Suta said:<O:P></O:P> Prostrating thus before the Lord of the universe, standing with folded hands before Him, the over-awed Rāma praised the supreme Lord in so many words. 38<O:P></O:P> Rāma said:<O:P></O:P> O Self of the universe! Withdraw this cosmic form of Yours. By Thy grace, O Śambhu, the ocean of the world (of existence) has been seen (by me). 39<O:P></O:P> The Lord said:<O:P></O:P> O Rāma, the mighty-armed! There is nothing other than I.<O:P></O:P> Suta said:<O:P></O:P> Saying thus, the Lord withdrew the Gods and the other (forms) into His own form. 40<O:P></O:P> Closing his eyes in sheer delight, Rāma again opened his eyes and saw the Lord standing over the tiger-skin on the crest of the (<ST1:PLACE st="on">Himālaya</ST1:PLACE>) mountain. Rāma saw Lord Nilakaṇṭha with three eyes and five faces, donning the tiger skin, His person adorned with sacred ash, wearing the serpents as His bracelets and sacred thread, wearing matted locks, blazing like lightening. (He saw) the One, the Lord of the universe, with moon on His crest, the supremely adorable, assuring freedom from fear, with four arms, holding a battle-axe, with a deer in one hand. 41-44<O:P></O:P> Then prostrating, Rāma, at the Lord’s command, sat in front of Him. Then, the God of Gods told Rāma, “Whatever you want to ask, O Rāma, you can ask of Me. There is no preceptor for you other than <ST1:PLACE st="on">I.</ST1:PLACE>” 45 <O:P></O:P> Thus ends the seventh chapter called the Vision of the Cosmic Form in the form of a dialogue between Śiva and Rāma in the Śiva-Gītā an upaniṣad delivering Brahma-vidyā, and a yoga śāstra occurring in the Padma Purāṇa.<O:P></O:P> <O:P>Source:</O:P>Śiva-Gītā. Trans. P.K. Sundaram. Chennai: The Centernarian Trust, 1997.

Srimad Siva-Gita Chapter VI – Glory of God<O:P></O:P><O:P></O:P> Rāma said:<O:P></O:P> O Lord! (Having heard You declare that You are the Creator of the world) a great wonder wells forth in me. You are the Lord with the moon on Your crest, with three eyes and as radiant as pure crystal. ||1||<O:P></O:P> You have a form with limited stature bearing masculine appearance, accompanied by Mother Pārvatī and sport here itself with Your entourage of attendants. ||2||<O:P> </O:P> How is it that You (create, protect and dissolve) the world made of five elements and consisting of the animate and inanimate? Tell me, O Lord, the beloved of Pārvatī, should You have concern for me. ||3|| The Lord said: <O:P></O:P> Listen, Rāma, the high-souled one and of noble observances! I will tell you that which is difficult to comprehend even for the Gods, (and which can be understood) only by continence and by effort, and through which you will with ease cross to the other shore of the sea of births and deaths. ||4||<O:P></O:P> The five elements, the fourteen worlds, the oceans, the mountains, the demons, and the sages; those that are seen as unmoving, like trees, and those that move (creatures), the Gandharvas, the Pramathas, the Nāgas, all these are My glorious manifestations. ||5-6||<O:P> </O:P> In ancient days, the Gods like Brahmā, desirous to see My personal form, churned (the ocean) as a team, (using) the <ST1:PLACETYPE st="on">Mount</ST1:PLACETYPE> <ST1:PLACENAME st="on">Mandara</ST1:PLACENAME>, the dearest to <ST1:PLACE st="on"><?XML:NAMESPACE PREFIX = ST1 /><ST1:STATE st="on">Me.</ST1:STATE></ST1:PLACE> ||7||<O:P></O:P> The Gods, standing in front of Me, praised Me with folded palms. On seeing Me thus, the Gods were deluded by Me, and the intelligence of Brahmā and the other celestial beings was obscured. ||8||<O:P></O:P> Remaining ignorant, they repeatedly asked Me: “Who are You?” Then I told the Gods: “I am that primordial Being. O Gods! I was the first of all! I am so even at the present, and I will be so in the future too. There is nothing other than I in this world. ||9-10||<O:P></O:P> O Leaders of Gods! There is nothing whatever other than Myself, either permanent or impermanent. Faultless, I am the Lord of the Vedas and of Brahmā. ||11||<O:P> </O:P> O Leaders of Gods! I extend unto the south, unto the north, unto the east, and the west, above and below. I am the terminal and the intermediate directions. ||12||<O:P></O:P> I am the Sāvitrī and the Gāyatrī, I am woman, man, and neuter; the meters of Triṣṭup, Jagatī, Anuṣṭup, Paṅkti and the three Vedas. ||13||<O:P></O:P> I am the truth among all (the phenomena), the tranquil, the three household fires, scriptural study and ritual, the Preceptor, the speech, the secret, the heaven and the Lord of the world. ||14||<O:P></O:P> I am the foremost, the pre-eminent among all the Gods, greatest of knowers of truth, am the Lord of the waters, am the noblest, the supreme One with six attributes, the Ruler (Īśa), the Light, and the first cause of the all. ||15||<O:P></O:P> I am the Rg Veda, the Yajur Veda, the Sāma Veda, the Atharvaṇa, full of sacred mantras, and similarly the distinguished Angiras all originate from <ST1:STATE st="on"><ST1:PLACE st="on">Me.</ST1:PLACE></ST1:STATE> ||16||<O:P></O:P> I am the Itihāsas, the Purāṇas, I am the kalpa (rituals), and the performer of the rituals. I am the Narasamsi (hymn of Rudra); I am the Gātha (hymn praising Vedic ritual). I am meditation and the secret wisdom. ||17||<O:P></O:P> I am the Vedic verses, the aphorisms (Sūtras), the sub-commentaries; I am the commentaries. Similarly, I am the sciences, the Vedic sacrifices, the oblation and the substances offered. ||18||<O:P></O:P> I am the giver as well as the gift; I am this world and the world hereafter; I am the imperishable and the perishable; I am control of senses and of the mind; I am the indweller of the senses. ||19||<O:P></O:P> I am the hidden secret in all the Vedas; I am the forest and I am the unborn. I am the nourisher and the pure; I am the middle and anything beyond it. I am the exterior as well as the interior; I am the front and the imperishable. ||20||<O:P></O:P> And I am light as well as darkness. I am the subtle elements and the senses. I am the intellect and the ego. Verily, I alone am all the objects of experience. ||21||<O:P></O:P> I am Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Maheśa. I am Umā, Skanda, and Vināyaka. I am Indra, Agni, and Yama. I am Nirṛiti, Varuṇa and Vāyu. ||22||<O:P></O:P> I am Kubera and Iśāna, the worlds of Bhu, Bhuva, Svaha, Maha, Jana, Tapa and Satya. And I am the earth and I am the waters, the fire and air. ||23||<O:P></O:P> I am space; I am the sun, the moon and the stars. The planets, too, am I. I am the vital breath (prāṇa) and time, similarly death and immortality. I am the physical matter too. ||24|| <O:P></O:P> I am the past and the future. I am the universe in its entirety. I am the sum and substance of everything. For those who silently chant, I am the Praṇava (OM) at the beginning. I am the vyahāritis: bhu, bhuva, svaha in the middle; and then the Gāyatri at the end. I am of the form of the extended universe. ||25||<O:P></O:P> I am the eaten and the drunk. I am, too the done and the undone. I am the superior and the inferior. I am the Sun and the Refuge of all. ||26||<O:P></O:P> I am the good of the world; I am the Divine imperishable and the subtle. I am the very self of Prajāpati (Brahmā). I am the sacred, the benign, the ungraspable and the first. ||27||<O:P></O:P> I alone am the withdrawer. I am the container of the luminous fire of deluge. I am established in the hearts of all as Divinity and vital power. ||28||<O:P></O:P> I am the very Praṇava (Omkāra) consiting of three morae (a, u, m) whose head is the north, feet the south and the middle is all that is in between. ||29||<O:P></O:P> I am truly the Praṇava (Omkāra), one, eternal and ancient because I lead (pious souls) upwards (to heaven) and send them down (when their merit is exhausted). ||30||<O:P></O:P> I am called Praṇava because in the act of sacrifice I am Brahmā (directing the sacrifice) make (the Rtviks) render obeisance to the brāhmaṇas (or Rg, Yajus and Sāma Vedas). ||31||<O:P></O:P> Just as ghee pervades a piece of meat and makes the body (of the eater) grow, I (pervade) similarly all the worlds; therefore, the Pervader of all am <ST1:PLACE st="on">I.</ST1:PLACE> ||32||<O:P></O:P> Because Brahmā and Viṣṇu, and other Deities did not see the beginning or end to My form (Jyotirliṅga), I am called the Infinite. ||33||<O:P></O:P> Since I save My devotee from the ocean of dread of being born in a womb, old age, death and the cycle of births and deaths, I am called the Savior. ||34||<O:P></O:P> I dwell as the soul in the four kinds of bodies (born of womb, of egg, of sweat and of the earth). Taking a subtle form I live in the heart. Hence, I am called subtle. ||35||<O:P></O:P> I illuminate the devotees immersed in the primeval darkness (of ignorance) with my incomparable light, like a flash of lightening. Therefore, I am known as lightening. ||36||<O:P></O:P> Since I alone create and dissolve the worlds, make (the souls) go from one world to another and bestow grace, I am the only supreme Lord. ||37||<O:P></O:P> Since there is no second to that transcendent Brahman, which withdraws all the beings into itself, I (that Brahman) alone exist as Rudra. ||38||<O:P></O:P> Since I rule all the worlds with My wondrous powers, I am the Iśāna (Ruler) of this world, the Lord and the witnessing eye. ||39||<O:P></O:P> (The scriptures extol Me) as Iśāna, as Indra, as Brahmā and the Lord of all at all times, and the Lord of disciplines and knowledge. Hence, I am called Iśāna. ||40||<O:P></O:P> I behold all beings; I teach the knowledge of the Self and the path (to that knowledge). I pervade everything. Therefore, I am called Bhagavān. ||41||<O:P></O:P> I perpetually create, protect and dissolve all the worlds and enliven them all. And hence I am the great Lord. ||42||<O:P></O:P> He, that great Lord, glories by the stupendous powers and the yoga of self-knowledge. He creates and protects all that exists. I am that (Lord). ||43||<O:P></O:P> This Lord am I, present everywhere. I was prior to everything else. It is I who is in the womb; it is I who is born and that which is to be born. I have faces in every direction. I am the indwelling spirit in beings. ||44|| <O:P></O:P> I have eyes everywhere; I have faces in all directions; My arms are everywhere; My feet everywhere.With my arms and feet I command the production, as one secondless Lord, of the earth and the heaven. ||45||<O:P></O:P> Those wise men who directly see Me as abiding in their own self, in the center of their heart, of the size of a tip of the hair; as of the form of the universe; as the source of the Vedas, and to be worshipped always, for them alone there is peace eternal, and not others. ||46||<O:P></O:P> I alone stand as the basis of the world of māyā. All the fivefold elements are fully pervaded by Me. One who enquires in this way about Me, the Lord, the Supreme Person, and the Governor (of the universe) attains peerless peace. ||47||<O:P></O:P> The marks of mind implicit in the vital airs are said to be hunger, thirst and restlessness. Those who cut asunder the thirst which is responsible for all the activities and fixing the mind in Me through reason, and meditate on Me, get the peace eternal and not others. ||48||<O:P></O:P> Knowing Me as Brahman, the bliss, from where speech along with the mind recoil unable to reach it, one does not fear anything whatsoever. ||49||<O:P></O:P> Hearing my words on the supreme knowledge as a means to release, chanting My names, giving themselves to meditating on me, the Gods – all of them – at the end of their lives attained union with Me in days of yore. From such a knowledge all the things are seen everywhere by them as manifestations of My glory. ||50-51||<O:P></O:P> From Me alone everything is born. In Me, everything is established. In me, everything is resolved. I am that Brahman which is secondless. ||52||<O:P></O:P> I alone am the subtler than the subtlest; similarly I am the greatest. I am the world and am pure (unsullied by creation). I am the most ancient. I am the complete being. I am the sovereign. I am the golden One and of the very form of auspiciousness (Śivam). ||53||<O:P></O:P> I (grasp) without hands and (walk without) feet; I am that inestimable power; I see without eyes; I hear without ears. I am every manifest form and there is no one who knows Me. I am ever the consciousness. ||54||<O:P></O:P> I am alone the One who revealed by all the Vedas. I am the author of Vedānta, and I am alone the knower of the Vedas. There is no merit or demerit in Me; there is no destruction for Me; nor are there births, bodies, senses and intellects for <ST1:PLACE st="on"><ST1:STATE st="on">Me.</ST1:STATE></ST1:PLACE> ||55||<O:P> </O:P> The earth, water, fire, air nor space (the five elements) find no place in Me. Thus knowing the nature of the supreme Self indwelling in the cave of the heart, partless and secondless, witness unto all, devoid of cause and effect, one attains the pure supreme Self (that I am). ||56||<O:P> </O:P> O Rāma of great intelligence! One who knows Me truly, he alone and none else, in all the worlds attains the fruit of liberation.” ||57||<O:P></O:P> Thus ends the sixth chapter called the Glory of God in the Śiva-Gītā which is an upaniṣad delivering Brahma-vīdyā and a yoga śāstra occurring as a dialogue between Śiva and Rāma in the Padma Purāṇa. <O:P></O:P> Source: Śiva-Gītā. Trans. P.K. Sundaram. Chennai: The Centernarian Trust, 1997

The Śiva-Gītā is a text of Vedantic Śaivism that comes to us from the latter portion (uttara kānda) of the Padma Purāna. In many ways, it is a text not unlike the Bhagavad-Gītā, except the focus is fully on Śiva. In the Śiva-Gītā, the teacher is Lord Śiva and the disciple is Śrī Rāma, and the narrator is the bard Suta. <?XML:NAMESPACE PREFIX = O /><O:P></O:P> The Śiva-Gītā begins with episode from the Rāmāyana epic, where Rāma is despondent over the loss of Sītā. At this time, Rāma is visited by Sage Agastya, and the sage prescribes to Rāma that he should observe a special vow called the Pāśupata vrata. By observing this vow Agastya promises that Rama will have a vision of Lord Śiva, and will receive the Pāśupata astra (weapon) without which Rāvana cannot be defeated. Rāma performs the vow and at the end of four months receives a divine vision of Śiva. Śiva presents Rāma with the Pāśupata astra, and Rāma in turn asks Lord Śiva a series of questions. The dialogue between Rāma and Lord Śiva makes up the bulk of the Śiva-Gītā.

That man was certainly not on the same level of material reality that you find yourself entangled in. I wonder what you would think of Vishvamitra Muni creating an entire constellation through the power of his yogic achievements. As I said earlier, it is your business if you want to project your extremely limited experiences on occurrences that pertain to a higher, celestial realm, but do not expect to be taken very seriously by those who follow the Puranas and live and breathe by them. I'm not saying that every single jot and tittle of shastra should be taken literally, far from it, but there are enough cross-checkings and corroborations in the different scriptures for one to deduce what is an allegory and what refers to an event that took place in a previous yuga, and probably on a more subtle domain of reality. If you don't want to place faith in such, that is your problem, and frankly, your own opinion matters hardly in the grand scheme of things.

Even today, there are yogis in India who are able to take bath in all four dhamas every morning, i.e. in Badrinath, Rameshwaram, Dwarka and Puri, with these tirthas being situated in the four cardinal directions of the land. They do so without moving from one spot, usually the asana on which they may be sitting in dhyana. These persons obviously are endowed with siddhis that you and I haven't got a clue about. I prefer to take guidance from shastra and solidify my faith thereby, since without shraddha, no real spiritual progress is possible. If you wanna take yourself and your mind too seriously, feel free to do so. But traditional Hinduism asks one to accept truth (not necessarily fact) from higher authorities instead of forming our worldviews in concordance with our own limited experiences.

Thank you Ganeshprasadji, We cannot glorify Devadideva Mahadeva enough on this special night of His which is Maha Shivaratri. Sri Bhagavate Samba Sadashivaya Namah! Namah Parvati-pataye Hara Hara Hara Mahadeva!

Maha Mrityunjaya Mantra The great mantra dedicated to Shiva as Mrityunjaya is found in the Rig Veda. It is called the Maha Mrityunjaya mantra, the Great Death-Conquering mantra. It is a mantra that has many names and forms. It is called the Rudra mantra, referring to the furious aspect of Shiva; the Tryambakam mantra, alluding to Shiva's three eyes; and its is sometimes known as the Mrita-Sanjivini mantra because it is a component of the "life-restoring" practice given to the primordial sage Shukra after he had completed an exhausting period of austerity. The Maha Mrityunjaya mantra is hailed by the sages as the heart of the Veda. Along with the Gayatri mantra it holds the highest place among the many mantras used for contemplation and meditation. OM Tryambakam yajamahe Sugandhim pushti-vardhanam Urvarukamiva bandhanan Mrityor mukshiya mamritat OM. We worship and adore you, O three-eyed one, O Shiva. You are sweet gladness, the fragrance of life, who nourishes us, restores our health, and causes us to thrive. As, in due time, the stem of the cucumber weakens, and the gourd is freed from the vine, so free us from attachment and death, and do not withhold immortality.

Haribol Prabhu. Perhaps it could be obtained from his disciples in Vrindavana, although I cannot be certain of that. Bon Maharaja's group is not that active on the Internet, and I suppose that one would have to physically travel to Vraja in order to gain access to their publications. Hare Krishna and thank you for appreciating.

Paramahansa Sad-guru Tridandi Swami Bhakti Hridaya Bon (Vana) Maharaj 1901-1982 <HR> HIS EARLY LIFE: His Holiness was born Narendra Nath Mukherji in 1901 in East Bengal, the Gaudiya Vaishnava Brahman son of Brahmarishi Rajanikanta, who was a renowned Vedic scholar and devotee. Vana Maharaj was a life-long celibate and as a brahmacari he joined and took initiation from the early 1900s. Paramahansa Bhakti Siddhanta Sarasvati Prabhupada Later, in 1924, at the age of 23, he was the third disciple to accept life-long Tridanda Sannyasa from Srila Saraswati Prabhupada and quickly became one of his leading preachers. He was the most bright and educated among his godbrothers and under his Gurudeva's order he preached the message of Lord Chaitanya delivering literally thousands of lectures all over India, including at the Royal Albert Hall in Calcutta. He also established new Gaudiya Math's for his Gurudeva (such as in Madras) and he organized theistic exhibitions in Calcutta and Dacca which drew 100,000 visitors daily. Young Swami Bon Maharaj He was so successful and aggressive a preacher, introducing the message of Srila Sarasvati Prabhupada and Lord Chaitanya up to the highest levels of social and intellectual society of that time (during the British Raj) that he soon became famous all over India. Because of his good breeding and high education he was sent by his Gurudeva, Srimad Bhakti Siddhanta Sarasvati Prabhupada, to UK and Germany to preach. Unfortunately the 1930's were not like America during the mid-1960's prosperity and "counter-culture" revolution, and although he took Lord Chaitanya's teachings to the very top of mletccha society (He was even received in audience by H.M. The King of England) and gave many lectures throughout England and Europe, still it was (to quote Lord Zetland) almost "impossible" to make beef eaters of that time and place turn into Brahmin-Vaishnavas. Vana Maharaj, being born a Bengali brahmin and living as a celibate Tridandi sannyasi, suffering in the bitter cold and damp London during the British Raj AND the Great Depression. One lakh of people greet Sripad B.H. Bon Maharaj (3rd from right with tridanda)on his return from Europe with two mlettcha converts. AC Bhaktivedanta Swami, then A.C. De, is seated at far right Still, Vana Maharaj influenced many souls and converted two German gentlemen (Dr. E.G. Schulze and Baron Koeth) whom he brought back to India and offered at the feet of Srila Sarasvati Prabhupada, his Gurudeva, for initiation. Upon his return to Calcutta he received a grand reception by one lakh of people. In 1942, after the disappearance of his Gurudeva, Srila Sarasvati Prabhupada, and the breakup of the Gaudiya-Matha into factions, Vana Maharaj voted for Srila B.V. Tirtha Maharaj to be the next Acharya. And (it is known) that Srila Vana Maharaj spent one month living on a raft in the middle of the Ganga for tapasya. Later, when the disputes within Gaudiya Math became legal, Srila Vana Maharaj went by foot on a solitary pilgrimage into the Himalayas for many years of severe tapasya (only chanting Hare Krishna!). His vows were (1) not speaking to anyone, (2) eating only fruits and nuts off of trees, (3) sleeping bare bodied on the ground, and (4) not taking a single step without chanting the Maha-mantra. He journeyed 650 miles on foot and lived at the source of the Yamuna River under very severe circumstances. During these years alone Vana Maharaj describes in his Bengali book, Vaikunther-pathe, how he had vision darshan of his Gurudeva, who revealed to him his siddha-bhajan-pranali, and ordered him to go serve Sri Vrindavana-dhama. Thereafter he retired in Vrindavana where he constructed a small bhajan-kutir on land donated to him. He also excavated an under-ground cave-room where he spent many years performing secluded bhajan (chanting in meditation). HIS LATER LIFE: By the age of 70 Vana Maharaj had many thousands of initiated Bengali and other Indian born disciples. I personally went on a tour of several East and West Bengali villages where the entire populations were his disciples. And all Vana Maharaja's bona fide disciples worship, respect and serve Lord Krishna through him. He is known as a siddha-purusa by all his disciples. During his life Vana Maharaj wrote and translated some excellent books including his master-piece translation and commentary of Sri Rupa Goswami's classic, Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu. Other books by Swami Vana which have also been published include the Gita As a Chaitanyite Reads It, Sri Chaitanya, Viraha-vedana, On the Way to Vaikuntha (Hindi & Bengali), and seven more books in German, English, Hindi and Bengali. Vana Maharaj also served Vraja-dhama by offering the Vraja-vasi's local accredited education... 1) He built the Vaishnava Theological University (later became affiliated with the University of Agra as the Institute of Oriental Philosophy), in Vrindavana, where many Vraja-vasi's received BA, MA and Ph.D. degrees without leaving the Dhama; 2) He also constructed the Sri Krishna Chaitanya Primary School next to Sanatana Goswami's bhajan-kutir in Nandagrama which is the first school there in 5,000 years; the local kids used to take a bus to Kosi in order to even begin studies; 3) He also maintains Sri Sanatana Goswami's bhajan kutir in Nandagrama where many of his Godbrothers would stay, and even now this sacred tirtha is still under the care of his babaji disciples. It is also the sacred spot where Akinchan Krishnadas Babaji Maharaj left his old body. If anyone takes darshan of the Nandagrama bhajan kutir altar they will see the Guru Parampara descending to Srila Vana Maharaj. 4) His personal Math is called "bhajan kutir" in Vrindavana where he lived a quiet life with brahmacari and sannyasi disciples. Vana Maharaj was always very strict with the four regulative principles, and he never acted or spoke sahajiya or fallen in any way; he was a fixed-up, life-long celibate sannyasi disciple of Srila Sarasvati Prabhupada who mostly performed private bhajan after returning from his tapasya. He was very concerned about the Nitya-lila pastimes of the Divine Couple and his own service therein. Sripad Bon Maharaj's BEST FRIEND Srila Krishnadas Babaji Maharaj Many of Bhakti Siddhanta's disciples who would often come to visit Vana Maharaj in Vraja; he also went to visit his Godbrothers in Bengal every couple years. Vana Maharaj was a clearly dear friend with his many Godbrothers, and both the exalted Srila Krishnadas Babaji Maharaj and Srila B.S. Ashram Maharaj would come to live with Vana Maharaj every year for many months at a time. HIS PASSING: After an entire life of intense unbroken devotional service (preaching, tapasya, bhajan, and Vraja seva) Srila Vana Maharaj departed this material world at 9:04 PM on July 7, 1982 at his Bhajan kutir in Vrindavan, U.P. India. Here are the facts about the disappearance of HDG Srila Vana Maharaja as reported in the book "Supreme Divinity and Sad-guru" by Dr. Tapodhir Krishna Dastidar. "Our hearts, laden with anguish and anxiety, we spent all day taking part by rotation in the kirtan which somehow continued even after the expiry of the midday of July 7. In the evening when a few of us were singing sadly kirtan before the ashram Deities, we were hastily summoned from the Natmandir by Swami Rasikananda Maharaj and requested to gather round Gurudev's bedside. "While ceaselessly chanting the "Hare Krishna" Mahamantra over and over again, we watched helplessly as Gurudev's chest slowly heaved up and down with every intake and exhalation of breath. All the while, even in his semi comatose condition, his tongue was rhythmically chanting the Holy Name of Krishna. Swami Keshavananda Maharaj was feeling Gurudev's pulse all the time. The end, as already stated, came at 9.04 PM on July 7, 1982. The last giant amongst the best exponents of Gaudiya Vaishnavism, His Holiness Swami Bhakti Hriday Bon Maharaj left his mortal coils to join the company of the Supreme Godhead's Eternal Associates who are ever engaged in offering esoteric and supra-mundane devotional service to Sri Krishna and His Counter whole projection Sri Radha in their transcendental love-sports. We shall never see the like of him again." (SDASG, 83-84) Afterwards, when his corpse was taken out for a parikrama of Vrindavan, his eyes opened when the palanquin left the Bhajan Kutir, and they closed when it returned. Also, Lalit Krishna Brahmacari reported that there was a distinct smell of sandalwood coming from his transcendental body. Please accord full respect to the sacred memory of H.D.G. Tridandi Swami Srila Bhakti Hridaya Vana Maharaj and ALL his devoted and blessed disciples. His vapu-samadhi temple is located on Madan-mohan Ghera in Sridham Vrindavana, and the murti is a very good likeness of Srila Vana Maharaj at about 72 years of age.

As I said earlier, I applaud your concern for the animals, but I still cannot digest the parallel you draw with eggs, and my basis for doing so is more scriptural than scientific. Milk is considered to be a mode-of-goodness foodstuff, or else we wouldn't bathe Krishna in it and prepare his prasada with it. The skin of cattle which have died natural deaths is used to manufacture mrdangas, which we use in kirtanas. The number of Sanskrit shlokas one finds in shastra in praise of cows, cow protection and the use of cow by-products are almost uncountable. That is why the worship of Go-Mata, or Mother Cow is so prevalent in India, because she sustains us by the many useful products she bestows upon society. Likewise, the bull, with the help of which the land is ploughed, is akin to a father. And yes, I can understand your position and attitude. Like I mentioned, I can have no complaint with your stance.

And thank you for that, Indulekha Deviji. Only a sincere soul can be inspired to compose in praise of God and His associates, regardless of the brevity with which this is accomplished. Radhe Radhe

I laud your concern for tortured bovines, and appreciate your point of view, which stems from lofty feelings for Krishna's favourite quadrupeds, and as a Vaishnava wannabe, I can have no objections to that. However, whilst I can see what would drive some to make the comparison with eggs, I myself would tend to think that this is beside the point. In no sect of Hinduism or Sanatana Dharma, if you will, are eggs utilised in arcana. No follower of the Vedas and Puranas would even think of utilising them in the preparation of prasada, which is not the case for milk. Even the urine and dung that we get from bulls and cows are used for various purposes in India to this day. The drinking of cow urine features in Ayurveda, and as you may know, cow dung has been a source of fuel for people in the rural parts of India forever. In addition, it is also used in house-building, again mainly in India's villages. If you go to Vraja, you'll certainly witness this phenomenon. If you wish to go back to what the scriptures have to say about it, DUGDHA/KSHIRA or milk is considered to be sattvika, whereas stuff such as eggs and other non-veggies are definitely rajasika or tamasika. In all honesty, I would have to be in the West to be in a position to answer this to your satisfaction, but I do see where you're coming from, and yes, since your concern is for the Lord's dear friends, how can I hold that against you? Radhe Radhe

By the way, this thread was supposed to be about eggs. You're the one who initiated the digression towards milk and the whole vegan issue. I think it would be wise to stick to the subject matter of the thread, don't you think so?

I abhor the cruelties and greed-driven practices current in the dairy industry just as much as any compassionate person would. Neither did I present an apologia for the nonsense that goes on in your part of the world, if my memory serves me right. Thank Providence, things haven't degraded to such an extent where I live, at least so far. Your opinion on milk matters little, you are right on that one. Abhisheka of the deities is performed on a daily basis, and one of the essential ingredients used for the purpose is, guess what, GO-RASA. Nearly all of the sweets/mithais that are offered to the temple deities also consist of milk and ghee. You can think whatever you want, but dairy products were, are and will remain of paramount importance to Vaishnavas. Prabhupada may have said what you say he did, but he himself drank milk and offered it to Krishna. You can go on and on about it all, however, I doubt whether you shall achieve anything real or substantial that'll be worthy of consideration in the grand scheme of things.