LoveroftheBhagavata

Krishna Himself is extremely fond of milk and milk products - this settles the whole debate. You may also wish to learn that, since time immemorial, Vaishnavas and non-Vaishnava Vedantins alike have had no qualms about go-rasa, as it is also called, and have offered it to their deities as well as drunk it themselves. Eggs, on the other hand, are anything but sattvika, even when not fertilised, and I find the comparison to be just a silly argument by those who are unsympathetic to Vedic ideals. The question should be: would you offer unfertilised eggs to Sri Sri Radha-Krishna as prasada? See, the answer to this question is not as difficult as you may think. Radhe Radhe

Yes, Atmatattva dasa mentions Sri Ayyappa in his Mystical Experiences series on the main Indiadivine site. By the way, many lesser-known deities aren't mentioned in the main scriptures but do exist for very real and those who have performed their upasana have been bestowed with definite results. Another example of such is Randal Maa, the daughter of Vishvakarmaji and wife of Suryadeva, who is especially worshipped in Gujarat (and almost certainly in some other parts of Bharata too, although I happen not to know more about it). Radhe Radhe

No probs Yogesh. Akinchan Krishna Das Babaji is a special Vaishnava who deserves recognition as a siddha. I hope that those who have gone through this article on him got some impetus toward furthering the growth of their own bhakti-lata-bija. Jaya Radhe

Please, I am not worthy. Anyone speaking on these terms would make me a sinner/paapi. On the other hand, I offer you my pranams and pray for your goodwill and compassion towards the Kali-yuga patita that I am. Certainly! Gadadhara Pandita is Radharani, and we cannot glorify Him enough. Incidentally, one of the most inspirational personalities in contemporary Gaudiya Vaishnavism is Shri Satya Narayana Das of the Jiva Institute of Vedic Studies in Sri Vrindavana-dhama. He is a disciple of Haridas Shastri Maharajaji of Gadadhara Parivara. Radhe Radhe

The srishti-lila (pastime of creation) of God takes place when Lord Maha-Vishnu wishes to display this specific opulence of His. By His mere glance, the mahat-tattva (the sum total of His external potency) becomes energised and the entire cosmic situation is placed under the jurisdiction of an expansion of Lord Sadashiva whom the Brahma-samhita refers to as Shambhu, and who represents the glance of Bhagavan Vishnu. Together with His consort Mahamaya (Durgaji), Lord Shambhu presides over the material energy which then undergoes several further transformations and manifests as unlimited brahmandas/universes floating in the spiritual karana-samudra/causal ocean, and into each of which the Godhead expands as Garbhodakashayi-Vishnu/Padmanabha/Hiranyagarbha, from Whose navel a lotus stems, and from which Lord Brahma is born. Finally, both Lord Narayana and Lord Shiva manifest additional expansions in order to manage the cosmos that is engineered by Brahma from the creative shakti of Bhagavan. As Kshirodakashayi-Vishnu, the Lord takes charge of sattva-guna and is the all-pervading Paramatma, in addition to His acting as the preserver of the world. As for Mahadeva Shiva, the form of His that manages tamo-guna and destroys the creation at the time of pralaya is an expansion of His primordial forms of Sadashiva and Shambhu. This lila of the Supreme takes places for countless lives of Brahma, and the duration of any one brahmanda/universal globe is said to equate with one breath of Maha-Vishnu. Hence, 311 trillion or so of our years would be equal to a breath of the Godhead - no wonder He is named the Great Vishnu. Shastra also tells us that, at times, the Lord simply wants to enjoy Himself in divine sleep / yoga-nidra, and at such times there is no creation pastime unfolding. However, Lord Vishnu's timescale is so inconceivable to us tiny lots that, to all intents and purposes, one might as well say that the material universes are being brought into being and thereafter withdrawn forever. Many of us cannot even think in terms of a kalpa (a single day of Brahmaji), let alone a maha-kalpa/lifetime of Brahma), so it would be the height of futility to start contemplating how to quantify the timeframe of Maha-Vishnu, Who is the cause and source of innumerable brahmandas. In brief, this is what scripture says about the genesis of the material realm. However, this is a level of reality that lies completely beyond the purview of the human mind and senses, and as Sukadeva Gosvami would have it - the material cosmic manifestation is ultimately indescribable, and nobody would be capable of fully describing it, even if granted a life span as long as that of Brahma. Radhe Radhe

That's a very good question indeed. I certainly don't have an answer for it. Jaya Radhe

Jaya Sri Radhe Indujii, Actually, I am of mixed UPite, Bihari and Bengali heritage, and the Indic languages which have been handed down from former generations in my family are Hindi and Bhojpuri. However, I was able to read your lovely glorification of the Lords since most north Indian tongues are quite closely related to one another, and it took no effort whatsoever to comprehend what you had said. Radhe Radhe

Hare Krishna, I am still uninitiated and hope to someday take diksha in a traditional Parivara. The three disciplic lines which have captured my impure heart the most with their shiksha are the Advaita, Narottama and Shyamananda Parivaras, even though I take the dust of the lotus feet of all shuddha Vaishnavas upon my head. As a matter of fact, I try as far as possible to receive the mercy of Lord Nityananda and Lord Gauracandra wherever it is available, whether from orthodox branches of the Chaitanya tree, any of the many Gaudiya Mathas or ISKCON. There are good devotees and less exemplary personalities everywhere. Nonetheless, I do have a soft spot for traditional Gaudiya Vaishnavism. Radhe Radhe

This is continuing with my series of collected articles (penned by others) in praise of some lesser-known transcendentalists who have graced the Vedic landscape with their glorious presence. After Avadhuta Shri Radha-charan das Babaji Maharaja of Man Mandira in Varshana, today I post another essay written by Hrsikesananda Dasaji, this time a homage to Akinchan Krishna das Babaji, a disciple of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, and a humble devotee whose kirtana-singing skills have been widely acclaimed by one and many. I hope that people taking the time to go through this thread, including me, will derive inspiration from the model Vaishnava that Akinchan Krishna Baba was, and pray to him to bless us with a modicum of his many good qualities, which are enormously conducive to advancement on the marga of raganuga-sadhana-bhakti. Radhe Radhe

Akincana Krsnadas Babaji Maharaj "Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare" ---Srila Krishna Das Babaji Maharaj by Richard Shaw Brown He was the delight of all the associates of the great PRABHUPADA Sarasvati Thakura. He was the favorite of his Godbrothers and he gave them all his laughing Hare Krsna! In 1968 paramahamsa Akincana Krsnadas Babaji Maharaj was staying at Srila Vana Maharaj's Vrindavan Gaudiya Matha, bhajan kutir, which he did every year for 4-5 months at a time before and during the hot season. In the winter he was in Navadvipa. We slept on the roof together many summer nights, and he never went to sleep. Prayers, quiet bhajan and chanting all night long, every night. He was constantly laughing, and he would always say Hare Krsna! with the greatest exuberance I have ever witnessed. He was the most 'Goswami' alike character. He looked just like you would imagine Sanatana or Rupa Goswami in Vraja to look like. He was the only devotee I ever witnessed who would weep flowing tears while leading kirtan without losing his voice. And he was the greatest kirtana leader in the universe! All the devotees within the various Gaudiya Math's everywhere agreed that Lord Caitanya would personally join Babaji Maharaj's kirtana. As long as he stayed at Srila Vana Maharaj's Vrindavan ashram he always led the kirtana starting at 4:30 am. He always played the mrdanga either in kirtan or alone while singing prayers before the Deities. The Deities at bhajan-kutir were Lord Caitanya, Sri Govinda in the center, with Srimati Radharani on the other side. There were also Govardhana and Shalagram shila's worshipped daily with the central Deities. The puja standard was first-class. There were about 10-15 ashramites ranging in age from 18 - 80 years old. Everyone was either a brahmacari or sannyasi. Akincana Krsnadas was the only "Babaji" who stayed regularly at the Vrndavana bhajan-kutir except for Srila Vana Maharaj's Babaji disciple Sri Lalit Babaji who returned to Vraja nitya-lila in 1972. In the daytime, after noon kirtana, Krsnadas Babaji Maharaj would go down into a cave room which Swami Vana had constructed years before. Srila Vana Maharaj was known to have performed solitary Vraja-bhajan in this basement room for a number of years before he accepted disciples. It was very cool in that room. So everyday Babaji Maharaj would spend the entire afternoon in the cave room chanting his mala. Babaji Maharaj didn't seem to have any teeth. He was an old Bengali disciple of Saraswati Thakura's who (it is rumored) went to live in seclusion at Haridwar after the disappearance of Prabhupada and the following trouble within the Gaudiya Math. In any case, that was many, many years before. He was about 70 years old when I first received his merciful glance. Making disciples, building temples or collecting money were the farthest thing from his mind; and he never, ever criticized anyone. His only concern was chanting constantly; either kirtan or rounds. He would answer with a laughing "Hare Krsna!" any time anyone would speak to him. He often had a gleefully pained look on his face like he had just heard the world's funniest joke and was going to burst out laughing. And when any one said Hare Krsna to Babaji he would laugh out loud in a most infectious manner. When ever he would say Hare Krsna he would laugh his way through the mantra. I have never seen Prema-bhakti as exhibited by Krsnadas Babaji Maharaj. All the Gaudiya Math devotees were so glad when Babaji Maharaj would come to stay. Time for the uttama kirtana! In 1968, for protection from my Vietnam draft legal problems, I proceeded to Govardhana Hill on the order of Srila Vana Maharaj to perform parikrama. By some good fortune I was accompanied by Babaji Maharaj who also wanted to visit Govardhana. On the way we stopped at Nandagram where we stayed for a week at Sanatana Goswami's bhajan kutir (no electric, water, nor latrine). Begging "madhu-kari" from the local Vraja-vasis by proclaiming, Radhe Syama!, we passed our time in chanting and exploring the home of Nanda Maharaj. Babaji Maharaj didn't speak anything (he only said "Hare Krsna!"), nor did I speak much Bengali yet, so our relationship was initially based on only saying "Hare Krsna!" to each other. Next we proceeded to Varsana where he introduced me to Sriji Herself. But due to my blunt material eyes I could only see charming Deities. We also stayed a few days at Man-mandira with a siddha-purush known as Radha-charan Das Babaji. He is one of the most exalted souls I have ever met, and as of 1996 he has resided there for 46 years. After many days we finally arrived at Mount Govardhana, but we got off the bus (at Babaji's insistence) before the bus drove over the hill and on to the bus station. Early the next morning, after bathing in Syama kunda & Radha kunda, we walked around Govardhana hill barefoot, carrying our bedding, chanting all the way. Sometimes Babaji Maharaj, while always chanting, would laugh out loud and other times he seemed morose like he was missing Krsna. Just like Srila Prabhupada, Babaji Maharaj never wasted a single moment without Krsna Consciousness. By evening we had completed the task and returned safely to Radha-kunda for the night. The next day we went back to Mathura by bus and onwards to Vrndavana by Tonga. Samadhi of Akinchan Krsnadas Babaji Maharaj in Nandagram Sanatana Goswami's sacred bhajan-kutir is on the banks of the eternal Pavan-sarovar lake. This kunda is so special because Sri Krsna takes His daily bath here eternally. It is said that a morning bath in Pavan-sarovar gives liberation from material bondage forever (at least a shira-snan). All the devotees would bath daily in this sarovar. It is very charming. Attached to this austere ashram is a very sacred tirtha, the samadhi of Akinchan Krsnadas Babaji Maharaj, who is a real bhajan-anandi. (It is interesting to note that the only two disciples of Prabhupada whose samadhi's are mentioned by H.H. Mahanidhi Maharaja in his book, "Gaudiya Vaisnava Samadhi's in Vrndavana," are Srila Bhakti Vedanta Swami Prabhupadawho was acting as a most empowered gostya-anandi, and Krsnadas Babaji Maharaj who was a most exalted bhajan-anandi). I still think that Mahanidhi Maharaj should include the samadhi's of other Prabhupada disciples whose samadhi's are located in Vrndavana like the samadhi of Tridandi Swami Bhakti Hrdaya Vana Maharaj which is near the entrance to Madan Mohan Ghera.) Nandagram is the lila-stali chosen over all others by Babaji Maharaj to leave his old body. Some devotees believe that Babaji Maharaj is eternally in shakya-rasa with Lord Krsna. Although he would never say, still, I remember him at Madhuvana singing a Hindi song about Krsna's friends with tears streaming down his face. In the samadhi is a large picture of Babaji Maharaj looking kind of pained. I have never exactly seen Babaji with that look before. I always remember him laughing and very happy. He was so humble that we were all afraid to offer him obeisance's because he would always do the same in return. He would never accept obeisance's. Can you imagine a Vaisnava of Babaji's character bowing to a prakrta-bhakta and former beef-eater like me? I wasn't fit to wash his feet. Please allow me to speak more about Akinchan Krsnadas Babaji Maharaj. One time he was leading a large sankirtana party through the streets of Vrndavana. It was the middle of summer (In Vrndavana!!). When we reached Srila Bhakti Saranga Goswami's Gaudiya Math, Babaji Maharaj fainted. We all thought he might die, so we continued chanting and took him into Bhakti-Saranga Maharaja's Amalitala ashram. Finally we got Babaji Maharaja to wake up and then he got sick to his stomach. When he felt a little better he asked us to continue on and he would catch up later. Sure enough, on the last stretch, there was Babaji Maharaj with mrdanga in hand and a beaming grin on his face. On another occasion I was following Babaji Maharaj walking around Giriraj Maharaj. In all the years together I never heard Babaji Maharaj speak much. Example: "Babaji Maharaj, is it true that you're in shakya rasa?" To which he replies, "HARE KRSNA!!!" Even when he was meeting with his Godbrothers he would always sit at their feet, and he would simply laugh and proclaim, "Hare Krsna!!!" whenever he was told anything. So we were walking past a devotee who was performing 108 dandavat parikrama around Govardhana when suddenly Babaji Maharaj turned to me and said, "Ucharan Koro!" ("Pronounce it"---the Holy Name). My chanting was so poor that Babaji Maharaj had to break his silence. As I mentioned before, Babaji Maharaj never slept. He was always up all night performing bhajan; at least during the summers when he would always stay in Vrndavana with Srila Vana Maharaj. First thing in the morning Babaji Maharaj would lead all the kirtana with all the many traditional Gaudiya Matha melodies. Then, after Caitanya Caritamrta reading (in Bengali), Babaji Maharaj would sit alone before the Deities and sing endless sweet bhajan's for a few hours. He would also sing (recite) so many verses, and he would always begin with all the Guru vandanas, Siddhanta-Sarasvati, Gaura Kishore, etc. During the afternoon he would stay in Swami Vana's underground room to chant. I often went down to serve him and I never saw him sleeping. At night he would again lead the kirtana, and after prasadam he would sit on the roof to pray, all night! The best way to describe Babaji Maharaja is a laughing "Hare Krsna!!"

True. I know of several cases where dogs have been turned herbivorous by their veg owners, and the animals don't seem to be doing too bad at all sans flesh in their diet.

Thank you for your post, Indulekhaji. The Bengali chant you wrote is indeed beautiful, and does glorify the three great Lords and their respective dhamas wonderfully. Radhe Radhe

Krishna nama gane bhai, radhika charana pai Radha nama gane krishna chandra Sankshepe kohinu kotha, ghuchao monera byatha Duhkamaya anya katha dhanda. (Prema Bhakti Chandrika) "O brother ! (Sister !) By singing Krishna's name you will reach Radhika's lotus feet, and by singing Radha's name you will reach Krishna-chandra. Now that I have told you this in brief, follow this advice and you will be relieved of your mental distress." Radhika charana renu, bhushana koriya tanu Anayase pabe giridhari Radhika charanashraya, ye kore se mahashaya Tare mui yai bolihari. (Prema Bhakti Chandrika 107) "Anyone who decorates his body with Radhika's footdust easily attains Giridhari. Anyone who takes shelter of Radhika's lotus feet is a commendable great soul of very fine spiritual taste and intelligence whom I repeatedly praise. Radha dasyam apasya yah prayatate govinda sangasaye So yam purna sudha ruceh paricayam rakam vina kanksh Kim ca syamarati pravaha lahari bijam na ye tam vidus Te prapyapi mahamritambudhim aho bindum param prapnuyuh. (Radha Rasa Sudhanidhi 80) "Someone who gives up Shri Radha's service desiring with endeavour to get Govinda's personal company, is like somebody expecting to find the full moon on a new moon day, and someone who does'nt know that Sri Radha is the seed of love for Shyama (Krishna) who is Himself a great ocean of absolute transcendental ambrosia, gets only a drop of that Shyama ocean. The glories of serving the Vaishnavas are mentioned in the Sandilya Smriti : siddhir bhavati va neti samshayo'cyuta sevinam na samshayo'tra tad bhakta paricaryaratatmanam "One may still doubt whether or not prema siddhi (the perfection of Love Divine for God) will be attained through the service of Shri Acyuta (God) but there can be no doubt about it that prema siddhi will be attained through serving His devotees.", as also in the Adi Purana: ye me bhakta janah partha na me bhaktash ca te janah mad bhaktanam ca ye bhaktas te me bhaktatama matah (Shri Krishna told Arjuna: "O Partha! Those who are only devoted unto Me are not really My devotees. You should know, however, that those who are devoted to My devotees are My greatest devotees."

Rishi_L, we are in Kali-yuga of the 28th divya-yuga of Vaivasvata manvantara. It began not 300 million years ago but is roughly about 120 million years old. By a simple calculation, 28 x 4,320,000 comes to 120,960,000, and we still have 427,000 or so to go in this current age, so the answer is more like 120,500,000 years. Yes, we have got 43 full chatur-yugas to be covered before the Savarni (8th) manvantara kicks in, when Bali Maharja shall act as Indra, so the info that was related to you is erroneous. You can make of it what you want, but the present cosmic day is just under 2 billion years old, and if Cremo and Thompson believe otherwise, which I don't think is the case since I haven't come across it in any of their numerous books, ALL of which I do own and have read, that would place them at variance with the rest of the entire Vedic tradition. In passing, the figure I mentioned to you does figure in Cremo's book Forbidden Archaelogy's Impact. Having said this, the whole of Hinduism, including Gaudiya Vaishnavas, work out their panjikas based on the material of the Surya-siddhanta and other jyotisha-shastras and just to give a comparable quote from the Caitanya-caritamrta, I'll copy and paste this: CC: Adi CH. 3 TEXT 9 TEXT ‘vaivasvata’-näma ei saptama manv-antara sätäiça catur-yuga tähära antara SYNONYMS vaivasvata-näma—named Vaivasvata; ei—this; saptama—seventh; manu-antara—period of Manu; sätäiça—twenty-seven; catuù-yuga—cycles of four ages; tähära—of that; antara—period. TRANSLATION The present Manu, who is the seventh, is called Vaivasvata [the son of Vivasvän]. Twenty-seven divya-yugas [27 x 4,320,000 solar years] of his age have now passed. TEXT 10 TEXT añöäviàça catur-yuge dväparera çeñe vrajera sahite haya kåñëera prakäçe SYNONYMS añöäviàça—twenty-eighth; catuù-yuge—in the cycle of four ages; dväparera—of the Dväpara-yuga; çeñe—at the end; vrajera sahite—along with Vraja; haya—is; kåñëera—of Lord Kåñëa; prakäçe—manifestation. TRANSLATION At the end of the Dväpara-yuga of the twenty-eighth divya-yuga, Lord Kåñëa appears on earth with the full paraphernalia of His eternal Vraja-dhäma. So what I told you is THE Vedic version. You can take it or leave it. As a final note, by a first order of approximation, 2 billion years is a good round figure for 1,972,949,110, and is substantially closer to it than it is to 2.3 billion. I ignore how the VEDA folks came up with the latter figure, but it is indubitably wrong, and the entirety of the Hindu tradition would back me up on this one.

You can go to any pandita in India and they'll confirm my statement. The reference you gave is wrong on this one count. We are indeed in the 454th chatur-yuga of the present day of Brahma, the Shveta-Varaha kalpa. This is right, and two sources that I know of which express this are the Chaitanya-charitamrita as well as the Sanskrit astronomical treatise called the Surya-siddhanta. There is a well-known mantra that priests term the sankalpa, widely recited across India and elsewhere at the beginning of certain pujas, that also contains this information, as well as other data such as the name, gotra, and location of the person performing the ritual. I hope that this helps.

Nopes, you can calculate the age it as follows: (7 x 1,728,000) + (453 x 4,320,000) + (4,320,000 - 432,000 + 5,110) = 1,972,949,110 years; with seven sandhyas each equivalent to the length of a Satya-yuga having elapsed, as well as 453 yuga cycles (6 manvantaras of 71 divya-yugas and 27 complete ones in the current one, i.e. the 7th Patriarchate of Manu), the whole added to one divya-yuga minus one Kali-yuga plus 5,110 years of the age of Kali, since most traditional authorities give the date of Feb. 18, 3,102 BCE, for the start of the present era. As for the rest of your post, we both are in concordance with each other. Radhe Radhe

Well, the present kalpa is slightly less than 2 billion years old, and humans have been in existence since then, practically. Followers of Vedic culture (Aryans) and less civilised folks alike have been around forever, so what you say certainly bears truth, albeit cremation is the standard way to dispose of corpses in our Dharma. However, burial holds sway in many non-Vedic milieus, so what you're quoting the Buddha on would be expected, one would imagine. As for neo-Darwinism, some facets of it without a shadow of a doubt apply to nature as we perceive it, but the bulk of that theory is just that, unproven suppositions and conjectures, and those who try to stay abreast of the discussions taking place on this subject are cognizant of the extent to which old Charles's brainchild is getting stick from various quarters these days. Even a number of agnostics and sceptics now opine that, while the reasons for not believing in a Supreme Being might be many, the theory of evolution by natural selection is not one of them. And most of us here who are religiously inclined are predominantly motivated by a strong, intuitive conviction in the existence of the eternal atma. Hence, there is little time to be done away with in contemplating over an ideology that asserts the supremacy of dead matter over everything else.

Pranam Ganeshprasad, You should be careful not to consider ISKCON to be the all and all of Gaudiya Vaishnavism. In fact, for all their international presence, they are just a fraction of the entire tradition which finds its roots and main centres in Bengal, Orissa and in the Vrindavana area of UP. The vast majority of traditional Gaudiyas do not criticize Mirabai, even if we do not follow her since she is not in our lineage. Ditto for Gosvami Tulasidasa, whose Sri Ramacaritamanasa I for one happen to revere, although once again the Bhagavata is for me the topmost pramana. Even in the Gaudiya Matha, they generally consider Tulasidasa to be a genuine Vaishnava and an exemplary Rama-bhakta. Most in ISKCON do not equate these conceptions but that is their business, and they don't quite represent the standard Caitanyaite view. Gosvamiji was initiated in the Rama-mantra (Sri Rama Jaya Rama Jaya Jaya Rama) in the Ramananda sampradaya, a branch of the Sri sampradaya of Ramanujacarya, and his ista-devatas were Sri Sri Sita-Rama, whom we Gaudiyas understand to be expansions of Sri Sri Radha-Govinda. Therefore, bear in mind that what you get from some devotees here is not the mainstream Gaudiya idea. Even JN Prabhu once expressed his appreciations on these forums for the Hanuman Chalisa, which as you are aware, was composed by Tulasidasaji. I hope that this little note just puts back some perspective into the whole discussion. Radhe Radhe

Still, Lord Sadashiva is God in all respects and has His eternal dhama beyond the mahat-tattva, and this is communicated to us by none other than our sambandha-acarya, Srila Sanatana Gosvamipada, in his magnum opus, the Brhad-Bhagavatamrta. Sanatana Gosvami himself went to pay his obeisances to Chakaleshvara Shiva at Manasi-Ganga on a daily basis. Of course, Krishna is Svayam-Bhagavan, and I accept that without giving a toss as to whether my faith is confirmed by others or not. And I reckon that most Gaudiya devotees should adopt this sort of attitude, instead of frittering valuable time and energy arguing pointlessly. The Internet can be a useful resource for us all to increase our sraddha, not to behave like kanistha adolescents shouting at the top of their voices stuff such as: "My God is more powerful than yours." As a matter of fact, this doesn't befit folks who profess to be following Mahaprabhu. Let those who want to wallow in this brand of baseness indulge themselves to their hearts' content, but let us, for our part, evince an iota of maturity in not permitting ourselves to embarrass our sampradaya through such.

Hare Krishna Yogeshji, I shall keep my eyes open for more of the kind, as you requested. Thanks for airing your appreciation for this tiny endeavour to glorify the saint that Avadhuta Shri Radha-charan das Babaji unquestionably is. Radhe Radhe

Jahnava Nitai Prabhu, I could not have put it better. Please accept my prostrate obeisances in deference to your learning and wisdom. You are in fact a worthy heir to the rishis and munis of the yore. Radhe Radhe

Indeed, and Sadaputa demonstrates such and much, much more in his rigorous studies cited above. Check them out if you're interested. Radhe Radhe

The above is an article by Hrsikesananda Dasaji / Richard Shaw Brown, an early disciple of Bhativedanta Swami Prabhupada and one of the first Westerners to spend a large amount of time in Vraja-mandala. In particular, he stayed with one of Prabhupada's Gurubhais for a while and also lived separately, on his own, elsewhere in the Lord's abode. Later, he went back to serve under Bhaktivedanta Swami. The above account is a lovely glorification of a little-known servant of Bhagavati Sri Radhika, and I thought I would perhaps wash away some of my personal prarabdha by this minuscule attempt to honour a true Vaishnava, and one from whose life many of us could learn a thing or two. Radhe Radhe

Avadhuta Radha-charan das Babaji Man-mandira, Gavarvan, Mayur-kutir, Krishna kunda And Sankarikar Gali in Varshana Dhama, U.P., India <HR>The temple of anger, Man-mandira, is located on the top of Varshana hill over-looking beautiful Gavarvan forest, and it commemorates the site where Srimati Radharani became angry (pro. maan) with Krishna when She seemed to feel that He had been with another. Lord Krishna pleaded with Lalita-sakhi to pacify Radharani, but She refused to hear His plea. Their ultimate union resulting from this exchange is the eternal Mayura-lila or peacock dance, which takes place on the hill opposite to Man-mandira. The sadhu caretaker of Man-mandira, Sri Radha-charan das Babaji, once revealed that Radha feigned anger because Krishna, while praising Radharani, had compared Her beauty to the Moon. But the Moon is known to possess 10 faults, viz., always changing, having spots, etc., so Radharani took offence. Man-lila is unlimited, so there is no end to the reasons for Radharani's feigned anger. But according to Babaji, there is no question of Radha being angry like we know in this material world, it is all done for the ever-increasing pleasure of Her eternal Lord Krishna. In recent years, Man-mandira as well as the path to it have been greatly improved (including WC) by the local Varshana-vasi's. These Vraja-vasi's are devotees or well wishes of Radha-charan das, who is the caretaker of Man-mandira for the last half a century. Please consider that Radha-charan is a sadhu coming from outside of Vraja-mandala whom even the Varshana-vasi's support as their greatest living renounced saint. The Varshana-vasi's respect and follow Radha-charan Babaji. And yet he says that nothing can compare to Radharani's eternal associates the Varshana people (Vraja-vasis). They praise his singing and yet he says nothing can compare to them or their singing. He says that his own voice is "hard & dry" compared to the sweetness of the Varshana people's singing. There is a very real and sacred relationship between the Varshana-vasi's and Sri Radha-charan das, who is considered by the Varshana-vasi's themselves to be the best devotee amongst them all. For over 50 years Radha-charan has dressed almost only in an old white kaupina and a blanket for winter. He is the personification of Vairagya. He always keeps a shaved head (the Varshana kids used to shave him). Although he is a very learned scholar who can speak perfect Sanskrit, English & Vraja-bhasa, still he practically (except on any Vraja-mandala darshan arranged by him and the Vraja-vasis them selves) never leaves Man-mandira, not even into Varshana. In the evening he holds rip-roaring Vraja-bhasa sankirtan with the local kids and now even their parents. I don't know very much about his background because it seems so out of place to ask about, with him in an obvious state of total surrender to the eternal service of Srimati Radharani at Man-mandira. Here is what little I know of his life. His primary scripture is Srimad Bhagavatam. The eternal service of Radha Krishna is his very life and soul. And fantastic kirtana is his favorite means of serving the Divine Couple. But the key is his intense renunciation of material comforts and amazing staying power. He appeared in central India about 70 years ago as a very well bred Brahmin boy named Ramesh, and he was an exceptional student. He excelled in Sanskrit, Hindi, and English (he speaks all perfectly); but his major in College was classical and devotional music, which he loved most of all. During his student period (due to unknown sukriti) he became initiated by an empowered Vaishnava saint who advised him against getting caught within the material entanglement during this life. His Guru's teachings made a great impact on him, and the tree of jnana, bhakti & vairagya grew strong within his heart and intellect. Soon his parents were arranging for his marriage, which they wanted him to accept. His dilemma was two-fold, 1) he couldn't refuse his parents wish that he marry, and 2) from his Gurudeva he knew that he was unable to live a material life; and to marry this girl and then leave her for his spiritual urge would ruin her life and be unfair to her. So to solve this dilemma he did the traditional Vedic thing, i.e., he renounced the world and became an avadhuta-sadhu; and from a young age for the past 50 years he has resided as the eternal servant of Sriji at Man-mandira in Varshana. His dispassion, steadfastness and austerity are incomparable to any other persons I have ever known thus far. When he first left home he went to wander dressed only in kaupina deep in the wild Chitrakut forests. He used dried weeds and grass to create a blanket during winter and lived as an avadhuta, under going incredible hardship to gain the grace of Srimati Radharani and Her Lord. He would eat what he could find on trees including leaves. And he endured many mortal dangers while deep in the dark Chitrakut forest and every time Lord Krishna would save his life like a miracle. But he began to feel that by residing in this dangerous condition he was causing some inconvenience to Lord Hari Who had to save him repeatedly. So feeling this way he decided to leave Chitrakut. With his heart set on the feet of Sriji he walked bare foot (he had 0 possessions except a kaupina) and ended his journey at Man-mandira in Varshana. The temple was rubble with a broken circular rasa-mandala in the center of a pebble strewn old courtyard. The place was deserted except for the cobras and many scorpions. During his life at Man-mandira Radha-charan das has been stung by scorpions many times. After his long walk and with almost no nutrition he collapsed onto the rasa mandala and became delirious with a malaria type of fever. He lost time of material life and just took shelter (mentally) of Sriji, ready to leave his temporary mortal coil. Then, at some point unknown to him, he was awakened by a kind young Varshana boy who asked about his health. The Babaji was too weak to reply, but the boy poured some water into his mouth and said he would get better. Almost immediately he recovered his health and went asking in the village below about the identity of this boy. None of the Vraja-vasis knew of any such boy other than Lord Krishna Himself. So taking this as a blessing he resolved to remain for life at the Feet of Radha & Krishna at Man-mandira in Varshana-Dhama. His early years there were amazingly austere, with Radha-charan again making a crude blanket with dried weeds during winter. By Radharani's arrangement he was given madhu-kari by the local Vraja-vasi's through their kids. And he would share his stale bread with any other sadhu who would come (I saw this many times). Even when I first knew him around 1969 his life could still be classified as cave-man austerity with an avadhuta personality. Pure Radha-sakhi-bhakti-rasa, with NO material desire, not even for any recognition. When I saw him again in 1994 he had lightened-up a bit at the insistence of the Varshana people. I could see that now he slept on a piece of wood and even used a real blanket. He told me with a sigh that he had fallen a victim to luxury. What could I say? Please consider the paradox: In Varshana there are always many locals very aggressively hounding visiting devotees, often to the point that the devotees get angry and commit dhama-aparadha. But Radha-charan, who is an outsider, is fed, clothed and supported by these same 'seemingly' pesky beggars because he is the REAL sadhu, who has no possessions other than the love of the Varshana vasis. This is something almost unthinkable to Western oriented Vaishnavas who are weaned entirely on the material concept, even in their spiritual approach. Some "sahib" style devotees even think that material results, like so-called laxmi-points, or any other material consideration are proof of bhakti, when in truth bhakti has nothing to do with any intended or expected material result. It is an offense to judge another devotee's level of loving Lord Krishna, especially based on material results. Material results are what the gross materialists base everything on. So to say that because such-n-such devotee did more materially therefore he is better than another devotee (based on material results) is a completely mundane concept. PART II: During the years I often resided at Man-mandira the temple, which is located on a hill above Gavarvana, was very rundown. A crumbling stone wall around a small courtyard, which contained the large rasa-mandala in front of the small shrine room. During my early stays they had a very small and rotted picture of "Man-lila" as the Deity; but later I discovered a much larger, very charming picture of Man-lila, which I had framed and carried to Man-mandira. Immediately Sri Radha-charanji established this new "Chitra-vigraha" as the new temple Deities. I felt that Srimati Radharani had so kindly accepted my little personal service to Vraja-dham. And that same Chitra-vigraha is still presiding there even today. On both sides of the small shrine are stone/mud rooms. One room leads to an ancient stairway, which descends into the snake-infested bhajan cave-room. This room has many stories to tell, but its main attraction is a flat stone slab where Radha & Krishna sat during the Man-lila exchange. To the pure devotees this stone (which is crammed into a crack in the cave wall) glows blue on one side and golden on the other. When going down into this cave room the Vraja-vasi kids (who always stay close to Radha-charanji) will go first with lamp and bang sticks on the stairs to scare away any deadly poisonous snakes. It's very nerve-wracking to perform bhajan in this dark cave because of the snakes and scorpions. I can still remember some of the wonderful stories that Radha-charan Babaji narrated to me over the last 30 years, and I will repeat some of them here because they were spoken by Radha-charan das Babaji himself. Many saints have performed their bhajan at man-mandira in the before mentioned cave room, and among them was a king from Rajasthan, the Vraja-vasi story goes, who had been very miserly and sinful in his lifetime. When the king reached old age he heard that his son planned to kill him and take over the kingdom. Despondent upon hearing this news, the king realized how much his life had been wasted in sinful pursuits and how he should therefore surrender to Radha and Krishna. Renouncing everything and sneaking away from his palace, the king traveled alone and eventually came to this temple of Man-mandira, where he surrendered to Their Lordships. Thereafter he was heard to be chanting the holy names of the Lord constantly. After many years of practice in this sadhana, the king had become highly enlightened. One day he dropped his japa-mala and picked up a poisonous snake by mistake. The snake bit him on the finger, and seeing his life ebbing, the king emerged from the cave and went to the rasa-mandala, or the circular platform in the center of the courtyard built for Radha and Krishna. Standing on this platform he prayed to Srimati Radharani, "O Radhe, please take me! Please take me! Please take me!" With his arms outstretched, he saw that the virulent poison from the snakebite was leaving his body in drops from his finger. Astonished, but aware that this was Radharani's special mercy upon him, he entered his cave in great ecstasy and continued anew with his worship. Although the poison had vanished, however, the wound itself had become infected, and in time it turned into a wormy, gangrenous sore inside and out. This made it practically impossible for him to chant the holy names of the Lord with his japa. beads and thus he counted his rounds in his mind. While still in this condition, a beautiful young gopi girl whose effulgence lit up the whole cave approached him and asked what was wrong with his arm. He told her what had happened, and thus she advised him to visit the village doctors. He was convinced, however, that Srimati Radharani was the only person who could save him, for if She could make the poison leave his body then She could also cure this infection very easily. The little girl nodded agreement at this nice display of faith in Radharani, and when the girl left he could understand that She was Srimati Radharani Herself. Inspecting his arm he saw that it was miraculously cured, but in feeling distraught that he had not immediately recognized Radharani when She personally came before him, he simple left his body then and there and returned home, back to eternal Varshana in divya Goloka-dham. From the gateway at Man-mandira are stone stairs descending through and into the sacred forest of Gavarvan with Krishna Kunda in the very center. Gavarvan Gavarvan is the area between Man-mandira and Mayur-kutir with Krishna kunda in the center. Krishna kunda is a small bathing ghata where a lot of the Vraja-vasis bathe every morning along with any sadhus. Gavarvan is a beautiful garden that was built, local tradition says, by Srimati Radharani Herself for Her meetings with Krishna. The local inhabitants sing this lovely bhajan: "O Radhe! This wonderful garden of Gavarvan was built personally by You with Your own beautiful hands, and You are always walking amidst this garden thinking of Krishna. The footprints and dust of Your lotus feet are everywhere, and we only pray that we may be able to sweep this Gavarvan, not with ordinary brooms but with our eyelashes, that we may see all the more closely the dust of Your lotus feet." Srila Kaviraj Goswami has beautifully described Radharani, perhaps at Gavarvan, in the following verse (nitya-lila period 3) from "Sri Radha-Krsnayoh asta-kaliya-lila smarana-mangala stotram:" tritiya-yama-kirttanam : Chanting during the third period: (8:10 a.m. to 10:34 a.m.) purvahne dhenuamatrairvipina manusrtam gosthalokanuyatam krsnam radhapti lolam tadabhisrtikrte prapta-tankunda-tiram/ radham calokya krsnam krtagrhagamanamaryaya 'rkarcanayai distam krsnapravrtyai prahitanijasakhivartmanetram smarami purvahne --in the forenoon dhenuamatraih --by cows and friends vipinam --towards the forest anusrtam --followed gostha-loka-'anuyatam --followed by cowherd people (i.e., Nanda and others) krsnam --Krsna; radhaptelolam --anxious to find Radha tadabhisrtikrte --for the purpose of secretly approaching Her prapta-tankunda-tiram --who had gone to her pond (Radha-kunda) arkarcanayai --to worship the sun god distam --ordered krsnapravrtyai --to get news of Krsna's whereabouts prahitanija-sakhivartmanetram --who was casting her eyes toward the path by which Her friends would return smarami --I remember. "I remember Sri Krsna in the forenoon. He was going toward the forest, followed by cows and cowherd friends. Others like Nanda Maharaja also followed Him. Because He was anxious to be with Radharani, Krsna went to search Her out on the banks of Sri Radha-kunda. I also remember Sri Radha, who, having caught a glimpse of Krsna, went home, where She was ordered by Her mother-in-law (Jatila) to worship the Sun god. Radharani had sent Her girlfriends to discover Krsna's whereabouts, and thus She was casting her eyes down the pathway by which they were likely to return." On one visit to Gavarvan around 1971 I was warned by the Vraja-vasi kids (and Radha-charan dasji) about a big "killer monkey" who had gone berserk and was viciously attacking people every day. One of the sadhus at Man-mandira named Sakhi charan das Babaji had been attacked and it looked more like the bite of a lion than a monkey. Some Vraja-vasis came to ask Radha-charan's permission to poison this dangerous beast, but he could not give his blessings. My close call with this Vraja monkey was also around the same time. I had finished my bath and gayatri at Krishna Kunda and was ready to walk back up the stairs to Man-mandira. The Vraja-vasi kids (who seemed to really love this fallen soul) gave me a long spear (a stick with one end sharpened) to carry with me for protection. When I was about half way up I heard all the monkeys screaming and shaking the trees, and when I stopped to look around I saw the killer monkey bounding towards me at full speed. I just had time to raise my spear, which stopped the monkey in his tracks about 10 feet from me. He was twice as big as any monkey I ever seen anywhere in Vraja and he glared at me very menacingly. It had become a stand off, so slowly I started walking backwards up the stairs, and the monkey, with bared fangs, stayed right on me. Suddenly I heard all the Vraja-vasi boys shouting in Vraja-bhasa, "we are coming, we are coming" as they started running up the stairs. The killer monkey looked at the boys and glared back at me, then he took off like a bolt of lightning. So I continued on up the stairs (shaking like a leaf). On my next visit to Gavarvan I heard that the Vraja-vasis had gone ahead and finally poisoned the killer monkey of Varshana. I must say it was a great relief not to worry about being viciously attacked. Mayur-kutir Opposite Man-mandira on the other hillside of Gavarvan stands Mayur-kutir, a small temple housing a famous painting of Radha & Krishna's peacock dance, or Mayur-nitya-lila. After the pastime of being angry with Krishna, described above, Radharani retired to this place with Her friends, meditating on how to obtain Krishna's forgiveness and to dance with Him like a peacock and a peahen. Happy to satisfy Her desires, Krishna flew to Her (or She flew to Him) in the form of a beautiful transcendental peacock, and it was at this site that They performed Their enchanting Mayur-lila. This temple houses a painting done by a self-realized saint who was specifically empowered to do so. He had been meditating very intensely on this peacock pastime, and one day in old age Radharani gave him a glimpse of this sacred lila. He was overwhelmed with ecstasy, but the divine vision was suddenly taken away and he was plunged into despair. He prayed fervently, and one night Radharani appeared to him in a dream and told him, "I have shown you this wonderful pastime, but I shall not display it to you again unless you paint it." The sadhu said that he knew nothing about the art of painting, but Radharani assured him that She would give him all the artistic ability that he needed. So in the morning he prepared some paints from various minerals and oils and herbs, and fashioned a brush from a squirrel's tail. Seeing that he was faithful to Her request, Radharani displayed once more the transcendental pastime of the peacock dance, Mayura-lila. Once more elevated to divine ecstasy, the sadhu began to paint this wonderful pastime. This eyewitness account of a loving pastime enjoyed by Radha and Krishna can be seen to this day. Sankarikar Gali Descending to Krishna kunda in Gavarvan, and walking counter-clock-wise around Varshana hill, one will reach the narrow path passing through Sankarikar-gali, a narrow valley, and one side of which is composed of dark stone and the other side of golden stone. This valley is so narrow that people must pass single-file. This is the very spot where Radharani and Her Sakhis pass on their way to Varshana for the purpose of selling their milk products in the marketplace. As they file through this valley they meet Sri Krishna, who tells them that this valley and whole area of Vraja belongs to Him and that they must pay an appropriate toll if they wish to continue their errand. Srimati Radharani refuses to pay the toll and Lalita argues Radharani's case before Krishna, while Madhumangala argues on Krishna's behalf. Lalita argues that Varshana is in Radharani's jurisdiction, but Madhumangala says that Krishna owns everything. The result is that Krishna often breaks the pots of yogurt and both He and the cowherd boys steal the butter. Close by is a stone where Krishna placed His conch shell and wiped off the butter that had become smeared all over His hands. A complete bath in Sri Krishna Kunda is highly recommended but VERY difficult and dangerous for Western (sahib) oriented devotees. On a two-week stay at Man-mandira around 1970 I requested Radha charan Babaji to please translate the Narasimha lila from His Sanskrit copy of Srimad Bhagavat, 7th Canto. So every day we would sit together on the old rasa mandala and I would hear while Babaji read all the Sanskrit verses and explained them to me in perfect English. That was the best translation I have ever heard; emanating from the mouth of a steadfast avadhuta devotee like Radha-charan das. I hope any soul has gained an appreciation of a great living unsung saint, Radha-Krishna devotee and avadhuta sadhu, Sri Radha-charan das Babaji, caretaker of Man-mandira, in Varshana, Vraja-mandala, India, for over the last half-century.

For me, the work of Sadaputa dasa (Richard L. Thompson) on Bhagavata cosmology is, to date, the standard that serious students of this topic ought to use in comprehending the purpose behind Sri Sukadeva's inclusion of the fifth canto stuff in his instructions and narrations to King Parikshit. The concentric circles do not necessarily relate to what Vyasa Maha-Muni and His contemporaries thought they were walking and living on. Thompson, for those who don't know, has a Ph.D in Mathematics from Cornell University (with specialisation in Probability Theory and Statistical Mechanics), and has also conducted research in evolutionary biology and quantum theory at Cambridge University in the U.K. and at the State University of New York at Binghamton, in addition to having worked on a NASA-funded project on satellite remote sensing. He therefore, has no lessons to learn from Shvu with regard to the prevailing scientific paradigms and modern rational thinking. Apart from his academic credentials, the man and his team of devotee-researchers at Bhaktivedanta Institute Alachua in Florida have spent some three decades studying Vedic/Puranic astronomy and cosmology and has come up with two books and several papers on the same. For a detailed and thorough expose of this subject, I would invite anyone interested to consult his works such as "Vedic Cosmography and Astronomy" and especially "Mysteries of the Sacred Universe". Through an attentive examination of these books, which combine both the devotional and scholarly methodologies in an interesting way, any open-minded and objective reader would probably emerge with a new-found respect for the cosmological material contained in the ancient texts of India.