muralidhar

Some pundits believe the Pracin Mayapur site was the birthplace of Mahaprabhu, but we know Srila Jagannatha Das Babaji Maharaj considered the place discovered by Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur to be the real Mayapur.

The pundits who think Pracin Mayapur is the site include the cross dresser Radhavinodini Dasi, a disciple of Charan Das Babaji. I don't know if there were any boys dressed up as girls in attendence at Mayapur when the installation ceremony was performed. I believe they would not have been welcome. Maybe Jagat can advise us.

I am checking, but I expect the Charan Das Babaji mentioned by Jagat must be Radharaman Charan Das Babaji. He was rejected by his Guru Srila Jagannatha Das Babaji Maharaj.

Jagat said:

<hr>

Vraja Mohan Dasji started his research in 1916. He walked all over the Dham as well as investigating the available records, including the British survey maps that had been conducted from 1757 onwards. Apparently, he was on one occasion beaten up, his sikha cut off, his mala cut and thrown naked into the Ganges by the Mayapur faction. This probably when he entered the Mayapur compound. I have myself seen the vitriolic literature written by Paramananda Brahmachari at around this time, accusing Vraja Mohan Dasji and his backers of all manner of licentiousness in an effort to discredit his efforts. This evidently did not help Bhaktivinoda Thakur's cause with Bipin Bihari Goswami.

At any rate, through his research Vraja Mohan pinpointed the Ramachandra Chora land as the likeliest site of Gaur Govinda Singh's temple. He proceeded to dig more than 700 holes in the ground there before finding a large piece of red sandstone that had been a part of it. He exhibited the piece of stone to an assembly of Vaishnavas and work was begun building a new temple there.

Even so, the effort had exhausted him and he died not long after, turning the temple service over to Charan Das's sakhibhekhi disciple Radhavinodini Dasi. The area was officially named Prachin Mayapur in 1928. The temple was turned over to Ramdas Babaji in 1953.

<hr>

Some pundits believe the Pracin Mayapur site was the birthplace of Mahaprabhu, but we know Srila Jagannatha Das Babaji Maharaj considered the place discovered by Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur to be the real Mayapur.

The pundits who think Pracin Mayapur is the site include the cross dresser Radhavinodini Dasi, a disciple of Charan Das Babaji. I don't know if there were any boys dressed up as girls in attendence at Mayapur when the installation ceremony was performed. I believe they would not have been welcome. Maybe Jagat can advise us.

I am checking, but I expect the Charan Das Babaji mentioned by Jagat must be Radharaman Charan Das Babaji. He was rejected by his Guru Srila Jagannatha Das Babaji Maharaj.

Jagat said:

<hr>

Vraja Mohan Dasji started his research in 1916. He walked all over the Dham as well as investigating the available records, including the British survey maps that had been conducted from 1757 onwards. Apparently, he was on one occasion beaten up, his sikha cut off, his mala cut and thrown naked into the Ganges by the Mayapur faction. This probably when he entered the Mayapur compound. I have myself seen the vitriolic literature written by Paramananda Brahmachari at around this time, accusing Vraja Mohan Dasji and his backers of all manner of licentiousness in an effort to discredit his efforts. This evidently did not help Bhaktivinoda Thakur's cause with Bipin Bihari Goswami.

At any rate, through his research Vraja Mohan pinpointed the Ramachandra Chora land as the likeliest site of Gaur Govinda Singh's temple. He proceeded to dig more than 700 holes in the ground there before finding a large piece of red sandstone that had been a part of it. He exhibited the piece of stone to an assembly of Vaishnavas and work was begun building a new temple there.

Even so, the effort had exhausted him and he died not long after, turning the temple service over to Charan Das's sakhibhekhi disciple Radhavinodini Dasi. The area was officially named Prachin Mayapur in 1928. The temple was turned over to Ramdas Babaji in 1953.

<hr>

Haribol,

Videos and CD's of Srila Sridhar Maharaj are available here

http://germany.scsmath.org/cd.htm

http://germany.scsmath.org/video.htm

Murali

Theist,

In regard to Srila Sridhar Maharaj saying the first position of the jiva is like that of brahma.

This issue is connected to the discussions about the origin of the jiva soul. Srila Sridhar Maharaj said that the soul originates from within the Brahman effulgence, and from there he chooses to go to Vaikuntha or Maya.

As I said, if we start discussing these things on a forum such as this, the conversation will very soon scatter into other discussions. Someone will say "the soul fell from Goloka so Sridhar Maharaj is wrong", or someone will say "the soul originated in Material existence - he is nitya-baddha" etc. etc. etc. etc. ad infinitum

Murali

Gaurachandra and Theist,

Srila Sridhar Maharaj studied western philosophy while he was studying Law in Calcutta in the 1920's. He was fully acquainted with all the Western philosophers theories up till say, the 1930's. But he really didn't follow the development of western philosophy subsequent to that -- apart from some philosophical things devotees might have discussed with him from time to time. However, he always kept up to date with news and scientific developments, as he used to listen to the radio news and news shows. In the last 20 years or so that he was with us, he was blind in one eye and could only see partial vision with the other eye, so he couldn't read at all. Consequently he used to listen to the Bengali news radio to find out what was happening in the world. When you hear Guru Maharaj speaking and quoting verses, all the thousands of Sanskrit and Bengali quotes he used to refer to were all memorised by him 20 or 30 years earlier.

In regard to Subjective Evolution of Consciousness, which is really another way of descibing Sankhya and Vedanta, his thoughts were more in tune with what he had understood from studying the Unpanishads and the Vedanta commentaries of Sri Madhvacharya and Sri Ramanujacharya, instead of what he had read from Plato, Kant and Hegel. But Srila Sridhar Maharaj did repeatedly refer to Hegel when he spoke, he used to quote Hegel constantly, especially "Die to Live", "Dialectics", "Thesis, Antithesis and Synthesis", and "Reality is By Itself and For Itself". Hegels philosophy is very close to the philosophy of Sri Ramanujacharya in many regards.

Really, Prabhus, this is a huge subject to discuss. I have spent 20 years studying different aspects of this Subjective Evolution teaching, and I can now see that this approach to philosophy provides a beautiful, aesthetic understanding of philosophy. And it also enables us to reconcile mainstream western science with Vedanta. But it is such a huge subject to discuss, I really don't feel it is possible to go through this in an internet forum. The issues are so complex that the discussions are bound to scatter into hundreds of directions in no time at all.

In the end, what Guru Maharaj was trying to express is that in Vrindaban every thing is spiritual. Every tree, bird and cloud. In this mundane world (cit-abhasa) everything is just a shadow of the pure spiritual entities of Vaikuntha, somewhat like in Plato's philsophy. But for Plato things such as a tree, house or rock are all imperfect representations of IDEAL UNIVERSALS whereas in the Vedic literature there is a conscious god (Deva) that is the prototype (universal) for every thing; for instance Indra is behind clouds and rainfall, Varuna is behind flowing water, Vishvakarma is behind machines, etc.

Srila Sridhar Maharaj explained that if an insect sits on a neem tree he instinctively gets the idea that this neem tree is not suitable to eat. The way this "instinct" works is that the "ancestors" of the insect will speak to the particular bug and say "don't eat this". That is, the Deva or prototype of a particular species of bug is resident in the psyche of every bug of that species. All bugs of that species are "representatives" or "icons" of that Deva, that being. I may become a bug for a lifetime, and in that bug life I will "instinctively" get message from my psyche/brain/Deva which I instinctively follow. I will be acting out the role of that bug for that lifetime. And for other creatues such as a fig tree it is the "Insect Deva" himself who is sitting on the branch; the fig tree is unaware of my individual personality, but it may have some perception that a type of being (insect deva) is eating its leaves. So, the individual insect sees the tree as a representation of the "Neem Tree Deva", and the fig tree sees the bug as a manifestation of the "Bug God". Similarly, someone can be born in a body where he will act out the story of Indra, or some other spirit who can live within fire or water. Complicated issues to discuss. I may be sounding foolish saying all this, in fact, because it is difficult to explain all this. As I said, the main thing is that we see that in Vrindaban every blade of grass is conscious and blissful.

Murali.

It is nice to see Srila Prabhupada holding Srila Sridhar Maharaj's arm as they walk back from having darshan of the Deities.

Friendship between devotees is a wonderful thing.

Murali

Info from the Vaisnava.com:

<HR>

Dear disciples and grand-disciples, friends and followers of Srila Gurudeva:

Below you will find a link to a rare video clip of Srila Guru Maharaja, Srila Swami Maharaja and Srila Govinda Maharaja together in Sri Mayapur Dham at the opening festival of the ISKCON temple there. Unfortunately there is no sound on this video clip, which was assumably made by an old 'hobby' camera, and then later transferred to VHS. The file is in MPG format, and it's almost 4 megabytes large - but then the video picture size is also quite big.

As far as I know, this is the oldest video recording of Srila Guru Maharaja and Srila Gurudeva. A picture from the same ceremony is of course republished in many books.

This link will probably not be active forever, but at least it will be maintained for a few months. Please visit:

http://www.vaisnava.com/cgi-bin/svenska/ax.pl?http://www.vaisnava.com/tr inityofgurus.mpg

Srila Guru Maharaja's auspicious 108th appearance day ki jaya!

Dear devotees,

Yesterday was the 108th birthday celebration day for Srila Sridhar Maharaj. In rememberance of our Guru Maharaj, the devotees have released an MPG video clip filmed at the time of the opening of the ISKCON Mayapura Chandrodaya Manidr in 1973.

The MPG file is 3.8mb in size. JNDas Prabhu may have problems downloading it in India!

The picture below was also taken at the same time as this film clip.

His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Rakshak Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj and His Divine Grace Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj Prabhupad sharing the same Vyasasana at the opening ceremony of Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj's Sri Mayapur Chandrodoy Mandir. At the lower left is His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj, who is now the President Acharya of the Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math.

Click here to DOWNLOAD 3.8 mb file in MPG format

Murali

Thanks Madhava

ys,

Murali

Srila Gaurkishore Das Babaji Maharaj meets with disciple of Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Goswami:

<hr>

Sri Vinoda-bihari met his beloved gurudeva, Jagad-Guru Nitya-lila-pravista Om Visnupada Sri Srimad Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasavati Prabhupada on Gaura-purnima, March 1, 1915 at Sridhama Mayapura and recieved first initiation from him...

There was a disciple of Prabhupada named Rama-govinda Vidyaratna who was a scholar of Vedanta, the Bhagavatam, and all the scriptures. He was a very good devotee and later became Naimi Maharaja. Once, he desired to have darsana of Prabhupada's guru, Srila Gaurakisora dasa Babaji Maharaja, and Guruji also wanted to go; so taking Prabhupada's permission, they went. At that time, to avoid the trouble that ordinary people were giving him, Babaji Maharaja had locked himself in a latrine for about a week and was just chanting, "Hare Krsna Hare Krsna..." The news reached the district magistrate and the police superintendent, and at once they all came running there. Seeing that the door was locked from inside, they approached with folded hands and said, "Babaji Maharaja, we will construct you a very nice hut for bhajana."

He replied, "No, this is very nice. Why?Because the stench of the lust of materialistic people does not come here. I prefer the stench of stool to that."

"Alright, Maharaja, we will supply you with one boy to keep those people away from you." Day and night they were trying to persuade him to come out, but he would only say, "For me, this is Vaikuntha." So many times they asked him to please open the door, but time and again he would reply, "I am not well; I am unable to do it." He would not open the door for those people, and he just continued chanting "Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna..." Then Guruji approached the door and said, "Babaji Maharaja, we are the disciples of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati." Hearing the name of Prabhupada, Babaji Maharaja at once stood up. Opening the door, he let them in and again locked the door. The two boys offered pranama and grasping the feet of Babaji Maharaja, Guruji said, "Please give us your blessings." Then Babaji Maharaja told him, "I will take all of your hardships and impediments away so you can always perform bhajana freely - this is my blessing." Later on Guruji would say on many occasions that although difficulties may have come to him from time to time, by the mercy of Babaji Maharaja nothing could ever disturb him.

<hr>

Srila Gaurakishore das Babaji Maharaj passed away on November 17th, 1915

I was just thinking about this verse today, when reading Gaudiya Kanthahara, 4.36

Is there some contention over this verse? Am I right in thinking that the verse is saying it is wrong to think of Sri Gauranga as an enjoyer of ladies, in the way that Rasaraj Sri Krishna is the enjoyer of lady-love?

Murali

Thanks Madhava,

for taking the time to reply

The devotee who had my copy of Prabhuada Srila Sarasawati Thakur by Sripad Sramana Maharaj has gone to India for Kartik, so I don't know when I will get that book back. I asked him to get me a new copy from Chaitanya Math in Mayapur if he couldn't find my original book.

Murali

Madhava,

in that article "SVALIKHITA JIVANI" you published. It says:

390. Bhaktavar Dvarik Babu told me one day that he had written a letter to Naphar Babu concerning [the arranging of worship?] of Sri Mayapur; I gave my approval and arranged a meeting at A. B. School in Krishnanagar in January 1884. On the 2nd day of Magha, on a Sunday, the meeting was held. All the scholarly men attended the meeting. Dvarik Babu and I explained the whole matter, and *** gave sanction for the prakasa seva [manifest, or external service] of Sri Mayapur. A society named Sri Sri Navadvipa Dhama Pracharini was established and Naphar Babu was declared the chairman of the society. Having collected funds at a public meeting according to the decision [of the society], approval was given for the installation service of Sri Murti.

391. On the 8th of Chaitra there was a huge Deity installation ceremony and innumerable participants attended. There was Manoharasari Kirtan, and Nama Sankirtan, all performed with great bliss. Much envy arose among the people of Navadvipa over the finding of Old Navadvipa. There began to be some gossip and a storm of abusive words against the worshipers of Gauranga, but why should those who have offered their life to the lotus feet of Gauranga retreat because of the talk of wicked people? Not paying heed to the talk of worldly- minded, envious people, they arranged to build a temple and worship the Supreme Lord there.

<hr>

Who is the person referred to as "***" where it says, "Dvarik Babu and I explained the whole matter, and *** gave sanction for the prakasa seva"

Why has this name been removed by Lalit Prashad, or whoever else edited this?

Murali

Dandabat Prabhu,

Thanks for the feedback and yes, I agree with the things you said regarding how Sachimata had that pastime with Sri Advaita Acharya. This standard of Vaishnavism is the ideal we are all supposed to follow, as was ordained by Mahaprahu himself. But how, then, do we deal with the fact that Lalit Prashad is reported to have told many persons that Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Goswami never received Diksa from Srila Gaurkishore Das Babaji Maharaj?

According to another disciple of Srila Bhaktivinode Thakura, Srila B. P. Tirtha Maharaj, in the extract below, "In 1901 he (Saraswati Thakur) took iniation into the greatest Mantras of Gaudiya Vaishnavas from Srila Gaura Kishoredas Babaji Maharaj".

I am really considering which way to go forward here. My inner feeling is that I don't want to attack any devotee, because that mood of fighting is not conducive to pure devotion. But on the other hand, what do I do when I know for certain that some person of high status has been telling lies? I know of two other very serious lies that the brother has told, aside from the lie that Srila Saraswati Thakur did not receive Diksa.

Below is an extract from the book "Srila Saraswati Thakur", by Bhakti Pradip Tirtha Maharaj.

I intend to scan this entire book and publish it online as an Adobe Acrobat PDF file as soon as I am able to. The book was published on 2nd January 1940, that is, two years after the disappearance day of Srila Saraswati Thakur.

In the "Preface" of the book Narayandas Adhikari Bhaktisadhukar says:

<hr>

<blockquote>

His Holiness Tridandiswami Srimad Bhakti Pradip Tirtha Maharaj had been the most beloved and trusted associate of His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupad for over twenty years in his pontifical activities. This account of Srila Prabhupad from the pen of Srila Tirtha Maharaj may be accepted as authentic being also endorsed as such by the present most Revered Spiritual Head of the Gaudiya Mission His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Prasad Puri Goswami Thakur.

</blockquote>

<hr>

<hr>

<blockquote>

<a href="http://www.wva-vvrs.org/pbook/pkb56.htm">

Sripad Bhakti Pradip Tirtha Goswami Maharaj. (1877-1953)</a>

Bhakti Pradip Tirtha Maharaj writes:

Sri Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Goswami was exceedingly fortunate in breathing an atmosphere of pure devotional surroundings from his cradle. He showed unique aptitude for a pure life of religious devotion and formation of various pious habits and practices from the seventh year of age. At that time he committed to memory the whole of the Gita and could explain it. While a student in Serampur Missionary School, in or about 1884-5, Srila Saraswati Thakur was initiated into Nrisimha Mantra and Sri Harinama by Srila Thakur Bhaktivinode...

- Page 1.

Since 1895 Srila Saraswati Thakur had been attending the Viswa Vaishnava Raja Sabha then situated in Krishna Sinha Lane (now Beadon Row). In 1901 he took iniation into the greatest Mantras of Gaudiya Vaishnavas from Srila Gaura Kishoredas Babaji Maharaj, the well-known saint of Nabadwip.

- Page 3.

</blockquote>

<hr>

I am also planning to publish another article entitled "On Diksha-Guru, Siksha-Guru & Chaitya-Guru", by Sripad B. P. Tirtha Maharaj which is in his book "The Teachings & Philosophy of Lord Chaitanya", from a lecture in Bombay Gaudiya Math on 29 August 1940.

In that article Sripad Tirtha Maharaj argues that Diksa is only fruitful if the devotee is truly surrendering to Gurudev. He concludes the lecture with these words:

"Unless and until we surrender ourselves completely to the Lotus Feet of the Diksa-Guru and the Siksha-Guru, our Chaitya-Guru or Indwelling Divine Monitor does not or cannot help us in any way in the performance of Nama-Bhajan or worshipful service of the Supreme Lord appeared as His Holy Image. So Sharanagati or unconditional surrender is the keynote in rendering any service, reverential or confidential, to the Supreme Lord Narayana in Vaikuntha or to the Supreme Lord Sri Krishna in Goloka-Vrindavana, respectively."

The claim has been made that Srila Gaurkishore Babaji did not initiate Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati. Other allegations have been made that Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati was not authorized to act as Guru and to give initiation to other devotees.

However, from the fact that Sripad Bhakti Pradip Tirtha Maharaj was sent by Srila Gaurkishore Babaji to accept initiation from Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur, and moreover the fact that Sripad Tirtha Maharaj became the first person to accept sannyasa from Srila Prabhupada, it demonstrates quite clearly that there was a close affiliation between the great Bhajananandi devotee Srila Gaurkishore Babaji and the great preacher of suddha-bhakti, Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Goswami.

Murali

from:

AN ERA NOT TO BE FORGOTTEN

Srila Gaurakisora Still Lives in Our Hearts

Translated by Vyankata dasa Brahmacari

Edited by Kesava Bharati dasa Vanacari

The Blessings of Srila Gaurakisora dasa Babaji

-------------

Once Sripada Bhaktitirthapada Maharaja according to the instruction of Srila

Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati, went from Sridhama Mayapura to Bhaktivinode Thakura.

Taking Bhaktivinode's permission he went over to the place where Srila

Gaurakisora dasa Babaji Maharaja would often go.

At that time, Sripada Tirtha Maharaja was in the householder ashrama. At that

time he had not taken initiation from Bhaktivinode Thakura. When Sripada Tirtha

Maharaja was going to see Srila Gaurakisora he took with him a type of

watermelon fruit. At that time, Srila Gaurakisora would not accept anything

from other persons. Still when Srila Gaurakisora had heard that Sripada Tirtha

Maharaja had just come from Bhaktivinode Thakura, then he very mercifully

accepted that fruit. After accepting the fruit, he asked the residents in the

dharmasalla there to please sing one song from Narottama das Thakura.

Following this, they sang other devotional songs such as Gauranga Bolite Habe

and Hari Hari Bolidai. After the kirtan had ended, Srila Gaurakisora told the

grhastha who had sung the song the following instructions: "One should always

remain very faithful unto the guru and the devotees of the Lord. One should

always be very very humble like a blade of grass and very tolerant like a tree

and in this way always be able to chant the holy names of the Lord. If one

comes into association with undesirous persons, then his mind, words, and

actions become far from being engaged in the devotion of the Lord."

Then one devotee there said, "We have not as yet surrendered unto the lotus

feet of the guru."

In answer, Srila Gaurakisora replied, "Have you not as yet been to see

Bhaktivinode Thakura? If you have been there to Sri Mayapura Dhama which is the

place where full self-surrender takes place, then how is it that you can say

that you have not taken shelter of a spiritual master? Srila Bhaktivinode is

waiting for you. Please go there and accept his mercy."

Srila Gaurakisora after saying this had that particular devotee, who would in

the future be Sripada Tirtha Maharaja, shave his hair. He then told that

devotee, "In the future you will be a great sannyasi and you will travel from

place to place, country to country and preach the holy names of the Lord."

After receiving this benediction from Srila Gaura Kisora das Babaji, that

devotee touched his lotus feet and offered his obeisances. Srila Babaji

Maharaja would never let anyone, under any circumstances touch his feet. When

persons would come who were materialistically inclined and want to touch his

feet, he would say "If you touch my feet, everything will be destroyed in your

house." In this way he would show anger.

But at this time he showed no objection whatsoever. That person who took his

blessings then went on that day to see Srila Bhaktivinode Thakura and accepted

the gayatri mantra from him. According to the prediction of Srila Gaurakisora

das Babaji, this person accepted sannyasa from Om Visnupada Srila

Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura in the future and was later called Tridandi.

He became famous in India for his great preaching propensity.

<hr>

Note:

in regard to the devotee described above as "Sripada Bhaktitirthapada Maharaja" and "Tirtha Maharaj".

The full sannyasa name of this devotee is Sripad Bhakti Pradip Tirtha Maharaj. As is explained above, he received Diksa from Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur. He also was the first person to receive sannyasa from Srila Sarsaswati Goswami. He preached in England in the 1930's together with Sripad Vana Maharaj and Sripad Bhaktisaranga Goswami Maharaj, and in the last years of his life he became the Acharya of the Gaudiya Mission (Bagh Bazaar Gaudiya Math).

<hr>

Further note...

In the introduction of Sripad Bhakti Pradip Tirtha Maharaj's book "Sri Sri Bhagavat Samlapa", written in English and published in 1952, the publisher by name Bhavabandhachhid Das Bhaktisaurabh states of Tirtha Maharaj:

"In 1933 he proceeded to England under the direction of His Divine Grace Om Vishnupada Srimad Bhatki Siddhanta Saraswati Goswami Thakur of revered memory, as the head of the band of missionaries to preach and propagate the messags of Sriman Mahaprabhu to the West. His erudition, scholarship and high standard of spiritual life attracted many westerners to teh Divine Feet of Srila Prabhupada and it led to the establishment of a permanent centre under the name of Sri Vasudev Gaudiya Math in London to keep the candle of devotion burning for years to come. He is the most sincere initiated disciple of Om Vishnupada Paramhansa Satchidananda Srila Bhakti Vinode Thakur, pioneer of pure devotion at the present day.

VAISNAVA SARVABHAUMA SRILA JAGANNATHA DASA BABAJI

The following article appears in the sixth year of the monthly publications of the Gaudiya magazine under the direct guidance of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura. It is written by the head school master of Satrujit High School, Sri Yanunandana Adhikari, a disciple of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura.

<hr>

It was the second year after the opening of the Sri Caitanya Matha in Vrndavana. The resident devotees had left for Delhi to preach the glories of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Sri Krsna. I had remained behind the others because I often become ill at the festivals. Three or four days had passed since the devotees had departed. My mind was feeling somewhat restless and uncomfortable. I was sitting alone upstairs on the veranda in front of the door to my room. I was gazing here and there empty minded. It was now about 10:00 AM when the old Vaisnava Vrndavana resident arrived. He entered into the temple grounds from the front entrance and gradually made his way up the flight of stairs. As the old figure climbed the stairs he stopped for a few moments to gain his balance. He had stumped his foot. I paid my obeisances unto the old Vaisnava and offered him a sitting place on a nearby large rug. As he gasped in short drawn breaths it was apparent that he was exhausted from his travels abroad. The mood in which he humbly introduced himself would be recognized by many Vaisnavas. I had met this venerable Vaisnava on a previous occasion. Following a short exchange of reception he said, "I personally served Srila Jagannatha dasa Babaji for nearly forty years. At the present age of 86 I feel very weary. I find it somewhat difficult to come and go these days. Previously my body was very strong. Often I would carry Srila Babaji Maharaja eight to ten miles on my back. I witnessed a host of transcendental pastimes. During that time I was discouraged by Babaji Maharaja from living in Vrndavana. He would frequently say, "Look Bihari, don't ever go and live with those false monkey-like renunciates." For this reason I never associated with persons outside other than when it was absolutely necessary. Srila Jagannatha Babaji was especially close to Srila Bhaktivinode Thakura. I have firm faith in your spiritual master. I often saw him in Calcutta at Manikatala as a boy when I would visit there with Srila Babaji Maharaja. Your spiritual master (Srila Bhaktsiddhanta Saraswati Goswami) would only be clothed with a pullover shirt. He struck me as always having a serious nature. I was attracted by his efflugence and his learning. He was always attached to the Holy Name. In his earlier years his frame was very lean and Srila Babaji Maharaja loved him very much."

The old Vaisnava in this manner described many topics about Srila Jagannatha dasa Babaji Maharaja and also his own life. I was deeply moved by the realization that this old respectable Vaisnava had undergone innumerable difficulties in his service to Srila Jagannatha das Babaji Maharaja. As a neophyte devotee my curiosity was stimulated to no bounds. There he sat before me, the actual servant of Srila Jagannatha dasa Babaji. Numerous questions came to my mind. Indicating that he had anticipated my questions he delivered their answers by recounting his past. He himself was born in the family of milkmen in West Bengal. As a youth he had very little academic training. He had spent much of his time in Bangladesh. His speech was marked by Bengali spoken in an indistinct, broken fashion. Even so he was characterized by a very simple, easy going natue. In this disposition Bihari das Babaji would depict his relationship with Jagannatha dasa Babaji. In view of our Vaisnava cultural heritage today these topics are certainly priceless.

Srila Bihari dasa Babaji began to speak, "A long time has passed. It's difficult to exactly recollect. Once when Srila Jagannatha das Babaji was living in Navadwipa a householder from Calcutta suddenly appeared before him. The householder had already spent several days in Navadwip. Touching Srila Jagannatha das Babaji's feet, the gentleman seated himself before him. The unexpected visitor in his first breath requested Srila Jagannatha das Babaji to come with him to Calcutta. The man was desiring to take first initiation from him. Srila Jagannatha das Babaji was always opposed to the idea of going to Calcutta. On first consideration he decided that the best decision was not to go. But the gentleman was very insistent. He came every day for fifteen days and prayed to Babaji Maharaja to go to Calcutta. Finally Srila Jagannatha das Babaji relented and agreed to go with the man to his residence in Kasipura. Srila Jagannatha das Babaji made the compromise that he would not accept any foodstuffs from the gentleman's house. So by boat they went together. We arrived at the residence of the householder whereupon he immediately tried to coax us into accepting some cooked foodstuffs. Srila Jagannatha das Babaji became so annoyed that he said to himself, "Take me to the residence of Srila Bhaktivinode Thakura." He then told me the address. It was midday there so we took a horse carriage to Srila Bhaktivinode Thakura's house. When we arrived Thakura Bhaktivinode was upstairs. A message was sent up. This was the first time I had seen Srila Bhaktivinode Thakura. He was somewhat tall with an effulfent golden hue like complexion. His nose was very elegant and his mouth well formed. Oh, and how expertly Srila Bhaktivinode knew how to serve the Vaisnavas! Thakura Bhaktivinode would personally serve Srila Jagannatha dasa Babaji with his own hands. They would ofter visit one another in Navadwip and Calcutta.

Once Srila Bhaktivinode Thakura arrived at the residence of Srila Jagannatha dasa Babaji with a kirtan party. The party, accompanied by Srila Babaji Maharaja quickly advanced towards Sri Mayapura. During this time another kirtan group was approaching from the Namanapukua side. The two parties chanting the glories of Lord Caitanya assembled together at the place of the present day Yoga Pith. Over the age of 130 years, Srila Jagannatha das Babaji, being humpbacked, normally could not sit in an erect position. But when he would perform the congregational chanting of the Lord he would extend his body by the distance of five hand lengths and spring upward a distance of over one yard! How wonderful it was when he pointed out the location of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's appearance site. It is alaso still fresh within my mind the way he struck his stick on the groud with a resounding "crack" (Srila Bihari das Babaji, who is holding a stick enacts the pastime again as true as life itself). He pointed out, some distance away, a well which contained the broken hull of a mrdanga. Sometimes Srila Jagannatha dasa Babaji would chastize persons who were opposed to the authenticity of Sri Mayapura. Again Bihari dasa Babaji began to explain with full vigor other transcendental pastimes he had seen. He continued, "I came to Navadwipa and prepared the foundation of Babaji Maharaja's bhajana kuthir. I dug it out by hand and constructed a fence around its sides. Many persons would come and visit Babaji Maharaja, leaving donations. I would place that money in a water pot for safe keeping. Every fifteen days to one month I would remove the money and count it. Normally the funds would be expended each month. Being fearful I would sometimes hide the money outside the premises. I considered that I would place 15 rupees aside for any emergency which might arise in the future. After doing so Babaji Maharaja called me and in a deep voice shouted, "Where did you place that 15 rupees?" He had never paid any attention to me as his eyelids extended well beyond his lower eyebrow as if they were hanging loosely. Whenever he wanted to see he would lift his long eyelids above his eyes. Srila Babaji Maharaja also never accounted for what was spent or given. In whatever way he wanted the money was spent. Once he said, "Go and buy rasgullas! I'm going to feed all the cows in the holy dhama." Two hundred rupees were taken an rasgullas were distributed by him to all the cows. But Babaji Maharaja never wanted to spend anything on the imposter Vaisnavas. He would say, "Don't let them come here."

"Srila Babaji Maharaja would often sit and accept prasadam from a large plate. Once five puppies took birth outside his bhajan kuthir. At prasadam time the puppies would appear from four sides and surround his place. As they began to eat he would feel to make sure they were all present. Once, seeing this, I became disturbed and began placing them outside. Srila Babaji Maharaja interrupted me in his deep voice. "Bring them back in or I will not eat." What could I do? I again brought the puppies inside and placed them around his plate. Satisfied, he said, 'The dogs of the dhama.'

"Many persons would come desiring his brahmin underwear. There was one personality by the name of Gaura Hari dasa who was determined to secure his underwear. But Srila Babaji Maharaja would never give any personal items away. For a period of three days Gaura Hari remained outside the bhajan kuthir of Babaji Maharaja. Finally, Jagannatha das Babaji gave me permission to give him his kopin.

"Srila Jagannatha das Babaji would always become angry when he would see someone acting independently. Once one kirtan party approached Babaji Maharaja from a distance chanting unbonafide mantras. Srila Babaji Maharaja hearing them became very angry and said, 'Drive them all away from here. Don't let them come!'

"I've never seen such an effulgent personality as Babaji Maharaja. A few days before his disappearance he told me, "Oh Bihari, it's not necessary to inconvenience yourself to maintain your stomach. You don't have to separately endeaver for this. Don't ever mix with those false monkey-like renunciates."

"He didn't desire to remain any longer. If I could give up my body thinking of him then I could obtain real happiness."

In the quote above from Jagat he says that in 1897, <font color="blue">Sashibhushan Bandyopadhyaya wrote in Pallivasi Patrika the first article claiming that the Janmasthan was somewhere in Ramchandrapur. This started the Janmasthan wars. </font>

<hr> However, prior to this, in 1893, Sri Jagannatha Dasa Babaji had taken a large number of Vaishnavas to have darshan at Sri Mayapura:

Bhaktivinode Thakur says to Lalit Prashad:

375. On returning to the house [in Calcutta] I preached and lectured here and there. At times I was in Godrum and at times in Calcutta. From time to time I lectured in Krishnanagar. The year 1893 arrived, and that year, bringing a large number of Vaisnavas [with him], Sri Jagannatha Dasa Babaji Mahasaya went to Sri Mayapura for a festival of darsan and to Sri Godrum for a festival of congregational chanting.

- quote from "SVALIKHITA JIVANI [Autobiography] of Bhaktivinoda Thakura", by Lalit Prashad.

<hr>

I don't expect this visit to Mayapur by Srila Jagannatha Dasa Babaji was his first visit to the Mayapur Janmasthan. He is said to have been coming for darshan in the association of a large number of Vaishnavas, which would seem to imply that he already considered Mayapur to be a sacred place. Indeed Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur doesn't say he was present at Mayapura when Srila Babaji Maharaj went there for darshan.

Thank you for this information, Yashoda didi.

Is this book available online?

Muralidar

Dandabat Dear Devotees,

I was wondering if anyone knows of a site on the web where I can read the biography of Sripad Bhakti Prajnan Keshava Maharaj

I am specially interested to read about the events that happened when the brahmins of Nabadwip attempted to kill Prabhupada Srila Saraswati Thakur by stoning him with bricks, and how Sripad Keshava Maharaj saved the life of Srila Saraswati Thakur.

I have read a couple of descriptions of this, but I would like to find out anything more that can be known about what happened that day

respectfully,

Muralidhar das

The devotees of Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math started the Kartik observance on the Purnima.

Note:

this article first appeared in Back to Godhead magazine in 1976

<hr>

The Descent of the Holy Name

by Acyutananda Dasa

Navadwipa 1976

His Holiness B.R. Sridhar Maharaja sat on the roof of his quarters in Nabadwipa (West Bengal). The now very old sadhu was in a contemplative mood, and to approach him in this state disturbed me. He motioned that I should sit in front of him, so I timidly went and sat down on a grass mat at his feet. There was no one to be seen for miles around.

"There are many things to see from up here by which we can remember Sri Chaitanya", His Holiness said.

"We have this Ganges, this forest, the temples, His favourite tree, banana. What have you come here to ask me?"

Can you explain how, if the Name is a spiritual thing, how is it that we are all chanting it with a material tongue?" I asked, feeling quite foolish.

After some silence he began to speak? Nitai Chaitanya, Nitai Chaitanya," and then he proceeded:

It cannot be uttered by a material tongue, nor can a material ear hear the Name. He (the Name) is adhoksaja, (beyond experimental knowledge), having reserved the right of not being exposed to organic senses. All the experience, knowledge and memories that we have are gleaned with the help of mundane sense perception. Our tongue is comprised mostly of earth and water elements; the nerve endings extending to all parts of the body carry charges of electricity, also a material element. If an object is too far away, it is not touchable, seeable, tastable, etc.; if an object is too close, it is also imperceptible; we cannot see our own tilaka mark or even our own eyelids.

When the senses are extended by microscopes and telescopes, these instruments have more range, but are still limited to the material sphere. The telescope cannot penetrate the outermost covering of the universe; the microscope lens is composed of atoms and therefore cannot see the atom or anything smaller than the atom. Likewise, the system of mental speculation is also inefficient to perceive the spiritual element. Mind is a material element whose density is very slight. (Bhagavad-gita, VII:4) Higher abstractions are no more spiritual than hard rocks. There is common belief that by extending the potency of the mind we can conceive of the infinite, but this process is defective. If the infinite can be confined in a limited mind, then it is not infinite. I don't even know how many hairs are on my own head. Mental speculators grind their brains over abstract aphorisms of Zen and Upanisads and think that by their own power they can achieve something like infinity. The result is mental masturbation. The mind explodes and dies of exhaustion. And the reaction is deplorable: total forgetfulness of the self and the infinite.

There are channels by which the infinite descends. He is all power, glory, beauty, knowledge, wealth and renunciation. He is dominant, all-extending, free, and autocratic. The infinite cannot be contained in a limited sphere, as I've just said, but if He is really infinite then He has the power of making Himself known in all His fullness to the finite mind. When, out of His own prerogative, He takes the initiative and reveals Himself to the devotee, there is actual perception of Godhead, self realization, transcendental revelation. By the channel of transcendental sound He comes, by vibrating the spiritual tongue of the pure devotees representing Him to the world. The spiritual element vibrates the spiritual tongues of the perfect devotee's audience, which have hitherto never been vibrated.

The pure devotee utters the Name of God. Our material ears hear some sound that resembles the transcendental Name of Krsna; our eardrum moves the liquid of the inner ear, half water and half air, which vibrates the ethereal element and touches our mind. At this point, soul has still been untouched, and there has been no genuine spiritual experience. By hearing with the mind?s impressions, we enjoy the sound of the cymbals, the beat of the chant, the pleasant company and effect of listening and hearing. But it doesn't stop here. Piercing the mind, the original sound uttered by gurudeva moves our intellect, and we consider philosophical and metaphysical truths. For millions of years, sages chanted this on the banks of many holy rivers. Ideas flood everywhere about the possible effects of the mantra. This, while being quite blissful, is not spiritual revelation in the true sense. Beyond the intelligence is the spiritual element, soul, myself. That sound, having cut through all my senses including the mind and intellect, now vibrates the finest sentiments of my own real existence. This is the perception of the holy Name on the spiritual plane with my spiritual ear. Then, the soul inspired, recapitulates, sending vibration back into the intelligence, mind, and so on, the whole process inverted, out to my external tongue and we say ?Hare Krsna." That Hare Krsna is He. And we dance in ecstasy.

Sounds, sounds, sounds," His Holiness repeated slowly. Sounds. Catch hold of the sounds. Seize the sound waves travelling within the ether, and your happiness in spiritual life is assured. One sage has explained in his sutra that massive epidemics are due to contamination of the ether by impure sound. When the lawyers and pleaders in court begin to tell lies in the name of justice, these sound vibrations contaminate the ether, which in turn contaminates the air and water which people breathe and drink, and epidemic is the result.

When four-headed Brahma creates the universe, the seed ingredient is sound, ?OM." And from that ?om" the Gayatri mantra is born: in this sound, the fourteen planetary galaxies sprout like whorls of spiralling stars and planets, with the sun situated in the very centre of the universe. Each planetary system is composed of a different sound uttered by Lord Brahma. Each galaxy provides the infinite jivas with their particular spheres of karma, dharma, artha, kama, and moksa. It is the function of Brahma to provide these different galaxies and planets according to the sinful and meritorious deeds of the innumerable. Lord Brahma utters a different sound for each planetary system and his engineer, Sri Visvakarma, creates the planets according to those sounds. The subtle elements and gross elements are distributed in this way. In our planet, the predominating elements are earth and water. In other worlds, only water is found. On the sun, fire is the prominent element. If a spiritual individual, under the effects of illusion, or maya, wishes to end his gross existence, he may enter a planet of air, ether, mind or intelligence and live as a ghost.

The individual jiva is also endowed with a particle of creative power. And the ordinary individual as well creates his tiny sphere of influence by sound. Some jivas? spheres of influence are no bigger than their own craniums, and some jivas have influence over a community, a nation, or even a whole planet. The beauty and harmony of their particular spheres of influence depends on the quality of sounds they produce.

When one nation tries to conquer another, the first points to capture are the radio stations, the newspapers, the journals - the lines of communication. By sending out its manifesto by sound, the government can move the former leaders from their posts and capture the country. Then, also by sound, the new government becomes established. If there should be any defect in that sound, then the whole thing is ruined. That is why there is so much alteration in the world situation. The sound of all these jivas is, to quote the Bible, Babel." Nonsensical sounds are entering and contaminating the ether, the air, the water, and the very molecular structure of each and every person, place and thing.

A person's mind is composed of two functions, technically termed sankalpa and vikalpa. Sankalpa refers to the mind's desire to join thoughts into concepts, theories and tableaus of theories. Vikalpa is the mind's function of rejecting thoughts, simplifying and limiting experiences which are gathered through the senses of sight, sound, smell, taste and touch. Both functions are controlled by sound. Here is an experiment: Close your eyes. When I repeat a number, you will see the number flash before your mind like a cash register. One....Three....Seven....Four.... The processes of sankalpa and vikalpa respectively make the thoughts come and go. This is a very simple form of the mind's process. On a more complicated scale, there is the very risky business of intentionally invading the sound waves with defective sound. The lines of communication are filled with impure sound from the earliest of schoolbooks to the most advanced so-called philosophy. The White House filibusters are another excellent example of intentional pollution of sound channels. If we were to infuse spiritual sound into the ether, if we were to saturate the ether with the transcendental sound vibration of Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, this maha-mantra would purify, enlighten and saturate every being with its potencies.

In Sri Chaitanya's eight verses, which comprise the final message of all spiritual instructions, the first verse gives five effects of the transcendental sound of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra as follows: Ceto-darpana-marjanam. It wipes the material dust from the mirror of the mind. The mind is like the intermediate connecting medium between the spirit and the material external covering called the body. The soul has no material activity. When covered by maya, or illusion, the soul remains dormant in a state of suspended animation. The magnitude of the soul is so great, however, that it infuses consciousness on all sides. Through the medium of the mind, the senses act and we know things. If this glass, the mind, is put out of focus by the external nature, we suffer confusion, pain, disease, and death. Yes, death is a state of mind only, as the soul has no death. By the mind we mistakenly think ? Oh! I?m dying!" I'm drowning!" I'm giving birth!" I'm sick!" etc. When the mind is cleansed by the maha-mantra, the mind is forcibly purified. All the material concoctions, which are the cause of our suffering, are forcibly murdered, starved to death. They thrive on material sense pleasures. Flooding the mind with transcendental sound is just like stepping on the pin of a bomb: All those misconceptions of material suffering and enjoyment are shattered, murdered, and the material mind is conquered wholly, leaving no enemies behind. The mind then reflects the spiritual knowledge, quality and energy of the soul itself.

Bhava-maha-davagni-nirvapanam. The fire of conditional life is thus extinguished. Nirvana, which most people are trying to understand from Buddhist texts, means extinguishing the fire of material existence. This body has been burning from the very beginning of its duration by the process of digestion. Biologists all declare that the body is a burning organism, giving off heat, water vapour and carbon dioxide. After seventy or more years, our body is consumed by that smouldering digestive fire, and we move into another body, only to burn up that one too. It is like chain smoking: with the lit end of the cigarette you lights up a fresh cigarette, and on and on. By the potency of the transcendental sound, the cause of that fire is extinguished.

Sreyah-kairava-candrikavitaranam vidyavadhujivanam. The transcendental sound then spreads the light of benedictions, peaceful suggestions and fearlessness, and no more anxieties invade the mind. We approach the world after coming out of the womb with many deep-rooted feats: Is there safety? Is there happiness? Is there peace? The answer is the basic seed. Om in this sense means one big spiritual yes. Om, yes - a positive answer. Simply by negating the mind, the questions of the soul are not satisfied; something positive must be given. The maha-mantra floods the mind with affirmative suggestions of the truth.

Anandambudhi-vardhanam pratipadam purnamrtasvadanam. A full draught of an ocean of blissful nectar is served to the soul, who has been thirsty from time immemorial.

Sarvatma-snapanam param, vijayate sri-krsna-sankirtanam. This point has a twofold meaning, one external and one internal. Sarvatman means all souls." The holy Name bathes all souls with spiritual bliss, knowledge and love. The transcendental sound completely overcomes the soul with His sublime potencies. But atman has many meanings, as given by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Atman means the supreme absolute truth, the body, the mind, the intelligence, endeavour, conviction and nature. By uttering the pure sound of the maha-mantra one invades the very cause of everything that exists. The mind, body and soul, and even nature itself can be changed into transcendental nature by one heartfelt exclamation of Hare Krsna." Capture the sound waves which are the cause of every time of existence and saturate them with the holy Name. The result will be the total transformation of energy. An asrama, temple, and all the paraphernalia in them, are all divine. The environment in which we live in the asrama is not the same as the one in which we were born. It is ?there"? it is Goloka, and the more we progress in our sadhana the more He will reveal Himself to us.

These truths about the descent of the Hare Krsna mantra were alluded to by Jayadeva Goswami, jagat-guru, who has written a beautiful verse in description of this process: ?O Hari Nama, You enter my ear and touch my heart, and tears flow from my eyes and fall to the ground; making soft clay, my footprints are left for my successors to follow my way."

It must be noted that if the teacher is bogus, then that Name will not touch the spiritual spark withing the coverings of mind and body. It may sound the same, but it is not ; just as milk and whitewash look the same, but they are altogether different.

Now many such artificial gurus are about, and this fact is, as it were, camouflaging the genuine devotees. If someone finds a treasure beneath a tree and marks the tree with his initials, he is unable to recall the original tree. This is now often the case, since false holy men are running rampant. But if one is fortunate enough to know the scriptures and tradition, and if one is truly sincere, he will find a genuine sadhu, hear the Name, and begin authentic spiritual life. Then he or she will find a great gift indeed.

The original sentiments invoked by the Name are concentrated, blissful recollections of the pastimes of Krsna as performed in the spiritual world. These sentiments are in all souls and are five in number, the neutral sentiment, the serving sentiment, the sentiment of friendship, parental sentiment, and the sentiment of intimate love. Krsna is called akhila-rasamrta-sindhu, the ocean of all transcendental sentiment. In the Bhagavad-gita Krsna says, ye yatha mam prapadyante, tams tathaiva bhajamyaham: ?I reciprocate all the different services rendered to Me within the sphere of these different sentiments, or rasas." While all of these relationships or spiritual sentiments are on the self-same absolute platform, one may simultaneously acknowledge certain distinctions within them.

For example, Krsna exchanges loving sentiments with the neutral devotees, who do not take active engagement in His interest, at His own sweet time and liking. If He wants to play the flute He picks it up, and He sets it down when He likes. To His servants, He is the noble master. In this relationship there is more facility to please the Lord, to bring His food, His favourite clothing. Yet there is still some hindrance, since He may tell the servant to be gone, and the servant must obey out of duty. The friendship rasa has two stages. The first stage is friendship with feeling of respect and reverence. Arjuna has this type of friendly relationship with Krsna. He begs forgiveness from Krsna for unknowingly calling Him in jest or for associating with Him without bowing down, etc.

When friendship with Krsna is more developed, the respect and honourable formalities disappear. Jumping on Krsna's shoulders, wrestling and playing as though Krsna were their equal, Sudama, Sridama and the other cowherd boys revel in endless sports. Sometimes they even consider Krsna their inferior: ?Oh, Krsna, He's the youngest one of us. He is also the lightest. We can all overcome Him in wrestling, so go lightly with Him." As sugar cane juice is concentrated into molasses and then into crystals, so also the friendly rasa, with added feelings, develops into parental affection. ?Krsna is my son", says Mother Yasoda. ?I must always look after His needs and protection. If I don't see Him for even five minutes I get so scared. I see huge trees falling on Him and horrible demons capturing Him. Oh, there You are! Why do You scare Your mother like that? Always stay in my presence; I cannot stand to have You out of sight." Even punishment of the beloved is seen in this intimate relationship.

As concentrated sugar becomes rock candy, so the parental exchange of rasas condenses into conjugal love, in which there is complete dedication to the desires of Krsna, with no tinge of desire for one's own pleasure. I am Yours" - complete, unconditional surrender. If you trample my body underfoot or embrace me too tightly, for Your pleasure I am happy. If You want to throw me into hell and keep me far from Your company, I am prepared to go. If You forget me, that's okay, but I cannot forget You. You are always my beloved."

By this time His Holiness had become exhausted. After forty years of lecturing previous to the use of microphones, his voice had become very thin. We were only one inch apart, face to face. He sat there with his eyes, and it was clear that he was experiencing those things of which he spoke.

Just then the loud gong began to toll in crescendo, reaching four loud blasts and reverberating into silence.

Go down now. It's time for aratika. Could you follow my words?"

Yes," I said.

Did you like it?"

Yes."

That's all right. Go down now."

Quote from Jagat:

<font color="blue">

Here is some more information, based on Carita-sudhA, volume 4, pp. 65-71. The original temple on Mahaprabhu's birthplace was built by Bir Hambir of Vishnupur, who ruled from approximately 1586-1621. This small shrine was claimed by the Ganges. Gaur Govinda Singh, the diwan of the East India Company temple, was an important Vaishnava. He built a second temple on the site in 1780-5, a sixty foot high building with nine pinnacles in red sandstone. This building was submerged in floods in 1876. Clearly, then, Bhaktivinoda Thakur must have been exaggerating somewhat when he said that nobody had any idea where the birthplace had been.

</font>

<font color="blue">

As a result, a few years after Bhaktivinoda established the Mayapur site, in 1304 Bangabda (1897), Sashibhushan Bandyopadhyaya wrote in Pallivasi Patrika the first article claiming that the Janmasthan was somewhere in Ramchandrapur. This started the Janmasthan wars. The Mayapur faction started a court case, which ultimately refused to reject the Mayapur claim, but did conclude that Gaura Govidna (sic) Singh's temple had indeed been built on the site of Mahaprabhu's birthplace and if anyone could find the ruins of that temple, that would be the deciding factor in establishing the birthsite.

</font>

<hr>

I hadn't noticed the dates when I first read this. I thought the old temple was submerged over 100 years earlier since I remember Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur said nobody knew where the birthplace of Mahaprabhup was. But these things Jagat says don't change anything. In fact, I feel Jagat has committed a great error of judgement here.

According to Jagat, the temple of Gaur Govinda Singh was submerged in floods in 1876. The site at Mayapur was discovered by Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur in 1887. Eleven years later. Clearly, the location of the temple of Gaur Govinda Singh was well known, and clearly, again, Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur did not consider that temple to have been built at the real birthplace of Mahaprabhu. We know Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur was thinking that nobody knew where the real birthplace was, so it seems reasonable to assume there was a popular rumour that the temple of Gaur Govinda Singh was not built at the real Janmasthan.

According to Jagat's quote, the judgement in the court case regarding the Janmasthan was that if someone could find the remains of the red sandstone temple of Gaur Govinda Singh then "that would be the deciding factor in establishing the birthsite". It appears the judge had taken the view that the temple of Gaur Govinda Singh was "unquestionably" built on the site of the birthplace of Mahaprabhu. Maybe if he had been a Vaishnava and had taken some instruction from Sarvabhauma Srila Jagannath das Babaji Maharaj then he would have had a different view of things. It is a pity that Jagat has disregarded the well known fact that Srila Jagannath das Babaji expressed his vision that Sri Mayapur was the birthsite of Mahaprabhu.

We know Vaishnava Sarvabhauma Srila Jagannath das Babaji Maharaj regarded the Mayapur Janmastam as the real birthplace of Mahaprabhu Sri Chaitanyadev. Indeed it is highly likely that Srila Jagannath das Babaji had seen the temple of Gaur Govinda Singh and maybe he had even visited that temple. He was a very, very old devotee, and in all likelihood he had visited Nabadwip prior to 1876 when the temple of Gaur Govinda Singh was submerged. There is no doubt, however, that Srila Jagannath das Babaji Maharaj felt the birthplace of Mahaprabhu was in Mayapur, across the river.

The "Mayapur faction" were faithful to the vision of Vaishnava Sarvabhauma Srila Jagannath das Babaji Maharaj, the Siksa-Guru of Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur. The opposing group didn't have any faith in the inspirational guidance given by Srila Jagannath das Babaji Maharaj. What is more, Bipin Bihari, the diksa guru of Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur, eventually sided with the "red sandstone" faction and rejected Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur as his disciple. But Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur was following the inspirational guidance he received from his siksa-guru, Srila Jagannath das Babaji Maharaj. And the disciples of Srila Saraswati Thakur and his successors continue to worship Mahaprabhu Sri Chaitanyadev following that chain of disciplic succession.

Murali

Madhava said:

How do we attain certainty? Hardly. For the most part, we are dealing with probabilities.

<hr>

Yes I fully agree.

We are all on this forum because we are interested in the Divine understanding that we have found out about through the merciful saints of India. Archeology is interesting, sometimes, but there is no sweetness in studies of archeology unless the studies reveal sweet truths about the Divine Name, Lila, Guna, Parikaras and Rupa of Sri Hari.

Murali

Madhava,

Be reasonable.

One block of sandstone doesn't prove anything. And proving the matter in a local court in Nabadwip - what does that show? Nabadwip is famous throughout Bengal for the fact that goondas and dacoits control the place. If you want anything to happen in Nabadwip you pay a bribe, and this is not a new state of affairs. It was like that 100 years ago also. Now, in 2002, if you want to murder someone in Nabadwip it will cost you just 200 rupees to have the case shelved by the police.

In regard to Nitai and those stories, it really doesn't matter if many, many people are telling that story. Because a rumour is widespread it doesn't mean the rumou is TRUE. People with hatred for Srila Saraswati Thakur spread that rumour, and I intend to gather all the relevant information needed to dispel that rumour. But even then, the people who spread that rumour will not accept what I say because appreciation for Srila Saraswati Thakur will never manifest in the heart of a man who hates Srila Saraswati Thakur.

Anyhow, aside from all this garbage, let me tell you what I personally think about this entire subject of the Mayapura Janmasthan. I think that it doesn't matter where the birthplace of Mahaprabhu is located in any "geographical survey" at all. I think that Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur had a vision of the birthplace at Mayapur and because he had that insight we disciples of Saraswati Goswami are worshipping at the Yoga Pitha shrine. Lalit Prashad and his students are not faithful to their master, it is only the descendents of Srila Saraswati Thakur who can say they are the faithful followers of Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur. That is a fact. But aside from that, the ridiculous "sandstone" story is a good example of the eagerness of Bhaktivinode Thakur's opponents to establish an alternative temple where they could be boss.

In the end, what is the proof that Mahaprabhu was right when he revealed that small pool of water at the foot of Govardhana and said it was "Sri Radha Kunda". We feel we have received a gift of understanding from Mahaprabhu, who has revealed Sri Radha Kunda and so much else to us. And the disciples of Srila Saraswati Thakur know that they have found something wonderful through his instructions, and that is the real criteria of whether he is a genuine Guru. Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur and Saraswati Goswami have come down to us from Goloka.

Murali