Bhaktivinode Thakura Predicts Prabhupada

[gopidust 0]

After the divine appearance of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura his father, Srila Bhaktivinode Thakura printed a book,Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu in 1896, where he stated, soon will come a personality who will spread krishna consciousness around the world.

Srila Prabhupada appeared late in the year. It stands to reason that Srila Prabhupada is the personality so predicted by the Thakur Bhaktivinode.

It is also written in the sastra, that without being empowered by Krishna one cannot spread the krishna consciousness movement around the world.

[Guest guest]

 

It stands to reason that Srila Prabhupada is the personality so predicted by the Thakur Bhaktivinode.

 

 

Certainly. It has been done and Prabhupada did it. Past tense. Prophecy fulfilled.

[gHari 0]

Gopi Dust,

 

Do you have the actual quote from the book by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura?

 

Angel Dust

 

[gopidust 0]

No I don't have the exact quote although it may be quoted in the Srila Prabhupada lilamrta. The book was sent to a college in New York in 1896 along with to other places by Bhaktivinode Thakura himself. It would be ecstatic if someone were to do a reprinting of it. I saw some of it printed up somewhere but can't remember anymore where. ys gopidust

[shambu 0]

The Book you are referring to —Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu - His Life and Precepts— has recently been reprinted and published by Acyutananda Krishna dasa (Alan Hackney),

11, Tichborne Court,

2a, Tichborne Street,

Leicester, LE2 8IS,

England.

Tel: (0533) 554619.

I have no idea if the Book is still available, or if the data given above are still correct. Also you might be surprised that the "special empowered individual" the Thakura mentions as the one to "very soon broadcast the movement of pure devotion all over the world" is identified in the introduction to the booklet (by Bhakti Vedanta Baman Maharaja of Gaudiya Vedanta Samiti) as being Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura instead of his most famous disciple who actually did the job....(of course thru' the empowerment of his Gurudeva and the entire sampradaya) Opinions are always divided, it seems... Also I couldn't find the quote in the pages of the original booklet - it was only mentioned in the Introduction, so maybe its actual source may be another of the Thakura's books. That the Thakura was an actual visionary is also proven by another written statement from him (also "source unknown," found it in the Prabhupada Lilamrita):

 

"Oh, for that day when the fortunate English, French, German and American people will take up banners, mrdangas and karatalas and raise kirtana through their streets and towns. When will that day come?"

 

Maybe it was his desire that made this thing happen...

[gopidust 0]

Srila Prabhupada said it was significant that the book was written the year of his birth. Did Srila Bhaktisiddhanta claim he was the one predicted after he already had appeared or did the GM devotees just figure it would be him? Did Srila Bhaktivinode Thakura say this was the one? We know Srila Bhaktisiddhanta was certainly the one Bhaktivinode had prayed for earlier because of the incident with the ratha cart stopping in front of his house and the garland falling on the then young boy. It sounds like there is too much speculation going on.

[Guest guest]

Mandala Media has published a very nice edition of Sri Chaitanya: His Life and Precepts (2001). The introduction by B.G. Narasingh Maharaj tells that the book was sent to McGill University in Montreal in 1896.

 

Try www.mandala.org

Or phone 800-688-2218

[shambu 0]

"Srila Prabhupada said it was significant that the book was written the year of his birth."

 

Didn't Prabhupada take it as a sign of even greater significance that Thakura Bhaktivinode sent one of the first copies of the book to America, the land he chose as his original preaching-field? I mean, many more books about Krsna or Mahaprabhu may have been written in Prabhupada's birth year, but none of them was specifically sent to America. I think it was for that reason that Srila Prabhupada took it as a special token and as a prediction of the Mission he was to unfold later (to preach Mahaprabhu's message in the Western countries, starting with America).

 

As far as speculation is concerned, I think there just may be some difference of opinion or particular viewpoint. It is certainly not a fact that all devotees in Gaudiya Math think that Srila Bhaktisiddhanta is meant by the Thakura's prediction. "Gaudiya Math" is not a coherent entity (anymore) and consists of different Missions with differences of opinion on certain issues. And within these organizations individual persons may also cherish their individual opinions to some extent. That's about all I want to say about this...otherwise I may get "personal" and drift away into "politics."

[Guest guest]

ut it did go to the west. Anyway I don't see their can be an controversy. Who established the chanting and temples all over the world?

[shambu 0]

I also don't see any reason for controversy. It's pretty clear that Bhaktivinoda's prophecy HAS been fulfilled by HDG AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupad. He established temples and chanting all over the world, also in Canada. Only in the introduction to this book I find someone saying it was Prabhupad Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur who fulfilled this prophecy. So maybe this is the opinion of some elderly staunch members of Gaudiya Math, who heard this fifty years ago before our Prabhupad came to the West. But why print it in a book published around 2000 AD? That's the question.

[gopidust 0]

Shambu it minimises the position of Srila Prabhupada to say he is not the one predicted and therefore we need not listen to him. I don't know the motive of the godbrother mentioned however maybe this was not his motive.

[Guest guest]

Some devotees have been introduced to Krishna Consciousness by Srila Prabhupada, but there are many devotees who have come to Krishna via a different path. Tens of thousands of people have come to Krishna Consciousness through the preaching of various Gaudiya Math devotees.

 

And it is a fact that Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada received his name "Bhaktivedanta" from Srila Sridhar Maharaj, and his sannyasa from Sripad Keshava Maharaj. What is more, before taking sannyasa Srila Prabhupada was a temple president of one of the temples of his Godbrother Sripad Bhakti Saranga Goswami Maharaj.

 

In the Prabhupada lilamrtam it says that when Srila Prabhupada first came back to India with a group of his disciples they stayed at Srila Sridhar Maharaj's temple in Nabadwip. When they were there, the disciples of Srila Sridhar Maharaj celebrated the Vyasa Puja celebration of Srila Sridhar Maharaj. In Prabhupada lilamrta we read Satwarup Maharaj saying that Srila Prabhupada told his disciples to watch how the devotees celebrated the Vyasa Puja of Srila Sridhar Maharaj so that the proper method of celebrating Vyasa Puja could be introduced into ISKCON. That's right. The ISKCON devotees learned how to do the "Vyasa Puja" of their guru properly by watching the method of worship of Sri Guru that is done by "Gaudiya Math" disciples in the Math of Srila Sridhar Maharaj.

 

Many of the rituals and practices of devotion that Srila Prabhupada introduced in ISKCON are different from what Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur said to follow in the Gaudiya Math. It was Srila Prabhupada who introduced "chanting 16 rounds" of Hare Krishna each day - in fact in Chaitanya Bhagavata we read how Lord Chaitanya Himself said that if you don't chant 100000 names of Hari each day (64 rounds) then you are not counted as one of his followers. In the Gaudiya Math when they chant Hare Krishna they always break the mantra in two parts, so that the leader sings Hare Krishna and others respond with "Hare Krishna", then the leader sings Hare Rama and other devotees then respond with "Hare Rama". This is the way of chanting taught by Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur . But Srila Prabhupada introduced the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra as "Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare". Also, in ISKCON they are singing Gurvastaka at Mangala Arati, but in Gaudiya Math temples they chant other songs written by Srila Bhaktivinode Thakura. In short, Iskcon culture differs from Gaudiya Math culture. But it is wrong to say that if you don't follow the "ISKCON way" of doing things but instead follow the way given by Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur in the Gaudiya Math that you are somehow minimizing the position of Srila Prabhupada. Srila Prabhupada is a pure devotee of the highest type, but still that doesn't mean that every devotee in the world has to follow every detail of every instruction given by Srila Prabhupada and accept his method of doing things as "the best way".

 

Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur said he "hated" the sound of the harmonium. Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur made a rule that no one was ever allowed to play a harmonium in any temple of the Gaudiya Math. Srila Sridhar Maharaj also followed this in his temple and that rule is still followed today by his successors. But if ISKCON devotees want to play the harmonium in their temples and play guitars or pipe organs then that is fine. No problem. They can do that. But we will simply sing the songs of Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur and play the instruments that Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur liked to hear - the clay mrdanga and kartalas.

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

 

The book Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu: His Life And Precepts can be viewed online at this location

 

His Life

http://www.mandala.com.au/books/scm.htm

His Precepts

http://www.mandala.com.au/books/scm-precepts.htm

[Guest guest]

Excuse me guest. There may be many great things happening outside the purview of Srila Prabhupada's mission. The more the better. But he was the one that endured the sea voyage on the Jaladhuta. He was the one who had a little storefront in New York etc. He is the one that traversed the planet so many times preaching the name. See my point.

 

Practically speaking he initiated the world into the maha-mantra. I mean it is just a plain fact. This is not an us verses them situation just one of giving credit where credit is due.

[Guest guest]

Yes,

Srila Prabhupada was empowered by the original Guru, Sri Nityananda Prabhu, to spread the glories of the Holy Name around the world.

 

But if someone asks me if it was Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada or his Guru, Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Prabhupada who has caused a renaissance of Gaudiya Vaishnavism and made Gaudiya Vaishnavism a world-wide-religion then I honestly feel it was Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Prabhupada who was the world changing Acharya.

 

 

[Guest guest]

No one is trying to beak the sampradaya into separate isloated units.

 

Maybe its just our relative perspectives but I don't see how one could not see who it was that traveled the Earth distributing the name.

 

You can take it all the way back to Brahma and I still see Prabhupada on the Jaladhuta.

[Guest guest]

Yes Prabhu,

The journey to America was a significant thing, in the establishment of Krishna Consciousness outside India.

 

But I don't live in America and in India we see many wonderful temples in Mayapura that are not ISKCON temples, and beautiful worship is going on there every day. The Yoga-pith, where Mahaprabhu was born, for instance.

[Guest guest]

But the topic was the prediction of Bhativinode Thakur about a personality that would spread Krsna consciousness over the whole world.

[Guest guest]

 

It sounds like there is too much speculation going on.

 

 

Indeed, and who started it this time. Same old controversies, same attempts to establish who is the greatest/shaktavesh avatar/God or whatever, actually a thinly disguised attempt to show others one is following the "greatest/shaktavesh avatar/God or whatever" and impose that same view on whomever whenever possible. Often recognizable by the words "Prabhupada said..." God alone is the greatest. Amen.

[Guest guest]

I am not trying to place my judgements on who is the greatest and who is the lessor.

 

I don't have the vision or interest in that.

 

It was a specific statement on who the actual person was that spread the Hare Krsna mantra over the world. It is amazing to me that that would even be a question it is so obvious.

[gopidust 0]

It appears that the quotation we are looking for has been taken out altogether in the booklet by Bhaktivinode Thakura sri caitanya mahaprabhu his life and precepts. I read the whole thing and nothing was mentioned there about the personality soon to come. That is why I would like to read the original booklet for myself without words being cut out or added.

I am talking about the copy posted on the thread here. Why do the various branches of the Matha have to change everything to suit their own different philosophies? Especially the words of Srila Bhaktivinode Thakura /images/graemlins/confused.gif

[gopidust 0]

Do they change the words of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta too? In his books and magazines I mean? To fit the mood of their particular matha? Who would dare to change the words, in English, of the previous acaryas? There is no need for interpretation as in the books of Srila Prabhupada.

[Guest guest]

If it were not for the instruction of Srila Bhaktisidanta Saraswati Prabhupad to Srila Bhaktivedanta Prabhupad to go to the west it would not have happened. Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami gives full credit to Srila Bhaktisidanta for everything he did, but there is no doubt he fullfilled what his Guru started. If it weren't for the loving dedication of SBSST to his beloved fathers' wishes none of us would have a clue about Krsna, period. There are a number instrumental in Prabhupads inspiration but still it is only he who was chosen and succeeded in carrying the lamp of Hari nam tangibly into the western world.

[Guest guest]

Jaya Thakur Bhaktivinode ki JAYA

Jaya Gaura Kishora das Babaji Swamimaharaja ki JAYA

Jaya Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur ki JAYA

Jaya His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada ki JAYA

 

Jaya Harinam Sankirtan yagya ki JAYA

 

At least we can know that ALL our acharyas are very great liberated personallites who we are FOREVER indebted to. And that they should ALL be glorified and that our only perfection is making them happy. yasya prasada...

So.... NITAI GAURA PREMANANDA!!!!!

NITAI GAURA HARI BOL HARI BOL HARI BOL HARI BOL.....