All glories to Sri Guru and Sri Gauranga

"Our Conception, Our Principle and Our Bhajan"

An excerpt from
Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj's darshan
at the Saint Petersburg Temple, Russia,
on 10th October 2006
Transcribed by Vrinda Devi Dasi
Checked by Sripad B.P. Janardan Maharaj

Srila Gurudev: Pujala raga-patha gaurava-bhange. This is written in our Math [in marble on the front of the nat-mandir]. Yes, it is our conception, our principle and our bhajan.

Devotee: Does that mean we will follow this raga-patha, spontaneous love for Lord Krishna, in a very far way?

Srila Gurudev: No. It is very near. We are living very near to Krishna. He is not far from me by one inch. Krishna and me are not one inch apart, because Krishna is living in the heart.

Devotee: So how can we get this spontaneous love for Lord Krishna?

Srila Gurudev: Oh, easily! We can always embrace Krishna with spontaneous love. Krishna is living within our hearts and we will give spontaneous love. Love: give or take it, is not a matter. It is natural. Krishna, this word is giving that, the sound is giving that. He is attracting everyone, and I must be attracted if I am clean.

One example I can remember, immediately it came to me, is of Sabari and Ramachandra, that example is the best. Sabari is waiting for Ramachandra but she has spontaneous love and affection, everything. She knows Rama will come this way and every day she is taking very nice fruits, but first she is tasting them: this is raga marga, first she is tasting and if it is very good then she is keeping that for Ramachandra.

The Vraja-vasis, they are friends of Krishna. Everyone is eating lunch or breakfast in the jungle and there are so many fruits and things that they are eating. And when the taste is super, they are giving that to Krishna. This is called Love.

Then pujala raga-patha. This is raga-patha but we are not imitating that. We are worshiping that ideal gaurava-bhange, that means we are living in this very nice building and here we are getting the association of nice devotees, but we are thinking about that Vraja Dham, and we are thinking about Sabari in the jungle, and we are worshiping that ideal. That is called unalloyed devotion, unalloyed love and unalloyed affection.

This is written on the front of our ashram:

pujala raga-patha gaurava-bhange
matala harijana kirttana-range

Matala harijana visaya-range. Originally Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur made that poetry. Later it became pujala raga-patha gaurava-bhange, matala harijana kirttana-range. Kirttana-range: this word I gave and Srila Guru Maharaj accepted it very happily: "You can change this for us." The kirttana-range means that when you will chant properly without offence then all will reveal itself in our heart. I am always telling this when I am giving initiations. I am initiating but not imitating; I am feeling that. That feeling is always with me and I am telling this to others. This is the fact. Actually our bhajan is sankirttan at present. Sankirttan, sravanam: to hear from Guru, Gauranga, and the Vaishnava.