All
glories to Sri Guru and Sri Gauranga
Sharing the Special Present Days
in
the holy association of Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami
Maharaj
 Sripad
Bhakti Sudhir Goswami Maharaj returned to India with Srila
Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj after accompanying His
Divine Grace on the recent World
Tour.
By
phone from the Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math, Govardhan, Sripad
Goswami Maharaj kindly shared some insights into the recent days
with His Divine Grace:
After an immensely successful tour that began in England and
went to Italy, culminating in Russia with the opening of the
Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Cultural Centre in Moscow, which was
attended by the Indian Ambassador, His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti
Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj, who is the Ambassador of
the Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math and its super-conceptions of
Srila Guru Maharaj Srila Bhakti Raksak Sridhar Dev-Goswami Maharaj,
returned to Govardhan which has been indicated by Srila Bhakti
Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur and his followers as the ultimate
service-plane aspiration of those who follow in his line.
His Divine Grace was recently asked, "What are the qualifications
of Guru?" To which he answered, "Who is a 100 percent
surrendered-servitor of his Guru, he is Guru." Here, we
see Srila Govinda Maharaj is totally absorbed in thinking how
to please Srila Guru Maharaj at every moment. Yesterday he quoted
a song of the famous Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore where
he speaks about collecting flowers. Rabindranath Tagore gives
an example that being the time to collect flowers, as a person
who likes flowers he just went madly collecting flowers without
looking at their individual qualities, just grabbing them in
bunches then prepared them for offering. Then he mentions how
bees go from flower to flower collecting nectar, ignoring the
overall qualifications of the individual flowers, but extracting
nectar, moving from flower to flower. Srila Gurudev used this
example and said that in a similar way he is someone who wants
to distribute Srila Guru Maharaj's conception and service world-wide,
and in the same way he has gone collecting so many flowers.
Srila Guru Maharaj has mentioned previously that sometimes we
can conceive of the Guru who is instructing his disciples, to
be rendering a service similar to the way one prepares fruits
and flowers for offering to the Deity by cleansing them. Thus
we see His Divine Grace is demonstrating exclusive service to
his Gurudev. This is also in line with one of the songs of Srila
Bhaktivinoda Thakur. Yesterday we celebrated his Appearance
and we heard something from 'Saranagati' where Srila Bhaktivinoda
Thakur said that whatever trouble there is related to service,
brings happiness to the surrendered soul. Because Srila Gurudev
is fully surrendered to Srila Guru Maharaj, whatever troubles
might come to him through service are a source of happiness
to him, indirectly. We've heard him say so many times, and demonstrate
by his example, that he never allowed any disturbance to go
upstairs to Srila Guru Maharaj. Instead, keeping everything
below, moving on the plane of service, he accepted all the troubles
on his own head. So it was nice to see that echoed in the songs
of 'Saranagati' of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur.
We recently also celebrated the Appearance of Sri Lalita Sakhi.
Srila Gurudev always likes to quote the sloka,
radha-mukunda-pada-sambhava-gharma-bindu-
nirmanchanopakarani-krita-deha-laksam...
Which
says with a similar spirit, mood and intensity, she is prepared
to give up 100,000 bodies that the slightest disturbance may
not come to the Divine Couple in the higher plane. And Srila
Rupa Goswami has glorified Srimati Radharani in a similar way
in his Sri Radhastakam, how She considers the remotest connection
with the lotus feet of Sri Krishna to be infinitely more valuable
than Her own life magnified millions of times.
His Divine Grace mentioned that 'bhajan' means 'remembrance.'
And he said, laughing, "That I shall engage in bhajan remembering
extensively the activities of the upper world and thereby ignore
the service of this plane — I cannot do that for my own
happiness." So, he is always willing to sacrifice his own
happiness for the happiness, the service, of Srila Guru Maharaj.
Knowing that Govardhan was the aspiration of Srila Saraswati
Thakur, Srila Swami Maharaj in his final days asked for his
followers to bring him here. Similarly, His Divine Grace is
establishing the Anu Giriraj Mandir here, and nine domes are
rising high into the sky, with a 100 kilogram bell from Russia
that will ring all the way to Radha Kunda. Here bakul trees,
tamal trees and other trees of the Kundas are growing. Day and
night the sounds of seva ring in the air.
This morning Srila Govinda Maharaj spoke of the Disappearance
of Srila Haridas Thakur, describing him as the number one preacher
of Mahaprabhu even before Mahaprabhu's Appearance. He and Sri
Advaita Acharyya were both dancing at the time of the Appearance
of Mahaprabhu — Advaita Acharyya danced externally; and
Haridas Thakur danced internally within his heart. So Haridas
Thakur was already engaged in Nama Sankirttan before Mahaprabhu's
Appearance.
Srila Govinda Maharaj spoke extensively. He started by saying
"What will I say about Haridas Thakur?" and ended
up speaking for an hour. He described that Haridas Thakur and
Nityananda Prabhu were the first lieutenants of Mahaprabhu sent
to convert Jagai and Madhai, and he talked about how much Haridas
Thakur tolerated in the service of the Holy Name. His Divine
Grace revealed how every time he gives Harinam initiation to
someone he prays to Haridas Thakur: "I am not qualified,
but you can fully infuse them with Krishna-Prema, please you
extend this to them." That is his prayer whenever he gives
Harinam, of which he recently initiated one of the local Brajabasis
here.
Right now too, are the sounds of seva in the background of drills,
saws, chisels and hammers. Here they've created a lamp-post
lit entrance like a promenade with arched walls, and this extends
around the Temple. Everything here in the association of Srila
Gurudev is more extensive and deep than a photograph can show,
or than the external vision that can ever meet the eye.
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September
8th 
September
6th
September
5th
September
2nd
Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math, Nabadwip.