19990330 Vyāsa-pūjā Celebration 'Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Thakura līlā' - Godrumadvīpa

Following is a class given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami on March 30^th, 1999 at Śrī Māyāpur, India.

Jayapatākā Swami: Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was born in Orissa, but then he, was actually born here in Birnagar, I am sorry, he was born in Birnagar then he lived in Orissa for sometime as a . . . then he took government service in Orissa, and he was given the assignment as the first administrator of the Jagannātha Purī temple. But then he wanted to find the birthplace of Caitanya Mahāprabhu, he wanted to discover the birthplace, where the birthplace of Lord Caitanya was. At that time, it was not clear where it was, So, he was looking to find out.

Everything had been flooded by the Ganges for two hundred years. So, many people were saying that the birthplace was lost in the Ganges. And some were saying that it must be here on this side cause this is close to the Chand Kazi’s samādhi. So, in this way Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was researching and he wanted to be transferred here so he could give his full time for the research of Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

So, he was transferred here as the District Magistrate of Nadia, and he had made his house here. He would go every morning by horse in baggi from here to office in Kṛṣṇanagara. He had a, So, that is, in the nighttime he would write his books here, the songs. And nearby to here, just couple, about one hundred fifty meters that way is Surabhi-kuñja. We are in the Godrumadvīpa, Godrumadvīpa is one of the nine islands in the Navadvīpa. [Aside: Who can say the nine islands?] (audio break)

[...] the practices of devotional service – Sīmantadvīpa, Godrumadvīpa, Madhyadvīpa, Koladvīpa, Ṛtudvīpa, Jahnudvīpa, Rudradvīpa, Modadrumadvīpa, Antardvīpa, got it? (laughter) Sīmantadvīpa for śravaṇam, Godrumadvīpa – kīrtanam, Madhyadvīpa – smaraṇam like this it goes around all the nine islands. But Jagannātha temple is in Sīmantadvīpa, and we are here in Godrumadvīpa. Actually, normally we should go the other, we should come clockwise, we have to meditate clockwise. But this is also one of the types of that to visit Antardvīpa, Sīmantadvīpa and Godrumadvīpa and Ṛtudvīpa. That is also a kind of parikramā, So, we are visiting all these four islands today.

For Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura when he was, one night he had a vision from his room here, where he was looking over his balcony over the Jalāṅgī river. Then he saw a brilliant light, and he understood that was the birthplace of Lord Caitanya. You can see from here the birthplace of Lord Caitanya, now there is a tree in the way, one hundred years ago this tree was smaller. So, when he went with bhakti (Jagannātha dāsa Bābājī), he went to find the actual place that he had seen that night.

[...] One hundred and fifteen we heard at that moment, he was hardly not walking much. But when he (Jagannātha dāsa Bābājī) was carried over the way of the birthplace of Lord Caitanya he started jumping up and down in ecstasy. (speaks in Bengali) [Aside to the translator: I did not say got carried away, I said, when he was taken there, he raised his hands and started dancing up and down in ecstasy almost naturally.] Haribol! Haribol! Haribol!

Our Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was a householder and doing all these research and also doing the writing, he was also preaching and also, he was chanting all his rounds. Sometimes devotees say, “I am too busy, I have to work, I have to study, I do not have time for my rounds.” But he was doing so many things, and he was also chanting his Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra every day. [Aside: What number you are?] Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, he also started Nāma-haṭṭa preaching. We sang that, they sang this morning, this is a Nāma-haṭṭa song,

–kīrtana break–

nadīyā-godrume nityānanda mahājana
patiyāche nāma-haṭṭa jīvera kāraṇa
(śraddhāvāna jana he, śraddhāvāna jana he)

prabhura ājñāya, bhāi, māgi ei bhikṣā
bolo ‘kṛṣṇa’, bhajo kṛṣṇa, koro kṛṣṇa-śikṣā

aparādha-śūnya ho’ye loho kṛṣṇa-nāma
kṛṣṇa mātā, kṛṣṇa pitā, kṛṣṇa dhana-prāṇa

kṛṣṇaera saḿsāra koro chāḍi’ anācāra
jīve doyā, kṛṣṇa-nāma—sarva-dharma-sāra

nitāi-gaura haribol! haribol! haribol!

So, nadīyā-godrume nityānanda mahājana, patiyāche nāma-haṭṭa jīvera kāraṇa, that Nadia, this district, Lord Caitanya has His pastimes is known as Nadia district, or else sometimes Navadvīpa is also known as Nadia. So, here Lord Nityānanda set up His shop, set up His distribution of network for distributing the holy name. So, he called mahājana means the distributor or big businessman like a big capitalist. So, He has, His capital is kṛṣṇa-prema, the holy name and He is distributing the holy name to everyone through His different sales agents, stockists, distributors and so on, commission agent, dalālas.

So, many other employees who are helping in the process like those who are waying up for goods in the shop, they godown bearers. Also, in the marketplace they are laundry men, barbers, many other employees, sweeper, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura said he himself took the job of sweeper. (Haribol!) Although he is the spiritual master, but he is taking the most humble service. He said his job is to keep the market clean. That the spiritual master as a sweeper, he used to keep all the kind of apa-sampradāya, māyāvādīs, sahajiyā, different kinds of contaminations out from that camp of the spiritual process.

So, in this great Nāma-haṭṭa market headed by Lord Nityānanda Prabhu and assisted by all of Lord Caitanya’s associates, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura took the humble service of sweeping. He said while sweeping he will also get the little news from the papers and things turn around to get some of the information. Just like in the west in the airports those sweepers, they are picking up the Bhagavad-gītās in the garbage can that people throw away and getting liberated. (Haribol!) [Aside to the Bengali Translator: I do not know how you translated that in Bengali.] (laughter)

But, so, prabhura ājñāya, bhāi, māgi ei bhikṣā – “I am begging from you, this, on the order of Lord Caitanya, I am begging from you to please ‘bolo ‘kṛṣṇa,’ bhajo kṛṣṇa, koro kṛṣṇa-śikṣā’, you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, worship Kṛṣṇa and study Kṛṣṇa’s teachings, ‘kara kṛṣṇa-śikṣā’ that this whole process to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, worship Kṛṣṇa in the temple, in the home and also to study Kṛṣṇa’s teachings Bhagavad-gītā, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Caitanya-caritāmṛta. So, this is the basic process, it is for everyone. Do not require any big degree, do not require any big qualification, do not even have to live in a temple.

You can live, you can make your house into a temple, and you can chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. So, if you make your house into a temple, then your house become, household becomes a Kṛṣṇa-centered household. The main thing is to always chant the holy name and we should chant without offences ‘aparādha-śūnya ho’ye loho kṛṣṇa-nāma’, avoid all the offences. Then usually people who are living in the home, they are very attached to their family members, to their society, to their properties, to their money, to so many material things.

But Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura says, ‘kṛṣṇa mātā, kṛṣṇa pitā, kṛṣṇa dhana-prāṇa’, you take as your mother and father is Kṛṣṇa, He is your relative, He is your friend, He is your life and soul, He is the dearest thing what you have and He is also the most valuable treasure that you possess. Someone may have many things in the house but the, there may be one thing which they consider the most valuable treasure. But for the devotees the most valuable treasure is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That we want to keep always, like if a house is on fire, what do you want to save?” (laughter) “So, no matter what we keep as the top priority we have to be Kṛṣṇa conscious. After that depending on time, place and circumstance we are keeping track of all the other things too.

Then, so then he said “kṛṣṇera saṁsāra kara” you make a Kṛṣṇa conscious household, “chāḍi’ anācāra” but you give up all illicit activities, give up all the unwanted activities. You see many people they think if I want to be a devotee or something I have to give up all my material things. They think I have to “saṁsāra chāḍa” I have to give up saṁsāra but Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura is not saying to give up the household, but he is saying make your household Kṛṣṇa conscious, but give up all the unwanted things, give up all the burdens of materialistic things.

Then, kṛṣṇera saṁsāra kara chāḍi’ anācāra, jīve dayā, kṛṣṇa-nāma—sarva-dharma-sāra – was you keep, you be merciful to the conditioned souls and chant the holy name. This is the essence of all religious principles. So, two principles, make your house Kṛṣṇa conscious puts Kṛṣṇa in the center, worship Kṛṣṇa, the different word is being said again, chant the holy name and be merciful to the conditioned souls, give them Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Some of my disciples are asking what is my order to them! But what order to give you, already the instructions are given what we should do. So, we can pray here to Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura for his blessings, actually he is one of the mañjarīs of, in the spiritual world, then he has come down just to reestablish the saṅkīrtana movement of Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

We can all pray to Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, there is so much we can go on keep talking for hours and hours actually. I am just giving a brief overview, when we come here during the Navadvīpa parikramā we talk for about two hours. But I want to get us to Jagannātha temple before it gets too hot. So, just we have come here to get the blessings.

His house is here upstairs is the same bedroom. Next to it is the bedroom of Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura. This is the bhajana-kuṭīra of Gaura-kiśora dāsa Bābājī, it is the tulasī-maṇḍapa, pretty nice tulasī-maṇḍapa. This is samādhi temple of Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura. When we do the parikramā in the other doorway you can see his personal Deities of Gaura-Gadādhara, he worships Gaura-Gadādhara Deities. And then there is a small temple here, that is the temple of Kṛṣṇadāsa Bābājī who was his personal secretary, so he was also a very great devotee. So, everybody may have the parikramā, here there is so many, one two three four five holy places, pañca-tīrtha plus bhajana-kuṭīra upstairs.

If anyone likes to give, you can, it is always custom when you visit some temple to give something, one paisa, fifty paisa, one rupee, something you give. The poor people, they come and buy one paisa coins, for ninety paisa they give hundred and everyone they will offer one, even you do not see one paisa anywhere but in our praṇāmī box, you can see (laughter). But they know that I should give something, So, they are very poor, they go to ninety temples for one rupee, something they give. Anybody have some realization here? How do you feel benefited by Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura in your Kṛṣṇa consciousness? Identify yourself?

Revatī devī dāsī: I am Revatī devī dāsī. So, I am, I was amazed how determined Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was in his Kṛṣṇa consciousness in spite of having a family and good job and everything. But he was so and so, determined to spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness that only due to Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura we can even come here and Māyāpur is existing, and everyone is so fired up.

Jayapatākā Swami: He wanted to take sannyāsa and do, but then his Guru Mahārāja Jagannātha dāsa Bābājī said, “You are already more than a sannyāsī So, there is no need of taking sannyāsa, your whole life is completely Kṛṣṇa conscious.” One day he was chanting japa here in his house, his wife was helping to arrange for the Deity’s service, all the children he told the children, “Okay, when you grow up you can do what you want but somehow I have to feed you, you have to help me in my Kṛṣṇa’s service, that is the deal.” (laughter)

I was in Madras one time, and it was sometime when the parents in the west, they get the mental about what to do, how much they should enthuse their children to be Kṛṣṇa conscious or how much is. But one devotee, I do not know if he is here today, he told me his point of view. So, that, I know that Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the best thing. So, I do not want my children when they grow up to accuse me that you are sentimental or you did not give us what you knew to be the best thing in life, you did not give us your Kṛṣṇa consciousness, what did we know, we are foolish children. So, in that way we will be attracted to the sense gratification, but it was your duty to give us what you knew to be the best and you neglected to do that.” (laughter) I said, “Well, that is so cutting-edge vision.” (laughter)

So, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura he was like that, and he gave his children the best he could, Kṛṣṇa consciousness. One son was Bhaktisiddhānta Ṭhākura who was able to inspire that preaching is go all around the world. And another, his disciples; children became also a guru, Lalitā Prasāda Ṭhākura. I had the opportunity to meet him on several occasions. Prabhupāda asked me to fix up his āśrama as a service. So, I fixed it up. He was living at the birthplace of Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura in Birnagar. So, at least two, they became the lifelong brahmacārīs and preachers and others they became householders, but they were also devotional people for the most part.

So, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura got dream from Lord Kṛṣṇa that he should do his bhajana at Jagannātha Purī next to the Haridāsa Ṭhākura’s samādhi-maṇḍira and that by doing that Kṛṣṇa consciousness, Lord Caitanya’s saṅkīrtana movement will spread all over the world. So, even when he was doing his final bhajana his desire was how to see that everybody all over the world becomes Kṛṣṇa conscious. So, he was completely goṣṭhyānandī.”

Although he was in his internal, he would sometimes see, when he go on Navadvīpa parikramā for him it was not unusual to see Lord Caitanya chanting with His associates. Suddenly to see that everybody turns into, Lord Caitanya and His associates turn into Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa and the gopīs having rāsa-līlā. For him it was not unusual to see Śiva, to see Durgā, to see Brahmā, to see all the different incarnations. He would go on Navadvīpa parikramā and it would not be 4D, it would not be 3D, it would be 4D.” (laughter) “He would go on fourth dimensional parikramā.” (laughter) So, we pray to him that we may on this humble little mini, micro parikramā that we may also be able to get feeling for the fourth dimension which actually Navadvīpa dhāma is situated on. (Speaks in Bengali) [Aside: What I should say? You live here in Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura’s place, you say what you know? If you do not know English, then speak in Bengali. I will translate what you say.]

I asked him what did you get from Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura? (the devotee speaks in Bengali and Śrīla Guru Mahārāja translates in English) Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura started the Nāma-haṭṭa pracāra, preaching. I joined ISKCON. For ten years I am preaching in Nāma-haṭṭa department in Bengal and Assam. I understand Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was not an ordinary person. He came simply to deliver all of us and his instructions, and his songs he gives us so many instructions that I personally like to sing his songs, and I get lot of instruction from his songs.

Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura gave instruction how to be a Kṛṣṇa conscious householder. He said one time, he saw, “How I was worshipping in my house, and I saw now that my whole house has become the spiritual world, the Goloka Vṛndāvana.” Nitāi Gaura Premānande Haribol! Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura wrote such bhajanas, giving us spiritual instructions. If anybody can really understand Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura songs, they are deep into the translations and feelings. When they sing that songs definitely, they will be able to go back to Goloka Vṛndāvana at end of this life. (Haribol!) Hare Kṛṣṇa! So, you had a question?

Devotee: (Question is about Gaura-Gadādhara and Gaura-Nitāi’s Deities, it was asked in Bengali)

Jayapatākā Swami: Why sometimes we see Gaura-Gadādhara Deity and sometimes we see Gaura-Nitāi? That depends on which the Deities are, that is how we see (laughter). Sometimes you see Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa because Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa are there (laughter). Sometimes we see Revatī and Balarāma.”

Devotee: (Question is inaudible)

Jayapatākā Swami: Their mood is like, Gaura-Nitāi is more like a preaching mood. Gaura-Nitāi in navadvīpa-līlā, especially are in the preaching mood. Rādhārāṇī had asked . . . Rādhārāṇī in vṛndāvana-līlā, she used to see Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma standing together, all the cowherd boys in front of all the elders and everything because she was in parakīyā-rasa she is thinking that, “These men they get all the breaks. They get allowed to be with Lord Kṛṣṇa and I have to stand here, and I cannot so freely associate in front of everybody that I hope one time I can also have a male body, then I can very be, very much a friend with Lord Kṛṣṇa.” So, to fulfil her desire in caitanya-līlā she appeared as Gadādhara Prabhu. (Haribol!) And So, that in the harināma-saṅkīrtana movement Kṛṣṇa came of course in the mood of Rādhārāṇī, So, Rādhārāṇī came as a friend, as a devotee to help Lord Kṛṣṇa in His service when He is in the mood of Rādhārāṇī.

It is very esoteric actually, I can just say this much, but it is something very, very deep. How these things can happen, (laughter) it is very, very esoteric, very difficult to actually express. Who can understand? What the mood is? Some people (may understand) but in pastime this particular līlā in this mood of Gadādhara, it is not a conjugal relationship. Although the love is completely deep and unlimited, but they are not relating with each other as Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa because Kṛṣṇa Himself is in the mood of Rādhā. But from Rādhārāṇī is point of view, as Gadādhara, she is helping Kṛṣṇa. So, it is very (laughter), it is very deep actually.

So, some of the Vaiṣṇavas, they are worshipping Gaura-Gadādhara, that is also like it is more of the appreciation of the very complicated rasas and relationships of spiritual life of kṛṣṇa-bhakti. And in that appreciation in that tasting those mellows they are worshipping and, but in this to particular mood we see also that Gadādhara, do not think that Gadādhara, he was also preaching. In fact, I wanted to take everybody on this parikramā today, but I was also told only about a dozen people wanted to go and same time Gopāla Kṛṣṇa Mahārāja is phoning me up that I have to help him in certain matters.

So, I wanted to take the devotees to the place where Gadādhara Prabhu’s brother’s son who was Gadādhara Prabhu disciple was kept for preaching there. And how he showed to Gadādhara Prabhu during the saṅkīrtana, he was also going around, and he was preaching. So, even Rādhārāṇī herself came as Gadādhara and was also doing harināma-saṅkīrtana. So, everybody is in the saṅkīrtana mood also in Navadvīpa and in this particular pose you see Gadādhara has got his two hands down. That mood means, that pose means accepting, given out the mercy, come on take the mercy of Gaurāṅga. Gaurāṅga! So, Gadādhara Prabhu in this particular mood is also taking everyone into Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s service. So, Rādhārāṇī is the most merciful, So, Gadādhara Prabhu is also most merciful, he is taking everyone and giving Lord Caitanya’s service.”

So, now we have to go, we are super late. Try to go on all the boats, So, now we have a fifteen-minute boat drive also. The Jalāṅgī river is where Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura bathed in, Lord Caitanya, Nityānanda bathed in. It is a tributary of the Ganges, it is said to be non-different from Sarasvatī river.” (audio abruptly stops)