He Demonstrates Lord Nityananda's Compassion

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In 2017 we celebrated Ramnavami, Vyasa Puja in Kolkata when Guru Maharaj was present and now it is four years later. In 2024 his centennial 100th Appearance anniversary will be celebrated.  I just pray to him that I get a chance to glorify him again and again.  Whenever I got the opportunity to be with Gurudev as his servant on his tours all over India all over the world, I never had the aptitude to speak myself.  I am only interested in hearing from Gurudev.  That became my lifeline.  

In February of 1998, we were in Honolulu, Hawaii (USA) and we were staying at the home of Mr. Kapur from India.  Guru Maharaj called me and he said tomorrow is the Appearance Vyasa Puja of Srila Prabhupad Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur. He instructed me that I must speak tomorrow. I could not muster courage and I was in anxiety but somehow I did and after that, all my hesitation and shyness went away and I know by the causeless mercy of Guru Maharaj I got an opportunity to glorify Guru, Vaishnav, and Bhagavan.  

So we started this Vyasa-puja on the 21st of this month and we had this zoom meeting where many senior Acharyas spoke. Srila Bhakti Prapanna Tirtha Maharaj of Sri Caitanya Saraswat Math, who is in Kalinagar in Navadvip right now spoke to us from ashram. He said the best contribution of His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Ballbah Tirtha Goswami Maharaj is his disciples. So he credited all the disciples he praised all the disciples so much.  Then he said that when Srila Sridhar Dev Gosvami Maharaj was told by our Param Gurudev Srila Bhakti Dayita Madhava Gosvami Maharaj that he has decided that the next Acharya will be our Gurudev, Sridhar Dev Gosvami Maharaj replied that there is no doubt about it, he is born an Acharya, he has all the qualities of Acharya spontaneously in him.  He credited Gurudev's writings Gaur Parshadavali as his literary contribution to the world. Srila Sridhar-dev Goswami Maharaj used to say that Prabhupad desired to publish Gaur Parshadavali and this desire was fulfilled by our Guru Maharaj.  

Param Gurudev also wanted the birthplace of Srila Prabhupad in Jagannatha Puri to be rescued and to be made a big temple. So all these very challenging tasks were given to our Guru Maharaj who spent ten years executing this job. We cannot even think about the kind of struggle he has gone through while dealing with so many challenges in rescuing the birthplace of Srila Prabhupad Bhakti Siddhantha Sarasvati Gosvami Thakur in Jagannatha Puri.   

Our Gurudev's contributions are infinite, we cannot even imagine.  But when we hear from other senior acharyas, sannyasis, and vaishnavas, then we realize that we have failed to understand our Gurudev ourselves. When we listen to revered Vaishnavas say that our Gurudev is the best, he is the most exalted, he is most elevated, he is transcendental, the topmost and he is most auspicious, we understand that we are very fortunate that he gave his causeless mercy to us by rescuing us and giving us shelter at his lotus feet. 

Now the most important part of Gurudev's teaching is that is given in the 11th canto of Srimad Bhagavatam,18th Sloka.  Whatever we do as service in devotional life, if the aim is opposed to pleasing the Lord, then everything is futile.  So, in the same way, whatever we do in the Vyasa Puja glorification of Gurudev if the aim is to please Gurudev only then it will be successful because the power of speech is useless if it is not engaged in the glorification of Guru, Vaishnav, Bhagavan. Blessed are those who get this opportunity to speak about Guru, Vaishnav, Bhagavan.  A most important quality of Guru Maharaj is that he will not neglect any opportunity to glorify Guru, Vaishnav, Bhagavan and he always said parasparānukathanaṁ pāvanaṁ bhagavad-yaśaḥ.  This is also of Srimad Bhagavatam, 11th canto, 3rd chapter 30th sloka. All the disciples, all the devotees should sit together and glorify Guru, Vaishnav Bhagavan with love, with satisfaction and without any envy, without any dveṣa, hatred because if we have dveṣa, we will have the aptitude to commit offence at the lotus feet of vaishnavas and that is the cause of fall, adha-patana.  

Uddava also says to Supreme Lord Krishna, I am not worried about crossing this ocean of birth and death, I will do by simply living and speaking about Your Nama, Rupa, Guna, Lila, Parikar, Dhama:  Your Name, Your Pastimes, Your Abode, Your Associates.  I am not worried about that because that is the power of having the association of such an extraordinary bonafide spiritual master; the rarest thing: durlabhaṁ manye vaikuṇṭha-priya-darśanam.

Pure devotees' association is the rarest of the rare opportunities in this world, and when physically we are not able to have their darshan, their glories make us feel their presence.  He is present even today in his teachings, in his books, in the form of his parivar, his family, his disciples.  

I remember when we were going on foreign preaching tour for the first time in 1997 so many devotees from all over India came to see off Gurudev at Delhi Airport and they surrounded Gurudev and chanted 'Jai Gurudev! Jai Gurudev! Hey mere gurudev karuna-sindhu karuna kijiye.'  Everyone was crying, Guru Maharaj was going abroad for the first time. And one Mataji told me that you have to take care of Gurudev nicely. You have to ensure his comfort, you have to serve him properly and you have to bring him back. I was just thinking this is such a big responsibility but when we returned after the tour of the US, Singapore, and other places, the same Mataji received Guru Maharaj at Delhi Airport and she came to me and put both her hands on my head, she blessed me and said, "thanks, thanks, thanks!" So that was the attachment of devotees with Guru Maharaj.  

What is so special in Gurudev that attracted everyone?  As our Vidyapati Prabhu from Australia says, our Gurudev is more than a trillionaire, I cannot pay him back.  But I will say our Guru Maharaj is a manifestation of Lord Nityananda in this time. Nityananda is a compassionate manifestation.  When Guru Maharaj will chant akrodha paramānanda Nityānanda Rāya, we could feel it. We can realize that he is non-different from the compassion of Nityananda.   

— Rasbihari Das, Jammu

Transcribed from Apr 25, 2021, 97 Vyasa-puja Offerings via Zoom




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