Making Him Our Everything

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The most auspicious subject for us to listen to and speak about is the glorious and merciful pastimes and teachings of Guru, Vaishnav, and the Lord. I pray for the mercy of Gurudeva so that I can speak about his glories by his own mercy and to purify my mind and attain my eternal welfare.  

He mercifully appeared in this world on Sri Ramanavami tithi in 1924 and performed pastimes for 93 years. Throughout his holy life, he gave us teachings through his ideal life and conduct; not just after he joined the math, but even from his very childhood. His divine nature was exhibited by worshiping and meditating on Tirtheshwar Mahadeva for long hours like Prahlad Maharaj.  

We see from his ideal life that he had only one goal: to please his Gurudeva; except for his Gurudeva and his glories, he would not think of anything else, he would not speak about anything else. Guru Maharaj kept me as a servant for a while, and I remember his narration of one instance. When he had joined the math as a young brahmachari, he repeatedly received letters from his father that requested replies to his inquiries regarding where he was and how he was doing. Param Gurudeva instructed him not to reply and this resulted in a distressing dilemma for him. He cried uncontrollably on the terrace of the math. During that time a bright light from the sky entered his heart and he was completely pacified, calmed, and immediately decided I will simply follow my Gurudev's instructions all my life and nothing else. Becoming guru-gata-prana, he dedicated his heart and soul to his Gurudev's vani and institution so much that he never differentiated something as being a big seva or a small seva. 

We have heard this instance when Guru Maharaj was Secretary of the math, he went early in the morning on Nandotsav wearing only a gamcha (towel) around his waist to clean the cooking vessels. Sevaks were still sleeping, feeling tired after late-night Janmastami celebrations. Then sevaks woke up hearing the sounds of the vessels during cleaning and came running to relieve him. Once desiring to serve, Guru Maharaj went and sat in the balcony with other devotees to cut vegetables and when Param Gurudev saw this he gave specific instructions to the bhandari not to allow Krishna Ballabh in such seva because if he cuts his finger, it will be difficult for him to carry out the special sevas of writing letters and notes for him.  

Seeing his dedication and service mood, Param Gurudev said, I have many disciples, but the disciple who matches my heart's desire is only one,—that is Tirtha Maharaj. And Guru Maharaj proved these words and mood of Param Gurudev by being a perfect disciple of his Gurudev. 

In 2007 Guru Maharaj was at Chandigarh Math going through illness pastimes, even after he was hospitalized, Guru Maharaj still insisted on going to Kolkata Math saying that this is the place of my Gurudev; I want to leave my body there. He was brought to Chandigarh Math where Param Gurudev installed the deities Sri Sri Guru Gauranga Radha Madhav jiu, and also where his bhajan kutir and pushpa-samadhi are. The next morning Guru Maharaj said that as long as his eyes were open, he will not allow any harm to happen to his Gurudev's institution. He also explained, "It was time for me to leave, but Srila Gurudev and the Lord desired that I perform more service, so I am required to stay longer in this world."

In Param Gurudev's pranama mantra we glorify him with the words satirtha priti sad-dharma guru priti pradarshine, this is visible in Guru Maharaj's conduct and activities like reverence to guru-varga and senior Vaishnavas, how he follows them, and his affectionate dealings with god-brothers and even his own disciples. If we see those activities or even remember them, we will feel very fortunate and great reverence for our Gurudev will come. Outsiders are often surprised and ask, "How can you live in math forgetting your parents? It is only his affection, his smile that keeps us alive and in service and keeps us going. All of us, whether brahmachari, sannyasi, or householder eagerly wait for some sweet exchanges with Gurudev— one glance, one smile, or a small talk with him. Now we are deprived of such association, but the pleasant memories of those moments bring joy and bliss to our hearts even today.

Once when I was serving Guru Maharaj I had to reheat his food 2-3 times as he was busy with some writing work. Finally, when Guru Maharaj sat down to eat he told me that I did not put salt in the papita sabji. I explained that I had put, but while reheating I added some water, so maybe the taste is less. Guru Maharaj told me, " No, you have not added salt at all." As he was eating, he put some of it from his spoon in my hand and told me to check it myself. In such a sweet natural manner he was showering his affection and mercy on me.  

Once I silently prayed to Guru Maharaj explaining that during Janmastami you are always in Kolkata and Jhulan time you are in Vrndavan, and again for Radhastami you are in Kolkata. So this time you come to Delhi for Radhastami. I placed this prayer before Gurudeva through Tatpar Maharaj who was serving Gurudev then and Gurudev agreed to the proposal. But about that time in Delhi, dengue fever and chickenpox were spreading and a few brahmacharis were sick. So I was requested by Guru Maharaj's sevaks to speak to Guru Maharaj and explain the reasons he should postpone his visit to Delhi. That was the first time I spoke to Guru Maharaj on the phone. After he heard my explanation, he asked, "So you do not want me to come?" "No Gurudev," I replied, " I was just explaining the situation here, but the final decision is always yours" Finally, he said, "You had desired that I come, and so I am coming. Make all necessary arrangements." And when he did arrive, everything went off well by his divine grace. Remembrance of such pastimes brings sheer joy to the heart.    

When we visit other Gaudiya maths and they hear our Param Gurudev and Guru Maharaj's names, their faces brighten with joy and tell us we are all most fortunate souls to be grand-disciples and disciples of such great Vaishnavas. We heard that Srila Bhakti Pramod Puri Goswami Maharaj, founder-acharya of Sri Gopinath Gaudiya Math used to say, Srila Bhakti Ballabh Tirtha Goswami Maharaj is the embodiment of the third sloka of Mahaprabhu's "Sri Sikshastaka": tṛṇād api sunīcena taror api sahiṣṇunā. Prabhupad's disciple, Bhakti Saurabh Bhaktisar Gosvami Maharaj would say our Guru Maharaj is not just a Vaishnava, he is a Parama-vaishnava. Such are the expressions of awe and joy by senior Vaishnavas in the glories of Guru Maharaj. All twenty-six qualities of Vaishnavas that scriptures sing are all manifest in full in our Guru Maharaj.  

Foremost among all his teachings is to chant and sing Sri Harinama Sankirtan in a a loud voice. It would greatly please him when he does sankirtan or hears others perform such sankirtan. We might have heard many acharyas, gurus perform Harinam Sankirtan, but the chants of pranam mantras, long jai-dvanis, and sankirtans of Guru Maharaj are out of this world; they descend from the transcendental world. His "Jai dau" kirtans bring horripilation not just to us, but even to strangers, and their feet also would start dancing. Such are the attractions and the mood of his kirtans. We have heard from Srila Bhakti Niketan Turiyashrami Maharaj that Guru Maharaj would lose external consciousness while immersed in singing kirtans, so much so that on one occasion his sevak had to grab the cloth falling from his waist as he sang uninterruptedly, completely unaware.

Even during his sickness pastimes, he gave us the teaching of Uccha Harinam Sankirtan by the change in expressions of his face, tapping of fingers or feet when devotees did Sankirtan loudly, and while he was strolling on his wheelchair in the balcony. During his end pastimes, he inspired devotees to perform Harinam Sankirtan in loud voice and it went on non-stop for almost three hundred hours which is the first incident of its kind, never heard of before in any of the acharya's lilas. His mood and desire were that we should do kirtans enthusiastically and at least attain a drop from Supreme Lord's ocean of mercy.

May we make our lives successful by remembering and following his ideal teachings of dedication to Gurudeva, his guru-nishta, and making Gurudev our all-in-all like him. May he bestow his mercy on us and enable us to fulfill his heart's innermost desire which is non-different from the desire of Param Gurudev.

—Srila Bhakti Vivek Nrsimha Maharaj

From Vyasa-puja offerings via zoom, Apr 24, 2021

spoken in Hindi, translated to English 



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