Praṇamāmi Guru Tīrtha Padaṁ

Our Guru Maharaj used to say that in Assam, in Bengal people are used to eat a lot of leafy vegetables. One day Guru Maharaj was eating one of these. One of his sisters told us that they asked him, "Eh, Khoka!" (Khoka is addressing a small child with love, a nickname.) "What are you eating?" Guru Maharaj did not know what it was called, but only knew that it was a leafy vegetable, so he told her, "I am eating grass."  So simple. Then everyone started laughing at him calling him 'cow cow..'  Actually he was a cow.  A cow is so sweet, so simple.  Guru Maharaj said, "I did not know what to say, I just kept quiet."  This shows his simplicity, even from childhood.   —Sri Bhakti Suhrid Paramadvati Maharaj transcribed from a recording taken on Vyasa puja, 2019 (Sri Dham Mayapur.) As told to Srila Gurudev's sevaks by those who knew him in childhood

Once in wintertime, Guru Maharaj's father gave him an overcoat.  He wore it and went to school. Without checking to see how it looked, he just wore it and went.  When he entered the school everyone started laughing at him, but he couldn't understand why. Actually, the coat he was wearing went down to his knees because it was such a big coat that had belonged to some elder gentleman of the family.  The hands of the coat were drooping, and it was so long. Yet,  Guru Maharaj did not find any fault with that coat.  Everybody was teasing him, asking,  "Eh! What are you wearing?  What is this?"  He simply said, "My father gave me." See how he respected whatever had father had given or anything that anyone has given. He thought, my father has given this, so how can I see any defect in it?  It is out of love that he has given, even though others are laughing.  So simple he was. He had no hostility to anyone right from his childhood. ...

During Summer vacations, all the children in Guru Maharaj 's family came together. They had a big family.  His father had 3 or 4 brothers and their children played there too, with their own family including 8 or 10 children. With all of them together it was like a school in the house, about 30-35 kids representing all different age groups.  With so many children together, it usually means they are going to make some nuisance, some mischief.  During Summer vacations when all children are at home, it is very difficult for parents to control the children. One day after lunch, Guru Maharaj's paternal uncle called all the children to come and sit before him. Then he said, "You should all count backward one by one, starting from a hundred and back to one. After you finish counting you can go to play." Near Guru Maharaj's house there is a pond.  The elders feared that the children will fall in the pond and may hurt themselves.  So this plan was devised in order to...