Praṇamāmi Guru Tīrtha Padaṁ

During the annual Navadvip dhāma-parikramā festival in 2012, many devotees from different corners of the globe came to Māyāpur to take part. It was apparently impossible for Śrīla Gurudev, who was approaching 90 years old to physically participate in the daily circumambulation. However, he showed an enthusiasm unknown to anyone of his age by leading kīrtana in the early hours on the opening day of the parikramā . He also spoke about the glories of the holy dhāma to all the pilgrims. Every day he would come out of his bhajana-kuṭīra to see off the devotees going on parikramā and to welcome the devotees when they returned late in the evening. One day when all the devotees left for circumambulation leaving behind only a few servants and Śrīla Gurudev in the Maṭha, a few devotees from China had come to visit Śrīla Gurudev. They sat in front of Śrīla Gurudev’s  bhajan kuṭīra and started to sing Mahāmantra in a loud voice. For a long time, Śrīla Gurudev was sitting inside his...

My mother took Harinām from Gurudev. She fell ill during the last two or three years of her stay in this world. She was always speaking to Guru Mahārāj in her heart. Even though she was not in a position to do anything, whatever she had to do – go to the bathroom, eat, or whatever – she would only say, "Gurujī, Gurujī, Gurujī, Gurujī..." My mother-in-law also often told me, "Guru Mahārāj will do so much good for me." Once, I heard that Guru Mahārāj came to New Delhi, so my wife and I went to the maṭh. I got a garland from him, took it back to my house, and put it on my mother-in-law. She immediately left the body. The next day, we took her to the crematorium, and Gurujī, with his own hands, sent a tulasī for her. She always wanted to serve Guru Mahārāj with a nice quilt, etc. Guru Mahārāj was pleased with her that she always wanted to do service, so Guru Mahārāj also assisted her in her last stages of life. She told Guru Mahārāj one time " I don't re...

In Nandagoan, Śrī Vidyāsāgar, a devotee from Hoshiyarpur and also Gurujī’s god-brother, suddenly fell ill.  He was not even able to get up, so some devotees from Bhatinda and Jalandhar served him very much, yet his health deteriorated more and more.  Gurujī started worrying about him very much.  He even went several times to see him.   When Cidānanda Prabhu returned from Varṣāṇā after completing some service in the evening, Gurujī called him to his room and told him that Vidyāsāgar should be taken to a good doctor at Kosi for immediate treatment.  The place was such that it was difficult to get a taxi at night.  Somehow Cidānanda Prabhu got one Maruti. Many devotees gathered around the van. Some devotees carried Vidyāsāgar into the van and laid him down.  Some necessary things like a water bottle, glass, a woolen blanket, and some clothes were taken along.  Cidānanda Prabhu, Śrī Rajesh of Jalandhar, and Śrī Amarnath Sharma’s son, Śrī Manoj of Bha...

I understand that Guru Mahārāj started to write the Kārtik Handbook in 2002 out of compassion for foreign devotees who were coming to observe Kārtik-vratā as they had no guide to understand what was being spoken. For the benefit of all those devotees who could not understand Bengali or Hindi, Guru Mahārāj took a very special effort to translate specially selected portions from Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākur's Bhajan Rahasya . During the time when he was compiling the Kārtik Handbook, Guru Mahārāj's extreme amount of care and affection was astounding. As I was listening to these pastimes being recounted, I could feel what genuine compassion Guru Mahārāj had for all those persons requiring translation. Day in and day out, he was contemplating the very best words to use. While eating, sleeping, and taking bath, while doing any activity—he was only concentrating on that service. I had the experience of sometimes feeling the need to interrupt Guru  Mahārāj's  service in order to ...

Around 2012 when Kārtik month was being celebrated in Mayapur, I was attending the festival with my whole family by the mercy of Gurudev. My son Krishna’s tithi birthday was there on the appearance day of Śrila Bhakti Śrīrūpā Siddhāntī Mahārāj. The day before his birthday, I asked one of the sevāks of Gurudev whether he could get darśan of Gurudev on his birthday and they agreed. That same evening when I was sitting with my kids in the temple hall and listening to hari-kathā , one stranger came and sat with my son. That man had some toys and he was talking with my son. I did not know him and felt that he was not really staying in the maṭh for any good reason. When we were moving for  prasādam , I asked my son, "Why were you talking with that man?" He replied to me, "Mother, that man was telling me to take these toys into your room and bring all the money from your bags. He told me, I will give you some more toys and if you will not bring anything, then tomorrow I will ...

It is very clear by observing Guru Mahārāj's activities that he has a great longing to help deliver lost souls. He demonstrates this in all his actions including his responsibilities related to the management of the maṭha, his careful and timely replies to all the devotee's letters, and writing articles for the Bangla Monthly magazine Śrī Caitanya Vani. In addition to that, he accepted great austerities while preaching in Punjab and other places where he was speaking hari-kathā up to seven times a day. We cannot see this kind of tolerance and dedication elsewhere, in anyone else. Once Śrīla Guru Mahārāj took his pracāra party to Assam and we were returning by Kamarupa Express to Kolkata. While nearing the Bangla-Assam border, I listened astonishingly to Śrī Ananta Prabhu narrate an instance from the previous year. He said that this Assam-Bangla border is very dangerous; a deserted area where if a train does not arrive at the scheduled time, dacoits come inside the trains and ro...

On the morning of June 6, 2010, Śrīla Gurudeva told me, "Lord likes children and old people. You should not disrespect them as they are very dear to Lord. Prahlad, Dhruva –they were all small children." That afternoon at the Agartala airport, somehow the sound of a child's cry entered the transcendental ears of our Gurudev from at least twenty feet away from the child in this crowded, busy airport. Śrīla Gurudev asked, "Why is the child crying?" I went and found that the baby's mother has gone to the restroom and he was crying for her. I conveyed the same to Śrīla Gurudev. He said, "Oh, okay. Is there someone to take care of him? I assured him that his father was there, then we started discussing some other topics. Everyone totally forgot about the child and the mother after five minutes except Gurudeva. He remarked, "Looks like the child's mother has come. He is not crying now." I just could not imagine how much Śrīla Gurudev cares and sh...

I had never seen Guruji lose his temper. To even an ineligible fallen disciple like me, Guruji inspires me to become good through his love and affection, just like Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu did. Most of the time, Guruji would not get to eat and take rest at night, but we have never seen Guruji is disturbed because of that. Many times he had no time for rest also. One would find him all the time engaged in loving conversations with any person, disciple or householder devotee who came to meet him without bothering about his own needs, body, or health. Whenever someone prayerfully requested to Guruji that he needed to take rest, and how essential that was, he would always say that it would be good if life air leaves the body while speaking Harikatha. He would further say that it is good that people always engage him in speaking Harikatha. It was like this for Harinam, Sankirtan, and during prachar, Guruji went from village to village, town to town, and bore various types of difficulties....

Often it is seen that in Kolkata and other maths even if there are just one or two Hindi speaking devotees then Srila Guru Maharaj will speak harikatha in Hindi or in both Hindi and Bangla so that the Bangla knowing devotees’ minds also get absorbed in the Lord. And at times when Bangla devotees ask Guru Maharaj to speak in Bangla, he would convince them saying these devotees have come so far from North India and therefore they do not understand Bangla whereas you can understand Hindi. Once when I was going to meet Guru Maharaj a group of Bhatinda devotees asked me to speak to Guru Maharaj and to know from him what we should do if any sanyassi or brahmachari who does not keep any relation with Guruji’s Math comes to Bhatinda. When I placed this question before Guru Maharaj, he smiled and said that they should first find out the reason why that sanyassi or brahmachari is there and that if they have come for preaching then it is good. But if his main reason is to collect money then i...

In Gokul Mahavan in 1993 the deities were damaged. This news reached Srila Gurudeva at Pathankot where he was stationed then.   After hearing the news, without showing any external instability and keeping his pain suppressed within his heart, he consulted some Vaishnavas and sent them to Gokul.    Later after sometime when He came to Gokul Mahavan from Jammu, He saw all the damaged deities and remained completely silent. After that, he came to the assembly hall and began to sing Sri Narasimha prayers. He could not contain his pain and cried out so loudly that it seemed like the whole universe would break. Hearing the sound of those cries, the hearts of all present there were stirred.    No one would cry so much, even in separation grief from loved ones or relatives as much as Srila Guru Maharaj cried in separation grief from the Supreme Lord, and went on telling that due to my offenses Supreme Lord has deprived me of His service.   —Swarup Damodar ...

Sri Guru Maharaj is a storehouse of positive qualities.   The magnitude of his forbearance cannot be explained in words.   All  24 hours of the day he is engaged in the service of the Supreme Lord.   I have never seen anger on his face anytime.   Guruji speaks to all who go to his room with so much affection that every person feels that Guruji spoke in a very special way to him.   Every person comes out of his room after darshan in a blissful mood.   This tolerance and patience he exhibits cannot be seen in any ordinary soul.   Sometimes speaking Harikatha it will be 12 o’clock. at night.   After Harikatha, Srila Guru Maharaj has to remain in the same place for quite some time because devotees block his way while doing pranam.   Such times he is seen to be very patient.   I have never seen him forcibly lift his feet and move forward during these times.   I have no words to say to describe his patience. In 1997 in Sri...

Wherever Srila Guru Maharaj may be, he has great affection for every disciple and to give the proof of this I reproduce some portions of his letters received from abroad. a) I want to know your present health condition after taking Homoeopathic medicine as per doctor’s prescription of Calcutta along with Allopathic medicine. b)   I am anxious to get the news of your well-being by return post or phone. On Feb 28, 1997, I had some heart problem and the doctor advised me to take rest.   For Mayapur parikrama in March 1997, we had our reservations of tickets done in advance but seeing my difficulty my brother and relatives did not wish that I undertake the journey.   When I objected they told me to ask Guru Maharaj and act according to his advice.   I spoke to Guru Maharaj over the telephone and he said “It is good if you come.   Travel comfortably and parikrama can be performed by rickshaw.   If that is also not possible, just staying in ...

In 1993, we gathered in a religious assembly that included a program of early morning Nagar Sankirtan.  The time was fixed at 5:30 am.  Slowly devotees started gathering.  It was around 6:30 am and Srila Guru Maharaj had not come out of his room yet.  Madanlal, the chief of Sri Sanatan Dharma Mandir, (New Model House, Ludhiana) told me, “Kochar Sir, you go and inform Maharaj that it is already late.  If it gets delayed further, walking in the Sun will be difficult.”  I told him that I cannot give instructions to Guruji, He is all knowing.  Whatever happens by His will will be all-good. Around 6.45 am, Guruji came out of his room and came to the assembly hall of the temple. Jai-dwani and Vandana began.  The sun was shining then. After that, Srila Guru Maharaj started sankirtan in an intense mood.  When we all came out from the hall, we found that there had been a slight drizzle and the road became wet. But Suryadev (Sun god) was peeping th...

Our Srila Gurudeva is redeemer of the fallen, the personal associate of the combined form of Sri Sri Radha Krishna—Sri Gauranga Mahaprabhu, a devotee in the mood of topmost sweet mellows. In the external view, he is also in a very high position. Inspite of being such a great personality, he has conferred his supreme compassion on this ordinary soul who is proud and a seeker of prestige.   He speaks with a smiling face. He inspires and encourages me by engaging me in small services. Seeing my physical and mental condition, he gives his suggestions and teachings in a very natural and loving way so that I progress spiritually.   He does not see any faults in me.   Keeping a faultless vision always, overlooking my thousands of offences, he always guides me.   Once during a festival in Janakpuri (New Delhi), I could not go for 3-4 days for some reason.  Srila Guru Maharaj asked his sevak Sripad Achintya Govinda Prabhu (Anu Prabhu), “What is the matter? Wh...

One time during a Harikatha in Kolkata Math, Gurudev expressed his great concern about devotees who had a desire to visit the zoological park at Kolkata when they came there.
 His concern was really palpable when he said, "You go there to see the lions and tigers, but if you suffer a heart attack and die there out of fear hearing just one roar from one of them in close quarters, you may be born as a tiger or a lion next because your last thoughts were of them!"

By Gurudev's grace we see a lesson He is conveying to us, i.e. though death of the body is certain and I have no control over the date, time, place and circumstances of death, but I still have a choice to choose how I live now and so, let me only aspire and pray to live a devotional life in the association of pure devotees of the Lord.

 I found myself pondering on the words of Gurudev and could not get it off my mind easily. More thinking made me realize that Gurudev's concern was not like an ordinary m...

When sitting alone, I sometimes remember the olden days pastimes of Guru Maharaj  when I was a pujari in Dehra Dun, I saw the early morning cold weather and severe Winter there. Guru Maharaj gave me warm clothes with his own hands. Feeling the cold winds, he also offered carpets and mats. He took care of me like a mother. Another memory is when I traveled with Guru Maharaj in trains many times. Guru Maharaj used to be always calm and composed and used to even joke. Yet, once I saw his angry mood like Narasimhadev when coming back from Assam to Kolkata. At Kolkata station, the taxi drivers were hurrying them to keep their luggage in the carrier.  Guru Maharaj got angry seeing them giving trouble to the devotees.   That time he manifested that Narasimha form, an angry mood came. Putting his foot down and holding his danda in the air, and said, "What are you doing?  What do you think about Chaitanya Gaudiya Math!  These are devotees of Chaitanya Gaudiya...

I was supremely fortunate to have had your association in Sridham Mayapur during Kartik time. Your undeserved remembrance of me and warm affection will forever remain in my memory. I am also eternally grateful for the love and affection that you have shown toward my mother and other family members. You are a greatly munificent and compassionate soul---a genuine representative of the Supreme Lord in a world riddled with hypocrisy and dishonesty. Each day, here in the West, I am confronted with such a lack of interest in the truly meaningful things in life, and an ever-burgeoning indifference or resentment toward God and His Eternal Servitors. However, this only serves, by contrast, to make me realise the greatness and unique position of a pure devotee such as yourself, and my good fortune to have been rescued by you from a similar fate. I am forever indebted to you, and Their Lordships Sri Sri Radha-Nayananatha who brought me to you so many years ago in Kolkata. You will always r...

This incident happened when Guruji was put up at Sri Haribaba Ashram in Hoshiyarpur, in a big room. One day I went in to offer him pranams, then he told me that there are many ants in the room and so he could not sleep at all. I found that there were not 2-4 or 10, but thousands and thousands of ants forming various lines, as if going in a procession. I got busy in sweeping the ants of Guruji’s bed and was wanting to sprinkle some DDT there. But Guruji objected to it straight away and said by use of DDT they will all die, we should not kill them, we have to just chase them away. Finally I ended up sprinkling some turmeric after clearing off ants from Guruji’s bed. Guru Maharaj does not like to harm even the smallest of the small living entities. —Translated from Sri Krishna Chaitanya Sandesh July-Oct, 1997 (Year 17, Issue No.4, Page 27-39) Sri Krishnananda Dasadhikari (Kuldeep Chopra, Bhatinda)

When our mother was in the last stages of her life, the doctors in Ludhiana had suggested we cease treatment; there was no hope. We thought that now that Gurujī is in Ludhiana, it is good if we take her for his darśana and we took her in the van to the temple. When we went up and spoke to Guru Mahārāja about our mother, he asked, “Can I get darśana of Matajī?” We had brought our mother for Gurudeva’s darśana but when Gurujī spoke like this, I bowed my head down to his lotus feet seeing his humbleness. What more can be said about his compassion?  He came down from the top floor to the ground floor to give darśana to Matajī. He chanted Narasiṃha-mantra before her and gave tulasī leaf in her mouth and his blessings too. In this way I saw Gurujī’s boundless compassion and humility. —Puruṣottama Dāsa Sekhari, (Punjab) translated from Sri Krishna Chaitanya Sandesh, July-Oct, 1997

Suchitara told that she was once in the math with her mother. That time her exams were also going on. Guruji asked her if she would sit for Harikatha before he was about to start speaking. She replied telling him she needed to go home to study for her exam. Again, Guruji said, "You should sit for katha." So, then she and her mother both sat then. When they reached home, they saw that the neighbor's cylinder had exploded in a location that was attached to their own kitchen. They knew immediately that Guruji had been aware of this incident when he repeated for them to stay. They could understand that Guruji must have known and stopped them as a way of protecting them from injury. —Sakshi Ratna (sent on behalf of Suchitara Sengupta)