Śrī Guru Caraṇa Padma
The Lotus Feet of Śrī Guru
On this most auspicious day of the appearance of Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Paramahaṁsa Parivrājakācārya Aṣṭottara-śata Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Prabhupāda and disappearance of Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Paramahaṁsa Parivrājakācārya Aṣṭottara-śata Śrī Śrīmad Gour Govinda Swami Mahārāja we offer our most respectful obeisances in the dust of their lotus feet. As a humble offering to our most beloved spiritual master and our gauḍīya-guru-varga we present a booklet with a most wonderful lecture by Śrī Śrīmad Gour Govinda Swami Mahārāja, which was recorded on 31 May, 1994, American Canyon, USA. All who attend this festival will receive this booklet as a free gift and a CD with the actual recording. The recording is also available for download from the Sound-bar below.
Listen to or download this wonderful lecture:
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To read this lecture click on the booklet below:
‘Gour Govinda Swami Who Was He’ in Russian
Another humble offering on this auspicious day is the booklet ‘Gour Govinda Swami Who Was He‘, which has been translated into Russian. We would like to thank the Russian devotees very much for their co-operation.
‘Just Try to Learn the Truth’
Furthermore, there is a new publication Tad Viddhi Praṇipātena – ‘Just Try to Learn the Truth by Approaching a Spiritual Master’, which is compiled by Nimāi Paṇḍita dāsa, who was the secretary of Śrīla Gour Govinda Swami from 1992 to 1995. This book is an offering to his divine spiritual master to commemorate this year’s tirobhāva mahotsava, disappearance celebration. The book tells the story of how he met his spiritual master and recollects Śrīla Gour Govinda Swami’s wonderful glories.
Sri Murti Installation – Bali 2011
Lastly, we would like to present a video of the Śrī Mūrti Installation of Śrī Śrīmad Gour Govinda Swami Maharaja, which has only recently become available. The video was recorded in Bali on 30th August, 2011.
pamho agtACBSP,SRILA BHAKTISIDDHANTA SARASVATI THAKUR AVIRBHAVA MAHOTSAVA KI JAI, SRILA GAURA GOVINDA TIROBHAVA MAHOTSAVA KI JAI,GOVINDA MASA KI JAI, is not the case that these two mahotsava of these two maha bhagavata devotees is taking place in the most auspicious month of govinda because only demons believe everything happens by chance and not by god. Thank you for posting this nice article by HDG SRILA GAURA GOVINDA MAHARAJ. One can’t understand how the beauty of SRI GURU can save the world until one comes to the platform that the guru is not an ordinary living entity. One becomes perfect only when one surrenders to the perfect person SRI SRI GURU GAURANGA. Leave it, it is not under our control to hold what doesn’t belong to us better to surrender otherwise things get worse. This is the understanding of the future pure devotees. We struggle with the energies of the most powerful living being the supreme personality of godhead SRI KRSNA BHAGAVAT therefore when one wants to come alive again by stopping this struggle to live forever one never waste even a lava matra without be connected with the dust coming from the lotus feet of SRI SRI GURU GAURANGA,because out of this protection one get trapped by the three gunas of material nature. SRILA PRABHUPADA says that to understand the way how the three gunas of material nature are working is enough to overcome them, and SRILA BHAKTIVINODA THAKUR says that to control the mind is impossible but when SRI SRI GURU GAURANGA see the sincerity of HIS devotees immediately and automatically HE control it without any problem,we know by acaryavan puruso veda by be connected with the divyan jnana of SRI GURU that everything in the material world take place under the control of the factor time and SRI NARADA MUNI say in the second canto of the SRIMAD BHAGAVATAM that is just out of ignorance that I accepted a material body because all forms of live are coming from krsna and they are differents from bhava physical forms make by gunas and karma which is not eternal therefore when the factor time is over this so called aham mameti is subjected to disappear again that is the karmi journey of tirobhava and avirbhava appearance and disappearance through the weel of time according to transcendental guna and karma of SRI GURU GAURANGA which are akarma completely free from sinful reactions,that’s the beauty of SRI GURU through HIS transcendental avirbhava and tirobhava mahotsava which got nothing to do with the journey of ordinary living entities under the control of material nature,i know is not easy to cry to get the causeless mercy of SRI GURU but at least we are trying to do that with complete saranagati,it will come through amanitvam humility because a step a day take maha maya away,all glories to the transcendental appearance and disappearance day of all rasa rasika bhaktas of SRI SRI GURU GAURANGA,thank you for your satsanga agtSP ys acsd haribol
Divine Disappearance
Lord Caitanya said to Srila Ramananda Raya and Svarupa Damodara Goswami:
ka-i-avarahi-am pemmam na hi hoi manuse loe ja-i hoi kassa virahe hontammi ko jia-i
“Love of Godhead, devoid of cheating propensities, is not possible within this material world. If there is such a love, there cannot be separation, for if there is separation, how can one live.” [Cc. Madhya, 2.42]
In late January 1996, Srila Gour Govinda Swami had mentioned:
“Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura Maharaja said that this material world is not a fit place for any gentleman to live. Because he had felt disgusted, he left this world prematurely. I may also leave. I don’t know. I will ask Gopal. I will do what ever He wants.”
The next day he went to Gadei Giri to see Gopaljiu. While he was there he spoke to Ghanashyam Giri [cousin-brother of Srila Gour Govinda Swami Maharaja who donated Sri Sri Radha Gopaljiu temple and Their land to ISKCON]. He recalls:
“We were discussing Gopal’s new temple and the planned installation of large deities of Radha Gopal to go with the existing small ones. Suddenly, Maharaja told me, “I won’t see this Deity installation. you will see it but I will not.”
I said, “How is that? You are ten years younger than I am. If you won’t see it how will I?”
Maharaja said, “No, no. You will see the inauguration of the temple and the Deity because you have served Gopal so nicely.” That was the last discussion I had with Maharaja. After that he went to Bhubaneswar for a few days and then to Mayapur where he stayed forever.”
Srila Gour Govinda Swami Maharaja had been delayed on his annual trip to Sri Mayapur Dham for the GBC meetings in 1996 due to the Srila Prabhupada Centennial celebrations in Orissa. He had taken darsan of his beloved Sri Sri Radha Gopaljiu in Gadei Giri before embarking on his trip to Sridhama Mayapura.
Now in Mayapur, devotees were coming for darsan of Srila Gour Govinda Swami Maharaja in his guest house room every evening. Two senior devotees requested an appointment to meet with Srila Gour Govinda Swami to ask some questions. They wanted to know, “Why Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu stayed in Sri Jagannatha Puri?” Srila Gour Govinda Swami explained the confidential significance of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s pastimes in Puri. He described the viraha, the pain of separation Srimati Radharani feels when Krsna is away from Vrndavan, gradually unfolding the pastime to where finally Srimati Radharani and Krsna are united after Their long separation, eye to eye union.
“…after a long separation Krsna came back to Vraja Bhumi and then the eyes of Krsna fell on the eyes of Srimati Radharani – Eye to Eye union.”
Unable to continue, he folded his hands and in a barely audible voice said, “Please forgive me, I cannot speak more.” Overwhelmed with ecstatic love and unbearable separation from Srimati Radhika and Syamasundara he could speak and gave his final instruction: “Nama koro! Nama Koro!” The devotees began to chant as he lay back on his bed. Upon request a servant placed a picture of Sri Gopaljiu in his hand. Gazing at Sri Gopal he called out, “Gopal!” Then closed his eyes and departed, returning to His beloved Lordships Sri Sri Radha Gopal Jiu in Sri Goloka Vrndavan Dham. At the same moment a garland fell from the transcendental Body of Sri Gopaljiu in Gadei Giri.
Srila Gour Govinda Swami was brought to the Sri Sri Krsna Balaram Mandir in Bhubaneswar where he was placed in samadhi in the small mud hut that had served as his bhajan-kutir for many years.
Srila Gour Govinda Swami’s disappearance pastime perfectly exemplified the highest level of surrender and separation from Krishna as explained by Sriman Caitanya Mahaprabhu in the above verse. During the Centennial year, he made a wonderful offering of himself at the beautiful lotus feet of Srila Prabhupada, on the divine appearance day of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura. Srila Gour Govinda Swami had the ability to leave at will, meaning he could stay or go according to his own will and was not forced by the laws of material nature to leave. This is called iccha-mrtyu.
kasturi-tilakam lalata-patale vaksah-sthale kaustubham nasagre vara-mauktikam kara-tale venuh kare kankanam sarvange hari-candanam su-lalitam kanthe ca muktavali gopa-stri-parivestito vijayate gopala-cuda-manih
All glories to the crest jewel of cowherd boys known as Gopal, who has a musk tilaka-mark on His forehead, the kaustubha jewel on His chest, a graceful pearl on the tip of His nose, a flute in His hand, a bracelet on His wrist, graceful sandalwood paste on all of His limbs, a necklace of pearls on His neck, and who is surrounded by a host of gopis. [Sri-Gopala-sahasra-nama, text 28]