of His Holiness Bhakti Bring Govind Swami Guru Maharaj
THE APPERANCE DAY OF OUR BELOVED SPIRITUAL MASTER om vishnupada paramhansa parivrajakacarya astottara sata sri srimad Bhakti Bring Govind Swami Guru Maharaj
oṁ ajñāna-timirāndhasya jñānāñjana-śalākayā cakṣur unmīlitaṁ yena tasmai śrī-gurave namaḥ I was born in the darkest ignorance, and my spiritual master opened my eyes with the torch of knowledge. I offer my respectful obeisances unto him. Srila Bhakti Bring Govind Swami Pranati nama oṁ viṣṇupādāya kṛṣṇa presṭhāya bhūtale sṛīmate Bhakti Bring Govind Swāmīn iti nāmine I offer my respectful obeisances unto His Holiness Bhakti Bhakti Bring Govind Swāmīn, who is very dear to Lord Krsna having taken shelter at His lotus feet namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe Our respectful obeisances are unto you, O spiritual master, servant of Sarasvaté Gosvämé. You are kindly preaching the message of Lord Caitanyadeva and delivering the Western countries, which are lled with impersonalism and voidism Srila Prabhupäda Pranati nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāmin iti nāmine I offer my respectful obeisances unto His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, who is very dear to Lord Kṛṣṇa, having taken shelter at His lotus feet. namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe Our respectful obeisances are unto you, O spiritual master, servant of Sarasvaté Gosvämé. You are kindly preaching the message of Lord Caitanyadeva and delivering the Western countries, which are lled with impersonalism and voidism
By Srla Narottama das Thäkura (1) Sri-guru-carana-padma, kevala bhakati-sadma, bando muñi sāvadhāna mate jāhāra prasāde bhāi, e bhava toriyā jāi, kṛṣṇa-prāpti hoy jāhā ha'te The lotus feet of our spiritual master are the only way by which we can attain pure devotional service. I bow to his lotus feet with great awe and reverence. By his grace one can cross the ocean of material suffering and obtain the mercy of Krsna. (2) guru-mukha-padma-vākya, cittete koribo aikya, ār nā koriho mane āśā śrī-guru-caraṇe rati, ei se uttama-gati, je prasāde pūre sarva āśā My only wish is to have my consciousness puried by the words emanating from his lotus mouth. Attachment to his lotus feet is the perfection that fullls all desires. (3) cakṣu-dān dilo jei, janme janme prabhu sei, divya jñān hṛde prokāśito prema-bhakti jāhā hoite, avidyā vināśa jāte, vede gāy jāhāra carit He opens my darkened eyes and lls my heart with transcendental knowledge. He is my Lord birth after birth. From him ecstatic prema emanates; by him ignorance is destroyed. The Vedic scriptures sing of his character (4) śrī-guru karuṇā-sindhu, adhama janāra bandhu, lokanāth lokera jīvana hā hā prabhu koro doyā, deho more pada-chāyā, ebe jaśa ghuṣuk tribhuvana Our spiritual master is the ocean of mercy, the friend of the poor, and the lord and master of the devotees. O Lokanatha Goswami! O master! Be merciful unto me. Give me the shade of your lotus feet. Your fame is spread all over the three worlds
We wish to offer our humble and respectful obeisances in deep gratitude to all the devotees for submitting their offerings for the pleasure, honor and glorication of our beloved spiritual master, Śrīla Bhakti Chāru Swami Mahārāja, on the most auspicious occasion of his 78th Vyāsa-pūjā. We echo the sentiments of all the devotees who repeatedly expressed how impossible of a task it is in this world that pays convey the glories of our beloved spiritual master or express the gratitude we have in our hearts for accepting us at his sweet lotus feet. It is for this very reason, that a special offering book is an attempt to glorify him, not merely through Vyāsa-pūjā offerings by his disciples, but also through the bond of eternally connected souls to Śrīla Prabhupāda, who is the founder of Śrīla Prabhupāda's ISKCON, and for allowing us a glimpse of the spiritual world through the love and mercy he showered upon us. As the editing team, we feel most grateful for this service opportunity. Being immersed in the ocean of love and appreciation of our beloved Gurudeva allowed us to meditate more deeply on his beautiful qualities and our connection with him. It is beyond words how much joy and satisfaction we derive to possess the sincerity and devotion to our spiritual master's lotus feet reected by all the devotees in their heartfelt offerings. Every devotee has a unique mood and relationship with our Gurudeva, which we strove to honor by maintaining the language and mood of each devotee's offering. The daunting task of processing, organizing and structuring this compilation was not easy. It took focused determination, long hours and meticulous considerations to succeed in presenting our master's service mood to produce the best possible compilation for our spiritual master's pleasure We conclude this book for the pleasure of Gurudeva at his lotus feet remembering the following prayer of Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura: jogyata-vicare, kichu nahi pai, tomara karuna-sara, karuna na haile, prana na rahibo If you examine me, you will nd no qualities. Your mercy is all that I am made of. If you are not merciful unto me, I can only weep, and I will not be able to main...
The bona de spiritual master is the most important guide in a jīva's journey back to Godhead. It is his commitment, dedication and example which encourages a disciple to continue on the path of Bhakti with full conviction. In our society, the spiritual master's main duty is to connect a disciple to the lotus feet of Śrīla Prabhupāda. Śrīla Prabhupāda is an associate of Lord Krishna, he is an eternal resident from the spiritual world. He is the Senapati Bhakta who Lord Caitanya has sent to spread Krishna consciousness all over the world. In a few millenniums to come, Śrīla Prabhupāda will be revered by billions of people around the world. Leaders from all walks of life will recognize Śrīla Prabhupāda as the foremost spiritual leader of mankind. Once, Tribhuvanath Prabhu (disciple) asked Śrīla Prabhupāda, what was the role of the Guru. Śrīla Prabhupāda took off his glasses and explained that the Guru is like a pair of glasses. The glasses are meant to help you focus, so the spiritual master's role is to help the disciple focus on serving Krishna. The world has drastically changed, it has become more and more sinful and degraded, since Śrīla Prabhupāda's physical departure in 1977. Kali has found a stronghold and the minds and hearts of people with its toxic technology and addictive propaganda. It's only those moulding times, who have hope, who have dedicated themselves to preaching, who proudly promote the legacy and mission of Śrīla Prabhupāda. His Holiness Bhakti Chāru Swami is an example of an exemplary leader who is a pillar of strength in our society. His Holiness has continued to show by example what it means to be a true follower of Śrīla Prabhupāda. A true follower of Śrīla Prabhupāda is one who never deviates from the instructions of Śrīla Prabhupāda and who cooperates with fellow members to expand and protect the society. His Holiness is a person who has carried ISKCON on his shoulders for decades and has always been there for the devotees, always encouraging, always supporting, always dependent on the mercy of the Lord. While he throws all challenges, he never gives up. His Holiness has always promoted and upheld Śrīla Prabhupāda as the centre of ISKCON and the centre of the world. His Holiness has always strived to keep the movement pure and has always preached Śrīla Prabhupāda's uninching love for all the devotees everywhere around the world. His Holiness completely surrendered to Śrīla Prabhupāda, dedicating over 40 years of his life in ISKCON. His Holiness never slowed down his responsibilities. His Śrīla Prabhupāda's mission, in fact, he always increased his responsibilities. How many of us have thought about how hard it is to serve with so many things compared to Śrīla Prabhupāda and Lord Krishna. The fundamental weapons given in the Age of Kali is the chanting of the holy name of Krishna. The chanting of the holy name of Krishna can conquer people's hearts in Krishna consciousness (Amaya 17.11). This Vyāsa Pūjā book is dedicated to our beloved spiritual master. It contains a plethora of wonderful offerings from disciples and well-wishers all around the world. All Glories to His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of ISKCON All glories to His Holiness Bhakti Bring Govind Swami Maharaj.
Puja means “worship,” and Vyasa, or Srila Vyasadeva, is the compiler and supreme authority on the Vedic literature. Vyasa Puja, literally meaning “the worship of Vyasa,” refers to the worship of the genuine spiritual master, who is the ideal representative of Srila Vyasadeva, on the occasion of his appearance day. The spiritual master is the representative if Srila Vyasadeva because he is distributing the nectar that Srila Vyasadeva churned out of the ocean of the Vedas. Veda means “knowledge,” the knowledge of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In Bhagavadgita, Krishna says, vedas ca sarvair aham eva vedyah: “By all the Vedas I am to be known.” The ultimate objective of the Vedas is to reveal the identity of Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. And that Vedic revelation becomes manifest in the heart of the conditioned soul by the mercy of the spiritual master because he has been specially empowered by the Lord to bestow that mercy. That is why the spiritual master is the most worthy representative of Srila Vyasadeva, the original distributor of the Vedas Om agyan-timirandhasya: “We are born in the darkest ignorance. Although we had eyes, we couldn't see. Whatever we saw was nothing but a reection of reality—eternal, spiritual reality— and we mistook that reection to be real. We were living in a world of dim reections, and all our experiences were nothing but dreams. Our spiritual master opened our eyes with the torch of knowledge, the knowledge about the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the cause of all causes and the source of everything. Tasmai Shri-gurave namah: “We offer our respectful obeisances to the lotus feet of that spiritual master.” Our self-surrender unto him out of heartfelt gratitude is our spontaneous worship of his lotus feet. The spiritual master reveals transcendental knowledge within our hearts. Krishna's identity is revealed. His transcendental pastimes are revealed, His eternal relationship with His associates is revealed, and we get a sublime taste of absolute knowledge and eternal bliss. He guides us to the spiritual sky and satises the deepest longings of the soul. This causes our heart to melt in the re of gratitude and compels us to surrender completely unto his lotus feet. This offering of the self in spontaneous dedication is the true worship of the spiritual master, the Vyasa Puja. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna, is sitting in everyone's heart as the Supersoul, waiting for the living entity to turn toward Him and recognize Him as his dearmost friend. Kona bhagye kona jivera sradhha yadi haya: “Out of sheer good fortune, when someone turns his face toward Krishna and develops the faith that He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead…” Tabe sei jiva sadhusanga je karaya “… then Krishna arranges for Him to associate with the sädhus, the devotees.” Sadhu-sanga haite haya sravana kirtana: “In the association of devotees, he hears about Krishna and gradually starts to comprehend His glories.” The association with the pure devotee enchants him, and he feels very much drawn toward the bona de spiritual master. He feels as if his guru has stolen his heart away. He can't help but love him with all his heart and soul, and in that love he offers himself as the sacrice at his lotus feet. As the external manifestation of the Supersoul, the genuine spiritual master appears before us so that we can see him with our material sense; but his form is not material, his words are not material, and he has nothing to do with the material nature. He appears here simply out of Krishna's causeless mercy, the bona de spiritual master becomes perceivable to our material senses, simply to spiritualize our hearts to become submerged in the ocean of transcendental bliss. He tells us, “Do not hesitate
increases, we are increasingly drawn toward him. We renounce our material identity, and in return we achieve the highest benedictions: the rejuvenation of our lost relationship with the Supreme Self, Sri Krsna. The external manifestation of the Supersoul, the bona de spiritual master, takes us by the hand and teaches us how to walk on the platform. Then, one day, just as he appeared to us out of Krishna's mercy, he disappears from our limited vision out of that same causeless mercy. Though no longer physically present, he watches how much we are surrendering ourselves unto him. Silently, he says, “When I was with you, you used to say so eloquently how much you love me. Now is the time for you to prove your love for me. Real love ourishes in the re of separation. Now, prove that your surrender to me was not impelled by material motives but inspired by love that lls the heart with resolute determination to follow my orders. Do not deceive yourself, thinking that I am gone. I instructed you not to trust your senses. So do not trust your senses, and think that I am gone. If you love me, then nd out where I am; and thus you will attain to the kingdom of Krishna, Goloka Våndävana. “Do not deviate from following my instructions as they are. Do not try to concoct some meaning out of them simply to suit your need. Don't make my instructions a convenience for your sense gratication. Become free from the bondage of matter. Otherwise, how can you go back to Godhead? Unless you are totally surrendered, unconditionally, the gates to the spiritual sky will not be open for you. Krishna will judge you according to your submission to me, because I am His representative. Your scholarship or your expertise will not be of any use unless they are surrendered to Him, through me, with unalloyed devotion and intense dedication. “By Krishna's arrangement, I appeared before you in my physical from and made your aware that my instructions are nondifferent form me. In my instructions, I am unchanging and eternal. That is where you will nd me. If you love me, then come associate with my instructions, embrace them with all sincerity, and make them your very existence. If you want to worship me, then let this be the standard. I do not need the owers that are offered without love, nor the food that is prepared without devotion. I want your very self as an offering. And that is how you worship the representative of Srila Vyasadeva. That is the meaning of Vyasa Puja.” Bhakti Charu Swami
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