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• A V
AISHNAVA
C
AN
DO
A
NY
S
ERVICE
His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
• R
EFORMING
THE
R
EFORMER
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur Prabhupada
• T
HE
A
PPEARANCE
OF
R
ADHA
R
AMAN
• T
HE
B
EST
AND
O
NLY
M
EANS
• M
ERCIFUL
R
AMA
Rev. A. G. Atkins
• E
ATEN
BY
W
ORMS
Srila Lochan Das Thakur
Issue No. 17715 May 2008
Mohinī Ekādaśī
, 25
Madhusudana
, 522
Gaurābda
Circulation,
2,077
A V
AISHNAVA
C
AN
DO
A
NY
S
ERVICE
His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Some of you are preaching, and someof you are cleaning the temple.It does not mean that a
sannyāsī
who is preaching is better thanthe man who is cleaning. Theirposition as
vaiava
is the same. Formanagement one is cleaning, one isoverseeing construction, and one isgoing to preach. It is not that, “I have taken
sannyāsa
,therefore I cannot do anything more.” If need be, hehas to act as a
katriya,
or a
śūdra
. It doesn’t matter.For management, these divisions must be there.Otherwise it will be mismanagement. A
vaiava
doing the work of a
śūdra
does not mean he has become a
śūdra
. He is a
vaiava
. Try to understandthis point. Just like you may play a king or queenon stage, but you are neither king nor queen. That isstage play. Similarly, to manage things in the mate-rial world one has to do the needful.
— Morning walk conversation on 12 March 1974 in Vrindavan.
R
EFORMING
THE
R
EFORMER
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta SaraswatiThakur Prabhupada
The world stands in no need of any reform-er. The world has a very competent personfor guiding its minutest happenings. Theperson who determines that there is scopefor reform of the world, himself stands inneed of reform. The world goes on in its ownperfect way. No person can deflect it even the breadth of a hair from the course chalked outfor it by providence. When we perceive anychange being actually effected in the courseof events of this world by the agency of anyparticular individual, we must know verywell that the agent possesses no real powerat any stage. The agent finds himself drivenforward by a force belonging to a differentcategory from himself. The course of theworld does not require to be changed by theagency of any person. What is necessary isto change our outlook on this world. Thiswas done for the contemporary generation by the mercy of Sri Chaitanya. It can only be known to recipients of his mercy. Thescriptures declare that it is only necessaryto listen with an open mind to the name ofKrishna from the lips of a bona fide devotee.As soon as Krishna enters the listening ear,he clears up the vision of the listener so thathe no longer has any ambition of ever actingthe part of a reformer of any other person, because he finds that nobody is left withoutthe very highest guidance. It is therefore hisown reform that he is increasingly able torealize, by the eternally continuing mercy ofthe Supreme Lord.
— From
The Harmonist,
May 1932, issue number 11.Article originally titled, “Sree Chaitanya in South India.Pages 325-326.
Fortnightly email mini-magazine from Gopal Jiu Publications
Sri Krishna Kathamrita Sri Krishna Kathamrita
BinduBindu
Tav kQaaMa*Ta& TaáJaqvNaMa( Tav kQaaMa*Ta& TaáJaqvNaMa(
tava kathāmta tapta-jīvanam
top left 2
Top right 2
T
HE
A
PPEARANCE
OF
R
ADHA
R
AMAN
Adapted fromSrila Narahari Chakravarti Thakur’s
Śrī Bhakti-ratnākara 4.312-336
The beautiful expression of Radha Raman became famous throughout the world and theresidents of Vrindavan were delighted at thetime of the deity’s installation. I will tell youin brief how Radha Raman of Gopal BhattaGoswami became manifest.Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu ordered Sri GopalBhatta Goswami to find Lord Hari in a
śālagrāma-śilā
. Sri Gopal Bhatta Goswami told Sri RupaGoswami about Mahaprabhu’s instruction, andRupa Goswami lovingly replied, “Sri Govin-dadev is everything to you, yet it is his desirethat you serve him separately.” After a few days,Lord Hari manifested himself in a three-fold bending form out of the
śālagrāma-śilā
. Whocan understand the great fortune of Sri GopalBhatta Goswami by which Radha Raman be-came self-manifest in a beautiful form?
śrī govinda, gopīnātha, madana-mohanakrame e tinera mukha, vaka, śrī caraa
In Radha Raman’s beautiful form were SriGovinda’s face, Sri Gopinath’s chest, and SriMadan Mohan’s feet. (Text 321)
The three Lords were all manifest in the form ofRadha Raman, a combination that Gopal BhattaGoswami had cherished before the Lord’s self-manifestation. Sanatana Goswami, BhugarbhaGoswami, and other Goswamis were very satis-fied to see the system by which Gopal Bhattaserved Radha Raman. On the auspicious day ofthe full moon in the month of
Vaiśākha
, RadhaRaman was installed on the
sihāsana
. A greatfestival was held to mark the installation of thedeity, and since then Radha Raman has becomefamous throughout the world as the Lord whowas bound by the love of Gopal Bhatta. Theself-manifestation of Radha Raman has been de-scribed in Sanskrit in the book
Sādhana Dīpikā
:
govinda-pāda-sarvasva vande gopāla-bhatakamśrīmad-rūpājñayā yena pthak sevā prakāśitā
I worship Sri Gopal Bhatta Goswami, whose lifeand soul were the lotus feet of Sri Govinda Devaof Vrindavan, but who accepted the task of serv-ing him separately according to the instructionof Sri Rupa Goswami. (Text 327)
Nāma-tattva
T
HE
B
EST
AND
O
NLY
M
EANS
Srila Jagadananda Pandit’s
Śrī Prema-vivarta,
chapter 19
śrī nāma-i eka mātra o śreha sādhana
(Theholy name is the incomparable, top-most process.)
śuna he bhakata vnda kali kālera dharmaśrī ka kīrtana vinā āra nāhi karma
My dear devotees! In Kali-yuga there isno spiritual activity and religious prac-tice to surpass congregational chantingof Lord Krishna’s holy name. (Text 3)
karma jñāna yoga dhyāna durbala sādhanaaprākta sampatti lābhera nahe krama
Fruitive activities, cultivation of knowl-edge, yoga, and meditation are ineffectualprocesses for spiritual elevation. They can-not lead one to the transcendental realmof absolute realization. (Text 4)
dharma vrata, tyāga, homa sakala-i prāktaaprākta-tattva lābhe nāhi kare hita
Prescribed religious duties, penances,and sacrifices are all mundane activities.Hence, they cannot help one reach thetranscendental abode. (Text 5)
ka-nāma uccārae, smarae, śravaeaprākta-siddhi haya bale śruti-gae
The
śruti
scriptures declare that com-plete spiritual perfection is achievedonly through chanting, hearing andremembering Krishna’s name, fame,pastimes, etc.
(Text 6)
śrī-nāma-rahasya sarva-śāstrete dekhibānāma uccāraa-mātra cit-sukha labhibā
All scriptures have revealed the high-est esoteric truth about the holy nameand its glories. One experiences spiri-tual bliss immediately upon chantingthe holy name. (Text 7)
Bibliography
— Jagadananda Pandit. Śrī Prema-vivarta. Sri Chaitanya GaudiyaMath. Calcutta. 1984. Bengali.— Jagadananda Pandit. Śrī Prema-vivarta. English translation by SriSarvabhavana Das. Harmonist Publications. Bombay. 1991.
Issue One hundred seventy seven, Page — 2
é[q k*Z<akQaaMa*Ta ibNdu
Top left 3
top right 3
But Vibhishan sought Rama, by eagernessfired,Cherishing in his heart many things longdesired:“I shall now see those lotus feet, red as thedawn,“Tender, blessed, for all those to his servicedrawn;“At whose touch the saint’s wife found lifetill then denied,“And the Dandaka forest was wellsanctified;“Which the daughter of Janak caressed andembraced,“And which after the false deer so eagerlyraced;“That as lotuses in Siva’s lake-like heart live —“I shall see them! To me also blessing they’llgive.“Feet belov’d from which sandals were taken by Bharat,“And placed in his heart as their shrine;“I am going today those adored feet to find,“And shall see them with these eyes ofmine.These things lovingly pond’ring, his spiritrevived,And he soon at the opposite sea-shorearrived;But the monkeys said, seeing him come, “Wesuppose“He has come as a special envoy from our foes.”So they stopp’d him; their captive to Sugrivthey brought,Told the news of their capture and asked whathe thought;Sugriv, coming to Rama, said: “Here wehave, sire,“Ravan’s brother; to meet with you is hisdesire.”Rama said to him, “Friend, tell me what youadvise,”He replied, “My lord, hear me! We need to be wise;“Demons’ tricks we don’t know, they maywell give us pause;“For some purpose he’s come, but whoknows what’s the cause?
śrī rādhā-ramao deva sevāyā viayo mataktinā śrīla-rūpea so ‘ya yo ‘sau vibhāvitaājñāyā kāraam tatra prāmāikam uthācchratam
The worshipable object of that separated servicewas Sri Radha Ramandev. Govindadev, who became manifest by the great love of Sri RupaGoswami, was the same as Radha Raman. Thereason behind the separate service of GopalBhatta has been learned from different reliablepersons. (Text 328)
śrīmat prabodhānandasya bhrātus-putra-kpālayamśrīmad-gopāla-bhatta ta naumi śrī vraja-vāsinam
I worship that inhabitant of Vraja, Sri GopalBhatta, son of the elder brother of Sri Prabod-hananda Saraswati. (Text 329, end of the
SādhanaDīpikā
quote)
śrī rādhikā-sahita śrī madana-gopālavndāvaneśvarī-saha śrī govinda-lālavabhānu-kumārī saha śrī gopīnāthadarśana-sobāya janma mānila ktārtha
If one can see Sri Madan Gopal with Sri Radhika,Sri Govinda with Vrindavaneswari, and SriGopinatha with Sri Vrishabhanu Kumari, his lifewill surely be successful. (Texts 330-331)
While serving separately, Sri Gopal Bhatta’seagerness increased and he understood thatit was the Lord’s desire to be served in thisseparate way.
Bibliography
— Srila Narahari Chakravarti.
Śrī Bhakti-ratnākara
. English translation byKusakratha Das. Published by Krishna Library. Alachua Florida.— Srila Narahari Chakravarti.
Śrī Bhakti-ratnākara
. Gaudiya Mission. Cal-cutta. 501 Gaurabda. Bengali.
M
ERCIFUL
R
AMA
Rev. A. G. AtkinsPart three of a six-part series
For more about Reverend Atkins, see
Bindu
116.
As Vibhishan went off, his mind havingrevealed,From that moment the fate of the demonswas sealed.(Those, Bhavani, who treat saintly men withcontempt,Bring ruin whatever for good they attempt.)Since King Ravan drove Vibhishan from himin shame,He was dogg’d by misfortune and robb’d ofhis fame.
Sri Krishna-kathamrita Bindu Issue One hundred seventy seven, Page — 3
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