From a conversation with Srila Narayana Maharaja commenting on the book:

The Embankment of Separation

by Srila Gour Govinda Swami Maharaja.
April 1996,
Kesavji Gaudiya Math, Mathura, India.
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Devotee Prana kisora prabhu: So the letter is like this:

Dear Prana Kisora Prabhu. Please accept my dandavats. All glories to Sri
Guru and Gauranga. In reference to our phone conversation here are direct quotes
from the letter to Bhakta-rupa Dasa from his wife. "I spoke to SNM about GGM's
new book as I was very concerned about the siddhanta of the publication. Maharaja
found the siddhanta to be without any basis in our sampradaya, having no support
of Rupa Gosvami, Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami, Visvanatha Cakravarti, Srila
Bhaktivinoda, on and on. The book is full...

Srila Narayana Maharaja: She was telling like this?

Prana kisora prabhu: She wrote her husband that you were saying like this.

Srila Narayana Maharaja: She was telling like this. Then I have not gone through the book. I will
have to see whether it is waistless or.... You should write her.

Prana kisora prabhu: Then she is quoting still. She is saying:

...The book is full of concocted ideas on Gauranga. 1) That he is Radha and Krsna combined.

Prana kisora prabhu: In Prabhupada's Caitanya-caritamrta he uses that term. The English
meaning may not be exact. Also,

2) Sambhoga and vipralambha combined.

Prana kisora prabhu: Now he explains to me, he has written here, a footnote, this devotee.

This is the very nature of madanakhya-mahabhava. Sambhoga and vipralambha combined.

Prana kisora prabhu: So what do you feel?

Srila Narayana Maharaja: You should write to her.

Prana kisora prabhu: No I am not writing her. Only this devotee will call me on the phone
tonight.

Srila Narayana Maharaja: You should understand my thing. I have not read the book. So I have
not full idea that it is siddhanta-...(?) or anything. Only she told that Caitanya Mahaprabhu was
uh,... separation mood is there. Only. Only separation mood. So I told her that in Rupa Gosvami's
and all others' books we see that Caitanya Mahaprabhu is Himself Krsna. Not Radhika. He has
borrowed the mood of Srimati Radhika. And also the beauty. So Caitanya Mahaprabhu is Krsna but
having the mood of Radhika. So Radhika mood vicitri, but Krsna has not tasted it. Sri radhayah
praNaya-mahima kidrso. PraNaya means in meeting. Also it maybe in separation, but here it has
been told praNaya-mahima, directly in meeting. And four types of madhuri, Srimati Radhika tastes

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more than anyone. Even more than Krsna. How She tastes and what happiness comes by tasting all
these things? So three things it seems that as if they are seeing, hearing, touching Krsna and all
these things has been told when Radha and Krsna in sambhoga-avastha—meeting. So Caitanya
Mahaprabhu has come only to fulfill these three kinds of wishes. This is root cause. Not only
separation mood. As He has shown in Ratha-yatra. sei ta praNanatha painu.... "Krsna for whom
My heart was bleeding." And also it had been told in Kuruksetra-lila. Radhika is at first lamenting,
but finally She saw Krsna. Then She told that, "After so long time We are meeting with this
Krsna." So separation mood is there. But Caitanya Mahaprabhu has come only to taste three... This
is the first cause..., and to diSribute hari-nama. So we can have all these things and then we should
judge what is ..(?) But I have not ..(?), this is the thing.

Prana kisora prabhu: I don't think there is any difficulty with this.

Srila Narayana Maharaja: So anyone should not be worried for my conclusion. I have not
concluded anything finally. I have only told like this. So if I have not seen that book. By hearing
from anyone how can I make my judgement?

Prana kisora prabhu: And there are so many things before and after, and if one is picking
something it may be taken out of context. Not fully understood. The two more points are, that
Mahaprabhu is Vraja-virahini Radha with syamasundara in Her heart. And then he is saying here
that, he has quoted Rupa Gosvami. There is a verse kutuki rasa stoma hrtva, which is quoted in this
book.

Srila Narayana Maharaja: In his book? It was for Dvarakadisa. Rasa stomam hrtva?

Prana kisora prabhu: Kutuki rasa stoma hrtva. That's all that's given here. The quote is in the
book. Full quote.

Srila Narayana Maharaja: It is right. He quotes from Rupa Gosvami.

Prana kisora prabhu: And then the other one is that He came, that Gaura is Madan-mohana,
Govinda, Gopinatha combined.

Srila Narayana Maharaja: Who has told?

Prana kisora prabhu: He has written in the book and then he has written me here, Prabhu has
written me saying:

Unfortunately we have no quotes to back this up, but it is not, in the worst case,
wrong siddhanta with dangerous consequences.

So maybe that you also had mentioned that you had not found this...

Srila Narayana Maharaja: I have not told anything about this.

Prana kisora prabhu: But this quote, you have not found this anywhere.

Srila Narayana Maharaja: Krsna means Govinda, Gopinatha, Madan-mohana. No doubt because
Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami has told that verse, ei tin thakura...... All gaudiya-varga are
worshipers of Govinda, Gopinatha and Madan-mohana. And these are in three. When there is
sambandha, then He is Madan-mohana. And when He is served then He is Govinda. And when He
is controlled by the gopis then He is Gopinatha. So Krsna is .... three things. But Caitanya
Mahaprabhu is not only that. Plus Radha's mood and Radha's beauty mixed, then He is Caitanya
Mahaprabhu.
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Prana kisora prabhu: In addition.

Srila Narayana Maharaja: In addition. Yes. So we can conclude anything by taking in mind all
things. If anyone is telling that Mahaprabhu is Govinda, Gopinatha and Madan-mohana. No doubt.
Because They are there. And if anyone is telling Govinda, Gopinatha Madan-mohana and Radha is
also there, it is all right. In that vigraha vipralambha-bhava is there. Very good. And if anyone is
telling that viraha and meeting, everything concludes in Caitanya Mahaprabhu. This is the best.
Best siddhanta.

Prana kisora prabhu: So to say sambhoga and vipralambha combined is no difficulty.

Srila Narayana Maharaja: What difficulty?

Prana kisora prabhu: Yes.

Devotee: No problem.

Srila Narayana Maharaja: But I have to... You should read that book and see and then bring to
me and then I will see whether there is anything against .....(?).. But she was telling like this, then I
may have told that I have to see. And if there is only this thing then it may be like that.

Prana kisora prabhu: Also there is one other point but this Prabhu, my friend Raghava PaNdita,
he has told me that, "Maybe this was not clearly presented in the book." Probably due to editing.
Here the idea is given...

Srila Narayana Maharaja: There are so many things that outwardly it appears that it is sastra-..
(?)... In Swamiji's books also. In Srimad-Bhagavata also. In Caitanya-caritamrta also it can be
seen. But what is the inner side thing? We have to see. Then we should declare that it is
siddhanta-..(?).. or not.

Prana kisora prabhu: It is mentioned that.....

Srila Narayana Maharaja: You can write to him...

Prana kisora prabhu: I will speak to him

Srila Narayana Maharaja: ...that anyone can speak like this. So in general he may have told
anything. But he will have to see the original book and then he should decide.

Prana kisora prabhu: The point was also made that Mahaprabhu, what He came to give. That
Mahaprabhu, He came to taste the prema of Radhika. But what He came to give was, as you were
explaining, the Sri or the beauty of this thing.

Srila Narayana Maharaja: Radhika's mood cannot be given. If anyone tells like this then you will
have to see. What he wants. What he thinks.

Prana kisora prabhu: So he is also explaining to me that, "This refers to the mood of a mañjari,
tasting the same as Radhika. But maybe not presented perfectly clearly in the book."

Srila Narayana Maharaja: Sometimes Caitanya Mahaprabhu was in the mood of a mañjari also.

Prana kisora prabhu: But you have explained so many times.

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Srila Narayana Maharaja: It maybe told that sometimes Srimati Radhika tasted also. She sent
anyhow Krsna to another mañjari or gopi. And seeing this She tastes much more than when She
meets with Krsna. It is Radhika's superiority.

Prana kisora prabhu: But the main thing that Mahaprabhu is coming to give us is this
samarpayitum unnatojjvala-rasaˆ sva-bhakti-sriyam....

The conversation is interrupted and is not resumed later on. End of darsana.

Other instances were Srila Gurudeva mentions

about Srila Narayana Maharaja.

From a class on the topic of adhikara.

Srila Gurudeva: They are going to Narayana Maharaja. (Laughter) So many disturbances.
Raganuga-bhakti, rasika-bhakti. When they [GBC] found out they hit them [those who are going],
you see. So severely. Those who are going. They came to me and I said, "You commit a wrong."
They cannot understand this thing, who are going and publicly doing this thing. Then it created
disturbances. Then this is the consequence, you have to leave it now. They realized, "Yes we
understand, that is true." At last they realized and they spoke to me. Last time, at the end of the
GBC meeting they came to me and said, "O Maharaja, what you said that is true." I said that thing
in the beginning. You commited wrong.

Madhavananda dasa: What will happen Guru Maharaja, if someone is taking siksa from an
advanced Vaisnava, and then he is...

Srila Gurudeva: But he is not in the society, so they cannot understand it. Then? If you are doing,
do it secretly. Don't expose it. But they exposed it.

Madhavananda dasa: Then that person they are taking siksa from... Then what is their position
then? If the society tells them, "You reject this person you are taking siksa from..."

Srila Gurudeva: Yes. They said that

Madhavananda dasa: Then what is their position?

Srila Gurudeva: Because these people cannot understand. I said, "They cannot understand,
because the question of adhikara is there. They have no adhikara, how can they understand rasika-
bhakti? Why are you doing that thing? If you are doing you should have done secretely. Nobody
should know it. But you did not do it secretely, publicly you did. So this thing comes. And this is
quite natural." At last they said, "Yes. What you said that is correct." Yes I said. I know it. This
question of adhikara is there. So everybody cannot understand everything. How do you expect so?
You should not expect such thing. Because he is such a person in this adhikara, how can he
understand the higher thing? He cannot understand. When I speak some higher thing they hit my
head. They expressed, "Maharaja, you speak such a higher thing. Therefore this thing takes place."
So I said, "Cut off my head. Then I shall not speak."

Madhavananda dasa: In Caitanya-Bhagavata, Guru Maharaja, Vrndavana dasa µhakura describes

some of the persons who were criticizing Haridasa µhakura. He says that some of them were
saying, "Why is he chanting all night long? If he is going to chant, that is good, but he should chant
on Ekadasi." And those persons, Vrndavana dasa describes as pasandis, or atheists. So I was

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thinking. They understand about chanting Hare Krsna, they understand about Ekadasi. We would
not consider them pasandis.

Srila Gurudeva: They are pasandis. Definitely. They cannot understand him. Therefore, in that
respect, an intelligent man, he remains silent. He never speaks about it. Silence.

Lecture
Guru and Student
BBSR 16.10.95

Unless you are freed from anarthas you have no bhakti adhikara, no, no, no, no! (laughs) You
are surrounded with many types of anartrhas how can you develop suddha bhakti adhikar baba, it
is not an easy thing therefore Prabhupada know it, yes, for you varnasrama dharma, that is your
adhikar, karma adhikar, do it, chelo (laughs). If you don’t tell them they cannot understand, they
have no adhikar, how can you understand it? They’ll beat you, they are beating me, yes, beating
my head yes, they cannot understand, definitely. So Jiva Gosvami says, (quote), sraddha is not
under bhakti rather it is an object of ananya bhakti (laughs) not nanya bhakti. So unless one
understands this tattva he cannot develop sudha-bhakti-adhikar, you cannot be freed from
anarthas, how can you develop sudha-bhakti-adhikar? Therefore Rupa Gosvami says, adau
sraddha, sadhu sanga, bhajan kriya anartha nivriti, nistha statha. Nistha is the minimum stage
After anartha nivrti, nistha comes. When you achieve nistha stage then bhakti-adhikar begins, just
begins baba, otherwise it is not beginning at all, no. Surrounded by so many anarthas, how can you
have adhikar in sudha-bhakti? Yes. You may have karma-adhikar or jnana-adhikar no bhakti-
adhikar, so? One should know all these things. Somehow Krsna is tricky, He tricks you, yes, come
to Krsna, (laughs) He just tricks you, alright that trick is very good, come to Krsna. When guru
leaves the planet he’s still there in a different form, janme name prabhu sei, why not