New Braj Hari-kathā Festival 2018 & INSTALLATION of Śrīla Gurudeva s Mūrti New Braj, Badger, CA, USA June 11-17, 2018
Our Illustrious Guru-varga Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktivedānta Vāmana Gosvāmī Mahārāja Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktivedānta Swamī Prabhupāda Śrī Śrīmad Bhakti Prajñāna Keśava Gosvāmī Mahārāja 2 3
Our Illustrious Guru-varga Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Prabhupāda Śrī Śrīmad Gaurakiśora dāsa Bābājī Mahārāja Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura Śrī Śrīmad Jagannātha dāsa Bābājī Mahārāja 4 5
Śrī Gurudevāstakam.. vande ham śrī guru varam śrī rūpānuga pravaram vraja rasa rasikaṇ ca nārāyaṇam taṁ prapannam I adore the greatest of divine masters, Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja; he is the foremost follower of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī, and is always relishing vrajarasa I surrender unto him. śrī guru caranaṁ vande ramaṇa preṣṭhāya bhūtale rūpānuga bhaktidaṁ ca kṛpa mūrti nārāyaṇam I bow down to the lotus feet of the embodiment of mercy, Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja, who is dearly loved by Śrī Ramaṇa-bihārī, and who gives the treasure of rūpānuga-bhakti. sevā kuñje vraje ramye govardhana girau sadā rādhā kuṇḍe rasānande tat tat sevā pradāyakam Śrīla Gurudeva is eternally residing in the beautiful Sevā-kuñja of Vraja, at Giri Govardhana, and at Rādhā-kuṇḍa. There, he is immersed in the bliss of nectarean mellows or rasa, and he grants entrance into the service of Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa as their maidservant. guruṁ nārāyanākhyam tam vande vinoda preṣṭhakam yat pāda smṛti mātrena dāmodara prasīdati I pray to Śrīla Gurudeva, Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja, who is very dear to Śrī Vinoda Mañjari. Simply by remembering his lotus feet one pleases Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Dāmodara. nārāyaṇam prabhum vande karuṇāghana vigraham rāga-mārga bhaktim dattvā tārayati tribhūvanam I offer my respects unto Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja; he is the reservoir of boundless compassion, and he bestows the path of rāga-bhakti, thus delivering the three worlds. gaurahari paraṁ-preṣṭha nityānanda abhinnaka śrī-gaura-nārāyaṇa bhakta-bāndhava priya-sevaka Śrī Gaura Nārāyaṇa is very dear to Gaurahari and is a nondifferent manifestation of Nityānanda Prabhu. He is the friend of all devotees and the dearest of sevakas. nārāyaṇam gurum-vande śaranyam bhakta-bāndhavam gaura-manobhiṣṭam pūrnam rādhā-dāsyam-pradāyakam I offer prayers unto Śrīla Gurudeva, Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja, who, as Bhaktabāndhava, is the most worthy shelter for everyone. He fulfills the inner-heart desire of Gaurahari and bestows rādhā-dāsyam, the position of being Rādhārānī s intimate maidservant. rūpānugācarya-varyaṁ rūpa-mañjarī-preṣṭhakam patita-pāvana-bāndhava yugācarya nārāyaṇam Śrīla Gurudeva is the foremost of the ācāryas in the line of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī in the present era, and is the dearmost of Śrī Rūpa Mañjarī. He purifies the fallen through his friendship, and he is the principal spiritual preceptor of this age. 6 7
The Upadeśāvalī Essential Instructions of Paramārādhyatama Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktivedānta Nārāyana Gosvāmī Mahārāja. Written by Śrīla Gurudeva in Delhi in April 1996, at the home of Rādhā-Mādhava Prabhu. (1) Those who do not worship Bhagavān, who is the father of the universe and maintainer of everyone, are ignorant fools and killers of their very selves. (2) Bhagavad-bhakti is the subject matter expounded in the Vedas, Upaniṣads, Smṛtis, and Purāṇas. (3) The constitutional nature, svarūpa-gata-dharma, of living beings is service to Bhagavān. Because of a particular circumstance, living beings have forgotten service of Bhagavān and, since time immemorial, have fallen into the cycle of birth and death, where they burn in the three-fold miseries of material existence. By the mercy of Bhagavān or the bhaktas, the living beings can follow the path of bhagavad-bhakti, and then again be situated in their svarūpa-dharma, where they will taste the blissful rasa of serving Bhagavān. (4) Congregational chanting of Śrī Hari s names, harināma-saṅkīrtana, is the highest sādhana, disciplined practice, and sādhya, objective, of the living beings. (5) harer nāma harer nāma harer nāmaiva kevalam kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva nāsty eva gatir anyathā: In this age of quarrel and hypocrisy, the only means of deliverance is chanting the holy name, chanting the holy name, chanting the holy name of the Lord. There is no other way. There is no other way. There is no other way. (6) Vrajendranandana Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the ultimate manifestation of Godhead. He is the ocean of all nectarean mellows and the possessor of all potencies. (7) Vrajendranandana Śrī Kṛṣṇa is beyond māyā; He is the reservoir of all transcendental qualities; He is an ocean of unconditional, causeless mercy; and He is bhakta-vatsala, affectionate to His devotees. (8) Transcendental to māyā, the intrinsic transcendental form of Vrajendranandana Śrī Kṛṣṇa is a youthful dancer who wears the attire of a cowherd boy and who holds a flute. (9) Firm faith in Śrī Gurudeva is the backbone of bhajana. Without serving sad-guru and receiving his mercy, one can never enter the realm of bhakti. (10) The bona fide spiritual master is expert and realized in Vedic literature; he possesses complete realization of Bhagavān; he is detached from material sense objects; and he is the crest-jewel 8 9
of devotees who is always absorbed in chanting the names of Bhagavān. By accepting the shelter of such a sad-guru, it is possible to enter the practice of śuddha-bhakti, pure devotional service; otherwise not. (11) To endeavor to please the minds of sense enjoyers; to accumulate material objects and to remain engrossed in sense enjoyment; and to foster a desire for the attainment of heaven or liberation these are not the characteristics of a genuine spiritual master. One should remain far distant from such imposters (who are engaged in the above activities while posing as gurus). (12) Kṛṣṇa-prema is the one and only ultimate goal for all living beings. (13) Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the spotless evidence for all mankind. (14) The vraja-gopīs worship of Kṛṣṇa is the topmost form of worship. (16) The one and only dharma in Kali-yuga is the congregational chanting of Bhagavān s holy names. By the performance of saṅkīrtana, living beings can easily attain auspiciousness. Giving up saṅkīrtana, those who instruct others and who are personally inclined to perform sacrifices, austerities, yoga, and cultivate jñāna (the conception that I will merge within Brahman) the activities of all such peoples are futile. This is the proclamation of scripture. (17) If you desire your own welfare, never criticize the bhaktas. By criticizing Vaiṣṇavas, your destruction is inevitable. (18) The root cause of bhakti is hearing hari-kathā while in sat-sanga. Without sat-sanga living beings can never achieve auspiciousness. Śrī Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa (15) Worship of God is only possible in the human form of life. Other species live for the sole purpose of enjoyment. For those in the human form of life it is auspicious to worship Bhagavān from childhood. 10 11
Śrīla Gurudeva s handwritten Upadeśāvalī in Hindi. 12 13
I m closer to you than the air you breathe. 14 15
New Braj Hari-kathā Festival 2018 New Braj, Badger, CA, USA June 11-17, 2018 Published by Braj Bhumi Group Sponsored by US Capital Global