Q. What are the qualities of Sri Jagannatha, Sri Baladeva and Sri Subhadra?
A. Jagannatha is the emblem of God having no other form than the eyes and the hands. They mean to show that God sees and knows and creates. Balarama is the source of Jiva Shakti of God; Subhadra, the Maya Shakti; and Sudarshana is the energy of Will (of God).
“Jagannatha Temple in Puri”
(Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura).
Saraswati!
People of this world who are proud of their own aristocratic birth attack the pure Vaisnava… Thus they commit offenses. The solution to the problem is to establish the order of daiva-varnāśrama-dharma—something you have started doing: you should know that to be the real service to the Vaisnava. Because pure devotional conclusions are not being preached, all kinds of superstitions and bad concepts are being called devotion by such pseudo sampradāyas as sahajiya and ativādi.
Please always crush these anti-devotional concepts by preaching pure devotional conclusions and by setting an example… Please try very hard to make sure that the service to Sri Māyāpur will become a permanent thing. The real service to Sri Māyāpur can be done by acquiring printing presses, distributing devotional books, and sankirtana-preaching. Please do not neglect to serve Sri Māyāpur or to preach for the sake of your own reclusive bhajana. When I am not present any, more, please take care to serve Sri Māyāpur dhāma which is so dear to you. This is my special instruction to you.
I had a special desire to preach the significance of such books as Srimad-Bhagavatam, Şat-Sandarbha, and Vedānta Darśana. You have to accept that responsibility. Sri Māyāpur will prosper if you establish an educational institution there. Never make any effort to collect knowledge or money for your own enjoyment. Only to serve the Lord will you collect these things.
signed Kedarnātha Datta Bhaktivinoda
Aparādha-Bhañjana Pāṭa Kuliyā Kothāya (Where is Kuliyā Aparādha-Bhañjana Pāṭa?) was first published in Sajjana Toṣaṇī, Vol.7 issue 2 in 1895.
Herein, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura discusses the significance of the village of Kuliyā and establishes its true whereabouts.
Aparādha-Bhañjana Pāṭa Kuliyā Kothāya
(Where is Kuliyā Aparādha-Bhañjana Pāṭa?)
by Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura
(translated by Swami B.V. Giri)
Someone’s question has come to our hands. The questioner is a wise Vaiṣṇava. We will therefore proceed to answer this question carefully.
Presently, in many places in Bengal there are various villages in Bengal named Kuliyā. The Kuliyā we have been specifically asked about is a place unrivalled in the whole world. Why does history speak with special regard to that Kuliyā? The name of that Kuliyā is Śrīpāṭa Kuliyā. Śrīmad Gaurāṅga Prabhu, the avatāra who has come to deliver us in the age of Kali, resided in this place for seven days, chastised a great offender named Cāpāla Gopāla, and freed a scholar of Śrī Navadvīpa from his offences. Here, a resident, who lived near Maheśvara Viśārada’s dam, named Devānanda, who was a paṇḍita that recited the Bhāgavata, was purified of his offences to the devotees. At this place, a paṇḍita who was expert in Tantra named Kṛṣṇānanda had contracted a great disease due to Vaiṣṇava aparādha, and was mercifully delivered by Śrīman Mahāprabhu from his offence and from the disease. What better way could there be to decide where the holy town of Kuliyā is, other than deliberating upon the books written by paṇḍitas who were the contemporaries of Śrīman Mahāprabhu?
Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s
Vaisnava-siddhanta-mala
Q. Why don’t souls remain in their true position, free from material designations?
A. Those souls who accept nothing other than service as their eternal occupation do not give up their transcendence to material designations, which is natural in their true position (svarupa). Their attraction to facing Krsna is everlasting. But those who consent to the notion of selfishly seeking the enjoyment of their own so-called happiness turn away from Krsna, and for this reason they are shackled within the prison-house of the material world made of maya.
Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s
Vaisnava-siddhanta-mala
Q. These truths of Sri Krsna-tattva are the religious principles of the Vaishnava-dharma. What about people who are involved with other types of religion?
A. Different religions have different instructions for the worship of either Isvara (the personal God), Paramatma (the localised Supersoul in the heart) or Brahma (His all-pervading impersonality) – but all three of these types of religions are ultimately pointing in the direction of Krsna-Tattva. After the jivas evolve upwards through their various courses of development, they eventually will attain Krsna Bhakti in the end. Even though they attain the incompleteness of their various religious paths, Sri Krsna Bhakti is still available to them. The awareness of the supreme nature of Sri Krsna-tattva is the ultimate knowledge inherent within each and every living entity.
Song Name: Kabe Mui Vaisnava Cinibo
Official Name: Ucchvasa: Prarthana Lalasmayi Song
Author: Bhaktivinoda Thakura
Book Name: Kalyana Kalpataru
Language: Bengali
(1)
kabe mui vaisnava cinibo hari hari
vaisnava carana, kalyaner khani,
matibo hrdaye dhori’
1) Oh Hari, when will I be able to recognize a Vaishnava
The feet of the Vaisnava is the source of auspiciousness
Keeping those feet on my very heart I will be fully ecstatic
(2)
baisnava-thakura aprakrta sada,
nirdosa, anandamoy
krsna-name priti jade udasina,
jibete dayardra hoy
2) The venerable Vaishnava is always transcendental
He is innocent and joyous He feels pleasure in chanting the name of Krishna, at the same time he is oblivious to the material world He is deeply compassionate to the living entities
What are the characteristics of a person who has taken complete shelter of the holy names?
By misusing the six propensities of the heart (lust, anger, greed, illusion, pride, and envy) one commits sin. One who has taken complete shelter of the holy name does not commit sin.
He engages his lust in discussing topics about Krsna and maintaining his Vaisnava family based on service to Krsna.
He never engages in sinful activities, such as enjoying the wives of others, accumulating more money than he requires, desiring name and fame, cheating, or stealing. He uses his anger against those who are envious of Krsna and the Vaisnavas. In this way, he remains aloof from materialistic association. He avoids subduing and torturing others. Thus, his anger transforms into the tolerance of a tree.
He uses his greed to relish the mellows of ecstatic love for Krsna and thereby does not bother to eat palatable foodstuffs, wear opulent clothes, enjoy beautiful women, or accumulate unlimited wealth.
He uses illusion in experiencing transcendental mellows and thus becomes bewildered by the beauty of Krsna’s pastimes and the Vaisnavas’ characteristics. Wealth, followers, and material happiness do not enamor him. Not bewildered by their improper conclusion, such a person does not become involved in impersonalism, atheism, or false argument.
He engages pride in Krsna’s service and thus renounces the pride coming from high birth, wealth, beauty, education, followers, and bodily strength.
He totally renounces envy and violence toward others. By regulating his life in this way, he does not have the opportunity to commit sin. Rather, his propensity for sinful activities is uprooted. If, however, he accidentally commits a sin, it is nullified without his having to practice atonement.
Sri Bhaktivinoda Vani from Bhaktivinoda Vani Vaibhava
(Sajjana Tosanl 8/9)
Book: “Kalyana Kalpataru.”
Official Song Name: “Ucchvasa: Ucchvasa Kirtana Guna Kirtana Song 2”.
Author: Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur
LYRICS:
(1)
suna, he rasikajana krsna guna aganana
ananta kahite nahi pare
krsna jagatera guru krsna vascakalpataru
navika se bhava-parabare
(2)
hrdaya pirita ja’ra krsna cikitsaka ta’ra
bhava roga nasite catura
krsna bahirmmukha jane premamrta vitarane
krame laya nija antahpura
In this article “The Glories of Puruṣottama Māsa”, Ṭhākura Bhaktivinoda describes the glories of the holy month of Puruṣottama according to the śāstras, how to observe it and the true goal in following it.
Puruṣottama Māsa Māhātmya
(The Glories of Puruṣottama Māsa)
by Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura
Two divisions of śāstra—smārta and paramārtha
The Vedic ārya–śāstras are divided into two sections — smārta (literature based on smṛti) and paramārtha (transcendental literature based on śruti). Those who are eligible (adhikārī) for the smārta section do not have any natural inclination or taste for the paramārtha–śāstras. The thoughts, principles, activities, and life goal of every human is constituted according to his respective ruci (inclination). Generally, smārtas accept those scriptures which are in accordance with their respective ruci. Having greater adhikāra for smārta–śāstra, they do not demonstrate much regard for paramārthika–śāstra. Providence is the agent behind the creation of these two divisions. Therefore, undoubtedly the maintainer of the world must have a hidden purpose in having made such an arrangement.
About Srila Saccidananda Bhaktivinod Thakur
From the Bengal writing of His Divine Grace Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev Goswami Maharaj
Prior to Srila Thakur’s preaching, the pure Vaisnava-dharma preached by Sriman Mahaprabhu had become so degraded, corrupted, and disordered by selfish persons that people considered Vaisnava-dharma to be extremely despicable, to be the dharma of detestably low-natured persons. People considered it to be the dharma of the auls, bauls, kartabhajas, sahajiyas, sakhi-bhekis, neda-nedis, and so on, and mocked it.
Yet by the appearance and endeavour of Srila Bhakti Vinod, Vaisnava-dharma became free from degradation, again self-manifested its pure nature as the dharma of the soul situated atop the heads of all other dharmas, and attained beauty like that of the newly risen shining sun in the sky of the world’s dharmas. All the virtuous souls understood that Vaisnava-dharma is the one and only pure (nirmal), effulgent (ujjvala), non-envious (nirmatsara), devotional and pleasing (‘bhakti-vinodan kari’) dharma of the self within which there is no duplicity or contamination. They understood that if all other dharmas are perfectly performed individually and collectively, then they will attain the beautiful position of stairs towards Vaisnava-dharma.
