Hare Krishna every one! I just went through wikipedia & i am completely stunned by the phenomenal tasks successfully executed by Srila Prabhupada. 100% Nobody can do what the great Srila Prabhupada has done apart from the Lord himself & that is why i have raised the question mentioned in the title.
In 1944, (from his front room at Sita Kanta Banerjee, Calcutta), Prabhupada started the publication called Back to Godhead,[21][22] for which he acted as designer, publisher, editor, copy editor and distributor. He personally designed the logo, an effulgent figure of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in the upper left corner, with the motto: "Godhead is Light, Nescience is darkness" greeting the readers
From 1950 onwards, Prabhupada lived at the medieval Radha-Damodar mandir in the holy town of Vrindavan, where he began his commentary and translation work of the Sanskrit work Bhagavata Purana.[28] Of all notable Vrindavana's temples, the Radha-Damodara mandir had at the time the largest collection of various copies of the original writings of the Six Gosvamis and their followers - more than two thousand separate manuscripts, many of them three hundred, some even four hundred years old
In this matha, in Mathura Vrindavana, Prabhupada took Vaishnava renunciate vows,sannyasa, from his friend and godbrother Bhakti Prajnana Keshava Maharaja , and following this he singlehandedly published the first three volumes covering seventeen chapters of the first book of Bhagavata Purana, filling three volumes of four hundred pages each with a detailed commentary
After a group of devotees and a temple had been established in New York another center was started in San Francisco in 1967.[19][37] From here Prabhupada traveled throughout America with his disciples, popularizing the movement through street chanting (sankirtana), book distribution and public speeches.
In the twelve years from his arrival in New York until his final days he:
- circled the globe fourteen times on lecture tours that took him to six continents[17]
- initiated many disciples, awarding sannyasa and babaji initiations.[39]
- introduced Vedic gurukul education to a Western audience[40]
- directed the founding of the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust,[41] which claims to be the world's largest publisher of ancient and classical Vaishnava religious texts[42][43]
- founded the religious colony New Vrindavan in West Virginia,[44]
- authored more than eighty books (with many available online[45]) on Vedantic philosophy, religion, literature and culture (including four published originally in Bengali)[17][43]
- introduced international celebrations in the capitals of the world like that of Jagannatha processions[17]
- watched ISKCON grow to a confederation of more than 108 temples, various institutes and farm communities[41]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A._C._Bhaktivedanta_Swami_Prabhupada
Replies
Hare Krishna Romit Pr. PAMHO. AGTSP.
You need the eyes of devotion to see Lord in the deities and not divya drishti. Arjuna wanted to see the Universal form of the Lord - Virat Rupa and hence he was given the divya drishti for some time. So, based on this point you can not say he is an Incarnation. When ever lord come to the material world, he has a mission as he states in BG - pariträëäya sädhünäà vinäçäya ca duñkåtäm, dharma-saàsthäpanärthäya sambhavämi yuge yuge. Chitnyamahaprabhu came with a mission to spread the holy name and in the mood of a devotee. But gave soo many indications that he is supreme personality of Godhead Sri Krishna himself.
I am not sure if you know this past time. When Chaitnyamahaprabhu was a small boy a brahaman came to their home. He had a deity of Gopal ji and he would eat only the prasadam offered to him and that too the bogha has to be cooked by him only. So, he went to ganges took bath and came back to home of Nemai and started to prepare the bhoga. After all the preparation were made, he started to offer the bhoga to hi deity. Little Nemai came and started to eat the bhoga. The brahaman started to shout what this child has done. he spoiled my offering. he then gave strict instructions to keep the child away from the offerings and went to ganges to take bath again and do the bhoga. Again, Mahaprabhu came and eat the offering. This happened 3-4 times the whole day and the brahamana had not eaten any thing. In the night when little Nemai was fast asleep, Brahamana thought I can cook and offer to lord now. He did the whole offering once again. The moment he started to offer, Little nemai was there again and was about to eat the bhoga. The brahaman was surprised why this is happening. He asked the child why are u doing this. Then Nemai says you are asking me to eat this bhoga and when I eat why are you asking me not to eat? the brahamana got confused. Then Nemai took the 4 handed vishnu form and gave the dharshan to the brahamana and told him the he is Supreme personality of Godhead himself. Like this there are many incidents that show Mahaprabhu is non different from Krishna.
Preaching can not be done with a teacher mentality. The moment you think you know better or you can do better to spread the message of God, the pride and ego in our heart grows and it covers our intelligence. Prabhupaada's godbrothers did not had as much faith and conviction as Prabhupaada had.
Lastly, I do not understand why we are trying to speculate on who prabhupaada was? When he has told us to wait and see for ourselves when we go back to Goloka, why hurry soo much and spoil the journy back home. There were many incidents when Prabhupaada was asked by his disciples that he is Krishna himself. He always used to say that Guru is non different from Krishna and should be respected just as we respect the Lord. But guru is not actually Krishna but is empowered to deliver the conditioned souls like us.
Hari bol!!!
Looks like you can become an editor of wikipedia and add more the the existing page.
I have heard several senior ISKCON devotees refer to him as Shaktivesh Avatar.
Meaning not exactly incarnation of Krishna, however presence of Krishna's energy within Prabhupada.
Someone correct me if I am wrong, Lord Parashuram is also considered shaktivesh avatar.
When He meets Lord Ram, incarnation of the Lord, He withdraws all the energies and offers it to Lord Ram.
Prabhupada a human being, was able to draw Krishna's energies (shakti), by His association of Krishna by chanting Lord Krishna's holy names and paying attention (Dhyana) to the pastimes of Krishna, all the time, and while he was avoiding the 10 great offenses or 10 Namaparad.
Hare Krishna
some clarification here...... gauranga mahaprabhus associates did know who they were.....we find in soo many places like in hari naam cintamani...Srila bhaktivinoda thakura offering prayers in his siddha deha swarupa...(eternal constitutional position) as kamala manjari. Also prabhodananda sarswatipada in Radha rasa sudha nidhi offers prayers as tungavidya sakhi.....so all these associates very well knew who they were...
secondly as far as shakti avesha avatar is concerned...it means that the partial energy power potency of the lord is given to a jiva atma...to perform a specific task....they are neither purna purusha avatars...meaning the supreme lord...nor are they like us....maya baddha jiva...conditioned jiva....so this is one of the aspects of achintya bheda abheda tatva...simultaneous oneness and difference...however whether SP was krsna's shakti avesha avatar is simply a matter of speculation....it isnt stated as such in any gaudiya literature...
vaishnava dasanudas,
Amarnath das
if that ads to your confussion then lets add more oil to the fire.. Lol I told the story which Amarnath Prabhuji told, to my Mom and she said that some time ago a Swami told a story about SP. He used to cook kachori at night and sometimes have certain devotees.. Cook them. He used to put some in His pockets when going to sleep. He was asked why, and he said that His children comes at night to play and they ask for the kachori. The children were Radha & Krishna. I asked her who the Swami was but she cannot remember. If someone know the story, please let us know.
srila prabhupada said"guru and krishna are two parallel lines on which the spiritual express runs smoothly".so we can understand guru nevr b krishna.
harekrishna d topic is really gr8,,,n d commentzz r jus beautiful :)
here everybody has posted very gud shastric versions for it....i wil keep it simple and share something...which is amazing....!!
this was in mayapur...1974....at the foot of gada building...sp was encircled by many many disciples.....n at dat tym HH tamal krsna maharaj asked sp".....prabhupada u have done sooo much for us.....not even our parents can do soo much.....pl tel us...who u r in the spiritual kingdom...please...for all of us wanna know....ur eternal position!"
SP smiled and said"....i cant tel u dat......because u wont believe me....if i reveal!
soo....i have given u the process......come back home.....and look for urself...who i am"!!!!!!
they all smiled and said".....sure srila prabhupada...as u desire...!"
hope ual liked it...
vaishnava dasanudasnudas,
Amarnath das
Jai Shri Krishna..
Mataji, you just made me so inquisitive! Now I want to know the answer to that same question too.. :-) I'll definitely have to go back home to see for myself..
Sorry Prabhuji..
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada - Senapati Bhakta
Locana Dasa Thakura in his Caitanya Mangala (Sutra-khanda, song 12,
texts 562-565) refers to Srila Prabhupada. (Lord Caitanya speaking of
the reasons for His descent):
nama-guna-sankirtana vaisnavera shakti
prakasa karibe ami nija prema-bhakti
Chanting of the name & qualities of Krsna is the life & energy of the
Vaisnavas. I will reveal these activities & rejuvenate pure devotional
service unto Myself.
ei mate kali-papa karibe sanhara
sabe cala age pache na kara vichara
In this way I will destroy all the sins in Kali Yuga. So all of you,
My associates, go ahead and take birth on the earthly planet before My
advent and don't remain behind.
ebe nama sankirtana tikshna khadaga laiya
antara asura jivera phelibe katiya
Taking the sharp sword of the congregational chanting of the Hare
Krsna mantra, (nama-sankirtana) I will root out & destroy the demoniac
mentality in the hearts of all the conditioned souls.
yadi papi chadi dharma dure dese yaya
mora senapati-bhakta yaibe tathaya
If some sinful people escape and giving up religious principles go to
far off countries, then my Senapati Bhakta will come at that time to
give them Krsna consciousness. (senapati - a military field commander,
bhakta - a devotee. Lord Caitanya will empower His own devotee to
spread Krsna Consciousness around the world.)