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Not Just Another Guru

Vyasa-puja Offering By Jayadvaita Swami (1995)

Today we honor the representative of Srila Vyasa. Srila Vyasadeva has many representatives. And so we may think of Srila Prabhupada as one of them. And of course he is.

Yet Srila Prabhupada stands distinct, distinguished, in a class by himself. He is not merely "a guru," our guru, one among many, just as the Bhagavatam is not just another book, Hare Krsna not just another mantra, and Lord Krsna not just another god.

To study Srila

Srimad-Bhagavatam - Canto 2 Chapter 4 Text 18
kirata-hunandhra-pulinda-pulkasa
abhira-sumbha yavanah khasadayah
ye 'nye ca papa yad-apasrayasrayah
sudhyanti tasmai prabhavisnave namah

kirata -- a province of old Bharata; huna -- part of Germany and Russia; andhra -- a province of southern India; pulinda -- the Greeks; pulkasah -- another province; abhira -- part of old Sind; sumbhah -- another province; yavanah -- the Turks; khasa-adayah -- the Mongolian province; ye -- even those; anye -- others; ca

Both the initiating and instructing spiritual masters represent of the Supersoul.

The guru is actually one; the guru is the Supersoul. The guru, as the representative of the Supersoul, may appear differently externally, but the transcendental message is the same. Therefore, no real representative of God can disagree with anotherrepresentative of God. Sometimes itseems there are disagreements among genuine representatives of God, but theseare not disagreements, only different perspectives on the

Vrndavan dasa Thakura

Srimad Vrndavan dasa Thakura's mother's name was Sri Narayani Devi. Narayani Devi was the daughter of Srivas Thakura's brother. After the disappeareance of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Srivas Thakura went to live in Kumar Hatta. Srivasa Thakura had three brothers: Sripati, Srirama and Srinidhi. He also had one son, but at a young age, his son passed away, returning to the Lord's supreme abode.

Srivasa Thakura had previously lived in Sri Hatta, but because he wanted the associatio

Vishvanatha Chakravarti Thakura

Shrila Vishvanatha Chakravarti Thakura took birth in the year 1654 Shaka era (according to the Gaudiya Vaishnava Abhidana, Part 3, p. 1370) within the Nadia district of West Bengal in a place called Prasiddha Deva Gram. He appeared in the Radhiya line of brahamanas. He had two brothers: Shri Ramabhadra Chakravarti and Shri Raghunatha Chakravarti. Shrila Chakravarti Thakura went on to live in the Murshidabad district of West Bengal, in Saiyadabad, where he received

Vishnupriya devi

The Supreme Lord Visnu has three different Saktis: Sri, Bhu, and Nila. Sri Visnupriya is the internal potency known as Bhu-sakti. She appeared in Gaura-lila to assist Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu with his mission of spreading the holy name of Krsna.

In Nabadwipa-dhama there lived a brahmana named Sanatana Misra, who was an extremely exalted Visnu-bhakta. He was a pious and generous brahmana as well, and used to feed, clothe and shelter many people. He was famous as the king of panditas

Vasudeva Ghosh, Govinda Ghosh, and Madhava Ghosh

Krsna dasa Kaviraja Goswami writes (CC Adi 10.115): “The three brothers, Govinda, Madhava, and Vasudeva were the eighty-second, eighty-third, and eighty-fourth branches of the Caitanya tree. Lord Caitanya and Nityananda used to dance in their kirtana performances. In his Caitanya-Caritamrta commentary, Sripad Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaja writes: ”The three brothers, Govinda, Madhava and Vasudeva Ghosh all belonged to a kayastha family. govinda esta

Vamsidasa Babaji

He was born in Majitpura in the subdivision of Kisoraganja in the district of Mayamanasimha. His father's name was Sanatana Malovrahma. His former name was Bhairavacandra. According to usual custom, he married at an early age but he had no attraction for married life. Being repeatedly requested by his mother, he dealt with his wife for a single day only. He was initiated into the family of Narottama Thakura and accepted the garb of an ascetic. At that time the influence of the Ka

Vamshivadananda Thakura

On the Caitra Purnima, the full moon day of the month of Caitra, Sri Vamsivadananda Thakura took birth within this world. It was a sweet moon in 1466, and everyone sang in great joy at the appearance of such a great soul.

Vamsivadananda Thakura is also known as Vamsivadana, Vamsi dasa, Vamsi. Within Kuliya are the villages known as Teghari, Venciada, Vedadapada, and Cinedanga Grama. Srikara Cattyopadhyaya's sons moved to Bilvagrama, Paduli Hata, and Venciada in Kuliya. His

Vallabhacarya

Sri Vallabhacarya was born in the sacred forest of Camparanya in Madhya Pradesh, Central India. Born into a very learned family of brahmanas from South India, he spent much of his early life in North India, in the holy city of Varanasi. Born with great innate abilities, Vallabhacarya mastered all the Vedas, Puranas and Agamas by the tender age. By the age eleven he was already preaching and winning debates on principles which were later consolidated as Brahmavada.

Following in the

Vakreshvara Pandit

At the time of Shriman Mahaprabhu's Nabadwipa-lila, as well as at the time of his taking sannyasa and his staying in Jagannatha Puri, Vakreshvara Pandit was an associate of the Lord. Shri Vakreshvara Pandit's birthplace is near the Triveni in a place called Guptiparaya. Shri Vakreshvara Pandit was expert in song and dancing. He once danced continuously for 72 hours. In the Gaura-Ganodesh-Dipika, verse 71, it is stated that Vakreshvara Pandit was an incarnation of Aniruddha, one

Uddharana Datta Thakura

Sri Krsnadasa Kaviraja Goswami has written: "Uddharana Datta Thakura, the eleventh among the twelve cowherd boys, was an exalted devotee of Lord Nityananda Prabhu. He worshiped the lotus feet of Lord Nityananda in all respects." According to Gaura-ganodesa-dipika, "The devotee who was formerly known as Subahu in Vraja, and who was one of the cowherd boys in Vrndavana later appeared in Gaura-lila as Sri Uddharana Datta.

In his translation and commentary on Caitanya Caritamrt

The Brahma-Madhva-Gaudiya Disciplic Succession

and Its Unique Characteristics

of Which We are a Part

by Stephen Knapp

It is established that everyone who seeks spiritual knowledge and enlightenment must accept a genuine teacher. Even if one has already attained enlightenment in a previous life and is automatically born with such knowledge, proper etiquette dictates that one approaches a spiritual master. Such a master must be in an authorized sampradaya, or line of disciplic succession of other spir

Svarupa Damodar Goswami

Shri Svarupa Damodara is an eternal associate and friend of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Previously his name was Shri Purushottama Acharya. He lived in Nabadwipa. He always stayed with Mahaprabhu. When Shriman Mahaprabhu took sannyasa, he became half-mad. He went to Varanasi and took sannyasa from a sannyasi named Chaitanyananda, who ordered him to study Vedanta and teach it to the people in general.

Shri Purushottama Acharya did not accept the dress of a sannyasi, but only g

Sivananda Sena

Every year one month before caturmasya (four month period of the rainy season) Sivananda Sena would lead a party of two hundred devotees from Bengal to Jagannatha Puri to attend the annual Ratha-Yatra festival. He would pay for everyone's food, tolls, ferries, and lodging. He personally arranged for their com­fort.

Sivananda Sena showed Vaisnava compassion for all living entities, be they man or beast. When a stray dog joined the party Sivananda Sena fed the dog and even paid his bo

Sita Thakurani

Shri Sita Thakurani is to be worshiped just as much as Sachidevi herself, as the mother of the universe. She is the eternal wife of Shri Advaita Acharya. She was the daughter of Shri Nrishinga Baduri. She was married to Shri Advaita Acharya in Phuliya Nagara. After their wedding, Advaita Acharya went to Nadiya, to live in Shantipura. Sita Thakurani was always absorbed in vatsalya prema for Shri Gaurasundara Prabhu, and, out of parental concern used to instruct Jagannatha Mishra on

Shyamananda Prabhu

"Simply by accepting that the associates of Shri Caitanya Mahaprabhu are eternally perfect one may attain the service of Krishna in Vrindavana."—Narottam Das Thakura.

Shri Shyamananda, Shrinvasa and Shri Narottama Dasa Thakura are all eternal associates of Shri Gaurasundara. For the purpose of preaching the holy message of Sri Caitanya all over the earth they appeared within this world.

Shri Shyamananda Prabhu was born in Utkala, in a place called Dharenda Bhadura Pura. His fathe

Shrivasa Thakura

That person who was the Vyasa of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's pastimes—Shrimad Vrindavan Das Thakura—speaks of Shrivas Pandit in his Shri Chaitanya Bhagavata:

"In Navadwip Dham lived the holy Pandit Shri Shrivas,

And at his temple Caitanya performed his sweet vilas.

Srivas and his brothers always sang the holy name,

And did their Krishna-puja and Ganges bath three times a day."

Shrivas, Shrirama, Shripati and Shrinidhi were four brothers. They used to live in Shri Hatta, but after some time