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By Bhanu Swami

There is no question of honoring any devotee of Krishna since such a devotee is very rare.
However, if the devotee exhibits the qualities mentioned in Bhagavatam and Caitanya Caritamrta, how much more we must honor that devotee.

HH Bhakti Charu Swami was known by all who met him as the most gentle, humble, compassionate and learned devotee. Everyone valued his association. Thus, in his absence there will feelings of great loss for everyone.

But for his disciples there will be ext

Dear devotees, Please accept my greetings and the blessings of Lord Krishna. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

More than anything concerning the disappearance of Bhakti Caru Swami I am solaced by the appreciation of his character and service expressed by his godbrothers and leaders of ISKCON. I believe ISKCON above everything is meant to carry on the vision and mission of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu that Srila Prabhupada revealed to the world. However, that vision and mission especially becomes ali

Dear devotees,

May Srila Prabhupada shower his blessings on you. All glories to His Divine Grace.

We’ve just lost one of ISKCON’s most important leaders, His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami, who succumbed to Covid19 and the complications it brought on. He departed on the auspicious day of guru-purnima, which is also the disappearance day of Srila Sanatana Gosvami, a befitting day for one who relished sharing his realizations of Sri Brhad-bhagavatamrta, even before the BBT published Gopiparandhana P

Dear Devotees,

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada. All glories to Srila Bhakti Charu Swami Maharaja.

It is so, so harrowing to endure the departure of someone we love. Indeed there are so many specialists who deal exclusively with helping people through such upheaval and loss. I lost my mother nearly 50 years ago and I still remember that day so vividly, as the trauma at the time was as unbearable as I could have imagined.

Thus it is not surprising to see so muc

I first heard Srila Bhakti Charu Maharaja speak in 1987. He was giving a Srimad Bhagavatam class at the Krishna Balarama Mandir. I was immediately impressed by his speech, his deep empathy, compassion and narrative. After the class I followed him into the reception area of our Krishna Balarama Guesthouse to speak to him. I thanked him for the inspiring talk and invited him to South Africa. Over the coming years he would fondly remind me that I was the first to invite him to South Africa.

Subseq

Brief compilation with personal concluding words by Bhakti Brhat Bhagavata Swami

First Meeting with Devotees

Sarvabhavana Prabhu, who joined ISKCON recalls, “I and a friend of mine, who later became His Holiness Bhakti Caru Swami, went from Calcutta to Hamburg in 1970. There we met the devotees for the first time and accepted an invitation for the Sunday feast. [Srila Prabhupada and Disciples in Germany by Vedavyasa Dasa]

A Cultured Young Man

One day an unusual, young Bengali man came to Mayapu

“Bhakti Charu Maharaj in the final days of Srila Prabhupada was amongst the entourage of Prabhupada. He used to render personal service, so Prabhupada rang the bell and Bhakti Charu Maharaj went. Prabhupada asked for some orange juice and Bhakti Charu Maharaj said “yes Srila Prabhupada I will bring”. And then 5 minutes later the bell rang again but this time the bell was ringing firmer, Prabhupada was ringing urgently. Bhakti Charu Maharaj went and Prabhupada said “So where is the orange juice?”

Dear disciples of Bhakti Charu Maharaja,

Please accept my most humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

On this auspicious day of Guru Purnima I want to express my condolences to all of you on the departure of your beloved spiritual master, Bhakti Charu Maharaja. I had planned to write an offering to him today, but I feel a letter to console all of you in your grief would be of greater service to him.

My heart goes out to all of you wherever you are in the world. The outpouring of lo

You are all aware by now of the passing of HH Bhakti Caru Swami Maharaja. Most if not all of you would be well aware that he was an outstanding disciple of Srila Prabhupada and a great leader in Prabhupada’s ISKCON.

Under the circumstances it would be appropriate for all ISKCON centers to observe his departure with a special program, or even more than one special program, bearing in mind, of course, the current situations in different parts of the world because of the same Corona virus which ha

July 4, 2020

My dear Bhakti Charu Maharaja,

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

When you first met Srila Prabhupada he recognized you as a special soul, so much so that within a short time he accepted you as a sannyasi disciple. For the next 45 years you faithfully kept your difficult vows, travelling constantly, promoting Krishna consciousness in service to Srila Prabhupada. Your astonishing, flawless legacy will forever inspire all of Srila Prabhupada’s follow

My Dear Spiritual Nieces and Nephews/Disciples of His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami,

Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

All glories to His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami.

I write with a very heavy heart. I can only imagine the sense of grief and pain you must all be feeling today, experiencing the separation of His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami.

Your Guru Maharaja was truly an exceptional Vaishnava, spiritual master, and human being. All who knew him, including all

Dear Devotees,

Please accept our humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

It is with overwhelming heartache that we announce to you the departure of our beloved godbrother and a dearmost servant of Srila Prabhupada, His Holiness Bhakti Charu Swami.

From his earliest days as a young devotee, Maharaja had the extraordinary privilege of serving as one of Srila Prabhupada’s confidential, personal servants. And ever since, His Holiness Bhakti Charu Maharaja’s life has been an offering of

Today is Guru-purnima. Srila Prabhupada has explained that the system of honoring the spiritual master is current in all sections of Vedic followers. In the Mayavadi (impersonalist) sects, the disciples offer respect to the spiritual master every year on Guru-purnima. And in the Gaudiya Vaisnava sampradaya, the disciples offer homage annually on the appearance day of the spiritual master; this occasion is called Vyasa-puja, because the spiritual master represents Vedavyasa, the empowered incarn

ISKCON Mayapur temple opens to the public on Guru Purnima, 5th July, after 3 months of closure!

More than 70 lakh people from different parts of the world visit Mayapur, the birth place of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. However, this year, the global pandemic cast a  spell of gloom on the devotees, pilgrims and visitors all over the world, who come in search of spiritual enlightment and to submerge in the blissful ocean of Harinama Sankirtan.

After nearly 90 days of closure, people will again get the

Dear Devotees,

Please accept our humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

HH Bhakti Charu Swami's health condition has deteriorated and doctors have given notice that they are exhausting all medical options.

We request the worldwide ISKCON community to please pause all other engagements and invest all your hearts in intense prayer and kirtan for HH Bhakti Charu Maharaja.

Maharaja has given his life to the service of Srila Prabhupada and the service of Srila Prabhupada's ISKCON. W

Dear Respected Devotees,

Please accept my humble obeisances.
All glories to Srila Prabhupada.

I would like to give a piece of good news for your pleasure. In Turkey, we started to publish Online Back To Godhead Magazine in Turkish language. This was desire of HH Sivarama Swami for long time and pandemic time was a good period for Turkish devotees to form a team of 13 and start working on the project. From layout to any single details are made by our devotees here in Turkey. On the auspicious Sa

Certain situations are extremely painful, and our intelligence fails to understand how this could be a blessing of the Lord. At such times, we can try humbly submitting a prayer: “O God, please give me the strength to see this situation as your mercy, although my intelligence fails to see it so.” This way we can tap the so-far-concealed grace of the Lord and develop gratitude for all inconceivable situations that God arranges for us in our lives.

- Radhanath Swami

Source: http://www.girirajswam