Srila Gurudeva (The Supreme Treasure)
by Swami Bhaktivedanta Madhava Maharaja | 2010 | 179,005 words
This page relates ‘Travelling with His Shrila Gurudeva’ of the book dealing with life and teachings of Srila Gurudeva, otherwise known as Shri Shrimad Bhaktivedanta Narayana Gosvami Maharaja. Srila Gurudeva is a learned and scholar whose teachings primarily concern the spiritual beauties of Bhakti—devotional service and the qualities and pastimes of Shri Krishna.
Travelling with His Śrīla Gurudeva
After our Parama-gurudeva’s personal assistant Anaṅga-Mohana Brahmacārī left this world, Śrī Gaura Nārāyaṇa became an intimate servant of his gurudeva. Gratefully, he took the opportunity to travel with him the length and breadth of the subcontinent of India, visiting many of her ancient holy sites several times. Whenever they went to a new city on tour, he and his gurudeva went ahead of the travelling party to assist in arranging for accommodation, cooking facilities and prasāda for the large group. After securing this, they would go back to the travelling party and proceed with them to their new location. In this way, he travelled several times to all the major places of pilgrimage in the North, South, east, and West of India. This provided an excellent opportunity for him to hear hari-kathā and the glories of the dhāmas directly from the lotus mouth of his beloved spiritual master. As Parama-gurudeva’s personal assistant, Śrīla Gurudeva would cook, launder his cloth, and assist him everywhere and in every way.
Śrīla Gurudeva told us that he feels deeply indebted to have had the great fortune of travelling to various pilgrimage places in India many times in the company of his causelessly merciful guru, Śrīla Bhakti Prajñāna Keśava Gosvāmī Mahārāja, the preacher of pure vaiṣṇava-dharma. Śrīla Gurudeva has spent the rest of his life and energy in following and serving Śrīla Bhakti Prajñāna Keśava Gosvāmī Māhārāja, and fulfills his beloved guru’s innermost desire (mano-bhīṣṭam), which is to spread the mission of his own gurudeva, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda, who preached Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s message of śuddhabhakti everywhere.
As a tree is known by its fruits, we can understand Śrīla Bhakti Prajñāna Keśava Gosvāmī Mahārāja’s glories by observing the character of his disciples. The fruits of his pure preaching, which easily prove his actual glory, are the exemplary behavior, guru-niṣṭhā, and bhajana of my śikṣā-guru, paramārādhya Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja; of my dīkṣā-guru, paramārādhya Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Vāmana Gosvāmī; of parama-pūjyapāda Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Trivikrama Gosvāmī Mahārāja; and of Paramagurudeva’s other disciples.