Toronto

samsara-davanala-liḍha-loka-tranaya karunya-ghanaghanatvam
praptasya kalyana-gunarnavasya vande guroḥ sri-caranaravindam

"The spiritual master is receiving benediction from the ocean of mercy. Just as a cloud pours water on a forest fire to extinguish it, so the spiritual master extinguishes the blazing fire of material existence. I offer my respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of such a spiritual master."

The spiritual master is compared to a full rain cloud, and Krsna, God, is the ocean. The clouds form over the ocean and deposit needed water on the land. To supply water to the land is the mercy of the ocean. When there is a forest fire, the land is most in need of water because the only hope for the inhabitants is that a rain cloud will appear to douse the flames. No amount of effort on their part will help control the fire.

Lord Caitanya appeared in the Age of Kali as the most merciful incarnation of Krsna. He is so readily giving the highest perfection of life, pure love of God, to even the most fallen conditioned souls. Our spiritual master has taken full advantage of this mercy and is now distributing love of Krsna all over the blazing earth, asking everyone to awaken, chant Hare Krsna and thus become relieved from the suffering of material existence.

To take advantage of the soothing effects of such a downpour of mercy one must simply follow the bona fide spiritual master's instructions and chant Hare Krsna. To get even more mercy, one should help Krsna's representative, the spiritual master, to distribute Lord Caitanya's message to all living entities.

I offer my humble obeisances at the lotus feet of my spiritual master, and pray that I may be of some service to him in his mission.

mahaprabhoḥ kirtana-nrtya gita-
vaditra-madyan-manaso rasena
romanca-kampasru-tarahga-bhajo
vande guroḥ sri-caranaravindam

"The spiritual master is always engaged in chanting and hearing the message of Lord Caitanya and sometimes is dancing in ecstasy. Sometimes he feels quivering in his body because of spiritual trance. I offer my respectful obeisances unto such a spiritual master."

Lord Caitanya's message is that everyone should chant the holy names of the Lord constantly. Our spiritual master has taken up the instruction of the Lord as his life and soul, and he has taken up the mission of the Lord-to spread this chanting to every corner of the world. The Lord claims such a preacher of Krsna Consciousness to be the most dear to Him, and therefore the spiritual master is the full recipient of the mercy of the Supreme Lord. Therefore he is always in trance, meditating on the names and songs of the Lord and feeling transcendental ecstasy. Sometimes such ecstasy manifests in different bodily symptoms such as standing of the hairs on end, shedding of tears, becoming stunned, etc. Such symptoms are not to be imitated, but are the natural consequence of chanting the holy name in pure love of God.

I offer my respectful obeisances at the lotus feet of my spiritual master in whom this transcendental mood is manifest, and who is melting my stonelike impersonalist's heart with the nectarean message of Lord Caitanya.

sri-vigraharandhana-nitya-nana-
sringara-tanmandira-marjanadau
yuktasya bhaktams ca niyunjato 'pi
vande guroḥ sri-caranaravindam

"The spiritual master is always engaged along with his disciples in the temple worship of Sri Sri Radha and Krsna. I offer my respectful obeisances unto such a spiritual master."

Srila Rūpa Gosvami has written that Sri Murti worship and sahkirtana go hand in hand. The Six Gosvamis, although engaged continuously in the missionary activities of Lord Caitanya, all had their own Deities, who they worshiped with great care and attention.

The training of the neophyte devotee completely depends on the expert spiritual master who knows how to lead the disciple on the path back to Godhead. Here Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura had described the spiritual master engaging the disciples in the matter of decorating and dressing the Deity, as well as cleansing the temple of the Deity, etc.

In the Second Canto of the Srimad-Bhagavatam, it is described how Maharaja Pariksit, a great devotee from childhood, would worship Krsna by imitating the family Deity worship, even while playing with dolls. Srila Prabhupada also has described how as a child he was encouraged in the same way by his family. Srila Jiva Gosvami has written that this engagement in Deity worship from childhood is a symptom of a maha-bhagavata, a great devotee of the Lord. I offer my respectful obeisances at the lotus feet of such a spiritual master, who has so kindly given us the vision of the Lord.

catur-vidha-sri-bhagavat-prasada-
svadv-anna-trptan hari-bhakta-sahghan
krtvaiva trptim bhajataḥ sadaiva
vande guroḥ sri-caranaravindam

"The spiritual master is always offering four kinds of foodstuffs to the Personality of Godhead, Krsna. When he sees the devotees are eating bhagavad-prasada, he is satisfied. I offer my respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of such a spiritual master."

The spiritual master attracts the conditioned souls in the Age of Kali with the simple formula of dancing, singing, hearing of the Absolute Truth and tasting foodstuffs offered to the Lord. Without the spiritual master there is no way of offering anything to Krsna. It is only because of Krsna's love for His pure devotee that one is able to contact the Supreme Pure and thereby revive his own natural purity and love for God. When the devotees takes the remnants of foodstuffs which the spiritual master has offered to Krsna the spiritual master is satisfied. The satisfaction of the spiritual master is the key to advancement in spiritual life.

I offer my respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of such a spiritual master.

sri-radhika-madhavayor apara
madhurya-lila-guna-rūpa-namnam
pratiksanasvadana-lolupasya
vande guroḥ sri-caranaravindam

"The spiritual master is always anxious to hear and chant about the wonderful pastimes between Radhika and Madhava, which are all in the modes of loving exchanges (madhurya-lila), as well as about Their qualities, names and forms. The spiritual master aspires after relishing these things at every moment. I offer my respectful obeisances to such a spiritual master."

The spiritual master is very anxious to chant and hear about Krsna. In the Gita also Krsna says:

mac-citta mad-gata-prana
bodhayantaḥ parasparam
kathayantas ca mam nityam
tusyanti ca ramanti ca
(Bg. 10.9)

"Their thoughts dwell in Me, their lives are surrendered to Me, and they derive great satisfaction and bliss enlightening one another and conversing about Me."

One can recognize the quality of a man's character by the sound of the vibration he makes. The pure devotee speaks to glorify the transcendental activities of Radha and Krsna. He is not interested in glorifying mundane personalities of the material world, whose activities are being conducted under the influence of the three modes of material nature. He is experiencing the sweetness of the mellow of the Supreme Couple, Radha and Krsna, whose activities are completely transcendental to material qualities.

Neither does the spiritual master artificially try to stop speaking as the Mayavadis do. He knows that the Absolute Truth is sentient, possessing form, attributes, name, etc., and because they are supreme he wishes to glorify them. The taste of such glorification is most relishable and therefore the spiritual master desires to distribute this taste to everyone. I offer my respectful obeisances at the lotus feet of my spiritual master who has poured nectar in my thirsty ear and revived my sleeping soul with the holy sound.

nikunjayūno ratikeli-siddhyair
ya yalibhir yuktir apeksaniya
tatratidaksadati-vallabhasya
vande guroḥ sri-caranaravindam

"The spiritual master is very much expert in assisting the gopis who are engaged in the perfection of Radha-Krsna conjugal love affairs. At different times they make different tasteful arrangements for such spiritual exchange, and the spiritual master is there to assist in the affairs. I offer my humble obeisances unto the lotus feet of such a spiritual master."

The spiritual master, although apparently engaged in activities on the material plane, is actually absorbed in the transcendental realm of Goloka Vrndavana. There he is engaged in eternal rasa with the Lord. If his relationship with the Lord is in the flavour of conjugal love, then he assists the gopis who are assisting Radha and Krsna in their all-perfect, all-blissful love affairs. Thus Lord Caitanya prays to become gopi-bhartur-dasa-dasa-dasanudasa, the servant of the servant of the servant of the protector of the milkmaids of Vraja. The better position in transcendental terms is to become the servant of the servant far removed.

Therefore, I offer my obeisances unto the lotus feet of my spiritual master, of whose transcendental lila I know absolutely nothing, but whose mercy to the most fallen, such as myself, is easily perceptible.

saksad-dharitvena samasta-sastrair
uktas tatha bhavyata eva sadbhiḥ
kintu prabhor yaḥ priya eva tasya
vande guroḥ sri-caranaravindam

"The spiritual master is honored as much as the Supreme Lord because of his being the most confidential servitor of the Lord. This is acknowledged in all reveled scriptures and is followed by all authorities. Therefore I offer my respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of such a spiritual master, who is a bona fide representative of Sri Hari (Krsna)."

"One should understand the spiritual master to be as good as I am," said the Blessed Lord. "Nobody should be jealous of the spiritual master, thinking of him as an ordinary man, because the spiritual master is the sum total of all the demigods."

The spiritual master, even though honored as though he were God, remains always humble, thinking of himself as the eternal servant of God. He actually sees Himself as the servant of all, even his disciples, who are being trained by him in the science of God.

Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of such a spiritual master.

yasya prasadad bhagavat-prasado
yasyaprasadan na gatiḥ kuti 'pi
dhyayam stuvams tasya yasas tri-sandhyam
vande guroḥ sri-caranaravindam

"By the mercy of the spiritual master, one is benedicted by the mercy of Krsna. Without the grace of the spiritual master, on one can make any advancement. Therefore, I should always remember my spiritual master. At least three times a day I should offer my respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of my spiritual master."

The mercy of Krsna is that even the most fallen soul can be lifted up from the material ocean and re-established in his constitutional position as Krsna's eternal servitor. The Lord has arranged that such mercy is not to be received directly, but is revealed by His authorized representative in disciplic succession. Such an authorized representative can elevate the conditioned soul to his liberated status by revealing the science of God (Bhagavat-tattva-vijnanam) to him. Without receiving this mercy from a pure devotee of the Lord there is no possibility of understanding the transcendental Personality of Godhead who lies beyond the range of the material senses and mind. I beg for the mercy of my spiritual master that I will never forget him for even a moment, and will never stop offering my obeisances at his lotus feet.

Jagadisa dasa adhikari / Rocana dasa adhikari / Amsu dasa adhikari / Drupada dasa brahmacari / Dharmaraja dasa adhikrai / Dustadura dasa brahmacari / Girijadhava dasa brahmacari / Hara-kumara dasa brahmacari / Hiranyagarbha dasa adhikari / Kasirama dasa brahmacari / Mathuranatha dasa adhikari / Rūpa Vilasa dasa brahmacari / Samvitananda dasa adhikari / Sripati dasa adhikari / Vicaru brahmacari / Yugalkisora dasa adhikari / Bhakta Peter / Bhakta Ken / Bhakta John / Bhakta Felicia / Yadunandana / Nirmalacandra / Yugalapriti / Bhaktimati / Bhakta Greg / Bhaktin Lisa / Bhakta Jeremy / Varuni devi dasi / Laksmimauni devi dasi / Urvasi devi dasi / Manohara devi dasi / Saucarya devi dasi / Ksama devi dasi / Jagatikanḍa devi dasi / Vraja devi dasi / Kirtimati devi dasi / Svahna devi dasi / Praharana devi dasi / Pasupati devi dasi / Atigarvita devi dasi / Bhaktin Susan / Bhaktin Gerry / Bhaktin Marlene / Bhaktin Linda / Bhaktin Cynthia

Travelling Party

Subala dasa Svami / Bala-Krsna dasa brahmacari / Divyananda dasa adhikari / Ayodhyapati dasa brahmacari / Krpasindhu dasa brahmacari / Tarakanatha dasa brahmacari

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