Sree Dham Mayapur

By  SravanKirtan das

Mayapur’s Mowed-fresh grass blades; rising to replicate miniature emerald hills,
Exude a suggestion of sweet scent, which doth elevate the mind and senses…
Elevate to a platform in the soul’s upper realms!
A pigeon grey-black with artless grace nearby worm-hunts…
Winged fancy emerging from the mind’s recesses;
Inspiring me to scoop up the damp-warm jade blades,
Points to the nostrils only too eager to inhale their aromatic pleasantness!
Oh, how the heart craves a flower-touch drizzle to warm its insides…
Through its moist earth-kissing and letting the object of its love smell celestially delicious!
What a pristine sense of romance and love and kindness for Man doth this wedlock of heaven and earth show us…
Wherefore, O Blue Maker of me and such wonders, O Krishna, I bow down before Thee, Who art full of inconceivable wonders!!!

By Palika Vraja Gopi Devi Dasi
Young Prahlad Maharaj was threatened by his diabolical father; hurled into fire.
But the fire consumed Holika, while Prahlad came out untouched, chanting hari-nama with intense desire.
He ordered his soldiers to slash at the tender boy with their sharp spears and tridents,
But astoundingly, as the swords touched his body, they turned into blue lotuses, causing much befuddlement; maddened with anger, an elephant was dispatched that repeatedly tried to jab Prahlada with his tusk…
The tusk broke into pieces; demoralized, the elephant fled from his task,
He was thrown among venomous snakes, hurled from the top of a hill, and administered poison.
But he was protected by Nrsinghadev, hidden to his insidious miscreant- father’s vision,
He was starved, exposed to severe cold, winds, fire, water, and boulders tossed to crush his body,
Yet nothing could destroy him, unconditional and unequivocal devotion for he did embody,
Sacrilegious Hiranyakashipu, feeling tired and worn out questioned him regarding the source of his power,
Apt came the reply, ”Visnu”! from Prahlad, shielded by whom, his father could not over-power,
Pointing at a pillar, challenged him if He was in there, banging his fist against it,
Triggering the appearance of Nrsimhadev, the protector of devotees, as the pillar split,
Terrifying was his sight, tumultuous his roar, bemused the demon causing him to battle with the Lord,
His deadly teeth and razor sharp-tongue which moved about like a dueling sword,
Half-man, half-lion, molten gold in complexion with beautiful copper nails, sported with him like a cat plays with a mouse,
Until he bifurcated him into two, pulling out Hiranyakashipu’s entrails who’s burning anger he did arouse,
By torturing his dear devotee, but Prahlad felt an overwhelming pathos for his father,
A pure devotee that he was implored for his deliverance unto his vanquisher,
Merciful Nrsimhadev delivered not only his father, but 21 generations of his family,
But when offered liberation himself, refused in favor of bhakti,
With a fixed mind, he began to offer prayers to the Lord who possesses nails and teeth just like thunderbolts to kindly vanquish our demonlike desires for fruitive activity,
May the living entities be engaged in devotional service, to be absorbed In thoughts of Him, while remaining detached from family, home and society,
I offer my obeisances to Lord Narasimha, by Your association, obstacles are cast far away,
By whose benediction one can worship Radha Krsna peacefully, avoiding the mind go astray,
Let my mind be set on your lotus form, chest stronger than invincible thunderbolts, and glistening eyes that glitter with unbridled anger,
May your beautiful blood anointed claws rest on my head, for you are my only refuge and commander…

By Chaitanya Caran das

On the eve of this most blessed event, an official opening ceremony of SrimanJayananda Thakur’s Smrti Samadhi was held at Sri Rajapur. The inclusion of this ceremony was very apt, taking into consideration JayanandaPrabhu’s unparalleled service in helping Srila Prabhupada to establish Lord Jagannath’sRatha Yatra Festival in the West during the pioneering days of ISKCON. This ceremony was followed by an elaborate adhivasa ceremony for the Jagannath Snana Yatra Festival. Many auspicious items were offered for the pleasure of Lord Jagannath to invoke auspiciousness for the next day’s festival. The adhivasa ceremony was followed by an excellent presentation of devotional dance by the Odissi Dance Troupe. These young and talented dancers performed their routines for the pleasure of Lord Jagannath and they kept the large crowd enraptured with their intricate dance movements.

From the very crack of dawn an excitement permeated the whole atmosphere of Sri Mayapur! As early as 4am, young boys could be seen carrying clay pots. Their intention was to fill these pots with Ganga-jal which would later be used to bathe Lord Jagannath. At 7am anagarsankirtankirtan-team made their way in a jubilant procession to the Jagannath Mandir in Rajapur. Many people followed them on foot. Others made their way to the Festival by rickshaw, bus, bicycle, motor-cycle or car. Most of the pilgrims carried some sort of offering for their Lord. Milk, fruit-juices, coconut-water and Ganga-jal were carried in small clay jars for the bathing of the Lord. At the temple, a huge pandal was set up to accommodate the hundreds of pilgrims eager to bathe Lord Jagannath. Lord Jagannath is so merciful because He leaves His temple to give everyone and anyone His wonderful darshan during His Ratha Yatra Festival. During Snana Yatra though, Lord Jagannath is even more merciful because He allows anyone and everyone the opportunity to render personal devotional service to Him. (Usually it is only a selected few – the pujaris – who get to bathe the Lord.) On the occasion of Jagannath Snana Yatra the invitation is extended to all and sundry: “Come! Take your golden opportunity and bathe The Lord of the Universe! Be you a rich or poor man, devotee or not, old or young, man, woman or child, or somebody from a Muslim family. Please come and bathe the Lord!”

And they came… In their thousands, they came! It made the Festival so joyous and blissful. The abhishek went on until about noon. Around this time, the pujaris began handing out maha-prasadam fruit from the altar. Devotees emerged from the pandal with their hands full of mangoes, litchis, and various other delicious fruits, wearing a smile almost as big as Lord Jagannath’s!

Lord Jagannath, Baladev and Subhadra Maharani were then carried back into Their temple to be dressed up in Their “surprise” outfits.

Arrangements were then made to feed the hundreds of pilgrims with hot kitcheri, subji, fries, mango and nectarine sweet-rice. After that feast, devotees congregated in the temple-room to get a glimpse of Jagannath in His Ganesh-vesa outfit. It was indeed a spectacular darshan! Heart-melting kirtan added even more sweetness to the occasion. Devotees wept openly as they gazed upon their Lord, and He gazed back. It was a bitter-sweet moment, because it would be the last time devotees would get Jagannath’sdarshan for more than two weeks! (Traditionally, after every Snana Yatra, Lord Jagannath gets a cold, and needs to recover before giving His next darshan: Jagannath Ratha Yatra Festival.)

By  Sridevi Sandhini Bandhyopadyay

As one delves deep into Krishna consciousness, the concept of family is not confined to a bodily conception of life. The person’s understanding evolves into seeing all living entities, but especially those devotees who have dedicated their lives to Krishna, as family members. We can liken ourselves to being parts of the same tree, the tree of bhakti as propagated by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. The root of this tree is Nityananda Prabhu. As Vrindavan das Thakura, the last disciple of Nityananda Prabhu Himself, says: O friends entrapped in Kali’s clutches and yearning to break free! Just worship Nityananda Rama, the root of the bhakti tree! Nityananda Prabhu’s importance, therefore, can’t be overstated in any way. Feeling much admiration for Nityananda Prabhu, Narottam das Thakura, an important branch in our ‘bhakti tree,’ composed a beautiful song. It is called both ‘Manah Siksha,’ or instructions for the mind and ‘Nityananda Nistha’ or strong faith in Lord Nityananda. Today we’ll be diving into this song and discovering the treasures hidden in the meanings, but let us keep in mind that these esoteric meanings serve a purpose; either to instruct our mind, or increase our faith in Lord Nityananda, or both.

Here is the first verse of the song:

nitāi-pada-kamala, koṭi-candra-suśītala
je chāyāy jagata jurāy
heno nitāi bine bhāi, rādhā-kṛṣṇa pāite nāi
dṛḍha kori’ dharo nitāir pāy

Here Narottam das Thakura says that the lotus feet of Lord Nityananda have the cooling power of ten million moons! An individual may think, “Oh that’s nice, but what does this have to do with me?” It has everything to do with us. Whether we like it or not, the reality is that every living being is burning in the forest fire of material existence, samsara davanala. We know we’re burning because of our mental state; when a person is burning, he or she is obviously in pain and anxiety. We can tangibly see that in our society today, whether one is in a high position or is struggling to survive. You ask the president of the United States, “Are you free from anxiety?” He will not be able to say no to that. You can also ask the street beggar in the slums, “Are you free from anxiety?”  And the answer would be in the negative. This is our position; we’re like fish out of water. Prahlada Maharaja told this to his father, Hiranyakshipu. Despite being the ruler of the three worlds, Hiranyakashipu was in so much anxiety, scheming to kill his five-year old son. So, in our burning, anxiety-filled state, we need the cooling rays of Nityananda Prabhu’s lotus feet to extinguish the horrid flames lapping at our gross and subtle bodies.  Only by taking shelter of His lotus feet, can we be free from the bondage of material nature. It’s a powerful incentive to surrender.

Once the practicing devotee realizes the anxiety filled nature of this temporary material world, he or she begins to aspire for something higher. Especially in our GaudiyaVaishnava line, the goal for the devotees is to attain Sri SriRadha and Krishna in the spiritual world, GolokaVrindavan. Here it is made clear that one can’t just jump with one’s own endeavor and achieve the Divine Couple. There’s a systematic process for this. To attain the lotus feet of Radha and Krishna, one must first obtain the mercy of Gauranga Mahaprabhu. But to obtain the mercy of Mahaprabhu, one first needs the mercy of NityanandaPrabhu. Why? Raghunath das Goswami, one of our revered saints of yore, had an intense desire from a young age, to take shelter of Lord Gauranga. He tried so many times to run away from home, but was unsuccessful each and every time. Finally one day, his father permitted him to visit Nityananda Prabhu in the nearby village of Panihati. When Raghunath das Goswami arrived there, Nityananda Prabhu called out to him in mock anger and said, “Hey! You are a thief.”  Why He said this is as wonderfully mysterious as it is meaningful. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is the most beloved, sole property of NityanandaPrabhu. He will not reveal Himself to anyone who has not first approached Lord Nityananda. Because Raghunath das Goswami was trying to achieve Gaura without Nitai, he was unsuccessful. But after he surrendered himself humbly at Nitai’s lotus feet, and pleased Him by serving the Vaishnavas, he was able to attain Gauranga’s lotus feet. So we should learn from this and follow in Raghunath das Goswami’s footsteps to please Lord Nityananda and get His mercy by humbly serving the devotees; only then can we truly progress!

By Indu Vadani Radha Devi Dasi

adhyapi  sei dibya lila karen goura rai
kono  kono bhagyavan dekhibare pai

Here the Lord still performs His transcendental pastimes, a very few fortunate beings are able to witness it.

And this spiritual land is Sridham MAYAPUR.Mayapur is non-different from Goloka Vrindavan, the eternal abode of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Sri Krishna. The environment of Sri Mayapur is absolutely the same as that of Goloka Vrindavan. The trees in Mayapur are kalpa vrikshas (desire trees).The residents (devotees) of Sri Mayapur always enjoy the ecstatic pastimes of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Originating from the Lord’s Lotus Feet, Ganga Maiya adds to the beauty of Mayapur. In the goshala in Sri Mayapur, each cow is a suravi gabhi (eternal servitor of the Lord in the form of Govinda’s beloved cow) with its individual name which serves the Lord and His devotees with their sweet milk. All the blooming flowers here feel priviledged to increase the beauty of the Lord’s abode and be used in the service of  Their Lordships.

Regularly visited by thousands of pilgrims, Sri Mayapur is mainly attractive for the Temple of The Rising Moon (Chandrodaya Mandir) of Sri Sri Radha Madhav, Sri Sri Pancatattva, Sri Sri Nrisimhadev with devotee Prahlada Maharaja, Srila Prabhupada, and Sri Garuda Dev.

There are two prasadam halls for the pilgrims to receive the mercy of the Lord through His prasadam (remnants of the Lord).The 24 hour kirtan in Srila Prabhupada’s bhajan kutir harmonizes everyone.

Right now the greatest attraction of Sri Mayapur is the temple being constructed ,The temple of the Vedic Planetarium; it can accommodate lakhs of devotees and help them receive the causeless mercy of Their Lordships and serve Sridham Mayapur in a better way.

And not to miss out on Sri Mayapur, there is the birth place of Sri Sri Gouranga Mahaprabhu, at Yogapitha.

Let’s use our precious time in taking darshan of the incredible abode of the Lord, Sri Mayapur. Let’s be the bhagyavans (fortunate ones).

HARE KRISHNA.

By  Palika Vraja Gopi Devi Dasi

It was the fateful night of a random date in the months of Feb-March that changed my life upside down. Though this may seem like a hyperbole for a normal sane person, for me, it enhanced my life to a substantial extent.

People in the path of Krsna consciousness generally encounter numerous obstacles in their pristine road to the radiance of Krishna consciousness. But above all, the mental disturbances a person goes through is painfully mind-wrecking, a good analogy would be a self-destructive soldier battling a war with his own senses. Our mind, as Krsna explains in the Bhagvad-Gita, is our biggest enemy- more restless than the wind!

I was the unfortunate victim of maya. My mind was persistently troubled by unpleasant thoughts that aren’t compatible with my character; thoughts that define many nauseating words in the dictionary… perverted, abominable and petrifying to the extent that falling down in spiritual life seemed so realistic and near.

I won’t get into the details, but when one doesn’t have peace of mind, then money, health, relationships and all other possible material acquisitions are worthless. It was as if I was some sort of amateur in Krishna consciousness, the principles suddenly seemed elusive and ambiguous, and working whimsically qualified as my rightful liberty without caring for any religious principles, without caring for the ominous reaction. The thoughts were both rampant and redundant and I began to introspect, after a lot of self-contemplation, I began to deliberately convey to my mind the hazardous outcome of turning my thoughts to action. My only retrospect that I leaned back on was the devotional service through the past years that might culminate to a protective shield that will keep the thoughts at bay; but unfortunately, the thoughts just went from bad to worse.

My only savior now was Nrsimhadev! I rushed to the temple with a renewed frenzy in me; I cried in front of the Lord and the solace I felt in crying was irrevocable. For the first time, I could feel the unconditional love that I share with the Lord!

After crying incessantly, I left the temple in a gloomy, desperate state, in want of a sign from the Lord. The next day, I had the ugliest fight with my class; they directly confronted me and falsely accused me of various crimes that I hadn’t even committed! I was speechless! There was a downpour of foul words from their side. And till today, I’m fascinated about how I controlled my anger– it was as if I was spellbound! In the process of this dramatic verbal war, they offended my spiritual side gravely, calling me a pretender and the philosophy I practice a myth. I left the college instantly; good riddance, I thought to myself. It takes guts to leave though…..

Soon I dreamt of my Gurudev. He looked awe-strikingly beautiful! Sitting distinguished on a tall Vyasasan, he was distributing flowers to the devotees. I ran and cupped my hands before him; he dropped a beautiful white flower into my hands and then removed an off-white or yellowish (I don’t remember that vividly) leaf or flower from himself. I assumed he was going to give that also to me. So I immediately put my hands out again but Gurudev retracted his hand and shook his head. I was baffled and inquired in innocence, “What do you want me to do?’’

Gurudev held the off-white leaf or flower in his hand and bent over his head touching his ear to it, as if implying to me that I should HEAR!

When I woke up, I felt a serenity that I had never felt in a long time… the world just went inactive, time instantly froze and the only inertia transpiring was the mental observance of the dream, reflecting on it again and again trying to infer the meaning behind it. The white flower definitely signified peace and the off white object was something I should be hearing… maybe his instructions?

I took a meaningful chance and began to clean my altar daily and started cooking that was one instruction of my Gurudev I can never fail to disregard and, GUESS WHAT?????

The negative thoughts completely vanished like winter flowers withering away at the arrival of spring; I was relieved! Nothing in the world seemed as painful to endure as the thoughts I was getting seasoned to, driving them away was like threading an elephant through the eye of a needle. But suddenly, simply by turning to the Lord and Guru’s instructions I could see green pastures all over again, mental turbulences beguiling me fell apart and Krsna’s sharp sword cut through the pain and vanquished the crux of my very problem, which was mental weakness and instability resulting from a lot of bad association.

It was a rare gift bestowed on me, rather than hankering for seemingly impossible dreams, I just desired getting rid of these unwarranted thoughts. I felt an escalating pleasure from within. Pathetic are people who turn to counselors and several other institutions that cater to solving such mental dilemma promising material comfort, a cause that’s a by-product of the senses which only the Lord can control or manipulate.

Krsna created both spiritual and illusory energy; if material thoughts themselves are tempting and bewildering, then we cannot even begin to estimate how attractive and enamoring the Lord himself is! He is the lord of all-devouring time! If he can create, then he can naturally annihilate. If he is the master behind destiny, than he can naturally eliminate and nullify the ghastly aspects too.

Turning to him is the wisest decision… a classic instruction in a world predominantly miserable.

I was happy and peaceful; my creator had swept the dirt off my mind, giving me a new lease of life.

Jai Nitai Gauranga!

By Divya Nitai lila Devi Dasi

O, Glorious Mayapur Chandra!
The Golden incarnation
Please accept my heartfelt prayers
Full of devotion.

The master of all transcendental opulence
The shower of splendid path of pure devotion
You have descended for the fallen souls
And You break the idea of impersonal liberation.

You left Your Eternal abode
To relish the love of Sri Radharani
I pay my obeisances unto her lotus feet
As you accepted her name and soul, Gourangi

Pranam to Sri Sitapati Advaita acharya
Himself being Vishnu tattva, prayed to You to appear
How does one start anything without the source?
HariNaam sankirtan, Hari Himself, has to pioneer

The figure of ultimate beauty
Incomparable to even thousands of cupids
Missing darshan of GouraChandra
Why are there blinking of the eyelids?

Your effulgent face with the shine of thousands of suns
Even once seeing can boot out sense gratification
Your blossomed lotus eyes filled with a great flood of tears
Maddens one with devotional love of newer and newer feelings.

Your long arms held high in full surrender extend to the knees
Soft as rose petals are your lotus feet
And the anklets making transcendental music
O humankind… this is the place for all of us to meet

O  son of Saci devi and Jagannath Misra!
You are superior to even Lord Bramha
Your consorts are Bhudevi as Vishupriya and Sridevi as LaxmiPriya.
I pay my obeisances unto this divya swarupa

Millions and millions of offerings of pranams unto Sri Nityananda
Without whose mercy it’s impossible to get Gouranga
He is Anantasesh, Sri Balaram, Sri Haladhar
He does fill our hearts with the compassion of Sri Chaitanya.

Ever blooming, ever ecstatic is Nitaichandra
Clad in blue and decked with a white feather on his crown
Causeless mercy is the prime virtue of this Avadhuta
He is the transcendental son of Padmavati and Hadai Pandita.

Obeisances to the eternal divine husband of Vasudha and Janhavi
The incarnations of Varuni and Revatiki Jaya
The eternal companion of Sri Chaitanya
To Godhurm dwip, where He started the sankirtan yagya, Jaya

All glories to Sri Gadadhar pandit
The incarnation of the internal potency
Offerings unto Your lotus feet
Jai Sri Vrindavneshwari

All glories to Srinivas prabhu
The incarnation of marginal Potency
Obeisances unto your lotus feet
Jaya Sri Vishnu-pada sevak Sri Narada Muni.

All glories to Mahaprabhu’s six goswami’s
who are always engaged in chanting the holy nama
Revealing the holy scripts
Describing the pastimes of Sri Radha and Krishna.

Offerings to Nabadwip, the most auspicious dham
For manifestation of Goura lila, created by Sri Radha
Non different from the golok vrindavan
The birthplace of Sri Chaitanya.

All glories to the associates of Nitai Gouranga
Allow us to serve Your servants’ servant within the fire of worldly existence
My soul is burning, Please keep me distant
Away from material existence.

O Mahaprabhu! You have descended for the fallen souls
You are the full moon, emerging into the dark night
Only You decide how everything must be and do all control
Shackles of maya holding me too tight

You are the king of Nectar and mellow of ecstatic love
I have been wandering in the scorching desert from birth to birth
Ultimately because of the causeless mercy of your devotees
Have got an oasis full of your nectar, got spiritual rebirth.

O Lord! I cannot withstand the separation from you
Please be transcendentally situated in my heart
You are my life and everything as I know
I don’t want to go back from where I did start.

I am surrendering myself unto Your lotus feet.
Praying to You to free me from the birth-and-death cycle
Jai Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu… please be merciful to me.
You, and only You can do this miracle!

By     Rasa Lila Priya Devi Dasi

Hare Krishna beloved devotees, friends and family. Please accept my humble obeisances. All Glories to Srila Prabhupada. All Glories to Sri Sri Radha Madhava. All Glories to Sri Sri Prahlada Narasimha. All Glories to Sri Sri Panca Tattva, and All glories to all of you. I have been requested to share my experience in Krishna Consciousness. Before I begin, I would like to thank His Divine Grace, Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada for giving all of us the opportunity to at least try to regain our natural position as eternal spirit souls and servants of the servants of the servants of the Lord, filled with eternal knowledge and bliss. I would also like to sincerely thank His Holiness Srila Bhakti Tirtha Swami Krishnapada Maharaja for coming to Ghana, West Africa, to give us Krishna—to remind us of Srila Prabhupada. Being born into a Vaisnava family of disciples of His Holiness Srila Bhakti Tirtha Swami Krishnapada Maharaja, I had, for most of my life, been surrounded by devotees; for which I am eternally grateful. I do not know much; but I will try to share the little that I know. In life, there are many challenges. They come in different shapes and forms and, to the degree we have assistance, we can move forward. Being surrounded by positive personalities is very important because, just as His Holiness Srila Radhanath Swami Maharaja said, “We are what we associate with.” Sometimes things tend to get difficult and it seems as though we have no other option but to give up trying altogether. However, would Srila Prabhupada be pleased with us? Would Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and all His Associates want us to do that? The challenges that we face are stepping stones to progress. Throughout the years that I have been in Krishna Consciousness, I have realized that Sadhu Sanga is very important because it is the fuel which fills those empty tanks within us. Of course we all have busy schedules; but if we somehow or the other devote just a few minutes to association with the devotees of the Lord or engage in any of the nine processes of Bhakti, we would be satisfied. I had a lot of studying to do when I was in High School and (I still do)  in College as well. However, I realized that losing the grand opportunity to temporary things will only create anxiety. Of course, it is different from everyone. However, Lord Sri Krishna asked Arjuna to perform his duty, but to perform it for Him (Krishna). We all have our respective duties and responsibilities. Being Krishna Conscious does not mean that we give them up, but rather we perform them for Krishna, as a service for Him. Srila Prabhupada said that we can show our love for Him by how well we cooperate. Therefore, despite all odds, if we try to cooperate, at least for Sri Sri Radha Madhava and our spiritual master(s), we will be content, as we would have been serving Them. I pray to strive to be a servant of the servants of the servants of Sri Sri Guru and Radha Madhava eternally, and for that, I need your blessings and mercy. Thank you all very much. Hare Krishna.

Your servant

Rasa Lila Priya Devi Dasi.

By Sridevi Sandhini Bandyopadhyay

By Lord Gauranga’s mercy, I was born into a devotee family. I’m extremely thankful for that because my parents acted as my first gurus; they taught me how to chant japa, offer bhoga, and of course provided me with what I loved the most: spiritual literature. Thus it was since childhood that I delved into reading with a passion. I started out with the Krishna book for children and the illustrated Bhagavatam. Krishna’s pastimes filled me with a lot of joy; yet, despite reading about the Supreme Personality of Godhead, there was a little part of me that was left unsatisfied.

When I was about 8 years old, my father used to read the first of volume of ChaitanyaBhagavat for hours on end. I could not fathom why; what was it that held his attention for so long? Wanting to taste the experience myself, I begged him to hurry up so I could start reading. However, due to the will of Mahaprabhu, he did not finish it in time. And my impatience only increased. So I picked up the second volume of ChaitanyaBhagavat, which is primarily dedicated to Lord Nityananda. Actually, all this happened for a reason. Vrindavan das Thakura, the last disciple of Lord Nityananda and the author of ChaitanyaBhagavat, knows precisely how to infuse his readers with appreciation for Lord Nityananda. I was introduced to Lord Nityananda’s beautiful qualities of compassion and mercy and so to this day, I am aspiring to be recipient of that.

When I came to Mayapur in 2005, I was struck by the atmosphere. The love and mercy I had been searching for seemed to be permeating the dhama. However, there was one instance in particular that I will never forget. I had gone to mangalaarati and throughout the Guruvastakam prayers I was praying to the personification of Guru Tattva, Lord Nityananda, to be merciful unto me. I recalled the words of Krishna das KavirajaGoswami: “jagai madhai haite muiseipapistha”. I am truly more sinful than Jagai and Madhai, and so I was praying to Lord Nityananda for His mercy, without which there is no question of progress in spiritual life. I also requested from Him the blessings needed to propagate His glories. After the arati was over, the pujari called me right up to the altar and gave me some flowers. He said, “These are from Nityanandaprabhu,” and those simple words melted my heart. I knew the Lord had heard my prayer. The Nitai I had read about as a child was very much real and was tangibly loving to fallen souls like myself.

Thus from my understanding, Mayapur is the place where spiritual dealings and reciprocation reach the pinnacle of perfection. By going to Mayapur, we can imbibe the mood of audarya, or mercy, which is so prevalent there. The best way for a devotee to show his/her appreciation for Mayapur is taking that mood of mercy, and utilizing it to enlighten the souls living in the darkness of ignorance. The sun and moon of Mayapur, Sri Chaitanya and Sri Nityananda, will radiate Their effulgence all over the world, and we can be the instruments to facilitate that. SrilaPrabhupada has shown this by practical example, and although we can’t imitate him, we should humbly follow in his footsteps.

All glories to Srila Prabhupad! All glories to Nityananda Rama! All glories to Gauranga Mahaprabhu! All glories to MayapurDhama! Thank you very much.