Srila Sridhar Maharaj Vyasapuja
BY: MURALIDHAR DAS
Oct 24, 2011 — JUHU, BOMBAY, INDIA (SUN) — October 20, 2011
"Yesterday, we have all come to Navadvipa-dhama. This place is an establishment of one of my godbrothers. It is a very nice and extensive place, and my godbrother B. R. Sridhara Maharaja has spared one entire house for our stay. He has also agreed to cooperate with our society. We shall observe his birthday celebration, and the brahmacaris shall learn how to celebrate the spiritual master's birthday." (SP Ltr. Satsvarupa, Oct. 26, 1967)
Today is the Vyasa Puja day of Srila Sridhar Dev Goswami Maharaj. On this day in 1967 Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada attended Srila Sridhar Maharaj's birthday celebration and the brahmacari disciples with Srila Prabhupada that day were able to learn how to worship the spiritual master, the Guru.
Was that Vyasa Puja celebration of Srila Sridhar Maharaj's birthday in 1967 which Srila Prabhupada attended merely a sham? Was it an imitation of the proper ceremony "Vyasa Puja"? Some people believe Srila Prabhupada was the only disciple of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur who was a real Guru, a real Acharya, and if that were true then the celebration of Srila Sridhar Maharaj's birthday would not be an actual "Vyasa Puja" at all. But if Srila Sridhar Maharaj is not a real Guru then what was Srila Prabhupada doing there in Nabadwip that day with his disciples? Prabhupada's disciples were watching the event and in Prabhupada's words the brahamcaris were going to "learn how to celebrate the spiritual master's birthday."
It is certainly true that Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada recognized Srila Sridhar Maharaj as a real Guru.
A real Guru is someone who can deliver a soul from the world of material existence and take the soul to God.
"You have the complete mercy of your Divine master and you can depend on his blessings for your future improvement." This is the advice Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada gave to Srila Govinda Maharaj. (Letter dated 16 September 1955 that Srila Prabhupada wrote to Srila Sridhar Maharaj's disciple and later successor-Acharya, Srila Govinda Maharaj)
Note the words: Divine Master. Someone you can depend on for your future improvement. Someone who can take you to the Divine realm, in other words.
And as well as this, it comes to my mind that at the opening of the Iskcon Chandrodaya Mandir in Mayapura in 1973, Srila Prabhupada said "We are very fortunate to hear His Divine Grace Om Visnupada Paramahamsa Parivrajakacarya Bhakti Raksaka Sridhara Maharaja. By age and by experience, in both ways, he is senior to me."
Are these merely words? Or did Srila Prabhupada mean what he was saying when he said Srila Sridhar Maharaj is "Om Visnupada Paramahamsa" - a "Divine Master? Was this phrase Prabhupada said merely etiquette or flattery? Was Srila Prabhupada someone who did things like that? Some people have told me "Yes". Then they tell me Srila Prabhupada criticized Srila Sridhar Maharaj in private though he did say nice things to him in public. But when I hear people saying this I feel a terrible pain in my chest and a sense of despair. What is this? Is this Vaishnavism that these followers of Srila Prabhupada are promoting when they promote their thoughts?
In a Vyasa Puja homage in 1936 to his own Guru, Sri Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakura that he wrote, Srila Prabhupada wrote this:
"Gentlemen, the offering of such an homage as has been arranged this evening to the acaryadeva is not a sectarian concern, for when we speak of the fundamental principle of gurudeva or acaryadeva, we speak of something that is of universal application. There does not arise any question of discriminating my guru from yours or anyone else's. There is only one guru, who appears in an infinity of forrns to teach you, me and all others."
The words of Srila Prabhupada are illuminating. There does not arise any question of discriminating my guru from yours or anyone else's. There is only one guru, who appears in an infinity of forms to teach you, me and all others.
But of course Srila Prabhupada did criticize Srila Sridhar Maharaj and say to his disciple Rupanuga:
"Actually amongst my Godbrothers no one is qualified to become acarya. So it is better not to mix with my Godbrothers very intimately because instead of inspiring our students and disciples they may sometimes pollute them... We shall be very careful about them and not mix with them. This is my instruction to you all."
Consequently disciples and followers of Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada may feel it is prudent to stay away from Srila Sridhar Maharaj and ignore his teachings in his books. But it is a known fact that just before he passed away from this life Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada said this Narayan Maharaj "I wish that my god-brothers forgive my offences... While preaching, many times we do say things contrary to each other, or we cut each other's philosophical arguments. That happens. Please ask my god-brothers to forgive my offences." This statement of Srila Prabhupada also needs to be considered. Thinking that one's own Guru is always right is certainly a simple and sensible way of thinking for any disciple, but sometimes a disciple may encounter problems that aren't easily resolved with simple solutions and answers. Indeed a madhyam adhikari disciple may sometimes find that even the uttama adhikari devotees will quarrel and say very harsh things about someone.
But in this regard there is something more that we can say about Srila Sridhar Maharaj. Srila Sridhar Maharaj never criticized Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada. Never. That is the nature of Srila Sridhar Maharaj. He didn't like to criticize anyone. Most specially someone like Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada who was preaching the glories of Guru-Gauranga and the Hare Krishna Mahamantra all over the world. Srila Sridhar Maharaj communicated this vision he had of Srila Prabhupada to his disciples, and the foremost disciple of Srila Sridhar Maharaj, his successor Srila Govinda Maharaj, even wrote this pranam mantra to Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada:
namah om visnupadaya krsna-presthaya bhutale
swami sri bhaktivedanta prabupadaya te namah
gurvajnam sirasi-dhrtva saktyavesa sva-rupine
hare-krsneti mantrena pascatya-pracya-tarine
visvacarya prabaryaya divya karunya murtaye
sri bhagavata-madhurya-gita-jnana pradayine
gaura-sri-rupa-siddhanta-saraswati nisevine
radha-krsna-padambhoja-bhrngaya gurave namah
"I offer my humble obeisances unto His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupad, who is Krishna's beloved associate and who came down to this plane from Goloka. Taking the order of his guru on his head, he is the saktyavesa [empowered] avatar of Nityananda Prabhu personified. He distributed the Hare Krishna mantra all over the Eastern and Western world, delivering and uplifting all fallen souls. He is the best of millions of jagat-gurus, because he is the personification of divine mercy. He has distributed the sweet nectar of Srimad-Bhagavatam and the transcendental knowledge of Bhagavad Gita all over the world. He is constantly engaged in exclusive devotional service to Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Prabhupad, Srila Rupa Goswami, and Sri Gauranga Mahaprabhu. I offer my humble obeisances unto Srila Prabhupad, who is like a bumble-bee always tasting the nectar of the lotus feet of Sri Sri Radha and Govinda."
This is the way that Srila Sridhar Maharaj and Srila Govinda Maharaj told us to see Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj. But what do the followers of Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj have to say about Srila Sridhar Maharaj? It pains my heart to remember some of the things I have read about Srila Sridhar Maharaj written by initiated disciples of Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaj. I wish they would stop doing that but the ebola type virus these people have got is spreading to new people, it is not decreasing as far as I can see, and the plague looks like it will just keep on spreading.
Today is the Vyasa Puja celebration of my beloved Guru Maharaj, Om Vishnupada Paramahamsa Parivrajackacharya Varya Astottara Sata Sri Srimad Bhakti Rakhsak Sridhar Dev Goswami Maharaj.
And like on other days in the past when I have remembered Guru Maharaj, I feel really sad when I think that many people are using the internet to write abusive and untrue things about Guru Maharaj.
dasanudasa, Muralidhar das
