He mentions an especially touching conversation Shri Gaurasundara had with Vishnupriya Devi the night before He took sannyasa. Being a talented musician, Lochana Dasa told Mahaprabhu's pastimes in beautiful poetry filled with fire and rhythm. Common people could easily understand the divine character of Shri Chaitanya and awaken their religious feelings. As Devotees regularly chant the Vedic epics Ramayana and Mahabharata, Gaudiya Vaishnava's still wander through Bengal reciting the Chaitanya Mangala. (In the image: Shri Gaurachandra, ISKCON Chowpatty, Mumbai).

   Shri Lochana Dasa Thakura was a disciple of Shri Narahari Sarakara Thakura, a dearest associate of Lord Gaura Raya.
 
   "My hope of hopes is to be near the lotus feet of Shri Narottama Dasa Thakura and serve him with my very life. The cherished desire of the fallen Lochana Dasa is to be allowed, by Narahari's grace, to sing the glories of Lord Gauranga. My Lord is Shri Narahari Thakura, I am His servant. Bowing before him I beg

Three hundred years before the appearance of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Shri Jayadeva Goswami served as the court pandita of Shri Lakshmana Sena, King of Bengal. Jayadeva and Padmavati (his wife and an expert dancer) used to worship Lord Shri Krishna with single-minded devotion. (In the image: Jayadeva Goswami and his wife Padmavati).

   Three hundred years before the appearance of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Shri Jayadeva Goswami served as the court pandita of Shri Lakshmana Sena, King of Bengal. Jayadeva and Padmavati (his wife and an expert dancer) used to worship Lord Shri Krishna with single-minded devotion. After some time, he left the opulent royal life to live peacefully in a grass hut in Champahatti, Navadwipa. Here Jayadeva wrote Gita Govinda.

   One day while working on Gita Govinda Jayadeva felt inspired to write, "Krishna bows down to touch the lotus feet of Shrimati Radharani." Jayadeva was hesitant to say something which might diminish Lord Krishna's position as the Supreme

Shri Gopala Bhatta Goswami.

   Shri Gopala Bhatta Goswami (the son of a Vyenkata Bhatta, a Shri Vaishnava brahmana) appeared in Shri Rangam, South India. Lord Chaitanya once stayed four months in his home, and converted the family to Gaudiya Vaishnavism. A mere boy at this time, Gopala personally served the Lord. Shri Chaitanya treated him affectionately giving His remnants and blessings to' become an acharya.

   During His four month stay, Lord Chaitanya developed a close friendship with Vyenkata Bhatta, which Krishna Dasa Kaviraja describes as "sakhya rasa." Freely conversing with each other, they would often laugh and joke together. One day in a humorous mood Lord Chaitanya asked Vyenkata:

   "Why does your worshipable goddess of fortune, Shri Lakshmidevi, abandon the happiness of Vaikuntha and her service to Her Lord Narayana? Why does she go to Vrindavana and perform severe austerities to attain the association of My Lord Gopala, the cowherd boy of Vraja?"

   "I can't understand these

Srila Gour Govinda Swami Maharajah said; circa 2008;

One should understand the real potency of Sri-guru-carana-padma. ‘Sri Guru’ - these words are very significant. Sri means what? Srimeans, sobha, sampada, srestha. Sri means beauty. Sri means transcendental wealth or asset and Sri means the topmost. These are some of the meanings of this word Sri.

Sri Guru means what? Guru who is endowed with Sri. Understand? That means endowed with prema-bhakti.That is Sri Guru. Understand me? And this word Sri can only be used with a Guru who is present, understand? Present! Who is always manifest! Not unmanifested. That is Sri Guru. Sri Guru is always manifest! It is not that Guru is unmanifest, he is eternally manifest. Understand me? Therefore, we say Sri Guru. There is no question of un-manifesting or disappearing. He is eternally manifested, therefore we say, ‘Sri Guru,’ this word Sri is used; otherwise we cannot use this word Sri.

Eternally Manifest

In this world, Sri Guru is the only beauty; h

One of the offenses in Deity worship; ".. to offer worship to the Deity without worshiping Vaikuṇṭha deities like Gaṇeśa"

Srimad Bhagavatam Shloka(11.2.36) in Ganesha Arti.

"If you catch up Krishna's lotus feet very tightly then you will not fall down."

Bhaktivedanta Book Trust

Jan 06, 2015 — SRIDHAM MAYAPUR (SUN) —

Room Conversation with Malcolm — July 18, 1973, London

Srila Prabhupada: ... Sādhu means he must be a devotee. Sādhu does not mean having saffron color and long beard and doing all nonsense. No. Sādhu means... First test is that he is unflinching, without any deviation. Api cet sudurā..., bhajate māmananya-bhāk. Ananya-bhāk means he does not know anything except the service of the Lord. That is the qualification of sādhu. So similarly, in other places also, the definition of sādhu is there.

Sādhu means titikṣavaḥ: he's very tolerant because a sādhu has to face so many opposing elements and sometimes very offensive, but he has to tolerate. Titikṣavaḥ. At the same time, kāruṇikāḥ, very merciful. The same man who is torturing him, torturing him, he is trying to convince him about Kṛṣṇa. That means very merciful. He's not rejecting. Although he's torturing him, but he's trying to convince him, Kṛṣṇa.

Therefore kāruṇikāḥ.

“GBC does not mean to control a center. GBC means to see that the activities of a center go on nicely. I do not know why Tamala is exercising his absolute authority That is not the business of GBC. The president, treasurer and secretary are responsible for managing the center. GBC is to see that things are going nicely but not to exert absolute authority. That is not in the power of GBC. Tamala should not do like that....it is a fact that the local president is not under the control of the GBC.”                                (Srila Prabhupada letter to Giriraj, August, 1971)

Excerpt of a lecture by Sri Srimad Gour Govinda Swami Maharaja given in Amherst, USA, 2 June 1995:

“There should be complete surrender. Not conditional, not artificial, not partial. That is gurupadasraya. To accept guru means unconditional surrender.

In Bhagavad-gita (2.7), Arjuna says, sisyas te ’ham sadhi mam tvam prapannam. “I become your sisya, disciple.” One who is under strict, discipline, he is a disciple. And karna-dhara guru is the steering holder.
[Referring to Bhag. 1.1.22]

The great sages of Naimisaranya speaking to Srila Suta Gosvami:

tvam nah sandarsito dhatra
dustaram nistitirsatam
kalim sattva-haram pumsam
karna-dhara ivarnavam

“We think that we have met Your Goodness by the will of providence, just so that we may accept you as captain of the ship for those who desire to cross the difficult ocean of Kali , which deteriorates all the good qualities of a human being.”

You cannot go hither and thither. Karna also means “ear.” Guru can catch hold of your ear and slap you

Srila Prabhupada once explained the festival this way: "Krishna was just a toy in the hands of the Gopis, so one day the Gopis decided that we shall decorate Him. Pusya abhisheka means a ceremony to decorate the deity profusely with flowers, ornaments, cloths.

After there should be lavish feasting and a procession through the streets, so that all the citizens should see how beautiful Krishna appears."

- See more at: http://harekrishnacalendar.com/vaishnava-calendar/sri-krishna-pushya-abhishek-2015/#.dpuf

 "Shri Jagadisha Pandita is the saviour of the world. He distributes the nectar of love of Krishna just like a dense mass of dark clouds in the sky distributes rainfall." [C.C. Adi 11.30]

   Shri Jagadisha Bhatta took his birth in the region of Gaihati. His father's name was Shri Kamalaksha Bhatta, who was the son of Bhatta Narayana, who hailed from Goyghar Bandyaghata. Both the mother and father of Jagadisha were very devoted Vishnu-bhaktas. After his parents passed away he came with his wife to live on the banks of the Ganges. His wife's name was Dukhini devi. (His younger brother Mahesha also came with him to reside on the banks of the Ganga.)They built their house near the home of Jagannatha Mishra.

   Shri Gaurasundara instructed Jagadisha to preach Hari Naam at Nilachala. Thus he took shelter of the lotus feet of Lord Jagannatha. At that time he prayed at the feet of Lord Jagannatha and was rewarded by obtaining a Deity of the lotus-eyed Lord. This he brought to Yasora, on the bank

Who was Jesus ?

Sri Krishna explains in the Bhagavad-gita (4.7):

yada yada hi dharmasya
glanir bhavati bharata
abhyutthanam adharmasya
tadatmanam srjamy aham

"O descendant of Bharata, whenever and wherever there is a decline in religious practice and a predominant rise of irreligion--at that time I descend Myself" (Bhagavad-gita 4.7).

Either Krishna comes Himself or He sends His empowered representative: a shaktyavesa avatara, a perfect being, empowered to preach sanatana dharma: eternal religion, the universal religion of the soul. Krsna-sakti vina nahe tara pravartana: Unless one is empowered by Krishna, one cannot preach effectively.(Caitanya Caritamrita Antya Lila 7.11).

We can understand Jesus to be such a shaktyavesa avatara, a perfect soul, a messenger of the Supreme Being.

Such great souls have no business decending to lower planets such as ours, save and except in complete selflessness, to save the conditioned souls - kara para-upakara.

They descend to this level of consciousness as tik

Appearing as the nephew of Shri Rupa and Sanatana Goswamis, Shri Jiva Goswami displayed all the charming features of a mahapurusa (divine person). He had lotus eyes, a high nose and forehead, broad chest, long arms, and a radiant golden body. (In the image: Shrila Jiva Goswami).

   Appearing as the nephew of Shri Rupa and Sanatana Goswamis, Shri Jiva Goswami displayed all the charming features of a mahapurusa (divine person). He had lotus eyes, a high nose and forehead, broad chest, long arms, and a radiant golden body. 

   In his boyhood he made a Deity of Krishna-Balarama. Expressing his pure devotion, he would often cry while worshiping Them. After offering clothes, chandana, flowers, ornaments, and tasty sweets to Krishna-Balarama he would take some and give Maha-Prasadam to his playmates. From the beginning Jiva showed his kindness to other jivas (living entities). Jiva was so much attached to Krishna-Balarama that at bed time he would embrace his Deities and fall asleep. His parent