oṁ ajñāna-timirāndhasya jñānāñjana-śalākayā
cakṣur unmīlitaṁ yena tasmai śrī-gurave namaḥ
nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate jayapatāka svāmin iti nāmine
nama ācaryapādāya nitāi-kṛpā-pradāyine
gaura-kathā-dhāma-dāya nagara-grāma-tāriṇe
Hare Kṛṣṇa dear Guru Mahārāja,
Kindly accept our respectful obeisance.
All glories to your Vyāsa-pūjā day! All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda! All glories to You!
We have no qualifications to say words for your glorification, but for our own purification we will try to recollect some of your inspirational pastimes that we have heard from Your great servants, well-wishers, and śikṣā disciples.
Delivering Souls:
One devotee was telling that once You were in a hospital, and a person next to your bed was about to leave his body. Upon seeing his situation, the devotee was telling that, you immediately told the nurse “Give him neck beads, give him Tulasī, I will initiate him right now and free him from repeated birth and death”, no fire yajña, no information of him, but You, being infinitely merciful, were ready to initiate him then and there. Just like Nityānanda Prabhu, he without giving it a second thought, was at-once ready to deliver Jagāi and Mādhāi, likewise we can see you Guru Mahārāja, always going around to give away the causeless mercy of Śrīla Prabhupāda to all the fallen souls.
Inspiration for Chanting:
We have always seen Guru Mahārāja, and heard from your dear servants, of yourself always being engaged in chanting. One time we had heard that, “Guru Mahārāja at least chants 20 rounds of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra every day.”
We can recall an exchange you had one time with Śrīla Nava Yogendra Mahārāja. It was Navadvīpa-maṇḍala Parikramā, or some parikramā that had been going on in Māyāpur dhāma, and due to some ill health Śrīla Nava Yogendra Mahārāja had planned on not going out on that day. However, you came to see Mahārāja, and you asked him, “I see Mahārāja, you are not coming today?” To which Mahārāja had replied, “Oh Mahārāja, my health is not good today, I don’t think I will be able to come.” To which you replied, “Are you in a worse condition than that of mine?” Hearing such a bold statement from a personality like yourself, Śrīla Nava Yogendra Mahārāja was taken aback, and immediately he became ready to head out to the parikramā.
Prioritizing service to Śrīla Prabhupāda:
Regardless of the doctors telling you numerous times, to minimize travelling as much as possible, especially air travel. To which your response was, “Oh, I feel sick when I am not travelling to preach and distribute Gaurāṅga’s mercy, and for Serving the orders of my Spiritual Master.”
With this short exchange, Guru Mahārāja, we can see in action, your spirit to always serve, and to think of nothing but of always serving Śrīla Prabhupāda.
Humility:
Once Guru Mahārāja, we had heard from a devotee, a pastime of you, back in the days in Hyderabad, when the land acquisition for our temple was under process. There were some difficulties with the local police authorities, regarding the transfer of possession of the land in our favor. However, yourself, like always, being the Victory Flag of Śrī Nityānanda Prabhu, being as much merciful, and being as much humble, you immediately offered prostrate obeisance to the police man. Doing so, you immediately started to speak as such, “We are here to do people no harm, instead we want to serve them. We want to serve the Lord, following the orders of our Spiritual Master. We just want to serve, so kindly let us serve. I request you. Let us serve.” Seeing your humility, the policeman was immediately inspired from within through Kṛṣṇa, being seated in his heart, and being moved with your ultimate humility, and the spirit to carry out your Spiritual Master’s instruction. He sanctioned our land possession. And, yet again, yourself, being the Victory Flag of Śrī Nityānanda Prabhu, proved yourself to be a victorious soldier of Śrīla Prabhupāda, and Śrī Gaurāṅga’s transcendental army.
As in a Vyāsa-pūjā offering, His Grace Jananivāsa Prabhujī was saying, “Every time I see Jayapatākā Mahārāja, I say to myself, ‘take a good look, this person, he does not live for himself, he simply lives for others... take a good look, it is very rare to find such a Person’.”
Knowing perfectly, the mood of Your Spiritual Master: ‘Preaching is the essence, Purity is the force’, as a Perfect Disciple, you have led all of us, all the way to this point. Please Guru Mahārāja we beg at your Lotus Feet, please kindly continue to lead us, and inspire us so that we may also, try to follow in your footsteps.
Guru Mahārāja, we are completely fallen, but out of your own sweet will, you have causelessly saved fallen souls like us from a Spiritual Death. Guru Mahārāja, please keep us under the shelter of your lotus feet, if it pleases you. We are filled with vāsanas and anarthas, Guru Mahārāja, please accept this offering unto your lotus feet and please Guru Mahārāja, kindly forgive us for our mistakes.
śrī-guru karuṇā-sindhu, adhama janāra bandhu,
lokanāth lokera jīvana
hā hā prabhu koro doyā, deho more pada-chāyā,
ebe jaśa ghuṣuk tribhuvana
O Guru Mahārāja, please give us your mercy, and strength, so that we may endeavor to carry out your instructions.
All glories to your Vyāsa-pūjā day,
All glories to You,
All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda.
Your aspiring servants,
Anmol Khushi, and Priyanshu Dwivedi
Allahabad (Prayāgarāj), Uttar Pradesh, India