© 1999 VNN
|
EDITORIAL October 18, 1999 VNN4965 Related VNN Stories Satyaraj Das Glorifies Srila B.V. Narayan Maharaj BY GIRIDHARI DAS EDITORIAL, Oct 18 (VNN) — The following conversation between Satyaraj das (editor-in-chief of the Journal of Vaishnav Studies) and Ray Cappo (Raghunath das, leading member of the rock band Shelter) is taken from the book "In Defense of Reality" published by Equal Vision Records, 1993. Satyaraj das: When you were in Vrindavan, did you ever see Narayan Maharaj ? He's a very senior disciple of Prabhupada's God-brother, Kesava Maharaj. Ray Cappo: Who ? Satyaraj: Narayan Maharaj ! He's from the Gaudiya Math - an extremely advanced devotee, and a renowned scholar. Raghunath: Oh, you mean the Narayan Maharaj from the Mathura Gaudiya Math. Not only did I see him, but I got to meet him. It was great. My guru (Dhanurdhar Swami) has known him for over ten years. And he always glorifies Narayan Maharaj as being a great saint. Satyaraj: Well, it's easy with Narayan Maharaj - he's such a great soul, a genuine sadhu. Raghunath: You know, I sometimes think about Narayan Maharaja's past. I wonder about it. Where he came from, what were his inclinations before joining the Gaudiya Math. I mean, in the West, we join the movementfrom meat-eating families. We have no conception of advanced spirituality or what it means to be a Vaishnava. But his past must have been different. Satyaraj: Well, I know something about it. But I want to say, first of all, it is inappropriate to delve too deeply into a saintly person's former life. We should see them as they are, not as they once were... Narayan Maharaj is extraordinary. And some information about his life can be quite useful. Disciples and well-wishers may want specific details about him because they regard him so highly. When you love someone, you want to know as much as possible about them. It is only for this reason that a sadhu's former life may be explored. For example, Narayan Maharaj appeared in this world on the new moon day in the month of February... Raghunath: What year ? Satyaraj: 1920. This is significant because his appearance day can then be celebrated by disciples and well-wishers. Also, he was born in the village of Tewaripur, which is in the state of Bihar. So that becomes a tirtha, a holy place, where one can go on pilgrimage. Raghunath: Well, what about his youth ? I'm sure his youth wasn't spent like mine. Satyaraj: I should say not, Raghu. (laughter) He comes from a family of devotees. His father's name was Pandit Baleshwarnath Tewari and his mother was called Lakshnmi-devi. His birth name was Sriman Narayan, but his mother called him Bholanath, as a kind of nickname. He was a very religious boy, and was deeply attached to the name of Rama. He was quite athletic as well, winning various awards. This got him free admission into police academy; he eventually became a police officer, married, and had two daughters. So that was his householder life. The first devotee to really inspire him was Narottamananda Prabhu, a brahmacari disciple of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur. Narottamananda later became B.K. Madhusudana Maharaj, whom Narayan Maharaj sees as his initial siksa guru. Anyway, this was his first encounter with the Gaudiya Math, which at that time was a huge society of devotees set up by Srila Prabhupada's guru. This was an institution to which he would eventually devote his life... Raghunath: What do you know about his initial meeting with his guru, Keshava Maharaja ? Satyaraj: Well, he left hearth and home and began a journey to Navadvip, the place of Caitanya Mahaprabhu's pastimes. He sent no message to the math that he was coming; he just up and left. Anyway, when he arrived at Navadvip train station, in the dead of night, a brahmacari named Sajjan-sevak was waiting for him there. "How did you know that I would be arriving tonight ?". Maharaj asked the brahmacari. Sajjan-sevak replied that his guru, B.P. Keshava Maharaj, could understand through revelation that a person named Narayan would be arriving, and that he had sent him to pick him up. Raghunath: Wow. Did he get initiated soon after that ? Satyaraj: Yes. Narayan Maharaj accepted Keshava Maharaj as his guru and was given at that time the name Gaur-narayan das. Much later, on Gaur-purnima-sometime in March 1952 - Narayan Maharaj took sannyas, the renounced order of life, from Keshava Maharaj, his eternal guru. Since then he has established a famous math in Mathura, and also one in Vrindavan, and elsewhere as well. He has translated many important Vaishnava works into Hindi, and is now considered one of the leading Gaudiya Vaishnava devotees in all of India. So you are very fortunate to have met him. Related VNN Stories  Comment on this storyContact VNN about this storySend this story to a friend
NEWS DESK | EDITORIALS | TOP |
