08/15/98 - 2020

Srila Maharaja Visits Gita Nagari

USA (VNN) - On Wednesday 20th May we drove up to Gita Nagari, our next stop on the tour. Four of the local devotees, Agrahya, Mukunda, Madhava and Sanatan prabhus had hired a huge RV as transport for Srila Maharaja and the brahmacaris. When we arrived at our destination, the brahmacaris continued to use it to sleep in at night, while Srila Maharaja and most of the other devotees stayed in the house. Our hosts were Madhava prabhu and Yasoda mayi didi.

The next day, Thursday 21st May, Srila Narayan Maharaja visited the ISKCON Gita Nagari temple, in Pennsylvania. We all arrived a little before 7:00 am, just in time for the greeting of the Deities, Sri Sri Radha-Damodara. As Agrahya prabhu pointed out to Srila Maharaja, it was these same Deities after whom the Radha Damodara travelling sankirtana party had been named. After the arati had finished, Srila Maharaja garlanded Srila Prabhupada, while the guru vandana prayers were sung by a local devotee. Srila Maharaja then offered flowers and dandavat pranams to Srila Prabhupada after which we all followed suit. Shortly after, everyone from our party left the temple room, and Ekavira prabhu, the temple president, very courteously began to escort Srila Maharaja and the rest of us all around the property. There was one particular devotee called Baladeva vidyabhusana prabhu who was also accompanying the guided tour. Upon seeing the numerous peacocks and hens strutting around, Srila Maharaja asked him whether they were naturally occuring there, or if they had been introduced. Baladeva vidyabhusana then explained that the present peacock population numbering sixty or more were all descendants of one original pair which had been brought to Gita Nagari in about 1976. Srila Maharaja then instructed the devotees with mrdangas to begin beating them to produce the sound of thunder. At this all the peacocks began to cry out even more, as if on cue. Nabin Krsna prabhu, Srila Maharaja's personal servant, was struck by how tame they all were, and the way that they were so readily and frequently displaying their splendid tail feathers. The peacocks in Vraja, he said, were not nearly so bold.

Srila Maharaja then explained the rasik significance of the peacock's and peahen's strident calls, "Ke!" and "kah!". The peahen's call "Ke!" means "Who can break the patience (dhairya), sulky mood (mana) shyness (lajja) and chastity of Srimati Radharani?" Only Krsna. And then, in answer, the peacock replies "kah!" "Who can control the mad elephant Krsna?" "Can Visaka or Lalita?" Srila Maharaja asked. No. Only Srimati Radharani has this potency. She does so by Her sidelong glances, which are just like the the expert strikes of the goad, by which the elephant driver brings the mighty elephant under his domination.

The peacocks had fallen silent while Srila Maharaja spoke. However, no sooner had he finished, their cries broke out again with renewed strength.

We continued to walk along a small road through a dense wood, until we finally came to an old wood cabin with a masonry fireplace. This, Ekavira prabhu explained, was the original building on the property when the devotees had first acquired it. Srila Prabhupada had stayed in there when visiting the farm, and, later, H.H. Satsvarupa Maharaja had used it to write his Prabhupada Lilamrta, over a five month period. Hearing the name of H.H. Satsvarupa Maharaja mentioned, Srila Maharaja reminisced about his previous relationships with ISKCON devotees. "Tamal Krsna Maharaja, Bhurijana prabhu, Giriraja Maharaja, Gopal Krsna Maharaja, so many would come to see me that now I cannot even remember all their names. Now they have gone very far away from me, but I still have all respect for them".