Gour Govinda Maharaja's Tirobhav

Opening prayers and introductory remarks

0:00Namaḥ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāmin iti nāmine Namaste sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe nirviśeṣa- śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu nityānanda śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda, Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare, Yad-akh-praviśo mama vācam imāṁ prasuptāṁ saṁjīvayaty akhila-śakti-dharaḥ svadhāmna Anyāṁś ca hasta-caraṇa-śravaṇa-tvag-ādīn prāṇān namagate bhagavate puruṣāya

0:39tubhyam So today is disappearance day of his divine grace, Gour Govinda Swami Maharaj, and I'm greatly honored to say a few words

0:58in glorification of his contribution to Gaudiya Vaishnava Sampradaya and to the movement which Srila Prabhupada started in the West. I was fortunate enough to be present in Mayapur on the day of his departure.

1:23And I still remember the atmosphere of awe and reverence which overwhelmed all devotees at this moment.

1:36They all felt that there is something very important happened, as if some intervention of the higher forces is taking place and we are witnesses of this.

Restoring faith during difficult times

1:55It was really a glorious departure which actually crowned the glorious life.

2:08In my humble opinion, the main contribution of Srila Gour Govinda Swami Maharaj is that he appeared on the horizon of Krishna consciousness movement as a brightest star in the most difficult period in the history of ISKCON.

2:40When there were so many problems, when there were so many doubts in the minds of devotees, when there was a total crisis in the hearts of devotees, crisis of faith, faith not only in ISKCON and Prabhupada, but even in Krishna and in the validity of this path which Srila Prabhupada established.

3:06And for this to take care of this in the most difficult period when the time was uh the most uh dark.

Preserving the dignity of spiritual practice

3:20Śrīla Prabhupāda sent uh his dear representative uh Śrīla Gour Govinda Swami Maharaj. What he did, he actually restoredemat the dignity of Hare Krishna movement.

3:40Sometimes we being neophyte devotees take Krishna consciousness for granted and take it easy and actually we make the whole Krishna consciousness as some mundane enterprise. We try to turn it due to our conditioning into mundane sort of religion.

4:13And to remind all of us that Krishna consciousness is not a mundane religion.

4:20It's the highest yoga, the highest process of connecting the soul with God, the highest mystical process, Raja Vidya, Raja Gukya, the highest secret Rahasya.

4:40Krishna sends the representative, his representatives who remind us about this mystical side of Krishna consciousness, about the profoundness, the depths of the philosophy

4:56and practice of Krishna consciousness and results which we are to expect by practicing this apparently very simple process of chanting Hare Krishna mantra.

5:10So this is exactly what Srila Gorgovinda Swami Maharaj did in his quite short but amazingly fruitful and productive or whatever uh period of preaching in this con.

5:33He restored the dignity of Hare Krishna movement, he restored the dignity of Krishna consciousness as the yoga, as the highest form of yoga.

Proving spiritual science through departure

5:45And he showed, he demonstrated himself how this highest form of yoga can help in any situation. And by his departure, by his glorious departure in the midst of Krishna Katha, he actually proved that it works.

6:05Because when there is a crisis of phase, the audience naturally start doubting whether the whole methodology, the whole technique, spiritual technique of Krishna consciousness works, whether it does change the heart to such an extent that one can be united with Krishna during his lifetime at the uh especially at the moment of death.

6:38So Srila Gorga Vindamaraj by his glorious life and glorious preaching and moreover by his glorious departure, amazing departure in the midst of the crowds of devotees and Mayapur during the celebration, he proved that Krishna consciousness is real science and it works provided you follow all the particularities of the science.

7:12So I'm very happy that many years after his departure, almost 30 years, 28 years this year,

7:24we're still celebrating his departure and I'm sure that this tradition will continue because his life and his departure from this world is a very vivid and very beautiful

7:41example how Krishna consciousness is a uh living force and how uh and at the same time it's a warning, warning for all of us uh mundane people of this world uh that that we should not take Krishna consciousness process lightly, that we should take it with full seriousness and apply invest our heart into this practice of Krishna consciousness.

8:15So at this day I'm paying my prostrated obeisances at the lotus feet of Srila Govinda Swami Maharaj, all his followers, all the devotees who are inspired by him and who want to continue doing his mission,

8:43continue proving to the whole world how Krishna consciousness is the most uh glorious uh process of yoga, how it is the highest secret and highest king of all knowledge. Thank you very much, Hare Kṛṣṇa.