the Art of Mridanga and Kirtan

The audio files of Srila Goswami Maharaj’s latest lectures are now available to download. More are coming…
120102_GoswamiMj_Thailand — Living an active spiritual life
120104_GoswamiMj_Thailand — Transcendental Relationship with Guru
120112_GoswamiMj_Thailand — About Gopal Bhatta Goswami
120114_GoswamiMj_Thailand — Mahaprabhu’s last day in Nabadwip
120120_GoswamiMj_Thailand — How to be free of prejudice?

Today is the remembrance day of the passing of Sripad Bhakti Sharan Baishnob Maharaj. Below is a new video posted yesterday on Vimeo by the studio here. You can see all their posts so far at http://vimeo.com/audioveda

uddaṇḍa nṛtya prabhu koriyā huṅkara
chakra-brami bhrame yaiche alāta-ākāra
Śrī Chaitanya Bhāgavat, Madhya-khaṇḍa 13.82

WORD-FOR-WORD MEANINGS
uddaṇḍa—jumping; nṛtya—dancing; prabhu—Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu; kariyā—making; huṅkāra—loud vibration; cakra-bhrami—making a circular movement like a wheel; bhrame—moves; yaiche—as if; alāta-ākāra—circle of fire.

TRANSLATION
When Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu danced and jumped high, roaring like thunder and moving in a circle like a wheel, He appeared like a circling firebrand.

I recently saw a photo posted online by Satya Sundar Prabhu of the fireshow of our resident chef Vishakha devi dasi. A few days later while reading the Sri Chaitanya Bhagavat this section came up and it was interesting to discover this reference with regard to Mahaprabhu’s dancing. I’ve posted the photo below.

Well here we are in 2012, and the questions have begun about the end of the world. I thought this cartoon was a nice comment.

Śrī Nimāi Sannyās

Composed by
Oṁ Viṣṇupād Śrīla Bhakti Rakṣak Śrīdhar Dev-Goswāmī Mahārāj

miśra-suta viśvambhara nabadwīpa vāsa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [1]

Śrī Viśvambhar, the son of Jagannāth Miśra, resides in Nabadwīp. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

nyāya-dakṣa lakṣa lakṣa adhyāka trāsa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [2]

As a preeminent prodigy in logic, He is feared by hundreds of thousands of scholars. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

kandarpa jiniyā rūpa-yauvana-prakāśa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [3]

The youthful beauty of His divine form surpasses that of Cupid. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

sārā nabadwīpa kare andhakāra grāsa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [4]

The whole of Nabadwīp has become engulfed by darkness. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

kaṇṭaka nagare keśava bhāratī sakāśa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [5]

(Śrī Viśvambhar) approached Keśava Bhāratī in Kāṭoyā (Katwa). Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

kṣubdha jana-sindhu tuṅga taraṅga prakāśa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [6]

An ocean of deeply aggrieved persons followed in great waves (behind Śrī Viśvambhar). Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

uddhata janatā dekhāya bhāratīke trāsa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [7]

Seeing this agitated mass coming towards him, Keśava Bhāratī became fearful. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

krandanera uchcharola bharila ākāśa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [8]

The tumultuous crying (of the people) filled the sky. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

śire karāghāta kare antaraṅga dāsa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [9]

Śrī Viśvambhar’s intimate servitors slapped their heads in dismay. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

tāpa dagdha jīva-duḥkha-duḥkhī janollāsa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [10]

The devotees who were absorbed in the mood of feeling sorrowful to see the sorrow of the conditioned souls burning in the fire of the threefold misery of material existence rejoiced. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

uttarāyaṇa saṁkramaṇe sannyāsa prakāśa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [11]

Śrī Viśvambhar revealed His Pastimes of accepting sannyās as the Sun completed its northern course (at the time of makara-saṅkrānti). Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

sundara chā̐chara keśa chā̐da mukhe hāsa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [12]

The smile on Śrī Viśvambhar’s moon-like face was decorated by His beautiful curling locks (for the last time). Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

keśera karttane kibā premera ullāsa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [13]

What sort of ecstatic joy born of divine love Śrī Viśvambhar exhibited as His beautiful hair was cut away! Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

krandane ākula loka keha vā udāsa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [14]

(As Śrī Viśvambhar’s hair was cut) some people cried in great distress while others stood lifeless in shock. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

keha kruddha keha mugdha kāra matta hāsa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [15]

Some people became angry while some became astonished and laughed madly. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

auddhatya karite dhāya bhāratīra pāśa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [16]

Some scornfully ran after Keśava Bhāratī (once the ceremony was completed). Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

nadīyā paṇḍita dalera svastira niḥśvāsa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [17]

All of the paṇḍits of Nadīyā breathed a sigh of relief. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

nārī-gaṇa ninde vidhi sṛjila sannyāsa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [18]

The women blasphemed Providence (the Creator, the Scriptures) for creating the renounced order of sannyās. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

śrī-kṛṣṇa-chaitanya nāma haila prakāśa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [19]

Śrī Viśvambhar’s Name ‘Śrī Kṛṣṇa Chaitanya’ was revealed. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

muṇḍita hemāṅge śobhe aruṇa suvāsa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [20]

Viśvambhar’s freshly-shaven golden form thus became beautifully adorned with saffron cloth. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

kare daṇḍa kamaṇḍalu bhikṣuka prakāśa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [21]

Viśvambhar’s divine form as a mendicant, replete with daṇḍa (staff of renunciation) and kamaṇḍalu (water-pot) in hand, was revealed. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

kāṭoyā gaṅgāya kṛṣṇa kolāhalollāsa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [22]

On the banks of the Ganges near Kāṭoyā (Katwa), Śrī Kṛṣṇa Chaitanya tumultuously called, “Kṛṣṇa!” in ecstasy (initiating a grand saṅkīrtan of Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s Holy Names). Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

pāpa aparādha bhikṣā sarvva-jīva pāśa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [23]

Śrī Kṛṣṇa Chaitanya thus began begging all the jīva-souls to submit their sins and offences for purification. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

sarvva-jīve yāchi dena kṛṣṇa-prema rasa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [24]

He began chasing after all jīva-souls in order to distribute to them the sweetness of Kṛṣṇa-prema. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

chauddaśa ektriśa śaka māghādya divasa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [25]

Look over there! On this day in the month of Māgha in the year 1431 of the Śaka era, Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

śrī-charaṇa-reṇu yāche rāmānanda dāsa
śachīra nimāi ai karere sannyāsa [26]

Rāmānanda Dās begs for the dust of His holy lotus feet. Look over there! Śachī’s Nimāi has taken sannyās.

A recording of a lecture delivered by Sripad Baishnob Maharaj in Chiang Mai Thailand on the anniversary of the Disappearance of Srila Sridhar Maharaj.

Some of you may be aware that Srila Goswami Maharaj is now giving regular topical talks without stops for translation every second day here in Thailand. These talks are streamed if possible, but have all been recorded and prepared for upload in high quality and audio formats.

Here are links to the audio files I’ve prepared so far… more on the way soon
111117_GoswamiMj_Thailand — What is initiation?
111205_GoswamiMj_Thailand — How to stay when you want to leave?
111220_GoswamiMj_Thailand — How to cross over pride?
111222_GoswamiMj_Thailand — What is service?
111224_GoswamiMj_Thailand — The world of Krishna
111226_GoswamiMj_Thailand — Live every day as your last day
111228_GoswamiMj_Thailand — Which service is better?
111230_GoswamiMj_Thailand — How to live with loneliness?
111231_GoswamiMj_Thailand — New Year – New Leaf
120106_GoswamiMj_Thailand — Srimad Bhagavatam is the treasure of the Vedas

Upon the request of the devotees I prepared Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita and Sri Chaitanya Bhagavat as epub books for ipad in the last few days. You can download them from here:
CC Adi
CC Madhya
CC Antya
CB Adi
CB Madhya
CB Antya

Above is the first in a series of posts of video loops of all the main mantras for mridanga. As I get the chance I will be posting more and more videos, so you can follow along. They will be in sequential order for learning, so slowly it will get more and more challenging. You are welcome to send me feedback through the contact page.

I was editing Sermons Volume One today to go into the archive and found a very interesting reference by Śrīla Śrīdhar Mahārāj about buddhi-yoga. Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākur writes in his Gītā commentary about how all the different forms of yoga mentioned come under the one umbrella of buddhi yoga and that bhakti yoga is the perfectional stage of the overall process of buddhi yoga. So in the third chapter of Sermons One, Śrīdhar Mahārāj mentions that buddhi yoga is a function of yogamāyā, where in the seed verses of chapter 10 Kṛṣṇa says dadāmi buddhi-yogaṁ taṁ.

So here we can understand that the “i give them the revelation by which they can dive into service life” means immersion within the principle of yogamāyā, the divine illusory potency by which all those servitors know exactly what they are to do and are supplied with all the ingredients for that activity.