Srila Prabhupada's Pranama Mantra ,the meaning of Gaura Vani pracarine

[Paramananda das]

Dandavat pranams

All glories to Srila Gurudeva and Srila Prabhupada

Jaya Nitai Gaura

Srila Govinda Maharaja wrote this wonderfull prayer to Srila Prabhupada:

namah om visnupadaya krsna-presthaya bhutale swami sri bhaktivedanta  prabhupadaya te namah gurvajnam sirasi-dharyam saktyavesa  sva-rupine hare-krsneti mantrena pascatya-pracya-tarine visvacarya  prabaryaya divya karunya murtaye sri  bhagavata-madhurya-gita-jnana-pradayine gaura-sri-rupa-siddhanta-sarasvati  nisevine radha-krsna-padambhoja-bhrngaya gurave namah
"I offer my  humble obeisances unto His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, who  is Krsna's beloved associate and who came down to this plane from  Goloka.
Taking the order of his guru on his head, he is the saktyavesa  (empowered) avatar of Nityananda Prabhu personified.
He distributed the  Hare Krsna mantra all over the Eastern and Western world, delivering and  uplifting all fallen souls.
He is the best of millions of jagat-gurus,  because he is the personification of divine mercy.
He has distributed the  sweet nectar of Srimad Bhagavatam and the transcendental knowledge of  Bhagavad-gita all over the world.
He is constantly engaged in exclusive  devotional service to Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur, Srila Rupa  Goswami, and Sri Gauranga Mahaprabhu.
I offer my humble obeisances unto  Srila Prabhupada, who is like a bumblebee always tasting the nectar of the lotus  feet of Sri Sri Radha and Govinda. "

Palaka Prabhu was stating in his Vyasa puja Srila Prabhupada personally wrote the pranam mantra used by devotees in ISKCON to offer obaisences to Srila Prabhupada :

nama om vishnu-padaya krishna-preshthaya bhu-tale
srimate bhaktivedanta-svamin iti namine
I offer my respectful obeisances unto His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, who is very dear to Lord Krishna, having taken shelter at His lotus feet.

namas te sarasvate deve gaura-vani-pracarine
nirvisesha-sunyavadi-pascatya-desa-tarine

Our respectful obeisances are unto you, O spiritukindly preaching the message of Lord Caitanyadeva and delivering the Western countries, which are filled with impersonalism and voidism

I have never heard this before I was under the impression Srila Prabhupadas pranam mantra was written by Sastri das.And that he edited it.It would be nice to hear from devotees that know about this.

In a simple way:

The human beings, however fallen he may be, if he is properly guided, if he is properly instructed, he can become God conscious. — Mayapura, June 15, 1973

Srila Prabhupada took shelter of Krsnas lotusfeet so we worship his holy feet also , my Gurudeva has given a very nice explanation of Srila Prabhupadas pranam mantra .Especially about this Gaura Vani....

vaisnava das anu das

Paramananda das

The Hidden Meaning in Srila Prabhupada's Pranama Mantra

by Srila Bhaktivedanta Narayan Gosvami Maharaja

[In honor of  Prabhupada's Disappearance Day on Nov. 20, 2001, we are presenting the following  puspanjali offering at his lotus feet. This offering of flowers is in the form  of a lecture, given by Srila Bhaktivedanta Narayana Gosvami Maharaja, in  Alachua, Florida, on May 28, 2001.]

[Srila Narayana Maharaja:]What is the second sloka in the pranama  mantra of your Gurudeva?

[Drstadyumna dasa:]namas te sarasvate deve gaura-vani pracarine  nirvesesa-sunyavadi-pascatya-desa-tarine

[Srila Narayana Maharaja:]What is that gaura-vani he preached?

[Drstadyumna dasa:]There are four reasons for which Lord Caitanya  came to this world. One was to establish the yuga-dharma of the chanting of the  holy name, another was because Advaita Acarya had called Him to come, and...

[Srila Narayana Maharaja:]I want to hear what was that gaura-vani of  your Gurudeva.

[Drstadyumna dasa:]In simple words it was to chant Hare Krsna, and  that meant to worship...

[Srila Narayana Maharaja:]Sri Advaita Acarya may have given this. So  many acaryas have given this. Even Maha-Visnu can give the chanting of the holy  name, but He cannot give that gaura-vani.

[Drstadyumna dasa:]It was to give an understanding of the essence of  the feelings and mood of Srimati Radharani and...

[Srila Narayana Maharaja:]What is that gaura-vani he gave?

[Drstadyumna dasa:]Would it be the mood of the manjaris; service to  the Divine Couple?

[Srila Narayana Maharaja:]Was this his vani? I want to hear about  that vani. What is that gaura-vani he preached throughout the world? It has been  explained in the words of Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura, and Srila  Bhaktivinoda Thakura has also explained it.

aradhyo bhagavan vrajesa-tanayas tad-dhama vrndavanam ramya  kascid upasana vraja-vadhu-varga-ya kalpita srimad-bhagavatam amalam puranam  prema pumartho mahan sri-caitanya mahaprabhor matam idam tatradarah na parah

This is the special gaura-vani. Krsna is our highest  worshipable Deity, but there are so many manifestations of Krsna. Dvarakadhisa  Krsna is the son of Vasudeva and Devaki. Is He our worshipable Deity? He may be  for so many others, and there is no harm in that. He is worshipable for them,  and He should be. We do namaskara to Him, but we worship that very  Vrajendranandana who took birth from the womb of Yasodamaiya.

At the time of His birth, Vrajendranandana Krsna had no long hair, no  decorations, and no ornaments. He appeared as a simple baby, weeping, "Kya, kya,  kya!" All the Vrajabasis understood that He was born from the womb of Mother  Yasoda. We worship that very Nandanandana.

You should know that Nandanandana is always nava-kisora natavara. He is  eternally an ever-fresh cowherd youth, and Mother Yasoda thinks, "He is my son."  We worship this very Krsna who was bound by His mother in Vrndavana. She ran  faster than Him, caught hold of Him, and bound Him. That is why He is called  Damodara-Krsna. He killed Putana, who tried to take His life by poisoning Him,  and He gave her a motherly position in Goloka. We worship that Krsna who was  playing in the courtyard of Nanda Baba and Mother Yasoda, and who was controlled  by them with affection and love. We worship that Krsna who was always surrounded  by His friends like Dama, Sridama, Sudama, Vasudama, Stokakrsna, Lavanga,  Arjuna, Subala, Madhumangala, and so on. They used to defeat that Krsna, and,  being defeated, Krsna was very happy. That Krsna always played with the  gopa-ramanis.

Aradya bhagavan. Although He is Bhagavan, His bhagavata  (Godhood) has been covered. All His opulences are covered by Yogamaya, and thus  He has no idea that He is Brahma, Parabrahma, or Bhagavan. That very Krsna is  our aradhya, our object of worship. Another manifestation of Krsna is the  husband of Rukmini and the son of Vasudeva and Devaki. He should be the aradhya  of the Mathuravasis and others. Let them worship Him in that way, but Caitanya  Mahaprabhu is saying, "Aradyo bhagavan vrajesa-tanaya tad dhama vrndavanam." That Krsna is always in Vrndavana. He never gives up Vrndavana. He never  goes elsewhere. His manifestations may go to Kuruksetra, to Dvaraka, and to  Mathura. They can go, but that Krsna never leaves Vrndavana.

Ramya karcit upasanam vrajavadhu.The process of serving Krsna that  was adopted by all the gopis to please Krsna, especially by Radha and Her group,  is the highest. They can even place their feet on His head. They can chastise  Him - to please Him. They can order Him to do so many things, and He will very  happily carry out their orders. He does not feel so much happiness by hearing  the prayers of Brahma, Sankara, and all others like them, but He wants the gopis  to chastise Him and call Him 'thief.'

Srimad bhagavatam pramanam amalam.The way and the process by which  the gopis pleased Krsna cannot be attained by anyone else, and to understand  this, Srimad Bhagavatam is the highest evidence among all sastras. Only in  Srimad Bhagavatam can you see all these truths. Caitanya Mahaprabhu offers  pranama to the Upanisads and all other scriptures because they are all the  breathing of Krsna, but He particularly glorifies Srimad Bhagavatam. In Srimad  Bhagavatam, Krsna Himself told the gopis, "Na paraye 'ham niravadya-samyujam. I  cannot repay you, My dear gopis. I cannot repay you in thousands of thousands of  births. Be pleased, therefore, by your own bhakti to Me. Be merciful to Me."  Srimad Bhagavatam is revealing all this. This truth has been told there, but you  can only realize it by the commentaries of Srila Sanatana Gosvami, Srila Jiva  Gosvami, and Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura.

Prema pumartha mahan.Prema is the ultimate goal, and the prema in the  heart of Radhika is supermost. Hanuman also has prema, Dhruva Maharaja also has  prema, and Prahlada Maharaja also has some love and affection. The Pandavas and  Uddhava also have some prema, and all the queens of Dvaraka have so much love  and affection. The sakhas and sakhis of Vrndavana, and Mother Yasoda and Nanda  Maharaja all have prema, but no one has that prema of Srimati Radhika. Hers is  the highest love and affection towards Krsna. Her love is in the heart of Sri  Caitanya Mahaprabhu, and He Himself is telling about it. This is gaura-vani.  This vani (message or teaching) is the vani of Caitanya Mahaprabhu. No one ever  preached this before Him. Only "You should do nama-sankirtana" was preached. So  many acaryas in Kali-yuga have told us that we should perform kirtana, but no  one gave that love and affection given by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. He preached  love and affection, Vraja-prema, through nama-sankirtan. This is His vani.

ceto-darpana-marjanam  bhava-mahadavagni-nirvapanam sreyah-kairava-candrika-vitaranam  vidyavadhu-jivanam anandambudhi-vardhanam prati-padam  purnamrtasvadanam sarvatma-snapanam param vijayate sri  krsnanama-kirtanam

This is gaura-vani.

trnad api sunicena taror api sahisnuna amanina manadena  kirtaniyah sada harih

No one ever explained this before. Sri  Caitanya Mahaprabhu became very happy when, by His order and inspiration, Sri  Rupa Gosvami explained the glory of the name:

tunde tandavini ratim vitanute  tundavali-labdhaye karna-kroda-kadambini ghatayate karnarbudebhyah  sprham cetah-prangana-sangini vijayate sarvendriyanam krtim no jane janita  kiyadbhir amrtaih krsneti varna-dvaya

"I do not know how much  nectar the two syllables 'Krs-na' have produced. When the holy name of Krsna is  chanted, it appears to dance within the mouth. We then desire many, many mouths.  When that name enters the holes of the ears, we desire many millions of ears.  And when the holy name dances in the courtyard of the heart, it conquers the  activities of the mind, and therefore all the senses become inert."  (Caitanya-caritamrta, Antya-lila 1.99)

Hearing this verse, Srila Haridasa Thakura began to jump, laugh, and chant,  "Hari Bol! Hari Bol!"

Give up all worldly sense gratification. Don't pray for a very good wife,  good family, salvation, or anything else. Only pray for causeless bhakti, the  bhakti that is in the heart of Srimati Radhika. That bhakti is established when  hladini and samvit manifest in ones heart, on the platform of sandini.

Caitanya Mahaprabhu is telling us who we are.

ayi nanda-tanuja kinkaram patitam mam visame  bhavambudhau krpaya tava pada-pankaja- sthita-dhuli-sadrsam  vicintaya

We always want to be a particle of dust at the lotus  feet of the son of Nanda Maharaja. No one had ever told all this before.  Especially, no one had previously told:

nayanam galad asru dharaya vadanam gadgada ruddhaya  gira pulakair nicitam vapuh kada tava nama grahane  bhavisyati

Hairs standing on end, voice choked, and all kinds of  asta-sattvika-bhavas were present in Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. When will a day  come that I can chant like this: weeping, with my bodily hairs standing on end,  and my heart melting? No one had ever seen all these symptoms before Sri  Caitanya Mahaprabhu exhibited them. Valmiki had some symptoms, and Dhruva  Maharaja and Prahlada Maharaja also had some, but not like this. This wonderful  thing was taught by Mahaprabhu. Moreover He taught:

yugayitam nimesena caksusa pravrsayitam sunyayitam jagat  sarvam govinda virahena me

There are hardly any qualified  persons to realize all the truths in this verse. If a rare person realizes this,  he will give up his body - because the material body cannot tolerate the  emotions of prema.

Moreover:

aslisya va pada-ratam pinastu mam adarsanZn marma-hatam karotu  va yatha tatha va vidadhatu lampato mat-prana-nathas tu sa eva  naparah

"Lord Krsna, who is the lover of many devotees (women),  may embrace this fully surrendered maidservant or may trample me with His feet.  Or, He may render me brokenhearted by not being present before me for a long  duration of time. Still, He is nothing less than the absolute lord of my heart."

The transcendental emotions revealed in this verse cannot be found in this  world. This is only found in Goloka Vrndavana-dhama. We should pray that a day  will come that we can serve under the guidance of the gopis, especially being  the maidservant of Srimati Radhika, under the guidance of Lalita, Visakha, and  Rupa-manjari. This is gaura-vani.

Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaja preached this, but in the beginning he had  to cut so many jungles of mayavada, nirvesesa, and sahajiya philosophies. He saw  that in order to make the land of the world fertile, it would take a long time.  He therefore put all these truths in his transcendental literatures. He thought  that if any of his disciples would be qualified to go deep into those truths,  all this vani would be taught there. He wanted to preach it also, but it was  rare to find a student who could go so deep. Most of his students could not  follow him, and that is why so many fell down even from sannyasa. They made many  offenses to him, and they are now burning in hell.

You should know all this vani, and be very strong in preaching and in  glorifying your Prabhupada. Gaura-vani-pracarine. Krsna has sent him for this.

After our Srila Rupa Gosvami, Srila Jiva Gosvami, and Srila Raghunatha dasa  Gosvami came, Srila Narottama dasa Thakura, Srila Syamananda prabhu came, and  after that Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura, Srila Baladeva Vidyabhusana,  Srila Jagannatha dasa Babaji Maharaja, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, Srila  Prabhupada Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, and then our Gurudeva and so many  associates of Srila Prabhupada. One of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura's  hands was Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaja, who came to the western countries,  and in a couple of years preached everywhere. We should try to know his glories.  Gaura-vani has so much deep meaning, but the meaning is very hidden. Don't think  there is no reason for the word 'gaura-vani.'

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati is described in his pranama mantra to be  gaura-vani murti. [Namaste gaura-vani sri murtaye dina-tarine.]Murti  means embodiment. He is the embodiment of gaura-vani, and Srila Swami Maharaja,  your Prabhupada, is in the same line. He is not different from Srila Prabhupada  Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura. The term 'Prabhupadanuga' is a wrong idea.  Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaja and Srila Prabhupada Bhaktisiddhanta  Sarasvati Thakura are both followers of Srila Rupa Gosvami, and therefore they  are rupanuga. Following them, we are all rupanuga.

We have now told in brief about the vani of Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Srila  Bhaktivinoda Thakura has also, in a brief form, collected gaura-vani in his  Dasa-mula siksa. You should note it very carefully in your heart. Srila  Bhaktivinoda Thakura wrote down that vani in his Jaiva-dharma, his last and best  book. It is an authentic literature, and is the essence of all the Vedas,  Upanisads, Bhagavatam, Caitanya-caritamrta, and all the books of our Gosvamis.  The essence of all sastra is there in Jaiva-dharma.

Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura has written:

amanayaha praha tattavam harim iha paramam sarva saktima  rasabdhima tata bhinansansa ca jivan prakritir kavalitan tada vimuktansa ca  bhavada bhedabheda prakasam sakalampi harch sadhanam sudha  bhaktim sadhayam tata pritim eva iti upadesayati janan gauracandra savayam  saha

"The authoritative knowledge of the Vedas, received  through the bona fide disciplic succession, establishes the following  fundamental truths:

1. Hari is the supreme absolute truth.

2. He is omnipotent.

3. He is the reservoir of all mellows.

4. The living entities are His separated parts and parcels.

5. The conditioned souls are covered by Maya.

6. The liberated souls are beyond the influence of Maya.

7. The entire cosmic manifestation is simultaneously one and different from  Him.

8. Suddha-bhakti is the only means to achieve love of Godhead.

9. The goal is to attain love of Godhead.

These teachings have been instructed by Gauracandra Himself."

Gaura Premanande.