Chapter 2.15 - Meeting With Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja

Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja was born in 1929 in an aristocratic brāhmaṇa Vaiṣṇava family in the small village of Jaganatha Pura, not far from Jaganatha Purī in Orīssa. His family generations were well known kīrtanīyas since the time of Śyāmananda Prabhu, the great Vaiṣṇava ācārya in our disciplic succession. In his family home there was a Deity of Śrī Gopāla Jiu and thus he was trained in Vaiṣṇava philosophy from the very beginning of his life. In 1975, at the age of 45, he accepted sannyāsa from Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Swāmī Mahārāja in the Kṛṣṇa Balarāma Mandīra in Vṛndāvanā. He was a very dear and intimate disciple with a very deep understanding of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. On the order of his spiritual master, he went to open a preaching center in Bhubanesvara, the capital city of Orīssa, near Jagannātha Purī. Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja was very bold in his preaching and he would always emphasize the importance of sādhu-saṅga. Śrīla Gurudeva also used to always emphasize sādhu-saṅga and śravaṇa (hearing from the sādhu). So how do we get the association of such a sādhu? Even if you have a heap of pious activities you cannot get this. There is only one way to purchase sādhu-saṅga. Only by greed! If you have greed, then you can go and listen to hari-kathā.

It was in the early nineties that Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja first came to visit Śrīla Gurudeva. He had come to the Śrī Kesavji Gauḍīya māṭha in Mathurā many years earlier, even before his initiation, but at that time Śrīla Gurudeva was away preaching elsewhere and was not in his Mathurā māṭha.

When Śrīla Gurudeva was in Jagannātha Purī in the early nineties, we stayed at Mr Singhania’s guest house there. I was then Navīna Kṛṣṇa Brahmacārī and I used to cook everyday for both Śrīla Gurudeva and Satsvarūpa Mahārāja who was staying in one of the guest rooms upstairs. Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja came there one day from Bhuvaneswar to meet with Śrīla Gurudeva. It was around midday when I welcomed Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja. He was accompanied by one Indian brahmacārī disciple. I offered him praṇāma and a chair. Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja said, “Are bābā! I have a big body. Give me a big chair, not a small one.” So I immediately complied. I then came with water and respectfully asked if he would like a glass. Gour Govinda Mahārāja took the water but replied, “I have not come to drink water; I have come to drink nectar from Śrīla Mahārāja’s lotus lips.” He inquired what Gurudeva was doing. I said that he was taking rest, and asked if he wanted me to call him.

He said, “No, no, no. Don’t disturb him when he’s resting. When he finishes, then I will talk with him.” I told him that Satsvarūpa Mahārāja was also there upstairs taking rest. He was staying there with his servant Madhumaṅgala. He told me not to disturb them either. “If by the grace of Jagannātha deva, he comes himself, then I have no objection. Otherwise, I will meet him later.”

Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja was very careful to follow Vaiṣṇava etiquette and proper Vedic tradition. Respect is given to the elders or senior Vaiṣṇavas. When senior Vaiṣṇavas meet, the junior disciple does not interfere and politely wait for their permission to take part. In Vedic family life, it is the same; if a superior is speaking, the junior remains silent. Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja’s rule for his disciples was that when he would talk with other senior Vaiṣṇavas, they would not be present unless he personally asked them to be. So this brahmacārī, his sevaka, remained outside.

Śrīla Gurudeva heard our voices and called for me. I went upstairs and told him that Param Pūjyapāda Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja had just come to meet with him. Having already rested for about an hour, he immediately came down to see him. They both embraced and offered praṇāma to each other.

Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja had been a devotee since his childhood and was extremely serious about spiritual life. He liked Śrīla Gurudeva’s books so much and would acquire them with great enthusiasm. The main topics he discussed with Śrīla Gurudeva were in relation to these books. Śrīla Gurudeva considered and told us that Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja was, “a very high class of Vaiṣṇava” and yet Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja would be very humble and submissive before Śrīla Gurudeva. Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja was a deeply self-realized soul. Although he was a Sanskrit scholar, highly educated in Vaiṣṇava philosophy and conversant with many of these subjects, he was inspired to ask many questions and submissively hear from Śrīla Gurudeva. I am simply repeating whatever I heard from them.

Once, one of Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja’s disciples asked him, “Why aren’t you going much to Vṛndāvana, Vraja Māṇḍala, to preach?” Gour Govinda Mahārāja replied, “The rasa-ācarya Śrīla Nārāyaṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja is already there. He is doing very nicely. I have no need to go there.”

Now in Purī, Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja told Śrīla Gurudeva that he was suffering so much because he was being restricted from speaking hari-kathā. “They say, ‘Don’t come here. This is my zone. This is my territory. You cannot go there. This is not your zone. People are inviting me to go here and there to speak; they want my help and I want to go, but they are always stopping me from going anywhere.” Śrīla Gurudeva said, “I don’t care for all these zones and territories. Where I like, I go. If any institution stops me from speaking hari-kathā, then I will give up that institution immediately and go where I can speak hari-kathā.” Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja replied, “Yes, it is possible for you, but what can I do? It is my duty. I am bound by the rule and regulation. Oh Mahārāja! You are so fortunate, but I am so unfortunate that even though I desire, still I am not allowed to meet with you. I even have had to come in secret.”

Śrīla Gurudeva asked, “Why? Many of Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Swāmī Mahārāja’s senior disciples are coming to see me.” He named a number of them such as Tamāla Kṛṣṇa Mahārāja, Satsvarūpa Mahārāja, Girirāja Mahārāja, Bhurijana, Jagatarini, Karta and Jadhurani.

“Yes, they can come to you. But if certain devotees find out that I am coming, then the GBC may create problems for me.”

Śrīla Gurudeva said that these rules do not apply to him and that he is free to go anywhere to preach, “My Gurudeva’s title is Ācārya Kesarī, lion among all ācāryas. He was so fearless and bold. The cub of a lion will never be a jackal; it will always be a lion. I am also like a lion, I don’t fear to preach anywhere or invite anyone to my Māṭha. I have been sleeping in my cave, but now I will jump here and there and catch some very fat sheep and I’ll bring them to my cave. Then they will understand. I don’t care what they do.” This was before Śrīla Gurudeva had begun his Western preaching.

Once Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja inquired, “Mahārāja I would like to know from you some details about ‘rūpānuga’ and ‘rāgānuga’.”

Śrīla Gurudeva replied, “Yes, unless one becomes rūpānuga, they cannot understand the Gauḍīya philosophy. Without following the guidelines of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī, one will become a sahajiyā or atheistic.

There is a difference between rūpānuga and rāgānuga. But first, you should know what “rāgātmika” is. Although this topic is high, if you know these things and properly follow Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī’s instructions, you can advance in Kṛṣṇa consciousness; otherwise not. So rāgātmika refers to the eternal associates of Kṛṣṇa and the eternal associates of His incarnations. Those who are eternal associates of Kṛṣṇa, they are called rāgātmika-jānā. This means they are with Kṛṣṇa living in Vraja in Goloka Mahāvana, and when He came to this world, they came with Him. Hearing about their service mood and activities, someone may develop transcendental greed and intensely desire a love like they have—like that of mother Yashoda binding Kṛṣṇa or like His friends, Śrīdama, Sudama or Madhumaṅgala, or like the vraja-gopīs. They are called rāgātmika-jānā. So the sakhās who are serving Kṛṣṇa, the parents who are serving Kṛṣṇa, and the gopīs who are serving Kṛṣṇa, they are all rāgātmika-jānā.

If someone in this world has some greed for this and wants to follow in the footsteps of the rāgātmika-bhaktas and are thus practicing bhakti under the guidance of a like-minded bonafide guru and Vaiṣṇava, wanting to have their mood, then they are called rāgānuga. This applies to those who have some intense greed for bhakti and who are actually following the process to attain it, not to anyone else. All this is described by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī in Śrī Bhakti-rāsāmṛta-sindhu and Śrī Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi.

The guru comes to awaken what is already in each soul. The soul’s relation with Kṛṣṇa, its name, qualities and all its specialities are already present within. The soul is perfect in itself; its perfection is not brought from outside. Unfortunately māyā covers the soul, but when Śrī Guru takes away or removes that māyā, then everything is automatically manifested by the causeless mercy of Śrī Guru. What is already there will come out. No new thing will come. No association will change what is already naturally in the soul. What is in your soul will manifest by hearing, chanting and remembering (śravaṇa, kīrtana and smaraṇa). Whatever rasa is there in the soul will manifest automatically when our anarthas disappear. If the soul’s rasa is dāsya-rasa, that will manifest and one will have little taste for sakhya-rasa or mādhurya-rasa and vice-versa.

So if a devotee develops greed like Rādhikā’s sakhī or maidservant, and they practice bhakti in this world to attain that, then they are rāgānuga sādhaka of śṛṅgāra rasa or madhura rasa.

Rāgānuga is in this world only, not in aprakaṭa (unmanifest) Vṛndāvana in the spiritual world.

Then Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja asked, “Who is rūpanuga?”

Śrīla Gurudeva replied that Rādhikā’s maidservants like Rūpa Māñjarī, Rati Māñjarī, Lavaṅga Māñjarī, Rāga Māñjarī, Kastūrī Māñjarī, Manjulali Māñjarī, Anaṅga Māñjarī—there are so many māñjarīs; they are massaging Rādhikā’s feet, giving her betelnut, arranging Her dress, arranging Her hair, giving Her water and whatever services that are needed. The māñjarīs never hesitate to serve Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa in any situation. So, one who has greed for this kind of service and is following Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmipāda in this world and following Śrī Rūpa Māñjarī, they are called a rūpānuga sādhaka of madhura rasa.

Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja then told Śrīla Gurudeva,”Śrīla Mahārāja, I have no language in which to tell you, nor do you have any idea how much pleasure it is for me to receive your darshan like this. I have another question.”

“Yes! Yes, you can ask any question,” said Śrīla Gurudeva, “any question you desire.”

“Why is rāgānuga not in aprakaṭa Vraja?” he asked.

Śrīla Gurudeva replied, “To clearly comprehend this, it is essential to first understand several points. Bhauma Vṛndāvana, the Vṛndāvana manifest here in this material world, is called Sādhana bhūmi. The aprakaṭa Vṛndāvana, in the spiritual world, is called Siddha bhūmi. One practices sādhana (regulated devotional service) only in this world—not there. A sādhaka (devotional practitioner) first has to become a perfect follower here. Only then can he or she enter there. Someone who is immature or on a lower stage, who doesn’t have the proper feelings, they cannot enter the aprakaṭa-līlā. For such a sādhaka, it will take time.

Now rāgānuga is two-fold; rāga and anuga. Rāga refers to the ability to enjoy an object or deep attachment for the object of one’s love and anuga means he who is following or following in the footsteps. Lobha is required, that genuine greed to hear the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa by reading the books of the Gosvāmīs, and especially by being in the association of a rāgānugābhakta—that is rāgānuga. Without the association of rāgānuga-bhaktas, the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa and the gopīs will not be properly understood. Hear from them. When one takes pleasure in hearing from a rāgānuga-rasika Vaiṣṇava and he develops an unquenchable thirst to aquire the moods of Kṛṣṇa’s eternal associates, His parikāras, then he is said to be following rāgātmika or the intrinsic nature of the eternal associates of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Rāgātmika—whose ātmā is completely saturated—engrossed with rāga. You should know rāgānuga is the process to obtain Rāgātmikā-bhakti, eternal spontaneous attachment (rāga) or devotion that is characterized by spontaneous attachment to Kṛṣṇa. That spontaneous devotion is the greatest amongst all forms of bhakti.

A rāgānugā-bhakta is one who is following or practicing rāgānuga under proper authorized guidance. Rāgānuga is a type of sādhana-bhakti. One must practice diligently in this world with an intense greed to attain rāgātmika-bhāva. Devotion which follows in the footsteps of such rāgātmikā-bhakti is called rāgānuga-bhakti. One eagerly desires to be like those parikāras. When the heart has this lobha, this greed to attain the moods of the eternal associates, it gradually comes to its real and natural state. That lobha (transcendental greed) is not found in the conditioned state. One cannot attain it by themselves or by their own efforts alone. It will not come as a result of mental and intellectual prowess. It comes only by the mercy of Kṛṣṇa Himself and by the mercy of a rāgānuga Vaiṣṇava who himself has such greed. Without their grace one cannot have it. You have to come to the point where you must have it by any means.

When that sādhaka is mature with the proper feelings, then he may take birth in the manifest, prakaṭa- Vṛndāvana and be guided by an eternal associate where Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes are going on somewhere in the material universe. There the sādhaka will be further trained and reach perfection. That is the perfectional stage and at that point, it’s up to Kṛṣṇa. If He wants to bring us to another universe where He is travelling or wants us to enter aprakaṭa Vṛndāvana, we go spontaneously.

All rūpanugas are rāgānugas, but not all rāgānugas are rūpanugas.

Also, whenever “anuga” is added, may it be rāgānuga or rūpānuga, we have to understand that it is in this material world.

While in their sadhaka form, they serve in the following way:

साङ्ख्या-पूर्वक-नाम-गान-नतिभिह् कालावसानी-कृतौ
निद्राहार-विहारकादि-विजितौ चात्यन्त-दीनौ च यौ
राधा-कृष्ण-गुण-स्मृतेर् मधुरिमानन्देन सम्मोहितौ
वन्दे रूप-सनातनौ रघु-युगौ श्री-जीव-गोपालकौ

sāṅkhyā-pūrvaka-nāma-gāna-natibhih kālāvasānī-kṛtau
nidrāhāra-vihārakādi-vijitau cātyanta-dīnau ca yau
rādhā-kṛṣṇa-guṇa-smṛter madhurimānandena sammohitau
vande rūpa-sanātanau raghu-yugau śrī-jīva-gopālakau

षड्-गोस्वाम्य्-अष्टक ६

Ṣaḍ-gosvāmy-aṣṭaka 6

I worship the Six Gosvāmīs, who passed all their time in chanting the holy names, singing devotional songs and offering dāṇḍavat-praṇāma, thereby humbly fulfilling their vow to complete the chanting of a fixed number of holy names daily. In this way they utilized their valuable lives and conquered over eating and sleeping. They were always very meek and humble and thus they became enchanted in divine rapture, remembering Śrī Rādhākṛṣṇa’s sweet qualities.

With their siddha-deha, they serve as follows:

ताम्बूलार्पण-पाद-मर्दन-पयोदानाभिसारादिभिर्
वृन्दारण्य-महेश्वरीं प्रियतया यास् तोषयन्ति प्रियाह्
प्राण-प्रेष्ठ-सखी-कुलाद् आपि किलासङ्कोचिता भूमिकाह्
केली-भूमिषु रूप-माञ्जरी-मुखास् ता दासिकाह् संश्रये

tāmbūlārpaṇa-pāda-mardana-payodānābhisārādibhir
vṛndāraṇya-maheśvarīṃ priyatayā yās toṣayanti priyāh
prāṇa-preṣṭha-sakhī-kulād āpi kilāsaṅkocitā bhūmikāh
kelī-bhūmiṣu rūpa-māñjarī-mukhās tā dāsikāh saṃśraye

व्रज-विलास-स्तव, श्लोक ३८

Vraja-vilāsa-stava, śloka 38

The prāṇa-preṣṭha group of sakhīs always keep Śrīmatī Rādhikā, the Queen of Vṛndāvana, fully contented with their loving service by supplying Her with tāmbūla, massaging Her feet, bringing water, setting up secret meetings with Her paramour, and so on. However, I desire to take shelter of those maidservants of Śrīmatī who have acquired an even more unreserved attitude than the prāṇa-preṣṭha sakhīs, and who thus draw more affection from Rādhikā, and are privileged to serve Rādhikā unhesitatingly at Her most intimate moments. I take shelter of these gopī maidservants who have Rūpa-māñjarī as their leader and I am proud to have them as my śikṣā-gurus in devotional service.”

Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja then inquired, “Śrīla Mahārāja, you said that all rūpānugas are rāgānugas, but not all rāgānugas are rūpānugas. What is the reason given by the ācāryas?”

Śrīla Gurudeva replied, “Rūpānugas are first rāgānuga and then rūpānuga. Rāgānugas are in a particular mood or sentiment such as dāsya-rasa, sakhyarasa, vātsalya-rasa or mādhurya-rasa. Some have in their hearts an intense desire to serve Kṛṣṇa in a manner of a friend, a parent or a lover. Those who have greed for such service and such kind of love are rāgānuga sādhaka. For example, there are those who desire to follow in the mood of Subala sakhā or Mother Yaśoda or Lalitā, Rūpa Māñjarī, etc. In the same way, those who have a desire to serve Lord Śrī Rāma following Hanumāna or Lakṣmana, or desire to serve any other incarnation of God—they too are rāgānuga.

On the other hand, rūpānugas are only those who are exclusively following Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmipāda in this world with their sādhaka body and Śrī Rūpa Māñjarī with their siddha-deha (spiritual body).

Rūpa Māñjarī is an eternal associate of the Divine Couple. One should deeply meditate on the qualities and bhāva, the mood Rūpa Māñjarī has in serving Them. Rūpānugas are exclusively in śṛṅgāra-rasa, and more specifically they are in parakīya-śṛṅgāra-rasa, the paramour mood. Not only paramour, but a particular mood of paramour—that mood only the māñjarī (nitya-sakhī and prāṇa-sakhī) gopīs have.

Sometimes it is misunderstood that Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Swāmī Mahārāja was only in sakhya-rasa and cannot give mādhurya-rasa. This is not a fact. He came to this world only for spreading the mission of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmipāda. The entire disciplic-succession of our Gauḍīya sampradāya is rūpānuga. The sampradāya of Nimbāditya Ācārya is rāgānuga, but of Dvārakā—of Satyabhāmā and Rukmīṇī. The followers of his mission are not like Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī or his followers. Only the ācāryas coming in the line of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu are rūpānuga. Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Swāmī Mahārāja has come especially to give this rūpānuga-bhakti. He did not come only to give rāgānuga or to only give sādhana-bhakti or vaidhībhakti. He could not give this fully to his general disciples at that time, because they were not mature enough. How could he openly preach this topic when there was practically no one ready to understand? Even now, decades later, hardly anyone is trying to understand this. Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Swāmī Mahārāja was mostly engaged in cutting the jungles—the thorns of impersonalism and voidism.

All our ācāryas have told us to follow the Rūpānuga Vaiṣṇavas and do bhajana in this way. This is the process. Gurudeva shows us how to perform bhajana, otherwise we will never know what is spontaneous devotion. These things we have to deeply understand.

If we have not received sufficient instructions of how to do our bhajana from our dīkṣā-guru, if we are sincere, mercifully he will send a śikṣā-guru to help us. There are sixty-four limbs of bhakti. Whatever Rūpa Gosvāmī has given, we must follow. Śrīla Swāmī Mahārāja didn’t teach anything different and neither did his guru. Śrīla Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda’s idea was to inspire devotees for this service to Śrīmatī Rādhikā. Śrīmatī Rādhikā is the most powerful among all the gopīs to capture Kṛṣṇa’s heart and control Him completely, and in order to become Her dāsī (maidservant), we will have to become rūpānuga. In this line we are almost all rūpānugas.

Without being rūpānuga–without the guidance of Śrīla Rūpa Mañjarī–we cannot serve Rādhikā.

श्री-चैतन्य-मनो-’भीष्टं स्थापितं येन भू-तले
स्वयं रूपह् कदा मह्यं ददाति स्व-पदान्तिकम्

śrī-caitanya-mano-’bhīṣṭaṃ sthāpitaṃ yena bhū-tale
svayaṃ rūpah kadā mahyaṃ dadāti sva-padāntikam

When will Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī give me shelter under his lotus feet? Because he is the dearmost servant of Śrī Caitanyadeva, understanding His innermost desire, he was able to establish His mission in this world.

A rāgānuga who follows the manner and mood in which Śrī Rūpa Māñjarī serves Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa—those who are in the same mood as Rūpa Māñjarī in their constitutional form and who perform the same devotional activities as Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī—are rūpānuga. A rūpānuga serving Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa following Rūpa Māñjarī is more inclined towards Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, happy in Her happiness and anguished in Her suffering. Such a follower is a rūpānuga. This can only be understood by exclusively following a Rūpānuga ācārya.”

Śrīla Gurudeva then gave some examples from sakhya-rasa, vātsalyarasa and mādhurya-rasa.

Another topic of discussion was the eternal dhāma of Purī, of Navadvīpa and of Vṛndāvana. Which was superior—Navadvīpa, Purī or Rāya Rāmānanda’s place?

Śrīla Gurudeva said that Mahāprabhu has the mood of Vṛṣabhānunandinī in Navadvīpa, and in Purī He has the mood of Viyogini-Rādhā, and at Godāvarī-tata he has mood of Samyogini-Rādhā. Vṛṣabhānunandinī’s mood however, is topmost.

Navadvīpa is non-different from Vṛndāvana, and Vṛndāvana is far superior to Godāvarī (Kurukṣetra) and to Dwaraka.

After their discussion Śrīla Gururdeva went back upstairs to his room to write, as at the time he was in the middle of writing one of his many books. Hearing us upstairs, Madhumanagal opened Satswarup Mahārāja’s door and I then informed him about Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja being there. Hearing the message Śrī Satsvarup Mahārāja came downstairs and met with Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja.

Intially I thought, I should not disclose all the confidential topics discussed between Śrīla Gurudeva and Śrī Gour Govinda Mahārāja. Later on I made up my mind, thinking if I do not publish all these topics, then it will be a big loss for the whole world, especially for the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavas. So, I will publish more of the topics they discussed in Jagannātha Purī in the next volume.

Besides rāgānuga and rūpānuga, other topics and questions that they discussed were:

(1) Whether Parjanya gopa was alive or not?

(2) Whether Kṛṣṇa and His friends remained silent or not during the serving of Prasāda.

(3) Whether Kṛṣṇa’s uncles stayed with Him or not while serving prasādam.

(4) Did Rādhikā know how to play the flute?

(5) Whether Jatilā had doubts about Rādhikā.

(6) Was Rādhikā ever caught red-handed by Jatila?

(7) Whether the māñjarīs are married or not.

(8) Is there any proof that māñjarīs took part in rāsa dance?

(9) Whether māñjarīs united with Kṛṣṇa?

(10) By which mantra Rādhikā worshipped the sun-god?

(11) Who will recall the pastimes of Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa? What will happen to an unworthy person who will try to recall the pastimes?

(12) What evidences are there that friends think themselves equal to Kṛṣṇa?

(13) What defines the term “rasika”?

(14) Mahāprabhu is Kṛṣṇa and Nityānanda is Balarāma. Where is the proof?

(15) Why Kṛṣṇa is compared with the Sun?

(16) Did the Vraja gopīs admit Kṛṣṇa is Nārāyaṇa?

(17) In which mellow do Parīkṣit Mahārāja and Śukr ācārya belong to?

(18) Did Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma go to the cow grazing field every day—what is your opinion?

(19) Did Kṛṣṇa ever wear the garment of Rādhārānī to cheat other sakhīs?

(20) Did Kṛṣṇa perform pastimes with other sakhīs at a time when He was courting with Rādhārāṇī?

At the end of their meeting, Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja heartfully thanked Śrīla Gurudeva, saying he was eternally indebted to him, “I have never heard such wonderful examples. I would like to hear more, but I do not think my time here will be much longer.

Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja was very heartbroken for being restricted in his preaching in many ways. He said to Śrīla Gurudeva, “If I leave this world, please take care of my disciples”.

On Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja’s disappearance day Śrīla Gurudeva said, “When I went to Purī, however, he came with a disciple, Birbhadra brahmacārī, and we discussed many subject matters. He was so bold that he never cared for criticism of his siddhāntic understanding. He told what I tell–what is written in Jaiva-dharma–that no conditioned souls ever came from Goloka Vṛndāvana. They came from Mahā Viṣṇu, or from the tatāṣṭha (marginal) region. Also, just as I do in my classes–as I begin from the stage of śraddhā and finish at vraja-prema, he used to do the same… They wanted to ban him totally, to stop him from preaching proper siddhānta, but he told them, “I must obey my Prabhupāda…He was very bold, and for that reason he left his body in Māyāpura…”

Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja was fixed to present only the unadulterated truth, ready to give up his life for it, saying”You can ban me or I can give up my life, but I cannot change my siddhānta as you are asking.”

I was told that in 1995, the GBC voted, with a more than twenty man committee, on the origin of the jīva and that a high majority of the members voted in favor that the jīva falls from Vaikuṇṭha. When Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja wanted to speak to them the proper siddhānta, he was checked from speaking as they said they had already voted. This made him very unhappy. He questioned, “How many are liberated in that society or body?” With great conviction he said, “Whatever we say must be confirmed by guru, sādhu and śāstra. They are voting on siddhānta! Just see the situation now…” Gour Govinda Mahārāja gave the example of a dog walking on the street. “If ten men vote that the dog is a goat, does that make the dog a goat?”

Just before his disappearance Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja confided to his disciples, “Prior to his departure, Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda said the material world is not a fit place for any gentleman to live in. I’m also thinking of leaving. I will ask my Gopāla, and whatever He tells me to do, I will do.”

On February 6, 1996, on the auspicious appearance day of Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda, Śrīla Gour Govinda Mahārāja, while speaking hari-kathā, left this world in Lord Caitanya’s holy dhāma, Māyāpura.