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Govardhana I went to Govardhana

December 7th, 2002

Govardhana

I went to Govardhana for the weekend to spend sometime with Niranjana Swami. There are many more devotees staying here now then there were during Kartik. Jayadvaita Swami, Suhotra Swami, Madhava Maharaja (formerly Maha-Mantra), Partha Sarathi Prabhu, Tejyas Prabhu, and Purnachandra Prabhu are also here. Of course, Kesava Bharati lives here. Many of them probably came now to avoid the crowds at Kartik. Ironically, although senior devotees want to avoid the crowds at Kartik, for the better part of that month, I was the only senior devotee visiting the ashram besides Jayadvaita Swami and Kesava Bharati Prabhu, who are more or less residents.

I’m thinking more about Gaura-lila lately, and how it more easily unifies one’s external and internal life. The internal mood of Lord Caitanya is compassion. The external life of a preacher is also compassion. By immersion in Gaura-lila, it becomes easier for a preacher to relate his active life to his internal life. I think it is important to see some relation between the two–especially as one matures. Otherwise, one may gradually lose attraction for one or the other. We need to do both with fervor.

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