English
Date: July 1st, 2024
Speaker: Srila Gurudeva
Place: ISKCON Ujjain
Main Tehem “Memorial Service for H H Rupa Raghunath Swami Maharaja – Guru glorifies his Disciple”
When Srila Prabhupada used to give sannyasa initiation to a married householder, he would give such a person the title “Goswami” and not “Swami”. However, Rupa Raghunath Swami Maharaj was never a householder. Hence, we offered him the title “Swami”, even though both the terms indicate the same meaning.
When they were glorifying Maharaja, it was music to my ears. When a father has to unfortunately participate in the final rites of the son, it indicates that the Kali Yuga is prevalent. With the passing of Maharaja, similar is my misfortune. It would not be wrong if we consider or announce that Rupa Raghunath Swami Maharaj has entered the eternal pastimes of Sri Sri Radha Krishna. Who would disagree with this? (applause of Hari Bol); you all are agreeing to this thought.
yasya prasādād bhagavat-prasādo
yasya aprasādān na gatiḥ kuto 'pi
dhyāyan stuvaṁs tasya [yaśas tri-sandhyaṁ]
vande guroḥ śrī-caraṇāravindam
By the mercy of the spiritual master one receives the benediction of Krsna. Without the grace of the spiritual master, one cannot make any advancement. Therefore, I should always remember and praise the spiritual master. At least three times a day I should offer my respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of my spiritual master. (Sri Gurvastakam, verse 8)
By his various activities and attributes, Maharaja has given me immense pleasure. (applause of Hari Bol). There is not a single situation when he displeased me or saddened me; except in one situation (chuckles) when he did not listen to me and disobeyed me. You were listening to the story yesterday from Ishadeva prabhu. During the Corona pandemic, the whole world was strictly observing the rules and regulations. Even when I was down with Corona infection, I was strictly following all the regiment – medicine, the dos and don’ts, the abstinence etc. but he was not following any medical instructions. I kept reminding him, “follow the medical instructions; get healthy and revive your health”. But he stayed put and totally ignored my instruction. He was steadfast in his own theory, “No Medicine!”. But surprisingly, without medicine he got cured from Corona. (applause Hari Bol). And I was very pleased with him upon this.
Srila Prabhupada instructed me to take up the significant service of Padayatra. Rupa Raghunath Maharaja, born in Argentina, a country in South America, was a brahmachari at that time. He read and heard all the details about our Padayatra service and the Padayatris. He took great inspiration from that and organized a bullock cart Padayatra in his country. Argentina is a vast country. Maharaja did Padayatra covering 2000 kms in Argentina before moving to India. (applause Hari bol). The place we met for the first time was also All India Padayatra.
There is a common saying, “simple living and high thinking”. Rupa Raghunath Maharaj is a vivid example of this saying. Is he not? (applause Hari Bol). Such an exemplary personality lived with us, lived amongst us. Though a foreigner from South America, he moved to India and began serving Padayatra. He was quite a linguist. He had a command over many languages – Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, English, Hindi, and some amount of Marathi and Gujarati too. He fluently spoke Hindi and gave wonderful classes in Hindi. When he moved to India, he took formal initiation. Many institutions pleaded with him to take initiation from their sampradaya. But he chose to get initiated in Gaudiya Vaishnava sampradaya. Krishna saved him from wandering to various other places.
bahūnāṁ janmanām ante
jñānavān māṁ prapadyate
vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti
sa mahātmā su-durlabhaḥ
After many births and deaths, he who is actually in knowledge surrenders unto Me, knowing Me to be the cause of all causes and all that is. Such a great soul is very rare. (Bhagavad Gita 7.19)
In this very lifetime, Maharaj became a great soul by realizing that Lord Vasudev is all in all and he also realized that Lord Gauranga is all in all. (applause Sri Krishna Chaitanya Maharpabhu ki jay) In Kali Yuga, the Supreme Lord appears as Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
harer nāma harer nāma
harer nāmaiva kevalam
kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva
nāsty eva gatir anyathā
In this Age of Kali there is no other means, no other’ means, no other means for self-realization than chanting the holy name, chanting the holy name, chanting the holy name of Lord Hari. (Bṛhan-nāradīya Purāṇa, as quoted in Chaitanya Charitamrita Adi 17.21)
Just as the realization of a great soul, Maharaja too being a great soul, became enlightened in this Vedic conclusion of Harer Nama eva kevalam. Based on this realized knowledge, Maharaja embraced this Gaudiya Parampara.
When Maharaja was living in Aravade, there was a financial crunch and shortage of grocery and vegetables. He began visiting a town 10 kilometers from Aravade, taking along with him a group of devotees. In the vegetable market, Maharaja began doing Harinam Sankirtan along with the devotees. Upon receiving Harinam, the grocers began to donate vegetables to the kirtan party. Thus, the shortage of vegetables in the brahmachari ashrama of Aravade was mitigated by Krishna’s intervention.
ananyāś cintayanto māṁ
ye janāḥ paryupāsate
teṣāṁ nityābhiyuktānāṁ
yoga-kṣemaṁ vahāmy aham
But those who always worship Me with exclusive devotion, meditating on My transcendental form – to them I carry what they lack, and I preserve what they have. (Bhagavad Gita 9.22).
This is how Maharaja did the arrangements to come out of the difficulty. Once, he went to ISKCON temple in Bhimavaram in Andhra Pradesh. He found that in the temple kitchen the grocery closet was empty. He wanted to go grocery shopping for the temple and the temple commander gave me a long shopping list. He went market and paid for all the groceries by himself. Maharaja was very charitable but tactful as well. Whenever he met me, even though being a sannyasi, he would give me an envelope. Nothing big, but it was his expression of gratitude. We do have big support from sannyasis and brahmacharis. He was a big support for me as well. With his departure I am feeling vacant, and I am going to miss him a lot.
I am very grateful to you all at ISKCON Ujjain for taking responsibility of this program. Similarly, Manish Bhai prabhu along with other temple devotees too did a lot of hard work to support in spite of some difficulties due to his foreign body. Thus I am very thankful to Rasananda Prabhu, and temple devotees and congregation of ISKCON Ujjain for having us here for Maharaja’s final rites. All glories to ISKCON Ujjain. Is Raghav Pandit Prabhu here? No, he is not here. He comes forward only when there is service.
Even Bhakti Prem Swami Maharaja rushed here to Ujjain. All glories to him. We chose this place, ISKCON Ujjain for Rupa Raghunath Swami’s final rites. Ujjain is a holy place and well-known as a place of liberation. Its sacredness is marked by Kumbha Mela and the holy river Kshipra. Ujjain is the place for eternal pastimes of Krishna Balaram as well. Maharaja had recently said he would go to Ujjain without announcing. And thus, he came here without prior announcement. First his soul reached here and subsequently, we got his body as well. ISKCON Ujjain welcomed us, encouraged us and provided us with all the facilities for this task.
As it is, ISKCON Ujjain is famous for the hospitality, Vaishnava seva and such good deeds. When I was welcoming all the visiting devotees in the morning Mangal Arati, I remembered an incident with Bhakti Charu Swami Maharaja. Once he received many bureau members and leaders in Ujjain; and he spent like 45 minutes in just welcoming everyone. He Individually welcomed each guest by announcing their name, position, post, activity, quality etc.!! So much honor and hospitality is always given by Ujjain ISKCON. Even now, we are heartily welcomed. Not just by lip service but actually we all, especially visiting devotees experienced this hearty welcome. Isn’t it? (applause Hari Bol). Bhakti Charu Maharaja was well known for that kind of welcoming culture. Once he also acted as a cultural minister of ISKCON for a few years.
When we went to the cremation ground at Chakratirtha, there was no GPS to direct us. Once the temple president of Bhakti Vedanta Manor was visiting a cremation ground and the GSP declared, “you have reached your final destination” (laughter). He had heard the same from GSP many other times but this time it struck him. Similarly, we too felt that we reached the final destination. But I was thinking about the whole atmosphere there. It felt like I was in Vaikuntha and not in a funeral home. There was the chanting of
Hare Krishna Hare Krishna
Krishna Krishna Hare Hare
Hare Rama Hare Rama
Rama Rama Hare Hare.
Did you all feel the same? (applause Hari Bol). Even if Yamadutas came, there was no place for them and they would leave right away.
Rupa Raghunath Maharaja was connected to Italy too. His grandparents were from Italy. Once Maharaja was present in Italy’s Villa Vrindavan while one Vaishnavi devotee was leaving her body. Later as Maharaja was reporting to me, he said that at her last moments, many devotees had gathered around the body, loudly chanting and doing kirtan. He said there was no empty space for Yamadutas. The whole atmosphere was charged with devotion and Harinam. “Jivo Va Maro Va” is a Vedic blessing, meaning you either die or live. For Vaishnavas this is a true blessing because for Vaishnavas there is no difference between life and death. “Chiranjiva” is another blessing given – “live forever”. This Chiranjiva blessing is given to four types of people including a prince etc. It is also given to sadhus, bhaktas, and to sadhvis and bhaktins too, because the soul never dies.
na jāyate mriyate vā kadācin
nāyaṁ bhūtvā bhavitā vā na bhūyaḥ
ajo nityaḥ śāśvato ’yaṁ purāṇo
na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre
For the soul there is neither birth nor death at any time. He has not come into being, does not come into being, and will not come into being. He is unborn, eternal, ever-existing and primeval. He is not slain when the body is slain. (Bhagavad Gita 2.20)
yaṁ yaṁ vāpi smaran bhāvaṁ
tyajaty ante kalevaram
taṁ tam evaiti kaunteya
sadā tad-bhāva-bhāvitaḥ
Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, O son of Kuntī, that state he will attain without fail. (Bhagavad Gita 8.6)
Whatever we remember, we will get it in the future. The way Maharaja left his body, he remembered Kṛṣṇ for sure. The morning he departed, he chanted, he did mangala arati and he preached in the morning Bhagavatam class. He said in the class, “stop the cycle of millions of births. Get purified and go to Vaikuntha.” He just said it that morning, as if he was saying, “ I am going myself. I am purified enough to go now. I will go Vaikuntha”. He had darshan of Pancha Tattva picture on the table. And he had Ekanta – solitude.
It is strongly recommended that one be alone when dying. If Vaishnavas are around, that is like an icing on the cake. But especially relatives should not be around. The dying person tries to close the eyes and the relatives poke him to open eyes and anxiously ask, “open your eyes, do you remember me?” How can we remember God in this kind of situation? At that time, it is best if it is just you and Kṛṣṇ, or may be devotees. For Maharaja, quite an ideal situation was there when leaving his body. I heard that he had desired to leave in that way and the Lord fulfilled his desire. We should learn from his example how to die. (applause Hari Bol). He is an exemplary the whole ISKCON world by his life, not just by words. Let us all get inspired from his example. It is said, “all is well that ends well.” Maharaja demonstrated this saying to us as to how to end well in this world. May he inspire you all and may he, as a Vaishnava, always mercifully glance upon you all. While contemplating in this way, let us pray together,
vāñchā-kalpa-tarubhyaś ca kṛpā-sindhubhya eva ca
patitānāṁ pāvanebhyo vaiṣṇavebhyo namo namaḥ
I offer my respectful obeisances unto all the Vaiṣṇava devotees of the Lord. They are just like desire trees who can fulfill the desires of everyone. They are oceans of mercy and are the purifiers of the fallen souls. (Sri Vaishnava Pranama)
