VIRAHA ASTAKA

[Guest guest]

VIRAHA ASTAKA

Eight Prayers in Separation From My Spiritual Master by His Divine Grace A.C.

Bhaktivedanta Swami PrabhupadaDecember 1958 recently translated and published

from the Bengali into English by Dasaratha-suta dasa.First OctetThe Flood of

Krsna Prema1)O Srila Prabhupada! You personally suffer to see the suffering of

the fallen conditioned souls.On this anniversary of your separation I am

utterly despondent.

2) "The ocean of mercy was previously held back by a dam, but Lord Nityananda

personally cut a channel in itand thereby released the outpouring flood of pure

ecstatic love of God. " ( from Locana's dasa's song Nitai Guna mani)3) Those

devotees to whom the responsiblity was given to continue spreading this flood

of lovesomehow became overpowered by Maya and were thus reduced to simply

performingritualistic Hindu ceremonies for the benefit of the materialists.4)

Lord Nityananda's inundation of prema was thus completely stopped by those

known as jati-gosai (caste gosvamis) But then you personally came, O Master to

open wide the floodgates once again.5) Again you engulfed everyone in the

deluge of pure divine love- even such a low, wretched, fallenand sinful soul as

myself.6) On the strength of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu's command you sent all of

your servants as spiritual masters, going from door to door, just to deliver

the fallen souls.7) The devotees were enthusiastically preaching everywhere-

from the oceans to the Himalaya mountains,But now that you have gone from our

midst everything today has become very dark.8)O Srila Prabhupada! You

personally suffer to see the suffering of the fallen conditioned souls.On this

day of your separation I am utterly despondent.Second OctetThe Merciful Flood

Has Been Stopped1) Just as Advaita Prabhu had prayed fervently and thus induced

Sri Gauranga to descend, so did your father, Bhaktivinoda Thakura, pray for you

to incarnate.2) Due to Bhaktivinoda's eagerness, O Master, you came and

proclaimed to everyone that India is the most holy landof the Lord's divine

pastimes.3) "One who has taken birth in this land of Bharata-bhumi (India)

should first make his own life successful and then work for the benefit of all

other people" (C.C Adi 9.41)4) This is the most significant message of Lord

Caitanya that you boldly preached everywhere.But now in your absence, O Master,

everything has fallen into darkness.5) The overflowing ocean of your compassion

has once again been dammed up.This makes me feel as if a spear of great misery

has indeed pierced my heart.6) Without Caitanya Mahaprabhu's message being

spread there is only confusion and upheaval in the movement.Seeing this

situation, all the Vaisnavas are also feeling overwhelmed with the pangs of

your separation.7) The spirit souls have once again been captured by Maya and

plunged into absolute darkness.Desperately searching for relief, they are

simply perishing in a fathomless ocean of anxiety.8)O Srila Prabhupada! You

personally suffer to see the suffering of the fallen conditioned souls.On this

day of your separation I am utterly despondent.Third Octet

Practical Chanting and Preaching

1) You instructed everyone you met to chant the holy name of Lord Krsna.You

showed the example of continually reciting the maha-mantra into their ears.2)

You empowered everyone with the qualification to further distribute that holy

nameBut now, by the influence of Maya, there is only darkness on all sides.3)

The souls who are truly attached to worshiping the Lord always sing and dance

in joyful sankirtana.Following in the footsteps of their spiritual master, they

deliver the whole world.4) But those who have no such qualification perform

nirjana bhajana or so-called confidential worship in a solitary place. Thus

acting whimsically, all of them actually remain absorbed in personal sense

gratification.5)[As stated in the Srimad Bhagavatam 10,33,30]:"An ordinary soul

should never imitate the activities of the Supreme Lord, even in his

mind."According to these instructions in devotional service, the unqualified

imitators are ruined.6) You preached "utility is the principle"- that is, one

should act without attachmentand use anything that is deemed appropriate in the

devotional service of the Lord.7) In such detached devotional service to Lord

Krsna there would be a temple established in every houseBut now just the

opposite situation is apparent everywhere.8)O Srila Prabhupada! You personally

suffer to see the suffering of the fallen conditioned souls.On this day of your

separation I am utterly despondent.Fourth OctetThe Essential Purport Neglected1)

Everything regarding material prosperity as well as mystic perfection is fully

present in your transcendental message:"Because the residents of Vraja have

life, therefore they engage in preaching work." (Dusta Mana verse)2) The

"resolute intelligence" ("vyavasayatmika buddhi") explained by Srila Visvanatha

Cakravarti[in his commentary to Bhagavad Gita 2.41] is now spoiled since your

disciples have become ensnaredin the bewildering noose of Maya.3) Those

disciples who were irresolute in performing devotional service according to

your instructionshave now divided your mission in many factions.It appears that

the tigress of ambition for material names and fame has appeared and personally

provoked this upheaval.4) The essential purport of your message obviously did

not enter their ears. O where will I get the strength to perform this

hari-nama-sankirtana? 5) To chant the holy name of the Lord is the explicit

command of my worshipful spiritual master. I could never honestly neglect that

order 6) Your greatest acclaim is that you propagated the topmost religious

culture Anyone who accepts the holy name from you becomes spiritually

qualified. 7) If all those who attained this qualification were to go out and

make disciples then the miserable conditioned souls would all be delivered

from this world of birth and death. 8)O Srila Prabhupada! You personally suffer

to see the suffering of the fallen conditioned souls. On this day of your

separation I am utterly despondent.

 

Fifth Octet

The Disciple's Empowerment is Lost 1) The greatest mantra of all, consisting of

thirty-two letters, is: Hare Krsna Hare Krsna Krsna Krsna Hare Hare Hare Rama

Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare People who are possessed by gross foolishness

refuse to chant it. 2) Your so-called disciple, the jackal named Ananta

Vasudeva, disobeyed your final instructions to keep the mission united, and

thereby created a scandalous fiasco. The result of this philosophical deviation

is evident to this day as imitative sahajiyas are being worshiped as gurus in

your temples. 3) Is there a single temple to be found where your instructions

are still being followed? As it is said: "punar musiko bhava"- Everyone has

"again become a mouse." 4) The lion's food has been stolen away by the

deceptive tricks of the jackal Now caught in Maya's mighty clutches everyone

is reduced to wailing and weeping. 5) O Master! If your are merciful to us one

again, then even though we are trapped here on the shores of the ocean of

death, we will finally behold a change for the better. 6) Then once again we

can blissfully remember the holy name of Krsna, and once again we will have

firm faith in your "Vaikuntha messages." 7) Once again you will make us dance

in the pure holy name of Krsna. thus you will personally dispel all this

confusion caused by Maya. 8)O Srila Prabhupada! You personally suffer to see

the suffering of the fallen conditioned souls. On this day of your separation I

am utterly despondent. Sixth Octet The Preaching Mission is Scattered 1)

"Continue dancing, singing and performing sankirtana in the association of

devotees." ( C.C. Adi 7.92) These words spoken by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu are

especially nectarine. 2) If we have complete faith in these instructions given

by you, our spiritual master, then in the performance of sankirtana actual love

for Krsna will be aroused in us. 3) Without love of God, our tiny intelligence

only becomes entangled in the network of Maya's delusions Because no one

actually attained prema, now there has been great upheaval in your mission. 4)

The whole world has become filled with impersonalists, and the Vaisnavas have

given up the work of preaching that was entrusted unto them and have simply

gone off to perform solitary worship. 5)The Vaisnava's were famous as "patita

pavana" ( deliverers of the fallen) but now this title has fallen into

disgrace. Countless numbers of your disciples have been forced to leave your

movement. 6) At such an inauspicious time, O Master, what can be done to repair

the damage that is done? The beautiful garden that you had so carefully planted

is now parched and withered away. 7) O Master, please awaken some good

intelligence in this insignificant disciple of yours so that my firm faith in

your transcendental message may increase more and more. 8) O Srila Prabhupada!

You personally suffer to see the suffering of the fallen conditioned souls. On

this day of your separation I am utterly despondent.

 

 

 

 

 

Seventh Octet

Distributing the Pure Devotional Process 1) The most magnanimous incarnation of

the Lord is Sri Krsna Caitanya. Distributing the process of attaining love of

God by chanting the holy names of Krsna, He thus blessed the entire universe.

2)O Master, you are the personification of the transcendental message of Lord

Caitanya. You are the distributor of that message to every town and village.

3)You sent your devotees to preach in the faraway lands of the Western

countries, and you personally traveled all over India, even to the South. 4)

You preached the pure philosophy of Lord Gauranga in such a way that

intelligent persons could understand. And you showed such great concern, O

Master, in convincing all you adversaries!

5) Lord Gauranga used many tricks just to engage the conditioned souls in

devotional service, and you have also understood how to use all those tricks

perfectly well. 6) You understood time, place and circumstance, and utilized

everything as a strategy for preaching. Although observing your activities with

their very eyes. those who are blind like owls and other creatures of the night

could not see your true purpose. 7)What will the Auls and the Sahajiyas and the

other nonsense groups ever understand? And what will the sheep-like common

people or dry logicians ever understand? 8) O Srila Prabhupada! You personally

suffer to see the suffering of the fallen conditioned souls. On this day of

your separation I am utterly despondent. Eighth Octet If Only You would Come

Again 1)Lord Caitanya's method of devotional service is not performed in

solitude. You preached this again and again to your own devotees. 2)Just as the

Lord delivered Jagai and Madhai out of His own causeless mercy, you explained to

everyone that this same method of preaching work has to go on. 3) The world has

now filled up with many Jagais and Madhais to deliver. Everyone is anxiously

looking down the road waiting for Caitanya-Nitai to come to their rescue. 4)

If, at such a time as this, you were to personally return to this world and

once more preach about all these things the way you always used to do. 5) If

there were enthusiastic preaching activities again taking place in every

direction, then all the people as before would be stirred up in blissful

excitement. 6) Your profound shouting would cause the demons and atheists to

flee, and your narrations of Lord Caitanya's message would fill the hearts of

the innocent souls. 7) Again the whole world would be excitedly bustling with

good tidings; but as it is, in your absence now there is nothing of value

anywhere. 8) O Srila Prabhupada! You personally suffer to see the suffering of

the fallen conditioned souls. On this day of your separation I am utterly

despondent. 9) O Master! My heart is broken in your absence. This disciple

named Abhay has hereby revealed only a small token of his wretched agony of

separation.To from this group, send an email

to:vaisnava_synodYour use of is

subject to the