Life Sucks, but you can still laugh about it: 2025 January 18th Saturday @ Nabadwip

An initial note - My maternal Grandmother Smt. Sadhana Guha and later, my Uncle Sri Jyoti Bhushan Ghosh Dastidar introduced me to Gaudiya Vaishnavism. That understanding or appreciation, sadly has remained dormant and has not evolved over the years. There is still time for me to read and understand the scriptures

Moving onto current times ... Since returning to Kolkata in 2017, it has been a desire to go and visit my Grandmother's Guru bari at Nabadwip.

I was reasonably close to my Grandmother, and in August 1996, i had accompanied my Grandmother to Nabadwip. She and i spent a few days there at her Guru bari. This was the time when i had left my job in preparation for then next phase of my life, had returned back home in Kolkata and had a few months in hand before the commencement of my MBA at London.

Making the short sojourn to Nabadwip was the right thing to do, a better use of my time rather than simply whiling it away.

Sadly, my grandmother passed away in September 1997 and now, looking back, that visit in 1996, travelling to Nabadwip with her remains a highlight of my life.

My next visit to Nabadwip was in 2007. We travelled in a car as a family, my mother, the wife and the daughters. My mashi was accompanying us. It was a short visit, and we do have fond memories of meeting Prabhupad Madan Mohon, the son of my grandmother's guru. Prabhupad Madan Mohon passed away within a year or two, and with his passing the visits to Nabadwip whittled down.

This page captures our recent Nabadwip experiences, 18 years after our last visit

One has to cross the Jalangi and the Bhagirathi (Ganges) river to get to Nabadwip from Mayapur. The point at which both rivers meet is discernable - in part due to the different colours of the river waters

My grandmother's Guru - Sri Prabhupad Jadugopal Goswami

The lineage of Prabhupads starting from Srimon Nityananda Prabhu to my grandmother's guru Prabhupad Jadugopal Goswami encompasses 12 generations.

Sri Prabhupad Jadugopal Goswami had had also been my maternal Grandfather's guru. Essentially my Dadu and Dida were given diksha by the same guru.

My dadu, Sri Sisir Gopal Guha Thakurta was a successful entrepreneur. Though God fearing, he was not overtly religious. Until the time Sri Prabhupad Jadugopal Goswami came looking for my grandfather, and arrived at his Burrabazar store. After conversing with Prabhupad, my grandfather found a certain amount of peace and solace. At that point in time my grandfather was going through a phase in his life when a few of his business endeavours had floundered. A loss of 3 lakhs rupees in the making of a movie, this in the early 1950s, was hard for him to bear. The association with a Guru helped him regain strength and purpose.

But why had Prabhupad Jadugopal Goswami gone seeking Sisir Gopal Guha Thakurta?

How was Prabhbupad even aware of him?

for this we need to go back a few more decades back in time ...

My maternal great grandfather Sri Sudhendu Nath Guha Thakurta, when in Dhaka, had become a shishya of Prabhupad Pran Gopal Goswami. Prabhupad Pran Gopal Goswami was the father of Prabhupad Jadugopal Goswami. It was only natural for Prabhupad Pran Gopal's son, Prabhupad Jadu Gopal Goswami to seek out Sri Sudhendu Nath Guha Thakurta's son, Sri Sisir Gopal Guha Thakurta.

It may not seem so now, but my mamarbari association with the family of Prabhupad Pran Gopal Goswami from the time of Sri Sudhendu Nath Guha Thakurta has spanned almost a century.

(2025/1/21)