Bhaktivinoda Thakura – Remembrances

Article: Bhaktivinoda Thakura – Remembrances of Śrīmad Bhakti Pradīpa Tīrtha Mahārāja

Overview

Śrīla Bhakti Pradīpa Tīrtha Mahārāja was a direct disciple of Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura. In Chapters 25 and 26 of Sarasvatī Jayaśrī, he shares some of his remembrances of Ṭhākura Bhaktivinoda, including his first meeting, his receiving the blessings of Gaura Kiśora Dāsa Bābājī, his initiation and some of the instructions he received from Bhaktivinoda.

by Śrīmad Bhakti Pradīpa Tīrtha Mahārāja

On the day of Phālguṇī Pūrṇimā, March 25th, 1910, corresponding to the 11th of Caitra in the Bengali year 1316, I travelled on foot from Dhubuliya Station to take darśana of Śrīdhāma Māyāpura—I was accompanied by Śrīyukta Vaikuṇṭhanātha Ghoṣāl Bhakti-tattva-vācaspati Mahāśaya, a scholar in the assembly of the king of Tripura. I had my first conversation with him at Chandpur and he introduced himself to me as a devotee of Śrīmad Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura by singing the glories of Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura and Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Prabhu.

I came to Śrī Yogapīṭḥa at Śrī Māyāpura on the birthday of Śrīman Mahāprabhu along with the said scholar. I saw that Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was sitting near Śrīman Mahāprabhu’s divine temple in Śrī Yogapīṭḥa. In his presence, there were illustrious personalities like Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Prabhupāda, and the renowned landlord Rai Yatindranath Chowdhury M.A., B.L., along with several other esteemed gentlemen.

They all listened attentively to the hari-kathā emanating from the divine mouth of Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura. Śrīyukta Vaikuṇṭhanātha Ghoṣāl introduced me to Mahāśaya Śrīla Ṭhākura. Both Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura and Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Prabhupāda showed me affection and kindness.

At that time, Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Prabhupāda was adorned with the great effulgence of a naiṣṭika-brahmacārī. His extraordinary divine influence deeply immersed me in reverence for his divine lotus feet and those of Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura.

I then fell at Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura’s divine feet, crying and weeping for His mercy. Śrīla Ṭhākura assured me, saying, “You are an educated and respected person, therefore, if you preach the words of Śrīman Mahāprabhu, many people will become attracted to them. You please speak some hari-kathā at this appearance festival of Mahāprabhu.”

At the behest of Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, I spoke a little in relation to brahmacarya, and I also said that the unparalleled brahmacārī, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Prabhupāda is following the conduct of Ṭhākura Hari Dāsa by chanting śrī-hari-nāma day and night and propagating the glories of śrī-nāma. As if inspired by someone’s grace I further expressed, “From Antardvīpa Śrī Māyāpura, the place of ātma-nivedana (self-surrender) the fulfilment of this prophetic message of Śrīman Mahāprabhu will be achieved.”

pṛthivī paryanta ācche yata deśa-grāma
sarvatra sañcāra haibe mora nāma

In every town and village of the world, the chanting of My Name will be heard. (Caitanya-bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 4.126)

Having heard my words, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Prabhupāda bestowed upon me his special grace and said, “Taking the instructions of Śrīmad Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, tomorrow please go to Kuliyā with the intention of taking darśana of the lotus feet of Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Śrīla Gaura Kiśora Dāsa Gosvāmī Mahārāja, who is an extraordinary personality and the best of paramahaṁsas.”

I followed the order of Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Prabhu and obtained permission from Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura to proceed. When I was preparing to go, the Ṭhākura instructed me to visit Svānanda Sukhada Kuñja the next day. When going to take darśana of that mahā–puruṣa, I purchased a watermelon and brought it with me. I went there and saw a mahātmā sitting in a small thatched hut. I came to him, offered daṇḍavat-praṇāmas and kept the watermelon nearby.

Even though I had heard that this mahātmā did not accept any material offerings from anyone, hearing that I had come from Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, he graciously accepted the fruit that I offered and cast his merciful glance upon me. Hearing that I had come on the instruction of Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Prabhu, Śrīla Gaura Kiśora Dāsa Gosvāmī Mahārāja ordered me to sing a song from Śrīla Narottama Ṭhākura’s Prārthanā. I sang the song from Ṭhākura Mahāśaya’s Prārthanā:

gaurāṅga balite habe pulaka śarīra
hari hari balite nayane ba’be nīra

After hearing the kīrtana, he gave me the following instruction, “Keep faith in the guru and the Vaiṣṇavas. Be as humble as straw and as tolerant as a tree, and always engage in śrī–nāma–kīrtana. With your body, mind and words, stay fawn away from bad association.”
I said, “I have not yet taken guru-padāśraya (shelter of the feet of a guru).”

Then he replied, “You have already taken darśana of Śrīmad Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura in Śrī Māyāpura. Śrī Māyāpura is the place of ātma-nivedana (surrendering the self). When you surrendered yourself at the feet of a genuine guru there, did you not take guru-padāśraya? Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura is waiting for you. Go! Accept his mercy!”

I have no words to express how deeply inspired I was upon hearing these words of Śrī Śrīmad Gaura Kiśora Dāsa Gosvāmī Mahārāja. I took leave of him, shaved my head in Kuliyā, took a bath in the Gaṅgā, and came to Śrīla Ṭhākura Bhaktivinoda in Godruma.

I forgot to say one thing – when Śrīla Gaura Kiśora Prabhu saw me, he said, “In the future you will have to take sannyāsa from a genuine guru and propagate the Name of Mahāprabhu from country to country and from village to village.” Saying this, he blessed me abundantly. I offered obeisance and touched his divine lotus feet and he did not object. However, I had heard that if anyone touched his feet, he would display his līlā of wrath and declare, “You will be completely destroyed! You will be utterly ruined!”

I received the mercy of Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Śrīmad Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura in Śrī Godruma. He bestowed the kāma-bīja and kāma-gāyatrī upon me. Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura’s disciple, Śrīyukta Kalyāṇa-kalpataru Dāsa Brahmacārī (Śrī Kumudkanta Bhaumik) was present at the kuñja of Śrī Godruma. He gave me the Ṭhākura’s food remnants. A short while later, the respected landlord Śrīyukta Rai Yatindranath Chowdhury, M.A., B.L., also arrived at Godruma and was present with Śrīla Ṭhākura.

At around two o’clock, Śrīla Ṭhākura Bhaktivinoda explained the Śikṣāṣṭaka. In the evening, Śrīpāda Kṛṣṇa Dāsa Bābājī Mahāśaya, the loyal disciple and servant of the Ṭhākura, began reciting Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta on the order of the Ṭhākura. Eventually, the Ṭhākura explained it and gave us a fundamental understanding of the teachings to Śrī Sanātana.

A few days later, during the summer break, I visited Bhakti Bhavan in Calcutta for the second time and had the opportunity to have darśana of the divine feet of Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Śrī Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, and along with the Ṭhākura, I again visited Godruma. Every morning, Śrīla Ṭhākura told myself and Śrīpāda Kṛṣṇa Dāsa Bābājī Mahāśaya:

(1)
nadīyā-godrume nityānanda mahājana

pātiyāche nāma-haṭṭa jīvera kāraṇa

In Nadīyā, at Godruma, that great personality Nityānanda has opened a marketplace of the Holy Name for delivering the jīvas.

(2)
(śraddhāvān jana he, śraddhāvān jana he)

prabhura ājñāya, bhāi, māgi ei bhikṣā

bala `kṛṣṇa,’ bhajo kṛṣṇa, kara kṛṣṇa-śikṣa

O people with faith! O people with faith! O brothers, by the order of the Lord, I beg this favour – Chant “Kṛṣṇa,” worship Kṛṣṇa, and follow Kṛṣṇa’s teachings.

(3)
aparādha-śūnya ha’ye laha kṛṣṇa-nāma
kṛṣṇa mātā, kṛṣṇa pitā, kṛṣṇa dhana-prāṇa

Being free of offences, take up the Holy Name of Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is your mother, Kṛṣṇa is your father, and Kṛṣṇa is the wealth of your life.

(4)
kṛṣṇera saṁsāra kara chāḍi’ anācāra

jīve dayā, kṛṣṇa-nāma sarva-dharma-sāra

Abandon unrighteous activities and perform your worldly duties in relation to Kṛṣṇa. Show compassion to other jīvas and chant kṛṣṇa-nāma – that is the essence of all dharma.

Singing this kīrtana, he would patrol the four directions of the holy dhāma and instruct everyone to engage in hari-kathā and kīrtana. Every day from 1 PM to 4 PM, there was continuous reading of Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, followed by the chanting of this Pañca-Tattva śrī-nāma-saṅkīrtana:

śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu-nityānanda
śrī-ādvaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi gaura-bhakta-vṛnda

Ṭhākura Śrīla Bhaktivinoda would clap his hands and dance ecstatically, spinning around and around, as his voice faltered with divine ecstasy. These kīrtanas and dances occurred on the upper floor of Svānanda Sukhada Kuñja. Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Srila Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura came there and bestowed his mercy through various instructions. Sarasvatī Prabhu’s devotional conclusions and simple, unparalleled erudition immediately fascinated me.

During the time I stayed in Śrī Godruma, I directly observed that if anyone spoke any gossip or rumours downstairs, the Ṭhākura would immediately admonish them, with a voice as deep as thunder, saying, “Abandon prajalpa! Speak kṛṣna-kathā! Let there only be the sound of Kṛṣna everywhere!”

The Ṭhākura did not appreciate prajalpa in the least. Nāma-saṅkīrtana is the dharma for Kali-yuga – he would speak a great deal on this subject, saying, asat-saṅge kakhana-u nāma haya na (‘The Name does not manifest in bad association’). He always used to quote this verse from Śrī Jagadānanda’s Prema Vivarta:

asādhu-saṅgete bhāi nāma nāhi haya
nāmākṣara bāhirāya baṭe nāma kabhu naya

O brother, the Name does not manifest in bad association. The external syllables may be there, but the Name is absent. (Prema Vivarta 7.1)

Especially, the Ṭhākura used to mention to us how Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Prabhupāda was the standard. “Look, Sarasvatī has shown the ideal by renouncing all types of bad association and is engaged in exclusive śrī-nāma-bhajana in Śrī Māyāpura, free from the ten offences. You please follow his example.”

Ṭhākura Bhaktivinoda also said, “Kṛṣna-prema is not attained unless one chants śrī-nāma without offences. The result of chanting the Name with offences is dharma, artha and kāma. Otherwise, it will be adharma, anartha and unfulfilled desires. Sarasvatī has realised all these things, thus, the example of cultivating śrī-rūpānuga-nāma-bhajana without deviation can be exclusively seen in him. May all of you follow his example and engage in the service of śrī-nāma and śrī–dhāma.”

At that time, Śrīla Gaura Kiśora Prabhu resided in a small thatched hut within the nāta-mandira of the Baḍa Ākhāḍā in Kuliyā, Navadvīpa. One day during my stay in Śrī Godruma, on the order of the Ṭhākura, I went to Kuliyā-Navadvīpa with Śrīpāda Kṛṣṇa Dāsa Bābājī Mahāśaya to take darśana of the holy feet of Śrīla Gaura Kiśora Dāsa Gosvāmī Mahārāja. On hearing that I had received the mercy of Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, Śrīla Gaura Kiśora Prabhu expressed great joy and said, “You will always be in the company of Sarasvatī.

He is my Gurudeva and an ideal Vaiṣṇava. Just see – despite being the son of a king, he displays the ideal of renunciation. Giving up all types of bad association, he has taken shelter of Śrīdhāma Māyāpura and is engaged in exclusive nāma-sevā. His renunciation is incomparable. He is the intimate associate of Śrī Rūpa-Sanātana and My Mahāprabhu. You should always engage in serving the Vaiṣṇavas and nāma–saṅkīrtana. Always do loud kīrtana!”

A few days later, I came to Bhakti Bhavan in Calcutta from Śrī Godruma, accompanying Śrīla Ṭhākura. There, I had the opportunity to directly meet with Śrīla Ṭhākura’s disciple, Śrī Vasanta Kumar Ghosh Bhaktyāśrama, along with the author, Śrī Manmath Ray. They were both my classmates—when Śrīla Ṭhākura heard about this, he was very pleased. When I came to Calcutta with Śrīla Ṭhākura, one day he summoned Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Prabhu and entrusted him with the responsibility of my upanayana-saṁskāra. 

As ordered by Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, Śrī Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Prabhu performed my upanayana-saṁskāra initiation according to the method given in the prayoga-paddhati, Sat-kriyā-sāra Dīpikā written by Śrīla Gopāla Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī Prabhu, and along with that, with the permission of Śrīla Ṭhākura himself, he imparted the Brahma-Gāyatrī, Guru-Gāyatrī, and Gaurāṅga-Gāyatrī mantras. My classmate and godbrother, Śrīyukta Vasant Bābu and Manmath Bābu were previously instructed by the Ṭhākura to receive initiation from Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Prabhu.

Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura had been telling me for a long time that Siddhānta Sarasvatī Prabhu had come to this world in order to propagate the teachings of daiva-varṇāśrama-dharma and to establish a pure Vaiṣṇava society, emphasising the dissemination of śuddha-nāma throughout the Vaiṣṇava world. In these two tasks, he bore the responsibility of Gaurasundara. I could not fully understand all these words of Śrīla Ṭhākura at that time.

I had read Śrī Caitanya Śikṣāmṛta many times, and heard many talks about daiva-varṇāśrama-dharma from the holy lips of the Ṭhākura, but I could not understand it completely. Later, I saw the words of my guru reflected in the conduct of Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Prabhu during his preaching pastimes. At that moment, the teachings of the śāstra, Śrī Caitanya Śikṣāmṛta were harmoniously established in my heart.

Just as the Ṭhākura instructed Śrīyuta Vasanta Bābu, Manmath Bābu and myself to undergo paramārthika-vipratva (becoming a spiritual brāhmaṇa) – in other words, instructing us to accept upanayana-saṁskāra which is a division of dīkṣā indicating one’s identification as a servant of the paramahaṁsa-guru where one is as humble as a blade of grass – similarly, he instructed the same for Bhakti Tīrtha Mahāśaya of Sāuḍī. However, we do not know why he was absent on the day of receiving that saṁskāra, and instead favoured imitating the paramahaṁsa-līlā of Śrī Gurudeva.

On that day, Bhaktivinoda Prabhu gave me many teachings regarding the necessity of following daiva-varṇāśrama-dharma. He ordered me to take further advice about this from Śrīla Sarasvatī Ṭhākura in future.

In Bhakti Bhavan, I read Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta for many days; Śrīmad Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura provided explanations. Each day, at the time of reading Śrī Caritāmṛta, wonderful bhāvas would arise in the Ṭhākura. Some days, he would become overwhelmed with emotion and would cry out aloud, without any concern for public opinion. Sometimes he would call out piteously.

Sometimes he would sing, sometimes he would burst into loud laughter, and at times, he would even dance. In this way, one day he demonstrated his compassion by embracing even a fallen soul like me. At this time, the aṣṭa-sattvika-vikāras (eight ecstatic bodily transformations) could be observed in the Ṭhākura. However, he did not give indulgence to the artificiality of the sahajiyās.

Most of the time, he loved to reside in Godruma and when someone criticised living in Śrī Godruma, he would display intense anger. As I have seen him in Bhakti Bhavan, he would chant hari-nāma loudly from 5 in the afternoon until 8 at night. He continued this practice in Godruma also. Every morning, Śrīla Ṭhākura Bhaktivinoda would take darśana of the temple in Śrīdhāma Māyāpura from the rooftop of Svānanda Sukhada Kuñja, offering his daṇḍavat–praṇāmas, and he asked us to do the same.

In Śrī Puruṣottama Kṣetra, in a small room on the second floor of Bhakti Kuṭīra, Śrīla Ṭhākura Bhaktivinoda would sit facing Śrīla Hari Dāsa Ṭhākura’s samādhi, loudly chanting nāma-kīrtana from midnight until 4 in the morning. People from various kinds of Vaiṣṇava apa-sampradāyas heard about the greatness of the Ṭhākura and would come to take his darśana. The Thākura would not discuss hari–kathā with them – he would give them a high seat and some recognition, then bid them farewell. Many times, I heard the Ṭhākura explain this instruction:

vaiṣṇava-caritra, sarvadā pavitra
yei nindā hiṁsā kari
bhakativinoda nā sambhāṣe tāre
thāke sadā mauna dhari

The character of a Vaiṣṇava is always pure. Bhaktivinoda refuses to speak with one who criticises or harms a Vaiṣṇava. He will always remain silent in their association. (Kalyāṇa Kalpataru)

The Ṭhākura used to say to all, whether they were brahmacārīs or gṛhasthas, “Be careful in dealing with sense objects, always considering yourself a servant of Kṛṣṇa or a disciple of the guru.” In such circumstances, he would often say, “Siddhanta Sarasvatī is the ideal in this matter; observe his character.”

Ṭhākura Bhaktivinoda instructed us to completely avoid artificial nirjana-bhajana (chanting in seclusion). He said, “Rejecting bad association and engaging in sincere hari-bhajana in the association of sādhus – that is real nirjana-bhajana.” He himself vigorously engaged in loud nāma-saṅkīrtana, regularly wrote books on bhakti, gave explanations on such books, and instructed everyone to propagate śrī-nāma by wandering everywhere in the form of nāma–haṭṭa (the marketplace of the Holy Name).

Many times, he mentioned the name of Śrīla Bhaktisiddhāṇta Sarasvatī Prabhu as the ideal example of a sincere chanter of śuddha-nāma, and he advised us to stay far away from apa-sampradāyas such as the āulas, bāulas etc, and always told us to take the company of Śrīla Sarasvatī Ṭhākura. He also said, “Always keep a distance from the association of those persons who are averse to Hari, because if a sādhaka-jīva is infected by their wicked disease in some form or another, the hope of having a healthy ātmā is extremely remote.”

We would often hear him explain his self-composition, the Daśa–mūla and would say, “To relish hari-rasa with the transcendental associates of Hari is the only duty of the jīva.”

He had no appreciation for the mood of a-rādhā-govinda, in other words that literature which did not include Vṛṣabhānu-nandinī with Govinda. Sometimes, he would impart various instructions to us based on the ślokas of his Sva-niyama Dvādaśakam. Hearing talks about Vṛṣabhānu-nandinī, he wept aloud. In this regard, I always see that Śrī Varṣabhānavī Dayita Dāsa is just like Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Ṭhākura Bhaktivinoda.

He cherished Śrīmatī Varṣabhānavī’s wealth of service in the deepest recesses of his heart, preserving it as the most confidential and profound object of his affection – so much so, that he could not even utter the Name of Vṛṣabhānu-nandinī aloud. One day he said to me, “The day you can understand this teaching of Śaraṇāgati – ‘āmi ta’ svānanda-sukhada-vāsī’ (‘I am a resident of Svānanda Sukhada Kuñja’), on that day your ultimate auspiciousness will be attained.”

I have never seen Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura approve of any kind of mundane conception towards Sarasvatī Prabhu even for a moment, and in body, mind or word, I have never seen Sarasvatī Prabhu express any kind of mundane conception towards Śrīla Ṭhākura at any time either. Whenever I have had the opportunity to see the divine feet of Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, each time I heard from his divine mouth that a pure Vaiṣṇava such as Sarasvatī Prabhu is rare in this world.

Before receiving the association of Śrī Śrīla Prabhupāda, by reading Śrī Caitanya-bhāgavata and Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, the divine forms of the associates sent by Śrī Gaura that were drawn on the canvass of my mind only attained perfection by having darśana of the divine molten-gold complexioned figure of Śrīla Prabhupāda, who was a naiṣṭhika-brahmacārī at that time, who was an eternal resident of the holy dhāma, engaged in śrī-nāma-bhajana.

From the year 1910 to 1914, every summer and Śāradīya Pūjā vacation, I used to take darśana of the divine lotus feet of Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Śrī Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura at Bhakti Bhavan, and during those times, I also received the darśana of the divine feet of Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Srila Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura.

In the assembly at Balighai, some persons nurtured a sense of caste superiority and fostered animosity towards the main guru-varga, especially towards Śrīla Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī Prabhu – the lion-like Śrīla Sarasvatī manifested a resplendent divine form, and with a thunderous voice, chastised all those offenders who were like intoxicated elephants. Witnessing this, we were left astonished. Observing this deliberation of Śrī Śrīla Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, Śrīmad Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura told us that only Śrī Śrīla Sarasvatī Prabhu could preserve the Vaiṣṇava dharma propagated by Śrīman Mahāprabhu.

As long as I stayed at Bhakti Bhavan, the Ṭhākura would always say, “Never associate with the unrighteous—never engage in prajalpa! Always remember the verse utsāhān niścayād dhairyāt from Śrī Upadeśāmṛta. Always chant the hari-nāma loudly in the association of sādhus.” During my time at Bhakti Bhavan, I often heard Śrīla Ṭhākura speak about Śrī Śrī Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Prabhu. Śrīla Sarasvatī Prabhu used to stay at Vrajapattana in Śrī Māyāpura. Śrīla Ṭhākura did not express interest in meeting just anyone, but he was often occupied with the desire to see Śrīmad Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Prabhu. He would say, “Write him a letter and bring him here.”

In the evening of June 23, 1914, the day of the manifestation of Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Srila Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura’s aprākṛta-līlā, I had the opportunity to have darśana of the divine feet of Śrīla Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, immediately after he arrived from Śrīdhāma Māyāpura to Bhakti Bhavan.

Śrīla Prabhupāda chanted the virtues of Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura that day at Bhakti Bhavan till late at night. At that time, Prabhupāda rejected the period of contamination as stipulated by the followers of karma-jaḍa-smārta (the smārta brāhmaṇas who follow materialistic karma) as well as such ceremonies as preta-śrāddha (offerings to the ghosts) that are all in opposition to pure Vaiṣṇava conduct – he had us listen to the instructions from the sātvata-smṛti, the best of compositions, such as Śrī Śrī Hari-bhakti-vilāsa and Sat-kriyā-sāra Dīpikā which are based upon proper conduct.