Tapan Da at Radhakund
It is time again for the annual niyam seva for Kartik in Radhakund and the village fills up again with Bengali Vaishnavas for the month of intense bhakti practises. One of them is my senior Gurubrother Tapan Kumar Adhikary, who has moved his residence from Ranchi to Asansol recently and travelled here with Visvananda Avadhut. He is staying in Gadadhar Caitanya Mandir on the bank of Syamakund. He went on Giriraj parikrama alone yesterday and is visiting me now in my kutir at Lalita Kund.
I ask him why Baba worshipped Shiva as Gopesvara instead of Gopisvara. He tells me the story of how the gopis worshipped Katyayani Devi for a whole winter month, when they were just 6 years old and that Baba considered Gopesvara to be Krishna. He will ask the answer to that question to Kumkum Da when he meets him during the upcoming festival for Baba’s viraha. Baba said that Madan Gopal is spreading out His hand (as Laddu Gopal) because he begs for the loving gifts of His devotees, the gifts of prema seva. I ask him if I do not commit aparadha by preaching Baba’s glories – they are confidential and those who do not understand may criticise him. Baba himself was also averse to preaching. Tapan Da quotes Baba saying that the elephant will walk on even if the dogs may bark around him. He also says that the sisya can attract people to the Guru by his strong sadhana and preaching of raganuga bhakti, something which Krishna Di and Niranjan Babu both told me too, independently, more than 10 years ago. The flower spreads its sweet fragrance to the connoisseurs who are ready to appreciate it.
I ask if the story of Baba seeing the sadhus at night when he was deciding whether to marry or to stay celibate(see Satinath Datta’s hagiography of Sadhu Baba on madangopal. com) was a real story or a divine vision. Tapan Da says, as I expected, it was a divine vision. He says about the story that Baba was immersed in the Ganga while Jnana Da went shopping that it was Baba's own wish, so He could do his sadhana in peace.
Tapan Da tries to convince me to come with him to Navadwip, very embarrassing because I am so attached to Radhakund that I just want to stay here. I beg him and the didis forgiveness. Tapan Da tells me some surprising details about himself. He is only 52 years old, 3 years younger than me even, and joined in 1983, a year after me too. He is a brahmin from Katwa (Mau Gram), whose family has been worshipping Radha-Krishna vigraha for the last 300 years. His father, following kula-pratha (family tradition) took diksa from Ananda Gopal Goswami, so Tapan Da was not a newcomer to the family. He will get a pension at 60 and he will try to make a kutir at Radhakund at that time.
posted by advaitadas at
9:09 AM
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8 october in the evening I visit Tapan Da in his room in Gadadhar Caitanya Mandir. He says those who represent Baba are like Bharat who represented Ram in His absence. He also quotes Krishna's disappearance from and return to the Rasa lila. In other words, he predicts a reincarnation of Sadhu Baba after some time. He says the Gopi Gita was sung by all gopis simultaneously (billions of them).
9 october. Tapan Da is very innocent. He leaves his bag with the 501 Rs. I donated, his mobile phone and his own cash unprotected in his room, which he shares with others. People come and go there all the time. Syamasundar Pandit lectures one hour on Das Goswami because of his disappearance day.
15 october - roti, dal, subji, kheer, sandesh, dates and pomegranates - on one fire. humble offering on the 25th anniversary of sadhu baba's viraha. plus blessings by mobile phone from sadhu baba's ashram in nabadwip. Distributed sweets to Vaishnavas and gave daksina to Mathura brahmin in the evening. Then more cellphone blessings from Navadwip. At night the mosquitos got the smell of the sweets in my blood and kept me awake. Thus I missed Kunjabhanga kirtan. Anyone for the residue sweets?
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