When Śrīla Gurudeva left home in the fall of 1946 and joined the mission of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu at Devānanda Gauḍīya Maṭha, his family members were so distressed they abandoned all other pursuits and began to search for him in all directions. They searched for several months and employed agents to help them, all without result. In an effort to locate Gurudeva, his family consulted mystic tāntrikas, chanted specific mantras, and performed special Vedic ceremonies. When all their efforts proved fruitless, Paṇḍita Bāleśvaranātha and Lakṣmī-devī fell into despondency.
Paṇḍita Bāleśvaranātha had about a hundred acres of farmland. Grieving profusely in the wake of Gurudeva’s departure, the time to plant paddy had come and passed. The monsoon came and went with still no sign of Śrīman Nārāyaṇa. In the fall, Paṇḍita Bāleśvaranātha gave up his search and returned to Tiwārīpura. On the way, while contemplating how the families’ lives would continue without his beloved son, he suddenly remembered that he had not sown seeds in his fields and thus would have no crop that year. Despondent thoughts flooded his mind, “From every direction it seems as though we are lost. Before Nārāyaṇa left home, he would bring home his wages as a police officer, which supplemented the crops and maintained our large family. But now we have lost Nārāyaṇa, and we have also lost this year’s crops.”
Arriving back in Tiwārīpura, Paṇḍita Bāleśvaranātha checked on his fields and saw in astonishment that they were full of lush green paddy, bursting with better rice than previous years—ready for harvesting. He inquired from his neighbors how the crop had popped up; everyone he spoke with was amazed, yet denied responsibility.
Unknown to his family, Śrīla Gurudeva was presently in Devaghara, an isolated forest area near the border of Bengal and Bihar. Gurudeva’s service sometimes required him to travel by train to a farmer’s market in Josidihi, a nearby town. One day when he got off the train at Josidihi, Gurudeva saw his cousin Kedārnātha Tiwārī, who was a railway guard and had coincidentally stopped at the same station. Kedārnātha Tiwārī and Gurudeva had been good friends. Kedārnātha was overjoyed to run across his childhood friend and he warmly embraced Gurudeva. He asked about Gurudeva’s whereabouts, and being simple-hearted, Gurudeva told Kedārnātha where he was staying in Devaghara. Kedārnātha tried to convince Gurudeva to return home, at least for a brief visit, but Gurudeva declined. After a cordial conversation, Gurudeva proceeded with his intended service and then returned to Devaghara.
When Gurudeva departed, Kedārnātha Tiwārī proceeded directly to the communication office and addressed a telegram to Gurudeva’s family, explaining where he was. The next day, Gurudeva’s kith and kin arrived unexpectedly at the entrance of Ācārya Kesarī’s residence in Devaghara. His mother, father, siblings, spouse, and several others demanded the whereabouts of Śrīman Nārāyaṇa. They were directed to a room where Śrīla Gurudeva was lying in bed, ill and suffering from a fever. When they entered the room, they saw Gurudeva resting, covered with a white sheet.
Paṇḍita Tiwārī carefully pulled back the sheet and embraced his son with tear-filled eyes as Lakṣmī-devī beat her chest and wept, “My son! My son!” His siblings and parents attentively embraced Gurudeva and implored him to return home.
Gurudeva was firm in his resolve to remain with Ācāryadeva. He said, “I have surrendered my life at the lotus feet of Guru Mahārāja. I will not return.”
Cajoling him further, they said, “Look how sick you have become here. Please return home. We will take care of you there.” When Gurudeva would not yield in his conviction, his parents approached Ācārya Kesarī weeping and praying, “Please return our son.”
“I did not call him here,” Ācārya Kesarī said. “He came by his own free will. If you want to take him home, I have no objection.” The love of divine personalities transcends the temporary love found in this world. Knowing that Gurudeva would eventually return to the āśrama, Ācāryadeva gave him permission to return to his village. Śrīla Gurudeva’s family was overjoyed and took him home, feeling as if their life had returned.
On the way back to Tiwārīpura, Paṇḍita Bāleśvaranātha told Śrīla Gurudeva about the fields of rice that had mysteriously cropped up. They checked on the paddy when they arrived in Tiwārīpura. Amazed to see the bumper crop, Gurudeva said, “It is time for reaping the grain. I will start tomorrow.”
“Who planted the seed?” his father wondered. “We need to find out so we can share the crop with whoever it was.” But amidst the joyful celebration of his son’s return, Paṇḍita Tiwārī forgot all concerns.
The Tiwārīs commemorated Gurudeva’s homecoming by inviting the residents of Tiwārīpura and hosting a two-day festival. Paṇḍita Tiwārī and Lakṣmī-devī lavishly worshiped the family Deities, offering praise for the generosity and kindness of Lord Nārāyaṇa. A band played nostalgic tunes during the celebration while hundreds of guests from Tiwārīpura and nearby villages flooded the family compound to rejoice the return of the lost son.
Śrīla Gurudeva remained aloof and hardly ate. He neutrally interacted with his family and old friends, eagerly thinking of how he could return to his spiritual master. The first night back, he refused to enter the inner part of the home, and instead he stayed in a study room on the outer rim of the d.
Following the festival, Paṇḍita Bāleśvaranātha organized a meeting of prominent scholars, the family guru, respected people of Tiwārīpura and nearby villages, as well as Gurudeva’s close childhood friends, hoping to convince his son to practice his bhajana while remaining at home and caring for his wife, children, and family.
Paṇḍita Tiwārī requested Śrīla Gurudeva to attend the assembly. The scholars and leaders of the area then lectured him about dharma, saying that the duty of a son is to serve his parents as a pious householder. Parents serve and maintain their children from infancy to adulthood, hence the children are indebted to their parents and should repay the debt by serving them in their old age. The paṇḍitas cited many examples from the Bhāgavatam of religious householders who were great devotees of the Lord, such as the Pāṇḍavas, Bali Mahārāja, and Ambarish Mahārāja. They also spoke of many great sages and ascetics who had practiced austerities and meditation without leaving their wives and families. They said, “If you leave home, forsaking your family, daughters, and young wife, you will remain indebted to them and will incur great sin for causing them grief and hardship.”
Śrīla Gurudeva humbly replied by quoting the Bhāgavatam verse (11.5.41):
devarṣi-bhūtāpta-nṛṇāṁ pitṛṇāṁ na kiṅkaro nāyam ṛṇī ca rājan sarvātmanā yaḥ śaraṇaṁ śaraṇyaṁ gato mukundaṁ parihṛtya kartam
[O King, that person who has fully surrendered to Mukunda—the supreme shelter of all—is not indebted to the demigods, to ascetics, to the forefathers, to friends and relatives, or to any ordinary living being. He is the servant of Mukunda alone.]
Unable to challenge this quotation from scripture, the paṇḍitas changed tact and advised Gurudeva, “If you don’t want to be a householder, then you can remain at home as a celibate and serve God there. By observing celibacy you will become powerful like your paternal grandfather Gorakanatha who, while being very religious, also possesses great prowess. He can pull loaded carts out of the mud with his bare hands and can break apart two fighting bulls determined to kill each other.”
“The elephant is also strong,” Gurudeva replied, “but no amount of physical strength can help one attain the highest goal of life, pure devotion to God.”
Śrīla Gurudeva then quoted the Bhāgavatam verse (11.9.29):
labdhvā su-durlabham idaṁ bahu-sambhavānte mānuṣyam artha-dam anityam apīha dhīraḥ tūrṇaṁ yateta na pated anu-mṛtyu yāvan niḥśreyasāya viṣayaḥ khalu sarvataḥ syāt
[This human form is extremely rare and achieved after many births. Although gratification of the senses is available in any form of life, the human birth—despite its impermanence—alone provides a chance to attain the supreme goal of spiritual perfection. An intelligent person will therefore not delay even for a moment before death to endeavor for the ultimate auspiciousness.]
To this the paṇḍitas replied, “Who is to say you can’t perfect life here at home? Look at the example of Prahlāda Mahārāja. He had darśana of Bhagavān at home.”
“Prahlāda Mahārāja heard hari-kathā for sixty-thousand years from his spiritual master, Nārada Ṛṣi, the dear devotee of Lord Nārāyaṇa,” Śrīla Gurudeva said. “By this it is seen that the darśana of Bhagavān can only be attained by high-class sādhu-saṅga. Dhruva also saw Bhagavān after receiving the mercy of Nārada Ṛṣi. Hence I took shelter at the lotus feet of a liberated guru in the Brahmā-Madhva-Gauḍīya-sampradāya, which descends from Kṛṣṇa Himself to Brahmā, Nārada Ṛṣi, Vyāsadeva, Madhvācārya, Caitanya Mahāprabhu—down to the present day.”
A paṇḍita then requested Śrīla Gurudeva to describe what he knew of the philosophies of the different sampradāyas. Gurudeva explained the core philosophy of viśiṣṭādvaita-vāda, along with the philosophies of kevalādvaita-vāda, śuddhādvaita-vāda, dvaitavāda, and acintya-bhedābheda-tattva. He told the assembly that the kevalādvaita teaching of Śaṅkarācārya is the conception that the Absolute Truth, known as brahma, is impersonal and devoid of form and attributes, the soul is ultimately identical with brahma, and this world is illusory. According to Śrī Rāmānujācārya’s śuddhādvaita, the living entities and material cosmos are specialties of the Absolute Truth but eternally distinct from Him. Śrī Madhvācārya’s dvaitavāda declares that there are five eternal differences: (1) the difference between the eternal living entities and God, (2) between individual souls, (3) between God and matter, (4) between matter and matter, and (5) between matter and the living entities. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu appeared and harmonized the teachings of all these ācāryas into the perfect philosophy of the Absolute Truth—known as acintya-bhedābheda-tattva. On the basis of the Vedic scripture, Caitanya Mahāprabhu illuminated that Kṛṣṇa and Śrīmatī Rādhārānī together constitute the Absolute Truth. Kṛṣṇa and His Potency are inseparable, as heat and light cannot be separated from fire. Kṛṣṇa Himself does not transform into the living entities and material energy—His Potency performs this function. Thus, by the transformation of Kṛṣṇa’s inconceivable, inseparable Potency, everything is simultaneously one with and different from Him.
Gurudeva concluded, “The other philosophies are known as vāda, theories, while the acintya-bhedābheda-tattva philosophy is a conclusive truth, or tattva. All other conceptions are included within Mahāprabhu’s philosophy, as phases of the moon are within the full moon, and it is glorious by the predominance of pure devotion to Śrī Kṛṣṇa. This is the conception of my Guru Mahārāja.”
The majority of those who had intended to convince Gurudeva to remain at home were impressed by his knowledge, firm faith, and devotion. They told his parents they were lucky to have such an intelligent son and returned to their residences after honoring prasāda.
The family guru spoke with Paṇḍita Tīwarī in private, saying, “Bengalis have done some black magic on your son. You have to remove the spell, and then he will go back to normal.”
“Where is the black magic?”
“It is in two places: the pouch he puts his hand in to chant, and the three strands of Tulasī beads he wears around his neck. While he is sleeping, take his chanting beads and cut his neckbeads off. Take both and throw them in the Gaṅgā. Then Nārāyaṇa’s mind will be rectified.”
Paṇḍita Tīwarī held a secret family council to discuss how to alter Gurudeva’s renounced disposition. Although pleased he was home, they feared he would leave again. Paṇḍita Tīwarī said, “He has shaved his head and mustache. This signifies that his parents are deceased to him. Gurujī has said the Bengalis he was living with are powerful yogīs who used mystic power and black magic to influence him. Now he has come back, but surely a spell has been placed on him that will make him restless to leave. He is wearing three strands of Tulasī beads around his neck and chants on Tulasī beads in a cloth pouch. Gurujī says these contain a charm to bewilder him into subservience and we must cut them off while he sleeps.”
The family snuck into his room late at night, expecting him to be asleep, and sent his younger brother forward with a knife to cut off his beads. Śrīla Gurudeva habitually slept with his hands clasped around his beadbag on his chest and a cādara around his neck. His younger brother was perplexed and didn’t know how to proceed. He quietly crept to Śrīla Gurudeva’s bedside. It seemed like several minutes passed as he anxiously considered what to do next. Just then Śrīla Gurudeva’s eyes opened and their eyes met. Seeing his brother ready to cut off his beads, he angrily said, “If you cut off my Tulasī beads then I will cut my throat! Is that what you want?”
“No,” he replied in surprise. “You don’t understand. There is a charm on your beads, bewildering you. Please remove them so they don’t have control over you.”
“I am in my right mind,” Gurudeva said. “And I will never allow anyone to remove my Tulasī.”
This awkward moment did not prevent the family from attempting to carry out their plot. After two more unsuccessful attempts, Paṇḍita Tīwarī received insight. One night, while Paṇḍita Tīwarī was sleeping, he had a dream in which he heard an aerial voice, “Śrīman Nārāyaṇa is My pure devotee. He was born in this world solely to serve Me. I sent Mahā Lakṣmī to plant your crop while you were searching for your son so that there would be no shortage in your home. Now let Śrīman Nārāyaṇa do his bhajana without any disturbance.”
Paṇḍita Tīwarī then heard the verse his son had quoted the previous day:
devarṣi-bhūtāpta-nṛṇāṁ pitṛṇāṁ na kiṅkaro nāyam ṛṇī ca rājan sarvātmanā yaḥ śaraṇaṁ śaraṇyaṁ gato mukundaṁ parihṛtya kartam
“He who has fully surrendered to Me, Mukunda, is not indebted to any being. I compensate all his debts. What worry do you have? Your son has niṣkiñcana-bhakti for guru and Bhagavān. He is empowered with all good qualities, and those related to him will have no shortage of necessities. You did not even plant any grains and still everything has grown better than ever. So, what is your worry? Leave your son be.”
Paṇḍita Tīwarī awoke and went to his fields. He saw that the entire paddy crop had been reaped and stacked. He searched to find out who had done the work, but everyone was just as perplexed as he. The next day when he went out to begin separating the husk from the grain, he found the full crop had already been threshed and packed in bags and the stalks stacked neatly nearby. First he had wondered, “Who planted the paddy?” And now he thought, “Who planted, reaped, threshed, and sorted it all?”
His entire family had been absorbed in searching for the whereabouts of their beloved Śrīman Nārāyaṇa, and once he was found, they celebrated—neglecting the harvest. Miraculously, all the work had been done.
Śrīla Gurudeva spent his time at home eager to return to the āśrama of Śrīla Bhakti Prajñāna Keśava Gosvāmī Mahārāja. During the day, he spent most of the time in spiritual practices, and took his meals separately in his study room. He rose early everyday and went to the Gaṅgā. In the afternoons he taught school subjects to his younger siblings and also read them stories from scripture.
One afternoon in January 1948, his younger brother and sister came to him for their daily studies. Gurudeva said he was not feeling well and would not teach them that day. When his mother brought Gurudeva’s evening meal, he declined the prasāda. The next morning around nine, Paṇḍita Tiwārī sent his youngest son to check Gurudeva’s condition and see if he needed any help or medicine, for he had not risen to greet the family, and it was late. Gurudeva slept on a wooden cot lain with simple padding and a mosquito net hanging over the four corners. Entering the study room, the boy approached Gurudeva’s bed. Seeing blankets covering Śrīla Gurudeva’s body, the boy thought, “He must be really sick to cover his head.” Lifting the cover, he saw only straw filling. He dashed back to the house with the devastating announcement that Gurudeva was gone.
For many days, Gurudeva had been contemplating how to leave without disturbing his family. The previous night he had stuffed straw under his blankets and slipped out of the house unseen. He decided not to go to the local train station for fear that someone would recognize him and inform the family that he was leaving. Instead, he went through a dangerous forest that was inhabited by ferocious ghosts resembling buffaloes, bulls, and fierce beasts of prey. No one from the area would set foot in that forest at night. Wearing only a dhotī and a cādara and carrying his tulasī-mālā while incessantly chanting, Śrīla Gurudeva fearlessly crossed through the forest without event.
Arriving at a train station far from his village in the early morning, Gurudeva purchased a ticket for Navadvīpa; upon arrival he walked to Devānanda Gauḍīya Maṭha.
When Gurudeva left for the second time, his family became distraught and they travelled to Devaghara, hoping to find him there. Not finding Gurudeva, they sent out search parties to the Gauḍīya āśramas in Bengal and discovered their son was staying in Navadvīpa at Devānanda Gauḍīya Maṭha. Gurudeva’s parents visited him there and begged him to return; but he was determined to remain in Navadvīpa under the tutelage of Ācārya Kesarī. Seeing that he could not be swayed, his father requested him, “We have one last wish. Before we leave our bodies, please visit us one last time.”
Śrīla Gurudeva agreed, and with deep sadness his mother and father returned home, their last hope vanished. They had been defeated.
How could they convince Gurudeva to return when their fields were full of grain? If not for the inexplicable rice crop, there is no saying what the Tiwārīs would have done to bring Gurudeva back to the farm—for Biharis are known to be fiercely indignant and slow to pardon.
The Tiwārīs’ affairs carried on without difficulty, for it is said that Bhagavān engages 330 million demigods in the service of those who surrender everything to Him. The people of Tiwārīpura and neighboring villages were inspired by Bhagavān to selflessly assist the Tiwārīs with their fields and crops. Soon, Śrīla Gurudeva’s brothers were old enough to maintain the farm, and his sisters were married into respectable families. Gurudeva’s three daughters were reared successfully and also married into reputable families.
When Śrīla Gurudeva first left home, the people of Tiwārīpura were antagonistic and condemned him for leaving his family and young children. Years later they realized his glories and many seeked his counsel, eventually accepting harināma and dīkṣā from him. They realized Śrīla Gurudeva was not an ordinary person; rather, he was a liberated soul who had mercifully appeared in their village.
[Excerpted from the Bhakta Bandhav Publication “Sri Guru Darsana“]