Tamal Krishna Goswami Disappearance Day

Giriraj Swami: Hare Krishna. We have gathered to observe the disappearance day of His Divine Grace Tamal Krishna Goswami Maharaja, known affectionately and respectfully as Srila Gurudeva or to us godbrothers as Goswami Maharaja. Tamal Krishna Goswami was a powerful servant of Srila Prabhupada and an older brother to almost all of us in the Hare Krishna movement. Except for a few devotees, he was senior in years in the movement and in association with Srila Prabhupada. He was like an older brother in all respects.

There was a period when I was based in Mauritius and South Africa at a time when hardly any senior devotees were visiting. I felt deprived of senior association. I came to Dallas, and Tamal Krishna Goswami and I sat together on the floor carpet in his bedroom and discussed. He told me that with all of his association with Srila Prabhupada and with having received three initiations from him, all three initiations, first initiation, hari-nāma, second initiation - brahman initiation and sannyasa initiation, still he felt to have śikṣā-guru in his life. He named a list of devotees, godbrothers, whom he considered to be his śikṣā-gurus, including even me. Indirectly, I felt he was telling me the same thing, that I also needed śikṣā-gurus in my life. The next morning, while we were chanting japa in the temple room in Dallas, which was filled with the vibrations of many devotees chanting japa, I suddenly had a realization that Tamal Krishna Goswami should be my śikṣā-guru. Although I didn’t want to disturb his japa, I was so enlivened by my realization that I felt I just had to go up to him and tell him. He looked at me with his sort of knowing glance and nodded his head. Yes.

Tamal Krishna Goswami was not only an older brother and śikṣā-guru, and in my case also sannyasa guru, to his godbrothers, but he also felt himself to be dependent on them. Whenever he had a serious question or significant decision to make, he would call together his godbrothers, whoever was available, and discuss with them, put forward to them his question, and listen to their responses. Almost inevitably, whatever consensus of the godbrothers was, he would accept as Prabhupada or Krishna speaking to him.

So it is very appropriate on this occasion that Tamal Krishna Goswami’s very dear, devoted, and devout follower, Mohini Mala, has put together a collection of remembrances of Goswami Maharaja by his godbrothers as an offering for his disappearance day. Srila Prabhupada has explained that for a Vaishnava, appearance and disappearance are the same. He gave the example that both the sunrise and the sunset are beautiful. In the same way, the appearance and disappearance of a Vaishnava is also beautiful. Therefore, we don’t lament on the occasion of his disappearance, but we celebrate his continuation of his devotional service to Srila Prabhupada and Sri Sri Radha-Shyamasundara in the next place.

We who are left behind have the opportunity to remember him, offer our homage to him, celebrate his life in service and homage to him, and express our appreciation for all that he did for us, for Srila Prabhupada, and for so many fallen souls. I hope you will appreciate this offering put together by Mohini Madana of remembrances and realizations of Goswami Maharaja to godbrothers.

Hare Krishna.