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Great Vaisnava devotee

Srimad-Bhagavatam

SB Canto 4

Because Pṛthu Mahārāja was an empowered incarnation of Lord Viṣṇu and was naturally a great Vaiṣṇava devotee of the Lord, all the demigods were pleased with him and presented different gifts to help him in exercising his royal power, and the great sages and saintly persons also joined in his coronation.
SB 4.21.9, Translation and Purport:

Vidura said: My dear brāhmaṇa Maitreya, it is very enlightening to understand that King Pṛthu was enthroned by the great sages and brāhmaṇas. All the demigods presented him with innumerable gifts, and he also expanded his influence upon personally receiving strength from Lord Viṣṇu. Thus he greatly developed the earth.

Because Pṛthu Mahārāja was an empowered incarnation of Lord Viṣṇu and was naturally a great Vaiṣṇava devotee of the Lord, all the demigods were pleased with him and presented different gifts to help him in exercising his royal power, and the great sages and saintly persons also joined in his coronation. Thus blessed by them, he ruled over the earth and exploited its resources for the greatest satisfaction of the people in general. This has already been explained in the previous chapters regarding the activities of King Pṛthu. As will be apparent from the next verse, every executive head of state should follow in the footsteps of Mahārāja Pṛthu in ruling over his kingdom. Regardless of whether the chief executive is a king or president, or whether the government is monarchical or democratic, this process is so perfect that if it is followed, everyone will become happy, and thus it will be very easy for all to execute devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta

CC Adi-lila

Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī was a great Vaiṣṇava devotee of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu, but Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī, the head of the Māyāvādī sannyāsīs in Benares, was a different person.
CC Adi 7.149, Translation and Purport:

From that moment when the Māyāvādī sannyāsīs heard the explanation of the Vedānta-sūtra from the Lord, their minds changed, and on the instruction of Caitanya Mahāprabhu, they too chanted "Kṛṣṇa! Kṛṣṇa!" always.

In this connection it may be mentioned that sometimes the sahajiyā class of devotees opine that Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī and Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī are the same man. Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī was a great Vaiṣṇava devotee of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu, but Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī, the head of the Māyāvādī sannyāsīs in Benares, was a different person. Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī belonged to the Rāmānuja-sampradāya, whereas Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī belonged to the Śaṅkarācārya-sampradāya. Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī wrote a number of books, among which are the Caitanya-candrāmṛta, Rādhā-rasa-sudhā-nidhi, Saṅgīta-mādhava, Vṛndāvana-śataka and Navadvīpa-śataka. While traveling in southern India, Caitanya Mahāprabhu met Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī, who had two brothers, Veṅkaṭa Bhaṭṭa and Tirumalaya Bhaṭṭa, who were Vaiṣṇavas of the Rāmānuja-sampradāya. Gopāla Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī was the nephew of Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī. From historical records it is found that Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu traveled in South India in the year 1433 Śakābda (A.D. 1511) during the Cāturmāsya period, and it was at that time that He met Prabodhānanda, who belonged to the Rāmānuja-sampradāya. How then could the same person meet Him as a member of the Śaṅkara-sampradāya in 1435 Śakābda, two years later? It is to be concluded that the guess of the sahajiyā-sampradāya that Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī and Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī were the same man is a mistaken idea.

Lectures

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

So Hiraṇyakaśipu was atheist. Fortunately, he was so fortunate that he got a great Vaiṣṇava devotee son, Prahlāda Mahārāja. You have heard his name, Prahlāda Mahārāja. He is one of the mahājanas. There are twelve mahājanas in the śāstras. Mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ.
Lecture on SB 7.6.1 -- Hong Kong, April 18, 1972:

This is a verse spoken by Prahlāda Mahārāja. Prahlāda Mahārāja, when he was a five years old boy, like all these children. Kaumāra. Kaumāra age is called from five years to ten years. That is called kaumāra. So Prahlāda Mahārāja was born of an atheist father. The father was atheist number one, Hiraṇyakaśipu. He is described as rākṣasa, demon, like that. Daitya. Daitya means demon. There are two classes of men. One class is called daitya and the other class is called devata. Dvau bhūta-sargau loke daiva āsura eva ca (BG 16.6). There are two classes of men known as daiva and another asura. Viṣṇu bhaktaḥ bhaved daiva āsuras tad viparyayaḥ. Those who are devotees of the Lord, they are called daiva or devata, demigods. And those who are just the opposite number, they are called daitya or demon. So Hiraṇyakaśipu was atheist. Fortunately, he was so fortunate that he got a great Vaiṣṇava devotee son, Prahlāda Mahārāja. You have heard his name, Prahlāda Mahārāja. He is one of the mahājanas. There are twelve mahājanas in the śāstras. Mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ.

tarko 'pratiṣṭhaḥ śrutayo vibhinnā
nāsau munir yasya mataṁ na bhinnam
dharmasya tattvaṁ nihitaṁ guhāyāṁ
mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ
(CC Madhya 17.186)

The mystery of religious life is very, very secret. Secret means for ordinary man it is very difficult to understand. Therefore śāstra says tarko 'pratiṣṭhāḥ. If you want to learn what is spiritual life simply by your argument, dry, philosophical speculation, it will never be achieved. Tarko 'pratiṣṭhāḥ śrutayo vibhinnā. If you study the Vedas, there are different Vedas. Principally Sāma, Yajur, Atharva, Ṛg. But you cannot understand the objective of the Vedas simply by studying yourself. Therefore Vedas says, Kaṭhopaniṣad, tad vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum evābhigacchet śrotriyaṁ brahma-niṣṭham samit-pāṇiḥ (MU 1.2.12). Like that. In every śāstra the injunction is if you want to understand the essence of Veda, then you must approach a realized, self-realized person. In the Bhagavad-gītā also the same thing is said. Tad viddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā (BG 4.34).

Conversations and Morning Walks

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Tukārāma is great Vaiṣṇava devotee of Maharastra. His movement was saṅkīrtana movement.
Room Conversation with Christian Priest -- June 9, 1974, Paris:

Bhagavān: French literature. He's asking for French literature.

Jyotirmayī: He translated the Tukārāma in French.

Prabhupāda: Tukārāma. Tukārāma is great Vaiṣṇava devotee of Maharastra. His movement was saṅkīrtana movement.

Devotee: He was the one who was initiated by Lord Caitanya?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Bhagavān: This was southern India?

Priest: Maharastra.

Prabhupāda: Maharastra, yes. Southwest.

Priest: For the north it is south (indistinct).

Devotee: Śrīla Prabhupāda, another thing that's stated in the Bible, in the Christians' philosophy, they say that God created man out of His own image. It's stated in the Bible. So therefore man has a form, why not God? Because it's stated there in the Bible.

Prabhupāda: Yes. I think Bible is on the personal understanding of God. Christ says that he is son of God. Unless one is person, how he can beget a son?

Devotee: They talk about the trilogy—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. It is compared like the Father...

Prabhupāda: Bhagavān, Paramātmā, and Brahman, yes. Brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate (SB 1.2.11), it is the same idea. Brahman, Holy Ghost, is impersonal, but Son is person and God is also person. I do not know much about, but I have heard from Christians that there is assembly of God, and Lord Christ has got a seat by the side of God. Is not that explained?

Page Title:Great Vaisnava devotee
Compiler:Visnu Murti
Created:22 of Jan, 2012
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=1, CC=1, OB=0, Lec=1, Con=1, Let=0
No. of Quotes:4