Preface väïchä-kalpa-tarubhyaç ca kåpä-sindhubhya eva ca patitänäà pävanebhyo vaiñëavebhyo namo namaù “I offer my respectful obeisances unto all the Vaiñëava devotees of the Lord. They are just like desire trees who can fulfill the desires of everyone, and they are full of compassion for the fallen conditioned souls.”1 vande çré-kåñëa-caitanyapremämara-taroù priyän çäkhä-rüpän bhakta-gaëän kåñëa-prema-phala-pradän “I offer my obeisances to all the dear devotees of Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu, the eternal tree of love of Godhead. I offer my respects to all the branches of the tree, the devotees of the Lord who distribute the fruit of love of Kåñëa.”2 When I first met Çréla Äcärya Öhäkura Gour Govinda Mahäräja face to face, in March 1989 [we had previously corresponded for over a year], Bhubaneswar, India, I felt inspired to record his biography* * Svayambhü Mahäräja [06.12.1935 - 11.08.2010]: His name prior to meeting and taking initiation from Çréla Gurudeva was Subash Biswal. He had written an account of Çréla Gurudeva’s life, but it was in Oriya and at the time I did not know of that book. Svayambhü Mahäräja wrote two books: the first Püta jévana-carita – The Sacred Life History, which is the Biography of Çréla Gour Govinda Swami in Oriya. His second book was: Kåpä-patraväli – Merciful Letters; a compilation of the letters that Çréla Gour Govinda Swami wrote to him. When Svayambhü prabhu [Cont. on next page ]
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