Gaurakisora Dasa Babaji

Gaurakisora Dasa Babaji (IAST: Gaura-kiśora dāsa Bābājī; 1838–1915) is a well-known acharya from the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition of Hinduism, and is regarded as a Mahatma or saint by followers of his lineage. During his lifetime Gaurakisora Dasa Babaji became famous for his teachings on the process of Bhakti Yoga and for his unorthodox avadhuta like behaviour as a sadhu, or babaji in Vrindavan.

Gaurakisora Dasa Babaji
Personal
Born
Vamśi Dāsa

(1838-11-17)17 November 1838[1]
Vagyana, Faridpur District, Bengal, British Raj
DiedNovember 17, 1915(1915-11-17) (aged 77)[1]
Mayapur, Nabadwip District, Bengal, British Raj
ReligionHinduism
Known forbeing considered a Gaudiya Vaishnava saint
Religious career
GuruGot initiated by Nimaichand Goswami (Uthali, Bangladesh)

He was born on 17 November 1838[1] in a simple mercantile family in the village of Vagyana, near to Tepakhola in the district of Faridpur, part of modern-day Bangladesh. After the death of his wife when he was 29 years old, he accepted the life of a Babaji in the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition under the tutelage of Jagannatha Dasa Babaji, after meeting the latter's disciple, Bhagavat Dasa Babaji. He became a mendicant, staying in the holy cities of Vrindavan and Navadwip, deeply absorbed in singing and chanting the sacred names of Radha and Krishna (Bhajan). he died on his 77th birthday in 1915 In the early 1900s, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura acknowledged that he took initiation from Gaurakisora Dasa Babaji and given the name 'Varsabhanavi devi daitya dasa'. Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvata would later take an unorthodox form of initiation into the sannyasa order, in which "he simply sat down before a picture of Gaura Kisora dasa Babaji and invested that order upon himself."[2] This is considered by some a contested topic.[3]

See also
Part of a series on
Vaishnavism
Closeup of Vishnu, seated in the lotus position on a lotus. From depiction of the poet Jayadeva bowing to Vishnu, Gouache on paper Pahari, The very picture of devotion, bare-bodied, head bowed, legs crossed and hands folded, Jayadeva stands at left, with the implements of worship placed before the lotus-seat of Vishnu who sits there, blessing the poet.
Supreme deity
Vishnu / Krishna / Rama
Important deities
Dashavatara
Other forms
Consorts
Related
Holy scriptures
Puranas
Sampradayas
Others
Teachers—acharyas
Related traditions

References
  1. Srila Gaura Kishora Babaji Maharaja, at Gosai (Sri Narasingha Chaitanya Ashram) website.
  2. Ferdinando Sardella (2013). Modern Hindu Personalism: The History, Life and Thought of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati. Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 77, 80, 90. ISBN 978-0-19-986590-1.
  3. June McDaniel (1989). The Madness of the Saints: Ecstatic Religion in Bengal. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. pp. 319–20. ISBN 0-226-55723-5.

Further reading
  • June McDaniel (1992). "Mysticism, Madness and Ecstasy". In Steven J. Rosen (ed.). Vaisnavism. New York: Folk Books. p. 292. ISBN 9788120812352.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.