Bhakti Ballabh Tirtha

Srila Bhakti Ballabh Tirtha Goswami Maharaj
Srila Bhakti Ballabh Tirtha Goswami Maharaj
Personal life
Born	Kamakhya Charan Guharay (Birth Name) (1924-04-24)24 April 1924 Goalpara, Assam, India
Died	21 April 2017 (aged 92) Calcuta, West Bengal, India
Nationality	Indian
Notable work(s)	See Publications section
Education	M.A. Philosophy, Calcutta University (1946)
Religious life
Religion	Hinduism
Initiation	Diksa–1947, Sannyasa–1961
Religious career
Teacher	Bhakti Dayita Madhava
Post	President of Sree Chaitanya Gaudiya Math, President of WVA
Predecessor	Bhakti Dayita Madhava
Website	http://www.sreecgmath.org/

Bhakti Ballabh Tirtha (24 April 1924 - 21 April 2017) was a disciple of Bhakti Dayita Madhava and an acharya and initiating spiritual master (Sri Guru) in the Gaudiya Math following the philosophy of the Bhakti marg, specifically of Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Gaudiya Vaishnava theology. He was the President Acharya of Sree Chaitanya Gaudiya Math, headquartered at Kolkata, West Bengal, India and having more than 22 branches in India. He was president of the World Vaisnava Association and founder of GOKUL (Global organization for Krishna Chaitanya's Universal Love).

He wrote extensively in Bengali, Hindi, and English. His most read and referenced book is Sri Caitanya and His Associates, which details the lives of an entire lineage of Gaudiya Vaishnava spiritual leaders, from the 10th century to the present day.

Bhakti Ballabh Tirtha died on April 21, 2017, at the Sree Caitanya Gaudiya Math Temple, Kolkata. His samadhi was installed on April 22 in the holy city of Mayapur at Sree Chaitanya Gaudiya math, Mayapur.

Early life

He was born on 13 April 1924, on the day of Ram Navami, in Goalpara, Assam, India. He is a disciple of Bhakti Dayita Madhava, who founded Sree Chaitanya Gaudiya Math in 1953. He was appointed as the president for Sree Chaitanya Gaudiya Math in 1979. He also serves as the president of the World Vaishnava Association (WVA).

He travelled and spread the teachings of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu around the world. He is among the most read masters in the speaking tree initiative of The Times of India.

Bhakti Ballabh Tirtha Maharaj left the world on the night of April 20, 2017 at his temple in the city of Calcutta in the Indian state of West Bengal. On April 22 a large procession was carried out from Calcutta to the city of Mayapur in the same state. In the temple of Sri Chaitanya Gaudiya Math the Vedic rituals pertinent to the Rupanuga branch were finally carried out and their body was covered with lime and a temple known as "samadhi" will be built there.

Publications

One of the major contributions of Srila Bhakti Ballabh Tirtha Maharaj are the books authored by him. His books are based on Vedic scriptures and are clear reflections of the teachings of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and of Gaudiya Vaishnavism. Below is the list of his books:

• Sri Chaitanya: His Life and Associates ( ISBN 978-1886069282)
• Dasavatara (ISBN 1932771824) This is a commentary on the Ten Manifestations of Sri Vishnu, described in Gita Govinda, composed by Jayadeva Goswami.
• Sages of ancient India (ISBN 1886069581)
• A Taste of Transcendence (ISBN 1886069719)
• Sudha Bhakti (ISBN 1886069360)
• Affectionately Yours-Divine Letters This book is an extensive collection of letters (1981-2012) written by Bhakti Ballabh Tirtha to his disciples as a response to their spiritual inquiries.
• Sages, Saints and Kings of Ancient India This book is a compilation of pastimes of legendary personalities from Vedic Scriptures such as Bhagavata Purana, Mahabharata and Ramayana.
• Harikatha And Vaishnava Aparadha
• Nectar Of Harikatha
• Path of Pure Devotion

References

• Chopra, Swati (2003), "The Way of Love", Life Positive, vol. 11
• Broo, Måns (2003), As good as God: the guru in Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavism (PDF), Åbo Akademi University Press, ISBN 951-765-132-5
• Gupta, Dr. Ravi M (2014), Chaitanya Vaisnava Philosophy: Tradition, Reason and Devotion, Ashgate Publishing, Ltd, ISBN 9780754661771
• Melton, J. Gordon (2014), Religions of the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices, 2nd Edition [6 volumes]: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices, Abc-Clio, ISBN 9781598842043
• "'Absolute truth is eternal'", The Times of India, p. 2, 6 March 2012

External links

• http://trove.nla.gov.au/result?q=creator%3A%22Bhakti+Ballabha+Ti%CC%84rtha.%22
• http://www.nineislandspress.org/A-Life-Of-Devotion/
• http://www.spiritualbangalore.com/why-we-need-to-remember-god-by-b-b-tirtha-maharaj-president-all-india-sree-chaitanya-gaudiya-math/
• http://www.wva-vvrs.org/pbook/pkb16.htm
• http://www.gokul.org.uk/
• Article title^[usurped]
• http://vanisource.org/wiki/750902_-_Letter_to_Bhakti_Ballabh_Tirtha_written_from_Vrndavana
• http://oldchakra.com/2002/03/24/tkg.by.bhakti.ballabh.tirtha.sw/print.htm
• http://vaishnava-news-network.org/world/WD0204/WD24-7283.html
• http://vinacc.blogspot.com.co/2017/04/srila-b-b-tirtha-goswami-maharaj.html

Further reading

• https://web.archive.org/web/20160419031717/http://www.trilokanath.com/Gokul/Articles/ArticleBBTirthaGita.htm
• http://iskconnews.org/vaishnavism-tarnished-month-of-purushottama-is-celebrated-as-most-holy,112/