Shri Ghanshyam Das ji Thakur
Shri Ghanshyamji was a resident of Ghangholi village of Vrindavan. His father Shri Laxminarayan was a saintly person, hailed from a brahman family and was a good astrologer. Shri Laxminarayan had predicted in Ghanshyamji's childhood that this boy had the traits of a great mahatma. Shri Naval Kishor Shastri and Shri Ram were his two elder brothers.
Ghanshyamji had the inborn
faculties of religious devotion right from the beginning
Shri Ghanshyamji with Manohar Baba(author of 'Charit Vaibhav')
Above all, right from
the start he had a natural affection for saints. Ghanshyamji loved to sit alone by himself. He was well-built and good looking.
Pandit Gaya Prasad ji
Pandit Gaya Prasadji would call him a ' Bal Sant ' with affection.
The three brothers were quite young when their father passed away.Soon after, the house faced financial contraints. Therefore their mother made Ghanshyamji and Shri Ram join the rasa mandali or theatre troupe of Shri Chetramji, their maternal uncle.
Even when he enacted the role of Thakurji[1] in the troupe,
Ghanshyamji used to do the seva of Gopalji[2]. He would place the idol of the child form of Lord Krishna on a beautiful small silver throne and go through several divine experiences while attending to His needs.
The Rasa Lila
In the 'Rasa Lila'
Ghanshyamji enacted the roles of a sakhi, Mansuka, Sriji (Shri Radha), and the role of Thakurji (Lord Krishna) later on. Dressed in the best of finery while emulating Thakurji, he would invariably be emotionally charged with
religious rapture as per the act. During the viraha lila or anguish of separation from Krishna, he would start sobbing and the tears would not stop even after the episode. Many a time, through antaryamitva
or intuitive power due to the Lord dwelling within his heart, he would reveal
many things during the performance.
Gorakhpur
Once the rasa mandali or theatre troupe was staying at Thakuri Babu's place in Gorakhpur.
Shri Radha Baba & Bhaiji
Shri Radha Baba and Shri Hanuman Prasad Poddar (Bhaiji) had also been invited to the Rasa Lila performance. Bhaiji took Radha Baba and went to the Rasa. Baba did not have any particular attraction towards the Rasa Lila but on seeing Ghanshyamji's enactment he was fascinated.
Radha Baba thought he was a mere child; but an incident made him change his mind. Once the svarupas playing roles in the Rasa had come to Gita Vatika. Ghanshyamji had reached the car in which they were to go to their place of
residence but Baba had stopped the boy who was playing the part of Shriji or Radha Rani and got talking.
A Boy Enacting the Part of Shri Radha Rani (Sriji)
Thereupon, Ghanshyamji had become impatient, " Sriji does not belong to Baba's father ."
Someone had reported this statement to Radha Baba after the boy enacting the role of Shri Radha had left .
" Well, the Thakur (Ghanshyamji) is saying so! Shriji belongs to us first and then to him. Let me meet the Thakur,” Radha Baba fondly remarked.
“ I am going to give him two slaps when I meet him," Radha Baba had thought.
Revered Baba told Bhaiji that he wanted to go to Thakuri Babu's place where the rasa mandali was staying. Bhaiji (Hanuman Prasad Poddar) got the car ready to take him. As the car reached the residence of Thakuri Baba, Ghanshyamji who was strolling alone on the
platform outside the house, went to open the car's door himself. As soon as Baba stepped out Ghanshyamji held both his hands and began to swing them.
"Slap me first and then move on,"Thakurji stopped him and said these words when Baba began to walk ahead.
Shri Radha Baba
Radha Baba was astonished to see
Ghanshyam's intuitive power[3] of
reading the mind. Baba had considered him to be just a young boy but understood now that Thakurji (Lord Krishna) resided in him. Reaching the heights of
elation and ecstasy Baba sat down on the steps and had no strength to go any further. Tears constantly streamed down his cheeks. He restrained himself with difficulty and returned to the garden.Thereafter, he shut himself in a hut for three days in this state of bhava
stithi or spiritual ecstasy.
Seeing Radha Baba's state of charged spiritual
emotion, Bhaiji remarked, “I say! This Thakur is very bewildering.”
Banyau Mor Mukut
As a test, Shri Baba once thought that if the musicians begin the rasa lila by singing the pada 'Banyau Mor Mukut' (Lord Krishna's head is adorned with the
crown of peacock feathers), he would consider Ghanshyamji to be the true Thakur. And that is precisely what happened. At another time Baba thought that if Ghanshyamji personally called him to the Rasa Lila he would go there.
Amazingly while dancing in the 'Rasa' Ghanshyamji said-'Go and call Baba!' Baba was overwhlemed with
ecstasy by this incident.
Sapta Sarovar, Haridwar
After a few day the theatre troupe went to Sapta Sarovar in Haridwar. There are several ashrams of sanyasis at this place. The Rasa Lila was enacted for some days but there was a definite change in the mindset of Shri Ghanshyamji. He became disinterested in the Rasa Lila, unattached to the mundane world and longed to stay in isolation.
After taking part in the 'Rasa' he would go and sit by himself on the banks of the Ganges or in a nook in the forest for hours together. Seeing his plight, Banwari Sharanji was pained but what could he do. Ghanshyamji develepod an aversion for the material world. When he looked at a good looking person with concentration, the beauty of that person vanished and Ghanshyamji saw a skeleton instead.
After taking part in the 'Rasa' he would go and sit by himself on the banks of the Ganges or in a nook in the forest for hours together. Seeing his plight, Banwari Sharanji was pained but what could he do. Ghanshyamji develepod an aversion for the material world. When he looked at a good looking person with concentration, the beauty of that person vanished and Ghanshyamji saw a skeleton instead.
Garud Chhati, Rishikesh
He would often go to the Garud Chhati [4]in Rishikesh and sit in seclusion for hours together. Banwari Sharan would
invariably accompany him. A couple of times, Ghanshyamji ran to the mountains and had to be brought back after much persuasion.
WWhereas in Gorakhpur, Radha Baba had come to know of Ghanshyamji's condition because of his intuitive power[5]. Through Chimmanlal Goswami he had a letter sent to Shri Ramji, Ghanshyamji's elder brother. Seeing the heights of elation and ecstasy which Ghanshyamji had reached, Baba had vowed that such a perfectly virtuous boy should not enter the material world. He must get absorbed in the path of attaining the divine.
Ghanshyamji Was Passionately Drawn by Krishna's Love
As a result of this pledge Ghanshyamji had become a hungering devotee passionately drawn by the love of Lord Krishna.
A few months later the rasa mandali or
dance troupe went to Rewa and stayed at the dharamshala[6] of Shri Rameshwar Aggarwal (readers are already acquainted with him.) Rameshwarji too thought after seeing
Ghanshyamji's bhava stithi or awakening of spiritual consciousness in the 'Rasa' that he must take up the
spiritual path. Every day after the show Ghanshyamji would go alone to a room in the upper storey and sleep there as well. Rameshwarji would go to him before he slept and press his legs. At that time, Rameshwarji
would carry a notebook of his experiences with Shri Maharajji and his spiritual discourses. One fine
night Ghanshyamji took up that notebook and was very impressed to read a few sentences of those preachings.
Dark-hued Krishna Takes Cows for Grazing
Sarangi, A Muscial Instrument
In 1950, Ghanshyamji had left enacting the role of Thakurji but stayed on to become an expert in singing and playing the sarangi in the rasa mandali or theatre troupe which used to go Gorakhpur, off and on. Shri Hanuman Prasadji Poddar felt that Ghanshyamji should be put up with some learned bhakta who was a householder and who could educate him. He sent him to Shri Laxminarayanji, the Rajvaidya or royal physician in Calcutta, who had a big ayurvedic pharmacy.He was a great scholar of Sanskrit and a matchless vaidya (physician.)
Shri Hanuman Prasad Poddar
Respected Poddarji's aim was to make Ghanshyamji a good educated householder. He had also put aside some money for his future but destiny had a diverse design. Ghanshyamji had
hardly completed six months of stay in Calcutta with Vaidhji when his mundane dealings caused much detachment in Ghanshyamji and he longed to
reside in Vrindavan.
Shri Vrindavan
The vaidya came along with Ghanshyamji to live in Vrindavan. As a matter of chance, Vaidji took a house on rent very near to the Ganga Mandir. Hearing the name of Shriji (Balkrishan Dasji Maharaj) from someone
the vaidya began coming for
his darshan. At times Ghanshyamji would also accompany him.
Shriji (Shri Balkrishna Das ji Maharaj)
Ghanshyamji had come to know that he was the same saint whose divine experiences he had read in sections of Rameshwarji's notebook in Rewa. Gradually his attraction towards Shriji increased and he lost interest in studying and working in Vaidji's dispensary. Even Shriji did not like his learning ayurveda.
As a matter of chance Rameshwarji was staying in Vrindavan in those days. He too wished that being of
such holy propensities why should Ghanshyamji get entangled in worldly affairs. Secretly he kept meeting Ghanshyamji and talked about Shri Maharajji's
preacings. Ghanshyamji too would often accompany him to meet Shriji without telling Vaidji. By 1952 Ghanshyamji had taken the refuge of Shri Maharajji completely and now it became burdensome for him to stay with Vaidji.
'Narsin Mehta Charit'
One fine day Ghanshyamji went with us to see the play 'Narsinh Mehta Charit[7]' without telling Vaidji. Seeing
this enactment his
heart became very restive and
Ghanshyamji ran away from Vaidji's place after a few days. Staying for some time in his village he came back to Vrindavan again. At the behest of Shriji he lived for two years with Rameshwarji. The time spent here was of great abstinence.
The Mahamantra
Ghanshyamji would recite the 'Mahamantra,' three lakh times a day.
Frugally he would eat rotis made of wheat husk, and
have boiled vegetables for meals.
A Pumkin
He sometimes drank the water of
a boiled pumkin's peel, for food. Ghanshyamji would circumambulate Girirajji,
twice in a day. Shri Rameshwar also led a similar life of great austerity. He stayed alone in a separate hut for ten years. By this time the number of Sriji's inner circle of associates
had increased considerably. Many devotees who
had been collegues of Ghanshyamji in the 'Rasa Lila' came to the refuge of Shriji's feet.
[3] Intuitive power: because of
Lord Krishna residing in him
[4] Garud Chatti:
Garud Chatti waterfall in
Rishikesh is situated at
Neelkanth road near about
5 kilometer from Laxman Jhula.
[5] Intuitive power: because
Lord Krishna dwelled in him
[7] Narsinh Mehta:
(1414 – 1481) was a
poet-saint of Gujarat, India,
and a member of
the Nagar community, notable
as a bhakta, an
exponent of Vaishnava poetry.
He is especially revered
in Gujarati literature, where
he is acclaimed as
its Adi Kavi (Sanskrit
for "first among poets").
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