In Koladvipa is Bahulavana. In Koladvipa is a hill called Kuliya and this hill is Govardhana Hill.
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| Mahaprabhu Bari Temple |
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| Mahaprabhu Bari, Vishnu Priya's Worshippable Deity |
The Dhamesvara Mahaprabhu Bari Temple in Koladwip is where the deity worshipped by Vishnu Priya, wife of Gauranga Mahaprabhu, resides. It is a beautiful neem deity, that Vishnu Priya worshipped for 80 years after the Lord had taken Sannyas. She was only 16 years old when Gauranga left and so she worshipped the deity as her husband. On the day of Radhashtami Vishnu Priya would worship the Deity as Srimati Radharani. She passed away at the age of 96 years. Gauranga's wooden shoes, that she also worshipped, are also here. Her Deities arms are outstretched, as if to say "I am yours".
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| Boats approaching Samudraghar |
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| Srila Jagannatha dasa Babaji, the spiritual master of Srila Bhaktivinode Thakur |
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| Sri Jagannath Das Babaji's Samadhi Mandir |
Srila Jagannatha Dasa Babaji used to meet daily with Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura and Gaurakishora Dasa Babaji to discuss Krishna Katha. He was born around 1800AD and lived for 146 years. He took initiation into the disciplic succession from Sri Madhusudana Dasa Babaji. Sri jagannath Das Babaji revealed many of the lost Holy Places in Navadwip Dhama, including Yogapith, Srivasa Angana. When Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur was looking for Lord Chaitanya's birthplace, he asked Jagannatha dasa Babaji to go with him. He was so old and frail that he had to be carried in a basket by Bihari Lal. When he arrived at that place in Antardwipa, he leapt out of the basket and started dancing and singing, Haribol! Gauranga! Ei to Nimai Janmabhoomi!"(This is the Birthplace of Nimai!). In later life, along with a 12 year old Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakura prepared the Vaishnava calendar in accordance with the proper siddhanta. Bhaktivinoda Thakura called him the commanding chief of the devotees.
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| Varaha(left) and Radha Vinode Bihari at Devananda Gaudiya Math where all offences are forgiven |
Devananda Pandit lived in Koladwipa, he was a teacher of Srimad Bhagavatam and one day, before the advent of Gauranga, Srivas Pandita went to one of his classes. Srivas became ecstatic with prema on hearing the Bhagavatam's sweet words and started rolling on the ground. The other students were not happy with Srivas behaving this way and tried to have him thrown out the class, saying that he was mad and not paying proper respect to the Srimad Bhagavatam. Devananda Pandit did not intervene and so Srivas was ejected from the assembly by the other students. Unfortunately for Devananda, as he was there and did nothing to stop his students doing this, he also partook of the sinful reaction of offending Srivas Pandit. Srivas said nothing, just returned home.
Some years later when Gauranga Mahaprabhu displayed his Mahaprakash form at Srivas Pandita's house, he asked Srivas if he remembered the incident. One day when walking in Navadwipa, Mahaprabhu past by Devananda Pandit's house where he heard him teaching Srimad Bhagavatam. He felt enraged and did not want to hang around there, he spoke angry words, full of truths about Srimad Bhagavatam, such as that the Bhagavatam promoted Bhakti as the ultimate goal of life and that the essence of the Bhagavatam could only be known through devotion, not scholarship. Then Gauranga left. Devananda heard these words from in his house.
After Lord Chaitanya had taken Sannyas and gone to Jagannath Puri, Devananda remembered those words and regretted not going out to meet Gauranga, as he felt sure that someone who spoke such truths of the Bhagavatam was an exalted personality. When he saw Sri Vakesvara Pandita rolling on the ground after an ecstatic kirtan, instead of ignroing him, as he had Srivas, he went and picked him up and held him on his lap till he recovered. This was the beginning of his bhakti-seva.
Five years later, Lord Chaitanya returned to Navadwipa and Devananda Pandita went to take darshan. When Gauranga saw him, he told him that he was pleased with him for assisting his devotee Vakesvara. Devananda felt overwhelmed at hearing the Lord speak to him and begged for forgiveness of his sins and for the Lord to give him proper instruction on Srimad Bhagavatam. Mahaprabhu explained the essence of Bhagavatam and then told him that as the Book Bhagavatam is non different to the Bhakta Bhagavatam, that he would need to ask forgiveness of Srivas. So Devananda went to Srivas and begged for forgiveness. Srivasa Thakura embraced Devananda and forgave him and from that day on Devananda was accepted amongst the followers of mahaprabhu as a great devotee.
Devananda Gaudiya Math is built at the place where Devananda Pandita was forgiven of his offences. Anyone who sets foot here becomes free from all offences.
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