Verse 2.1.3

Bengali text, Devanagari and Unicode transliteration of verse 2.1.3:

জয জয জয বিশ্বম্ভর দ্বিজ-রাজ জয বিশ্বম্ভর-প্রিয বৈষ্ণব সমাজ ॥ ৩ ॥

जय जय जय विश्वम्भर द्विज-राज जय विश्वम्भर-प्रिय वैष्णव समाज ॥ ३ ॥

jaya jaya jaya viśvambhara dvija-rāja jaya viśvambhara-priya vaiṣṇava samāja || 3 ||

jaya jaya jaya visvambhara dvija-raja jaya visvambhara-priya vaisnava samaja (3)

English translation:

(3) All glories to Viśvambhara, the king of the brāhmaṇas! All glories to the society of devotees, who are dear to Viśvambhara!

Commentary: Gauḍīya-bhāṣya by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura:

The phrases viśvambhara ‘dvija-rāja’ and viśvambhara-priya ‘vaiṣṇava samāja’ are explained as follows: Although Śrī Gaurasundara is Himself the full manifestation of the brāhmaṇas’ worshipable Lord, He is the best of the brāhmaṇas; and the society of devotees, or the paramahaṃsa gurus of all varṇas and āśramas, are most dear to Him. Persons who have not undergone saṃskāras, or purificatory processes, are known as once-born śūdras, and persons who have undergone saṃskāras are known as dvija, or twice-born. Although kṣatriyas and vaiśyas are also known as twice- borns, the phrase dvija-rāja can refer only to a brāhmaṇa. Conditioned souls in this material world are eligible for being entangled in sinful activities as a result of the seed and womb from which they were born, therefore all embodied souls must undergo purificatory processes to counteract their naturally inherited sinful reactions. Lord Viśvambhara was indifferent to saṃskāras; He neither encouraged nor opposed their observance. He was partial to daiva-varṇāśrama principles favorable to devotional service; non-Vaiṣṇava, or adaiva-varṇāśrama, principles were not appreciated by Him. He accepted those actual āśramas and those varṇas based on occupations favorable to devotional service as daiva- varṇāśrama. That is why the society of devotees is dear to Him. In the society of nondevotees there is special stress given to karma-kāṇḍa and impersonalism, but long before the appearance of the Lord the society of Śrī Vaiṣṇavas and the society of Tattvavādī Vaiṣṇavas were prominent in South India. The Lord considered the bona fide society of devotees, or the

Mādhva-Gauḍīya-samāja, as most dear. He established Mādhva-Gauḍīya brāhmaṇas like Śrī Sanātana and Śrī Rūpa Prabhus, who were born in a brāhmaṇa family belonging to the bona fide Vaiṣṇava society of Karnataka, as His own beloved Vaiṣṇava ācāryas. Moreover, He accepted the two Prabhus, Śrīpāda Prabodhānanda and Śrīpāda Gopāla Bhaṭṭa, from the society of Śrī Vaiṣṇavas and established them as His dear devotees. Although the Śrī-sampradāya and the Brahma-sampradāya of South India are dear to Śrī Gaurasundara, His own Śrī Gauḍīya- sampradāya is most dear. As time passed, the course and practice of Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava society was greatly disturbed by the considerations of smārtas like the pañcopāsakas, the worshipers of five gods. That is why the Lord ordered Śrīmat Sanātana Gosvāmipāda, who was born in the Śrī Madhva brāhmaṇa society, to compile the Vaiṣṇava smṛti named Hari- bhakti-vilāsa. Since Śrīpāda Gopāla Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī, who appeared in the Śrī Rāmānuja Vaiṣṇava society, was very dear to both Śrīmat Sanātana and Rūpa Prabhus, Śrīmat Sanātana Gosvāmī gave his own compilation of Hari-bhakti-vilāsa to him for expanding and editing. Therefore Śrī Hari-bhakti-vilāsa and, in pursuance, Sat-kriyā-sāra-dīpikāand

Saṃskāra-dīpikāare accepted as Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava smṛtis and Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava scriptures on social codes. In the Vaiṣṇava society following Śrī Gaurasundara we find a few special characteristics. Since the doctrine of the smārtas has created various obstacles on the path of Vaiṣṇava smṛtis, Śrī Dhyānacandra, Śrī Rasikānanda, and, more recently, Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura Mahāśaya have aspired for the actual eternal benefit of the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava society in the line of Śrī Gaura.

The Gauḍīya-Vaiṣṇava-samāja was established by Śrīmad Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura in the city of Calcutta in the beginning of the fifth century of the Caitanya era. Even then the so-called Gauḍīyas in Bengal had not yet begun to discuss topics of their own sampradāya. Within a short time, however, the Gaurāṅga-samāja, a newly concocted sampradāya devoid of subservience to eternal Vedic injunctions, was established in Calcutta.

Gauḍīya-Vaiṣṇava-samāja is a branch of the Viśva-vaiṣṇava Rāja-sabhā.

Because of their shortsightedness, the modern logicians say that there is no mention of the word Vaiṣṇava-samāja in ancient literature; but if they study this particular portion of the present book, then they will realize and rectify their ignorance. The special characteristics of the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava society are that they have fully accepted the principles of being unalloyed; of being devoted to Kṛṣṇa; of accepting subordination to the Lord, who is full of all potencies; and of developing a relationship with the Lord, as propagated by the four previous Vaiṣṇava ācāryas.

Moreover, they have preached the beauty of causeless worship in this world. Opposition to dry impersonal knowledge devoid of service to the eternal supreme controller, acceptance of Vaiṣṇavism on the basis of qualities rather than birth, acceptance of the supremacy of devotional scriptures, rejection of the unauthorized process of pañcopāsanācovered by karma and jñāna, and many other characteristics that were not preached by ācāryas of the medieval age are found in Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava teachings. But the most sorrowful topic is that the pride and envy of persons averse to pure devotional service have more or less created obstacles in pure Vaiṣṇava behavior.

Vaiṣṇava-samrāṭŚrīla Jagannātha dāsa and his follower Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura Mahāśaya have totally removed many discrepancies that had entered Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava society. Therefore, at present, these pure exalted Vaiṣṇavas and their nonduplicitous beloved followers can be addressed as viśvambhara-priya vaiṣṇava samāja—“the society of devotees who are dear to Viśvambhara.” Those hostile persons who are unfavorable to this society create unlimited inauspiciousness for the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava society; in other words, they are disliked, being opponents of Śrī Gaurasundara’s dear ones.