Page 63 - SBV (English)

Early Life 3

discharged important responsibilities as a senior government officer yet was
still prodigiously active in Kåñëa’s service. Every evening after returning from
work, he took his meal, slept from eight till midnight, and then wrote for several
hours. By such dedication throughout his life he composed over one hundred
books in Sanskrit, Bengali, and English. He also preached widely among both
*
lettered and common folk, and was instrumental in relocating and restoring the
birthplace of Lord Caitanya in Mäyäpur.
Çréla Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura had resuscitated Gauòéya Vaiñëavism from
a three-century gloom, during which it had come to be practiced largely in a
superficial manner, much removed from the genuine process grounded in
scriptural regulations, and had been so severely misrepresented by rogues and
charlatans that most educated and discerning persons wanted nothing to do
with it. Nearly all who deemed themselves Vaiñëavas were followers of diverse
apa-sampradäyas, whose butchering of Lord Caitanya’s teachings functioned on
exploitation of misplaced sentiments. The severely corrupted forms of Vaiñëava
dharma gave a cloak of religious piety to various forms of sexual perversity that
otherwise could not have prospered in the social clime of that era. Thus in
popular parlance the designation “Vaiñëava” had come to denote ignorance and
dissoluteness. The remaining few genuine devotees were either householders or
reclusive bäbäjés, who shunned bad association and did not attempt to reform
others.
Çréla Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura was different. He not only recognized the
superlative value of real Gauòéya Vaiñëavism, but uncovered, rejuvenated,
propagated, and defended the authentic teachings and practices of Çré Caitanya
Mahäprabhu. While some educated and religiously committed Hindus of his
generation were inspired by the new intercourse with the West to promote
Hindu values and teachings to the people thereof, and some Gauòéyas opined

* Çréla Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura also wrote in Urdu a small book on law and composed a few
songs in Brajbuli (a literary dialect of Bengali, developed exclusively by Gauòéya poets).
It appears that many of his works were never published and are now lost. For instance,
Çréla Bhaktisiddhänta Sarasvaté once described writings by Çréla Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura
for children, which are no longer extant:
“Yajïeçvara Basu had a house on the Bäna Gaìgä. Dénabandhu Sena had his house
in Icchapur. Both desired to give thorough instructions on spiritual matters to their
children, in the manner imparted to Christian and Muslim children. At their behest
Çréla Bhaktivinoda Öhäkura wrote several volumes with questions and answers, so that
from the beginning, Vaiñëavas’ children could learn about religion. The name of that
work was Dharma-çikñä. He wrote a first, second, and third volume for different levels.
These were prepared in manuscript form but not printed.”