Hari Sauri Dasa officially launches BRC’s reprint of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu – His Life and Precepts in Mayapur along with Braja Vilasa Dasa.

The Bhaktivedanta Research Center (BRC) is delighted to announce the latest release in its acclaimed Vaishnava Studies Series: a reprint of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s Chaitanya Mahaprabhu: His Life and Precepts. First published in 1896—the same year as Srila Prabhupada’s appearance—this historic work marked one of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s pioneering initiatives to spread the teachings of Lord Caitanya to the Western world.

In October 1896, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura sent copies of this book to prestigious institutions, including McGill University in Canada and the Royal Asiatic Society in London. His aim was to introduce Lord Caitanya’s message to educated and spiritually inclined audiences across cultural and geographical boundaries. As Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura writes in the opening lines of the book, “The object of this little book is to bring the holy life of Caitanya Mahaprabhu and His precepts to the notice of the educated and religious people.”

The book appeared at a time when Western thinkers such as Emerson and Thoreau were actively exploring Vedic philosophy, thus making it particularly timely. Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s efforts set the stage for the rapid global expansion of Gaudiya Vaishnavism that was to unfold in the following decades.

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu: His Life and Precepts is a succinct yet profound work, providing an account of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s life and pastimes as well as an erudite presentation of His philosophical teachings in an incredibly condensed and accessible manner. This masterful balance of biography and philosophy makes it an invaluable resource for spiritual seekers as well as academic scholars.

Hari Sauri Dasa cuts the inaugural ribbon for Chaitanya Mahaprabhu – His Life and Precepts.

Commenting on the monumental significance of this work, Gauranga Das, GBC, director of ISKCON Govardhan Eco-village, and administrative director of BRC, states: “Chaitanya Mahaprabhu: His Life and Precepts, albeit short, pulsates with the spiritual potency and conviction of the visionary acarya, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura. It stands as a testament to Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s commitment to spreading Lord Caitanya’s teachings far beyond what anyone had dreamed of doing until then.”

BRC was fortunate to obtain an original copy of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu: His Life and Precepts from the personal library of Sundarananda Vidyavinoda Dasa, who served as the personal secretary and editor to Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura. Years after Sundarananda Vidyavinoda’s passing, his extensive library, comprising over 4,000 rare books, was entrusted to BRC. As part of its ongoing digitization efforts, BRC meticulously scanned and cataloged thousands of rare books and manuscripts from this collection, including handwritten letters and notes by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, and other previous acaryas.

Among these treasures was a copy of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu: His Life and Precepts which appeared to be a first edition or a press copy. This version included handwritten corrections and small notes, likely made by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura himself. To ensure its long-term preservation, BRC meticulously preserved, scanned, and processed the book with OCR and watermarking.

Subsequently, on the 184th appearance day of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, Dr. Sumanta Rudra, the academic dean of BRC, initiated the project to republish this historic text. This reprint constitutes a crucial part of BRC’s overall mission to safeguard and make accessible the countless literary treasures of Gaudiya Vaishnavism.

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu: His Life and Precepts has thus been republished by BRC in collaboration with Dev Publishers in a beautifully bound hardback edition. The book cover has been designed by the renowned, award-winning designer Pinaki De. This edition also features a scholarly introduction by Dr. Krishna Abhishek Ghosh, as well as two brief chapters at the end that offer fascinating insights into the history, context, and background of this historic work.

Congratulating BRC for producing this reprint, Jayapataka Swami states: “In the early days of the Krishna Consciousness Movement, Srila Prabhupada encouraged devotees to read this book before writing Teachings of Lord Caitanya. We would like to thank the Bhaktivedanta Research Center for their hard work in publishing the current edition.”

Jayadvaita Swami and Radhanath Swami with copies of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu – His Life and Precepts.

In a similar vein, Radhanath Swami states, “Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s Chaitanya Mahaprabhu: His Life and Precepts is a visionary work that sowed the seed for the global expansion of Gaudiya Vaishnavism. BRC’s reprint is a precious gift to both scholars and spiritual seekers alike.”

This reprint edition was officially launched by Hari Sauri Dasa recently in Sridham Mayapur, in the presence of Braja Vilasa Dasa and other devotees.

Dr. Sumanta Rudra, academic dean of BRC, is both grateful and elated: “Reprinting this historic work is a major milestone in our publishing initiatives, and we are beyond grateful to have been able to do so by the Vaisnavas’ mercy. As Mother Ganga is worshiped by offering her own sacred waters back to her, we humbly offer this reprint for the pleasure of our Guru Parampara, hoping that it will bring satisfaction to Srila Prabhupada and our previous acaryas.”

Those interested in purchasing a copy of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu: His Life and Precepts are requested to kindly contact Pijus Kanti Dua via email. 

The Bhaktivedanta Research Center would like to express its heartfelt gratitude to its below esteemed patrons and supporters for their valuable partnership:

HH Smita Krishna Goswami, HH Devamrita Swami Maharaj, HH Candramauli Swami Maharaj, HH Jayapataka Swami Maharaj, HH Bhakti Charu Swami Maharaj, HH Radhanath Swami Maharaj, Ambarisa Das, Sri Sri Varaprada Venkateswara Swamy (Balaji Temple & Cultural Center, Bellevue, WA-USA), Krishna Chandra Das, Keshava Das, Namamrita Devi Dasi, Meenakshi Rudra, Braja Hari Das, Yudhistir Govinda Das, Dayarama Das, Braja Vilasa Das, Vraja Kishore Das,  Adi Purusa Das, Vraja Raja Das, Damodar Hari Das, Anand Manaktala, Visvakalyana Gaura Das, Vraja Raman Das, Krishna Kumar Das, North American Institute of Oriental Sciences (NIOS), Nitai Gaursundar Das, Krishna Kirtan Das, Yasodanandana Das & Syama Sakhi Devi Dasi, Balarama Lila Das, Akrura Das, Satya-sara Das, Ram Mukunda Das, Shyam Hari Das & Prem Kumari Devi Dasi, Shaligram Krishna Das, Prem Niketan Das, Ramesta Das, Chandra Sekhar Guntupalli, Sridhar Gopal Das, Chaitanya Sundar Das, Kiran Rapolu & Revati Devi Dasi, Vishwatma Gopinath Das, Balramkumar Srivasatava, Raja Nagarajan, Krishna Chaitanya Das, Madhava Chandra Das,, Radhananda Das, Govindadev Das, Sundarananda Das, Ram Das, Sadananda Das, Acyuta Lila Das, Shweta Pandey, Ananta Acharya Das, Abhishek Jajodia, Amarender Bilapati, Haridas Varya Das, Dwarkadhish Das, Rajesh Solanki, Dr. Snehal Donde, Radharadhya Das, Srinivas Sharan Das, Hema Sundari Devi Dasi, Hare Krishnananda Das, Ramesvara Das, Navina Krishna Das, Anandini Sundari Devi Dasi, Jyoti Pravin Purohit, Dr. Shekhar Shukla, Mahendra Singh Rawat, Ramapriya Das, Vidagdha, Madhava Das & Kirtida Devi Dasi, Mokshyalakshmi Devi Dasi, Dhananjaya Das, Gadadhara Chandra Das, Nityananda Vilas Das, Prashant Devatraj, Rasesvara Das, Tushar Bhole, Amritananda Das, Arun Rangachari, Janardan Das, Sacisuta Das, Shyamlal Das, Braja Kripa Das, Darshan Shinde, Shyam Mohan Das, Koumudhi Kammari, Lileshwari Devi Dasi, Shravya Kanchi, Srngi Das, Suresh Amin, Janardan D. Bahirat, Ansul Agarwal, Sreenivas Gopal Das, Madhusudan Reddy Gunna, Roopendra Singh, Hari Vallabh Das, Padmanabha Das, Sachi Prana Das, Abhishek Mantha, Murari Krishna Das, Lavanga Mangal Devi Dasi, Sarang Thakur Das, Shivam Gupta, Gaurachandra Das, Veerchandra Das, Manish Goyal, Rasamrita Das, Sakshi Gopal Das, Chaitanya Bhagavan Das, Gauranga Prem Das, Ajit Kumar Garg, Avatari Chaitanya Das, Aristaha Das, Sripati Das, Krishna Murali Das, Aniruddha Patel, Radha Giridhari Das, Satcitananda Das, Murlidhar Das, Vishwarupa Das, Hari Kirtan Das, Madhava Gauranga Das, ISKCON Attapur, Pranava Das, Sarla Thakker, Sri Sakhi Devi Dasi, Hercules Pigments Pvt. Ltd., Koel Colours Pvt Ltd, JABS International Pvt. Ltd., Vaishali Kamat, Praveen Krovvidi, Braja Prakash Das, Vipra Sudama Das, Prahlad Priya Das, Haridev Krishna Das, Vidura Das, Sujit Sengupta, Shailen Ramanlal Desai, Mukund Ras Das, Priyadarshan Das, Subuddhi Raya, Sundarananda Das, Chetan Hazaree, Vidagdha Madhava Das & Kirtida Devi Dasi, Giriraj Sakha Das, Prahlad Bhakta Das, Advaita Chandra Das & Kalasudha Devi Dasi, Jai Gaurahari Das, Ketan B. Parmar, Hemang Gaur Das, Manish Srivastava, Ashvin Gami, Gopinath Rasa Das, Amol Katkar, Atul Madhava Das, Nadiya Kishor Das, Dr. Amar Shah, Hladini Gopika Devi Dasi, Ananda Kumar & Madhu Kumari, Sai Suman, Krishna Kishore Das, Sakshi Gopal Das, Satyaraj Das & Abhijeet Deulkar