Sri Srimad Bhaktivedanta Vamana Gosvami Maharaja (December 23, 1921 - November 15, 2004)
He was the leader or Acarya of the Sri Gaudiya Vedanta Samiti one of the prominent Gaudiya Mathas.
Childhood
Vamana Maharaja took birth (was born) in the village of Piljanga, Khulna District East Bengal, (now Bangladesh)
His boyhood name was Santosa, and both his mother, Bhagavati Devi, and his paternal uncle, Bhaktikusala Nrsimha Maharaja, were disciples of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur. During his childhood he was educated in the local primary school, and was a very patient, peaceful, intelligent and religious boy from infancy. He was always first in his class. He had a remarkable memory and did not forget any verse or any particular subject he had heard only once.
Leaving Home
Bhagavati Devi was very strict; she would not allow her husband to enter the house on a day he had eaten prohibited food. Santosa was the second oldest of her four sons, and she was very concerned about him being influenced by his father, Satiscandra Ghosa. Therefore, in March, 1931, when he was only nine years old, she took him for instruction to Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur's temple in Mayapura where his uncle Nrsimha Maharaja was staying. After the Navadvipa dhama parikrama, Bhagavati Devi entrusted her dear son Santosa to the hands of the manager of the matha, Vinoda-vihari Brahmacari. From then on he lived in the matha under Sri Vinodabihari's care.
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur established the Sri Bhaktivinoda Institute in Mayapura. Vinoda-vihari managed this school, and would daily give Santosa some verses from Sri Gaudiya Kanthahara, Bhagavad-gita
and Bhagavatam to memorise. When he memorized one verse he would get a small candy. Every day he would repeat four or five new verses from memory. After a short time he knew all the verses of Gaudiya Kanthahara and many others besides. He was considered an encyclopedia of verses in the Gaudiya Vaisnava society.
Initiation to Chaitanya's Mission
In 1936, Santosa received Harinama initiation from Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur. His name now became Sajjanasevaka das brahmacari. He studied at school and also daily swept the temple and the bhajana-kutiras. He would cook for the Vaisnavas every day, and he could very quickly prepare first-class offerings. Having done this, he would clean the entire kitchen as well as where the Vaisnavas would respect prasada. He would sprinkle it with water, sweep it, lay out banana leaves along with pieces of lemon, salt and cups of water. He would then serve prasada to all the devotees, and, when they had finished, he would clean the whole area again and wash all the pots.
Secretary to the Gaudiya Vedanta Acarya
After Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati departed from this world, Kesava Maharaja established the Gaudiya Vedanta Samiti in 1943. Sajjanasevaka das served as the secretary and transcriber for Kesava Maharaja, who entrusted him with the responsibility of editing and publishing a Bengali magazine, Gaudiya Patrika.
Srila B.V. Narayana Maharaja, a disciple of Kesava Maharaja, writes,
"I joined the mission in 1946, and at that time I saw how Srila Vamana Maharaja was doing everything: writing letters, managing the temple, cooking, and traveling for preaching. Together with my godbrother Srila Trivikrama Maharaja , there we received sannyasa from Guru Maharaja on Gaura-purnima in 1954.
"Srila Vamana Maharaja is a great scholar just as our Gurudeva was. It has been said that he is like a dictionary of slokas because he knows so many verses from the scriptures. When, while lecturing, Gurudeva would sometimes forget a sloka, Srila Vamana Maharaja would always supply it from memory.
"Once, when we went to Assam for preaching, Gurudeva boldly declared that the mouths of the people there who eat meat and fish were like the drains of sewers. One of the sects there, who were virtually prepared to stone us, challenged us by saying, 'You say that Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is Bhagavan Himself, but what evidence is there of this?' Guru Maharaja turned to Srila Vamana Maharaja and said, 'Speak.' Then Srila Vamana Maharaja recited fifty slokas one after the other from different scriptures as evidence, and those people were silenced."
His Holiness Vamana Maharaja was scholarly, affectionate, tolerant, averse to fault-finding and extremely considerate. He was always very helpful to devotees, supplying them with prasadam, clothing and other needs, and remained a lifelong naistika-brahmacari. He established new preaching centers in Sridhama Puri (Sri Nilacala Gaudiya Matha), Tura (Meghalaya), Dhubadi Assam, Gauhati Assam, Silcar,Assam and elsewhere.
Published Works
Under the guidance of Kesava Maharaja, Vamana Maharaja republished Srimad Bhagavad-gita (with Sri Baladeva Vidyabhusana's commentary), Jaiva Dharma, Premapradipa, Prabandhavali, Saranagati, Navadvipa Bhava Taranga, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu - His life and precepts, Sri Caitanya Siksamrta, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu ki Siksa, Sri Damodarastakam, Bhakti-tattva-viveka and other literature.
In Summary
Bhaktivedanta Tirtha Maharaj says he considered Vamana Maharaja among the foremost of all Vaisnava scholars and philosophers in the world, "especially known for his vast knowledge and realization of Vaisnava siddhanta," he writes. Praising his "pure mood and perfect example of devotional love and service," he says, the only desire of Vamana Maharaja was that "all people should become great persons, leaving all bad conditions, and chant the holy name without duplicity and attain pure Bhakti to Lord Sri Krsna. Then in this life they will be happy. His happiness is our happiness. This is pure love."
He was the leader or Acarya of the Sri Gaudiya Vedanta Samiti one of the prominent Gaudiya Mathas.
Childhood
Vamana Maharaja took birth (was born) in the village of Piljanga, Khulna District East Bengal, (now Bangladesh)
His boyhood name was Santosa, and both his mother, Bhagavati Devi, and his paternal uncle, Bhaktikusala Nrsimha Maharaja, were disciples of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur. During his childhood he was educated in the local primary school, and was a very patient, peaceful, intelligent and religious boy from infancy. He was always first in his class. He had a remarkable memory and did not forget any verse or any particular subject he had heard only once.
Leaving Home
Bhagavati Devi was very strict; she would not allow her husband to enter the house on a day he had eaten prohibited food. Santosa was the second oldest of her four sons, and she was very concerned about him being influenced by his father, Satiscandra Ghosa. Therefore, in March, 1931, when he was only nine years old, she took him for instruction to Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur's temple in Mayapura where his uncle Nrsimha Maharaja was staying. After the Navadvipa dhama parikrama, Bhagavati Devi entrusted her dear son Santosa to the hands of the manager of the matha, Vinoda-vihari Brahmacari. From then on he lived in the matha under Sri Vinodabihari's care.
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur established the Sri Bhaktivinoda Institute in Mayapura. Vinoda-vihari managed this school, and would daily give Santosa some verses from Sri Gaudiya Kanthahara, Bhagavad-gita
and Bhagavatam to memorise. When he memorized one verse he would get a small candy. Every day he would repeat four or five new verses from memory. After a short time he knew all the verses of Gaudiya Kanthahara and many others besides. He was considered an encyclopedia of verses in the Gaudiya Vaisnava society.
Initiation to Chaitanya's Mission
In 1936, Santosa received Harinama initiation from Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur. His name now became Sajjanasevaka das brahmacari. He studied at school and also daily swept the temple and the bhajana-kutiras. He would cook for the Vaisnavas every day, and he could very quickly prepare first-class offerings. Having done this, he would clean the entire kitchen as well as where the Vaisnavas would respect prasada. He would sprinkle it with water, sweep it, lay out banana leaves along with pieces of lemon, salt and cups of water. He would then serve prasada to all the devotees, and, when they had finished, he would clean the whole area again and wash all the pots.
Secretary to the Gaudiya Vedanta Acarya
After Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati departed from this world, Kesava Maharaja established the Gaudiya Vedanta Samiti in 1943. Sajjanasevaka das served as the secretary and transcriber for Kesava Maharaja, who entrusted him with the responsibility of editing and publishing a Bengali magazine, Gaudiya Patrika.
Srila B.V. Narayana Maharaja, a disciple of Kesava Maharaja, writes,
"I joined the mission in 1946, and at that time I saw how Srila Vamana Maharaja was doing everything: writing letters, managing the temple, cooking, and traveling for preaching. Together with my godbrother Srila Trivikrama Maharaja , there we received sannyasa from Guru Maharaja on Gaura-purnima in 1954.
"Srila Vamana Maharaja is a great scholar just as our Gurudeva was. It has been said that he is like a dictionary of slokas because he knows so many verses from the scriptures. When, while lecturing, Gurudeva would sometimes forget a sloka, Srila Vamana Maharaja would always supply it from memory.
"Once, when we went to Assam for preaching, Gurudeva boldly declared that the mouths of the people there who eat meat and fish were like the drains of sewers. One of the sects there, who were virtually prepared to stone us, challenged us by saying, 'You say that Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is Bhagavan Himself, but what evidence is there of this?' Guru Maharaja turned to Srila Vamana Maharaja and said, 'Speak.' Then Srila Vamana Maharaja recited fifty slokas one after the other from different scriptures as evidence, and those people were silenced."
His Holiness Vamana Maharaja was scholarly, affectionate, tolerant, averse to fault-finding and extremely considerate. He was always very helpful to devotees, supplying them with prasadam, clothing and other needs, and remained a lifelong naistika-brahmacari. He established new preaching centers in Sridhama Puri (Sri Nilacala Gaudiya Matha), Tura (Meghalaya), Dhubadi Assam, Gauhati Assam, Silcar,Assam and elsewhere.
Published Works
Under the guidance of Kesava Maharaja, Vamana Maharaja republished Srimad Bhagavad-gita (with Sri Baladeva Vidyabhusana's commentary), Jaiva Dharma, Premapradipa, Prabandhavali, Saranagati, Navadvipa Bhava Taranga, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu - His life and precepts, Sri Caitanya Siksamrta, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu ki Siksa, Sri Damodarastakam, Bhakti-tattva-viveka and other literature.
In Summary
Bhaktivedanta Tirtha Maharaj says he considered Vamana Maharaja among the foremost of all Vaisnava scholars and philosophers in the world, "especially known for his vast knowledge and realization of Vaisnava siddhanta," he writes. Praising his "pure mood and perfect example of devotional love and service," he says, the only desire of Vamana Maharaja was that "all people should become great persons, leaving all bad conditions, and chant the holy name without duplicity and attain pure Bhakti to Lord Sri Krsna. Then in this life they will be happy. His happiness is our happiness. This is pure love."
The Hawkwing-class (Falcon-class) destroyer was a light combat starship from the fictional Honorverse. It was the oldest class of destroyer still in service in the Royal Manticoran Navy as of 4003 AD (On Basilisk Station). Honor Harrington's first hyperspace-capable command was the lead ship of this class. The obsolete vessels will be reclassified as frigates. HMS Hawkwing was destroyed by the Battlecruiser PNS Keriben in hyperspace near the Silesian Confederacy. Despite its age however HMS Hawkwing, with superior Manticoran technology, proved to be more than a match qualitatively for the PNS Keriban, finally losing only because of the battlecruiser's sheer size and firepower.
"The Mafia Kid" Giovanni Picarazzi is a professional wrestler in upstate NY. Known through out all of upstate NY Giovanni currently wrestles under the professional wrestling federation of Ultimate Wrestling.
Giovanni has performed in shows across Elmira, NY to Geneva, NY. Appearing in "Pushing the Limit", "Second Dosage", "3X The Pain", and most recently "Divine Intervention".
Born on October 26, as John J. Picarazzi, Giovanni was trained by head trainers of a wrestling school in Elmira known as the Green DoJo. Johnny Kadillac, and "Crazy" Chris Knevial would not only become Giovanni's trainers but also great friends. Growing up in Elmira, NY Giovanni had the dream, like many others, to be a professional wrestler. When Giovanni had heard about the new and upcoming school, he quickly joined and was soon becoming a professional wrestler. Giovanni now is doing Backyard wrestling for All Out Wrestling, a business in which Giovanni created. With his "cousin" Vinnie Picarazzi "The Mafia Kids" are the most popular tag team on the roster.
Giovanni and his business sell over 100 DVD's from AOW a month. Many poeple love to tune in and see "The Mafia Kid(s)" perform at their best. Soon Giovanni will be wrestling for World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) as he is headed for an interview towards the end of this year, in Stamford, CT.
Giovanni's Mafia based character is of great caliber. His father, was also in the Mafia, and Giovanni grew up only knowing a life of crime. Giovanni is a top hit amongst all of upstate NY.
Giovanni's wrestling career:
-With only approximately 30 matches, and 6 months of training, Giovanni is still a great hit amongst pro wrestling fans. Crossing into the path of Jay Flyier, at a UW Underground show, Giovanni defeated Jay Flyier, and then began climbing the ladder. The following show he again defeated Jay, and the show after that was stopped by Johnny Kadillac. Kadillac come from the crowd and attacked the well-known superstar, Giovanni Picarazzi. At the following show in Kadillac's match with Dane "The Pain" Giovanni attacked Kadillac with a baseball bat after his match. Kadillac would begin to fight back, but only be decimated by Giovanni Picarazzi as Kadillac would get tired. Finally Giovanni saw fit after about 5 mintues of a blind-sided attack Giovanni hit him with his famous signature finishing move-- The Bada Bing! And then pinned him for the three count, and Kadillac would soon seek revenge.
-The following week the two squared off in the middle of the ring both with a vengence. Giovanni would try to gain the upper-hand but would just be annilated by the over-whelming strength of JK Johnny Kadillac. After being tossed on the shoulder of JK and dropped on his head, Giovanni fell victim to the path of Kadillac.
-Revenge was still a task that needed to be fulfilled and when he made his return from a concussion injury, Giovanni would attack Kadillac yet again. When Jay Flyier seen the chaos between the two, he stepped in between them, and stopped the chaos. Both Kadillac and Picarazzi attacked the good-willing Jay Flyier, and the Kadillac and Giovanni would soon begin an "untouchable" alliance.
-Recruiting Dane "The Pain" as a tag partner, and keeping Giovanni as the manager Kadillac, Dane, & Picarazzi would acquire the name of "The Untouchables". Winning the tag team titles of "Crazy" Chris Knevial and his partner in a TLC match in Geneva at Divine Intervention, the group is still seemingly "untouchable."
Giovanni has performed in shows across Elmira, NY to Geneva, NY. Appearing in "Pushing the Limit", "Second Dosage", "3X The Pain", and most recently "Divine Intervention".
Born on October 26, as John J. Picarazzi, Giovanni was trained by head trainers of a wrestling school in Elmira known as the Green DoJo. Johnny Kadillac, and "Crazy" Chris Knevial would not only become Giovanni's trainers but also great friends. Growing up in Elmira, NY Giovanni had the dream, like many others, to be a professional wrestler. When Giovanni had heard about the new and upcoming school, he quickly joined and was soon becoming a professional wrestler. Giovanni now is doing Backyard wrestling for All Out Wrestling, a business in which Giovanni created. With his "cousin" Vinnie Picarazzi "The Mafia Kids" are the most popular tag team on the roster.
Giovanni and his business sell over 100 DVD's from AOW a month. Many poeple love to tune in and see "The Mafia Kid(s)" perform at their best. Soon Giovanni will be wrestling for World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) as he is headed for an interview towards the end of this year, in Stamford, CT.
Giovanni's Mafia based character is of great caliber. His father, was also in the Mafia, and Giovanni grew up only knowing a life of crime. Giovanni is a top hit amongst all of upstate NY.
Giovanni's wrestling career:
-With only approximately 30 matches, and 6 months of training, Giovanni is still a great hit amongst pro wrestling fans. Crossing into the path of Jay Flyier, at a UW Underground show, Giovanni defeated Jay Flyier, and then began climbing the ladder. The following show he again defeated Jay, and the show after that was stopped by Johnny Kadillac. Kadillac come from the crowd and attacked the well-known superstar, Giovanni Picarazzi. At the following show in Kadillac's match with Dane "The Pain" Giovanni attacked Kadillac with a baseball bat after his match. Kadillac would begin to fight back, but only be decimated by Giovanni Picarazzi as Kadillac would get tired. Finally Giovanni saw fit after about 5 mintues of a blind-sided attack Giovanni hit him with his famous signature finishing move-- The Bada Bing! And then pinned him for the three count, and Kadillac would soon seek revenge.
-The following week the two squared off in the middle of the ring both with a vengence. Giovanni would try to gain the upper-hand but would just be annilated by the over-whelming strength of JK Johnny Kadillac. After being tossed on the shoulder of JK and dropped on his head, Giovanni fell victim to the path of Kadillac.
-Revenge was still a task that needed to be fulfilled and when he made his return from a concussion injury, Giovanni would attack Kadillac yet again. When Jay Flyier seen the chaos between the two, he stepped in between them, and stopped the chaos. Both Kadillac and Picarazzi attacked the good-willing Jay Flyier, and the Kadillac and Giovanni would soon begin an "untouchable" alliance.
-Recruiting Dane "The Pain" as a tag partner, and keeping Giovanni as the manager Kadillac, Dane, & Picarazzi would acquire the name of "The Untouchables". Winning the tag team titles of "Crazy" Chris Knevial and his partner in a TLC match in Geneva at Divine Intervention, the group is still seemingly "untouchable."
Caryn Philips Massey (born October 06, 1980) is a American Award-winning country music singer/songwriter, author, and actress. To date, she remains as one of the successful country artists, with 6 number-one singles (a record for a female performer) and 5 top-10 country albums (more than anyone else).
She is known for her distinctive mountain soprano, sometimes bawdy humor, flamboyant dress sense, and her voluptuous figure.
She is known for her distinctive mountain soprano, sometimes bawdy humor, flamboyant dress sense, and her voluptuous figure.