We’re excited to inform you that on Sunday, June 26, 2022, Sutapa Das, who has been a resident brahmachari (celibate student) at Bhaktivedanta Manor for over twenty years, will be receiving the sacred order of sannyasa (the renounced order) from His Holiness Kadamba Kanana Swami in the Sri Krishna Haveli.

In the Bhagavad-Gita, Sri Krishna explains to Arjuna the deep significance of sannyasa. Sannyasa is far more than a change of dress, for a sannyasi is meant to act only under the direction of the Supreme Lord and His representative, the spiritual master. In so doing, the sannyasi gives up all activities that are based on material desire and, unattached to the fruits of his work, acts for the satisfaction of the Supreme Person, Krishna. A sannyasi does not act for personal satisfaction. Without self-interest and having no desire for self-satisfaction, his criterion of success is the satisfaction of Krishna.

Sri Caitanya exemplifies a true sannyasi in His prayer:

na dhanaṁ na janaṁ na sundarīṁ

kavitāṁ vā jagad-īśa kāmaye

mama janmani janmanīśvare

bhavatād bhaktir ahaitukī tvayi

“O Almighty Lord, I have no desire to accumulate wealth, nor to enjoy beautiful women. Nor do I want any number of followers. What I want only is the causeless mercy of Your devotional service in my life, birth after birth.”

Srila Prabhupada explains: “For a sannyāsī, the first qualification should be fearlessness. Because a sannyāsī has to be alone without any support or guarantee of support, he has simply to depend on the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. If one thinks, ‘After I leave my connections, who will protect me?’ he should not accept the renounced order of life. One must be fully convinced that Krishna or the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His localized aspect as Paramātmā is always within, that He is seeing everything, and He always knows what one intends to do.” (Gita 16.1–3 purport) A sannyasi distributes knowledge to those of us who have forgotten our real life of spiritual advancement. With logic and understanding, he awakens us to Krishna consciousness.

We’re immensely proud of Sutapa Prabhu for his lasting dedication and commitment to Srila Prabhupada’s teachings and mood. His history in Krishna consciousness is unblemished, he has established and maintained good relationships with all varieties of devotees, and he has expertly taken on and continues to take on many responsibilities for the pleasure of Sri Sri Radha Gokulananda. We’re most grateful that he will be taking this major step, and we offer our heartfelt prayers that he finds success in all his endeavours.

Written by Visakha Dasi