Śrīla Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Prabhupāda
(1)
kṛṣṇa hoite catur-mukha, hoy kṛṣṇa-sevonmukha,
brahmā hoite nāradera mati
nārada hoite vyāsa, madhwa kohe vyāsa-dāsa,
pūrṇaprajña padmanābha gati
In the beginning of creation the science of devotional service was received by the four-headed Brahmā from the Supreme Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Devarṣi Nārada's understanding of this divine science was obtained from Brahmā. The great sage Kṛṣṇa Dvaipāyana Vyāsa who was empowered to compile the Vedic literatures, became a disciple of Devarṣi Nārada. Śrīpāda Madhvācārya, the founder of the śuddha-dvaita school of Vedānta-philosophy, who visited Vyāsadeva at Badarikāśrama in the thirteenth century to learn from him Vedānta philosophy, calls himself a servant of Kṛṣṇa Dvaipāyana Vyāsa. Pūrṇaprajña Tīrtha [Madhva] is the guru and sole refuge of Padmanābha Tīrtha.
(2)
nṛhari mādhava-baṁśe, akṣobhya paramahaṁse,
śiṣya boli' aṅgīkāra kore
akṣobhyera śiṣya jaya-tīrtha nāme paricaya,
tāra dāsye jñānasindhu tore
The two other principal disciples of Madhva are Nṛhari Tīrtha and Mādhava Tīrtha. Mādhava Tīrtha accepted the great paramahaṁsa Akśobhya Tīrtha as a disciple. The principal disciple of Akṣobhya Tīrtha was known as Jayatīrtha. Jayatīrtha's service was for his disciple Jñānasindhu.
(3)
tāhā hoite dayānidhi, tāra dāsa vidyānidhi,
rājendra hoilo tāhā ha'te
tāhāra kiṅkora jaya-dharma nāme paricaya,
paramparā jāno bhālo mate
Dayānidhi received the science of devotional service from Jñānasindhu, and the servant of Dayānidhi was Vidyānidhi [Vidyādhirāja Tīrtha]. Rājendra Tīrtha became a disciple of Vidyādhirāja Tīrtha. Rājendra Tīrtha's servant was known as Jayadharma or Vijayadhvaja Tīrtha. In this way you should properly understand this disciplic succession.
(4)
jayadharma-dāsye khyāti, śrī puruṣottama-jati,
tā ha'te brahmaṇya-tīrtha sūri
vyāsatīrtha tāra dāsa, lakṣmīpati vyāsa-dāsa,
tāhā ha'te mādhavendra purī
The great sannyāsī Śrī Puruṣottama Tīrtha received his knowledge in the service of his guru, Vijayadhvaja Tīrtha [Jayadharma]. The principal disciple of Puruṣottama Tīrtha was Subrahmaṇya Tīrtha. His servant was the great Vyāsatīrtha [Vyāsa Rāya]. Vyāsatīrtha's servant was Lakṣmīpati Tīrtha whose disciple was Madhavendra Purī Gosvāmī.
(5)
mādhavendra purī-bara, śiṣya-bara śrī-īśwara,
nityānanda, śrī-adwaita vibhu
īśwara-purīke dhanya, korilen śrī-caitanya,
jagad-guru gaura mahāprabhu
The chief disciple of Mādhavendra Purī was Īśvara Purī, and two of his other disciples were the renowned incarnations of Godhead Śrī Nityānanda and Advaita Ācārya. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, the spiritual preceptor of all the worlds, made Īśvara Purī greatly fortunate by accepting him as His spiritual master.
(6)
mahāprabhu śrī-caitanya, rādhā-kṛṣṇa nahe anya,
rūpānuga janera jīvana
viśwambhara priyaṅkara, śrī-swarūpa dāmodara,
śrī-goswāmī rūpa-sanātana
Mahāprabhu Śrī Caitanya is nondifferent from Śrī Śrī Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa and is the very life of those Vaiṣṇavas who follow Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī. Śrī Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī, Rūpa Gosvāmī, and Sanātana Gosvāmī were the givers of great happiness to Viśvambhara [Śrī Caitanya].
(7)
rūpa-priya mahājana, jīva, raghunātha hana,
tāra priya kavi kṛṣṇadāsa
kṛṣṇadāsa-priya-bara, narottama sevā-para,
jāra pada viśwanātha-āśa
The great souls Jīva Gosvāmī and Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī became very dear to Rūpa Gosvāmī. Jiva Gosvāmī was a disciple of Rūpa Gosvāmī, and Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī, a disciple of Advaita Ācārya's disciple Yadunandana Ācārya, was accepted by Rūpa and Sanātana as their third brother. Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī's beloved student was Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī. Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja was an intimate friend of Lokanātha Gosvāmī. They lived together in Vṛndāvana and always discussed the topics of Kṛṣṇa with one another. Lokanātha Gosvāmī, a disciple of Gadādhara Paṇḍita, had only one disciple, whose name was Narottama dāsa. Narottama dāsa was always engaged in the service of his guru, and he also engaged himself in the service of his guru's intimate friend. Thus he became very dear to Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī. To serve the feet of Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura was the only desire of Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura, who was the fourth ācārya in disciplic succession from Narottama dāsa.
(8)
viśwanātha-bhakta-sātha, baladeva jagannātha,
tāra priya śrī-bhaktivinoda
mahā-bhāgavata-bara, śrī-gaurakiśora-bara,
hari-bhajanete jā'ra moda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura was the śikṣā-guru [instructing spiritual master] of Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa, to whom he taught the precepts of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Jagannātha dāsa Bābājī was a very prominent ācārya after Śrī Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa and was the beloved śikṣā-guru of Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura. Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura's intimate friend and associate was the eminent mahā-bhāgavata Śrīla Gaurakiśora dāsa Bābājī, whose sole joy was found in hari-bhajana.
(9)
* īhārā paramahaṁsa, gaurāṅgera nija-baṁśa
tādera caraṇe mama gati
āmi sebā-udāsīna, nāmete tridaṇḍī dīna
śrī-bhaktisiddhānta saraswatī
These great saintly Vaiṣṇavas are all paramahaṁsas, or devotees of the highest order, and they are all part of Lord Gaurāṅga's own spiritual family. Their holy feet are my refuge. I have no real interest in devotional service, and I am a poor and lowly tridaṇḍī sannyāsī named Śrī Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī.
(10)
śrī-vārṣabhānavī-barā, sadā sevya-sevā-parā,
tāhāra dayita-dāsa-nāma
tāra pradhān pracārako, śrī-bhaktivedānta nāmo,
patita-janete doyā-dhāma
The renowned Śrī Vārṣabhanavī-dayita dāsa [the initiated name of Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī] is always engaged in the service of his spiritual master, Śrīla Gaurakiśora dāsa Bābājī. His foremost disciple-preacher is Śrī A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, who has spread the message of Lord Caitanya throughout the world and is thus a reservoir of mercy and compassion for all fallen souls.
