Glories Of Navadwip Dham

Excerpt from Navadwip Dham Mahatmya by Bhaktivinoda Thakur: Conversation between Lord Shankar and Mother Paravati.
"O Paravati, anyone who hears with devotion how Lord Gauranga traversed Navadwip with His kirtana party will never again fall into the ocean of material existence. O Paravati, you will not find any place comparable to Navadwip, any form of the Lord comparable to Gauranga, nor anything comparable to krsna-prema. The success of life, particularly for Vaishnavas, is attained in Navadwip by worshiping the Lord following the path of the inhabitants of Vraja."Shaving the head, fasting, shradha rites, bathing, and charity, which are prescribed at other tirthas are not prescribed in Navadwip. If one performs any pious activities in Navadwip, the effect is quickly dissipated, because all the knots of karma are cut. Just by seeing the Supreme Lord Gaurasundara, the knots in the heart are cut, as all doubts and material reactions are destroyed. O Paravati, for this reason the sages take shelter of Navadwip and perform pure devotional service to the lotus feet of Rädhä and Krsna. They see the various forms of the Lord in the different islands, sing the names of the Lord, and bathe in the waters of the Ganges. With great devotion they spend nine days visiting the nine islands and pass their lives in bliss while taking maha-prasada."If anywhere in Navadwip a chandala offers vishnu-prasäda to Lord Brahmä, he will certainly eat it. Even if the prasäda is dried up, stale, or brought from a distant place, one should immediately eat it without consideration of proper or improper time. In taking Gauranga maha-prasada, there is no rule concerning purity of place, giver, or receiver. O Paravati, if a person takes Gauranga maha-prasada up to the throat, he will develop devotion to Gauranga. In eating gaura-prasäda, there is no consideration of the fault of overeating."There is no consideration of fitness for hearing the glories of Navadwip. Dying in other tirthas gives either material enjoyment or liberation, but dying in Navadwip gives pure devotion to the Lord. In Navadwip there is no consideration of a faulty death-at an inauspicious time, in pain, in the house, or by accident. Death at other tirthas while practicing yoga or death in Kashi while absorbed in impersonal meditation become insignificant when compared to death in Navadwip."Living in Navadwip for one day is better than living in Prayäga, Varanasi, or any other tirtha for a kalpa. Whatever results one obtains by yoga, one achieves in Navadwip. With every step one attains the results of great sacrifices, and by lying down and sleeping in Navadwip, one gets the results of offering obeisance's. Just by taking an ordinary meal in Navadwip, one gets the results of eating the Lord's remnants. So, what more can I say regarding the faithful person who is devoted to chanting the holy name and taking Gauranga's remnants with faith and devotion?

Glories Of Navadwip Dham!