Aside from staying and preaching in Mathurā and North India, Śrīla Gurudeva traveled throughout the jungles and villages of Bengal. Ācārya Kesarī had instructed his disciples, “If you do not preach, it is disrespectful to the Guru-varga and Bhakti-devī.” He quoted the verse from Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya 4.102-3:
apane acare keha, na kare pracara pracara karena keha, na karena ācāra ‘ācāra’, ‘pracara’ - namera karaha dui kārya tumi sarva-guru, tumi jagatera ārya
Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī said to Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura: “Some practice nāma-bhajana but do not preach the glories of śrī-harināma; others preach but do not practice. You, however, perform both duties to śrī-harināma and are perfect in both practice and preaching. Because you practice what you preach, you are the guru of all humanity and the foremost personality within this world.”
Śrīla Gurudeva often went on preaching tours with Śrīla Vāmana Gosvāmī Mahārāja and Śrīla Trivikrama Gosvāmī Mahārāja. The three pillars of the Vedānta Samīti would sit together on a stage and address a crowd of several thousand. Śrīla Gurudeva would first speak by bringing up a controversial topic or challenging an apa-sampradāya (a deviant offshoot of a legitimate lineage). He spoke with the people in a familiar tone, like a village president advising his dependents. The people discussed the different sides of what they heard amongst themselves, and then Śrīla Trivikrama Gosvāmī Mahārāja would give a very strong speech, smashing the errant conception. Lastly, Śrīla Vāmana Gosvāmī Mahārāja would deliver a sweet solution and conclusion, cooling all hearts and helping people understand the truth.
Śrīla Gurudeva, Śrīla Vāmana Gosvāmī Mahārāja, and Śrīla Trivikrama Gosvāmī Mahārāja were known as three brothers, as well as the three pillars of the Gauḍīya Vedānta Samīti. With a compassionate mood, they traveled and requested those they met, “O brother, please follow Ekādaśī. Chant a little hari-mālā. Don’t waste time. Hear some bhāgavata-kathā. Come for sat-saṅga.”
Sometimes these three stalwart ācāryas preached together, and sometimes in separate areas. Śrīla Gurudeva went to the poor villages of Bengal, inviting people to Navadvīpa-dhāma. Those villagers who were able would spend five rupees to go to Navadvīpa and donate a little rice for serving Mahāprabhu. In those days, conditions were harsh. In some villages he would see that the people were so poor that they had no shoes or proper clothes, but they had respect for Bhagavān and His devotees.
Śrīla Gurudeva donated funds that he collected in wealthier areas to purchase train tickets to Navadvīpa for the destitute, saying, “Somehow, you should come for parikramā.” Śrīla Gurudeva did not think, “They cannot pay festival fees; we will not feed and maintain them.” Gurudeva did not make such distinctions: “He is poor,” or, “He is rich.” He went everywhere to distribute love of God—not to acquire material wealth. He saw the heart and soul of people, not the external skin, gender, or caste. He was always openhearted, following his spiritual master’s footsteps.
One time, Śrīla Gurudeva went to Lakṣmī-Janārdana-pura in the Sundarbans, near the Bay of Bengal. There, Śrīla Gurudeva held a three-day program on the grounds of a large high school. Many villagers attended, some coming from great distances. The villagers who lived there had an attraction for hearing and chanting and knew that sādhus distribute free mahā-prasāda. They understood that the Vaiṣṇavas’ prasāda and caraṇāmṛta are very helpful.
While Śrīla Gurudeva was preaching in Lakṣmī-Janārdana-pura, he met with a nine-year-old boy named Susanta. Many people from his village had come to the meeting. When he met the boy, Śrīla Gurudeva asked him, “What are you doing now?”
“Going to school,” Susanta said.
“Will you come with me to Navadvīpa?”
“Yes.”
“How will you come?”
“Somehow I will manage.”
Two years later, Susanta ran away from home and met Śrīla Gurudeva at Devānanda Gauḍīya Maṭha. He was very thin and his complexion was dark. When he came and saw such a big temple full of sādhus wearing good cloth and eating nicely, he thought, “They are living luxuriantly here. This is not good for bhajana. I will go to Vṛndāvana and practice bhajana there.” He took a train from Navadvīpa station going to Gayā, then from Gayā to Kāśī, Vārāṇasī to Allahābāda, and then Vṛndāvana.
At the Kiul station in Lakhisarai, Bihar, the ticket examiner caught him traveling without a ticket and put him in jail for three months. In the jail they would work him very hard and only feed him two capātīs a day. There were many mosquitoes, and the jailers would provide one pot of water for bathing, drinking, and all other needs. The cells were crowded with prisoners, and severe beatings were dealt to anyone who misbehaved.
After three months, Susanta was released from jail and somehow returned to Navadvīpa. When he saw him, Śrīla Gurudeva said, “Oh! You came?” He had a high fever, dysentery, and chicken pox. He was on the brink of death, and it was as if his whole body was rotten. Śrīla Gurudeva made a place for him on his verandah. At that time there were not many rooms. On Śrīla Gurudeva’s order, each brahmacārī would give two hours of care to Susanta—someone would be with him 24 hours a day. At night, Śrīla Gurudeva sat by him and wiped his head with a damp cloth to cool the fever and comfort him. Gurudeva continuously took care of Susanta and his fever subsided after a month and a half. Reduced to skin and bones, he was saved only by Śrīla Gurudeva’s care and affection.
Susanta later received initiation from Śrīla Vāmana Gosvāmī Mahārāja and was named Śubhānanda Brahmacārī.
Upon recovering, Gurudeva told him, “Now you should study śāstra. I will help you learn.”
“Yes,” Śubhānanda Brahmacārī said, “teach me Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi.”
“No!” Śrīla Gurudeva said, surprised the boy initially wanted to study about such an esoteric topic.
“Okay, then give me Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu.”
“No!”
“Then, the Tenth Canto of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.”
“No! First you will study Caitanya-Bhāgavata.”
One day, Śrīla Gurudeva said, “Now I’m going to Mathurā.”
“I will come also,” Śubhānanda said.
Citing various reasons, Śrīla Gurudeva told him many times not to come. He said, “You don’t want to go there. The summer is so hot. The winter is so cold. There is no good food or water, no rice or dāl. Stay here, learn Sanskrit, and become qualified.” But he had made up his mind to follow Gurudeva. When Śrīla Gurudeva returned to Keśavajī Gauḍīya Maṭha in Mathurā, Śubhānanda Brahmacārī followed right behind him. At that time there were only a few brahmacārīs and one or two old bābājīs there.
[Excerpted from the Bhakta Bandhav Publication “Sri Guru Darsana“]