Sri Jagannatha Dasa Babaji

Saturday 8th march
Disappearance day of Sri Jagannatha Dasa Babaji

gauravirbhava-bhumes tvam, nirdestha saj-jana-priyah
vaishnava-sarvabhaumah shri-jagannathaya te namah

"I offer my respectful obeisances to Jagannatha dasa Babaji Maharaja, who is respected by the entire Vaishnava community and who discovered the place where Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu appeared."

Srila Jagannatha Dasa Babaji Maharaja, a prominent spiritual master coming in the line from Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, was the great-granddisciple of Srila Baladeva Vidyabhusana, who established the scriptural legitimacy of Lord Caitanya's movement.

Srila Jagannatha Dasa Babaji was the spiritual master, of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura, a pioneer in spreading Krishna consciousness outside India.
Srila Jagannatha Dasa Babaji Maharaja was born in West Bengal but later moved to Vrindavana, where Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura met him in 1880. Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura could understand that Babaji Maharaja was perfect in devotional service to Lord Krsna.

From Vrindavana, Babaji Maharaja moved to Navadvipa, West Bengal, the holy land of Lord Caitanya. He lived for some time in the area known as Koladvipa, and then in 1893 moved to Surabhi-kunja in Godrumadvipa. Because of his pure spiritual vision, Babaji Maharaja was able to reveal many holy sites of Navadvipa, including Lord Caitanya's birthplace. It is said that although Babaji Maharaja was old and invalid, on finding Lord Caitanya's birth-site he danced joyfully.

When Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura's son, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati, was twelve years old, Babaji Maharaja, aware of the boy's expertise in astrology, asked him to prepare a calendar for Vaisnavas, devotees of Lord Krsna. The boy pleased Babaji Maharaja by producing the Navadvipa Panjika, a calendar of festivals and appearance and disappearance days of devotees that is still used today.