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The cover of The Chronicle of the Vedas: gold lettering on an indigo star chart, a seal of a flute whose sound falls through four stations to a lantern, and thirty-two stations round the frame.

Chronicle 001 · First edition

The Chronicle of the Vedas

Thirty-two hands. One signal. No break.

Before the Vedas were a book, they were a sound, handed from teacher to student without a break. This is the chain ĀRK comes from, thirty-two hands from Śrī Kṛṣṇa to Śrīla Prabhupāda, every link shown with where it comes from. Walk it here, or take the whole chronicle with you.

Digital edition2.8 MBPrint edition 5.0 MB

The Relay · Brahma-Madhva-Gauḍīya line

Walk it, hand to hand.

“This supreme science was thus received through the chain of disciplic succession, and the saintly kings understood it in that way. But in course of time the succession was broken, and therefore the science as it is appears to be lost.”

Bhagavad-gītā 4.2

Chapter 1 · 01–04

The First Transmission

  1. Śrī KṛṣṇaThe source

    Speaker of the Gītā. Per Gītā 4.1, He first spoke this teaching to Vivasvān, the sun-god.

    Bhagavad-gītā 4.1

  2. BrahmāThe first teacher

    Receives the Veda “in the heart” (tene brahma hṛdā).

    Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.1.1

  3. Nārada

    Brahmā’s student. Instructs Vyāsa to compose the Bhāgavatam.

    Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.5

  4. Vyāsa

    Arranges the Veda and compiles the Bhāgavatam. Vyāsa literally means “arranger”: the first editor.

    Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.7.6

Chapter 2 · 05–19

The Southern Relay

  1. MadhvaUdupi · 13th century

    Founder of Tattvavāda. Wrote commentaries on the Gītā and the Vedānta-sūtra.

    Standard histories of the Mādhva tradition

  2. Padmanābha
  3. NṛhariKalinga · c. 1243–1333

    Narahari Tīrtha, a disciple of Madhva. Regent in the Eastern Gaṅga kingdom of Kalinga; spread Madhva’s philosophy there.

    Narahari Tirtha, Wikipedia (Śrīkūrmam inscriptions)

  4. Mādhava
  5. Akṣobhya
  6. Jayatīrtha

    Known as the Ṭīkācārya, “the commentator”. Author of the Nyāya-sudhā.

    Standard histories of the Mādhva tradition

  7. Jñānasindhu
  8. Dayānidhi
  9. Vidyānidhi
  10. Rājendra
  11. Jayadharma
  12. Puruṣottama
  13. Brahmaṇya Tīrtha
  14. VyāsatīrthaVijayanagara · 1460–1539

    Rājaguru of the Vijayanagara court. Author of the Nyāyāmṛta.

    Standard histories of the Mādhva tradition

  15. Lakṣmīpati

Chapter 3 · 20–28

The Bengal Relay

  1. Mādhavendra PurīRemuṇā, Odisha

    Called the first sprout of the tree of devotion.

    Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi 9.10

  2. Īśvara PurīGayā

    Initiates Śrī Caitanya at Gayā.

    Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi 17

  3. Śrī Caitanya MahāprabhuNavadvīpa to Purī, Odisha · 1486–1534

    Spent his last eighteen years in Purī. Wrote only eight verses, the Śikṣāṣṭaka.

    Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya 20

  4. Rūpa GosvāmīVṛndāvana

    Author of the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu.

    Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta

  5. Raghunātha dāsa · Jīva GosvāmīVṛndāvana

    Jīva Gosvāmī: author of the Ṣaṭ-sandarbha.

    Standard Gauḍīya histories

  6. Kṛṣṇadāsa KavirājaVṛndāvana

    Author of the Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta.

    Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, colophons to each chapter

  7. Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura

    His songs: the Prārthanā and the Prema-bhakti-candrikā.

    Standard Gauḍīya histories

  8. Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura

    Commentaries on the Bhāgavatam (Sārārtha-darśinī) and the Gītā (Sārārtha-varṣiṇī).

    Standard Gauḍīya histories

  9. Jagannātha dāsa Bābājī

    Baladeva: author of the Govinda-bhāṣya on the Vedānta-sūtra.

    Standard Gauḍīya histories

Chapter 4 · 29–32

The Crossing

  1. Bhaktivinoda ṬhākuraBengal and Purī, Odisha · 1838–1914

    A magistrate, posted at Purī, who wrote Jaiva-dharma (1896): invented characters, real philosophy. The precedent for ĀRK Books.

    Standard biographies of Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura

  2. Gaurakiśora dāsa Bābājī
  3. Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī ṬhākuraCalcutta · 1874–1937

    An astronomer who published the Sūrya-siddhānta with a Bengali translation. Called the printing press the bṛhad-mṛdaṅga, “the great drum”.

    Standard biographies; Vaniquotes, “Surya-siddhanta”

  4. A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami PrabhupādaCalcutta to Boston · 1896–1977

    Sailed from Calcutta on the Jaladuta in 1965, at 69, and reached Boston that September. Founded ISKCON in New York in 1966. Translator of the Gītā and the Bhāgavatam.

    Standard biographies of Śrīla Prabhupāda

And the signal reaches you.

After Śrīla Prabhupāda, his great disciples transmitted this knowledge to us. Every verse on ĀRK has come down this same line.

Chapter 1 of 4 · 01–04

The First Transmission

From the source to the first teachers. A teaching that begins in the sky.

Śrī Kṛṣṇa

श्रीकृष्ण

The source

Speaker of the Gītā. Per Gītā 4.1, He first spoke this teaching to Vivasvān, the sun-god.

Bhagavad-gītā 4.1

Brahmā

ब्रह्मा

The first teacher

Receives the Veda “in the heart” (tene brahma hṛdā).

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.1.1

Nārada

नारद

Brahmā’s student. Instructs Vyāsa to compose the Bhāgavatam.

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.5

Vyāsa

व्यास

Arranges the Veda and compiles the Bhāgavatam. Vyāsa literally means “arranger”: the first editor.

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.7.6

Chapter 2 of 4 · 05–19

The Southern Relay

Udupi and the Karnataka coast, from the 13th century on.

Madhva

मध्व

Udupi · 13th century

Founder of Tattvavāda. Wrote commentaries on the Gītā and the Vedānta-sūtra.

Standard histories of the Mādhva traditionUnder review

Padmanābha

पद्मनाभ

Record being sourced from the texts. Not improvised.

Nṛhari

नृहरि

Kalinga · c. 1243–1333

Narahari Tīrtha, a disciple of Madhva. Regent in the Eastern Gaṅga kingdom of Kalinga; spread Madhva’s philosophy there.

Narahari Tirtha, Wikipedia (Śrīkūrmam inscriptions)

Mādhava

माधव

Record being sourced from the texts. Not improvised.

Akṣobhya

अक्षोभ्य

Record being sourced from the texts. Not improvised.

Jayatīrtha

जयतीर्थ

Known as the Ṭīkācārya, “the commentator”. Author of the Nyāya-sudhā.

Standard histories of the Mādhva traditionUnder review

Jñānasindhu

ज्ञानसिन्धु

Record being sourced from the texts. Not improvised.

Dayānidhi

दयानिधि

Record being sourced from the texts. Not improvised.

Vidyānidhi

विद्यानिधि

Record being sourced from the texts. Not improvised.

Rājendra

राजेन्द्र

Record being sourced from the texts. Not improvised.

Jayadharma

जयधर्म

Record being sourced from the texts. Not improvised.

Puruṣottama

पुरुषोत्तम

Record being sourced from the texts. Not improvised.

Brahmaṇya Tīrtha

ब्रह्मण्यतीर्थ

Record being sourced from the texts. Not improvised.

Vyāsatīrtha

व्यासतीर्थ

Vijayanagara · 1460–1539

Rājaguru of the Vijayanagara court. Author of the Nyāyāmṛta.

Standard histories of the Mādhva traditionUnder review

Lakṣmīpati

लक्ष्मीपति

Record being sourced from the texts. Not improvised.

Chapter 3 of 4 · 20–28

The Bengal Relay

Bengal, Vṛndāvana, and the Odisha coast at Purī and Remuṇā.

Mādhavendra Purī

माधवेन्द्र पुरी

Remuṇā, Odisha

Called the first sprout of the tree of devotion.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi 9.10

Īśvara Purī

ईश्वर पुरी

with Nityānanda, Advaita

Gayā

Initiates Śrī Caitanya at Gayā.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi 17

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu

श्रीचैतन्य

Navadvīpa to Purī, Odisha · 1486–1534

Spent his last eighteen years in Purī. Wrote only eight verses, the Śikṣāṣṭaka.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya 20

Rūpa Gosvāmī

रूप गोस्वामी

with Svarūpa, Sanātana

Vṛndāvana

Author of the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛtaUnder review

Raghunātha dāsa · Jīva Gosvāmī

रघुनाथ दास · जीव गोस्वामी

Vṛndāvana

Jīva Gosvāmī: author of the Ṣaṭ-sandarbha.

Standard Gauḍīya historiesUnder review

Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja

कृष्णदास कविराज

Vṛndāvana

Author of the Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, colophons to each chapter

Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura

नरोत्तम दास ठाकुर

His songs: the Prārthanā and the Prema-bhakti-candrikā.

Standard Gauḍīya historiesUnder review

Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura

विश्वनाथ चक्रवर्ती ठाकुर

Commentaries on the Bhāgavatam (Sārārtha-darśinī) and the Gītā (Sārārtha-varṣiṇī).

Standard Gauḍīya historiesUnder review

Jagannātha dāsa Bābājī

जगन्नाथ दास बाबाजी

with Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa

Baladeva: author of the Govinda-bhāṣya on the Vedānta-sūtra.

Standard Gauḍīya historiesUnder review

Chapter 4 of 4 · 29–32

The Crossing

Calcutta, the printing press, and a cargo ship to Boston.

Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura

भक्तिविनोद ठाकुर

Bengal and Purī, Odisha · 1838–1914

A magistrate, posted at Purī, who wrote Jaiva-dharma (1896): invented characters, real philosophy. The precedent for ĀRK Books.

Standard biographies of Bhaktivinoda ṬhākuraUnder review

Gaurakiśora dāsa Bābājī

गौरकिशोर दास बाबाजी

Record being sourced from the texts. Not improvised.

Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura

भक्तिसिद्धान्त सरस्वती ठाकुर

Calcutta · 1874–1937

An astronomer who published the Sūrya-siddhānta with a Bengali translation. Called the printing press the bṛhad-mṛdaṅga, “the great drum”.

Standard biographies; Vaniquotes, “Surya-siddhanta”Under review

A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda

भक्तिवेदान्त स्वामी प्रभुपाद

Calcutta to Boston · 1896–1977

Sailed from Calcutta on the Jaladuta in 1965, at 69, and reached Boston that September. Founded ISKCON in New York in 1966. Translator of the Gītā and the Bhāgavatam.

Standard biographies of Śrīla PrabhupādaUnder review

After station 32

And the signal reaches you.

After Śrīla Prabhupāda, his great disciples transmitted this knowledge to us. Every verse on ĀRK has come down this same line.

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The printed chronicle

Look inside

Forty-eight pages: the Gītā’s own account, every station with its record, the initiation links, the Bhāgavatam’s chain, and eight things to do, from a crossword to tracing the route. It does not mention this website once: it stands on its own.

  • Page 5: Bhagavad-gītā 4.1 in a blue frame, beside a drawing of the stepped sun handing the teaching to Manu and Ikṣvāku.

    5The First Transmission

  • Page 10: the thirty-two stations as a railway map in four coloured chapters.

    10The Map of the Relay

  • Page 12: station 02, with Bhāgavatam 2.9.6 and a lotus on the water hearing two syllables, ta and pa.

    12Brahmā Hears

  • Page 18: Bhāgavatam 8.13.15–16 and a drawing of the badarī grove in the Himalayas.

    18Madhva Meets Vyāsa

  • Page 31: the Jaladuta crossing from Calcutta to Boston, 13 August to 17 September 1965.

    31Thirty-Five Days at Sea

  • Page 40: a crossword whose every answer is in the chronicle.

    40The Relay Crossword

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Take the chronicle home

  • Take the śabda home.The digital edition opens at once on any phone. Read a station on the train, share a page with a friend, carry all thirty-two hands in your pocket.
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First edition. Later editions will add records as they are sourced; nothing is added before it can be checked.

Where this page comes from. · 7
  • The 32 names A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Bhagavad-gītā As It Is, Introduction. The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.
  • The verses Bhagavad-gītā 4.1–4.3; Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.1.1, 1.5 and 1.7.6; Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi 9.10, Ādi 17 and Antya 20; Brahma-saṁhitā 5.27.
  • Madhva to Śrī Caitanya Kavi-karṇapūra, Gaura-gaṇoddeśa-dīpikā (1576). Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa, Prameya-ratnāvalī.
  • The initiation links The standard biography of each teacher, named on each link. A link still being checked against a primary account is marked “Under review”.
  • Vedic chanting UNESCO, “Tradition of Vedic Chanting”, inscribed in 2008 on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
  • Records Each station names its source. A record whose source is still being checked against a primary account is marked “Under review”.
  • Dates Given as a century where the tradition and historians differ.

Verse texts and translations as published on vedabase.io. Translations of the Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam: A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda · © The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International.

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