20160507 A Class on Gaura Kathā

The Following is a class given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on May 7th 2016 in New Vrindavana, West Virginia,USA. The class was about Gaura Katha and was given at the Festival of Inspiration.

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim

yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande śrī-guruṁ dīna-tāraṇam

paramānanda-mādhavam śrī caitanya īśvaram

So today, I would like to speak about Lord Caitanya’s special mercy. We understand that we have to meditate on the other pastimes of the Lord. One time Rukmini got the news that Kṛṣṇa was coming to the palace. She personally cleaned the house with her maids, she got all the children dressed up, she put auspicious sugarcane stalks, banana fruits, put water pots at the door way. Had the Brahmanas chanting mantras and musical band play music, everything to make the arrival of Lord Kṛṣṇa especially auspicious. So, when Kṛṣṇa came, she sent all the children up to Kṛṣṇa and they were embracing Him, He smelt their hair and afterwards He accompanied her in their private quarters. 

She was bathing the feet of Lord Kṛṣṇa and she was crying. So, Kṛṣṇa said, “This is the happy occasion I am arriving at your palace, why you crying? Had some child been unsubmissive or had some maid or someone argue back. Why you crying?” And she was looking at Kṛṣṇa’s lotus face and she commented “ You know what Brahmā is doing on Satyaloka, what Śīva is doing in Kailasha, you know everything but it seems there is one thing you don’t know. I know, Rādhārāṇī knows, you don’t know.”

Nobody told Kṛṣṇa ever something that He didn’t know. He said “Well tell me, what is it” and then Rukmini said that “You don’t know how much we devotees love you and in what way we love you. I knew that you are coming today but soon you will leave tomorrow. You‘ll leave in a short time. If you promise me you will never leave, then I won’t cry”. 

Because her love for Kṛṣṇa was so intense that even in the presence of Kṛṣṇa she would feel separation. So, He picked her up, had her sitting by His side, He wiped the tears from her face and He tried her to say something so that to pacify her.

Meanwhile, Narada Muni flew in through the window “Oh Gurudev” because Kṛṣṇa was playing the pastime of a Kshatriya.(Garland is been offered to Guru Maharaja…..HariBol….), So, Narada Muni was His Gurudev. So, then  He sat Narada Muni down on a special Guru Asana and Rukmini poured the water, Lord Kṛṣṇa massaged it  and played the part of a disciple.

When He saw that Narada Muni was disturbed “Gurudev you are usually very peaceful but today I see you are disturbed, what’s wrong? And he said that to Lord Kṛṣṇa that, “I see the symptoms in the world just like before the sunset, the heat of the sun is less so just before your pastimes are winding up, I see the impending Kaliyuga is coming and I wonder how the people be delivered in this age of Kaliyuga.” 

Kṛṣṇa said that “Today my Queen has said, there is something I don’t know. I don’t know what the devotees feels for me and you are concerned how the people in Kaliyuga will be delivered. So, I promise, I say, I will come again in Kaliyuga. I will come again…” (Guru Maharaja repeating loudly….).

“This time I will come as my devotee. I will experience what Rukmini has challenged me. What my devotee feel for me. I will spread the Harinaam Sankirtan and liberate all the people of Kaliyuga.”

So, that pastime which happened in Dwarka is the background of Lord Caitanya’s Avatara. When Krishna will come as a devotee and He will experience the love of a devotee for Himself. First He will start the Sankirtan Yagnya.

So when Lord Caitanya came, He as a devotee, He didn’t reveal who He was. But some devotees feeling naturally inspired by His presence. But He came, as a small child, as a toddler, He was crying and His father Jagannatha Mishra asked “why you crying? “I want to go to your friends, who are having a feast” and He said that they are having a feast today. So this was there on the other side of the Jalangi  river. So Jagannatha Mishra, he didn’t know about the feast. He crossed the river took his son to the house of Jagadisha Pandit. There he saw they were offering the deities a big great feast. That’s why he didn’t invite anybody since it was Ekadasi and all devotees will fast from grains on Ekadasi. How does a little toddler know about Ekadasi and how does he know, that they are having this feast for the deities. So, then naturally the people who were organizing the feast, they somehow felt that Kṛṣṇa is working through this child, so they offered the feast to Lord Caitanya.

Now throughout the childhood pastimes, Lord Caitanya He know would act like a naughty boy. Sometimes He will be bathing in the Ganges, He take water (phuuhhh…) spit it on the Brahmans,

What you doing? I am in the Ganges and I am chanting my Gayatri. He will say I am the Father of the Ganges... Don’t speak these things (ha ha ha…). 

He was actually revealing who He was. But because being a small child people thought He is just being naughty and when He would go to get His elder brother Vishwarupa, from the class of Advaita Gosai , and that’s how He would pull on the chaddar of Vishwarupa and he will be carrying his blanket, little boy, and He would say“mother is calling, time for lunch,” and everybody will be looking at Him.

It is said in the purport, it describes how, say you have relative very dear, everyone loves and as soon as they dead, it’s not the same. In India they can put outside the house and here they would keep them in some funeral home.After doing the rites, they will bury or cremate. So, when soul of the body leaves, then the body itself is useless. So Kṛṣṇa is the soul of the souls. When He leaves, none of us has any value, so naturally He is all attractive for everybody. See how He is acting and they wouldn’t know that He is Krishna but somehow they were all attracted to Him. 

One time sitting in the class of Advaita Gosai, Advaita made some nice points and then they all chanted HariBol!! HariBol!! [Guru Mahārāja and all devotees chant Haribol] Immediately Lord Caitanya who is running out side, playing outside, He ran in and all the people asked Him “What you want boy”? “You called me” [Everyone laughs].“No, no we didn’t call you”. “Ok “and He went out. So He was having pastime like this. 

One time Murari Gupta was giving class on Patanjali yoga system and Lord Caitanya, He did not like His pure devotees speaking on some non-bhakti topics. So, Murari Gupta was telling so do your pranayama, breath in one nostril, breathe out the other, breathe in that one, and breathe out the other. 

This is the system of pranayama and Lord Caitanya is little tot, He so, He didn’t like it. 

So, then He started to mimic “Do your pranayama, breath in the left nostril, breathe out the right, and everybody started laughing. Murari Gupta was now serious. He is trying to have the serious class, so now he is to learn how to do the Padmasana. “Do your Padmasana “, then everybody packed up. He said, “Who is this boy. Whose child is He? Why he creates all this disturbance.” And then Lord Caitanya said,”You have interrupted your Bhakti, I will interrupt your lunch and walked out.” Then Murari Gupta said, “Ok class over.” So, he went back home. 

He took his SitaRam prasadam. Meanwhile Lord Caitanya went home. He wore his clothes, yellow sash, yellow dhoti with red sash, turban, peacock feather in His turban, flute in His belt, ankle bells. He decorated Himself just like Kṛṣṇa and then He went to the house of Murari Gupta (jinn jinn Jinn Jinnn jinn jinnn…). Murari Gupta was sitting eating. Murari Gupta (very loudly), big voice (Ha ha…). Murari Gupta thought who is this? Then he got up, saw the young boy, Nimai. Nimai said, “You interrupted your bhakti, I interrupted your lunch. Don’t interrupt your bhakti anymore and He left. “How this 3-4 years old know all these things, He was just like Kṛṣṇa. He heard that Advaita Gosai had done tapasya and Kṛṣṇa would come. Is this the Kṛṣṇa avatar?

So then he went to the house of Jagannatha Mishra and Saci mata and he saw Jagannatha Mishra was embracing his son, smelling His head, Saci mata was taking the son, embracing Him, smelling His head, then Jagannatha Mishra took Him back, so much, they showing so much love and affection on Nimai. Murari Gupta was watching. He saw all His features and he saw He had exactly the features of Kṛṣṇa. Only He was golden in color,His arms went to His knees ,His eyes were like lotus flowers almost touching His ears, he was convinced. Meanwhile Jagannatha Mishra noticed Murari Gupta, he stood up, “Oh Murari Gupta, the best Ayurvedic physician of our Navadvipa, and what brings you to the house of poor Brahman.” Murari Gupta was seeing Nimai, He grabbed the hands of Jagannatha Mishra, He said “You are the most fortunate person in the all universe”, your son is ..”.Aaaaaaa (Nimai shouted), Mummy, I want my milk (Gurumaharaj in loud voice). Sensors…sensed ( Ha ha ha). So, that was it. [Everyone laughs]

So, Lord Caitanya, He didn’t let anyone know, even a few people know, may be, but not wide spread. When He was older, He began teaching and He was known as Nimai Pandit, the greatest pandit of all times. That time all the other pandits, like Gadadhara Pandit, Jagadananda Pandit, they would avoid knowing Nimai Pandit because He is always been talking some technical Sanskrit things. They wanted to hear about Kṛṣṇa but He didn’t talk so much of Kṛṣṇa. So, He was walking one day and He saw Mukunda Dutta and then Mukunda Dutta turned around and quickly ran out and He asked from the students, “Why Mukunda is running away”. “Oh! May be has some work to do.” “No, I know He is a Vaishnava and he doesn’t want to discuss topics, not about Kṛṣṇa. So that’s why he is running away. But they don’t know one day will come I will be known as the greatest Vaishnava and people will be coming to me to learn Vaishnava.” So, Nimai Pandit was so arrogant at that time. Actually He is predicting the truth but the students thought this is the arrogance of Nimai Pandit.

Meanwhile, Lord Nityananda, He was travelling around all the holy places of South India and one day He came across Madhavendra Puri. Just seeing him, He became very ecstatic and then Madhavendra Puri saw Him, he became ecstatic. Both of them, they embraced each other. Madhavendra Puri said, “I visited many holy places, but today all my Tirtha Yatra has borne fruit.”

I am seeing Nityananda and Nityananda was seeing Madhavendra Puri as His Guru.

So they were discussing about topics about Kṛṣṇa and day and night were passing and they didn’t notice it and then followers seeing how much spontaneous love they had  for each other, and they just started to chant HariBol !! HariBol !!HariBol.!! [Guru Mahārāja and everyone chant]

Until ..so this pastimes happened sometime and then Lord Nityananda went to Rameshwaram and Madhavendra Puri went somewhere else. And the Lord Nityananda went back to …Vrindavana and He was waiting, when Lord Caitanya would start His Sankirtana movement, when He will start His pastimes of spreading the Holy Names. Before that Lord Nityananda didn’t preach about the Holy names. He didn’t deliver people. He was at holy places and they were all waiting, all the devotees for Lord Caitanya to manifest. After Lord Caitanya went to Gaya, He took initiation from Ishwara Puri and then He went back to towards Navadwip. But when  He was in Kanai Natshala, He saw Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa came up and He embraced Him but then He was chasing after Kṛṣṇa but Kṛṣṇa disappeared. Then He was rolling in the ground, feeling great separation. So, when He got back to Navadwip, He was changed. Now Nimai Pandit was Gaura Hari. Now everything every Sanskrit explanation was based on the names of Kṛṣṇa. Sacimata was calling Him one time for prasadam then some neighbours came and said, “Something is wrong with your son. It seems He has displaced Vayu in the head”. So then one neighbour said, “Yes, you should feed Him tender coconut water.” Others said, “No no , that’s not strong enough, you should give Dus Mula Taila, the oil of 10 roots on His head.” Others said, “No!,No that won’t work. He is really bad. Tie Him with ropes, keep Him in the house.” She said, “Nothing is wrong with my son.”

So Nimai pandit went to see Srivasa Thakur and asked him, “People say I have a disease. Do I really have a disease?” So, Srivasa Thakur asked Him, “What are symptoms?” He said, “Whenever I hear the names of Kṛṣṇa , my hairs stands on end, my voice get choked up, tears come to my eyes, sometimes I uncontrollably laugh, sometimes I fall into ground stunned. These things are happening to me.” Srivasa Thakur said, “Yes, you have the disease and I also want that disease (GuruMaharaja and everyone laughing).

“You have this disease which is known as Krishna Prema” So then Srivasa said that general people will not understand your ecstasies, so therefore you can come to my garden at night, I will invite devotees who can understand and then you can chant with them here. So that’s how the nocturnal kirtana of Lord Caitanya began in the house of Srivasa Angana. So like this Lord Caitanya, He has many pastimes in the house of Srivasa. Lord Nityananda came and joined Him, by that time they had started to chant, far and wide, all over Navadwipa and somewhere around this time, fairly in the beginning, Lord Caitanya decided to reveal to Advaita Gosai who He really was. So, then He told one of the brothers of Srivasa Thakur to deliver this message to Advaita Gosai.

So, if I tell all pastimes then my time won’t allow. [Guru Mahārāja looks at his watch] So the thing is I have to go back and when you think of the different pastimes of the Lord throughout the Yugas. If you have TriVikrama, who all delivered  Bali Maharaja, Narsimhadeva who gave His mercy to Prahalada Maharaja and liberated Hiranyakasipu.

But in all these cases, you think how many devotees could actually take advantage and get the association of Lord and very few, like Varaha deva, He was in Satayuga, 

He appeared as a small boar and grew bigger. He lifted up the earth and the rishis who could see from outer space, they were enjoying this pastimes of the Lord and the Lord, how He liberated Hiranyaksha and it’s said He shook His body and the water sprayed on the rishis, they were in ecstasy. Still how many actually could participate.

 Compared to that Sri Ramachandra had so many monkeys, who were different residents of higher planets, different devotees and how they helped Him in His conquest over Ravana to liberate Sita and then the residents of Ayodhya, how they were serving Rama as a king. So there you can see, how many more people got mercy. Residents of Ayodhya, monkeys, Vibhisana, but in Dasya Bhava or in the neutral bhava. 

But when you get back to Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes, in Vraja, in the various childhood pastimes, there were so many who could participates. All His cowherd friends, thousands and millions, His parents and His uncles and elders. Vatsalya Rasa, Sakhya Vatsalya, and there were the Gopis, who loved Kṛṣṇa as a Husband, as a paramour, so they had the Madhurya Rasa. So when Kṛṣṇa went to Mathura and Dwarka, the Vrishnis got the mercy and some mercy to the Pandavas. But in the Brihad Bhagavatamrita, it says that when Narada Muni went to see the Pandavas and said you are the greatest devotees. That time they were having a special meeting, all the Pandavas, Draupadi, Kunti, what do we do to get Kṛṣṇa to come back to us and were suggesting, “Well, one said we could say that we are being attacked. He won’t believe that. He already killed all the enemies. What do we do, what do we do.” 

And then Nararada Muni came and said you are the greatest devotees. 

So then Arjuna said, “Oh! It’s true we are devotees but the greatest devotees, see the Vrishnis, see in Dwarka, He is living them, and is with Him every day, they are the greatest devotees. 

So, in the Bhagwatam there is a pastime when Kṛṣṇa went to Mithiladesh and visited the house of Bahulasva and Srutadeva. Bahulasva was the king and Srutadeva was the poor Brahmana. So the King gave a warm reception and made big asanas with gold and jewels, Bathed His feet with golden pots and all the Rshis who were with Him. Meanwhile, Krishna went to the house of Srutadeva. He didn’t have, he had to borrow asanas from neighbours house and somehow with this ordinary pot, his wife poured the water and he massaged, Kṛṣṇa and all the rishis feet. But Kṛṣṇa had been greeted by Bahulasva with jewels and valuable gifts but what Srutadeva had was very poor but he gave a lotus flower to everybody and Bhulasva offered Chappan Bhoga, 56 preparations in golden vessels and Srutadeva, he didn’t have valuable things he gave them on banana leaves, a handful of rice,sabji, daal, chutney just ordinary things because they were poor so they offered the best they had, but it was very simple. Bahulasva was so happy with tears in his eyes, he begged Kṛṣṇa  to stay for few more days and he took the water from the Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet , sprinkled that on his queens head, his children’s head, minister’s head and Srutadeva, he took the water and sprinkled on his wife’s head and children head. When Srutadeva was giving out the prasadam (The Bhoga), at one point he was just so happy (Gurumaharaja  laughs and happily continues) and Kṛṣṇa has come to my house, He came…, he started dancing, dancing in ecstasy spontaneously. And then, so we have this beautiful pastimes of Lord Kṛṣṇa.

Lord Caitanya, He travelled around India for 6 years. You multiply 6 times 365. So, He would stay one day at each house except for the rainy season. So, how many of you would like to have Kṛṣṇa coming to your house. [Guru Mahārāja asks, and all reply with Haribol] Bathe His feet, feed Him. Lord Caitanya came as a teacher, so they will sit around and He would instruct them. He would tell them 

Yare dekho, tare kaho, Krsna –upadesa

amara ajnaya guru hana tara ei desa

Whoever you meet tell them the instructions of Lord Kṛṣṇa and be a guru on my order, liberate your country. So Lord Caitanya if we compare, He is Kṛṣṇa but we don’t find any Avatara so merciful, so accessible. I got a letter from one person, “Sometimes I think, What if I see Kṛṣṇa, Oh! No,I am not ready, I have so many attachments, have to give up things. No no I don’t want to see Kṛṣṇa” [All laugh]

So, Maya is so strong but actually Kṛṣṇa is very practical. We are all part of Kṛṣṇa. He knows very well our situation. He delivered Jagai Madhai, but He had them promise and they would stop doing the many sinful things. So, Lord Caitanya especially liberates people and how Prabhupada fits in that we will talk later in Prabhupada Pastimes but I was thinking how compared to different Avataras, how is more opportunity to serve Kṛṣṇa and all Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes, The Lord Caitanya’s pastimes gives us the most opportunity. In fact, even though we are not at all qualified, that itself is a qualification. Our great Acharyas pray to Lord Caitanya that “I am the most fallen, You have come to deliver the fallen souls, so please I need to be delivered first, thatś  just the opposite about most people think, “We have to go, Oh I am a are very pious person , I am very holy and I should get the mercy.” Its not like that. I am the most fallen, I need your mercy most. If we go in a humble state.

Rupa and Sanatana, they have straw in their teeth. They said Jagai Madhai were Brahmanas born in Navadwip but we have taken up employment from Mughal king so we are more fallen, we need your mercy more. So it’s not…but once we have the opportunity of getting initiated and having a bonafide spritual master, he connected with Prabhupāda and Paramparä. You should be very careful, not to break our vows. Not to involve in sinful activities.

Krishna, He gives us ample opportunity to lead a peaceful happy life, plenty of prasadam, family life if you want it and but the thing, is to keep Krishna in the centre. If we go too far, and then we get entangled in this material world again. Its funny, in the flight over, how one of the crew was talking to one devotee and I overheard him saying I don’t want to come back as a cockroach in my next life. So, that a British Airways attendant would be thinking like that shows how our Krishna Conscious philosophy is spread out. 

So, at one hand Lord Caitanya, Lord Nityananda had given us a great mercy and then also Lord Caitanya, He did His personal research on what the nectar of the love of the devotees is for Him.

So, are there any questions?

Question by Devotee: At one point Caitanya Mahaprabhu called Himself Mayavadi Sanyasi. So, was He misdirecting or why was He quoting Himself as a Mayavadi sanyasi?

Answer by Guru Maharaja: I don’t remember exactly what He said that but normally if you get a ---- [57.48_58.02], it’s good to get the book. But anyways He took initiation from Keshava Bharti Maharaja. So, Bharti is one of the Sanyasa Ashram under Shankaracharya. But Keshava Bharti was a Vaishnava and Lord Caitanya was also a Vaishnava. But in North India, there were not Vaishnava sanyasis available .So, taking from the sanyas guru is not so important it was like taking from a priest. So, it was as if He took from the Mayavadi priest overtly. So, when He went to Benares and met Prakashananda Saraswati and the other Mayavadi sanyassi, Then Prakashananda Saraswati said you are from our school, you have taken it from Bharti, he is one of our sanyasis so why don’t you read the Vedanta sutra, as they had the discussion then Lord Caitanya converted them to the process of chanting the holy name.

Any other Question?

Question by devotee: How can we always remain fix into the instruction to instruct everyone to follow the rules that Lord Krishna has, Lord Caitanya has prescribed? 

Answer by GuruMaharaj: If you have the medicine, to cure people from an epidemic which was going around and you got it, but due to old age or whatever,you don’t know how long you live. Only if you try to save as many people as possible before you leave, thatś why Lord Chaitanya brought us. In a song Bhakti Vinod Thakur has said, 

enechi ausadhi maya nasibaro lagi

hari- naam- maha- mantra lao tumi magi

So then Bhakti Vinod Thakur said that, he fell at the feet of the Prabhu and begged Him,” give me the medicine and he said “I got it, I got it…..”. If you got it, you are not to leave it for yourself. You got it, you want to give it out to everybody.

So, I thank all of you. I will be here all day tomorrow and anyone have any questions or wants to talk to me, you can see Maha Varaha das or if I am up and above, can see me.

 Hare Kṛṣṇa. 

Thank you.