20200923 On the Pretext of Visiting Vakreśvara, Lord Caitanya Favours Rāḍha-deśa

Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book Compilation By His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on 23rd September 2020 in Śrīdhāma Māyāpur, India

The Temple of Vedic Planetarium Exibits meeting ended on time

after that I participated the Khasa deśa World Holy name week festival.

Now we will start the class.

Todays topic is: On the Pretext of Visiting Vakreśvara, Lord Caitanya Favours Rāḍha-deśa

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.064 prabhura vakreśvarera nirjana vane nirjana-bhajana-līlā karibāra abhilāṣa— /

prabhu bale,—“vakreśvara āchena ye vane / tathāi yāimu muñi thākimu nirjane” /

Jayapatākā Swami: The Lord Caitanya said,

“That forest where Vakreśvara is situated,

I will go to there

and stay there in solitude.”

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura’s Purport: In the place known as Vakreśvara,

Vakreśvara Mahādeva is situated.

This place is situated in Rāḍha-deśa.

The site of Vakreśvara is sixteen miles west of

Ahmedpura Railway Station in the district of Birbhum.

Ahmedpura is 111 miles from Kolkata.

Vakreśvara is a form of Lord Śiva.

Every year there is a huge festival during Śiva-rātri at this place.

There are a few hot water kuṇḍas and a few cool water kuṇḍas at this place.

This is also a Śakti-pīṭha [After Satī,

the wife of Śiva, gave up her body at Dakṣa's sacrifice, Śiva started dancing with her body.

The world became threatened from his dance,

so Viṣṇu used his Sudarśana cakra to cut Satī's body into pieces.

Wherever her bodily parts fell, a temple was erected in commemoration.

These pilgrimage sites are called Śakti-pīṭhas.].

At the temple of Vakresvara there is a Shiva, and nearby there is also a Śakti-pīṭha.

Whixh part fell there, we don't know,

in Kolkata, it is her thumb

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.065 eteka baliyā premāveśe cali' yāya / nityānanda-ādi saba pāche pāche dhāya /

Jayapatākā Swami: After speaking in this way, the Lord Kṛṣṇa Caitanya, he proceeded on absorbed in ecstatic love.

The devotees headed by Nityānanda followed and ran behind the Lord.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.066 adbhuta prabhura nṛtya, adbhuta kīrtana / śuni' mātra dhāiyā āise sarva-jana /

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Kṛṣṇa Caitanya wonderful dancing and wonderful kīrtana,

as soon as all the people heard this

they came running.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.067-068 yadyapiha kona deśe nāhi saṅkīrtana / keha nāhi dekhe kṛṣṇa-premera krandana /

Jayapatākā Swami: Although saṅkīrtana had never been performed anywhere in that province

and no one had ever seen anyone crying love in ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa…

tathāpi prabhura dekhi' adbhuta krandana / daṇḍavata haiyā paḍaye sarva-jana /

Jayapatākā Swami: Nonetheless as soon as the people saw Lord Caitanya wonderful crying

they offered their prostrated obeisances

falling to the ground.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.069 tathi-madhye keha keha atyanta pāmara / tārā bale,—“eta kene kāndena vistara” /

Jayapatākā Swami: Among them, there were a few most sinful people,

who asked, “Why does He cry so much?”

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.070 seho saba jana ebe prabhura kṛpāya / sei prema saṅariyā kāndi' gaḍi yāya /

Jayapatākā Swami: By Lord Kṛṣṇa Caitanya’ s mercy

even such fallen people,

remembering Lord ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa

and his crying

they started crying and they were rolling on ground.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.071 sakala bhuvana ebe gāya gauracandra / tathāpiha sabe nāhi gāya bhūta-vṛnda /

Jayapatākā Swami: All the worlds was singing the glories of Gauracandra.

Only some ghostly-haunted living entities did not.

sing his glories

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.072 śrīkṛṣṇacaitanya-nāma-vimukha pāpī bhūtapretasadṛśa— / śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya-nāme vimukha ye jana / niścaya jāniha sei pāpī bhūta-gaṇa /

Jayapatākā Swami: Know for certain

that anyone who is averse to chanting the name of Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya

is a sinful, ghostly-haunted person.

Purport by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura: Among human beings,

those unfortunate people who out of envy

do not display any inclination for the service of Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya

are sinful and ghostly-haunted.

There is no doubt about this.

When one lacks interest for achieving love for Kṛṣṇa,

he develops sinful propensities.

As a result, that person becomes interested only in sense gratification

and falls into a lower species of life.

In this regard one should refer to Caitanya-candrāmṛta (31-32).

Jayapatākā Swami: As naturally the pious people began chanting,

some of them were feeling ecstatic feeling for love for Kṛṣṇa

only few people were not inclined to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa .

They author said that other such people are certainly very sinful and ghostly haunted people.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.073 bhaktagaṇasaha nṛtya karite karite gamana— / hena mate nṛtya-rase vaikuṇṭhera nātha / nāciyā yāyena saba-bhakta-gaṇa-sātha /

Jayapatākā Swami: In this way the Lord of Vaikuṇṭha danced in the mellows of pure ecstatic love,

He danced and proceeded with all of the devotees.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.074 prabhura janaika saubhāgyabāna vaiṣṇava-brāhmaṇa-gṛhe— /

dina-avaśeṣe prabhu eka dhanya grāme / rahilena puṇyavanta-brāhmaṇa-āśrame /

Jayapatākā Swami: At the end of the day the Lord Kṛṣṇa Caitanya,

He came to one fortunate village

and there he stayed in a home

of one pious brāhmaṇa.

here the brāhmaṇa house is described as an āśrama

because in the varnāśrama system there are four āśrama and four varna

the gṛhastha āśrama or householder āśrama is one of the four āśramas

so Lord Caitanya stayed in one of the householder āśrama

who was a pious brāhmaṇa.

Purport by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura: In the Śabda-nirṇaya dictionary

the following statement is found:

anapekṣo guṇaiḥ pūrṇo dhanya ity ucyate budhaiḥ /

—“When extraordinary qualities are found in an object

it is called dhanya by those who are learned.”

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.075 niśāya prabhura gopane āptavargera nikaṭa haite prāntara-bhūmite gamana— /

bhikṣā kari' mahāprabhu karilāśayana / catur-dige veḍiyāśuilā bhakta-gaṇa /

Jayapatākā Swami: After accepting His meal,

Caitanya Mahāprabhu went to sleep.

The devotees slept all around Him.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.076 prahara-khāneka niśā thākite ṭhākura / sabā' chāḍi' palāiyā gela kathodūra /

Jayapatākā Swami: About three hours of the night remained,

the Lord Caitanya, He left everyone

and escaped

and went some distance away.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.077 śeṣe sabe uṭhiyā cāhena bhakta-gaṇa / nā dekhiyā prabhu sabe karena krandana /

Jayapatākā Swami: When the assembled devotees finally woke up

and looked around

they were unable to find Lord Caitanya.

They began to cry.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.078 sarva grāma vicāra kariyā bhakta-gaṇa / prāntara-bhūmite tabe karilā gamana /

Jayapatākā Swami: The devotees searched throughout the entire village

and eventually came to a vacant land

outside the village.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.079 nirjana prāntare kṛṣṇoddeśye ucca krandana-līlā vā vipralambha-pramonmāda— /

nija prema-rase vaikuṇṭhera adhīśvara / prāntare rodana kare kari' uccaiḥ-svara /

Jayapatākā Swami: In that vacant plot of land,

the Lord of Vaikuṇṭha, Krishna Chaitanya

absorbed in the mellows of His own

ecstatic love

He was crying loudly.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.080 “kṛṣṇa re prabhu re āre kṛṣṇa mora bāpa!” / baliyā rodana kare sarva-jīva-nātha /

Jayapatākā Swami: “Oh Kṛṣṇa! Of My Lord! Oh My Master!

Oh My Beloved Kṛṣṇa!”

saying this

the Lord of living entities

was crying out.

Purport by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura: After staying in one fortunate village of Rāḍha-deśa,

Śrī Gaurasundara went at the end of night to a vacant plot outside the village

and began to exhibit agitation in separation from Kṛṣṇa.

Kṛṣṇa is akhila-rasāmṛta-mūrti, the reservoir of all pleasure.

Therefore He is the object of all rasas.

Since Śrī Gaurasundara is svayam-rūpa Kṛṣṇacandra,

He is able to perform pastimes in all the various rasas.

Therefore when He was in the mood of servitorship,

He addressed Kṛṣṇa as “Prabhu;”

and when He was in the mood of vātsalya-rasa,

He addressed Kṛṣṇa as “Bāla-gopāla.”

In this way He taught various grades of living entities.

His crying in separation from Kṛṣṇa indicated

His intense desire to serve the Lord.

Another reading of āre (“O”) is ore (“O”),

another reading of mora (“My”) is ore,

another reading of baliyā rodana kare sarva-jīva-nātha

is bali sarva-jīva nātha karena pralapa

(“speaking in this way, the Lord of all living entities lamented”).

Jayapatākā Swami: So āre kṛṣṇa mora bāpa

that can be also translated Kṛṣṇa is my son

in vātsalya rasa.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.081 hena se ḍākiyā kānde nyāsi-cūḍāmaṇi / krośekera patha yāya rodanera dhvani /

Jayapatākā Swami: The crest jewel of all sannyāsīs Kṛṣṇa Caitanya

was crying so loudly

that the sound of the crying could be heard

on the pathway two miles away.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.082 katho-dūre thākiyā sakala bhakta-gaṇa / śunena prabhura ati adbhuta rodana /

Jayapatākā Swami: All of the devotees

heard the Lord’ s crying

from some distance away.

heard the Lord’ s most wonderful crying

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.083 bhaktagaṇera prabhu-ābiṣkāra— / calilena sabe rodanera anusāre / dekhilena sabe prabhu kānde uccaiḥ-svare /

Jayapatākā Swami: So, they followed according to the sound of the crying

and found the Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya weeping loudly.

Lord Caitanya was absorbed in separation from Kṛṣṇa so He was crying in that separation.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.084 mukundera kīrtana— / prabhura rodane kānde sarva bhakta-gaṇa / mukunda lāgilā tabe karite kīrtana /

Jayapatākā Swami: As Kṛṣṇa Caitanya was crying, all the devotees also began to cry,

Mukunda Dutta however began to perform the kīrtana.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.085 śuniyā kīrtana prabhu lāgilā nācite / ānande gāyena sabe veḍi' cāri bhite /

Jayapatākā Swami: When the Lord Caitanya heard that kīrtana,

He began to dance,

and the others all joyfully sang around the Lord.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.086 ei mate sarva-pathe nāciyā nāciyāyāyena / paścima-mukhe ānandita hañā /

Jayapatākā Swami: In this way the Lord Caitanya,

He dance along the path

heading towards the western direction

in ecstasy.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.087 vakreśvara pauṁchibāra mātra cāri krośa thākite prabhura gati-parivartana— /

krośa-cāri sakale āchena vakreśvara / sei-sthāne phirilena gaurāṅga-sundara /

Jayapatākā Swami: When Lord Caitanya was within

eight miles of Vakreśvara,

Lord Gaurāṅgasundara at that place went in another direction.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.088 nāciyā yāyena prabhu paścimābhimukhe / pūrva-mukha punaḥ hailena nija-sukhe /

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya headed toward the westerenly direction

dancing and proceeding

then He being absorbed in his own ecstatic love

suddenly headed back towards the east.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.089 paścimābhimukha haite pūrvābhimukhe gati-parivartana— .

pūrva-mukhe caliyā yāyena nṛtya-rase / ananta ānande prabhu aṭṭa aṭṭa hāse /

Jayapatākā Swami: Being absorbed in the mood of dancing,

The Lord proceeded towards the east

and laughed wildly out of unlimited ecstasy.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.090 bāhya prakāśiyā prabhu nija kutūhale / balilena,—“āmi calilāṅa nīlācale /

Jayapatākā Swami: After regaining His external consciousness, Lord Caitanya

enthusiastically explained that,

“I am going to Nīlacala, Jagannātha Purī.

Purport by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura: When the Lord came within eight miles of Vakreśvara,

He changed His plan of going to Vakreśvara

and expressed a desire to go see the Lord of Nīlācala.

So instead of going west from Katwa, He proceeded towards the east.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.091 jagannātha prabhura haila ājñā more / `nīlācale tumi jhāṭa āisa satvare'” /

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Jagannātha has ordered Me,

“You should immediately come to Nīlācala.'”

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.092 eta bali' calilena hai' pūrva-mukha / bhakta saba pāilena parānanda sukha /

Jayapatākā Swami: After saying these words,

the Lord Gaurāṅga headed towards the east,

and all the devotees obtained felt transcendental happiness.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.093 tāna icchā tiṅho se jānena sabe mātra / tāna anugrahe jāne tāna kṛpā-pātra /

Jayapatākā Swami: Only the Lord knows His own will.

One by His mercy can someone know.

We can see that Lord is very spontaneous and He can decide what to do

He may change His plan and He might have some other plan

so He is completely independent

and He can do anything

So, He has decided that he wants to go to Jagannātha Purī.

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.094 ki icchāya calilena vakreśvara-prati / kene vā nā gelā, bujhe kāhāra śakati /

Jayapatākā Swami: What was His desire

to go towards Vakreśvara

and then why the Lord did not go?

Who has the power to understand?

Caitanya-bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 1.095 vakreśvara gamanera chale rāḍhadeśa kṛtārthakaraṇa— /

hena bujhi kari' prabhu vakreśvara-vyāja / dhanya karilena sarva rāḍhera samāja /

Jayapatākā Swami: My understanding is that the Lord Caitanya

on the pretext of going to Vakreśvara

He made the entire Rāḍha-deśa glorious.

Purport by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura: With a desire to shower love of God

on the Rāḍha-deśa residents' barren hearts

that were devoid of loving devotional service,

Mahāprabhu employed the stratagem of wandering in Rāḍha-deśa.

Since hard-hearted Māyāvādīs follow the conception of impersonalism,

they can only make a show of being subordinate to Vakreśvara.

Śrī Gaurasundara pretended to approve of the conceptions of such Māyāvādī sannyāsīs

by enacting the pastime of going to Vakreśvara.

Later He went to Jagannātha Purī and preached the philosophy of personalism,

as described in Vedānta.

Those Māyāvādīs who imagine that the Absolute Truth is impersonal

can only pretend to worship Rudra,

who is Lord Viṣṇu's form for destroying this temporary material world.

They are misdirected by the pretension of externally

taking shelter of a personal form of the Absolute Truth

while internally maintaining the desire for liberation.

Mahāprabhu's pretentious approval of the impersonal conception

maintained by the hard-hearted residents of Rāḍha-deśa

and His desire to abandon it should be seen only through devotional vision.

Jayapatākā Swami: So people in Rāḍha-deśa were apparently

hard hearted and impersonalist

Lord Caitanya wandering in Rāḍha-deśa

He actually gave mercy to the people of Rāḍha-deśa

and also Lord Nityananada appeared also in Rāḍha-deśa

so many ways this land has become glorious by lotus feet dust of Nitāi Gaura

and also the five Paṇḍavas and Draupadī visited Rāḍha-deśa

so many ways the land is blessed by the lotus feet of the devotees

otherwise since the Ganges doesn’t flow here

so people are not so much devotional

Lord Caitanya gave them his mercy to them so that they can be filled with transcendental love.

Thus Ends the Chapter, On the Pretext of Visiting Vakreśvara, Lord Caitanya Favours Rāḍha-deśa