20201116 Disappearance Pastime in Yājapura

Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book Compilation By His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on 16th November 2020 in Śrīdhāma Māyāpur, India.

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim
yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande śrī-guruṁ dīna-tāraṇam
paramānandaṁ mādhavaṁ śrī caitanya iśvaram
hariḥ oṁ tat sat

Introduction: Today we are continuing with compilation Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book, today’s chapter entitled is: 

Disappearance Pastime in Yājapura.

Murāri Gupta Kaḍaca 3.6.15: Gaura became enlivened at the Lord's sight, and He then travelled to the city of Yājapura, where many brāhmaṇas dwell. There the four-headed Lord Brahmā once performed sacrifice and gave authority over that land to a noble brāhmaṇa.

Murāri Gupta Kaḍaca 3.6.16: All those even sinners who die in that place, attain auspicious forms at death. While attentively seeing the hundreds of Śiva-liṅgams at that place, the Lord bowed His head. 

Murāri Gupta Kaḍaca 3.6.19: Śrī Hari, the best of the twice-born, who is the most learned in spiritual principles, quickly bathed in the waters of Brahma-kuṇḍa. There all the worlds became happy to see the form of yajña personified which was once shown by Lord Varāha.

Caitanya Maṅgala, Madhya-khaṇḍa 16.32

eimata mahāprabhu pathe cali yāya
pitṛpiṇḍadāna kaila e nābhigayāya

Jayapatākā Swami: In this way Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu continued His journey on the road. At Nabhi-gayā He offered pinḍa to His ancestors.

Caitanya Maṅgala, Madhya-khaṇḍa 16.33

brahmakuṇḍa-jale snāna kaila haraṣite
devakārya samādhiyā calilā turite

Jayapatākā Swami: The Lord Caitanya happily bathed in the waters of Brahma-kuṇḍa. Completing His worship of the Deity there, Lord Caitanya quickly continued His journey.

Caitanya Maṅgala, Madhya-khaṇḍa 16.34

mahā-puṇyasthāna sei śivera nagara
dekhite dekhite prabhu bhaigela nirbhara

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu went to Śivanagara which is known as Śivapura. Seeing again and gain the very holy city of Śivapura.

Caitanya Maṅgala, Madhya-khaṇḍa 16.35

kahite nā pāri se nagara-paripāṭi
trilocana-ādi kari āche liṅga-koṭi

Jayapatākā Swami: I cannot describe the glories of that city, where there are ten million forms of Lord Śiva and other Deities.

Caitanya Maṅgala, Madhya-khaṇḍa 16.24

tabe cali’ yāya sei parama catura
dekhibāre bāḍhe sādha varāha-ṭhākura

Jayapatākā Swami: Then the Supremely wise Lord Caitanya, went eagerly to see the Deity of Lord Varāhadeva.

Caitanya Maṅgala, Madhya-khaṇḍa 16.25

yāhā dekhi’ sarvaloka uddhāre’ du-kula
tabe cali’ yāya prabhu grāma yājapura

Jayapatākā Swami: Anyone who sees that Deity of Varāhadeva, delivers his mother's and father's ancestors. Then Lord Caitanya went to the village of Yājapura.

Caitanya Maṅgala, Madhya-khaṇḍa 16.26

yāhā yajña kailā brahmā lañā devagaṇa
brāhmaṇere dila grāma kariyā śāsana

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Brahmā offered a sacrifice with the demigods and then He gave that village to a brāhmaṇa to manage or to control.

Caitanya Maṅgala, Madhya-khaṇḍa 16.27

mahāpāpī nara yadi sei grāme mare
sarva-pāpe mukta haiyā śivarūpa dhare

Jayapatākā Swami: If a great sinner human dies in that village, he becomes freed of all sins. He attains a form like that of Lord Śiva. So in the spiritual world, everyone has a form like Lord Nārāyaṇa and in the Maheśa-dhāma everyone has a form like Lord Śiva so those who live in Hari-dhāma they can tell the difference of Lord Nārāyaṇa and others and similarly those who live in Maheśa-dhāma they can tell the difference of Lord Śiva and others. So, this is special tīrtha one can get freed from all sins and get the mercy of Lord Śiva.

Murāri Gupta Kaḍaca 3.6.20: The magnanimous Lord wandered throughout the town, seeing the liṅgams of Bhūteśa, the lord of all beings. The place appeared like Vārāṇasī, the capital city of Sadāśiva, where there are a million liṅgams of the three-eyed lord. 

Jayapatākā Swami: So it appears that this Yājapura, also has countless Śiva-liṅga’s and it’s a very sacred place.

Caitanya Maṅgala, Madhya-khaṇḍa 16.28

śata śata āche tāhe maheśera liṅga
tāhā namaskari’ yāya gaura-govinda

Jayapatākā Swami: there are hundreds and hundreds of Śiva-liṅgas at that village. Lord Gaura Govinda offered His obeisances and continued His journey.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 5.3

prabhura yājapure varāhadeva-darśana:—
calite calite āilā yājapura-grāma
varāha-ṭhākura dekhi’ karilā praṇāma

Translation: Walking and walking, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and His party finally arrived at Yājapura, on the river Vaitaraṇī. There He saw the temple of Varāhadeva and offered obeisances unto Him.

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 2.288

bhaktagaṇa-saha daśāśvamedha ghāṭe snāna—
tabe prabhu gelā ādi-varāha sambhāṣe
vistara karilā nṛtya-gīta prema-rase

Jayapatākā Swami: Thereafter the Lord Caitanya, He went to Ādi-Varāha temple with great satisfaction, He danced and chanted in ecstasy of kṛṣṇa-prema, spreading to all those who were present.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 5.4

nṛtya-gīta kaila preme bahuta stavana
yājapure se rātri karilā yāpana

Translation: In the temple of Varāhadeva, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu engaged in chanting and dancing and offered prayers. He passed that night in the temple.

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 2.289

ādi-varāha—
baḍa sukhī hailā prabhu dekhi' yājapura
punaḥ punaḥ bāḍe ānandāveśa pracura

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya was greatly pleased to see the city of Yājapura. His ecstasy increased repeatedly while He was there. 

Purport (by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura): Śrīman Mahāprabhu made His auspicious arrival in Yājapura in A.D. 1511. The temple of Śrī Varāhadeva is situated in Yājapura. Śrīman Mahāprabhu displayed the pastime of offering obeisances, chanting, and dancing before Śrī Varāhadeva. In Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta there is an indication that Mahāprabhu came to Yājapura another time.

In the year when Śrīman Mahāprabhu had a disagreement with Śrīla Gadādhara Paṇḍita Gosvāmī Prabhu regarding his residing in Nīlācala as a resident sannyāsī, Śrī Gaurasundara came to Yājapura with Śrī Rāya Rāmānanda and the two Mahāpātras, Maṅgarāja and Haricandana. Mahāprabhu then bid farewell to the two Mahāpātras at Yājapura. (See Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā, Chapter Sixteen, verse 150.)

The two stone Deities of Śrī Varāhadeva are attached to each other. On the left of the Deities there is a stone deity of Śrī Lakṣmī, and on her left there is a Deity of Śrī Jagannāthadeva. In front of them there is a smaller set of Lakṣmī-Varāha Deities made of metal. From the Yājapura Road railway station one must take three buses and cross two rivers to travel the seventeen miles to the temple of Varāhadeva. On both banks of both rivers there are connecting buses waiting to transport passengers. After traveling nine miles in one bus, one crosses the first river called Yamunā Khāi. Then one has to walk six miles to the next river called Buḍā. After crossing this river, one catches a connecting bus. There is a dharmaśālā in Yājapura known as Rādhābāi Dharmaśālā or Jagannātha Dharmaśālā. It is situated near the ancient temple of Jagannātha.

The footprints of Śrī Caitanya were established in Yājapura on December 25, 1930. For an elaborate description of this one should see Gauḍīya, Volume 10, Part 2.

Jayapatākā Swami: So this is a description of how to reach the Adī Varāha temple written by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, many years ago in early 1900, we don’t know how up to date is this we have to do research, this shows that there is ancient temple that was existing since long time.

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 2.290

ke jāne ki icchā tāna dharileka mane
sabā' chāḍi' ekā palāilena āpane

Jayapatākā Swami: Who knows what desire came into His mind? Suddenly He left everyone behind and went alone.

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 2.291

prabhura adarśana-līlā—
prabhu na dekhiyā sabe hailā vikala
devālaya cāhi' cāhi' bulena sakala

Jayapatākā Swami: When they were not able to see Lord Caitanya they became confused, the searched in all of the various temples.

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 2.292

nā pāiyā kothāo prabhura anveṣaṇa
parama cintita hailena bhakta-gaṇa

Jayapatākā Swami: So when they could not find the Lord Caitanya was after searching for Him everywhere, the devotees became greatly anxious.

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 2.293

nityānanda bale,—“sabe sthira kara citta
jānilāṅa prabhu giyāchena ye nimitta

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Nityānanda said, “Everyone calm down and control your mind. I know why the Lord Caitanya has left.”

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 2.294

śrī-nityānanda-kartṛka sakalake ihāra marma kathana—
nibhṛte ṭhākura saba yājapura-grāma
dekhibena devālaya yata puṇya-sthāna

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya wanted to see all the temples and holy place of Yājapura village alone.

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 2.295

āmarā o sabe bhikṣā kari' ei ṭhāṅi
āji thāki, kāli prabhu pāiba ethāi”

Jayapatākā Swami: “We should all beg alms and eat here and stay here today. Staying here today tomorrow we will meet Lord Caitanya at this place.”

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 2.296

sei mata karilena sarva bhakta-gaṇa
bhikṣā kari' āni' sabe karila bhojana

Jayapatākā Swami: In this way all the devotees acted, they begged alms and then they ate together.

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 2.297

prabhu o buliyā saba yājapura-grāma
dekhiyā yateka yājapura-puṇya-sthāna

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya wandered throughout Yājapura village, where He saw all the holy places of Yājapura.

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 2.298

punarāya bhaktagaṇake darśana-dāna—
sarva bhakta-gaṇa yathā āchena
vasiyā āra dine sei sthāne mililā āsiyā

Jayapatākā Swami: So, all the devotees were staying there, the next day Lord Caitanya came to that place and met the devotees. So, Lord Caitanya has disappeared from the site of the devotees apparently, He was wandering about the holy city of Yājapura and devotees followed the advise of Lord Nityānanda and the next day the Lord met all the devotees.

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 2.299

āthe-vyathe bhakta-gaṇa `hari hari' bali'
uṭhilena sabei haiyā kutūhalī

Jayapatākā Swami: Devotees were very happy they immediately arouse up and chanted, “Haribol! Haribol!”

Caitanya-Bhāgavata Antya-khaṇḍa 2.300

sabā'-saha prabhu yājapura dhanya kari'
calilena `hari' bali' gaurāṅga śrī-hari

Jayapatākā Swami: After making the village of Yajapura glorious, Lord Caitanya with all His associates, Lord Gaurāṅga left the place chanting the holy names of Lord Hari. Haribol!

Thus ends the chapter entitled Disappearance Pastime in Yājapura.

So the devotees were obviously in great anxiety that the Lord has disappeared and when He appeared they felt great relief and jumped up and chanted the holy name. Haribol! Haribol!