20210329 Kāśī Miśra Arranges Accommodation and Prasāda for devotees

The following is a Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book Compilation given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on March 29th, 2021 in Śrī Dhāma Māyapur, 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!

Continuation of the compilation of Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya book, today’s chapter entitled is,

Kāśī Miśra Arranges Accommodation and Prasāda for devotees

Caitanya Candrodaya Nāṭaka 8.197: (Gopīnātha hastily enters) Gopīnātha Ācārya: Lord, everything is arranged according to Your order. Especially a nice pleasing residence has been arranged near Yameśvara for Gadādhara Paṇḍita (in Ṭoṭā Gopīnātha temple).

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.169

kāśīmiśrera prabhupada vandana:—
hena-kāle kāśī-miśra, paḍichā,—dui jana
āsiyā karila prabhura caraṇa vandana

Translation: At this time, Kāśī Miśra, along with the superintendent of the temple, came and offered his respects unto the lotus feet of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.170

sarva vaiṣṇava dekhi’ sukha baḍa pāilā
yathā-yogya sabā-sane ānande mililā

Translation: Upon seeing all the Vaiṣṇavas together, Kāśī Miśra and the superintendent became very happy. With great happiness they met with the devotees in a befitting manner.

Jayapatāka Swami: So, they greeted all the devotees and were very happy to meet all of them and as King Pratāparudra had ordered, they were enthusiastic to make all the arrangements.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.171

prabhura nikaṭa vaiṣṇavase-vārthe kāśīmiśrera
ājñā-yacñā:—
prabhu-pade dui jane kaila nivedane
ājñā deha’,—vaiṣṇavera kari samādhāne

Translation: Both submitted to Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, “Please give us orders so that we may make proper arrangements to accommodate all the Vaiṣṇavas.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.172

sabāra kariyāchi vāsā-gṛha-sthāna
mahā-prasāda sabākāre kari samādhāna

Translation: “Accommodations have been arranged for all the Vaiṣṇavas. Now let us distribute mahā-prasāda to all of them.”

Jayapatāka Swami: So, not only did they arrange suitable places to stay for all the vaiṣṇavas but also Lord Jagannātha’s mahā-prasāda.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.173

gopīnāthācāryake bhaktagaṇera sarvakārya sampādanārthe prabhura ādeśa:—
prabhu kahe,—gopīnātha, yāha’ vaiṣṇava lañā
yāhāṅ yāhāṅ kahe vāsā, tāhāṅ deha’ lañā

Translation: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu immediately told Gopīnātha Ācārya, “Please go with the Vaiṣṇavas and accommodate them in whatever residences Kāśī Miśra and the temple superintendent offer.”

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.174

vāṇīnāthera upara prasāda -vyavasthāra bhāra:—
mahā-prasādānna deha vāṇīnātha-sthāne
sarva-vaiṣṇavera iṅho karibe samādhāne

Translation: Then the Lord told Kāśī Miśra and the temple superintendent, “As for the remnants of food left by Jagannātha, let them be delivered to Vāṇīnātha Rāya’s charge, for he can take care of all the Vaiṣṇavas and distribute mahā-prasāda to them.”

Jayapatāka Swami: So, we see how Lord Caitanya was seeing that all the Vaiṣṇavas would be given a place to stay and Jagannātha mahā-prasāda.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.175

kāśī-miśrera nikaṭa prabhura ṭoṭāstha nibhṛta-gṛha-yācñā:—
āmāra nikaṭe ei puṣpera udyāne
eka-khāni ghara āche parama-nirjane

Translation: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu then said, “Nearby My place, in this garden of flowers, is a single room that is very solitary.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.176

sei ghara āmāke deha’—āche prayojana
nibhṛte vasiyā tāhāṅ kariba smaraṇa

Translation: “Please give that room to Me, for I have a need for it. Indeed, I shall remember the lotus feet of the Lord sitting in that solitary place.”

Purport: This statement of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is significant. Nibhṛte vasiyā tāhāṅ kariba smaraṇa: “I shall sit down there in that solitary place and remember the lotus feet of the Lord.” Neophyte students are not to imitate sitting in a solitary place and remembering the lotus feet of the Lord by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. We should always remember that it was Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu Himself who wanted such a place, either for Himself or Haridāsa Ṭhākura. No one can suddenly attain the level of Haridāsa Ṭhākura and sit down in a solitary place to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra and remember the lotus feet of the Lord. Only an exalted person like Haridāsa Ṭhākura or Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, who is personally exhibiting the proper behavior for an ācārya, can engage in such a practice.

At the present moment we see that some of the members of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness are tending to leave their preaching activities in order to sit in a solitary place. This is not a very good sign. It is a fact that Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura has condemned this process for neophytes. He has even stated in a song, pratiṣṭhāra tare, nirjanera ghare, tava hari-nāma kevala kaitava: “Sitting in a solitary place intending to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra is considered a cheating process.” This practice is not possible for neophytes at all. The neophyte devotee must act and work very laboriously under the direction of the spiritual master, and he must thus preach the cult of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Only after maturing in devotion can he sit down in a solitary place to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra as Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu Himself did. Although Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, to teach us a lesson He traveled all over India continuously for six years and only then retired at Jagannātha Purī. Even at Jagannātha Purī the Lord chanted the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra in great meetings at the Jagannātha temple The point is that one should not try to imitate Haridāsa Ṭhākura at the beginning of one’s transcendental life. One must first become very mature in devotion and thus receive the approval of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Only at such a time may one actually sit down peacefully in a solitary place to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra and remember the lotus feet of the Lord. The senses are very strong, and if a neophyte devotee imitates Haridāsa Ṭhākura, his enemies (kāma, krodha, lobha, moha, mada and mātsarya) will disturb and fatigue him. Instead of chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, the neophyte will simply sleep soundly. Preaching work is meant for advanced devotees, and when an advanced devotee is further elevated on the devotional scale, he may retire to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra in a solitary place. However, if one simply imitates advanced spiritual life, he will fall down, just like the sahajiyās in Vṛndāvana.

Jayapatāka Swami: There was one devotee, he was diagnosed with some terminal disease and the doctors told him that, maybe he had six months to live and then he told that to Śrīla Prabhupāda, and that he wanted the Bābājī dīkṣā and sit down and chant and Śrīla Prabhupāda gave him the bābājī initiation and he built a grass hut for him in the field, but after a short time, he didn’t like the mosquitoes and lizards and things like that. Then he was arranged a guest room, where he can get regular prasāda but even then he couldn’t chant and then he left and he went back to America and took some cure for his disease and gave up his bābājī. So, there is book called ‘Vaiṣṇava Ke?’ written by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda and I translated that book into English and gave some purports. That tells how one should purify the mind. It is said that if one is imitating Haridāsa Ṭhākura and trying the chant the holy names in a solitary place, just to get appreciation from the general people, his desire for fame or pratiṣṭhā or recognition is like the stool of a pig. Pig eats stool, what its stool is like!

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.177

prabhura dravyādi prabhura yatheccha grahaṇārthe prabhu-samīpe kāśī-miśrera āvedana:—
miśra kahe,—saba tomāra, cāha ki kāraṇe?
āpana-icchāya laha, yei tomāra mane

Translation: Kāśī Miśra then told Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu: “Everything belongs to You. What is the use of Your begging? By Your own will You can take whatever You like.”

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.178

kāśī-miśrera āpanāke prabhura ājñāvaha bhṛtyarūpe aṅgīkāra-janya prārthanā:—
āmi-dui ha-i tomāra dāsa ājñākārī
ye cāha, sei ājñā deha’ kṛpā kari’

Translation: “My Lord, we are Your two servants and are here just to carry out Your orders. By Your mercy, please tell us to do whatever You want.”

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.179

vidāya laiyā gopīnāthake gṛhanirvācana o vāṇīnāthake prasāda vyavasthā-bhārārpaṇa:—
eta kahi’ dui jane vidāya la-ila
gopīnātha, vāṇīnātha—duṅhe saṅge nila

Translation: Saying this, Kāśī Miśra and the temple inspector took their leave, and Gopīnātha and Vāṇīnātha went with them.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.180

gopīnāthe dekhāila saba vāsā-ghara
vāṇīnātha-ṭhāñi dila prasāda vistara

Translation: Gopīnātha was then shown all the residential places, and Vāṇīnātha was given large quantities of food [mahā-prasāda] left by Lord Jagannātha.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.181

vāṇīnātha āilā bahu prasāda piṭhā lañā
gopīnātha āilā vāsā saṁskāra kariyā

Translation: Thus, Vāṇīnātha Rāya returned with large quantities of Lord Jagannātha’s food remnants, including cakes and other good eatables. Gopīnātha Ācārya also returned after cleansing all the residential quarters.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.182

prabhura sakala bhaktakei snānānte cūḍā-darśana-pūrvaka prasāda sammānārtha āmantraṇa:—
mahāprabhu kahe,—śuna, sarva vaiṣṇava-gaṇa
nija-nija-vāsā sabe karaha gamana

Translation: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu then addressed all the Vaiṣṇavas and requested that they listen to Him. He said, “Now you can go to your respective residential quarters.”

Jayapatāka Swami: So, Lord Caitanya He was personally sending representatives to arrange for the residential quarters and prasāda of His devotees. So, we see this example and learn how to take care of the visiting Vaiṣṇavas.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.183

samudra-snāna kari’ kara cūḍā daraśana
tabe āji ihaṅ āsi’ karibe bhojana

Translation: “Go to the sea and bathe and look at the top of the temple. After so doing, please come back here and take your lunch.”

Jayapatāka Swami: So, by seeing the Cakra on the top of the temple and offering obeisances it should be considered that they have offered their obeisances to Lord Jagannātha.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 11.184

prabhu-praṇāmānte sakala-bhaktera gopīnātha-nirddiṣṭagṛha-prāpti:—
prabhu namaskari’ sabe vāsāte calilā
gopīnāthācārya sabe vāsā-sthāna dilā

Translation: After offering obeisances to Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, all the devotees departed for their residences, and Gopīnātha Ācārya showed them their respective quarters.

Jayapatāka Swami: So, the devotees had rushed to see Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu and, He greeted all of them, and He did not see Murāri Gupta and called for hiṃ. Murāri Gupta was so humble that he was crying and saying that he was most fallen, don’t touch me, I am sinful, I am untouchable, although he was one of the most advanced devotees. Lord Caitanya was looking for Haridāsa Ṭhākura, he was outside offering his obeisances. He was also extremely humble. And so Lord Caitanya arranged for all the devotees to have residential quarters and prasāda, and they could take their bath in the ocean, in the Bay of Bengal and in this way everyone was settled very naturally.

Thus ends the chapter entitled, Kāśī Miśra Arranges Accommodation and Prasāda for devotees.