20210413 Pāṇḍu-vijaya Ceremony - The Lordships Aboard Their carts

The following is a Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book Compilation given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on April 13th, 2021 in Śrī Dhāma 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!

Today we are continuing with the Compilation of Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book, the chapter entitled:

Pāṇḍu-vijaya Ceremony - The Lordships Aboard Their carts

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.3

śrotṛ-cittākarṣaṇa:—
jaya śrotā-gaṇa, śuna, kari’ eka mana
ratha-yātrāya nṛtya prabhura parama mohana

Translation: All glories to the listeners of Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta! Please hear the description of the dancing of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu at the Ratha-yātrā festival. His dancing is very enchanting. Please hear of it with great attention.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, the author of Caitanya-caritāmṛta is describing the dancing of Lord Caitanya in Ratha-yātrā.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.4

pāhāṇḍi-darśanārtha prātaḥ-snānānantara sagaṇa prabhura gamana:—
āra dina mahāprabhu hañā sāvadhāna
rātre uṭhi’ gaṇa-saṅge kaila prātaḥ-snāna

Translation: The next day, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and His personal associates got up in the dark and attentively took their early-morning baths.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.5

pāṇḍu-vijaya dekhibāre karila gamana
jagannātha yātrā kaila chāḍi’ siṁhāsana

Translation: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and His personal associates then went to see the ceremony of Pāṇḍu-vijaya. During this ceremony, Lord Jagannātha leaves His throne and gets up onto the car.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, this is the amazing ceremony where the mūla-vigraha of Jagannātha Baladeva and Subhadrā leave their altar and go on to their Ratha-yātrā carts. There are three separate carts one for each and Sudarśana cakra goes with Subhadrā devī.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.6

pāhāṇḍi-darśane saparikara rājāra sahāyatā:—
āpani pratāparudra lañā pātra-gaṇa
mahāprabhura gaṇe karāya vijaya-darśana

Translation: King Pratāparudra in person, as well as his entourage, allowed the Pāṇḍu-vijaya ceremony to be seen by all the associates of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, King Pratāparudra gave a special facility of Lord Caitanya and His associates.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.7

nitāi advaitādira sahita prabhura pāhāṇḍi-darśana:—
advaita, nitāi ādi saṅge bhakta-gaṇa
sukhe mahāprabhu dekhe īśvara-gamana

Translation: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and His prominent devotees — Advaita Ācārya, Nityānanda Prabhu and others — were very happy to observe how Lord Jagannātha began the Ratha-yātrā.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.8

dayitāgaṇera jagannāthake rathārohaṇe ceṣṭā:—
baliṣṭha dayitā’ gaṇa—yena matta hātī
jagannātha vijaya karāya kari’ hātāhāti

Translation: The very strongly built dayitās [carriers of the Jagannātha Deity] were as powerful as drunken elephants. They manually carried Lord Jagannātha from the throne to the car.

Purport: The word dayitā refers to one who has received the mercy of the Lord. Lord Jagannātha has a number of stalwart servants known as dayitās. These servants do not come from very high-caste families (brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas or vaiśyas), but because they are engaged in the service of the Lord, they have been elevated to a respected position. Thus they are known as dayitās. These servants of Lord Jagannātha take care of the Lord from the day of the Snāna-yātrā up to the time the Lord is carried from the throne to the Ratha car. In the Kṣetra-māhātmya these dayitās are said to come from the śabaras, a caste that keeps and sells pigs. However, among the dayitās there are also many who come from the brāhmaṇa caste. Those dayitās coming from the brāhmaṇa families are called dayitā-patis, or leaders of the dayitās. The dayitā-patis offer food such as sweetmeats to Lord Jagannātha during the anavasara, the resting period after Snāna-yātrā. They also make the early-morning offering of sweetmeats daily. It is said that during the anavasara Lord Jagannātha suffers from fever and that the dayitā-patis offer Him an infusion of drugs represented by fruit juice. It is said that in the beginning Lord Jagannātha was worshiped by the śabaras and was known as the Deity Nīla Mādhava. Later, when the Deity was established in the temple, the Lord became known as Jagannātha. Because the Deities were taken from the śabaras, all the śabara devotees were elevated to the position of dayitās.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, the history of how the śabara devotees have had the opportunity to serve the Lord after the Snāna yātrā till the Rath-yātrā.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.9

kataka dayitā kare skandha ālambana
kataka dayitā dhare śrī-padma-caraṇa

Translation: While carrying the Deity of Lord Jagannātha, some of the dayitās took hold of the shoulders of the Lord, and some caught His lotus feet.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.10

kaṭi-taṭe baddha, dṛḍha sthūla paṭṭa-ḍorī
dui dike dayitā-gaṇa uṭhāya tāhā dhari’

Translation: The Lord Jagannātha Deity was bound at the waist by a strong, thick rope made of silk. From two sides the dayitās caught hold of this rope and raised the Deity.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, the deity of Lord Jagannātha, Baladeva are very large and thus it takes many dayitās to move the Lord. So, this is a very majestic procedure and so this Pāṇḍu-vijaya is very unique, here little a bit of it is described but it is almost indescribable.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.11

ucca dṛḍha tulī saba pāti’ sthāne sthāne
eka tulī haite tvarāya āra tulīte āne

Translation: Strong, puffed-up cotton pads called tulīs were spread out from the throne to the car, and the heavy Deity of Lord Jagannātha was carried from one pillowlike pad to the next by the dayitās.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, they have fixed large fan behind the Lord and it seems like He is walking from one tulī to the next and the dayitās are carrying the Lord and moving Him forward and back.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.12

jagannāthera gurutva:—
prabhu-padāghāte tulī haya khaṇḍa khaṇḍa
tulā saba uḍi’ yāya, śabda haya pracaṇḍa

Translation: While the dayitās carried the heavy Jagannātha Deity from one pad to the next, some of the pads broke, and the cotton contents floated into the air. When they broke, they made a heavy cracking sound.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.13

svecchāmaya prabhu jagannātha:—
viśvambhara jagannāthe ke cālāite pāre?
āpana icchāya cale karite vihāre

Translation: Lord Jagannātha is the maintainer of the whole universe. Who can carry Him from one place to another? The Lord moves by His personal will just to perform His pastimes.

Jayapatākā Swami: Although the pūjārīs, they think that they moving the Lord but actually the Lord is Himself agreeing to move.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.14

jagannāthake kātarabhāve āhvāna:—
mahāprabhu ‘maṇimā’ ‘maṇimā’ kare dhvani
nānā-vādya-kolāhale kichui nā śuni

Translation: While the Lord was transported from the throne to the car, tumultuous sounds were made on various musical instruments. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was chanting “Maṇimā! Maṇimā!” but He could not be heard.

Purport: The word maṇimā is used to address a respectable person in Orissa. Lord Jagannātha was being respectfully addressed by Śrī Caitanya in this way.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, in front of the Lord, there were two line of peoples, some were playing cāmaras and some were playing a special gong, beating on the gong in unison (gong! gong!) and you hear that sound for kilometers and kilometers.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.15

svayaṃ rājāra jhāḍudāra-rūpe sevā :—
tabe pratāparudra kare āpane sevana
suvarṇa-mārjanī lañā kare patha sammārjana

Translation: While the Lord was being carried from the throne to the car, King Pratāparudra personally engaged in the Lord’s service by cleansing the road with a broom that had a golden handle.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, a great history behind the King sweeping the road for Lord Jagannātha. One time the King was going to marry a princess of the neighboring kingdom, but the king of that kingdom heard that the King swept the road, my daughter will not marry a sweeper. Then there was a war between the two kingdoms and then King Pratāparudra was victorious, then he told that the Princess she had to marry a sweeper. then one minster said, “Mahārāja, who will be a better sweeper than you!” Then he finally married the princess.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.16

candana-jalete kare patha niṣecane
tuccha sevā kare vasi’ rāja-siṁhāsane

Translation: The King sprinkled the road with sandalwood-scented water. Although he was the owner of the royal throne, he engaged in menial service for the sake of Lord Jagannātha.

Jayapatākā Swami: Normally the King would not sweep the road but to humble himself before Lord Jagannātha, Lord Kṛṣṇa, he swept the road before the Lord.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.17

rājāra dainyamayī sevā-darśane prabhura kṛpā:—
uttama hañā rājā kare tuccha sevana
ataeva jagannāthera kṛpāra bhājana

Translation: Although the King was the most exalted respectable person, still he accepted menial service for the Lord; he therefore became a suitable candidate for receiving the Lord’s mercy.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, when Lord Caitanya saw the king offering this menial service, He naturally became very inclined to give him mercy.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.18

mahāprabhu sukha pāila se-sevā dekhite
mahāprabhura kṛpā haila se-sevā ha-ite

Translation: Upon seeing the King engaged in such menial service, Caitanya Mahāprabhu became very happy. Simply by rendering this service, the King received the mercy of the Lord.

Purport: Unless one receives the mercy of the Lord, he cannot understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead or engage in His devotional service.

(Bhāg. 10.14.29)

A devotee who has received even a small fraction of the mercy of the Lord can understand Him. Others may engage in theoretical speculation to understand the Lord, but they cannot know anything about Him. Although Mahārāja Pratāparudra was very eager to see Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, the Lord refused to see him. But when Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu saw the King engaged in menial service for Lord Jagannātha, He became very happy. Thus the King became eligible to receive Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s mercy. If a devotee accepts Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu as the universal guru and Lord Jagannātha as the Supreme Personality of Godhead Kṛṣṇa, he is benefited by the combined mercy of Kṛṣṇa and guru. That is stated by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu in His instructions to Rūpa Gosvāmī (Cc. Madhya 19.151):

The seed of devotional service fructifies and becomes a transcendental creeper. Finally it reaches the lotus feet of the Lord in the spiritual sky. This seed is obtained by the mercy of the Lord and the guru. By the Lord’s mercy one gets the association of a bona fide guru, and by the mercy of the guru one gets a chance to render devotional service. Devotional service, the science of bhakti-yoga, carries one from this material world to the spiritual world.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, this shows how the King rendering the menial service to Lord Jagannātha got him the special mercy of Lord Caitanya.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.19

rathera śobhā:—
rathera sājani dekhi’ loke camatkāra
nava hemamaya ratha—sumeru-ākāra

Translation: Everyone was astonished to see the decorations on the Ratha car. The car appeared to be newly made of gold, and it was as high as Mount Sumeru.

Purport: In the year 1973 there was a gorgeous Ratha-yātrā festival in London, England, and the car was brought to Trafalgar Square. The London daily newspaper The Guardian published a front-page photo caption: “ISKCON Ratha-yātrā is rival to the Nelson Column in Trafalgar Square.” The Nelson Column is a very impressive statue of Lord Nelson and can be seen from a good distance. Just as the residents of Purī compared the Ratha-yātrā car to Mount Sumeru, the residents of London considered the car rival to the Nelson Monument.

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda was comparing and appreciating how the residents of London were comparing the Ratha to the Nelson column. So just like the residents of Jagannātha Purī compared the ratha to Mount Meru. Each place they compared the Ratha to the local monument. So Śrīla Prabhupāda was appreciating how the Londoners were comparing the ratha to the Nelson Column in Trafalgar Square

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.20

śata śata su-cāmara-darpaṇe ujjvala
upare patākā śobhe cāṅdoyā nirmala

Translation: The decorations included bright mirrors and hundreds and hundreds of cāmaras [white whisks made of yak tails]. On top of the car were a neat and clean canopy and a very beautiful flag.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.21

ghāghara, kiṅkiṇī bāje, ghaṇṭāra kvaṇita
nānā citra-paṭṭa-vastre ratha vibhūṣita

Translation: The car was also decorated with silken cloth and various pictures. Many brass bells, gongs and ankle bells rang.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.22

jagannātha, balarāma o subhadrāra rathārohaṇa:—
līlāya caḍila īśvara rathera upara
āra dui rathe caḍe subhadrā, haladhara

Translation: For the pastimes of the Ratha-yātrā ceremony, Lord Jagannātha got aboard one car, and His sister, Subhadrā, and elder brother, Balarāma, got aboard two other cars.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.23

anavasarakāle 15 dina lakṣmīsaha jagannāthera vilāsa:—
pañca-daśa dina īśvara mahā-lakṣmī lañā
tāṅra saṅge krīḍā kaila nibhṛte vasiyā

Translation: For fifteen days the Lord had remained in a secluded place with the supreme goddess of fortune and had performed His pastimes with her.

Purport: The fifteen-day period of anavasara is also called nibhṛta, in honor of the solitary place where the supreme goddess of fortune lives. After living there a fortnight, Lord Jagannātha took permission from the goddess of fortune to leave.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Lord Jagannātha goes to Vrindavan to meet His friends, He had to satisfy Lakṣmī devī, so for fifteen days He had pastimes with Her and took Her permission to leave to Guṇḍicā.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.24

vilāsānte lakṣmīra mata laiyā rathārohaṇa:—
tāṅhāra sammati lañā bhakte sukha dite
rathe caḍi’ bāhira haila vihāra karite

Translation: Having taken permission from the goddess of fortune, the Lord came out to ride on the Ratha car and perform His pastimes for the pleasure of the devotees.

Purport: In this connection, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura comments that as an ideal husband, Lord Jagannātha remained fifteen days in a secluded place with His wife, the supreme goddess of fortune. Nonetheless, the Lord wanted to come out of seclusion to give happiness to His devotees. The Lord enjoys Himself in two ways, known as svakīya and parakīya. The Lord’s conjugal love in the svakīya-rasa relates to the regulative principles observed in Dvārakā, where the Lord has many married queens. But in Vṛndāvana the conjugal love of the Lord is not with His married wives but with His girlfriends, the gopīs. Conjugal love with the gopīs is called parakīya-rasa. Lord Jagannātha leaves the secluded place where He enjoys the company of the supreme goddess of fortune in svakīya-rasa, and He goes to Vṛndāvana, where He enjoys the parakīya-rasa. Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura therefore reminds us that the Lord’s pleasure in parakīya-rasa is superior to His pleasure in svakīya-rasa.

In the material world, parakīya-rasa, or loving affairs with unmarried girlfriends, is the most degraded relationship, but in the spiritual world this type of loving affair is considered the supreme enjoyment. In the material world everything is but a reflection of the spiritual world, and that reflection is perverted. We cannot understand the affairs of the spiritual world on the basis of our experience in the material world. The Lord’s pastimes with the gopīs are therefore misunderstood by mundane scholars and word-wranglers. The parakīya-rasa of the spiritual world should not be discussed except by one who is very advanced in pure devotional service. The parakīya-rasa in the spiritual world and that in the material world are not comparable. The former is like gold, and the latter is like iron. Because the difference between the two is so great, they cannot actually be compared. However, just as a knowledgeable person can easily distinguish gold from iron, one who has the proper realization can easily distinguish the transcendental activities of the spiritual world from material activities.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, here details of the different kinds of conjugal relationship of the Lord is mentioned, svakīya and parakīya and none of these things are like in the material world, they are transcendental, and very advanced devotees like Lord Caitanya and His very advanced associates could appreciate these relationships.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.25

ratha-gamana-pathera varṇana:—
sūkṣma śveta-bālu pathe pulinera sama
dui dike ṭoṭā, saba—yena vṛndāvana

Translation: The fine, white sand spread all over the path resembled the bank of the Yamunā, and the small gardens on both sides looked just like those in Vṛndāvana.

Jayapatākā Swami: That time there were many gardens, today there are still some gardens but many shops and houses have taken the path, only a few gardens are left.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.26

rathe caḍi’ jagannātha karilā gamana
dui-pārśve dekhi’ cale ānandita-mana

Translation: As Lord Jagannātha rode in His car and saw the beauty on both sides, His mind was filled with pleasure.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.27

gauḍagaṇera ratharajju-karṣaṇa, svecchāmayera icchāmata sañcalana:—
‘gauḍa’ saba ratha ṭāne kariyā ānanda
kṣaṇe śīghra cale ratha, kṣaṇe cale manda

Translation: The pullers of the car were known as gauḍas, and they pulled with great pleasure. However, the car sometimes went very fast and sometimes very slow.

Jayapatākā Swami: So we see that the Lord being a person, He would sometimes move fast, sometimes slow, and sometimes stop and sometimes go.

Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 13.28

kṣaṇe sthira hañā rahe, ṭānileha nā cale
īśvara-icchāya cale, nā cale kāro bale

Translation: Sometimes the car would stand still and not move, even though it was pulled very vigorously. The chariot therefore moved by the will of the Lord, not by the strength of any ordinary person.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, the process of serving the Lord with our senses is demonstrated here, at the same time the Lord is an independent person and if He wants to stop, no one can move Him and if He wants to go, He can go very easily everything is by the will of the Lord.

Hare Kṛṣṇa!