20211012 Meeting with Rūpa in Prayāga

The following is a Sri Krsna Caitanya Book Compilation given by His Holiness Jayapataka Swami Maharaja on October 12th, 2021 in Sri Dhama Mayapur, 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!

Hare Kṛṣṇa! Dear Devotees! We are continuing with the compilation of Caitanya-līlā book, the chapter entitled today is:

Meeting with Rūpa in Prayāga

Under the Section: Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s Visit to Śrī Vṛndāvana

Murāri Gupta Kaḍaca, 4.13.5

Translation: Travelling along the bank of the Yamunā, Śrī Hari again arrived at the city of Prayāga. After bathing at the confluence of the three holy rivers, and after seeing the Deity of Bindu Mādhava, Lord Caitanya rested there.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Lord Caitanya took His bath at the Triveṇī, at the confluence of the three rivers, Yamunā, Sarasvatī and Gaṅgā and So He stayed some time there.

Caitanya Caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 18.222

prabhura prayāge āgamana, daśadina triveṇī-darśana o snāna:—

ei-mata cali’ prabhu ‘prayāga’ āilā
daśa-dina triveṇīte makara-snāna kailā

Translation:  Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu finally arrived at Prayāga and for ten successive days bathed in the confluence of the rivers Yamunā and Ganges during the festival of Makara-saṅkrānti [Māgha-melā].

Purport: Actually the word triveṇī indicates the confluence of three rivers — namely the Ganges, Yamunā and Sarasvatī. Presently the Sarasvatī River is not visible, but the river Ganges and the river Yamunā merge at Allahabad.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Caitanya-caritāmṛta clarifies that Lord Caitanya bathed in the Triveṇī for ten days, So His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda also set up His camp at the ardha-kumbha in Kumbha-melā. He contacted many people, when He was asked why did he go there, then he said, to have association with sādhus but we felt that he was giving them his association.

Caitanya Caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 18.223

agādha prabhucaritra; vṛndāvana prema-varṇane sākṣāt śeṣerao asāmarthya:—

vṛndāvana-gamana, prabhu-caritra ananta
‘sahasra-vadana’ yāṅra nāhi pā’na anta

Translation: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s visit to Vṛndāvana and His activities there are unlimited. Even Lord Śeṣa, who has thousands of hoods, cannot reach the end of His activities.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, a synopsis is given in this book about His visit to Vṛndāvana and Mathurā. Actually, all the pastimes there are unlimited, but so we are only able to get a small portion of that.

Gaurāṅga-līlā-smaraṇa-maṅgala-stotram, 55

Translation: Seeing the hills, rivers, and villages in Vṛndāvana, He fainted, overcome with ecstatic love by remembering His pastimes there before. For this reason Balabhadra made Him leave the forests of Vraja. I meditate on Lord Gaurāṅga, who was submissive to His devotee and overcome with ecstasy.

Gaurāṅga-līlā-smaraṇa-maṅgala-stotram, 56

Translation: Seeing Him overcome with ecstasy, some fortunate mlecchas, because of their pure hearts, obtained His mercy. By His mercy they became pure devotees, overcome with love. I meditate on supremely pure Lord Gaurāṅga, who removes the impurity of low birth.

Jayapatākā Swami: Although normally people of low birth are not able to achieve the highest level of bhakti, but Lord Caitanya by His mercy those obstacles are overcome, just like in Bengali it says muci haya śuci haya yadi kṛṣṇa bhaje, śuci haya muci haya yadi kṛṣṇa tyaje. If a cobbler or meat eater worships Kṛṣṇa, he becomes pure but if a brāhmaṇa if he stops the worship of Kṛṣṇa, he becomes a cobbler.

Caitanya Caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 18.224

granthakārera dainya o digdarśanamātra varṇana:—

tāhā ke kahite pāre kṣudra jīva hañā
dig-daraśana kailuṅ muñi sūtra kariyā

Translation: What ordinary living being can describe the pastimes of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu? I have only indicated the general direction in the form of a summary.

Jayapatākā Swami: Every moment Lord Caitanya is expressing different kinds of ecstasy, actually it is not possible for any human being to express all these details. Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja gave a summary and he was trying to do that, but he said that he couldn’t do it full justice because it is not possible for any human being, even Anantadeva with thousands of mouth He could not do it.

All glories to Gaurāṅga!

Caitanya Caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 18.225

durbhāgya vyaktirai caitanya-līlāya aviśvāsa:—

alaukika-līlā prabhura alaukika-rīti
śunileo bhāgya-hīnera nā haya pratīti

Translation: The pastimes and methods of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu are uncommon. Unfortunate is he who cannot believe even after hearing all these things.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Lord Caitanya, His mercy is totally uncommon, His activities are also uncommon. If someone doesn’t believe in these activities of the Lord, he is very unfortunate.

Caitanya Caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 18.226

sakala śrotākei caitanya-līlāya dṛḍha-śraddhā o vāstavasatya vastu-jñāne viśvāsa karite anurodha:—

ādyopānta caitanya-līlā—‘alaukika’ jāna’
śraddhā kari’ śuna ihā, ’satya’ kari’ māna’

Translation: From beginning to end the pastimes of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu are uncommon. Just hear them with faith and accept them as true and correct.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, if we hear and believe the pastimes of Lord Caitanya then naturally we will get unlimited mercy.

Caitanya Caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 18.227

aviśvāsī o tārkikera svīya amaṅgala ānayana:—

yei tarka kare ihāṅ, sei— ‘mūrkha-rāja’
āpanāra muṇḍe se āpani pāḍe vāja

Translation:  Whoever argues about this is a great fool. He intentionally and personally brings a thunderbolt down upon his head.

Jayapatākā Swami: Here the author says, He is the king of fools, murkha-rāja, and because the Supreme Personality of Godhead in each avatāra, He has a particular mood, so the mood in Lord Caitanya’s avatāra is totally uncommon. He gives His mercy freely to everyone.

Caitanya Caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 18.228

caitanya-caritāmṛta-rasāmṛta-sindhura jale jagat plāvita:—

caitanya-caritra ei—‘amṛtera sindhu’
jagat ānande bhāsāya yāra eka-bindu

Translation:  The pastimes of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu are an ocean of nectar. Even a drop of this ocean can inundate the whole world with transcendental bliss.

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya is experiencing unlimited transcendental ecstasy and this is compared as an ocean of nectar, if we get even one drop of Lord Caitanya’s mercy then we can be flooded the whole world can be flooded.

Caitanya Caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 1.241

gaṅgā-tīra-pathe lañā prayāge āilā
śrī-rūpa āsi’ prabhuke tathāi mililā

Translation: After leaving Mathurā, the Lord began to walk along the path on the bank of the Ganges, and finally He reached the holy place named Prayāga [Allahabad]. It was there that Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī came and met the Lord.

Jayapatākā Swami: Rūpa Gosvāmī is the senior of the six Gosvāmīs, he was initiated in Rāmakeli as Rūpa and the elder brother as Sanātana. But he is personally meeting Lord Caitanya in Prayāga, and therefore Lord Caitanya would give various instructions and then he would write various books.

Murāri Gupta Kaḍaca, 4.13.6

Translation: Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī arrived there in the company of his younger brother, Anupama. When Rūpa saw the Lord of all sentient beings, His heart filled with prema and he fell flat like a rod to the ground.

Jayapatākā Swami: Anupama is the father of Śrī Jīva Gosvāmī, of the six Gosvāmī, so when Rūpa Gosvāmī saw Lord Caitanya He immediately offered his obeisances prostrate on the ground.

Caitanya Caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 1.242

daṇḍavat kari’ rūpa bhūmite paḍilā
parama ānande prabhu āliṅgana dilā

Translation: At Prayāga, Rūpa Gosvāmī fell down on the ground to offer obeisances to the Lord, and the Lord embraced him with great delight.

Jayapatākā Swami: So we can see how Lord Caitanya gave special mercy to Rūpa Gosvāmī by embracing him.

Murāri Gupta Kaḍaca, 4.13.7

Translation: Gaura Hari embraced Śrī Rūpa and blessed him by placing His feet upon his head, saying, "Go forth to Mathurā, and always cherish My teachings.

Murāri Gupta Kaḍaca, 4.13.8

Translation: "There you shall manifest the pastimes of Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa, which are the ornaments of Vṛndāvana. Have no doubt, this will bring Me pleasure.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Lord Caitanya had given this rare instruction to glorify the pastimes of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa in Vṛndāvana. So, this was the topic given by Lord Caitanya to Rūpa Gosvāmī.

Murāri Gupta Kaḍaca, 4.13.9

Translation: "If you should come back by the path that leads through Gauḍa in order to take darśana of Śrī Jagannātha, then at that time you can by all means also have My association and darśana."

Jayapatākā Swami: So, indirectly Lord Caitanya was saying that Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī could come to Jagannātha Purī and get His association. So, this is also extreme mercy.

Thus ends the chapter entitled, Meeting with Rūpa in Prayāga 
Under the Section: Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s Visit to Śrī Vṛndāvana