20220607 Rūpa Gosvāmī Understood the Intention of Lord Caitanya

The following is a Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book Compilation given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on June 07th,2022 in Chennai, India.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī has been serving in the emperor Hussain Shah under the Muslim or Mughal dynasty and he didn’t feel qualified to enter the temple. So, this is the first time he would see Lord Jagannātha on the Ratha-yātrā and he saw Lord Caitanya singing and dancing before the Ratha-yātrā.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 1.73

prabhura nṛtya-śloka śuni’ śrī-rūpa-gosāñi
sei ślokārtha lañā śloka karilā tathāi

Translation: When Rūpa Gosvāmī heard a verse uttered by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu during the ceremony, he immediately composed another verse dealing with the same subject.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, he heard Lord Caitanya uttering a verse and he understood the heart of Lord Caitanya so he composed a verse on that subject.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 1.74

madhya, 1ma paḥ varṇita haileo ekṣaṇe punarāya saṁkṣepe varṇanaḥ—

pūrve sei saba kathā kariyāchi varṇana
tathāpi kahiye kichu saṅkṣepe kathana

Translation: I have already described all these incidents, but I still wish to add briefly something more.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, because Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja was very old and he didn’t know how long he had to live so he had described some of the pastimes of Antya-līlā and Madhya-līlā in the Ādī-līlā, but know that he is still alive, he is returning to those subjects briefly described, explaining in detail.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 1.75

śrī-rādhā-bhāvānvita prabhura uccārita gūḍha-ślokera marmmārtha ekamātra svarūpa-dāmodara vyatīta sakalerai durvodhyaḥ—

sāmānya eka śloka prabhu paḍena kīrtana
kene śloka paḍe—ihā keha nāhi jāne

Translation: Generally Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu recited a verse while dancing and chanting before the ratha, but no one knew why He was reciting that particular verse.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 1.76

sei ślokera bhāvadyotaka padāvalī gāna kariyā svarūpera prabhusantoṣa-vidhānaḥ—

sabe ekā svarūpa gosāñi ślokera artha jāne
ślokānurūpa pada prabhuke karāna āsvādane

Translation: Only Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī knew the purpose for which the Lord recited that verse. According to the Lord’s attitude, he used to quote other verses to enable the Lord to relish mellows.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Svarūpa Dāmodara has understood Lord Caitanya's mentality and therefore he recited other verses to increase the Lord's ecstasy. Rūpa Gosvāmī also had realization of the Lord attitude.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 1.77

śrī-rūpera prabhura manomata śloka racanāḥ—

rūpa-gosāñi prabhura jāniyā abhiprāya
sei arthe śloka kailā prabhure ye bhāya

Translation: Rūpa Gosvāmī, however, could understand the intention of the Lord, and thus he composed another verse that appealed to Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, none of the associates of Lord Caitanya except Svarūpa Dāmodara understood but Rūpa Gosvāmī he understood also. So, he composed a verse highlighting the intension of the Lord.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 1.78

prabhura uccārita ślokaḥ— [paragraph] kāvyaprakāśe (1/4), sāhityadarpaṇe (1/10) o padyāvalīte (382)—

Translation: “That very personality who stole my heart during my youth is now again my master. These are the same moonlit nights of the month of Caitra. The same fragrance of mālatī flowers is there, and the same sweet breezes are blowing from the kadamba forest. In our intimate relationship, I am also the same lover, yet still my mind is not happy here. I am eager to go back to that place on the bank of the Revā under the Vetasī tree. That is my desire.”

Purport: This is the verse recited by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, this verse was recited by Śrīmatī Rādhārānī in Kurukṣetra wishing that She would take the Lord back to Vṛndāvana.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 1.79

padyāvalīte (386) śrī-rūpa-gosvāmikṛta-ślokaḥ—

Translation: “My dear friend, now I have met My very old and dear friend Kṛṣṇa on this field of Kurukṣetra. I am the same Rādhārāṇī, and now We are meeting together. It is very pleasant, but I would still like to go to the bank of the Yamunā beneath the trees of the forest there. I wish to hear the vibration of His sweet flute playing the fifth note within that forest of Vṛndāvana.”

Purport: This is the verse composed by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī. It is included in the Padyāvalī (386), an anthology of verses he compiled.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 1.86

svarūpa kahe—”jāni, kṛpā kariyācha āpane

Translation: “How could Rūpa Gosvāmī have understood My heart?” the Lord asked.

Purport: Svarūpa Dāmodara replied, “I can understand that You have already bestowed Your causeless mercy upon him.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, to understand Lord Caitanya's heart is only possible by the mercy of Lord Caitanya. Svarūpa Dāmodara was saying that you had already bestowed Your causless mercy on Rūpa Gosvāmī.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 1.87

svarūpakarttṛka śrī-rūpera prabhu-kṛpā-lābhānumānaḥ—

anyathā e artha kāra nāhi haya jñāna
tumi pūrve kṛpā kailā, kari anumāna”

(Antya-līlā 1.92 purport) ...develop a degraded mentality in the mode of ignorance. The processes of eating in different modes are explained in the Bhagavad-gītā, wherein it is stated that those who eat rice, wheat, vegetables, milk products, fruit and sugar are situated in the elevated quality of goodness. Therefore if we want a happy and tranquil political situation, we must select leaders who eat kṛṣṇa-prasādam. Otherwise the leaders will eat meat and drink wine, and thus they will be asaṁskṛtāḥ, unreformed, and kriyā-hīnāḥ, devoid of spiritual behavior. In other words, they will be mlecchas and yavanas, or men who are unclean in their habits. Through taxation, such men exploit the citizens as much as possible, and in this way they devour the citizens of the state instead of benefiting them. We therefore cannot expect a government to be efficient if it is headed by such unclean mlecchas and yavanas.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, here Śrīla Prabhupāda is explaining the purpose of kṛṣṇa-prasāda, śuddha-sattva, prasāda is transcendental foodstuffs, it naturally awakens the devotional service lied dormant in the heart. Modern leaders are usually meat eaters, drink wine and other intoxicants. So, this creates a situation in society which is unclean. Śrīla Prabhupāda is encouraging that we should have leaders who eats kṛṣṇa-prasāda. 

Thus ends the chapter entitled, Rūpa Gosvāmī Understood the Intention of Lord Caitanya
Under the section: Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī’s Second Meeting with the Lord

Śrīla Prabhupāda kī! Jaya! Śrīla Gurumahārāja kī jaya!