20221108 The illusory energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead tests Haridāsa Ṭhākura

The following is a Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book Compilation given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on November 08th,2022 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!

The compilation of Caitanya līlā book, today's session titled as

The illusory energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead tests Haridāsa Ṭhākura
Under the section: The Glories of Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura

Haribol! Happy Rāsa Pūrṇimā, everybody had pāraṇa of your Bhīṣma-pañcaka!

Did you see the Lunar eclipse, Lord Caitanya appeared during a lunar eclipse and all the people of Navadvīpa were in the Ganges chanting the holy name so in that devotees like Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura they were so happy to hear all the people chanting the holy name. They said that lunar eclipse is supposed to be inauspicious but all the people are chanting the holy name. we had the Elephant procession and still the lunar eclipse was partially closing up. apparently Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura had a Ratha-yātrā during a eclipse in Kurukshetra, I don’t know whether it is lunar or solar, so he said in the Vaiṣṇava-sampradāya, we don’t observe the eclipse, we simply chant hare Kṛṣṇa. So all these Maṭha seemed to be closed up during the eclipse, I wonder because Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura he didn’t observe. The King of Krishnagar, King Krsnacandra, after whose Krishnagar is named, he started a special Rāsa-Pūrṇimā festival in Navadvīpa where they have bog pandals for different devas, so Rāsa-Pūrṇimā is Kṛṣṇa’s festival but somehow they are worshipping the devas in Navadvīpa. Anyways many people come to Māyāpur to see us.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.227

ṭhākurera aprākṛta caritavarṇanaḥ—

āra alaukika eka caritra tāṅhāra
yāhāra śravaṇe loke haya camatkāra

Translation: There is another incident concerning Haridāsa Ṭhākura’s uncommon behavior. One will be astonished to hear about it.

Jayapatākā Swami: Here another history of Haridāsa Ṭhākura’s uncommon Vaiṣṇava qualities is mentioned.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.228

śrautapanthāya aprākṛtānubhūti, tarkapanthāya tadasambhāvanāḥ—

tarka nā kariha, tarkāgocara tāṅra rīti
viśvāsa kariyā śuna kariyā pratīti

Translation: Hear about such incidents without putting forth dry arguments, for these incidents are beyond our material reasoning. One must believe in them with faith.

Jayapatākā Swami: Some of the histories given in Caitanya-caritāmṛta are such that we just have to believe that to understand.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.229

ṭhākura haridāsa o māyādevīra uddhāra vṛttānta varṇana :—

eka-dina haridāsa goṅphāte vasiyā
nāma-saṅkīrtana karena ucca kariyā

Translation: One day Haridāsa Ṭhākura was sitting in his cave, reciting the holy name of the Lord very loudly.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.230

jyotsnāvatī rātri, daśa dik sunirmala
gaṅgāra laharī jyotsnāya kare jhala-mala

Translation: The night was full of moonlight, which made the waves of the Ganges look dazzling. All directions were clear and bright.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, this is describing the natural beauty of the surroundings of Haridāsa Ṭhākura’s cave.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.231

dvāre tulasī lepā-piṇḍira upara
goṅphāra śobhā dekhi’ lokera juḍāya antara

Translation: Thus everyone who saw the beauty of the cave, with the tulasī plant on a clean altar, was astonished and satisfied at heart.

Jayapatākā Swami: Although Haridāsa Ṭhākura was living in a simple earthen cave, people who saw the environment were very astonished at the beauty and although he was living in a very simple environment it looked very beautiful.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.232

hena-kāle eka nārī aṅgane āila
tāṅra aṅga-kāntye sthāna pīta-varṇa ha-ila

Translation: At that time, in that beautiful scene, a woman appeared in the courtyard. The beauty of her body was so bright that it tinged the entire place with a yellow hue.

Jayapatākā Swami: The sign of yellow color is only had in this material world in Gaurī, Pārvatī and in spiritual world Śrīmatī Radharani has this yellow hue, She is known as Gaurāṅgī, but in the material world Pārvatī is known as Gaurī.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.233

tāṅra aṅga-gandhe daśa dik āmodita
bhūṣaṇa-dhvanite karṇa haya camakita

Translation: The scent of her body perfumed all directions, and the tinkling of her ornaments startled the ear.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, this lady was very beautiful and very attractive.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.234

āsiyā tulasīre sei kailā namaskāra
tulasī parikramā kari’ gelā goṅphā-dvāra

Translation: After coming there, the woman offered obeisances to the tulasī plant, and after circumambulating the tulasī plant she came to the door of the cave where Haridāsa Ṭhākura was sitting.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.235

yoḍa-hāte haridāsera vandilā caraṇa
dvāre vasi’ kahe kichu madhura vacana

Translation: With folded hands she offered obeisances at the lotus feet of Haridāsa Ṭhākura. Sitting at the door, she then spoke in a very sweet voice.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.236

ṭhākura haridāsake jīvamohinī māyāra parīkṣāḥ—

“jagatera bandhu tumi rūpa-guṇavān
tava saṅga lāgi’ mora ethāke prayāṇa

Translation: “My dear friend,” she said, “you are the friend of the entire world. You are so beautiful and qualified. I have come here only for union with you.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, she was testing Haridāsa Ṭhākura.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.237

more aṅgīkāra kara hañā sadaya
dīne dayā kare,—ei sādhu-svabhāva haya

Translation: “My dear sir, kindly accept me and be merciful toward me, for it is a characteristic of all saintly persons to be kind toward the poor and fallen.”

Jayapatākā Swami: So, she is using the qualities of a sādhu inappropriately. Sādhu wants to engage in the service pleasing to Kṛṣṇa, and not in the service of pleasing his senses.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.238

eta bali’ nānā-bhāva karaye prakāśa
yāhāra darśane munira haya dhairya-nāśa

Translation: After saying this, she began to manifest various postures, which even the greatest philosopher would lose his patience upon seeing.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, like this she was testing Haridāsa Ṭhākura’s commitment to serving Kṛṣṇa.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.239

nirvikāra haridāsa gambhīra-āśaya
balite lāgilā tāṅre hañā sadaya

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Haridāsa Ṭhākura being very merciful spoke to the beautiful lady.

Translation: Haridāsa Ṭhākura was immovable, for he was deeply determined. He began to speak to her, being very merciful toward her.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.240

ṭhākura haridāsera saṁkhyā-nāmakīrtana-yajñe dīkṣā o niṣṭhāḥ—

“saṅkhyā-nāma-saṅkīrtana—ei ’mahā-yajña’ manye
tāhāte dīkṣita āmi ha-i prati-dine

Translation: “I have been initiated into a vow to perform a great sacrifice by chanting the holy name a certain number of times every day.

Jayapatākā Swami: Actually every devotee in the modern Kṛṣṇa conscious movement agrees at the time of initiation to chant at least 16 mālās of beads, or 1728 mantras a day. But Haridāsa Ṭhākura he would chant 300,000 times; that was his vow. Every devotee at the time of initiation takes a particular vow to chant, whether it is 100,000 or 25,000 or 300,000. Sixteen rounds means 25,000.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.241

yāvat kīrtana samāpta nahe, nā kari anya kāma
kīrtana samāpta haile, haya dīkṣāra viśrāma

Translation: “As long as the vow to chant is unfulfilled, I do not desire anything else. When I finish my chanting, then I have an opportunity to do anything.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, for Haridāsa Ṭhākura chanting was his first priority and he would chant 300,000 names a day, compared to that we are chanting minimum 25,000 names a day, that’s very small but we still find it difficult to finish it in the day. So, we should make it our priority to finish our rounds of chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.242

dvāre vasi’ śuna tumi nāma-saṅkīrtana
nāma samāpta haile karimu tava prīti-ācaraṇa

Translation: “Sit down at the door and hear the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. As soon as the chanting is finished, I shall satisfy you as you desire.”

Jayapatākā Swami: So, this is the same thing Haridāsa Ṭhākura said to the prostitute Hira and after three days she was converted to a Vaiṣṇavī.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā 3.243

eta bali’ karena teṅho nāma-saṅkīrtana
sei nārī vasi’ kare śrī-nāma-śravaṇa

Translation: After saying this, Haridāsa Ṭhākura continued to chant the holy name of the Lord. Thus the woman sitting before him began to hear the chanting of the holy name.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Haridāsa Ṭhākura he chanted the holy name loudly and the lady sitting at the doorway heard his chanting. By this kīrtana people naturally are delivered. Even the insects, animals, birds what to speak of human beings, they could be delivered by hearing this pure holy name.

Thus ends the chapter entitled, The illusory energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead tests Haridāsa Ṭhākura

Under the section: The Glories of Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura

So, in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, it is very natural that we will be tested, we do not know how the test comes.In this example the Supreme Personality of Godhead’s own illusory energy she personally came to take Haridāsa Ṭhākura. It is very hard to overcome her test and sometimes we are tested by some kind of material gifts, sometimes by suffering by different things. So, we have to be determined to serve Kṛṣṇa under all circumstances.

Hare Kṛṣṇa!