20221216 Temple of Rāghava Paṇḍita - Eternal Residence of Lord Caitanya

The following is a Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book Compilation given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on December 16th,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!

Hare Kṛṣṇa! Dear Devotees! Today we will continue with the compilation of Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book. Today's chapter is entitled as:

Temple of Rāghava Paṇḍita - Eternal Residence of Lord Caitanya
Under the section: The Meeting of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.101

sandhyāya rāghava-mandire kīrtana:—

prabhu viśrāma kailā, yadi dina-śeṣa haila
rāghava-mandire tabe kīrtana ārambhila

Translation: Nityānanda Prabhu rested for the day, and when the day ended He went to the temple of Rāghava Paṇḍita and began congregational chanting of the holy name of the Lord.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.102

kīrtane nityānandera narttana:—

bhakta saba nācāñā nityānanda-rāya
śeṣe nṛtya kare preme jagat bhāsāya

Translation: Lord Nityānanda Prabhu first influenced all the devotees to dance, and finally He Himself began dancing, thus inundating the entire world in ecstatic love.

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu said that whenever Lord Nityānanda Prabhu dances, He is there because it is such a wonderful thing that He doesn’t want to miss it.

Haribol!

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.103

mahāprabhura nityānandanṛtya-darśana:—

mahāprabhu tāṅra nṛtya karena daraśana
sabe nityānanda dekhe, nā dekhe anya-jana

Translation: Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was observing the dancing of Lord Nityānanda Prabhu. Nityānanda Prabhu could see this, but the others could not.

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Nityānanda being the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself, He could see Lord Caitanya.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.104

mahāprabhura narttanai anupama nityānanda-narttanera ekamātra tulanā:—

nityānandera nṛtya,—yena tāṅhāra nartane
upamā dibāra nāhi e-tina bhuvane

Translation: The dancing of Lord Nityānanda Prabhu, like the dancing of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, cannot be compared to anything within these three worlds.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, the dancing of Nitāi and Gaura are incomparable with anything in the three worlds.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.105

mahāprabhura nityānandanṛtya-mādhurya darśana—

nṛtyera mādhurī kebā varṇibāre pare
mahāprabhu āise yei nṛtya dekhibāre

Translation: No one can properly describe the sweetness of Lord Nityānanda’s dancing. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu personally comes to see it.

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Nityānanda’s dancing is so sweet that Lord Caitanya Himself comes to see it. It is indescribable, it’s so sweet.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.106

nṛtyahetu viśrāmānte nitāira gaṇasaha rāghavagṛhe naiśabhojana:—

nṛtya kari’ prabhu yabe viśrāma karilā
bhojanera lāgi’ paṇḍita nivedana kailā

Translation: After the dancing and after Lord Nityānanda had rested, Rāghava Paṇḍita submitted his request that the Lord take supper.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Rāghava Paṇḍita was always eager to serve Lord Nityānanda.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.107

nitāira dakṣiṇe prabhura bhojanāsana:—

bhojane vasilā prabhu nija-gaṇa lañā
mahāprabhura āsana ḍāhine pātiyā

Translation: Lord Nityānanda Prabhu sat down for supper with His personal associates and made a sitting place on His right side for Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.108

mahāprabhura tāhāte upaveśana-darśane rāghavera harṣa:—

mahāprabhu āsi’ sei āsane vasila
dekhi’ rāghavera mane ānanda bāḍila

Translation: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu came there and sat down at His place. Seeing this, Rāghava Paṇḍita felt increasing happiness.

Jayapatākā Swami: Rāghava Paṇḍita could see Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu sitting and this increased his spiritual bliss.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.109

sarvāgre prabhudvayera, paścāt bhaktagaṇera prasāda-sevana:—

dui-bhāi-āge prasāda āniyā dharilā
sakala vaiṣṇave piche pariveśana kailā

Translation: Rāghava Paṇḍita brought the prasādam before the two brothers and thereafter distributed prasādam to all the other Vaiṣṇavas.

Jayapatākā Swami: Rāghava Paṇḍita was following the etiquette of serving Nitāi and Gaura first and the other Vaiṣṇavas after.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.110

rāghavera gṛhe prasāda vaicitryavarṇana:—

nānā-prakāra piṭhā, pāyasa, divya śālyanna
amṛta nindaye aiche vividha vyañjana

Translation: There were varieties of cakes, sweet rice and fine cooked rice that surpassed the taste of nectar. There were also varieties of vegetables.

Jayapatākā Swami: Rāghava Paṇḍita was a very expert cook. Along with his sister Damayantī devī, in a short time they could prepare a large amount of prasāda.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.111

rāghavera gṛhaprastuta naivedyādi—prabhura nityapriya:—

rāghava-ṭhākurera prasāda amṛtera sāra
mahāprabhu yāhā khāite āise bāra bāra

Translation: The food prepared and offered to the Deity by Rāghava Paṇḍita was like the essence of nectar. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu came there again and again to eat such prasādam.

Jayapatākā Swami: Rāghava Paṇḍita had Rādhā Madan-mohana Deities and he would offer the bhoga to these Deities and it was like nectar. Lord Caitanya would come there to take that prasāda.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.112

mahāprabhura nimitta pratyaha pṛthak bhoga o prabhura tadbhojana:—

pāka kari’ rāghava yabe bhoga lāgāya
mahāprabhura lāgi’ bhoga pṛthak bāḍaya

Translation: When Rāghava Paṇḍita offered the food to the Deity after cooking, he would make a separate offering for Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Rāghava Paṇḍita would offer separately to Lord Caitanya so thus he was doing regular Deity worship for Lord Caitanya.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.113

prati-dina mahāprabhu karena bhojana
madhye madhye prabhu tāṅre dena daraśana

Translation: Every day, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu would eat at the house of Rāghava Paṇḍita. Sometimes He would give Rāghava Paṇḍita the opportunity to see Him.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, this was a special mercy. Lord Caitanya revealed His presence to Rāghava Paṇḍita accepting his offering of prasāda.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.114

rāghavakarttṛka prabhudvayera bhojana-sampādana:—

dui bhāire rāghava āni’ pariveśe
yatna kari’ khāoyāya, nā rahe avaśeṣe

Translation: Rāghava Paṇḍita would bring and distribute prasādam to the two brothers, feeding Them with great attention. They ate everything, and therefore there were no remnants left.

Jayapatākā Swami: This shows how wonderful was the offering of Rāghava Paṇḍita that the Two Brothers left no remnants.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.115

prabhudvayera niḥśeṣe bahuvidha vicitraprasāda-sevana:—

kata upahāra āne, hena nāhi jāni
rāghavera ghare rāndhe rādhā-ṭhākurāṇī

Translation: He brought so many presentations that no one could know them perfectly. Indeed, it was a fact that the supreme mother, Rādhārāṇī, personally cooked in the house of Rāghava Paṇḍita.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Rādhārāṇī had a special blessing from Durvāsa Muni that everythings She cooked would be like nectar. So She was cooking in the house of Rāghava Paṇḍita. Somehow in the festival of New Pānihāṭi dhāma, I would always tell the devotees that Rādhārāṇī is preparing the bhoga and we are just Her assistants. This verse confirms that.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.116

rāghavagṛhe svayaṁ śrī-rādhikāra kṛṣṇārthe amṛtanindi anna-randhana:—

durvāsāra ṭhāñi teṅho pāñāchena vara
amṛta ha-ite pāka tāṅra adhika madhura

Translation: Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī received from Durvāsā Muni the benediction that whatever She cooked would be sweeter than nectar. That is the special feature of Her cooking.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.117

prabhudvayera tadannabhojane ānanda:—

sugandhi sundara prasāda—mādhuryera sāra
dui bhāi tāhā khāñā santoṣa apāra

Translation: Aromatic and pleasing to see, the food was the essence of all sweetness. Thus the two brothers, Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Lord Nityānanda Prabhu, ate it with great satisfaction.

Jayapatākā Swami: Remembering that Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu at this time was physically in South India, that He had come here to take Rāghava Paṇḍita’s prasāda and see Lord Nityānanda’s dancing, actually, only very fortunate people could see Him, otherwise He was invisible to most of the people.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.118

sakala bhaktera upaveśana, raghunāthake bhojanārtha anurodha, raghunāthera paścāt upaveśanāṅgīkāra:—

bhojane vasite raghunāthe kahe sarva-jana
paṇḍita kahe,—iṅha pāche karibe bhojana’

Translation: All the devotees present requested Raghunātha dāsa to sit down and take prasādam, but Rāghava Paṇḍita told them, “He will take prasādam later.”

Jayapatākā Swami: So, everyone wanted to give Raghunatha dāsa mercy but Rāghava Paṇḍita said, he would take prasāda later. So what is the special meaning of this? We will soon find out!

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.119

bhaktagaṇera ākaṇṭha bhojana o ācamana:—

bhakta-gaṇa ākaṇṭha bhariyā karila bhojana
‘hari’ dhvani kari’ uṭhi’ kailā ācamana

Translation: All the devotees took prasādam, filling themselves to the brim. Thereafter, chanting the holy name of Hari, they stood up and washed their hands and mouths.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, the word used here is ākaṇṭha bhojana, it means prasāda upto the neck, Śrīla Prabhupāda translated "to the brim".

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.120

ācamanānte prabhudvayera mālācandana-paridhāna:—

bhojana kari’ dui bhāi kailā ācamana
rāghava āni’ parāilā mālya-candana

Translation: After eating, the two brothers washed Their hands and mouths. Then Rāghava Paṇḍita brought flower garlands and sandalwood pulp and decorated Them.

Jayapatākā Swami: So much bliss is tasted by the simple description of Nitāi Gaura taking prasāda.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.121

prabhudvayera tāmbula-bhojana, sakalera avaśeṣa-prāpti:—

biḍā khāoyāilā, kailā caraṇa vandana
bhakta-gaṇe dilā biḍā, mālya-candana

Translation: Rāghava Paṇḍita offered Them betel nuts and worshiped Their lotus feet. He also distributed betel nuts, flower garlands and sandalwood pulp to the devotees.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Rāghava Paṇḍita was very respectful to all the devotees, offering them praṇāmas, obeisances and various gifts.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.122

snehakṛpāmaya rāghavera raghunāthake prabhudvayera ucchiṣṭapātra-dāna:—

rāghavera kṛpā raghunāthera upare
dui bhāiera avaśiṣṭa pātra dilā tāṅre

Translation: Rāghava Paṇḍita, being very merciful toward Raghunātha dāsa, offered him the dishes with the remnants of food left by the two brothers.

Jayapatākā Swami: Here we see why Raghunatha dāsa was given the prasāda at the end, he was giving the remnants of Nitāi Gaura! Hari Bol!

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.123

prabhura ucchiṣṭa-sevanei raghunāthera gṛhatyāga-sāmarthya:—

kahilā,—“caitanya gosāñi kariyāchena bhojana
tāṅra śeṣa pāile, tomāra khaṇḍila bandhana”

Translation: He said, “Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu has eaten this food. If you take His remnants, you will be released from the bondage of your family.”

Jayapatākā Swami: Since Raghunatha dāsa, who was later one of the six Gosvāmīs, he was a very important devotee. So, his going to Vṛndāvana and joining Caitanya Mahāprabhu is something very important. But our general devotees should not think that they have to take the Babaji dress or sannyāsa-āśrama, that, they should do in consultation with their Guru. But they should be responsible in whatever āśrama they are in, and they should always keep their heart with Lord Kṛṣṇa. That was the instruction of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.124

bhagavānera avasthāna o svabhāva-nirṇaya:—

bhakta-citte bhakta-gṛhe sadā avasthāna
kabhu gupta, kabhu vyakta, svatantra bhagavān

Translation: The Supreme Personality of Godhead always resides either in the heart or in the home of a devotee. This fact is sometimes hidden and sometimes manifest, for the Supreme Personality of Godhead is fully independent.

Jayapatākā Swami: How the Lord either resides in the heart or the home of the devotee is mentioned here.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 6.125

prabhura vibhutve saṁśayakārīra vināśa:—

sarvatra ’vyāpaka’ prabhura sadā sarvatra vāsa
ihāte saṁśaya yāra, sei yāya nāśa

Translation: The Supreme Personality of Godhead is all-pervasive, and therefore He resides everywhere. Anyone who doubts this will be annihilated.

Jayapatākā Swami: Actually the Supreme Lord through His expansion as Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu is present in everyone’s heart as Paramātmā, He is present in every atom, every planet and thus all the universes are operating because of the presence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but He is in heart and home of the devotee in a special way.

Thus ends the chapter entitled, Temple of Rāghava Paṇḍita - Eternal Residence of Lord Caitanya
Under the section: The Meeting of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī