20230129 Advaita Ācārya Meditates To Bring Lord Caitanya and Feed Him Part 1

The following is a Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book Compilation given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on January 29th,2023 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:

Advaita Ācārya Meditates to Bring Lord Caitanya and Feed Him Alone, Part 1
Under the section: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu Accepts Prasādam from His Devotees

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.3

bhaktagoṣṭhīra prabhura saṅge kīrtanānande avasthiti—

hena-mate bhakta-goṣṭhīīśvarera saṅge
thākilā paramānande saṅkīrtana-raṅge

Jayapatākā Swami: In this way the assembled devotees remained with Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu, they remained tasting the transcendental saṅkīrtana bliss, transcendental ecstasy of saṅkīrtana bliss.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.4

prabhu-premabaddha bhaktagaṇera prabhura janya prabhura śiśukālera priya-sāmagrī saṅge ānayana—

ye dravye prabhura prīta pūrve śiśu-kāle
sakala jānena tāhā vaiṣṇava-maṇḍale

Jayapatākā Swami: Those food items which Lord Caitanya liked, during His previous childhood pastimes, or childhood, all the Vaiṣṇavas knew.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.5

sei saba dravya sabe prema-yukta haiyā
āniyāche yata saba prabhura lāgiyā

Jayapatākā Swami: Therefore they brought all of these items in a mood of pure love and brought all the things that Lord Caitanya liked to offer to Him.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.6

prabhupriya dravya randhana o prabhuke nimantraṇa—

sei saba dravya prīte kariyā randhana
īśvarere āsiyā karena nimantraṇa

Jayapatākā Swami: These devotees would affectionately cook these items and invite Lord Caitanya to come and accept the offerings.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.7

bhaktadravya-grahaṇe prabhura prīti—

ye dine ye bhakta-gṛhe haya nimantraṇa
tāhāi parama prīte karena bhojana

Jayapatākā Swami: On that day, in that devotee's house where He was invited, Lord Caitanya would with great affection, accept that offering.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.8

vaiṣṇavagṛhiṇīgaṇa lakṣmīra aṁśa; randhana-sevāya parama-nipuṇā—

śrī-lakṣmīra aṁśa—yata vaiṣṇava-gṛhiṇīki
vicitra randhana karena nāhi jāni

Jayapatākā Swami: All the wives of the Vaiṣṇavas were expansions of Śrī Lakṣmī devī, the goddess of fortune. Therefore, their cooking was so wonderful. I am not able to describe it.

Puport (by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura): The wives of Vaiṣṇavas are expansions of Śrī Lakṣmī. Although the jīva servants and maidservants of the Supreme Lord are separated expansions of the Lord’s energy, they are actually transformations of the marginal energy and are therefore expansions of Śakti. When the living entities lack knowledge of their constitutional position, they become illusioned about their actual identity, but the wives of Vaiṣṇavas always remain engaged in the service of Hari on the liberated platform rather than forgetting their actual identity.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, all the wives of the associates of Lord Caitanya are actually acting as partial expansions of Goddess of fortune Śrī Lakṣmī devī. Therefore, they were always fixed in their constitutional position as servitors of Lord Kṛṣṇa. In the śāstra it describes, how one is either an expansion of Śakti or an expansion of Kṛṣṇa, yet one is a marginal potency. Not Śakti or Kṛṣṇa tattva. So, these wives of the Vaiṣṇavas were acting as the expansions of Śakti tattva and they had the special mercy to cook for Lord Caitanya.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.9

tāṅhādera mukhe anukṣaṇa kṛṣṇanāma—

niravadhi sabāra nayane prema-dhāra
kṛṣṇa-nāme paripūrṇa vadana sabāra

Jayapatākā Swami: Constantly, everyone’s eyes were filled with tears of love and everyone was constantly chanting the Holy names of Kṛṣṇa.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.10

prabhura pūrvapriya vyañjanādi-randhana-dvārā vaiṣṇavīgaṇera mahāprabhura sevā—

pūrve īśvarera prīti ye saba vyañjane
navadvīpe śrī-vaiṣṇavī sabe tāhā jāne

Jayapatākā Swami: Previously which vegetables, Lord Caitanya like in Navadvīpa, these Vaiṣṇavīs knew this.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.11

prema-yoge sei-mata karena randhana
prabhu o parama preme karena bhojana

Jayapatākā Swami: Therefore they cooked those preparations with love, and Lord Caitanya also ate all their offerings with great love.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.12

bhikṣāra janya advaitera prabhuke anurodha—

eka-dina śrī-advaita-siṁha mahāmati
prabhure balilā,—“āji bhikṣā kara ithi

Jayapatākā Swami: One day the magnanimous, Śrī Advaita-siṁha told Lord Caitanya, “Today take Your lunch here.

As a sannyāsī Lord Caitanya didn’t cook but He would take His prasāda in different devotees' houses. In this way the Vaiṣṇavas and Vaiṣṇavīs got an opportunity to serve Him.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.13

muṣṭy-eka taṇḍula prabhu, rāndhiba āpana
hasta mora dhanya hau tomāra bhakṣaṇe”

Jayapatākā Swami: “I will personally cook a handful of rice for You, my dear Lord Caitanya, My hands will become glorious by Your eating.”

By feeding Lord Caitanya, simple rice and vegetable preparations, devotees considered that they have become glorious by this seva. They are very eager to serve the Lord.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.14

prabhura ukti—ācāryapradatta anna kṛṣṇabhakti-sādhaka o prabhura paramapriya vastu —

prabhu bale,—“ye jana tomāra anna khāya
‘kṛṣṇa-bhakti’, ‘kṛṣṇa’ se-i pāya sarvathāya

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya replied, “Whoever eats Your rice achieves Kṛṣṇa's devotional service and achieves or attains Lord Kṛṣṇa, this is received in all respects and in all circumstances.

Lord Caitanya He would always praise Lord Advaita Ācārya and He was saying that simply by taking the prasāda offered by Advaita Ācārya, anyone would achieve Kṛṣṇa-bhakti and love of Kṛṣṇa, so glorious was Advaita Ācārya’s prasāda.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.15

ācārya, tomāra anna āmāra jīvana
tumi khāoyāile haya kṛṣṇera bhojana

Jayapatākā Swami: “O Ācārya, Your rice is My life. If you feed, only then Lord Kṛṣṇa eats.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.16

tumi ye naivedya kara kariyā randhana
māgiyāo khāite āmāra tathi mana

Jayapatākā Swami: “The offerings that you cook, my mind is even ready to beg for the offerings to eat.”

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.17

advaitācāryera ānanda

śuniñā prabhura bhakta-vatsalatā-vāṇīki
ānande advaita bhāsena nāhi jāni

Jayapatākā Swami: Hearing such words of affection for His devotee from Lord Caitanya, what ecstasy Lord Advaita was floating in, cannot be expressed

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.18

advaitera vāsāya pratyāvartana; mahāprabhura bhikṣāra sajjā, advaitagṛhiṇīra randhanādi-kārya—

parama santoṣe tabe vāsāya āilā
prabhura bhikṣāra sajja karite lāgilā

Jayapatākā Swami: In great satisfaction Advaita Ācārya, then returned to his home. Lord Caitanya's lunch arrangements he made for the Lord.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.19

lakṣmī-aṁśe janma—advaitera pati-vratā
lāgilā karite kārya hai’ haraṣitā

Jayapatākā Swami: Advaita Ācārya’s chaste wife, who took birth as an expansion of Lakṣmī devī, joyfully began to prepare for cooking.

Actually it is said that Sītā Ṭhākuraṇi, she had initiated two of the servants of Advaita who were Jaya and Vījaya in the spiritual world and like this many of the Vaiṣṇavīs acted as dīkṣā-gurus, they were very highly qualified.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 9.20

advaitapatnī kartṛka gauḍadeśānīta prabhupriya-dravyādi-pradāna—

prabhura prītera dravya gauḍa-deśa haite
yata āniyāchena saba lāgilena dite

Jayapatākā Swami: The items which Lord Caitanya liked were brought from Bengal, whatever had being brought, she prepared to give.

Thus ends the chapter entitled, Advaita Ācārya Meditates to Bring Lord Caitanya and Feed Him Alone, Part 1
Under the section: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu Accepts Prasādam from His Devotees