20230201 Rāghavera Jhāli

The following is a Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book Compilation given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on february 1st,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!

Continuation of the compilation of Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya book,

Rāghavera Jhāli
Under the section: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu Accepts Prasādam from His Devotees

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.13

damayantī-prastuta prabhupriya-dravyapūrṇa jhālisaha rāghavera yātrāḥ—

rāghava-paṇḍita cale jhāli sājāiyā
damayantī yata dravya diyāche kariyā

Translation: Rāghava Paṇḍita came with bags full of food prepared very nicely by his sister, Damayantī.

Jayapatākā Swami: This Rāghava-jhāli is very famous. He, Rāghava Paṇḍita was bringing various items to Lord Caitanya every year, from Pānihāṭi to Jagannātha Purī. It became famous as Rāghava’s jhāli – Rāghava Paṇḍita’s bags of prasāda. Each prasāda would have some expiry date. Some would last for a whole year, some for six months, some three months, so like that each bag was filled with special delicacies that would last many months.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā, 10.24

rāghava-paṇḍita—prabhura ādya-anucara
tāṅra eka śākhā mukhya—makaradhvaja kara

Translation: Rāghava Paṇḍita, Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s original follower, is understood to have been the seventh branch. From him proceeded another subbranch, headed by Makaradhvaja Kara.

Purport: Kara was the surname of Makaradhvaja. At present this surname is generally found in the Kāyastha community. The Gaura-gaṇoddeśa-dīpikā (166) states:

Rāghava Paṇḍita was formerly a confidential gopī in Vraja during the time of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes, and his former name was Dhaniṣṭhā. This gopī, Dhaniṣṭhā, always engaged in preparing foods for Kṛṣṇa.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Rāghava Paṇḍita had been preparing prasāda for Kṛṣṇa throughout different avatāras. As Daniṣṭhā as a gopī was preparing food for Kṛṣṇa. Rāghava Paṇḍita was preparing food for Lord Caitanya.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā, 10.25

tāṅhāra bhaginī damayantīra guṇarāśi :—

tāṅhāra bhaginī damayantī prabhura priya dāsī
prabhura bhoga-sāmagrī ye kare vāra-māsi

Translation: Rāghava Paṇḍita’s sister Damayantī was the dear maidservant of the Lord. She always collected various ingredients with which to cook for Lord Caitanya.

Purport (Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura): writes in his Anubhāṣya, “In the Gaura-gaṇoddeśa-dīpikā (167) it is mentioned, guṇamālā vraje yāsīd damayantī tu tat-svasā: The gopī named Guṇamālā appeared as Rāghava Paṇḍita’s sister Damayantī. On the East Bengal railway line beginning from the Sealdah station in Calcutta, there is a station named Sodapura, which is not very far from Calcutta. Within one mile of this station, toward the western side of the Ganges, is a village known as Pānihāṭi, in which the residential quarters of Rāghava Paṇḍita still exist. On Rāghava Paṇḍita’s tomb is a creeper on a concrete platform. There is also a Madana-mohana Deity in a broken-down temple nearby. This temple is managed by a local zamindar of the name Śrī Śivacandra Rāya Caudhurī. Makaradhvaja Kara was also an inhabitant of Pānihāṭi.”

Jayapatākā Swami: This house of Rāghava Paṇḍita was a place of pastimes of Lord Caitanya and Lord Nityānanda. And sometimes They go to his house in Pānihāṭi to have different pastimes. Pānihāṭi is a famous place of the ciḍā-dadhi festival.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā, 10.26

se saba sāmagrī yata jhālite bhariyā
rāghava la-iyā yā’na gupata kariyā

Translation: The foods Damayantī cooked for Lord Caitanya when He was at Purī were carried in bags by her brother Rāghava without the knowledge of others.

Jayapatākā Swami: Sometimes, Rāghava Paṇḍita took the bags to the Lord secretly. But eventually, it became known. He was bringing variety of bags of prasāda for Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā, 10.27

vāra-māsa tāhā prabhu karena aṅgīkāra
‘rāghavera jhāli’ bali’ prasiddhi yāhāra

Translation: The Lord accepted these foods throughout the entire year. Those bags are still celebrated as rāghavera jhāli [“the bags of Rāghava Paṇḍita”].

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā, 10.28

se-saba sāmagrī āge kariba vistāra
yāhāra śravaṇe bhaktera vahe aśrudhāra

Translation: I shall describe the contents of the bags of Rāghava Paṇḍita later in this book. Hearing this narration, devotees generally cry, and tears glide down from their eyes.

Purport: A vivid description of these rāghavera-jhāli is to be found in chapter ten of the Antya-līlā portion of Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta.

Jayapatākā Swami: That Damayantī would prepare such a nice preparations for Lord Caitanya, these brought down to Jagannātha Purī by walking. It Became something amazing that would cause devotees to cry at the thought of this dedicated sevā.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.14

rāghavera jhālira vivaraṇaḥ—

nānā apūrva bhakṣya-dravya prabhura yogya bhoga
vatsareka prabhu yāhā karena upayoga

Translation: Damayantī made varieties of unparalleled food just suitable for Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu to eat. The Lord ate it continually for one year.

Jayapatākā Swami: Each preparation had a particular expiry date. Sometimes it would last a whole year.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.15-16

āmra-kāśandi, ādā-kāśandi jhāla-kāśandi nāma
nembu-ādā āmra-koli vividha vidhāna

āmsi, āma-khaṇḍa, tailāmra, āma-sattā
yatna kari’ guṇḍā kari’ purāṇa sukutā

Translation: These are the names of some of the pickles and condiments in the bags of Rāghava Paṇḍita: āmra-kāśandi, ādā-kāśandi, jhāla-kāśandi, nembu-ādā, āmra-koli, āmsi, āma-khaṇḍa, tailāmra and āma-sattā. With great attention, Damayantī also made dried bitter vegetables into a powder.

Jayapatākā Swami: Śrīla Prabhupāda, he would have us make bitter melon and dry them in the sun to send him. Because in the Western countries they didn’t have bitter. So all the different tastes, are something that were offered to Lord Caitanya. Like you make a combination of neem leaves and ginger— neem is very bitter, and ginger is somewhat hot— like this they made various types of preparations for Lord Caitanya.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.17

‘sukutā’ bali’ avajñā nā kariha cite
sukutāya ye sukha prabhura, tāhā nahe pañcāmṛte

Translation: Do not neglect sukutā because it is a bitter preparation. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu derived more happiness from eating this sukutā than from drinking pañcāmṛta [a preparation of milk, sugar, ghee, honey and yogurt].

Jayapatākā Swami: First time, when we served bitter melon to the devotees in Māyāpur, they thought the preparation had gone bad, it was so bitter. But this is one of the taste Lord Caitanya, Prabhupāda appreciated this taste. It tastes bitter first, after that other subjis, other vegetables, preparations are more sweet.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.18

aprākṛta bhāvagrāhī bhagavān

bhāva-grāhī mahāprabhu sneha-mātra laya
sukutā pātā kāśandite mahā-sukha pāya

Translation: Since Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He extracts the purpose from everything. He accepted Damayantī’s affection for Him, and therefore He derived great pleasure even from the dried bitter leaves of sukutā and from kāśandi [a sour condiment].

Jayapatākā Swami: Sukutā is a kind of bitter vegetable. There are many types of sukutā. Kāśandi is a kind of chutney, which is very sour. There are six tastes, six flavors: bitter, and then salty, sour, sweet, pungent, spicy. There are different flavors.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.19

damayantīra śuddhā svārasikī atīva gāḍha gauraprītira nidarśana

‘manuṣya’-buddhi damayantī kare prabhura pāya
guru-bhojane udare kabhu ‘āma’ hañā yāya

Translation: Because of her natural love for Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Damayantī considered the Lord an ordinary human being. Therefore she thought that He would become sick by overeating and there would be mucus within His abdomen.

Purport: Because of pure love, the devotees of Kṛṣṇa in Goloka Vṛndāvana, Vrajabhūmi, loved Kṛṣṇa as an ordinary human being like them. Yet although they considered Kṛṣṇa one of them, their love for Kṛṣṇa knew no bounds. Similarly, because of extreme love, devotees like Rāghava Paṇḍita and his sister, Damayantī, thought of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu as a human being, but their love for Him was boundless. By overeating, an ordinary human being becomes prone to a disease called amla-pitta, which is a product of indigestion characterized by acidity of the stomach. Damayantī thought that such a condition would afflict Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

Jayapatākā Swami: Damayantī would give such preparations that would help Lord Caitanya digest His food. Although, Lord Caitanya as a Supreme Personality of Godhead, He didn’t have any such indigestion. But He accepted the prasāda, which was prepared with love.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.20

sukutā khāile sei āma ha-ibeka nāśa
ei sneha mane bhāvi’ prabhura ullāsa

Translation: Because of sincere affection, she thought that eating this sukutā would cure the Lord’s disease. Considering these affectionate thoughts of Damayantī, the Lord was very pleased.

Jayapatākā Swami: In Vṛndāvana, devotees there, love Kṛṣṇa. They don’t consider Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. They just love Him for what He is.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.21

premāpitavastui mahāguṇayukta, preme pradatta vastura [paragraph] vāhya doṣaguṇa-vicāra nāiḥ -

bhāravī-kṛta kirātārjjunīye (8.20)

Translation: “A dear lover strung a garland and placed it on the shoulder of his beloved in the presence of her co-wives. She had raised breasts and was very beautiful, yet although the garland was tainted with mud, she did not reject it, for its value lay not in material things but in love.”

Purport: This is a verse from the Kirātārjunīya, by Bhāravī.

Jayapatākā Swami: This example is given how love is more important than external qualities.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.22

dhaniyā-mauharīra taṇḍula guṇḍā kariyā
nāḍu bāndhiyāche cini-pāka kariyā

Translation: Damayantī powdered coriander and anise seeds, cooked them with sugar and made them into sweetmeats in the shape of small balls.

Jayapatākā Swami: For the GBCs visiting here, I want to make some tilera-nāḍu. Who knows how to make? Til is a sesame seed laḍḍu. Anyone knows how to make?

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.23

śuṇṭhi-khaṇḍa nāḍu, āra āma-pitta-hara
pṛthak pṛthak bāndhi’ vastrera kuthalī bhitara

Translation: She made sweetmeat balls with dried ginger to remove mucus caused by too much bile. She put all these preparations separately into small cloth bags.

Jayapatākā Swami: This is showing how each of the preparations she made with extreme love for Lord Caitanya.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.24

koli-śuṇṭhi, koli-cūrṇa, koli-khaṇḍa āra
kata nāma la-iba, śata-prakāra ‘ācāra’

Translation: She made a hundred varieties of condiments and pickles. She also made koli-śuṇṭhi, koli-cūrṇa, koli-khaṇḍa and many other preparations. How many should I name?

Jayapatākā Swami: These are beyond description.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.25

nārikela-khaṇḍa nāḍu, āra nāḍu gaṅgā-jala
cira-sthāyī khaṇḍa-vikāra karilā sakala

Translation: She made many sweetmeats in the shape of balls. Some were made with powdered coconut, and others looked as white as the water of the Ganges. In this way she made many varieties of long-lasting sugar confections.

Jayapatākā Swami: Nāḍu means balls. Nārikela-nāḍu means balls of coconut. And she even knew how to make nāḍu which was edible out of Ganges mud. You have to be a very good cook.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.26

cira-sthāyī kṣīra-sāra, maṇḍādi-vikāra
amṛta-karpūra ādi aneka prakāra

Translation: She made long-lasting cheese, many varieties of sweetmeats with milk and cream, and many other varied preparations, such as amṛta-karpūra.

Jayapatākā Swami: Karpūra is camphor. So now you get camphor, inedible from petroleum. But you can also get camphor from a tree which is eatable.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.27

śālikācuṭi-dhānyera ‘ātapa’ ciḍā kari’
nūtana-vastrera baḍa kuthalī saba bhari’

Translation: She made flat rice from fine, unboiled, śāli paddy and filled a large bag made of new cloth.

Jayapatākā Swami: Damayantī Devī made each preparation thinking of Lord Caitanya, how to satisfy Him.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.28

kateka ciḍā huḍum kari’ ghṛtete bhājiyā
cini-pāke nāḍu kailā karpūrādi diyā

Translation: She made some of the flat rice into puffed rice, fried it in ghee, cooked it in sugar juice, mixed in some camphor and rolled it into balls.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.29-30

śāli-dhānyera taṇḍula-bhājā cūrṇa kariyā
ghṛta-sikta cūrṇa kailā cini-pāka diyā

karpūra, marica, lavaṅga, elāci, rasavāsa
cūrṇa diyā nāḍu kailā parama suvāsa

Translation: She powdered fried grains of fine rice, moistened the powder with ghee and cooked it in a solution of sugar. Then she added camphor, black pepper, cloves, cardamom and other spices and rolled the mixture into balls that were very palatable and aromatic.

Gopati Kṛṣṇa dāsa: You can eat.

Jayapatākā Swami: Today is Ekādaśī. Think of cooking and giving to Lord Caitanya.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.31

śāli-dhānyera kha-i punaḥ ghṛtete bhājiyā
cini-pāka ukhḍā kailā karpūrādi diyā

Translation: She took parched rice from fine paddy, fried it in ghee, cooked it in a sugar solution, mixed in some camphor and thus made a preparation called ukhḍā or muḍki.

Jayapatākā Swami: Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja liked to explain these preparations.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.32

phuṭkalāi cūrṇa kari’ ghṛte bhājāila
cini-pāke karpūrādi diyā nāḍu kaila

Translation: Another variety of sweet was made with fused peas that were powdered, fried in ghee and then cooked in sugar juice. Camphor was added, and then the mixture was rolled into balls.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.33

sukhādya-nirmmāṇe parama nipuṇa haiyāo granthakārera dainyaḥ-

kahite nā jāni nāma e-janme yāhāra
aiche nānā bhakṣya-dravya sahasra-prakāra

Translation: I could not mention the names of all these wonderful eatables, even in a lifetime. Damayantī made hundreds and thousands of varieties.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.34

rāghava o damayantīra gāḍha prabhuprītiḥ—

rāghavera ājñā, āra karena damayantī
duṅhāra prabhute sneha parama-bhakati

Translation: Damayantī made all these preparations following the order of her brother, Rāghava Paṇḍita. Both of them had unlimited affection for Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and were advanced in devotional service.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.35

gaṅgā-mṛttikā āni’ vastrete chāniyā
pāṅpaḍi kariyā dilā gandha-dravya diyā

Translation: Damayantī took earth from the Ganges, dried it, powdered it, strained it through a fine cloth, mixed in aromatic ingredients and rolled it into small balls.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Damayantī could even make sweet balls from Ganges earth.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.36

pātala mṛt-pātre sandhānādi bhari’
āra saba vastu bhare vastrera kuthalī

Translation: The condiments and similar items were put into thin earthen pots, and everything else was put into small cloth bags.

Jayapatākā Swami: Depending on what the item was: liquidy or solid, she put it in a small earthen pot or a bag.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.37

sāmānya jhāli haite dviguṇa jhāli kailā
pāripāṭi kari’ saba jhāli bharāilā

Translation: From small bags Damayantī made bags that were twice as large. Then with great attention she filled all the large ones with the small ones.

Jayapatākā Swami: Damayantī was meditating how to please Lord Caitanya.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.38

jhāli bāndhi’ mohara dila āgraha kariyā
tina bojhāri jhāli vahe krama kariyā

Translation: She then wrapped and sealed each and every bag with great attention. The bags were carried by three bearers, one after another.

Jayapatākā Swami: In the beginning Rāghava Paṇḍita carried the bags secretly, but eventually, three bearers carried the bags. Everyone knew that Rāghava’s jhāli, Rāghava’s bags were being carried.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.39

tajjanyai ‘rāghavera jhāli’-nāmaḥ–

saṅkṣepe kahiluṅ ei jhālira vicāra
‘rāghavera jhāli’ bali’ vikhyāti yāhāra

Translation: Thus I have briefly described the bags that have become famous as rāghavera jhāli.

Jayapatākā Swami: Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja is saying how he was briefly describing the bags, because there were so many bags, literally hundreds and thousands of preparations. So, he just mentioned some of the more famous preparations, but actually there is no limit.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.40

makaradhvajera sayatne jhāli-rakṣāḥ–

jhālira upara ‘munsiba’ makaradhvaja-kara
prāṇa-rūpe jhāli rākhe hañā tatpara

Translation: The superintendent for all those bags was Makaradhvaja Kara, who kept them with great attention like his very life.

Jayapatākā Swami: Makaradhvaja Kara was protecting (guarding) the bags, so that they could reach Lord Caitanya without any problem.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 10.1

bhaktadravye tuṣṭa bhaktagaṇajuṣṭa gaurera vandanāḥ-

vande śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanyaṁ
bhaktānugraha-kātaram

yena kenāpi santuṣṭaṁ
bhakta-dattena śraddhayā

Translation: Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, who is always pleased to accept anything given with faith and love by His devotees and is always ready to bestow mercy upon them.

Śrī-gaurāṅga-līlā-smaraṇa-maṅgala-stotram, Text 68
—By Bhaktivinoda Ṭhakura

Translation: I always remember the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Gaura, who again and again accepted the gifts His devotee Rāghava Paṇḍita brought from His own country (Bengal)

Jayapatākā Swami: So this was a special pastime of Rāghava Paṇḍita and Damayantī with Lord Caitanya. And Makaradhvaja Kara. And it shows how a devotee may do one sevā for Lord Caitanya, and they put all their attention in that sevā. Lord Caitanya, He has such love for His devotees that He accepts whatever they offer Him with faith and love.

Thus ends the chapter entitled, Rāghavera Jhāli
Under the section: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu Accepts Prasādam from His Devotees