20230227 Wonderful Fragrance of Damanaka Flowers

The following is a Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book Compilation given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on february 27th,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: Wonderful Fragrance of Damanaka Flowers
Under the section: The Pastimes of Nityānanda

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.288

āra ekaṭī aiśvaryaprakāśa—daśadik damanaka-puṣpera gandhe āmodita—

āra mahā-āścarya haila kata-kṣaṇe
apūrva danāra gandha pāya sarva-jane

Jayapatākā Swami: Yet another most wonderful incident took place after a while. The wonderful fragrance of damanaka flowers everybody could smell.

Purport (By His Divine Grace Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Śrīla Prabhupāda): The word danā refers to damanaka flowers, or Artemisia indica.

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya was coming from South India wearing a garland of damanaka flowers, He could not be seen by anyone except Lord Nityānanda. The fragrance was like a love gas. As soon as someone smelt it, they became ecstatic in love of Krsna. Hari bol!

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.289

damanaka-puśpera sugandhe mana hare
daśa-dik vyāpta haila sakala mandire

Jayapatākā Swami: The fragrance of damanaka flowers enchanted everyone’s minds and all ten directions of the temple were filled with that fragrance.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.290

hāsi’ nityānanda bale,—“āre bhāi saba!
bala dekhi ki gandhera pāo anubhava?”

Jayapatākā Swami: Laughingly Lord Nityānanda said, “O My dear brothers, tell Me, tell Me, tell Me what fragrance you are feeling?”

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.291

kara-yoḍa kari’ sabe lāgilā kahite
“apūrva danāra gandha pāi cāri-bhite”

Jayapatākā Swami: Everyone folded their hands and started to say, “We are getting the wonderful fragrance of damanaka flowers from all four directions.”

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.292

nityānandera rahasyokti—

sabāra vacana śuni’ nityānanda-rāya
kahite lāgilā gopya parama-kṛpāya

Jayapatākā Swami: On hearing everyone’s words, Lord Nityānanda-raya He began telling the secret by His supreme mercy.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.293

prabhu bale,—“śuna sabe parama rahasya
tomarā sakale ihā jānibā avaśya

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Nityānanda Prabhu said, “Listen everyone to this supreme secret. Everyone of you must surely know this.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.294

damanaka-mālā paridhāna-pūrvaka nṛtya-kīrtana-darśanārtha śrī-caitanyera nīlācala haite āgamana—

caitanya-gosāñi āji śunite kīrtana
nīlācala haite karilena āgamana

Jayapatākā Swami: “Lord Caitanya Gosāñi heard the kīrtana today. He came from Nīlācala to be present here.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.295

sarvāṅge pariyā divya damanaka-mālā
eka vṛkṣe avalambana kariyā rahilā

Jayapatākā Swami: “On all the limbs of His body, transcendental damanaka garlands were placed flowers, and He stayed leaning against a tree.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.296

sei śrī-aṅgera divya-damanaka-gandhe
catur-dike pūrṇa hai’ āchaye ānande

Jayapatākā Swami: “His transcendental limbs emitted a divine fragrance of the damanaka flowers. The four directions was filled with this fragrance and thus very happy.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.297

tomā-sabākāra nṛtya-kīrtana dekhite
āpane āilā prabhu nīlācala haite

Jayapatākā Swami: “To see all of you chanting and dancing in kīrtana, Lord Caitanya personally came from Nīlācala.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.298

sakala kārya parityāga kariyā nityānandera sakalake kṛṣṇa-kīrtane ādeśa o premadṛṣṭi—

eteke tomarā sarva kārya parihari’
niravadhi ‘kṛṣṇa’ gāo āpanā pāsari’

Jayapatākā Swami: “Therefore all of give up all other engagements and constantly chant the names of Kṛṣṇa and forget about your body.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.299

niravadhi śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanyacandra-yaśe
sabāra śarīra pūrṇa hau prema-rase”

Jayapatākā Swami: “By constantly glorifying the name and fame of Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Candra, may all of your bodies be filled with the mellows of ecstatic love.

Haribol!

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.300

eta kahi’ ‘hari’ bali’ karaye huṅkāra
sarvā-dike prema-dṛṣṭi karilā vistāra

Jayapatākā Swami: After speaking these words, Lord Nityānanda loudly chanted the name of Hari, Hari! Hari! He then cast His loving glance in all directions and in this way He blessed everyone.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.301

nityānanda-svarūpera prema-dṛṣṭi-pāte
sabāra haila ātma-vismṛti dehete

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Nityānanda Svarūpa’s loving glance was all over them, that they all were filled with Kṛṣṇa-prema and forgot their own bodies.

Purport (By His Divine Grace Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Śrīla Prabhupāda): By the love-filled glance of Śrī Nityānanda Prabhu, they all forgot the external world and they realized that Śrī Gaurasundara had come from Nīlācala and all directions were filled with the sweet fragrance of damanaka flowers. In South India damanaka flowers are widely used because of their fragrance. They look like the leaves of the tamarisk tree, but they are very soft. Unless one forgets about the external world, there is no possibility of approaching the beauty of transcendental service.

Jayapatākā Swami: So as long as one is identifying with the body and thinking that the goal of life is to satisfy the senses, they cannot understand the transcendental beauty of Kṛṣṇa-prema.

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.302

nityānandera kṛpā-mahimā o prema-varṣaṇa—

śuna śuna āre bhāi, nityānanda-śakti
ye-rūpe dilena sarva-jagatere bhakti

Jayapatākā Swami: Listen, Listen O My dear brothers, about the power of Lord Nityānanda and how He distributed devotional service throughout the entire universe.

The power of Lord Nityānanda, simply by His glance people felt love of Krsna, Kṛṣṇa-prema. Sometimes in the modern days there is some kind of outburst of love of God, but Lord Nityānanda merely by His glance he would give that outburst.

How many of would like to have the glance of Lord Nityānanda?

Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya-khaṇḍa 5.303

bhāgavata-varṇita gopikāgaṇera prema nityānandera kṛpāya jagatera bhāgye labhya—

ye bhakti gopikā-gaṇera kahe bhāgavate
nityānanda haite tāhā pāila jagate

Jayapatākā Swami: The transcendental devotion of the gopīs which is told in the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, Lord Nityānanda gave that by His glance to the whole universe.

So, Lord Nityānanda glance was so powerful that simply by His merciful glance one can get the love of the vrajavāsis, so we should not underestimate the mercy of Lord Nityānanda, Lord Caitanya told Him that You have come as an avatāra to deliver four kind of people, the foolish, the low-born, the fallen and the distressed.

Do any of you fit into any one of these categories?? Lord Nityānanda is there to deliver all of you. You are all high born. I am low born!

Thus ends the chapter entitled, Wonderful Fragrance of Damanaka Flowers
Under the section: The Pastimes of Nityānanda