20230713 Lord Caitanya is the Topmost Gem of All Devotees of Mothers

The following is a Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Book Compilation given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on July 13th, 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:

Lord Caitanya is the Topmost Gem of All Devotees of Mothers
Under the section: The Inconceivable Behavior of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 19.1

mātṛrūpi-bhakte atula snehamaya evaṁ jagannātha-vallabhodyāne mahābhāvāviṣṭa prabhura vandanā:—

vande taṁ kṛṣṇa-caitanyaṁ
mātṛ-bhakta-śiromaṇim
pralapya mukha-saṅgharṣī
madhūdyāne lalāsa yaḥ

Translation: Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, the most exalted of all devotees of mothers, spoke like a madman and rubbed His face against the walls. Overwhelmed by emotions of ecstatic love, He would sometimes enter the Jagannātha-vallabha garden to perform His pastimes. I offer my respectful obeisances unto Him.

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya would offer His unlimited spiritual ecstasies to His mother.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 19.3

prabhura divyonmāda:—

ei-mate mahāprabhu kṛṣṇa-premāveśe
unmāda-pralāpa kare rātri-divase

Translation: In the ecstasy of love of Kṛṣṇa, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu thus behaved like a madman, talking insanely all day and night.

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya would be completely absorbed in the pastimes of Lord Kṛṣṇa. Thus His talking would not be understood by most devotees because He was realizing the transcendental pastimes of Lord Kṛṣṇa.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 19.4

paṇḍita jagadānandera guṇa:—

prabhura atyanta priya paṇḍita-jagadānanda
yāhāra caritre prabhu pāyena ānanda

Translation: Jagadānanda Paṇḍita was a very dear devotee of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. The Lord derived great pleasure from his activities.

Jayapatākā Swami: Jagadānanda Paṇḍita was absorbed in Kṛṣṇa-bhakti, he was the incarnation of Satyabhāmā.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 19.5

prativarṣera nyāya seivārao prabhukarttṛka navadvīpe svīya mātṛsamīpe atula vātsalyokti-jñāpanārtha paṇḍita prerita:—

prati-vatsara prabhu tāṅre pāṭhāna nadīyāte
viccheda-duḥkhitā jāni ’jananī āśvāsite

Translation: Knowing His mother to be greatly afflicted by separation from Him, the Lord would send Jagadānanda Paṇḍita to Navadvīpa every year to console her.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Lord Caitanya would be sending Jagadānanda Paṇḍita to console His mother, who was absorbed in separation from Lord Caitanya.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 19.6

“nadīyā calaha, mātāre kahiha namaskāra
āmāra nāme pāda-padma dhariha tāṅhāra

Translation: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu told Jagadānanda Paṇḍita, “Go to Nadia and offer My obeisances to My mother. Touch her lotus feet in My name.

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya, He would offer His obeisances to His mother and He would tell Jagadānanda Paṇḍita to touch His mother’s feet on His behalf.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 19.7

kahiha tāṅhāre—‘tumi karaha smaraṇa
nitya āsi ’āmi tomāra vandiye caraṇa

Translation: “Tell her for Me, ‘Please remember that I come here every day and offer My respects to your lotus feet.

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya would come and offer His respects to Mother Śacī and Mother Śacī was sometimes thinking that she was just dreaming. Then, He had Jagadānanda Paṇḍita reassured her that He was actually coming.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 19.8

ye-dine tomāra icchā karāite bhojana
se-dine āsi’ avaśya kariye bhakṣaṇa

Translation: “Any day you desire to feed Me, I certainly come and accept what you offer.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Lord Caitanya would come and take the prasāda that His mother offered Him.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 19.9

bhaktavatsala bhagavānerao bhaktasevāya āpanāke ayogya jñāne dainyokti o kṣamā-yācñā —

tomāra sevā chāḍi’ āmi kariluṅ sannyasa
‘bāula’ hañā āmi kailuṅ dharma-nāśa

Translation: “I have given up service to you and have accepted the vow of sannyāsa. I have thus become mad and have destroyed the principles of religion.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, because Lord Caitanya had taken these vows of sannyāsa, He was saying to His mother that I have done these things, I should have stayed and worshiped your lotus feet!

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 19.10

ei aparādha tumi nā la-iha āmāra
tomāra adhīna āmi—putra se tomāra

Translation: “Mother, please do not take this as an offense, for I, your son, am completely dependent upon you.

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya would say things to His mother that would make her feel very indebted and although He took sannyāsa and He had to leave home, He mentioned that He was always dependent on His mother.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 19.11

śacīdevīra ādeśei prabhura purī-vāsa:—

nīlācale āchi āmi tomāra ājñāte
yāvat jīva, tāvat āmi nāriba chāḍite”

Translation: “I am staying here at Nīlācala, Jagannātha Purī, according to your order. As long as I live, I shall not leave this place.”

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Lord Caitanya complying to the requests of His mother, He remained at Jagannātha Purī, that way she could get some news about His activities.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 19.12

paramānandapurīra anurodhe śacīdevīke navadvīpe vastra o prasāda-preraṇa:—

gopa-līlāya pāilā yei prasāda-vasane
mātāre pāṭhāna tāhā purīra vacane

Translation: Following the order of Paramānanda Purī, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu sent His mother the prasāda clothing left by Lord Jagannātha after His pastimes as a cowherd boy.

Jayapatākā Swami: Lord Caitanya would send prasāda cloth of Lord Jagannātha to His mother and in this way, His mother would receive this prasāda of Lord Jagannātha.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 19.13

jagannāthera uttama prasāda āniyā yatane
mātāre pṛthak pāṭhāna, āra bhakta-gaṇe

Translation: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu very carefully brought first-class prasādam from Lord Jagannātha and sent it in separate packages to His mother and the devotees at Nadia.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, Mother Śacī was non-different from Yaśoda, she had so much affection for Lord Caitanya that Lord Caitanya would reciprocate and send her special Jagannātha topmost prasāda. separately He would send to the devotees in Māyāpur.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 19.14

aprākṛta vātsalya-premavaśa bhagavān:—

mātṛ-bhakta-gaṇera prabhu hana śiromaṇi
sannyāsa kariyā sadā sevena jananī

Translation: Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is the topmost gem of all devotees of mothers. He rendered service to His mother even after He had accepted the vow of sannyāsa.

Jayapatākā Swami: So, since His mother was always offering Him unalloyed service, so Lord Caitanya was reciprocating and offering different services to His mother.

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, 19.15

paṇḍitera navadvīpe giyā śacīdevīke prabhupradatta sandeśādi-pradāna:—

jagadānanda nadīyā giyā mātāre mililā
prabhura yata nivedana, sakala kahilā

Translation: Jagadānanda Paṇḍita thus went to Nadia, and when he met Śacīmātā, he conveyed to her all the Lord’s salutations.

Jayapatākā Swami: So this was a special seva that Jagadānanda Paṇḍita offered to Lord Caitanya. That he would give Lord Caitanya’s mother His salutations.

Thus ends the chapter entitled, Lord Caitanya is the Topmost Gem of All Devotees of Mothers
Under the section: The Inconceivable Behavior of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu

Lord Caitanya was giving the special reciprocation to His mother and that would continue throughout His life. But He would always get her to render pure devotion to Lord Kṛṣṇa.