Śrī Caitanya: His Life and Precepts

[Guest guest]

by Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura

 

[This account originally appeared in a short work by Śrīla

Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura entitled, "Śrī Caitanya Mahā=

prabhu: His Life

and Precepts." (August 20, 1896)]

 

Caitanya Mahāprabhu was born in Māyāpur in the town of Nadia=

just

after sunset on the evening of the 23rd Phālguna 1407 Śakābd=

a,

answering to the 18th of February, 1486, of the Christian Era. The

moon was eclipsed at the time of his birth, and the people of Nadia

were then engaged, as was usual on such occasions, in bathing in the

Bhāgīrathī with loud cheers of Haribol. His father, Jagann=

257;tha

Miśra, a poor brāhmaṇa of the Vedic order, and his mother, =

Śacī-

devī, a model good woman, both descended from brāhmaṇa stoc=

k

originally residing in Sylhet. Mahāprabhu was a beautiful child, and

the ladies of the town came to see him with presents. His mother's

father, Paṇḍita Nīlāmbara Cakravartī, a renowned=

astrologer,

foretold that the child would be a great personage in time; and he,

therefore, gave him the name Viśvambhara. The ladies of the

neighborhood styled him Gaurahari on account of his golden

complexion, and his mother called him Nimāi on account of the nimba

tree near which he was born. Beautiful as the lad was, everyone

heartily loved to see him every day. As he grew up he became a

whimsical and frolicsome lad. After his fifth year, he was admitted

into a pāṭhaśālā where he picked up Bengali in a =

very short time.

 

Most of his contemporary biographers have mentioned certain

anecdotes regarding Caitanya which are simple records of his early

miracles. It is said that when he was an infant in his mother's arms

he wept continually, and when the neighboring ladies cried Haribol

he used to stop. Thus there was a continuation of the utterance of

Haribol in the house, foreshewing the future mission of the hero. It

has also been stated that when his mother once gave him sweetmeats

to eat, he ate clay instead of the food. His mother asking for the

reason, he stated that as every sweetmeat was nothing but clay

transformed, he could eat clay as well. His mother, who was also the

consort of a paṇḍita, explained that every article in a special=

 

state was adapted to a special use. Earth, while in the state of a

jug, could be used as a water pot, but in the state of a brick such

a use was not possible. Clay, therefore, in the form of sweetmeats

was usable as food, but clay in its other states was not. The lad

was convinced and admitted his stupidity in eating clay and agreed

to avoid the mistake in the future. Another miraculous act has been

related. It is said that a brāhmaṇa on pilgrimage became a guest=

in

his house, cooked food and read grace with meditation upon Kṛṣn=

̣a. In

the meantime the lad came and ate up the cooked rice. The brāhmaṇ=

;a,

astonished at the lad's act, cooked again at the request of

Jagannātha Miśra. The lad again ate up the cooked rice while the =

 

brāhmaṇa was offering the rice to Kṛṣṇa with m=

editation. The

brāhmaṇa was persuaded to cook for the third time. This time all=

the

inmates of the house had fallen asleep, and the lad shewed himself

as Kṛṣṇa to the traveler and blessed him. The brāhma=

ṇa was then lost

in ecstasy at the appearance of the object of his worship. It has

also been stated that two thieves stole away the lad from his

father's door with a view to purloin his jewels and gave him

sweetmeats on the way. The lad exercised his illusory energy and

deceived the thieves back towards his own house. The thieves, for

fear of detection, left the boy there and fled. Another miraculous

act that has been described is the lad's demanding and getting from

Hiraṇya and Jagadīśa all the offerings they had collected f=

or

worshiping Kṛṣṇa on the day of Ekādaśī. Wh=

en only four years of age

he sat on rejected cooking pots which were considered unholy by his

mother. He explained to his mother that there was no question of

holiness and unholiness as regards earthen pots thrown away after

the cooking was over. These anecdotes relate to his tender age up to

the fifth year.

 

In his eighth year, he was admitted into the tola of Gańgādā=

sa

Paṇḍita in Gańgānagara close by the village of Mā=

;yāpur. In two years

he became well read in Sanskrit grammar and rhetoric. His readings

after that were of the nature of self-study in his own house, where

he had found all-important books belonging to his father, who was a

paṇḍita himself. It appears that he read the smṛti in his=

own study,

and the nyāya also, in competition with his friends, who were then

studying under the celebrated Paṇḍita Raghunātha Śiro=

maṇi.

 

Now, after the tenth year of his age, Caitanya became a passable

scholar in grammar, rhetoric, the smṛti and the nyāya. It was af=

ter

this that his elder brother Viśvarūpa left his house and accepted=

 

the āśrama (status) of a sannyāsī (ascetic). Caitanya, =

though a very

young boy, consoled his parents, saying that he would serve them

with a view to please God. Just after that, his father left this

world. His mother was exceedingly sorry, and Mahāprabhu, with his

usual contented appearance, consoled his widowed mother.

 

It was at the age of 14 or 15 that Mahāprabhu was married to

Lakṣmīdevī, the daughter of Vallabhācārya, also o=

f Nadia. He was at

this age considered one of the best scholars of Nadia, the renowned

seat of nyāya philosophy and Sanskrit learning. Not to speak of the

smārta paṇḍitas, the Naiyāyikas were all afraid of co=

nfronting him

in literary discussions. Being a married man, he went to Eastern

Bengal on the banks of the Padma for acquirement of wealth. There he

displayed his learning and obtained a good sum of money. It was at

this time that he preached Vaiṣṇavism at intervals. After teach=

ing

him the principles of Vaiṣṇavism, he ordered Tapana Miśra =

to go to

and live in Benares. During his residence in East Bengal, his wife

Lakṣmīdevī left this world from the effects of snakebite. O=

n

returning home, he found his mother in a mourning state. He consoled

her with a lecture on the uncertainty of human affairs. It was at

his mother's request that he married Viṣṇupriyā, the daugh=

ter of

Rāja Paṇḍita Sanātana Miśra. His comrades joined=

him on his return

from pravāsa or sojourn. He was now so renowned that he was

considered to be the best paṇḍita in Nadia. Keśava Miś=

;ra of Kashmir,

who had called himself the Great Digvijayī, came to Nadia with a

view to discuss with the paṇḍitas of that place. Afraid of the =

so-

called conquering paṇḍita, the tola professors of Nadia left th=

eir

town on pretence of Invitation. Keśava met Mahāprabhu at the

Barokona-ghāṭā in Māyāpur, and after a very short=

discussion with

him he was defeated by the boy, and mortification obliged him to

decamp. Nimāi Paṇḍita was now the most important paṇ=

ḍita of his

times.

 

It was at the age of 16 or 17 that he traveled to Gayā with a host

to sing the holy name of Hari in the streets and bazaars. This

created a sensation and roused different feelings in different

quarters. The bhaktas were highly pleased. The smārta brāhmanP=

3;as

became jealous of Nimāi Paṇḍita's success and complained t=

o Chand

Kazi against the character of Caitanya as un-Hindu. The Kazi came to

Śrīvāsa Paṇḍita's house and broke a mṛda=

324;ga (khola drum) there and

declared that unless Nimāi Paṇḍita ceased to make noise ab=

out his

queer religion he would be obliged to enforce Mohammedanism on him

and his followers. This was brought to Mahāprabhu's notice. He

ordered the townspeople to appear in the evening, each with a torch

in his hand. This groups, and on his arrival in the Kazi's house, he

held a long conversation with the Kazi and in the end communicated

into his heart his Vaiṣṇava influence by touching his body. The=

Kazi

then wept and admitted that he had felt a keen spiritual influence

which had cleared up his doubts and produced in him a religious

sentiment which gave him the highest ecstasy. The Kazi then joined

the sańkīrtana party. The world was astonished at the spiritual

power of the Great Lord, and hundreds and hundreds of heretics

converted and joined the banner of Viśvambhara after this affair.

 

It was after this that some of the jealous and low-minded brāhmaṇ=

;as

of Kulia picked a quarrel with Mahāprabhu and collected a party to

oppose him. Nimāi Paṇḍita was naturally a soft-hearted per=

son,

though strong in his principles. He declared that party feelings and

sectarianism were the two great enemies of progress and that as long

as he should continue to be an inhabitant of Nadia belonging to a

certain family, his mission would not meet with complete success. He

then resolved to be a citizen of the world by cutting his connection

with his particular family, caste and creed, and with this

resolution he embraced the position of a sannyāsī at Katwa, under=

 

the guidance of Keśava Bhāratī of that town, on the 24th yea=

r of his

age. His mother and wife wept bitterly for his separation, but our

hero, though soft in heart, was a strong person in principle. He

left his little world in his house for the unlimited spiritual world

of Kṛṣṇa with man in general.

 

After his sannyāsa, he was induced to visit the house of Advaita

Prabhu in Śāntipura. Advaita managed to invite all his friends an=

d

admirers from Nadia and brought Śacīdevī to see her son. Bot=

h

pleasure and pain invaded her heart when she saw her son in the

attire of a sannyāsī. As a sannyāsī, Kṛṣn=

803;a Caitanya put on nothing

but a kaupīna and a bahirvāsa (outer covering). His head was with=

out

hair, and his hands bore a daṇḍa (stick) and a kamaṇdP=

3;alu (hermit's

water pot). The holy son fell at the feet of his beloved mother and

said, "Mother! This body is yours, and I must obey your orders.

Permit me to go to Vṛndāvana for my spiritual attainments." The =

 

mother, in consultation with Advaita and others, asked her son to

reside in Purī (the town of Jagannātha) so that she might obtain =

his

information now and then. Mahāprabhu agreed to that proposition and

in a few days left Śāntipura for Orissa. His biographers have

described the journey of Kṛṣṇa Caitanya (that was the nam=

e he got

after his sannyāsa) from Śāntipura to Purī in great det=

ail. He

traveled along the side of the Bhāgīrathī as far as Chatrabh=

oga,

situated now in Thānā Mathurāpura, Diamond Harbour, 24 Parga=

nas.

There he took a boat and went as far as Prayāga-ghāṭa in th=

e

Midnapura District. Thence he walked through Balasore and Cuttack to

Purī, seeing the temple of Bhūvaneśvara on his way. Upon his=

arrival

at Purī he saw Jagannātha in the temple and resided with Sār=

vabhauma

at the request of the latter. Sārvabhauma was a gigantic paṇd=

03;ita of

the day. His readings knew no bounds. He was the best naiyāyika of

the times and was known as the most erudite scholar in the Vedānta

philosophy of the school of Śańkarācārya. He was born i=

n Nadia

(Vidyānagara) and taught innumerable pupils in the nyāya philosop=

hy

in his tola there. He had left for Purī some time before the birth

of Nimāi Paṇḍita. His brother-in-law Gopīnātha M=

iśra introduced our

new sannyāsī to Sārvabhauma, who was astonished at his perso=

nal

beauty and feared that it would be difficult for the young man to

maintain sannyāsa-dharma during the long run of his life. Gopīn=

257;tha,

who had known Mahāprabhu from Nadia, had a great reverence for him

and declared that the sannyāsī was not a common human being. On t=

his

point Gopīnātha and Sārvabhauma had a hot discussion. Sā=

;rvabhauma

then requested Mahāprabhu to hear his recitation of the Vedānta-

sūtras, and the latter tacitly submitted. Caitanya heard with

silence what the great Sārvabhauma uttered with gravity for seven

days, at the end of which the latter said, "Kṛṣṇa Caitany=

a! I think

you do not understand the Vedānta, for you do not say anything after

hearing my recitation and explanations." The reply of Caitanya was

that he understood the sūtras very well, but he could not make out

what Śańkarācārya meant by his commentaries. Astonished=

at this,

Sārvabhauma said, "How is it that you understand the meanings of the

sūtras and do not understand the commentaries which explain the

sūtras? All well! If you understand the sūtras, please let me hav=

e

your interpretations." Mahāprabhu thereon explained all the sūtra=

s

in his own way without touching the pantheistic commentary of

Śańkara. The keen understanding of Sārvabhauma saw the truth=

, beauty

and harmony of arguments in the explanations given by Caitanya and

obliged him to utter that it was the first time that he had found

one who could explain the Brahma-sūtras in such a simple manner. He

admitted also that the commentaries of Śańkara never gave such

natural explanations of the Vedānta-sūtras as he had obtained fro=

m

Mahāprabhu. He then submitted himself as an advocate and follower.

In a few days Sārvabhauma turned out to be one of the best Vaiṣn=

̣avas

of the time. When reports of this came out, the whole of Orissa sang

the praise of Kṛṣṇa Caitanya, and hundreds and hundreds c=

ame to him

and became his followers. In the meantime Mahāprabhu thought of

visiting Southern India, and he started with one Kṛṣṇad=

257;sa Brāhmaṇa

for the journey.

 

His biographers have given us a detail of the journey. He went first

to Kūrmakṣetra, where he performed a miracle by curing a leper n=

amed

Vāsudeva. He met Rāmānanda Rāya, the Governor of Vidy=

257;nagara, on the

banks of the Godāvarī and had a philosophical conversation with h=

im

on the subject of prema-bhakti. He worked another miracle by

touching (making them immediately disappear) the seven tāla trees

through which Rāmacandra, the son of Daśaratha, had shot his arro=

w

and killed the great Bali Rāja. He preached Vaiṣṇavism and=

nāma-

sańkīrtana throughout the journey. At Rańgakṣetra he s=

tayed for four

months in the house of one Veńkata Bhaṭṭa in order to spen=

d the

rainy season. There he converted the whole family of Veńkata from

Rāmānuja Vaiṣṇavism to Kṛṣṇa-bhakti=

, along with the son of Veńkata,

a boy of ten years named Gopāla, who afterwards came to Vṛnd=

7;vana

and became one of the six Gosvāmīs or prophets serving under thei=

r

leader Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya. Trained up in Sanskr=

it by his uncle

Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī, Gopāla wrote several books on Vais&=

#803;ṇavism.

 

Caitanya visited numerous places in Southern India as far as Cape

Comorin and returned to Purī in two years by Pandepura on the Bhī=

ma.

In this latter place he spiritualized one Tukārāma, who became fr=

om

that time a religious preacher himself. This fact has been admitted

in his ābhāńgas, which have been collected in a volume by Mr=

..

Satyendra Nāth Tagore of the Bombay Civil Service. During his

journey he had discussions with the Buddhists, the Jains and the

Māyāvādīs in several places and converted his opponents=

to

Vaiṣṇavism.

 

Upon his return to Purī, Rāja Pratāparudra-deva and several =

paṇḍita

brāhmaṇas joined the banner of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. He was =

now

twenty-seven years of age. In his twenty-eighth year he went to

Bengal as far as Gauḍa in Malda. There he picked up two great

personages named Rūpa and Sanātana. Though descended from the lin=

es

of the Karṇātic brāhmaṇas, these two brothers turned =

demi-Moslems by

their continual contact with Hussain Shah, the then Emperor of

Gauḍa. Their names had been changed by the Emperor into Dabira Kh=

7;sa

and Sākara Mallika, and their master loved them heartily since they

were both learned in Persian, Arabic and Sanskrit and were loyal

servants of the state. The two gentlemen had found no way to come

back as regular Hindus and had written to Mahāprabhu for spiritual

help while he was at Purī. Mahāprabhu had written in reply that h=

e

would come to them and extricate them from their spiritual

difficulties. Now that he had come to Gauḍa, both the brothers

appeared before him with their long-standing prayer. Mahāprabhu

ordered them to go to Vṛndāvana and meet him there.

 

Caitanya returned to Purī through Śāntipura, where he again =

met his

dear mother. After a short stay at Purī he left for Vṛndāva=

na. This

time he was accompanied by one Balabhadra Bhaṭṭācārya=

.. He visited

Vṛndāvana and came down to Prayāga (Allahabad), converting =

a large

number of Mohammedans to Vaiṣṇavism by argument from the Koran.=

The

descendants of those converts are still known as Pāṭhāna Va=

iṣṇavas.

Rūpa Gosvāmī met him at Allahabad. Caitanya trained him up i=

n

spirituality in ten days and directed him to go to Vṛndāvana on =

 

missions. His first mission was to write theological works

explaining scientifically pure bhakti and premā. The second mission

was to revive the places where Kṛṣṇacandra had in the end=

of Dvāpara-

yuga exhibited His spiritual līlā (pastimes) for the benefit of t=

he

religious world. Rūpa Gosvāmī left Allahabad for Vṛnd&=

#257;vana, and

Mahāprabhu came down to Benares. There he resided in the house of

Candraśekhara and accepted his daily bhikṣā (meal) in the h=

ouse of

Tapana Miśra. Here it was that Sanātana Gosvāmī joined =

him and took

instruction for two months in spiritual matters. The biographers,

especially Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja, have given us de=

tails of Caitanya's

teachings to Rūpa and Sanātana. Kṛṣṇadāsa =

was not a contemporary

writer, but he gathered his information from the Gosvāmīs

themselves, the direct disciples of Mahāprabhu. Jīva Gosvām&=

#299;, who

was nephew of Sanātana and Rūpa and who has left us his invaluabl=

e

work the Ṣaṭ-sandarbha, has philosophized on the precepts of hi=

s

great leader. We have gathered and summarized the precepts of

Caitanya from the books of those great writers.

 

While at Benares, Caitanya had an interview with the learned

sannyāsīs of that town in the house of a Maratha brāhmanP=

3;a who had

invited all the sannyāsīs for entertainment. At this interview,

Caitanya shewed a miracle which attracted all the sannyāsīs to hi=

m.

Then ensued reciprocal conversation. The sannyāsīs were headed by=

 

their most learned leader Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī. After=

a short

controversy, they submitted to Mahāprabhu and admitted that they had

been misled by the commentaries of Śańkarācārya. It was=

impossible

even for learned scholars to oppose Caitanya for a long time, for

there was some spell in him which touched their hearts and made them

weep for their spiritual improvement. The sannyāsīs of Benares so=

on

fell at the feet of Caitanya and asked for his grace (kṛpā).

Caitanya then preached pure bhakti and instilled into their hearts

spiritual love for Kṛṣṇa which obliged them to give up se=

ctarian

feelings. The whole population of Benares, on this wonderful

conversion of the sannyāsīs, turned Vaiṣṇavas, and th=

ey made a

master sańkīrtana with their new Lord. After sending Sanātan=

a to

Vṛndāvana, Mahāprabhu went to Purī again through the j=

ungles with

his comrade Balabhadra. Balabhadra reported that Mahāprabhu had

shown a good many miracles on his way to Purī, such as making tigers

and elephants dance on hearing the name of Kṛṣṇa.

 

>From this time, that is, from his 31 st year, Mahāprabhu continually

lived in Purī in the house of Kāśi Miśra until his disa=

ppearance in

his forty-eighth year at the time of sańkīrtana in the temple of =

 

Ṭoṭā-gopīnātha. During these 18 years, his life =

was one of settled

love and piety. He was surrounded by numerous followers, all of whom

were of the highest order of Vaiṣṇavas and who were distinguish=

ed

from the common people by their purest character and learning, firm

religious principles and spiritual love of Rādhā-Kṛṣn=

̣a. Svarūpa

Dāmodara, who had been known by the name of Puruṣottamāc=

57;rya while

Mahāprabhu was in Nadia, joined him from Benares and accepted

service as his secretary. No production of any poet or philosopher

could be laid before Mahāprabhu unless Svarūpa had passed it as p=

ure

and useful. Rāya Rāmānanda was his second mate. Both he and =

Svarūpa

would sing while Mahāprabhu expressed his sentiments on a certain

point of worship. Paramānanda Purī was his minister in matters of=

 

religion. There are hundreds of anecdotes described by his

biographers which we do not think it meet here to reproduce.

Mahāprabhu slept short. His sentiments carried him far and wide in

the firmament of spirituality every day and night, and all his

admirers and followers watched him throughout. He worshiped,

communicated with his missionaries at Vṛndāvana, and conversed w=

ith

those religious men who newly came to visit him. He sang and danced,

took no care of himself and oft-times lost himself in religious

beatitude. All who came to him believed in him as the all-beautiful

God appearing in the nether world for the benefit of mankind. He

loved his mother all along and sent her mahāprasāda now and then =

 

with those who went to Nadia. He was most amiable in nature.

Humility was personified in him. His sweet appearance gave cheer to

all who came in contact with him. He appointed Prabhu Nityānanda as

the missionary in charge of Bengal. He dispatched six disciples

(Gosvāmīs) to Vṛndāvana to preach love in the upcountr=

y. He punished

all of his disciples who deviated from a holy life. This he markedly

did in the case of Junior Haridāsa. He never lacked in giving proper

instructions in life to those who solicited them. This will be seen

in his teachings to Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī. His treatm=

ent to

Haridāsa (senior) will show how he loved spiritual men and how he

defied caste distinction in spiritual brotherhood.

 

The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International, Inc.

His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder

Ācārya of the Internationa