Sri Advaita Acarya

[Guest guest]

Hare Krishna,

 

PAMHO, AGTSP

 

Kindly glorify the pastimes of Sri Advaita Acarya on his appearance day on 15th

Feb.

 

Your servant in mission of Srila Prabhupada

 

Nanda Gopal Dasa

 

Adi 12 TEXT 13

 

acyutänanda--baòa çäkhä, äcärya-nandana

 

äjanma sevilä teìho caitanya-caraëa

 

TRANSLATION

 

A big branch of Advaita Äcärya was His son Acyutänanda. From the beginning of

his life he engaged in the service of the lotus feet of Lord Caitanya.

 

Ädi 12.14

 

TEXT

 

caitanya-gosäïira guru--keçava bhäraté

 

ei pitära väkya çuni' duùkha päila ati

 

TRANSLATION

 

When Acyutänanda heard from his father that Keçava Bhäraté was the spiritual

master of Lord Caitanya Mahäprabhu, he was very unhappy.

 

Ädi 12.15

 

TEXT

 

jagad-gurute tumi kara aiche upadeça

 

tomära ei upadeçe nañöa ha-ila deça

 

TRANSLATION

 

He told his father, "Your instruction that Keçava Bhäraté is the spiritual

master of Caitanya Mahäprabhu will spoil the entire country.

 

Ädi 12.16

 

TEXT

 

caudda bhuvanera guru--caitanya-gosäïi

 

täìra guru--anya, ei kona çästre näi

 

TRANSLATION

 

"Lord Caitanya Mahäprabhu is the spiritual master of the fourteen worlds, but

You say that someone else is His spiritual master. This is not supported by any

revealed scripture."

 

Ädi 12.17

 

TEXT

 

païcama varñera bälaka kahe siddhäntera sära

 

çuniyä päilä äcärya santoña apära

 

TRANSLATION

 

When Advaita Äcärya heard this statement from His five-year-old son

Acyutänanda, He felt great satisfaction because of his conclusive judgment.

 

PURPORT

 

Commenting on verses 13 through 17, Bhaktisiddhänta Sarasvaté Öhäkura gives an

extensive description of the descendants of Advaita Äcärya. The

Caitanya-bhägavata, Antya-khaëòa, Chapter One, states that Acyutänanda was the

eldest son of Advaita Äcärya. The Sanskrit book Advaita-carita states, "Advaita

Äcärya Prabhu had three sons who were devotees of Lord Caitanya. Their names

were Acyuta, Kåñëa Miçra and Gopäla däsa, and they were all born of the womb of

His wife, Sétädevé. Advaita Äcärya also had three more sons, whose names were

Balaräma, Svarüpa and Jagadéça. Thus there were six sons of Advaita Äcärya."

Among the six sons, three were strict followers of Lord Caitanya Mahäprabhu,

and of these three, Acyutänanda was the eldest.

 

Advaita Prabhu married in the beginning of the fifteenth century Çakäbda (late

fifteenth century A.D.). When Lord Caitanya Mahäprabhu wanted to visit the

village of Rämakeli while going from Jagannätha Puré to Våndävana during the

Çakäbda years 1433 and 1434 (A.D. 1511 and 1512), Acyutänanda was only five

years old. The Caitanya-bhägavata, Antya-khaëòa, Fourth Chapter, describes

Acyutänanda at that time as païca-varña vayasa madhura digambara, "only five

years old and standing naked." Therefore it is to be concluded that Acyutänanda

was born sometime in the year 1428 (A.D. 1506). Before the birth of

Acyutänanda, Advaita Prabhu's wife, Sétädevé, came to see Lord Caitanya

Mahäprabhu at His birth. Thus it is not impossible that she had the other three

sons by Advaita within the twenty-one years between 1407 and 1428 Çakäbda (A.D.

1486 and 1507). In an unauthorized book of the name Sétädvaita-carita,

published in Bengali in the unauthorized newspaper Nityänanda-däyiné in 1792

Çakäbda (A.D. 1870), it is mentioned that Acyutänanda was a class friend of Çré

Caitanya Mahäprabhu. According to Caitanya-bhägavata, this statement is not at

all valid. When Caitanya Mahäprabhu accepted the renounced order of sannyäsa in

the year 1431 Çakäbda (A.D. 1509), He came to the house of Advaita Prabhu at

Çäntipura. At that time, as stated in the Caitanya-bhägavata, Antya-khaëòa,

Chapter One, Acyutänanda was only three years old. The Caitanya-bhägavata

further states that the naked child, the son of Advaita Prabhu, immediately

came and fell down at the lotus feet of Lord Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu. The Lord

immediately took him on His lap, although he was not very clean, having dust

all over his body. Lord Caitanya said, "My dear Acyuta, Advaita Äcärya is My

father, and thus we are brothers."

 

Before Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu exhibited His spiritual forms during His

residence at Navadvépa, He asked Çré Räma Paëòita, Çréväsa Öhäkura's brother,

to go to Çäntipura and bring back Advaita Äcärya. Acyutänanda joined his father

at that time. It is said, advaitera tanaya 'acyutänanda' näma/ parama-bälaka,

seho kände aviräma. Acyutänanda also joined in crying in transcendental bliss.

Again, when Lord Caitanya beat Advaita Äcärya for explaining Çrémad-Bhägavatam

from an impersonalist viewpoint opposed to the principles of bhakti-yoga,

Acyutänanda was also present. Therefore all these incidents must have occurred

only two or three years before Lord Caitanya accepted the sannyäsa order. As

mentioned above, in the Caitanya-bhägavata, Antya-khaëòa, Chapter One, it is

stated that Acyutänanda, the son of Advaita Äcärya, offered his obeisances to

the Lord. Therefore it should be concluded that from the very beginning of his

life Acyutänanda was a great devotee of Lord Caitanya Mahäprabhu.

 

There is no information that Acyutänanda ever married, but he is described as

the biggest branch of the Advaita Äcärya family. From a book named

Çäkhä-nirëayämåta it is understood that Acyutänanda was a disciple of Gadädhara

Paëòita and that he took shelter of Lord Caitanya in Jagannätha Puré and

engaged in devotional service. The Caitanya-caritämåta, Ädi-lélä, Chapter Ten,

states that Acyutänanda, the son of Advaita Äcärya, lived in Jagannätha Puré,

taking shelter of Lord Caitanya Mahäprabhu. Gadädhara Paëòita, in the last

years of his life, also lived with Lord Caitanya Mahäprabhu at Jagannätha Puré.

There is no doubt, therefore, that Acyutänanda was a disciple of Paëòita

Gadädhara. In the accounts of Lord Caitanya Mahäprabhu's dancing in front of

the car during the Ratha-yäträ festival, Acyutänanda's name is to be found many

times. It is stated that in the party of Advaita Äcärya from Çäntipura,

Acyutänanda was dancing and others were singing. At that time the boy was only

six years old. Text 87 of the Gaura-gaëoddeça-dépikä, compiled by Çré

Kavi-karëapüra, describes Acyutänanda as a disciple of Gadädhara Paëòita and a

great and dear devotee of Lord Caitanya Mahäprabhu. According to the opinion of

some, he was an incarnation of Kärttikeya, the son of Lord Çiva, and according

to others he was formerly the gopé named Acyutä. The Gaura-gaëoddeça-dépikä

(88) supports both these opinions. Another book, Narottama-viläsa, compiled by

Çré Narahari däsa, mentions Acyutänanda's presence during the festival at

Khetari. According to Çré Narahari däsa, during the last days of his life

Acyutänanda stayed in his house at Çäntipura, but during the presence of Lord

Caitanya Mahäprabhu he lived at Jagannätha Puré with Gadädhara Paëòita.

 

Of the six sons of Advaita Äcärya, three, Acyutänanda, Kåñëa Miçra and Gopäla

däsa, lived faithfully in the service of Caitanya Mahäprabhu. Since Acyutänanda

did not accept a wife, he had no issue. The second son of Advaita Äcärya, Kåñëa

Miçra, had two sons, Raghunätha Cakravarté and Dola-govinda. The descendants of

Raghunätha still live in Çäntipura, in the neighborhoods of Madana-gopäla-päda,

Gaëakara, Måjäpura and Kumärakhäli. Dola-govinda had three sons, namely Cäìda,

Kandarpa and Gopénätha. The descendants of Kandarpa live in Maldah, in the

village Jikäbäòé. Gopénätha had three sons, Çrévallabha, Präëavallabha and

Keçava. The descendants of Çrévallabha live in the villages known as Maçiyäòärä

(Mahiñaòerä), Dämukadiyä and Caëòépura. There is a genealogical table for the

family of Çré Vallabha beginning from his eldest son, Gaìgä-näräyaëa. The

descendants of Çré Vallabha's youngest son, Rämagopäla, still live in

Dämukadiyä, Caëòépura, Çolamäri, and so on. The descendants of Präëavallabha

and Keçava live in Uthalé. The son of Präëavallabha was Ratneçvara, and his son

was Kåñëaräma, whose youngest son was Lakñmé-näräyaëa. His son was Navakiçora,

and Navakiçora's second son was Rämamohana, whose eldest son was Jagabandhu and

whose third son, Véracandra, accepted the sannyäsa order and established a

Deity of Lord Caitanya Mahäprabhu in Katwa. These two sons of Rämamohana were

known as Baòa Prabhu and Choöa Prabhu, and they inaugurated the

circumambulation of Navadvépa-dhäma. One may refer to the Vaiñëava-maïjuñä for

the complete genealogical table of Advaita Prabhu in the line of Kåñëa Miçra.