Srivasa Thakura

[Guest guest]

Hare Krishna,

 

 

 

PAMHO, AGTSP

 

 

 

1st let me start by apologizing for not have sent you any pastimes of Sri Sri

Krsna Caitanya Mahaprabhu and His associates for a long time. This was due to

the fact that I was out of Nairobi and had special mercy of my Guru Maharaja -

H. H. Gopal Krishna Goswami. My Guru Maharaja was in Nairobi in Feb 05 for a

short visit and it was through his encouragement I got the mercy with

opportunity to visit India and eventually go to the most important holy places

of pilgrimage in this age of Kaliyuga. I visited Navadvipa Dhama & Jagannatha

Puri where the pastimes of Lord took place. It was only possible for me to

have done the parikrama of these places by the mercy of Guru Maharaja. I have

no words to describe the experience during my 1st visit and it is of course by

the mercy of all of you that I had this wonderful opportunity and would request

you to forgive me for any offenses that I may have committed in past knowingly

or unknowingly. Kindly let me have your mercy so that I would have another

opportunity to go for parikrama of Navadvipa and Jagannatha Puri.

 

 

 

Kindly glorify the pastimes of the Lord at Srivasa Angama by reading on

appearance day of Srila Srivasa Thakura on 2nd April. As I have no

qualification to glorify the pastimes of the Lord all I have done is copy

directly from Caitanya Bhagavatam by Vrndavana dasa Thakura.

 

 

 

Your servant in mission of Srila Prabhupada.

 

 

 

Nanda Gopal dasa

 

 

 

Madhya Khanda

 

 

 

Chapter 5

 

 

 

This chapter describes the Adhivasa kértana prior to the ceremony of Vyäsa-püjä

in the house of Çréväsa Pandit, Mahäprabhu's accepting the mood of Baladeva and

revealing the cause of His appearence on the pretex of calling Advaita Äcärya,

Nityänanda's breaking His own sannyäsa-daëòa and waterpot, the pastimes of

Nityänanda's Vyäsa-püjä under the guidance of Çréväsa, Çré Gaurasundara's

exhibition of His six-armed form to Nityänanda, Nityänanda's falling

unconscious on the ground, the characteristics of Nityänanda, the glories of

Lord Viñëu and the Vaiñëavas, and the ecstatic chanting during the Vyäsa-püjä

ceremony.

During His Navadvépa pastimes, Çrémän Mahäprabhu one day proposed to celebrate

the Vyäsa-püjä of Nityänanda. Understanding the intention of Mahäprabhu,

Nityänanda Prabhu expressed His desire to celebrate the Vyäsa-püjä at the house

of Çréväsa. When Mahäprabhu asked Çréväsa to take responsibility of this

important event, he happily agreed. Being pleased by the words of Çréväsa,

Çrémän Mahäprabhu led Nityänanda and others to Çréväsa's house, where they

locked the door from inside and began to perform the Adhivasa kirtan for the

celebration of Vyäsa-püjä. In order to manifest the Baladeva feature of

Nityänanda Prabhu, the Lord became absorbed in the mood of Baladeva and

suddenly sat down on the simhasana. The Lord then demanded Baladeva's plough

and club from Nityänanda Prabhu, who immediately gave the Lord the plough and

club. When Nityänanda Prabhu placed His hand on the hand of Mahäprabhu, some

directly saw a plough and club and some saw only the empty hands. When

Mahäprabhu asked for Väruëé, or wine, in the ood of Balaräma, all the devotees

at first became perplexed and later on they gave Him some Ganges water.

Mahäprabhu also considered it wine and drank it. In order to please Mahäprabhu

in that particular mood, the devotees began to glorify Baladeva. When

Mahäprabhu repeatedly called out, "Näòä, Näòä," the devotees were unable to

understand whom the Lord was addressing, and therefore they asked Mahäprabhu.

Mahäprabhu said "Advaita Äcärya is Näòä." Due to Advaita's loud call, I have

decended from Goloka to this world in order to preach the congregational

chanting of the Lord's holy name, which is the yuga-dharma for this age. I will

distribute love and devotion that is rare even for the demigods headed by Lord

Brahmä to everyone except those who are offenders at the feet of the Vaiñëavas

and those who are intoxicated with pride from their education, wealth, fame,

austerity, and high birth. On hearing these words of the Lord, all the devotees

became very happy. When Mahäprabhu embraced the devotees with love andbegged

pardon for His own restlessness, the devotees could not control their laughter.

Nityänanda Prabhu became overwhelmed with the mellows of ecstatic love and

began to exhibit restlessness. Mahäprabhu pacified Him properly and returned to

His house. All the devotees then returned to their respective homes. Nityänanda

Prabhu, however, stayed at the house of Çréväsa, and at night He roared loudly

and broke His sannyäsa-daëòa and waterpot. Next morning, when Rämäi Paëòita saw

this, he informed Çréväsa, who then sent Rämäi to inform Mahäprabhu. As soon as

Mahäprabhu heard this, He came there with His devotees and picked up those

broken pieces of the daëòa and went to take bath in the Ganges with Nityänanda.

He then threw these pieces into the Ganges. During the course of taking bath,

Nityänanda Prabhu began to manifest various restlessness. Mahäprabhu instructed

Nityänanda to quickly complete His bath so that He could prepare for the

celebration of Vyäsa-püjä. Thereafter Nityänanda returned home with Mahäprabh.

Gradually all the devotees began to assemble and engage in chanting the holy

names of Kåñëa. After Çréväsa Paëòita, the priest of the Vyäsa-püjä ceremony,

duly performed all the required formalities, he gave Nityänanda a flower

garland to place on Vyäsadeva and told Him to offer His respectful obeisances

to Vyäsadeva while chanting mantras. Nityänanda Prabhu held the garland in His

hand began to look all around. Çréväsa Paëòita explained the behaviour of

Nityänanda to Mahäprabhu, who immediately ordered Nityänanda Prabhu to worship

Vyäsadeva. Nityänanda Prabhu then placed the garland on the head of Mahäprabhu,

who immediately manifested His six-armed form. As soon as Nityänanda Prabhu saw

the conch, disc, and other weapons in the hands of that six-armed form, He

immediately fell unconscious to the ground. While trying to help Nityänanda

regain His conciousness, Mahäprabhu said that without the mercy of Nityänanda

no one can achieve love and devotion. One who is envious of Nityänanda cannot

become dear to Maäprabhu, even by worshiping Mahäprabhu. On hearing the words

of Gaurasundara, Nityänanda regained consciousness and became very pleased by

seeing the six-armed form. Nityänanda Prabhu is nondifferent from Balaräma, and

as the eternal basis of everything He is the only cause of creation,

maintenance, and annihilation. Yet it is His eternal nature to teach everyone

to become servants of Kåñëa in each of His incarnations. Though Balaräma

appeared as the elder brother of Kåñëa during His incarnation, He did not give

up the mood of servitorship from His heart. It is extremely foolish and

offensive to discriminate between Balaräma and Nityänanda. If one shows

disrespect to the servants of the Lord, then he commits an offence at the feet

of Viñëu. Though worshiped by the demigods headed by Brahmä and Çiva, goddess

Lakñmé is attached to the service of the lotus feet of the Lord; similarly the

eternal characteristic of the omnipotent Baladeva is to serve the eternally

worshipable Lord Kåñëacandra. It is also the eternl nature of the worshipable

Lord Kåñëa to sing the glories of the ??worshiper Lord. Although in the

spiritual realm They constantly see each other, the pastimes They perform in

Their various incarnations are all inconceivable. The pastimes of the Supreme

Lord are the Vedas. One cannot understand them without engaging in the process

of devotional service. The pastimes of the Lord are known only to a few of

Gaurasundara's followers, through His mercy. The Vaiñëavas are eternal servants

of the Supreme Lord and are highly learned, therefore their pastimes of

quarreling amongst themselves is simply a joke. If a person who sees such

quarrels takes the side of one Vaiñëava and blasphemes the other Vaiñëava, he

will certainly fall down. What to speak of becoming envious of Vaiñëavas, if

one becomes envious of any living entity, not knowing that Lord Visnu?? is

situated within their hearts, and worships Visnu with material conceptions,

then his worship becomes useless and as a result of such enviousness he attains

unlmited miseries.?? One incurs a hundred times more sin by blaspheming a

Vaiñëava than by torturing other living entities. Therefore an offender at the

feet of a Vaiñëava can never achieve any auspiciousness. Those who faithfully

worship Visnu in His Deity form but do not respect the devotees of Visnu or do

not show compassion towards all living entities are the lowest class of

devotees, or präkåta-bhaktas. After the completion of Vyäsa-püjä, Mahäprabhu

instructed the devotees to perform kértana. Nityänanda Prabhu and Mahäprabhu

became intoxicated by dancing in the kértana and displayed various

transformations of ecstatic love. Mother Çacé saw this whole incident with

great ecstasy. On seeing Nityänanda and Gaurasundara, she felt both of them

were her own sons. When the Vyäsa-püjä celebration was completed at the end of

the day, Mahäprabhu asked Çréväsa Paëòita for the remnants of Vyäsadeva's

offering and personally distributed it to everyone. The devotees honored this

prasäda with great happiness. Mahäprabhu aso distributed mahä-prasäda to the

servants and maidservants of Çréväsa.