Appearence day of Ma Jahnava Mata

[Guest guest]

Hare Krishna,

 

PAMHO,AGTSP,AGTSGM

Pl find below the glorious past times of

Ma Jahnava Mata on Her appearance day on 18th May.

 

The extract is from Nityananda Caritamrita by

Vrndavana Das Thakuraji

 

Your hs

radhabhava gaur das

camp Shyamadesh

 

Nityananda Caritamrita

 

Antya Lila

 

Chapter Twelve

 

The marriage of Lord Nityananda

 

One day, Lord Nityananda woke up early in the morning

and, taking a servant with Him, went towards

Ambika-nagara. He took along Uddharana Datta who was a

merchant by profession and His intimate associate. He

arrived at the doorstep of Suryadasa Pandita and sent

Uddharana Datta inside the house.

 

Uddharana Datta went inside and informed Suryadasa of

the Lord's arrival. He rushed out to greet the Lord.

Falling at the feet of Nityananda Prabhu, he offered

his obeisances and with folded hands said, "What good

fortune!"

 

The Lord said, "I've come to you with a purpose. I

want to marry. Please give Me your daughter's hand."

 

Pandita knew the glories of Nityananda Prabhu, but he

forgot everything bewildered by the Lord's illusory

energy. The brahmana humbly said, "How is it possible?

We first have to consider many points like caste,

stars, and family. Although You are the Supreme

Personality of Godhead Narayana, You're an outcaste

and I'm a brahmana. "Hearing this reply, Nityananda

Prabhu left that place as everyone watched in wonder.

Suryadasa Pandita felt disappointed and went inside

the house. He contemplated, "Will my dream come true?

O Lord Krsna, will it ever happen by the arrangement

of providence that Nityananda will become my

son-in-law?" Pondering over this, he went inside the

house. Gathering his relatives, he informed them of

the proposal. He said, "Last night, I had a wonderful

dream. I saw a wonderful person come to my house

sitting on a chariot with a flag. He was huge like a

mighty wrestler. His complexion was golden and His

eyes were reddish. His chariot stopped in front of my

house. He got down from the chariot and smilingly

asked, "Is this Panditaji's house?

 

"He carried a plough on His shoulder and held a stick

in His hand. He gestured for me to come. Flowers

decorated His hair and He wore golden earrings. He

dressed with blue garments with anklets on His feet.

He said to me, "'I'm going to marry your daughter. You

haven't recognized Me till today.'" Saying this, He

disappeared. Then I got up from the bed and found it

was morning." As Jahnava heard the narration from

within the room, her natural love for the Lord arose.

Tears of love began to flow from her eyes. She covered

her face with a cloth, but the cloth became soaked

with her tears. Pandita continued, "O friends, now

I've told you my wonderful dream." Someone said, "We

see so many things in dream. Nityananda Prabhu is the

Supreme Brahman and we are but householders. How can

we offer our daughter?" Suryadasa Pandita was

naturally soft hearted. He became distressed and

cried, "Save me! Save me!"

 

All of a sudden, everyone heard crying inside the

house. Something had happened to Jahnava. They rushed

inside and picked up Jahnava. They put her on the

front veranda. She was unconscious and her eyes rolled

in their sockets. Her whole body was cold and her face

perspired. A doctor came and diagnosed that she had

epilepsy and there was no cure for it. Seldom does a

person in such a case survive. He thus treated her

according to the scripture. The doctor said, "Even

after applying proper medication, there's no

improvement. Now try to arrange for her spiritual

rites. Take her to the bank of the Ganges for she is

your eldest daughter." Hearing the words of the

doctor, Suryadasa began to cry. Gauridasa, however,

consoled him saying, "I think we committed an offense

at the feet of Avadhuta Nityananda. We must beg His

pardon and bring Him back as soon as possible. As long

as we live in this world, we should try to maintain

relationships. After death, relationships no longer

remain. If He can protect our daughter, then we should

arrange her marriage with Him. This is my advice to

all of you. This is our opinion. So let's all go to

Nityananda Prabhu and fall at His feet." Lord

Nityananda was sitting under a banyan tree on the bank

of the Ganges. Tears trickled from His eyes as He

chanted the name of Krsna. Gauridasa along with his

relatives went to Nityananda Prabhu and fell at His

lotus feet. The Lord quickly picked him up while

patting his back. Nityananda said, "You've all

forgotten Me, O cowherd men?" Then He put His hands on

his shoulders. Suryadasa Pandita fell at the feet of

Nityananda Prabhu and lamented, "You bewildered me

completely. You're able to do anything, yet You never

inspired me to give up my attachment for

varnasrama-dharma. Please give us the shelter of Your

lotus feet and do good to all of us." Saying this, the

Pandita took Lord Nityananda home.

 

His daughter, Jahnava, was lying at the doorstep.

Jahnava was covered with a cloth and the sunshine fell

on her. It appeared as if lightning were striking a

cloud. Her eyes bulged in their sockets as tears fell

incessantly. Her curly hair enhanced the beauty of her

forehead. The signs of the final moments of life

appeared on her body. At that moment, the aroma of the

Lord's body entered her nostrils. As she smelled this

aroma, she regained her consciousness touched by the

art of revival. She hurriedly covered her face with

cloth and said, "Where am I? What's happening?" Then

she got up and entered the house. Nityananda Prabhu,

the reservoir of transcendental pastimes, displayed

His six-armed form in the courtyard of Suryadasa

Pandita. His two upper hands held a bow and an arrow,

His two middle hands held a plough and a stick, and

His lower two hands carried a sannyasa-danda and water

pot. His head was decorated with a crown and His ears

were decorated with earrings. His entire body was

radiant with valuable jewels and ornaments. Seeing

this form of the Lord, everyone fell at His feet.

Pandita prayed to the Lord with folded hands. All the

brahmanas gathered there were struck with wonder

seeing this form of the Lord. Soon this form

disappeared from everyone's vision and only Lord

Nityananda remained. Smiling at everyone, Lord

Nityananda sat on the doorstep of a Visnu temple as

all the brahmanas and Vaisnavas chanted, "Long life!

Long life!"

 

They all served Nityananda Prabhu with great care and

affection and made Him comfortable. All the learned

brahmanas and the family priest planned to award Him

the sacred thread according to the Vedic injunctions.

They disclosed their plan to the Lord. The Lord

accepted their proposal with laughter saying, "Do

whatever you like; I have nothing to say. Only

Caitanya Gosai is independent. "When everyone heard

the Lord's approval, they became very happy. Then

Pandita began to arrange for the marriage. He

collected articles for a marriage that would be as

opulent as that of a prince. He gathered things by

begging and by his profession. He invited all his

neighbors for the marriage ceremony. He brought a

large quantity of betel nuts and pan. The brahmana

then called his family priest and carefully chose an

auspicious day for marriage. From that day, there was

a constant celebration at the Pandita's house. His

friends and relatives began to arrive day by day. The

musicians played various instruments and hundreds of

brahmanas were fed daily. The women distributed

vermilion, betel nuts, pan, oil, and sweets to all the

ladies. On the day of the marriage, the brahmanas came

to Suryadasa Pandita's house after finishing their

regular duties. They brought suitable items for

performing sacrifices such as flowers, kusa grass,

sitting mats made of kusa grass, wooden mortars, and

spoons. They brought a stick, water pot, umbrella,

pair of shoes, belt, kaupina, deerskin, brahmana

thread, and ghee.

 

After all the brahmanas prepared the sacrifice, the

head priest asked Nityananda Prabhu to come to the

sacrificial arena. As Nityananda Prabhu sat in the

midst of the brahmanas, they offered ghee in the

sacrificial fire chanting Vedic mantras. After

completing the formalities required by the scriptures,

the brahmanas put a stick and water pot in

Nityananda's hands. He wore saffron colored kaupina

and cadara with a saffron bag on His shoulder. The

Lord then begged, "Mother, please give Me alms. "The

wife of Suryadasa Pandita respectfully put gold,

silver, and money in the Lord's bag. When the priest

told Suryadasa Pandita to bring the bride, Nityananda

Prabhu said, "Do that later." Then Lord Nityananda

whispered something in the ear of the priest who

quickly said, "That's alright." Holding a stick and

water pot, Lord Nityananda laughed loudly again and

again. He wore wooden shoes and held an umbrella in

His hands. He appeared just like a young brahmana lad

to everyone. Seeing His enchanting form, the ladies

smilingly said, "He must be the younger brother of Sri

Ramacandra. This is what we feel."

 

The Lord entered a secluded inner room and remained

there for three days continuously. Rising early in the

morning of the forth day, the Lord looked at the sun

and the brahmanas before coming out of the house. The

most attractive Nityananda Prabhu then offered His

obeisances to Lord Visnu and sat on a wooden throne.

Hundreds of women from Navadvipa came to the house of

Suryadasa Pandita holding each other's hands and

shoulders. They decorated their eyes with black

ointment and chewed betel nuts. They arrived at the

house of the Pandita while swinging their hands and

bodies. The priest came to perform the duties to be

done the day before the marriage while the ladies made

auspicious sounds on all sides. The priest tied yellow

threads on the hands of Lord Nityananda and Jahnava.

She then went inside the house with her head down. The

musicians played auspicious sounds on various

instruments. People dove and surfaced in the ocean of

joy.

 

As the ladies fetched water for the ceremony, some of

them said, "Jahnava's indeed the most fortunate. Who

else could have such a beautiful groom except Revati

who previously got such a wonderful husband?" Someone

said, "They look exactly like Sankara and Parvati."

Others said, "They look like Laksmi and Narayana."

Another said, "It's like the meeting of Kamadeva and

Rati." Yet others said, "They're like Rama and Sita."

In this way, they spoke their minds each to the other.

They laughed and fell on each other as if drunk. They

were all simple young girls at the marriage of their

friend and were unable to check their jubilation. The

whole day passed in such blissful events. Finally, the

auspicious time for marriage arrived. Then Suryadasa

Pandita told his relatives to decorate both the bride

and groom. Hearing this, everyone became very happy.

Nityananda Prabhu came and sat in the courtyard of the

Visnu temple and Gauridasa Pandita began to decorate

Him. Nityananda was naturally most enchanting. The

Pandita put tilaka and sandalwood paste on His

forehead. Naturally intoxicated with prema, Lord

Nityananda's eyes always moved in circles. The Pandita

put black ointment on those eyes. The Lord's beautiful

raised nose was marked with tilaka and sandalwood

paste. The beauty of His face defeated the beauty of

the moon. His broad chest was decorated with

sandalwood paste and flower garlands. He wore white

garments and a white brahmana thread. It appeared like

Lord Ananta Sesa covering Lord Balarama. A crown

adorned His head and He wore beautiful earrings. The

golden ornaments adorning Him shone brightly.

 

The artistic ladies sat in a private place and began

to decorate Jahnava with undivided attention. They

combed and braided her hair in various attractive

ways. Two colorful clusters of jute hung from her head

to her back covering both her ears. They made many

beautiful braids with her hair beginning from her

forehead. Wiping her face with the corner of their

saris, they decorated it with kunkuma. They adorned

her forehead with the marks of tilaka and applied

black ointments to her eyes. They embellished her

forehead and cheeks with many beautiful dots of

sandalwood paste. They put tilaka on her nose and

became captivated by her beauty. Then they began to

dress her up. They put a golden ring with a pearl

hanging from it in the tip of her nose. It swung on

the top of her upper lip as she moved. It appeared as

if honeybees were falling over a sesame flower.

Jahnava was wearing a golden kanti-mala with a locket

that hung to her chest. She was decorated in the most

attractive manner and her beauty was matchless. Golden

earrings resembling campaka flowers decorated Her ears

appearing like lightening. The earrings were fixed at

one place, yet they desired to touch her other limbs.

Golden bracelets and bangles bedecked Her hands. She

wore golden ankle bells on her beautiful reddish feet.

After decorating her properly, they put betel nut in

her mouth and hung garlands of fragrant flowers on her

neck. They sprinkled scented oil all over her body.

 

Then all the relatives and friends of Suryadasa

Pandita told him to take his daughter and circle the

groom. Pandita at once accepted the proposal saying,

"Whatever you all say, I must follow." Everyone rushed

in all directions to gather the necessary items for

the marriage. They brought various articles before

Suryadasa Pandita and set them before Lord Nityananda.

They then made Him sit on a palanquin. The musicians

began to play their instruments, filling the entire

sky with sound. The singers and dancers sang and

danced perfectly in tune with the music. Lord

Nityananda beheld all this dressed in divine garments.

Sitting on a palanquin, Nityananda Prabhu was taken on

procession through the streets as auspicious sounds of

joy filled the four directions. The women of the city

lined their doorsteps with their babies on their laps

to have a glimpse of the groom. Young boys rushed to

the spot and became overwhelmed with happiness as they

joined the singing. After roaming all over the city,

Nityananda Prabhu, resembling a full moon, arrived at

the doorstep of Suryadasa Pandita.

 

Suryadasa Pandita offered incense, ghee lamp,

sandalwood paste, and flower garlands to Nityananda

Prabhu. He then led Him by the hand to the marriage

arena. Someone sprinkled scented water before

Nityananda as He walked. The ladies began to make

auspicious sounds of ulu-dhvani. Then He stood on a

low wooden platform. His radiance filled all

directions. Holding ghee lamps and flower garlands,

all the brahmanas circled Nityananda seven times. The

ladies smiled covering their mouths with their saris

and falling on each other. They then brought the bride

on a beautiful throne and made her circle Nityananda

seven times. Jahnava and Nityananda glanced at each

other as everyone threw flowers and pan. Their

spontaneous love for each other awakened. After a long

time when Jahnava saw her beloved Lord, she held her

head down in shyness. They took Jahnava inside the

room and all the brahmanas began to complete all the

formalities according to the injunctions. Suryadasa

Pandita offered jewelry, clothes, and other items to

Nityananda Prabhu and formally accepted Him as a

son-in-law. Then he brought his daughter and offered

her to Nityananda Prabhu in charity as per the Vedic

injunctions. Taking his daughter and son-in-law

inside, he made them sit on a divine bed decorated

with flowers. Many young girls also entered the room

teasing and joking with the new groom.

 

The whole night passed in joyful happiness. In the

morning, Nityananda Prabhu took bath and sat down for

the Vedic ceremony of putting sindura (vermilion) on

the bride's head. The brahmanas then performed the

fire sacrifice according to the Vedic rules. Finally,

hundreds of brahmanas were served a feast. Nityananda

Prabhu lived happily at the house of Suryadasa Pandita

for a few days. One day, Sri Jahnava was serving

Nityananda His lunch of Krsna prasada with utmost

care. The younger daughter of Suryadasa Pandita,

Vasudha, whose mind was firmly attached to Nityananda

since her childhood, came to assist. As she was

serving prasada to Nityananda Prabhu, all of a sudden

the part of her sari covering her head fell off. Since

both her hands were engaged in serving, she manifested

two more hands and replaced her sari on her head.

Seeing this, Nityananda Prabhu caught hold of her hand

and made her sit on His right side. Nityananda then

said to Suryadasa Pandita, "I'll take your younger

daughter with Me as a dowry." Suryadasa Pandita

replied, "I have no objection. There's nothing I can

refuse You. I've surrendered my own caste, life,

wealth, house, associates, and everything else at Your

lotus feet." Saying this, Pandita raised his hands and

danced in ecstasy while chanting "Hari! Hari!" He

prayed, "O Krsna, O Yadava, please be merciful to me

so that I may fix my mind, body, and speech at the

lotus feet of Nityananda Prabhu." He explained all the

details to his relatives. They all smilingly approved

everything. They said, "We've also become lucky by

your association. In fact, who has the power to

disobey the Lord?" With folded hands, everyone said to

Suryadasa Pandita, "You've actually purchased Krsna in

Kali-yuga." Nityananda Prabhu inspired everyone of

Ambika-kalna to float in the ocean of bliss.

 

Accepting the lotus feet of Caitanya and Nityananda as

my life and soul, I, Vrndavana dasa, sing the glories

of Their lotus feet.

 

 

 

 

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