Navadvipe Gaura-lila

[Guest guest]

Let's keep this in mind as Gaura-purnima approaches.

 

The following pastime appears in the Sri Caitanya-bhagavata,

Adi-khanda, Chapter 8.151-178. Nimai Pandita used to wander about

Navadvipa teasing the various shopkeepers and demanding their goods for

free. He would similarly visit various devotees' homes unnanounced, and

pester them too. One example is as follows:

 

 

In this way, in as many homes as there were in Navadvipa, the Lord

would wander to them all. Even today, in their good fortune, the townspeople

obtain the lotus feet of Sri Caitanya and Nityananda.

 

Then, simply out of His own desire, Lord Gauracandra Bhagavan went to

the home of an all-knowing astrologer. Seeing the Lord's powerful effulgence,

that astrologer humbly offered his respectful obeisances. The Lord said,

'I've heard that you're quite an astrologer. Would you tell Me who I

was in my other births?' 'Very well,' the astrologer said, his mind full

of piety. Chanting his Gopala mantra, he immediately saw [the form of Lord

Visnu, as] bluish with His great effulgence, holding conch, disc, club and

lotus in His four hands, the mark of srivatsa and kaustubha on His chest.

[He saw] the Lord in the prison [of Kamsa], and His mother and father

offering prayers before Him in the middle of the night. At that time, he

saw the Lord's father [Vasudeva] taking away his son at his bosom, and

bringing Him to Gokula that same night. Then again, he saw the Lord in

His charming two-armed form, dressed only in the directions [i.e., naked],

with a belt of tiny bells around His waist, and butter in His two hands.

That all-knowing astrologer saw his own worshipable Deity, just as he would

always meditate on Him deep within, along with all His transcendental

characteristics. Then he saw the threefold bending form of Muralivadana,

surrounded by a bevy of gopis singing and playing musical instruments.

 

Seeing this wonder, the astrologer rubbed his eyes and looked at

Gauranga. Then again he entered meditation. The astrologer prayed, 'O

Bala-gopala! Listen, please, show me who this brahmana is.' Then he saw

the Lord holding a bow, with the complexion of green durva grass, heroically

sitting on His royal throne. Then again, he saw the Lord in the middle of

the ocean of cosmic annihilation--His wondrous boar form--with the earth

balanced on His tusk. Again, he saw Mahaprabhu as Nrisimha-avatara, His

greatly ferocious form who is yet unlimitedly kind to the devotees. Then

he saw the Lord taking the form of Vamana, cheating Bali at his sacrifice

through His maya. Then again, he saw the Lord in His Matsya form,

happilly sporting in the waters of universal cataclysm. That pious

astrologer again saw the Lord's intoxicated form as Haladhara [balarama]

with plowshare in hand. The the all-knowing astrologer saw the form of

Jagannatha, with Balarama on His right and Subhadra beautifully in between

Them. In this manner, the astrologer saw the truth of the Lord, but

because of the Lord's maya, he was completely unable to fathom any of it.

 

Mulling over this, the astrologer was completely perplexed and

thought, 'this brahmana must know some great mantra [mahamantra-vit].

'Or he might be a some sort of demigod, come to me in the guise of a

brahmana in order to test me. Seeing the superhuman power in the brahmana's

body, the astrologer wondered, 'Could he have even come to spite me, the

"sarva-jna" astrologer?'

 

The Lord smiled and asked the anxious astrologer, "Who am I? What

did you see? Why don't you tell me everything you saw?'

 

The astrologer answered, 'For now, just go. I'll tell you this

afternoon, when I'm in a better frame of mind after chanting my mantra.

 

'Very well, very well,' the Lord said, smiling, and so He left.

Then He arrived at His dear Sridhara's house.

 

 

Mukunda Datta dasa