Ramacandra Kaviraja

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January 22nd, 2003, Wednesday (Pancami)

Disappearance day of Ramacandra Kaviraja

 

 

SRI RAMACANDRA KAVIRAJA

 

Srila Narottama dasa Thakura Mahasaya has sung: "O Acarya Prabhu

(Srinivasa), please bestow your mercy upon me. I pray that I might also have

the association of Ramacandra."

 

Sri Ramacandra Kaviraja was the disciple of Srinivasa Acarya Prabhu

and the very intimate friend of Narottama dasa Thakura. His father was

Ciranjiva Sena and mother Sri Sunanda. Ciranjiva was originally an

inhabitant of Kumaranagar, but after marrying the daughter of Sri Damodara

Kavi he moved to Sri Khanda.

 

"Ciranjiva Sena was a pure devotee very much loved by Narahari

Sarkar and the other residents of Sri Khanda. He was extremely learned in

all matters and his wife was very chaste and gentle. Her activities were

completely transcendental." [C.C Mad. 11/92]

 

Sri Mukunda, Narahari, Raghunandana and Ciranjiva, who were all

residents of Sri Khanda, were of one mind and one purpose. Every year they

would come to Nilacala to have darsan of Mahaprabhu and to chant and dance

in front of Lord Jagannatha during Ratha Yatra. Ciranjiva was from a family

of physicians. His two jewel-like sons were Ramacandra and Govinda. Later

they both became disciples of Acarya Prabhu and came to reside at Teliya

Bhudari-gram in Murshidabad.

 

Ramacandra was very handsome, intelligent and perseverent. His

maternal grandfather, Sri Damodara Kaviraja, was a well-known poet who was a

worshiper of Krsna's energy (sakti) and was initiated in this cult. After

their father passed away, the two brothers Ramacandra and Govinda came to

live with their grandfather, who practiced the Sakta religion. Being

influenced by him, both became inclined to worship the various personified

forms of maya, Krsna's external deluding potency.

 

At this time Ramacandra practiced medicine and was also quite well-known as

an accomplished poet.

 

After his marriage, Ramacandra was carried in a palanquin with his

new bride to his home at Kumaranagara. As the procession passed Srinivasa

Acarya Prabhu's house at Gajigram, he saw the Acarya seated on the veranda

of his house, discussing Krsna-katha with some of his disciples. Simply upon

seeing the Acarya he felt a strange new emotion dawn in his heart. It was as

though he was seeing a very dear friend after long time of separation.

Similarly, Acarya Prabhu, upon seeing Ramacandra seated in the palanquin,

immediately inquired from those who were present with him, "Who is that?

What is his name? Which varna (caste) he belong to? And where does he

reside?" [b.R. 8/530]

 

His associates replied, "He is great scholar of the name Ramacandra.

He is very excellent poet as well as a physician and resides at

Kumaranagara." Hearing this, Acarya Prabhu simply smiled.

 

Ramacandra Sena, still seated within the palanquin, after seeing

Srinivasa Acarya and hearing his sweet voice, became extremely anxious to

meet him. After a short time the procession reached the house where much

pomp and celebration took place. Everyone was overjoyed to see the new

bride, Ratna Mala, and a great din and bustle ensued in welcoming her and

her bridegroom into their new home. Ramacandra's mind however was still back

at Gajigram where he had seen that divine personage. With great difficulty

he somehow or other passed the day there, but with the fall of night he

returned to Gajigram, where he passed the night in the house of one brahman.

 

With the approach of morning he came to Srinivasa Acarya's house and

fell down at he Acarya's feet to offer his prostrated obeisances. Srinivasa

Acarya Prabhu had similarly been continuously thinking of Ramacandra ever

since he'd seen him the day before. Upon seeing Ramacandra again, prostrated

before him, he picked him up and embraced him in deep ecstasy. Then he told

him, "Birth after birth, you are my most dear friend. In the same way that

the Lord caused my meeting with Sri Narottama dasa Thakura at Vrindavana, He

has also re-united me with another dear friend."

 

Ramacandra stayed with Acarya Prabhu and studied the literatures of

the six Gosvamis under his tutorship. Acarya Prabhu was extremely pleased to

see his gentle and polite behavior and his deeply spiritual nature. On the

next auspicious day he initiated Ramacandra with Radha-Krsna mantra.

 

After some time, Ramacandra returned to his house. When the Saktas

saw he had been initiated into Vaisnava religion they became very upset.

Ramacandra, however, was undaunted. With tilaka on his body in twelve places

and a japa mala in his hand, he sat down in front of them and began to chant

the holy names. One day, as Ramacandra was proceeding to his house after

having taken his bath, his Sakta neighbors called him.

 

"Kaviraja, without worshiping Lord Siva, how is it that you are

going home? Your grandfather was a great devotee of Lord Siva. Have you

given up Lord Siva's worship?"

 

Ramacandra replied, "Lord Siva and Brahma are incarnations of two of

the material modes created by Sri Krsna. Sri Krsna Himself is the source of

all incarnations. Therefore, by worshipping Lord Krsna everyone's worship is

performed, just as by watering the roots of a tree all the leaves and

branches become nourished. Prahlad, Dhruva, Vibhisana and others were dear

devotees of Sri Krsna. Therefore Lord Siva and Brahma were naturally

favorably disposed to them, whereas Ravana, Kumbhakarna, Banasura and other

demons were only devotees of Lord Siva and not devotees of Lord Krsna. Thus

their ultimate end was to simply be destroyed.

 

"The sastras say that Lord Brahma was able to create this world due

to having successfully worshiped Sri Visnu. Similarly, Lord Siva has become

qualified to invoke auspiciousness in this world due to having received the

foot wash water of Lord Visnu (Ganges) on his head." Having heard these

various statements from the sastras, those scholars remained speechless.

 

Ramacandra became very anxious to have darsana of Sri Vrindavana and

the Gosvamis there. He petitioned Sri Raghunandana and various other

Vaisnavas for their permission which they readily gave. Thus on the next day

he set out for Sri Vrindavana Dhama. After passing through Gaya, Kasi and

Prayaga, he finally arrived at Mathura. There he took bath and some rest at

Visramaghat. After taking darsana of the Adi Kesava Temple, he started for

Vrindavana.

 

At this time his guru, Srinivasa Acarya, was present at Vrindavana.

Ramacandra offered his prostrated obeisances at the lotus feet of his guru

and Sri Jiva Gosvami and conveyed the good news of the devotees from

Gaudadesa.

 

As ordered by Sri Jiva Gosvami, Ramacandra took darsana of Sri

Govinda, Sri Gopinatha, Sri Madanamohana and Sri Sanatana Gosvami's samadhi.

Then he offered his respects to Sri Gopala Bhatta, Sri Lokanatha and Sri

Bhugarbha Gosvami, who were very pleased with him and who offered him their

benediction. Hearing some samples of his great poetic ability, everyone

decided to present him with the title 'Kaviraja.' [b.R.9/214]

 

After remaining in the Gosvami's association for some days, they

finally instructed him to return to Gaudadesa. And so he returned, visiting

Sri Khanda, Gajigram, Khandaha and Kalna on the way. Finally he came to Sri

Mayapura, where he received the blessings of Sri Isana Thakur.

 

One time, some smarta brahmanas made a conspiracy to defame the name

of Srila Narottama dasa Thakura Mahasaya. They were very upset that though

he was only a kayastha by caste, he accepted those born in brahmana families

as his disciples. They enlisted Raja Narasimha and the conquering pandita

Sri Rupanarayana in a crusade to somehow expose Narottama dasa as a fraud.

In a large party they made their way to Kheturi, where Srila Narottama had

his headquarters.

 

Coming to know of this conspiracy, Sri Ramacandra and Sri Ganga

Narayana Cakravarti came forward to meet their challenge. They journeyd to

Kumarapura where they each set up two small shops in the market; one a pan

and betel nut shop and the other a store selling clay pots.

 

When the party of smarta brahmanas arrived at Kumarapura and sent

their disciples out to purchase wares for cooking their meals, the students

came to those shops. The 'shopkeepers' (actually Ramacandra and Ganga

Narayana in disguise) spoke to them in Sanskrit and began to raise a

philosophical dispute with them. Seeing the profound learning of those two

shopkeepers, the students were dumbfounded, but nevertheless took up the

challenge. After a short time, however, it became obvious that they were no

match for these 'shopkeepers.' They called for their gurus, who arrived on

the scene with Raja Narasimha and Rupanarayana. Rupanarayana himself was

drawn into the debate and was defeated by the Bhagavata-based arguments of

Ramacandra and Ganga Narayana.

 

When the king requested their introduction, those two shopkeepers

informed him that they were two extremely insignificant disciples of Srila

Narottama dasa Thakura Mahasaya. Having met defeat in this village

marketplace, Rupanarayana and the smarta brahmanas were no longer interested

in proceeding onward to Kheturi. Their crusade evaporated as they all

decided to return immediately to their respective homes.

 

That night, after Raja Narasimha had returned to his house, he had a

dream in which Durgadevi told him, "Narasimha! You have committed a great

offense at the feet of Narottama dasa Thakura. As a result of this

Vaisnavaparadha, I will have to cut you all to pieces with this chopper. If

you want to save yourself, then you had better immediately go and take

shelter at Narottama dasa Thakura's

lotus feet."

 

When his sleep broke the king quickly took his bath and set out for

Kheturi. Rupanarayana had a similar dream and was also proceeding towards

Kheturi at the same time. They met upon their arrival there and approached

the temple of Sri Gauranga in order to meet Narottama Thakura. Thakur

Mahasaya was absorbed in his bhajana, but when a disciple informed him of

the arrival of the two guests, he came out to meet them. Simply by seeing

his transcendental form, imbued with Krsna-prema, the two offenders became

purified and fell down to offer their obeisances at Thakura Mahasaya's feet.

Thakura Mahasaya very humbly presented himself as being a fallen soul.

Finally he initiated them with Radha-Krsna mantra.

 

Many sinful atheists were delivered by Sri Ramacandra Kaviraja. He

was present at the Kheturi festival. He came to Vrindavana a second time on

the order of Srinivasa and Narottama, but this time he couldn't have darsana

of the Gosvamis as they had all departed this world for Goloka Vrindavana.

Feeling separation from them, he was very distressed at heart. Unable to

tolerate that pain, he joined them in their eternal pastimes there in

Vrindavana. In Vraja-lila his name is Karuna-manjari. His disappearance is

on the third day of the dark fortnight in the month of Pausa. His principal

disciple was Harirama Acarya. The Deities worshipped by Ramcandra and

Govinda Kaviraja have been brought from Jeliya-Bhudargram to Bhagavan Gola

where they are at present being worshiped by the followers of Rama dasa

Babaji. There is a station at Bhagavan Gola on the Sealdah-Lal Gola rail

line.