History of Gaudiya Vaisnavism

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> > Could somebody send to me one document (5-10 pages) on the history of

> > Gaudiya vaisnavism from Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's dissappearence to the

> > time of Srila Prabupada and the founding of ISKCON?

>

> The file VAI-DIGD.ZIP (Vaishnava Digdarsini) from the Krsna Katha conf.

> file area can help you. It´s an historical overview of the Vaishnavism in

> general with focus on the Gaudiya V.

 

The Vaishnava Digdarsini seems unbonafide because it gives the birth of

Acyutananda as almost contemporary to Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu which is

rejected by Srila Prabhupada in the Cc. The author is a karmi who seems to

have based his descriptions & dates also from some unauthorized Bengali

books which were rejected by Srila Prabhupada & BSST. There are several

anamolies which I do not remember now, I had checked a few months back.

 

Srila Prabhupada in Cc Adi 12.17 purport

 

"Advaita Prabhu married in the beginning of the fifteenth century

Sakabda (late fifteenth century A.D.). When Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu

wanted to visit the village of Ramakeli while going from Jagannatha Puri

to Vrndavana during the Sakabda years 1433 and 1434 (A.D. 1511 and 1512),

Acyutananda was only five years old. The Caitanya-bhagavata,

Antya-khanda, Fourth Chapter, describes Acyutananda at that

time as panca-varsa vayasa madhura digambara, "only five years old and

standing naked." Therefore it is to be concluded that Acyutananda was born

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

Acyutananda, Advaita Prabhu's wife, Sitadevi, came to see Lord

Caitanya Mahaprabhu 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 Sakabda (A.D. 1486 and 1507). In an

unauthorized book of the name Sitadvaita-carita, published in Bengali

in the unauthorized newspaper Nityananda-dayini in 1792 Sakabda

(A.D. 1870), it is mentioned that Acyutananda was a class friend of Sri

Caitanya Mahaprabhu. According to Caitanya-bhagavata, this

statement is not at all valid. When Caitanya Mahaprabhu accepted

the renounced order of sannyasa in the year 1431 Sakabda (A.D. 1509), He

came to the house of Advaita Prabhu at Santipura. At that time,

as stated in the Caitanya-bhagavata, Antya-khanda, Chapter

One, Acyutananda was only three years old. The Caitanya-bhagavata

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

immediately came and fell down at the lotus feet of Lord Sri Caitanya

Mahaprabhu. 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 Acarya is My father, and thus we are brothers."

 

 

Prabhupada mentions that Acyutananda appeared in AD 1506, i.e 20 years

younger than Lord Caitanya.

 

But the Vaishnava Digdarsini mentions 1492 AD / 1414 S' Birth of

Acyutananda, the eldest son of Advaita Acarya

 

If we take Acyutananda to be born in 1492 AD, then only 6 years younger than

the Lord which is completely opposed to the teachings of our bonafide

acaryas. So the Vaisnava Digdarshini is unauthorized as much as the

unauthorized bengali book Sitadvaita Carita which Prabhupada mentions in the

above purport. The Vaisnava Digdarshini date is wrong not by one or two

years but by 14 years. Plus many descriptions regarding Gaura Lila seem to

be based on unauthorized books. In my humble opinion should it should be

removed from the conference file area.

 

Your servant,

Nayana-ranjana dasa