SRI DEVANANDA PANDITA

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SRI DEVANANDA PANDITA

 

Sri Devananda Pandit used to live at Kuliya. He was a famous reciter of the

Srimad Bhagavatam and many people used to study the Bhagavatam under his

guidance.

 

One afternoon, Srivasa Pandita came to hear Devananda Pandit's recitation of

the Bhagavatam. Hundreds of students were seated around the Pandit and some

were following his reading in their own personal copies of the manuscript.

 

Srivasa Pandita was a very advanced devotee and thus, when the sweet nectar

of the Bhagavatam entered his ears, his heart became softened in love of

God. He started to cry and roll on the ground, his body having become

agitated by the waves of ecstatic love.

 

When the students of Devananda saw this, they thought, "This fellow must be

crazy. He is disturbing our hearing of the recitation. Get him out of here."

Thus they picked him up and carried him outside. Though Devananda saw all

this taking place, he didn't prevent those foolish students of his from

committing this offense. As the guru was ignorant, so his students were

sinful.

 

Srivasa said nothing, but simply went to his house feeling very sad. All of

this occured before the appearance of Sri Gaurasundara.

 

During Mahaprabhu's exhibition of His divine position as the Supreme

Personality of Godhead for twenty-one hours, He asked Srivasa if he

remembered this incident.

 

One day, when Mahaprabhu was taking a stroll around Nadiyanagara, he came to

Mahesvara Visarada Pandit's house. At that time Devananda resided there.

Mahaprabhu heard him reciting the Srimad Bhagavatam from outside and became

very angry.

 

"What purport will that rascal explain? Not in any of his births has he

understood the meaning of even one verse of the Srimad Bhagavatam. The

Bhagavatam is the avatara of Sri Krsna in book form. Devotion is the only

subject it teaches. The four Vedas are like yoghurt and the Bhagavatam is

like butter. Srila Sukadeva Gosvami did the churning and Maharaja Pariksit

ate that butter. Sukadeva Gosvami is very dear to Me. He knows very well

that the Srimad Bhagavatam is meant to describe the truth about Me according

to My own liking. Whoever sees any difference between Me, My own devotees

and the Srimad Bhagavatam simply brings destruction upon himself." [C.B. Mad

21.13]

 

Mahaprabhu made these statements in a voice loud enough for Devananda to

hear. Then He turned to go back to His home. The devotees following Him

begged for more mercy. He continued, "All the scriptures state that the

Srimad Bhagavatam enunciates the highest realization. Without having

understood any of this, simply for the sake of name and fame as a

religionist and a scholar, he poses himself as a teacher of this great book.

But he doesn't know the purport.

 

"Only one who has understood that the Srimad Bhagavatam is verily the

inconceivable intelligence of the Supreme Lord Himself knows that the only

meaning of the Bhagavatam is devotion. In order to understand the book

Bhagavata, one has to serve the devotee-Bhagavata."

 

Devananda could hear all of these remarks from the distance, yet he thought

nothing of it.

 

After some time Gaurasundara accepted sannyasa and went to live at Nilacala.

It was then that Devananda at last began to feel some remorse. "Such a great

soul, totally imbued with love of God, but I never went even once to have

his association."

 

One day Srila Vakresvara Pandita came to Kuliya to visit the house of one

devotee there. In the evening he held a festival of dancing and chanting the

Holy Name. Devananda was present on this occasion, and was completely

stunned by Sri Vakresvara's effulgence and ecstatic chanting and dancing. As

the night progressed more and more, people came to listen to his kirtan

until there was finally a huge crowd. Devananda took a cane and began to

control the crowd so that Vakresvara's dancing wouldn't be disturbed.

 

When Vakresvara fainted in ecstatic love, Devananda carefully put his head

on his lap and brushed the dust from his body with his own upper cloth. Then

he smeared that dust on his own body. That day his service to the devotees

had its auspicious beginning.

 

After some days, Mahaprabhu returned to Bengal to see his mother and the

holy Ganges. He also came to Kuliya. At that time thousands upon thousands

of people came to have darsana of His lotus feet. All of those who had

previously committed offenses against Nimai Pandita by thinking Him to be an

ordinary human being now came to seek His forgiveness; Mahaprabhu forgave

each and everyone of them. Among those present was Devananda, who fell down

on the ground to offer his obeisances to Mahaprabhu. From that moment he

became one of the Lord's foremost devotees.

 

Still, he felt a little hesitant, and thus upon getting up, he stood to one

side. Mahaprabhu addressed him, "Because you have served My dear devotee

Vakresvara, I am now pleased with you. By that service you have now been

able to approach Me. Within Vakresvara's person is Sri Krsna's complete

potency. Whoever serves him must receive Krsna's mercy."

 

Devananda, in a faltering voice replied, "You are the Supreme controller.

Simply for the sake of reclaiming fallen souls You have advented Yourself

here at Nadiya. I am a sinful wretch and have never served Your lotus feet

and thus was cheated of Your causeless mercy for so many years. Oh my Lord,

Who resides with in the heart of all living entities, You are Supremely

merciful.

 

Only because You have shown Yourself to me have I been able to see You. O

most compassionate One, please instruct me. Let me know the actual purport

of the Srimad Bhagavatam."

 

Mahaprabhu replied, "Now hear Me, O brahmana, and know that the only way to

explain the verses of the Bhagavatam is in terms of bhakti. In the

beginning, middle and end of the Srimad Bhagavatam there is only one

teaching: devotion to Visnu, which is eternally perfect and which is never

destroyed or diminished."

 

"As Krsna's various incarnations such as Matsya and Kurma appear and

disappear in this world by Their sweet will, in the same way, the Srimad

Bhagavatam is not made or composed by any person. It makes its appearance

and disappearance by its own sweet will. Due to the appearance of devotion,

the Bhagavatam blossomed forth from Vyasadeva's mouth, by the mercy of Sri

Krsna.

 

"As the truths regarding the Supreme Authority are inconceivable, so are the

truths of Srimad Bhagavatam. Many may pretend to know its meaning but they

have no real grasp of the evidence the Bhagavatam presents. But whoever who

simply remembers the Srimad Bhagavatam while admitting himself to be

ignorant can understand the real meaning.

 

"The Bhagavata, which is saturated with loving devotion for Krsna, is an

expansion of Krsna Himself and contains descriptions of His most

confidential pastimes." [C.B. Ant. 3.505-516]

 

"Now you should beg forgiveness by catching hold of Srivasa Pandit's feet.

The book Bhagavata and the devotee Bhagavata are not different. If the

devotee Bhagavata is merciful to us, then the book Bhagavata manifests its

true meaning."

 

Then Devananda fell at Srivasa Pandita's feet and begged forgiveness.

Srivasa embraced him and his offense retreated far away. All the devotees

shouted in ecstasy, "Hari bol! Hari bol!"

 

His disappearance is on the 11th day of the dark fortnight in the month of

Pausa.