Srivasa Pandita's home

[kailasa]

340. "Clothed only by the four directions, Siva serves Lord Krsna's feet. Goddess Laksme very respectfully serves Lord Krsna's feet.

341. "Ananta Sesa chants the glories of Lord Krsna's feet. Placing a straw between your teeth, you should also worship Lord Krsna's feet.

 

342. "As long as there is life within your bodies, you should engage in devotional service to Lord Krsna's lotus feet.

343. "Krsna is your mother. Krsna is your father. Krsna is your life and your wealth. Therefore I say you should grasp Lord Krsna's feet and declare, 'To Lord Krsna I give my body and my thoughts'."

 

344. Accepting the role of His servant, the Lord described His own glories. Six hours passed. Still He did not stop.

345. Enthralled, the students listened with a single heart. No one spoke a word.

 

347. After some moments Lord Caitanya returned to external consciousness. Embarrassed at heart, He looked at the faces of them all.

348. The Lord asked, "How did I explain the sutras about verbal roots?" The students replied, "You gave the right explanation.

 

353. "Your explanations of the sutras and commentaries spoke of Lord Krsna only. Who has the power to understand Your explanations?

354. "When You heard about devotional service You acted in such a way that we do not think You are a mere human being."

 

355. The Lord asked, "What did You see Me do?" The students replied, "It was a great wonder.

 

357. "Yesterday, when in the town You were lecturing on books, a brahmana read a verse aloud.

358. "Hearing this verse of Srimad-Bhagavatam, You at once fell unconscious. There was no life in any of Your limbs. We were very surprised.

 

362. "Gazing at You, everyone was filled with wonder. Everyone said, 'This person must be Lord Narayana Himself.'

363. "Someone said, 'He must be Vyasa, or Sukadeva, or Narada, or Prahlada. He has the Lord's mercy as much as they.'

 

* * *

 

396. Bowing down, I offer respectful obeisances to the feet of these students. They were very fortunate to have been Lord Caitanya's students.

 

399. I am a sinner. That is why I was not born then. I was cheated of the sight of these blissful pastimes.

400. O Supreme Lord, please be merciful and allow Your pastimes of scholarship to stay always in my heart.

 

* * *

 

403. In this way the Lord's pastimes of scholarship came to an end. Then His pastimes of saikirtana began.

 

404. In the four directs were weeping students, tears gliding down their necks. The merciful Lord then said to them,

405. "What you have heard and read for many days now make perfect by chanting the holy names of Lord Krsna."

406. The students replied, "How shall we chant the holy names of the Lord?" Then Sace's son gave them this instruction:

 

407. (hare) haraye namau Krsna yadavaya namah

gopala govinda rama sri-madhusudana

 

" (Hari!) I offer my respectful obeisances to Lord Hari. I offer my respectful obeisances to Lord Krsna, the descendent of King Yadu. O Gopala! O Govinda! O Rama! O Cre Madhusudana!"

 

408. In this way He showed them the right direction. Clapping His hands, the Lord chanted His own holy names with His students.

409. The four directions around Him filled with His students, the master of kirtana chanted His own holy names.

410. The Lord entered a spiritual trance. Tasting the nectar of His own holy names, He rolled about on the ground. He became covered with dust.

 

411. "Chant! Chant!", the Lord called in the four directions. Again and again the Lord fell to the ground. The earth burst apart.

 

412. Hearing the tumult, all of Nadeya ran to the Lord's home.

413. Hearing the kirtana, all who lived in neighboring Vaineava homes ran to that place.

414. Seeing the Lord's ecstatic trance, the Vaineavas felt great wonder in their hearts.

 

415. They all felt great happiness in their hearts. They said, "Now there is a great kirtana in the towns of Nadeya.

416. "Is it possible that this kind of rare and exalted devotional service has come to this world? Our eyes have become fruitful to see this exalted devotional service!

417. "Vicvambhara was the pinnacle of arrogance. Now we see He has attained a spiritual love even Narada cannot attain.

 

218. "Haribol!", Lord Caitanya roared, filling the four directions. Then the Lord fell to the ground. No one could hold Him still.

219. The Lord manifested fear, laughter, trembling, perspiring, roaring, and standing up of the body's hairs. He manifested all the symptoms of ecstasy simultaneously.

 

220. Seeing these wonders, the devotees happily sang the holy names. Nothing checked the Lord's ecstasy.

 

222. Day and night, in this way Sace's sun always chanted the holy names in His home.

 

223. In this way Lord Caitanya began the sankirtana movement. Seeing this, the devotees found that their sufferings perished.

224. Sace's son roared, "Haribol!" In home after home, the materialists and offenders woke up.

 

225. Their happy sleep broken, the materialists became angry. They felt frustrated.

 

226. Someone said, "What kind of madness has come over these people?" Someone else said, "We cannot even sleep at night!" [eat, sex and ets]

 

227. Someone else said, "All this screaming will anger God. Then all these people will perish."

 

229. Someone else said, "What are they singing about? Who knows? This is a conspiracy planned by the brahmana Srivasa.

 

232. Someone else said, "O my brothers, Srivasa has gone mad. He will ruin the whole country.

233. "Today I heard in the royal court that the king ordered tow boats to come here.

234. "They will arrest anyone they hear singing the holy names in Nadeya. That was the king's order.

235. "Srivasa Pandita will then run away and allof us will be destroyed.

236. "I already told you, 'Throw Srivasa's house into the Ganga!'

 

237. "You thought I was only joking. Now you will see how we are all destroyed."

 

* * *

 

245. Lord Caitanya, more handsome than Kamadeva and with no rival anywhere in the three worlds, fearlessly walked about.

248. His garments were splendid. Betelnuts were on His lips. He happily walked by the Gaiga's bank.

 

249. When pious people saw Him they became happy. When materialists and offenders saw Him, they became morose.

250. Someone said, "He must have heard of the danger. Still He has no fear. He walks about town as if He were a prince."

251. Someone else said, "O my brother, I know what is happening. What you see is all a trick to escape."

252. Lord Caitanya fearlessly looked in the four directions. He looked at the Ganga's beauty and the riverbank's beauty.

 

253. Walking by the riverbank, He saw a herd of cows. They were mooing and drinking water.

254. With raised tails some ran in the four directions. Some fought. Some napped. Some drank water.

255. Seeing them, the Lord began to roar. "I am He! I am He!", He shouted again and again.

256. In this way He ran to Srivasa's house. "Srivasa, what are you doing now?", the Lord bellowed.

 

257. Within his home, Srivasa was worshiping Lord Nrsinha. Pounding again and again, Lord Caitanya broke the door open.

258. "Whom do you worship? On whom do you meditate? Look! The person you worship has come!", He roared.

 

259. Srivasa saw a form like blazing fire, Then his meditation broke. He looked in the four directions.

260. He saw Lord Caitanya sitting in a asana yoga posture. Lord Caitanya had four arms. He held a conchshell, cakra, club, and lotus.

261. He roared like a maddened lion. Slapping the palm of His hand against His left shoulder, He made a great sound.

 

262. Seeing all this, Crevasa trembled. Then he bnecame stunned. He did not move.

 

263. The Lord roared, "O Srivasa! For so many days you did not know My true identity?

 

267. Gazing at the Lord, Srivasa wept tears of love. The fears in his heart died. Now He was confident.

268. His whole body was filled with joy. He offered dandavat obeisances. Then, folding his hands, he recited prayers.

 

269. By his nature, Srivasa Pandita was a great devotee of the Lord. He accepted the Lord's order. By the Lord's desire, he recited prayers.

270. He began his prayers by quoting a verse from Srimad-Bhagavatam

 

"Let me offer my respectful repeated obeisances unto the son of Maharaja Nanda, who is standing before me with conchshell, earrings, and a peacock feather on His head. His face is beautiful. He is wearing a helmet, garlanded with forest flowers, and He stands with a morsel of food in His hand. He is decorated with cane and bugle, and He carries a buffalo-horn and flute. He stands before me with small lotus feet."

 

272. Then Srivasa said, "I offer my respectful obeisances unto the feet of Lord Visvambhara. He is dark like a monsoon cloud. He wears yellow garments.

273. "I offer my respectful obeisances to the feet of Sace's son. He is decorated with a peacock feather and a necklace of new guija.

 

275. "I offer my respectful obeisances to the feet of Jagannatha Misra's son. His face and form are more glorious than millions of moons.

 

277. "You are the same person the four Vedas call, 'the son of Maharaja Nanda'. O Lord, I offer my respectful obeisances to Your feet.

295. Smiling, the Lord heard Srivasa's prayers. Then the

merciful Lord said to Srivasa,

297. "You ... may ask a boon, whatever you desire in your heart."

 

303. Unseen, the Lord touched the heads of all. Smiling, He said, "May your thoughts always rest in Me."

 

305. He said, "I hear that the king's boats have come to capture you.

306. "I control the many spirit souls who reside in the countless material universes. I push them to action.

307. "Only if I, residing the king's body, give him the order will the king say that you should be captured.

308. "If I do not give him the order, but he acts independently, then I will look for something else.

309. "I will be the first to go on the boat. There I will approach the king.

 

310. "Will the king remain on his throne after he sees Me? I will bewilder him and bring him down from his throne.

311. "If he does not become bewildered, then he may ask Me questions. Please hear My plan. I will describe it.

312. "I will say, 'Listen. Listen, O king. Please learn what is true and what is false. Please assemble all the mullahs and kazis.

313. " 'O king, please bring all the elephants, horses, animals, and birds to your court.

314. " 'Order all the kazis to read aloud from your scriptures and inspire everyone to weep.'

 

315. "If they have no power to do that, then I will reveal Myself to the king.

316. " I will tell him, 'On the word of these men you have forbidden saikertana. You have seen the little power they possess.

317. " 'With your own eyes you will see My power.' Then I will capture a mad elephant and bring it here.

318. "I will bring many elephants, horses, animals, and birds. I will make them chant 'Krsna!' and I will make them weep.

 

319. "Then I will make the king and his followers also chant 'Krsna!', and I will make them weep also.

320. "If in your heart you don't believe Me, then I will show you. You will see with your own eyes."

321. The Lord saw Srivasa's young niece, who was named Narayani.

 

323. Then Lord Caitanyacandra, who is the Supersoul in all living beings, gave this order: "Narayani! Chant 'Krsna!' and weep."

324. Then four-year old Narayaee acted with wild abandon. She called out, "O Krsna!" and she wept. She was not aware of the external world.

325. Streams of tears flowed over her limbs and fell to the ground. Her eyes were filled with tears.

 

330. When he had spoken these words, Srivasa Pandita and his associates entered an ecstatic trance. There they saw the Lord's form.

331. Srivasa and his servants and maidservants gazed at the Lord's form, a form even the four Vedas yearn to see.

 

332. How will I describe the glorious activities of Srivasa, the dust of whose feet purifies the world?

333-334. As Lord Krsna appeared in Vasudeva's home, but enjoyed pastimes in Nanda's home, so Lord Caitanya appeared in Jagannatha Misra's home, but enjoyed pastimes in Srivasa Pandita's home.