Adi17.1

TEXT 1

vande svairadbhuteham tam

caitanyam yat-prasadatah

yavanah sumanayante

krsna-nama-prajalpakah

SYNONYMS

vande—let me offer my obeisances; svaira—completely independent; adbhuta—and uncommon; iham—whose activities; tam—unto Him; caitanyam—Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu; yat—of whom; prasadatah—by the mercy; yavanah—even the unclean; sumanayante—are transformed into gentlemen; krsna-nama—of the holy name of Lord Krsna; prajalpakah—taking to the chanting.

TRANSLATION

Let me offer my respectful obeisances to Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, by whose mercy even unclean yavanas become perfectly well-bred gentlemen by chanting the holy name of the Lord. Such is the power of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

PURPORT

There is a persistent misunderstanding between caste brahmanas and advanced Vaisnavas, or gosvamis, because caste brahmanas, or smartas, are of the opinion that one cannot become a brahmana unless he changes his body. As we have discussed several times, it is to be understood that by the supremely powerful potency of the Lord, as described by Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami, everything is possible. Caitanya Mahaprabhu is as fully independent as Krsna. Therefore no one can interfere with His activities. If He wants, by His mercy He can convert even a yavana, an unclean follower of non-Vedic principles, into a perfectly well-behaved gentleman. This is actually happening in our propagation of the Krsna consciousness movement. The members of the present Krsna consciousness movement were not born in India, nor do they belong to the Vedic culture, but within the short time of four or five years they have become such wonderful devotees, simply by chanting the Hare Krsna mantra, that even in India they are well received as perfectly well-behaved Vaisnavas wherever they go.

Although less intelligent men cannot understand it, this is the special power of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Actually, the body of a Krsna conscious person changes in many ways. Even in the United States, when our devotees chant on the street, American ladies and gentlemen inquire from them whether they are actually Americans because no one could expect Americans to become such nice devotees all of a sudden. Even Christian priests are greatly surprised that all these boys from Jewish and Christian families have joined this Krsna consciousness movement; before joining, they never regarded any principles of religion seriously, but now they have become sincere devotees of the Lord. Everywhere people express this astonishment, and we take great pride in the transcendental behavior of our students. Such wonders are possible, however, only by the mercy of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. They are not ordinary or mundane.

Adi17.2

TEXT 2

jaya jaya sri-caitanya jaya nityananda

jayadvaitacandra jaya gaura-bhakta-vrnda

SYNONYMS

jaya jaya—all glories; sri-caitanya—to Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu; jaya—all glories; nityananda—to Lord Nityananda Prabhu; jaya advaita-candra—all glories to Advaita Acarya; jaya gaura-bhakta-vrnda—all glories to the devotees of Lord Caitanya.

TRANSLATION

All glories to Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu! All glories to Lord Nityananda Prabhu! All glories to Advaita Acarya! And all glories to the devotees of Lord Caitanya!

Adi17.3

TEXT 3

kaisora-lilara sutra karila ganana

yauvana-lilara sutra kari anukrama

SYNONYMS

kaisora-lilara—of the activities before His youth; sutra—synopsis; karila—I have done; ganana—an enumeration; yauvana-lilara—of the pastimes of youth; sutra—synopsis; kari—I enumerate; anukrama—in chronological order.

TRANSLATION

I have already given a synopsis of the kaisora-lila of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Now let me enumerate His youthful pastimes in chronological order.

Adi17.4

TEXT 4

vidya-saundarya-sad-vesa-

sambhoga-nrtya-kirtanaih

prema-nama-pradanais ca

gauro divyati yauvane

SYNONYMS

vidya—education; saundarya—beauty; sat-vesa—nice dress; sambhoga—enjoyment; nrtya—dancing; kirtanaih—by chanting; prema-nama—the holy name of the Lord, which induces one to become a devotee; pradanaih—by distributing; ca—and; gaurah—Lord Sri Gaurasundara; divyati—illuminated; yauvane—in His youth.

TRANSLATION

Exhibiting His scholarship, beauty and fine dress, Lord Caitanya danced, as He chanted and distributed the holy name of the Lord to awaken dormant love of Krsna. Thus Lord Sri Gaurasundara shone in His youthful pastimes.

Adi17.5

TEXT 5

yauvana-pravese angera anga vibhusana

divya vastra, divya vesa, malya-candana

SYNONYMS

yauvana-pravese—on the entrance of His youth; angera—of the body; anga—limbs; vibhusana—ornaments; divya—transcendental; vastra—garments; divya—transcendental; vesa—dress; malya—garland; candana—(smeared with) sandalwood pulp.

TRANSLATION

As He entered His youth, the Lord decorated Himself with ornaments, dressed Himself in fine cloth, garlanded Himself with flowers and smeared Himself with sandalwood.

Adi17.6

TEXT 6

vidyara auddhatye kahon na kare ganana

sakala pandita jini’ kare adhyapana

SYNONYMS

vidyara auddhatye—because of pride in education; kahon—anyone; na—does not; kare—do; ganana—care; sakala—all; pandita—learned scholars; jini’-conquering; kare—does; adhyapana—studies.

TRANSLATION

By dint of pride in His education, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, not caring for anyone else, defeated all kinds of learned scholars while executing His studies.

Adi17.7

TEXT 7

vayu-vyadhi-cchale kaila prema parakasa

bhakta-gana lana kaila vividha vilasa

SYNONYMS

vayu-vyadhi—disease caused by disturbance of the air in the body; chale—on the plea of; kaila—made; prema—love of Godhead; parakasa—manifestation; bhakta-gana—the devotees; lana—taking with Him; kaila—did; vividha—varieties of; vilasa—pastimes.

TRANSLATION

In His youth, the Lord exhibited His ecstatic love of Krsna on the plea of disturbances of the bodily airs. Accompanied by His confidential devotees, He enjoyed various pastimes in this way.

PURPORT

According to Ayur-vedic treatment, the entire physiological system is conducted by three elements, namely, vayu, pitta and kapha (air, bile and mucus). Secretions within the body transform into other secretions like blood, urine and stool, but if there are disturbances in the metabolism, the secretions turn into kapha (mucus) by the influence of the air within the body. According to the Ayur-vedic system, when the secretion of bile and formation of mucus disturb the air circulating within the body, fifty-nine varieties of disease may occur. One of such diseases is craziness.

On the plea of disturbance of the bodily air and metabolism, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu acted as if crazy. Thus in His school He began to explain the grammar of verbs through Krsna consciousness. Explaining everything in grammar in relationship to Krsna, the Lord induced His students to refrain from worldly education, for it is better to become Krsna conscious and in this way attain the highest perfectional platform of education. On these grounds, Sri Jiva Gosvami later compiled the grammar entitled Hari-namamrta-vyakarana. People in general consider such explanations crazy. Therefore the Lord’s purpose in His attitude of craziness was to explain that there is nothing within our experience but Krsna consciousness, for everything may be dovetailed with Krsna consciousness. These pastimes of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu have been very vividly described in the Caitanya-bhagavata, Madhya-khanda, Chapter One.

Adi17.8

TEXT 8

tabeta karila prabhu gayate gamana

isvara-purira sange tathai milana

SYNONYMS

tabeta—thereafter; karila—did; prabhu—Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu; gayate—to Gaya; gamana—travel; isvara-purira sange—with Isvara Puri; tathai—there; milana—meeting.

TRANSLATION

Thereafter the Lord went to Gaya. There He met Srila Isvara Puri.

PURPORT

Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu went to Gaya to offer respectful oblations to His forefathers. This process is called pinda-dana. In Vedic society, after the death of a relative, especially one’s father or mother, one must go to Gaya and there offer oblations to the lotus feet of Lord Visnu. Therefore hundreds and thousands of men gather in Gaya daily to offer such oblations, or sraddha. Following this principle, Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu also went there to offer pinda to His dead father. Fortunately He met Isvara Puri there.

Adi17.9

TEXT 9

diksa-anantare haila, premera prakasa

dese agamana punah premera vilasa

SYNONYMS

diksa—initiation; anantare—immediately after; haila—became; premera—of love of Godhead; prakasa—exhibition; dese—in His home country; agamana—coming back; punah—again; premera—of love of God; vilasa—enjoyment.

TRANSLATION

In Gaya, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was initiated by Isvara Puri, and immediately afterwards He exhibited signs of love of Godhead. He again displayed such symptoms after returning home.

PURPORT

When Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu went to Gaya, accompanied by many of His disciples, He became sick on the way. He had such a high fever that He asked His students to bring water that had washed the feet of brahmanas, and when they brought it the Lord drank it and was cured. Therefore everyone should respect the position of a brahmana, as indicated by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Neither the Lord nor His followers displayed any disrespect to brahmanas.

The followers of the Lord must be prepared to offer brahmanas all due respect. But preachers of Lord Caitanya’s cult object if someone presents himself as a brahmana without having the necessary qualifications. The followers of Lord Caitanya cannot blindly accept that everyone born in a brahmana family is a brahmana. Therefore one should not indiscriminately follow the Lord’s example of showing respect to brahmanas by drinking water that has washed their feet. Gradually the brahmana families have become degraded because of the contamination of Kali-yuga. Thus they misguide people by exploiting their sentiments.

Adi17.10

TEXT 10

sacike prema-dana, tabe advaita-milana

advaita paila visvarupa-darasana

SYNONYMS

sacike—unto mother Sacidevi; prema-dana—giving love of Godhead; tabe—thereafter; advaita—with Advaita Acarya; milana—meeting; advaita—Advaita Acarya; paila—received; visva-rupa—of the universal form of the Lord; darasana—vision.

TRANSLATION

Thereafter the Lord delivered love of Krsna to His mother, Sacidevi, nullifying her offense at the feet of Advaita Acarya. Thus there was a meeting with Advaita Acarya, who later had a vision of the Lord’s universal form.

PURPORT

One day Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was sitting on the throne of Visnu in the house of Srivasa Prabhu, and in a mood of His own He said, “My mother has offended the lotus feet of Advaita Acarya. Unless she nullifies this offense at the lotus feet of a Vaisnava, it will not be possible for her to achieve love of Krsna.” Hearing this, all the devotees went to bring Advaita Acarya there. While coming to see the Lord, Advaita Acarya was glorifying the characteristics of mother Sacidevi, and thus upon arriving He fell down on the ground in ecstasy. Then, under the instruction of Lord Caitanya, Sacidevi took advantage of this situation to touch Advaita Acarya’s lotus feet. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was very much pleased by His mother’s action, and He said, “Now My mother’s offense at the lotus feet of Advaita Acarya has been rectified, and she may have love of Krsna without difficulty.” By this example Lord Caitanya taught everyone that although one may be very much advanced in Krsna consciousness, if one offends the lotus feet of a Vaisnava his advancement will not bear fruit. We should therefore be very much conscious not to offend a Vaisnava. Caitanya-caritamrta has described such an offense as follows:

yadi vaisnava-aparadha uthe hati mata
upade va chinde, tara sukhi’ yaya pata

Adi17.11

TEXT 11

prabhura abhiseka tabe karila srivasa

khate vasi’ prabhu kaila aisvarya prakasa

SYNONYMS

prabhura—of the Lord; abhiseka—worship; tabe—after that; karila—did; srivasa—of the name Srivasa; khate—on the cot; vasi’-sitting; prabhu—Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu; kaila—did; aisvarya—opulence; prakasa—manifestation.

TRANSLATION

Srivasa Thakura then worshiped Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu by the process of abhiseka. Sitting on a cot, the Lord exhibited transcendental opulence.

PURPORT

Abhiseka is a special function for the installation of the Deity. In this ceremony the Deity is bathed with milk and water and then worshiped and given a change of dress. This abhiseka function was especially observed at the house of Srivasa. All the devotees, according to their means, worshiped the Lord with all kinds of paraphernalia, and the Lord gave benedictions to each devotee according to his desire.

Adi17.12

TEXT 12

tabe nityananda-svarupera agamana

prabhuke miliya paila sad-bhuja-darsana

SYNONYMS

tabe—thereafter; nityananda-svarupera—of the Personality of Godhead Nityananda; agamana—appearance; prabhuke—Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu; miliya—meeting; paila—obtained; sat-bhuja-darsana—a vision of the six-armed Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

TRANSLATION

After this function at the house of Srivasa Thakura, Nityananda Prabhu appeared, and when He met with Lord Caitanya He got the opportunity to see Him in His six-armed form.

PURPORT

The form of Sad-bhuja, the six-armed Lord Gaurasundara, is a representation of three incarnations. The form of Sri Ramacandra is symbolized by a bow and arrow, the form of Lord Sri Krsna is symbolized by a stick and flute like those generally held by a cowherd boy, and Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu is symbolized by a sannyasa-danda and kamandalu, or waterpot.

Srila Nityananda Prabhu was born in the village of Ekacakra in the district of Birbhum as the son of Padmavati and Hadai Pandita. In His childhood He played like Balarama. When He was growing up, a sannyasi came to the house of Hadai Pandita, begging to have the pandita’s son as his brahmacari assistant. Hadai Pandita immediately agreed and delivered his son to him, although the separation was greatly shocking, so much so that Hadai lost his life after the separation. Nityananda Prabhu traveled on many pilgrimages with the sannyasi. It is said that for many days He lived at Mathura with him, and at that time He heard about Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s pastimes in Navadvipa. Therefore He came down to Bengal to see the Lord. When Lord Nityananda came to Navadvipa, He was a guest at the house of Nandana Acarya. Understanding that Nityananda Prabhu had arrived, Lord Caitanya sent His devotees to Him, and thus there was a meeting between Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Nityananda Prabhu.

Adi17.13

TEXT 13

prathame sad-bhuja tanre dekhaila isvara

sankha-cakra-gada-padma-sarnga-venu-dhara

SYNONYMS

prathame—at first; sat-bhuja—six-armed; tanre—unto Him; dekhaila—showed; isvara—the Lord; sankha—conchshell; cakra—disc; gada—club; padma—lotus flower; sarnga—bow; venu—flute; dhara—carrying.

TRANSLATION

One day Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu exhibited to Lord Nityananda Prabhu a six-armed form bearing a conchshell, disc, club, lotus flower, bow and flute.

Adi17.14

TEXT 14

tabe catur-bhuja haila, tina anga vakra

dui haste venu bajaya, duye sankha-cakra

SYNONYMS

tabe—thereafter; catuh-bhuja—four-armed; haila—became; tina—three; anga—body; vakra—curved; dui haste—in two hands; venu bajaya—blowing the flute; duye—in two (hands); sankha-cakra—conchshell and disc.

TRANSLATION

Thereafter the Lord showed Him His four-armed form, standing in a three-curved posture. With two hands He played upon a flute, and in the other two He carried a conchshell and disc.

Adi17.15

TEXT 15

tabe ta’ dvi-bhuja kevala vamsi-vadana

syama-anga pita-vastra vrajendra-nandana

SYNONYMS

tabe—thereafter; ta’-certainly; dvi-bhuja—two-handed; kevala—only; vamsi—flute; vadana—on the mouth; syama—bluish; anga—body; pita-vastra—yellow dress; vrajendra-nandana—the son of Nanda Maharaja.

TRANSLATION

Finally the Lord showed Nityananda Prabhu His two-armed form of Krsna, the son of Maharaja Nanda, simply playing on His flute, His bluish body dressed in yellow garments.

PURPORT

Sri Caitanya-mangala vividly elaborates upon this description.

Adi17.16

TEXT 16

tabe nityananda-gosanira vyasa-pujana

nityanandavese kaila musala dharana

SYNONYMS

tabe—thereafter; nityananda—of the name Nityananda; gosanira—of the Lord; vyasa-pujana—worshiping Vyasadeva or the spiritual master; nityananda-avese—in the ecstasy of becoming Nityananda; kaila—did; musala dharana—carrying a plowlike weapon called a musala.

TRANSLATION

Nityananda Prabhu then arranged to offer Vyasa-puja, or worship of the spiritual master, to Lord Sri Gaurasundara. But Lord Caitanya carried the plowlike weapon called musala in the ecstasy of being Nityananda Prabhu.

PURPORT

By the order of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Nityananda Prabhu arranged for Vyasa-puja of the Lord on the night of the full moon. He arranged for the Vyasa-puja, or guru-puja, through the agency of Vyasadeva. Since Vyasadeva is the original guru (spiritual master) of all who follow the Vedic principles, worship of the spiritual master is called Vyasa-puja. Nityananda Prabhu arranged for the Vyasa-puja, and sankirtana was going on, but when He tried to put a garland on the shoulder of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, He saw Himself in Lord Caitanya. There is no difference between the spiritual positions of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Nityananda Prabhu, or Krsna and Balarama. All of Them are but different manifestations of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. During this special ceremony, all the devotees of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu could understand that there is no difference between Lord Caitanya and Nityananda Prabhu.

Adi17.17

TEXT 17

tabe saci dekhila, rama-krsna--dui bhai

tabe nistarila prabhu jagai-madhai

SYNONYMS

tabe—thereafter; saci—mother Sacidevi; dekhila—saw; rama-krsna—Lord Krsna and Lord Balarama; dui bhai—two brothers; tabe—thereafter; nistarila—delivered; prabhu—the Lord; jagai-madhai—the two brothers Jagai and Madhai.

TRANSLATION

Thereafter mother Sacidevi saw the brothers Krsna and Balarama in Their manifestation of Lord Caitanya and Nityananda. Then the Lord delivered the two brothers Jagai and Madhai.

PURPORT

One night Sacidevi dreamt that the Deities in her house, Krsna and Balarama, had taken the forms of Caitanya and Nityananda and were fighting one another, as children do, to eat the naivedya, or offering to the Deities. On the next day, by the will of Lord Caitanya, Sacidevi invited Nityananda to take prasada at her house. Thus Visvambhara (Lord Caitanya) and Nityananda were eating together, and Sacidevi realized that They were none other than Krsna and Balarama. Seeing this, she fainted.

Jagai and Madhai were two brothers born in Navadvipa in a respectable brahmana family who later became addicted to all kinds of sinful activities. By the order of Lord Caitanya, both Nityananda Prabhu and Haridasa Thakura used to preach the cult of Krsna consciousness door to door. In the course of such preaching they found Jagai and Madhai, two maddened drunken brothers, who, upon seeing them, began to chase them. On the next day, Madhai struck Nityananda Prabhu on the head with a piece of earthen pot, thus drawing blood. When Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu heard of this, He immediately came to the spot, ready to punish both brothers, but when the all-merciful Lord Gauranga saw Jagai’s repentant behavior, He immediately embraced him. By seeing the Supreme Personality of Godhead face to face and embracing Him, both the sinful brothers were at once cleansed. Thus they received initiation into the chanting of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra from the Lord and were delivered.

Adi17.18

TEXT 18

tabe sapta-prahara chila prabhu bhavavese

yatha tatha bhakta-gana dekhila visese

SYNONYMS

tabe—thereafter; sapta-prahara—twenty-one hours; chila—remained; prabhu—the Lord; bhava-avese—in ecstasy; yatha—anywhere; tatha—everywhere; bhakta-gana—the devotees; dekhila—saw; visese—specifically.

TRANSLATION

After this incident, the Lord remained in an ecstatic position for twenty-one hours, and all the devotees saw His specific pastimes.

PURPORT

Adi17.19

TEXT 19

varaha-avesa haila murari-bhavane

tanra skandhe cadi’ prabhu nacila angane

SYNONYMS

varaha-avesa—the ecstasy of becoming Varahadeva; haila—became; murari-bhavane—in the house of Murari Gupta; tanra skandhe—on the shoulders of Murari Gupta; cadi’-riding; prabhu—the Lord; nacila—danced; angane—in the yard.

TRANSLATION

One day Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu felt the ecstasy of the boar incarnation and got up on the shoulders of Murari Gupta. Thus they both danced in Murari Gupta’s courtyard.

PURPORT

One day Caitanya Mahaprabhu began to cry out, “Sukara! Sukara!” Thus crying out for the boar incarnation of the Lord, He assumed His form as the boar incarnation and got up on the shoulders of Murari Gupta. He carried a small gadu, a small waterpot with a nozzle, and thus He symbolically picked up the earth from the depths of the ocean, for this is the pastime of Lord Varaha.

Adi17.20

TEXT 20

tabe suklambarera kaila tandula-bhaksana

’harer nama’ slokera kaila artha vivarana

SYNONYMS

tabe—thereafter; suklambarera—of Suklambara Brahmacari; kaila—did; tandula—raw rice; bhaksana—eating; harer nama slokera—of the verse celebrated as such; kaila—did; artha—of the meaning; vivarana—explanation.

TRANSLATION

After this incident the Lord ate raw rice given by Suklambara Brahmacari and explained very elaborately the import of the “harer nama” sloka mentioned in the Brhan-naradiya Purana.

PURPORT

Suklambara Brahmacari resided in Navadvipa on the bank of the Ganges. When Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was dancing in ecstasy, he approached the Lord with a begging bag containing rice. The Lord was so pleased with His devotee that immediately He snatched the bag and began to eat the raw rice. No one forbade Him, and thus He finished the entire supply of rice.

Adi17.21

TEXT 21

harer nama harer nama

harer namaiva kevalam

kalau nasty eva nasty eva

nasty eva gatir anyatha

SYNONYMS

hareh nama—the holy name of the Lord; hareh nama—the holy name of the Lord; hareh nama—the holy name of the Lord; eva—certainly; kevalam—only; kalau—in the Age of Kali; na asti—there is none; eva—certainly; na asti—there is none; eva—certainly; na asti—there is none; eva—certainly; gatih—destination; anyatha—otherwise.

TRANSLATION

" ’In this Age of Kali there is no other means, no other means, no other means for self-realization than chanting the holy name, chanting the holy name, chanting the holy name of Lord Hari.’

Adi17.22

TEXT 22

kali-kale nama-rupe krsna-avatara

nama haite haya sarva-jagat-nistara

SYNONYMS

kali-kale—in this Age of Kali; nama-rupe—in the form of the holy name; krsna—Lord Krsna; avatara—incarnation; nama—holy name; haite—from; haya—becomes; sarva—all; jagat—of the world; nistara—deliverance.

TRANSLATION

"In this Age of Kali, the holy name of the Lord, the Hare Krsna maha-mantra, is the incarnation of Lord Krsna. Simply by chanting the holy name, one associates with the Lord directly. Anyone who does this is certainly delivered.

Adi17.23

TEXT 23

dardhya lagi’ ’harer nama’-ukti tina-vara

jada loka bujhaite punah ’eva’-kara

SYNONYMS

dardhya lagi’-in the matter of emphasizing; harer nama—of the holy name of Lord Hari; ukti—there is utterance; tina-vara—three times; jada loka—ordinary common people; bujhaite—just to make them understand; punah—again; eva-kara—the word eva, or “certainly.”

TRANSLATION

"This verse repeats the word ’eva’ [’certainly’] three times for emphasis, and it also three times repeats ’harer nama’ [’the holy name of the Lord’], just to make common people understand.

PURPORT

To emphasize something to an ordinary person, one may repeat it three times, just as one might say, “You must do this! You must do this! You must do this!” Thus the Brhan-naradiya Purana repeatedly emphasizes the chanting of the holy name so that people may take it seriously and thus free themselves from the clutches of maya. It is our practical experience in the Krsna consciousness movement all over the world that many millions of people are factually coming to the spiritual stage of life simply by chanting the Hare Krsna maha-mantra regularly, according to the prescribed principles. Therefore our request to all our students is that they daily chant at least sixteen rounds of this harer nama maha-mantra offenselessly, following the regulative principles. Thus their success will be assured without a doubt.