Detailed Biography: Srivasa Pandita
A Comprehensive Guide to Śrī Vṛndāvana Dhāma
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Detailed Biography
From Srila Vrndavana dasa Thakur's Chaitanya Bhagavat
...It is not possible for anyone to know God unless He makes Himself known. Thus, although Sri Gaurasundara revealed many miraculous pastimes in His childhood, due to the illusory potency of the Lord the devotees were unable to recognize the Nimai's transcendental position. Nevertheless, everyone's heart was filled with affection for the child. Srivasa Pandita and Malini devi regularly offered advice to Jagannatha Misra and Saci devi as to how to bring up the child. And Sri Gaurasundara looked upon Srivasa and Malini as his parents.
One day Srivasa Pandita instructed Sri Gaurasundara, who was very proud of his knowledge, about the value of education: "Why do people learn to read? The only purpose in reading is to increase one's Krsna consciousness. What is the use of education if you do not gain devotion to Krsna?" Hearing this Mahaprabhu smilingly replied, "Certainly, if you show your mercy and compassion upon me, then I will develop love for Krsna."
Sometime later Mahaprabhu went to Gaya, took initiation from Isvara Puri and began propagating the chanting of the holy name throughout the world. Day and night, the Lord was totally absorbed in the nectar of kirtana. At long last the devotees' sufferings were mitigated, but the non-devotees were greatly disturbed.
The atheistic population became enraged, and aimed abusive language at the devotees. Someone said, "I cannot even sleep at night." Another commented, "All their screaming and shouting will enrage the Lord, and that will cause their complete destruction." Another said, "They avoid philosophy and speculative knowledge, and so they behave arrogantly." Another said, "Who knows what they sing about? Behind all this mischief is that brahmana Srivasa. He and his three brothers get together and scream, `Krsna! Krsna!' like madmen, just to fill their bellies. Does not one earn piety by chanting in his mind? Or is it sheer madness?
The whole country will be ruined because of this Srivasa. Today I heard in the king's court that they will send two boats with government men to capture anyone who sings kirtana in Nadia. This is the king's order. Srivasa Pandita and his men will run away and escape, but we will have to suffer the entire brunt of this. I warned all of you earlier to throw Srivasa's house into the river. But you did not act because you thought I was joking. But now it is too late, the danger has come upon us." Another said, "What do we care? If the government men come here we will just capture Srivasa and hand him over to them." The atheistic population of Navadvipa discussed about the Vaisnavas in this manner while the two boats with the government men came to Navadvipa.
The Vaisnavas heard this news and simply took shelter of the Supreme Lord by remembering Him. In this way all of their fears were dissolved. They said, "Whatever the Supreme Lord Krsnacandra wants will happen, and it is for the best. As long as He is there, then what fear do we have from these wretched people?" Srivasa Pandita was a soft-hearted and magnanimous soul. This news disturbed him, and he became anxious for the well-being of the Vaisnavas. He was apprehensive because he knew that anything could happen under the Muslim rule.
Mahaprabhu Manifests Himself
The Supreme Lord Gaurasundara, the Supersoul, knew everything in everyone's heart. The devotees still were not aware that the Supreme Lord had come and was amongst them. Now the Lord began to manifest Himself. Lord Visvambhara roamed everywhere, unperturbed and unconcerned, his transcendental beauty unmatched within the entire creation.
His body was decorated with sandalwood paste, His reddish lips were like the early morning sun, and His eyes were like blooming lotus flowers. Cascading curly tresses shone like a halo around His glowing moon-like face. He wore a brahmana thread around His shoulders, and dressed in fine clothes. His exquisite personal beauty completely captivated the mind. Casually chewing on pan, He went for a walk on the river bank.
When the devotees saw the Lord, they became very joyful, but the atheistic people felt intimidated. "He must have heard everything," they said, "Yet He shows no sign of fear. He strolls about as though He is a prince." Another person said, "Listen friends, I understand all this, wait and see. What you are observing now is just another trick to escape."
Fearlessly, Lord Visvambhara looked in every direction, observing the scenic beauty of the swift flowing Ganga and her banks. He saw a herd of cows grazing on the banks. Some of them went to the river to drink water, and few young ones jumped about with raised tails. Some of them were butting each other, while others just lay around chewing their cud. This sight immediately agitated the Lord. He forgot Himself, and began emitting loud roaring sounds. He kept saying, "I am Him, I am Him." In this condition the Lord ran to Srivasa's house shouting, "What are you doing now Srivasa?"
Srivasa was engaged in worshiping Lord Nrsimhadeva behind closed doors. The Lord came and kicked the door and screamed out, "Who are you worshiping? Whom are you meditating on? The person who you are worshiping is here!" Saying this, Mahaprabhu entered the Deity room, sat on the throne of Visnu and manifested His four-armed form.
Srivasa trembled, and sat awestruck. The Lord spoke to Srivasa calling out, "Oh Srivasa, all this time you did not know who I was. I left My spiritual abode of Vaikuntha and came down to this material world at your beckoning, because of your loud chanting of the holy name, and Advaita Acarya Prabhu's loud calling. Not recognizing Me, you are living completely complacent and unconcerned. Advaita Acarya Prabhu has even gone back to Santipura just to avoid Me. I have come to protect the pious and punish the miscreants. There is no need for you to worry, just go on worshiping Me."
Tears filled Srivasa's eyes and his heart swelled with love for the Lord. All his fears were destroyed by the Lord's assuring words. Currents of joy passed through his body, and he stood up with folded hands, offering prayers to the Lord. Srivasa Pandita was a good and pure devotee, as well as a great scholar. Having received the Lord's order, he began to offer prayers to Him. He recited from the Srimad-Bhagavatam Lord Brahma's prayers to Lord Krsna,
- "Oh Lord, You are the eternally worshipable Supreme Personality of Godhead. Your complexion is blackish like the monsoon cloud, and the color of Your cloth is yellow like a flash of lightning. Wild flowers adorn Your ears, and a peacock feather adorns Your crown. Your face looks so exquisite, beautified by the gently swaying flower garland hanging around Your neck. Your mouth is smeared with the curd that You have just eaten. Your transcendental possessions--the cane, horn, and flute--are special features of Your beauty. Your feet are soft like the petals of the lotus.
- I worship You, the son of Maharaja Nanda. I worship the lotus feet of Lord Visvambhara, whose complexion is like the blackish monsoon cloud, and who wears a yellow dress. I offer my obeisances at the lotus feet of the son of Mother Saci, whose ornaments are a bunch of wild flowers and a peacock feather. Nimai, who is decorated with a flower garland, holds a preparation of sweet rice in His hands.
- I offer obeisances at the lotus feet of the son of Sri Jagannatha Misra, Nimai. A million full moons fade before the exquisite beauty of His face. I offer my obeisances at Your feet My Lord, You who hold the cane and the flute. I offer my obeisances to Your lotus feet, You who have been declared by the Vedas as the son of Maharaja Nanda."
Srivasa Pandita prayed like Brahma to the Lord's lotus feet. The words of transcendental praise flowed out with ease from his mouth, and he spoke on,
- "You are the Supreme Lord Visnu. You are Lord Krsna. You are the Lord of all sacrifices. The holiest of rivers, the Ganga, has sprung from Your lotus feet. You are the life and beloved son of Janaka MaharajaA Lord Ramacandra, and You are Lord Nrsimhadeva. Lord Brahma and Lord Siva are like bumblebees searching for honey at Your lotus feet.
- You are the knower and compiler of the Vedas, and You are the Supreme Lord Narayana. You appeared as Lord Vamana to trick Bali Maharaja. You are Lord Hayagriva. You are the soul of the universe. You are Lord Jagannatha-the moon of Nilacala, and You are the ultimate cause of all causes.
- Is there anyone who is not subordinate to Your energies, whether it be Your insurmountable material energy or Your internal spiritual energy? Even Laksmi-devi is unaware of this, although she is Your constant companion. Lord Sesa who acts as a friend, companion, and brother, and who serves You in every respect, is even subjected to Your illusory potency, what to speak of others.
- "My rare human birth has been wasted because I could not recognize You. In various ways You have deluded me, My Lord, so I was unable to recognize You. Oh Lord of my heart, please listen to me. Now that I have met you I disregard all of my fears. All my sorrows and sufferings have vanished. My life has again begun, my day has come.
- My whole life and all of my endeavors have now become successful. The sun of good fortune has risen in my heart. My forefathers have been liberated, and my house has been sanctified. My eyes have never been blessed with such a wonderful sight as I am seeing today. I see Him whose lotus feet are most worshipable by the goddess of fortune, Ramadevi."
Observing the wonderful form of the Lord, Srivasa Pandita was unable to control himself, and he fell into an ecstatic trance. Currents of joy ran through his body, and he merged into an ocean of happiness. With raised arms he wept and breathed heavily, then rolled on the ground.
The Lord smiled and accepted Srivasa's prayers with great satisfaction. "Bring all your relatives in the house and let them see My form," the Lord said. "Along with your wife, worship My feet and ask for any boon that your heart desires."
Following the instructions of the Lord, Srivasa went into his house and gathered all his relatives, friends and wife, and returned quickly to the presence of the Lord. Weeping with joy, Srivasa offered all the flowers collected for the worship of Lord Visnu to the lotus feet of Lord Caitanya. With fragrant flowers, incense and lamp, Srivasa, along with his wife, brothers, other relatives, servants and maidservants, offered worship at the lotus feet of the Lord. They fell down and earnestly prayed, pleading for the Lord's mercy.
Srivasa was very dear to the Lord, therefore the Lord blessed him, as well as everyone present, by placing His lotus feet on their heads. Smiling, He said, "May your attachment and attraction for Me increase." The Lord spoke loudly like a roaring lion, and addressing Srivasa said, "Oh Srivasa, are you afraid of something? News has reached Me that the government men want to capture you, and they have come with two boats.
I am the Supersoul within everyone's heart, I control and direct everyone's activities according to My sweet will. The king can only capture you if I, being situated in his heart, prompt him to do so. Yet, for some reason, if he acts independently and gives the order to capture you, then I will do the following: I will be the first to step into the boat and present Myself before the king. On seeing Me do you think that he will still continue to sit on the throne?
I will delude him and take control of him. If the king evades this move of Mine, then I have another alternative. I will tell the king, `Listen to the truth, oh king. Call all of your religious heads and judges to come to the court. Collect all of your elephants, horses, animals, and birds, etc. Whatever you have, bring them to your place. Then order all of your Kazi priests to read from your scriptures and inspire every listener to such a state of spiritual emotion that they begin to cry.' If they fail to do so, then I will reveal my true identity to the king.
Then I will say, `Oh king, on the instructions of these same Kazi priests, whose spiritual powers we have already witnessed, you want to forbid the congregational chanting of the holy name of God. Now you shall see My power to the full satisfaction of your eyes. I will capture a mad elephant and bring him here, along with other elephants, horses, deer and other animals, and make them all cry in ecstasy and chant Krsna's name.'
I will make the king and all his men cry and chant Krsna's name. I know that you don't believe that it is possible, but I will show you right now and you can see for yourself."
Lord Bestows Mercy On Narayani
The Lord noticed a small girl named Narayani, who was the daughter of Srivasa Pandita's brother. Lord Gauracandra, the Supreme Godhead, the Supersoul within everyone's heart, ordered the little girl, "Narayani! Chant Krsna's name and cry in ecstasy." The four-year-old girl became extremely agitated with ecstatic spiritual emotions and cried out, "Oh Krsna!" She began to weep, losing all perception of the external world. Tears streamed down her body, and she fell to the ground. Smiling, Lord Visvambhara asked Srivasa, "Are your fears pacified now?" Vaisnavas will remember for many years to come how Narayani was a recipient of the Lord's mercy.
Srivasa, a very learned Pandita who is well versed in all the scriptural conclusions, threw up both of his hands and said, "My Lord, when you exhibit Your terrible form as all-devouring time, and annihilate this entire material creation, I will fearlessly chant Your holy name. Now that You are here, present before me in my house, what fear do I have?"
Seeing the Lord manifest His opulent Vaikuntha form, Srivasa, along with all the assembled relatives, brothers, wife, and servants went into ecstatic trance. The transcendental form of the Lord which even the personified Vedas are eager to see, was now being seen by the servants and maidservants of Srivasa Thakura. How can I possibly describe the magnanimous nature of Srivasa Pandita? A little dust from his lotus feet can purify the entire creation.
Lord Krsna appeared in the prison house of Vasudeva, and all of His pastimes were performed in the house of Nanda Maharaja. Similarly, Lord Caitanya appeared in the house of Sri Jagannatha Misra, but all His Vrndavana pastimes were performed in Srivasa Pandita's house. Srivasa Pandita was loved by all the Vaisnavas. Anyone who came to Srivasa's house experienced great joy. Even the servants and maidservants in the house of such a devotee can see the rarest of sights, the Supreme Personality of Godhead in person.
From this we can understand that serving a pure devotee is the best process of attaining the supreme goal, because by the mercy of a Vaisnava one can certainly receive the shelter of Krsna's lotus feet. Lord Visvambhara ordered Srivasa Pandita, "Do not speak about this incident to anyone."
When the Lord regained His external consciousness He felt very ashamed of Himself, and after comforting Srivasa Pandita He returned to His own house. Srivasa Pandita's whole house was immersed in jubilation.
In the house of Srivasa Pandita, the Lord enjoyed innumerable transcendental pastimes. In Srivasa's house there was a maid servant named Dukhi who brought water daily for the Lord's bath. One day Sri Gaurasundara asked her what her name was. Hearing the reply, "Dukhi," the Lord changed her name to "Sukhi," saying, "Whoever chants the name of God will be happy."
In due course of time Sri Nityananda Prabhu joined Mahaprabhu in his Navadvipa pastimes. Sri Nityananda Prabhu regularly stayed in the courtyard of Srivasa and Sri Malini devi took care of Him as a son.
Deliverance of Srivasa's Son
One day, as was usual, the Lord was dancing in Srivasa Pandita's house. The devotees surrounded the Lord and sang and danced. Just then in the inner quarters of the house the son of Srivasa passed away due to some illness while the ladies helplessly looked on. Outside the kirtana was in full progress and the Lord danced in ecstacy. Suddenly sounds of loud wailing filled the air.
Srivasa Pandita hurried inside the house and saw his son lying dead on the bed. Srivasa was a very elevated devotee, grave and knowledgeable. He took charge of the situation and forbade the ladies to lament so bitterly. He said, "You are all aware of Lord Krishna's transcendental potencies, hence restrain your tears and contain the sorrow in your heart. The Lord, whose holy name is capable of purifying even the most dreadful sinner, is now present here in person and dancing in ecstacy with His servitors, who are each like Lord Brahma himself. If someone leaves his body at this auspicious moment why should anyone lament. I would consider myself very fortunate if I had the same fate as this boy.
Although you are unable give up attachment from your family members, you should at least stop your crying. Nobody else should learn about this incident lest this raises an alarm and disturbs the Lord's bliss in dancing. If happens then I shall certainly throw myself into the Ganges." These words had a sobering effect on the women and they stopped crying. Srivasa Pandita went back to join the kirtana. He was soon flying high on the waves of divine bliss generated by the kirtana and the Lord's presence. Srivasa Pandita was undoubtedly a very rare and exalted devotee, and such are indeed the characteristics of a servant of Lord Caitanya.
The Lord danced for awhile sometime, until news of Srivasa Pandita's son's passing away reached the devotees. Still no one openly expressed any emotions, although they were all profoundly moved within. Lord Caitanya, the omniscient Supreme Personality knew everyone's heart. He enquired, "Today something perturbs My thoughts, what distress has cast its dark shadow in your house Pandita?" Srivasa replied, "My Lord, what distress can effect me as long as Your benign smiling face illuminates my house."
Finally some leading devotees informed the Lord about the demise of Srivasa's son. Gravely the Lord asked, "When did this happen," and was told that it had occurred earlier in the evening at about four o'clock." The Lord was told, "You were not informed of this matter because Srivasa was concerned about disturbing Your dancing. His son passed away about two and a half hours ago. With Your permission we can begin the necessary last rites now. When Lord Caitanya heard this wonderful story about Srivasa Pandita, He was amazed.
The Lord began to weep and said, "How can I ever live without such an extraordinary companion? How can I leave the association of such a saintly person who is unaffected by the demise of his son due to his love for Me?" Speaking in this manner the Lord broke down and wept bitterly. The devotees were perplexed by the Lord's words which indicated He was going away. They had no idea that the Lord would soon leave home and accept sannyasa.
When the Lord calmed Himself He took all the devotees to attend to the dead boy. In the presence of all the devotees the Lord addressed the deceased son of Srivasa Pandita: "For what reason did you leave Srivasa Pandita's house?" The devotees were indeed surprised that the Lord was speaking to a dead body.
Their surprise turned to sheer amazement when the deceased young boy spoke up saying, "My Lord, everything happens according to Your will alone, who can influence Your will?" The devotees listened attentively to each word. The boy continued, "I have enjoyed in this body for the time prescribed. Now that the time period is over I am leaving to accept another body. My Lord, although I must leave my present body please be merciful to me so that I may never forget You. Who is one's father, and who is one's son? Everyone is here to act on the result of ones individual karma.
As long as my destiny allowed me to remain in Srivasa Pandita's house I have stayed, but now I must leave for yet another residence. My Lord, I offer my humble obeisances unto You and Your dear associates, please forgive all my offenses and permit me to take Your leave." With these parting words the child lay still.
This wonderful miracle of the dead boy speaking such words of wisdom was an extremely enlightening experience for the devotees. The entire family of Srivasa was now carried away by the waves of ecstacy and their lamentation past like a dream. Experiencing the bliss of love of Godhead they threw themselves at the Lord's lotus feet and said,
- "O Lord birth after birth You are the father, mother, and son. May we never forget the shade of Your lotus feet. Let us take birth in any condition and place, but please let our devotion at Your lotus feet be unflinching."
Srivasa Pandita and his three brothers prayed earnestly to the Lord and all the devotees cried out in appreciation and joy.
The Lord said, "Listen to Me Srivasa! You are well conversant with the knowledge of material life and you are unaffected by the distressful conditions of family life. Not only that, you are so elevated that anyone who sees you will also become free from this entanglement. Nityananda and Myself are Your two sons, so remove the pain of separation in your heart." The devotees jubilantly greeted these words of divine compassion and love from the Lord.
The Lord accompanied all the devotees as they carried Srivasa's son to the Ganga, performing kirtana all the way. After the rites were completed they all bathed in the Ganga and everyone returned to their home, chanting the holy name of Krishna. Srivasa and his family also returned home feeling satisfied.
When Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu accepted sannyasa, Srivasa Pandita went to reside at Kumarhatta. Every year he and his brothers visited Nilacala to see the Lord. He often visited Mayapura-Navadvipa and stayed for a few days with Saci mata.
When Saci mata came from Puri to Gauda to worship the Ganges, Mahaprabhu went to the house of Srivasa Pandita at Kumarhatta. Mahaprabhu gave Srivasa Pandita a boon that he would never be poverty stricken. Srivasa Pandita and his three brothers happily served Sri Gaurasundara throughout their lives. Srivasa Pandita was the manifestation of Sri Narada Muni. He was the playmate of the Lord in all of His pastimes. (CBh. Madhya 25)