Chapter 16

The Pastimes of the Lord in His Childhood and Youth

This chapter fully describes Lord Caitanya's kaisora-lila, or the activities He performed just before attaining youth. During this time He studied deeply and was victorious over greatly learned scholars. During His kaisora-lila the Lord also sported in the water. He went to East Bengal to secure financial assistance, cultivate knowledge and introduce the sankirtana movement, and there He met Tapana Misra, whom He instructed about spiritual advancement and ordered to go to Varanasi. While Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu was touring East Bengal, His wife, Laksmidevi, was bitten by a serpent or by the serpent of separation, and thus she left this world. When the Lord returned home, He saw that His mother was overwhelmed with grief because of Laksmidevi's death. Therefore at her request He later married His second wife, Visnupriya-devi. This chapter also describes the Lord's argument with Kesava Kasmiri, the celebrated scholar, and the Lord's criticism of his prayer glorifying mother Ganges. In this prayer the Lord found five kinds of literary ornaments and five kinds of literary faults, thus defeating the pandita. Later the Kasmiri Pandita, who was known to have been victorious all over the country, submitted himself to the goddess of learning, and by her order he met Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu on the morning of the next day and surrendered unto Him.

TEXT 1

krpa-sudha-sarid yasya
visvam aplavayanty api
nica-gaiva sada bhati
tam caitanya-prabhum bhaje

SYNONYMS

krpa-sudha--of the nectar of the mercy; sarit--river; yasya--whose; visvam--the whole universe; aplavayanti--inundating; api--although; nica-ga eva--more inclined to the poor and fallen; sada--always; bhati--is manifest; tam--Him; caitanya-prabhum--Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu; bhaje--I worship.

TRANSLATION

I worship Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, whose nectarean mercy flows like a great river, inundating the entire universe. Just as a river flows downstream, Lord Caitanya especially extends Himself to the fallen.

PURPORT

Narottama dasa Thakura has sung, sri-krsna-caitanya prabhu daya kara more. He prays for Lord Caitanya's mercy because He is the mercy incarnation, having appeared especially to claim the fallen souls. The more fallen one is, the greater one's claim to the favor of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. One must only be very sincere and serious. Despite being contaminated by all the bad qualities of this Kali-yuga, if one surrenders unto the lotus feet of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the Lord will surely and certainly deliver him. The best example is Jagai and Madhai. In this Age of Kali practically everyone is like Jagai and Madhai, but the sankirtana movement inaugurated by Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu is still flowing like a great river, inundating the entire world, and thus the International Society for Krishna Consciousness is successfully claiming all fallen souls to free them from contamination.






TEXT 2

jaya jaya sri-caitanya jaya nityananda
jayadvaitacandra jaya gaura-bhakta-vrnda

SYNONYMS

jaya jaya sri-caitanya--all glories to Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu; jaya--all glories; nityananda--to Lord Nityananda Prabhu; jaya advaitacandra--all glories to Advaitacandra; jaya--all glories; gaura-bhakta-vrnda--to all the devotees of the Lord.

TRANSLATION

All glories to Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu! All glories to Lord Nityananda! All glories to Advaitacandra! And all glories to all the devotees of the Lord!






TEXT 3

jiyat kaisora-caitanyo
murti-matya grhasramat
laksmyarcito 'tha vag-devya
disam jayi-jaya-cchalat

SYNONYMS

jiyat--long live; kaisora--situated in the kaisora age; caitanyah--Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu; murti-matya--having accepted such a body; grha-asramat--from a householder's life; laksmya--by Laksmi; arcitah--being worshiped; atha--then; vak-devya--by the goddess of learning; disam--of all directions; jayi--the conqueror; jaya-chalat--on the plea of conquering.

TRANSLATION

Long live Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu in His kaisora age! Both the goddess of fortune and the goddess of learning worship Him. The goddess of learning, Sarasvati, worshiped Him in His victory over the scholar who had conquered all the world, and the goddess of fortune, Laksmidevi, worshiped Him at home. Since He is therefore the husband or Lord of both goddesses, I offer my obeisances unto Him.






TEXT 4

ei ta' kaisora-lilara sutra-anubandha
sisya-gana padaite karila arambha

SYNONYMS

ei ta'--thus; kaisora--the age of kaisora (the age between the eleventh and fifteenth years); lilara--of the pastimes; sutra-anubandha--chronological synopsis; sisya-gana--students; padaite--to teach; karila--did; arambha--begin.

TRANSLATION

At the age of eleven Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu began to teach students. This marks the beginning of His kaisora age.






TEXT 5

sata sata sisya sange sada adhyapana
vyakhya suni sarva-lokera camakita mana

SYNONYMS

sata sata--very many; sisya--disciples; sange--along with Him; sada--always; adhyapana--studying; vyakhya--explanation; suni--hearing; sarva-lokera--of all people; camakita--astonished; mana--minds.

TRANSLATION

As soon as the Lord became a teacher, many, many students came to Him, every one of them astonished to hear His mode of explanation.






TEXT 6

sarva-sastre sarva pandita paya parajaya
vinaya-bhangite karo duhkha nahi haya

SYNONYMS

sarva-sastre--in all scriptures; sarva--all; pandita--learned scholars; paya--obtain; parajaya--defeat; vinaya--gentle; bhangite--by behavior; karo--anyone's; duhkha--unhappiness; nahi--does not; haya--become.

TRANSLATION

The Lord defeated all kinds of scholars in discourses about all the scriptures, yet because of His gentle behavior, none of them were unhappy.






TEXT 7

vividha auddhatya kare sisya-gana-sange
jahnavite jala-keli kare nana range

SYNONYMS

vividha--various; auddhatya--impudences; kare--does; sisya-gana--His disciples; sange--with; jahnavite--in the water of the Ganges; jala-keli--sporting in the water; kare--does; nana--in various; range--jokes.

TRANSLATION

The Lord, as a teacher, performed various kinds of pranks in His sporting pastimes in the water of the Ganges.






TEXT 8

kata dine kaila prabhu bangete gamana
yahan yaya, tahan laoyaya nama-sankirtana

SYNONYMS

kata dine--after a few days; kaila--did; prabhu--the Lord; bangete--in East Bengal; gamana--touring; yahan yaya--wherever He goes; tahan--there; laoyaya--induces; nama-sankirtana--the sankirtana movement.

TRANSLATION

After some days the Lord went to East Bengal, and wherever He went He introduced the sankirtana movement.

PURPORT

Although Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and His devotees in disciplic succession can defeat all kinds of learned scholars, scientists and philosophers in arguments, thus establishing the supremacy of the Personality of Godhead, their main business as preachers is to introduce sankirtana everywhere. Simply to defeat scholars and philosophers is not the occupation of a preacher. Preachers must simultaneously introduce the sankirtana movement, for that is the mission of the Caitanya cult.






TEXT 9

vidyara prabhava dekhi camatkara cite
sata sata paduya asi lagila padite

SYNONYMS

vidyara--of His learning; prabhava--the influence; dekhi--seeing; camatkara--wonder; cite--within the heart; sata sata--many hundreds; paduya--disciples or students; asi--coming there; lagila--began; padite--to study.

TRANSLATION

Struck with wonder by the influence of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu's intellectual prowess, many hundreds of students came to the Lord and began studying under His direction.






TEXT 10

sei dese vipra, nama----misra tapana
niscaya karite nare sadhya-sadhana

SYNONYMS

sei dese--in that region of East Bengal; vipra--a brahmana; nama--named; misra tapana--Tapana Misra; niscaya karite--to ascertain; nare--not able; sadhya--objective; sadhana--process.

TRANSLATION

In East Bengal there was a brahmana named Tapana Misra who could not ascertain the objective of life or how to attain it.

PURPORT

One must first ascertain the object of life and then understand how to attain it. The Krsna consciousness movement is pointing out to everyone that the object of life is to understand Krsna, and to attain that goal of life one must practice Krsna consciousness, following the methods prescribed by the Gosvamis with reference to the authoritative sastras and Vedas.






TEXT 11

bahu-sastre bahu-vakye citte bhrama haya
sadhya-sadhana srestha na haya niscaya

SYNONYMS

bahu-sastre--by many books or scriptures; bahu-vakye--by many versions of many persons; citte--within the heart; bhrama--doubt; haya--there is; sadhya-sadhana--objective and means; srestha--about the best; na--not; haya--there is; niscaya--certainty.

TRANSLATION

If one becomes a bookworm, reading many books and scriptures and hearing many commentaries and the instructions of many men, this will produce doubt within his heart. One cannot in this way ascertain the real goal of life.

PURPORT

In Srimad-Bhagavatam (7.13.8) it is said, granthan naivabhyased bahun na vyakhyam upayunjita: "One should not read many books, nor should one try to make a profession of reciting many books, especially if one is a devotee." One must give up the ambition to be a learned scholar and in this way earn a worldly reputation and financial facilities. If one diverts his attention to studying many books, he cannot fix his mind in devotional service, nor can he understand many scriptures, for they are full of grave statements and meanings. In this connection Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura gives his opinion that those who are attracted to studying many kinds of literature concerning various subject matters, especially fruitive activities and philosophical speculation, are deprived of unalloyed devotional service because of their splayed attention.

Man has a general tendency toward fruitive activities, religious ritualistic ceremonies and philosophical speculation. A living entity thus bewildered since time immemorial does not understand the real goal of life, and thus his activities in life are wasted. Innocent persons misled in this way are deprived of unalloyed krsna-bhakti, devotional service to the Lord. Tapana Misra is a vivid example of such a person. He was a learned scholar, but he could not ascertain what the goal of life is. Therefore he was given a chance to hear Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu instructing Sanatana Gosvami. Lord Caitanya's instruction to Tapana Misra is especially significant for persons who loiter here and there collecting books and reading none of them, thus becoming bewildered regarding the aim of life.






TEXT 12

svapne eka vipra kahe,----sunaha tapana
nimani-pandita pase karaha gamana

SYNONYMS

svapne--in a dream; eka--one; vipra--brahmana; kahe--says; sunaha--just hear; tapana--Tapana Misra; nimani-pandita--of the name Nimai Pandita; pase--unto Him; karaha gamana--go.

TRANSLATION

Tapana Misra, being thus bewildered, was directed by a brahmana in a dream to go to Nimai Pandita [Caitanya Mahaprabhu].






TEXT 13

tenho tomara sadhya-sadhana karibe niscaya
saksat isvara tenho,----nahika samsaya

SYNONYMS

tenho--He; tomara--your; sadhya--objective of life; sadhana--process; karibe--will do; niscaya--ascertain; saksat--direct; isvara--the Lord; tenho--He is; nahika--there is no; samsaya--doubt.

TRANSLATION

"Because He is the Lord [isvara]," the brahmana told him, "undoubtedly He can give you proper direction."






TEXT 14

svapna dekhi' misra asi' prabhura carane
svapnera vrttanta saba kaila nivedane

SYNONYMS

svapna dekhi'--by seeing the dream; misra--Tapana Misra; asi'--coming; prabhura--of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu; carane--at the shelter of the lotus feet; svapnera--of the dream; vrttanta--details; saba--all; kaila--did; nivedane--inform Him.

TRANSLATION

After seeing the dream, Tapana Misra came to the shelter of Lord Caitanya's lotus feet, and he described all the details of the dream to the Lord.






TEXT 15

prabhu tusta hana sadhya-sadhana kahila
nama-sankirtana kara,----upadesa kaila

SYNONYMS

prabhu--the Lord; tusta--satisfied; hana--becoming; sadhya-sadhana--the objective and the process; kahila--described; nama-sankirtana--chanting of the Hare Krsna mantra; kara--practice; upadesa kaila--gave him the instruction.

TRANSLATION

The Lord, being satisfied, instructed him about the object of life and the process to attain it. He instructed him that the basic principle of success is to chant the holy name of the Lord [the Hare Krsna maha-mantra].

PURPORT

The Krsna consciousness movement is based upon this instruction of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu that one must chant the Hare Krsna maha-mantra regularly and according to the prescribed principles. We simply ask our Western students to chant at least sixteen rounds a day, but sometimes we find that they fail to chant even these sixteen rounds, and instead they bring many austere books and a worshiping method that diverts their attention in so many ways. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's cult is based upon the chanting of the Hare Krsna mantra. Lord Caitanya first advised Tapana Misra to fix his mind in this chanting. We, the members of the Krsna consciousness movement, must strictly follow this advice of Caitanya Mahaprabhu.






TEXT 16

tanra iccha,----prabhu-sange navadvipe vasi
prabhu ajna dila,----tumi yao varanasi

SYNONYMS

tanra iccha--his desire; prabhu-sange--with the Lord; navadvipe--in Navadvipa; vasi--I live there; prabhu ajna dila--but the Lord advised him; tumi--you; yao--go; varanasi--to Benares.

TRANSLATION

Tapana Misra desired to live with the Lord in Navadvipa, but the Lord asked him to go to Varanasi [Benares].






TEXT 17

tahan ama-sange tomara habe darasana
ajna pana misra kaila kasite gamana

SYNONYMS

tahan--there; ama-sange--with Me; tomara--your; habe--there will be; darasana--meeting; ajna pana--receiving this order; misra--Tapana Misra; kaila--did; kasite--to Benares; gamana--going.

TRANSLATION

The Lord assured Tapana Misra that they would meet again in Varanasi. Receiving this order, Tapana Misra went there.






TEXT 18

prabhura atarkya-lila bujhite na pari
sva-sanga chadana kene pathaya kasipuri

SYNONYMS

prabhura--Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu's; atarkya-lila--inconceivable pastimes; bujhite--to understand; na--not; pari--able; sva-sanga--personal association; chadana--avoiding; kene--why; pathaya--sends; kasi-puri--to Benares.

TRANSLATION

I cannot understand the inconceivable pastimes of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu, for although Tapana Misra wanted to live with Him in Navadvipa, the Lord advised him to go to Varanasi.

PURPORT

When Tapana Misra met Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Lord Caitanya was living in household life, and there was no indication that in the future He would accept the sannyasa order. But by asking Tapana Misra to go to Varanasi He indicated that in the future He would accept sannyasa and that when He would teach Sanatana Gosvami, Tapana Misra would take advantage of the opportunity to learn the object of life and the real process of attaining it.






TEXT 19

ei mata bangera lokera kaila maha hita
'nama' diya bhakta kaila, padana pandita

SYNONYMS

ei mata--in this way; bangera--of East Bengal; lokera--of the people; kaila--contributed; maha--great; hita--benefit; nama--the holy name of the Lord; diya--giving them; bhakta--devotees; kaila--made them; padana--by educating them; pandita--learned scholars.

TRANSLATION

In this way Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu contributed the greatest benefit to the people of East Bengal by initiating them into hari-nama, the chanting of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra, and making them learned scholars by educating them.

PURPORT

Following in the footsteps of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the Krsna consciousness movement is distributing the Hare Krsna maha-mantra and inducing people all over the world to chant. We are giving people an immense treasury of transcendental literature, translated into all the important languages of the world, and by the grace of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu this literature is selling profusely, and people are chanting the Hare Krsna maha-mantra with great delight. This is the preaching process of the Caitanya cult. Since the Lord wanted this cult preached all over the world, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness is acting in a humble way so that the vision of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu may be fulfilled all over the world, especially in the Western countries.






TEXT 20

ei mata bange prabhu kare nana lila
etha navadvipe laksmi virahe duhkhi haila

SYNONYMS

ei mata--in this way; bange--in East Bengal; prabhu--Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu; kare--does; nana--various; lila--pastimes; etha--here; navadvipe--in Navadvipa; laksmi--the wife of Nimai Pandita; virahe--in separation; duhkhi--unhappy; haila--became.

TRANSLATION

Because the Lord was engaged in various ways in preaching work in East Bengal, His wife, Laksmidevi, was very unhappy at home in separation from her husband.






TEXT 21

prabhura viraha-sarpa laksmire damsila
viraha-sarpa-vise tanra paraloka haila

SYNONYMS

prabhura--of the Lord; viraha-sarpa--the separation snake; laksmire--Laksmidevi; damsila--bit; viraha-sarpa--of the separation snake; vise--by the poison; tanra--her; para-loka--next world; haila--it so happened.

TRANSLATION

The snake of separation bit Laksmidevi, and its poison caused her death. Thus she passed to the next world. She went back home, back to Godhead.

PURPORT

As stated in the Bhagavad-gita (8.6), yam yam vapi smaran bhavam tyajaty ante kalevaram: one's practice in thinking throughout his entire life determines the quality of his thoughts at death, and thus at death one obtains a suitable body. According to this principle, Laksmidevi, the goddess of fortune from Vaikuntha, who was absorbed in thought of the Lord in separation from Him, certainly went back home to Vaikunthaloka after death.






TEXT 22

antare janila prabhu, yate antaryami
desere aila prabhu saci-duhkha jani'

SYNONYMS

antare--within Himself; janila--knew; prabhu--the Lord; yate--because; antaryami--He is the Supersoul; desere--to the country; aila--returned; prabhu--the Lord; saci--of mother Sacidevi; duhkha--the unhappiness; jani'--knowing.

TRANSLATION

Lord Caitanya knew about the disappearance of Laksmidevi because He is the Supersoul Himself. Thus He returned home to solace His mother, Sacidevi, who was greatly unhappy about the death of her daughter-in-law.






TEXT 23

ghare aila prabhu bahu lana dhana-jana
tattva-jnane kaila sacira duhkha vimocana

SYNONYMS

ghare--home; aila--returned; prabhu--the Lord; bahu--much; lana--bringing; dhana--riches; jana--followers; tattva-jnane--by transcendental knowledge; kaila--did; sacira--of Sacimata; duhkha--the unhappiness; vimocana--relieving.

TRANSLATION

When the Lord returned home, bringing with Him great wealth and many followers, He spoke to Sacidevi about transcendental knowledge to relieve her of the grief she was suffering.

PURPORT

It is stated in the Bhagavad-gita (2.13):

dehino 'smin yatha dehe
kaumaram yauvanam jara
tatha dehantara-praptir
dhiras tatra na muhyati
"As the embodied soul continuously passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. The self-realized soul is not bewildered by such a change." Such verses from the Bhagavad-gita or any other Vedic literature give valuable instructions on the occasion of someone's passing away. By discussing such instructions from the Bhagavad-gita or Srimad-Bhagavatam, a sober man can certainly understand that the soul never dies but rather passes from one body to another. This is called transmigration of the soul. A soul comes into this material world and creates bodily relationships with a father, a mother, sisters, brothers, a wife and children, but all these relationships pertain to the body, not the soul. Therefore, as described in the Bhagavad-gita, dhiras tatra na muhyati: one who is sober is not disturbed by such phenomenal changes within this material world. Such instructions are called tattva-katha, or real truth.






TEXT 24

sisya-gana lana punah vidyara vilasa
vidya-bale saba jini' auddhatya prakasa

SYNONYMS

sisya-gana--disciples; lana--taking; punah--again; vidyara--of education; vilasa--pastime; vidya-bale--by the strength of education; saba--everyone; jini'--conquering; auddhatya--of pride; prakasa--manifestation.

TRANSLATION

After coming back from East Bengal, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu again began educating others. By the strength of His education He conquered everyone, and thus He was greatly proud.






TEXT 25

tabe visnupriya-thakuranira parinaya
tabe ta' karila prabhu digvijayi jaya

SYNONYMS

tabe--after this; visnupriya--of the name Visnupriya; thakuranira--of the goddess of fortune; parinaya--marriage; tabe ta'--thereafter; karila--did; prabhu--the Lord; dig-vijayi--the champion; jaya--conquer.

TRANSLATION

Then Lord Caitanya married Visnupriya, the goddess of fortune, and thereafter He conquered a champion of learning named Kesava Kasmiri.

PURPORT

As in the modern day there are many champions in sports, so in bygone days there were many learned scholars in India who were champions in learning. One such person was Kesava Kasmiri, who came from the state of Kashmir. He traveled all over India and at last came to Navadvipa to challenge the learned scholars there. Unfortunately he could not conquer the learned scholars in Navadvipa, for he was defeated by the boy scholar Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Later he understood that Caitanya Mahaprabhu is none other than the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Thus he surrendered unto Him and later became a pure Vaisnava in the sampradaya of Nimbarka. He wrote Kaustubha-prabha, a commentary on the Vedanta commentary of the Nimbarka-sampradaya, which is known as the Parijata-bhasya.

The Bhakti-ratnakara mentions Kesava Kasmiri and lists his predecessors in the disciplic succession of the Nimbarka-sampradaya: (1) Srinivasa Acarya, (2) Visva Acarya, (3) Purusottama, (4) Vilasa, (5) Svarupa, (6) Madhava, (7) Balabhadra, (8) Padma, (9) Syama, (10) Gopala, (11) Krpa, (1 2) Deva Acarya, (13) Sundara Bhatta, (14) Padmanabha, (15) Upendra, (16) Ramacandra, (17) Vamana, (18) Krsna, (19) Padmakara, (20) Sravana, (21) Bhuri, (22) Madhava, (23) Syama, (24) Gopala, (25) Balabhadra, (26) Gopinatha, (27) Kesava, (28) Gokula and (29) Kesava Kasmiri. It is stated in the Bhakti-ratnakara that Kesava Kasmiri was a favorite devotee of mother Sarasvati, the goddess of learning. By her grace he was an extremely influential scholar, and he was the greatest champion among all the scholars in the four corners of the country. Therefore he got the title dig-vijayi, which means "one who has conquered everyone in all directions." He belonged to a very respectable brahmana family of Kashmir. Later, by the order of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, he gave up the profession of winning championships and became a great devotee. He joined the Nimbarka-sampradaya, one of the Vaisnava communities of the Vedic culture.






TEXT 26

vrndavana-dasa iha kariyachena vistara
sphuta nahi kare dosa-gunera vicara

SYNONYMS

vrndavana-dasa--Srila Vrndavana dasa Thakura; iha--this; kariyachena--has made; vistara--elaborate description; sphuta--what was clear; nahi--not; kare--does; dosa-gunera--of both the faults and the virtues; vicara--analysis.

TRANSLATION

Vrndavana dasa Thakura has previously elaborately described this. That which is clear need not be scrutinized for good qualities and faults.






TEXT 27

sei amsa kahi, tanre kari' namaskara
ya' suni' digvijayi kaila apana dhik-kara

SYNONYMS

sei--that; amsa--portion; kahi--I mention; tanre--unto Sri Vrndavana dasa Thakura; kari'--making; namaskara--obeisances; ya'--of which; suni--hearing; dig-vijayi--the conquering pandita; kaila--did; apana--his own; dhik-kara--condemnation.

TRANSLATION

Offering my obeisances to Srila Vrndavana dasa Thakura, I shall try to describe that portion of the Lord's analysis which, when he heard it, made the Digvijayi feel himself condemned.






TEXT 28

jyotsnavati ratri, prabhu sisya-gana sange
vasiyachena gangatire vidyara prasange

SYNONYMS

jyotsnavati--full moon; ratri--night; prabhu--Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu; sisya-gana--disciples; sange--along with; vasiyachena--was sitting; ganga-tire--on the bank of the Ganges; vidyara--educational; prasange--in discussion.

TRANSLATION

On one full moon night the Lord was sitting on the bank of the Ganges with His many disciples and discussing literary topics.






TEXT 29

hena-kale digvijayi tahani aila
gangare vandana kari' prabhure milila

SYNONYMS

hena-kale--at this time; dig-vijayi--Kesava Kasmiri; tahani--there; aila--reached; gangare--to mother Ganges; vandana--prayers; kari'--offering; prabhure--the Lord; milila--met.

TRANSLATION

Coincidentally Kesava Kasmiri Pandita also came there. While offering his prayers to mother Ganges, he met Caitanya Mahaprabhu.






TEXT 30

vasaila tare prabhu adara kariya
digvijayi kahe mane avajna kariya

SYNONYMS

vasaila--made seated; tare--him; prabhu--the Lord; adara--adoration; kariya--offering him; dig-vijayi--Kesava Kasmiri; kahe--says; mane--within his mind; avajna--disregard; kariya--doing.

TRANSLATION

The Lord received him with adoration, but because Kesava Kasmiri was very proud, he talked to the Lord very inconsiderately.






TEXT 31

vyakarana padaha, nimani pandita tomara nama
balya-sastre loke tomara kahe guna-grama

SYNONYMS

vyakarana--grammar; padaha--You teach; nimani pandita--Nimai Pandita; tomara--Your; nama--name; balya-sastre--in grammar, which is considered a study for boys; loke--the people in general; tomara--of You; kahe--declare; guna-grama--very qualified.

TRANSLATION

"I understand that You are a teacher of grammar," he said, "and that Your name is Nimai Pandita. People speak very highly of Your teaching of beginners' grammar."

PURPORT

Formerly Sanskrit schools first taught grammar very thoroughly, and this system continues even now. A student was supposed to study grammar carefully for twelve years in the beginning of his life, because if one is expert in the grammar of the Sanskrit language, all the sastras are open to him. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was famous for teaching grammar to students, and therefore Kesava Kasmiri first referred to His position as a teacher of grammar. He was very proud of his literary career; he was far above the first lessons of grammar, and so he thought the position of Nimai Pandita not at all comparable to his own.






TEXT 32

vyakarana-madhye, jani, padaha kalapa
sunilun phankite tomara sisyera samlapa

SYNONYMS

vyakarana-madhye--among grammars; jani--I understand; padaha--You teach; kalapa--the Kalapa-vyakarana; sunilun--I have heard; phankite--in deceitful word jugglery; tomara--Your; sisyera--of the disciples; samlapa--the specific knowledge.

TRANSLATION

"I understand that You teach Kalapa-vyakarana. I have heard that Your students are very expert in the word jugglery of this grammar."

PURPORT

There are many schools of grammar in the Sanskrit language, the most famous of which are the systems of Panini and the Kalapa and Kaumudi grammars. There were different branches of grammatical knowledge, and a student of grammar was supposed to study them all in twelve years. Caitanya Mahaprabhu, who was famous as Nimai Pandita, taught grammar to His students, who became expert in dealing with the word jugglery of complicated grammar. Almost anyone expert in studying grammar interprets the sastras in many ways by changing the root meanings of their words. A student of grammar can sometimes completely change the meaning of a sentence by juggling grammatical rules. Kesava Kasmiri indirectly taunted Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu by implying that although He was a great teacher of grammar, such grammatical jugglery of root meanings did not require great expertise. This was a challenge to Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Because it was prearranged that Kesava Kasmiri would have to discuss the sastras with Nimai Pandita, from the very beginning he wanted to bluff the Lord. Thus the Lord replied as follows.






TEXT 33

prabhu kahe, vyakarana padai----abhimana kari
sisyete na bujhe, ami bujhaite nari

SYNONYMS

prabhu kahe--the Lord replied; vyakarana padai--yes, I teach grammar; abhimana kari--I am supposed to do so; sisyete--amongst My disciples; na--do not; bujhe--understand; ami--I also; bujhaite--to make them understand; nari--am not able.

TRANSLATION

The Lord said, "Yes, I am known as a teacher of grammar, but factually I cannot impress My students with grammatical knowledge, nor can they understand Me very well.

PURPORT

Since Kesava Kasmiri was a little puffed up, the Lord increased his artificial pride by presenting Himself as subordinate to him. Thus He flattered him as follows.






TEXT 34

kahan tumi sarva-sastre kavitve pravina
kahan ami sabe sisu----paduya navina

SYNONYMS

kahan--whereas; tumi--your good self; sarva-sastre--in all scriptures; kavitve--in a literary career; pravina--very experienced; kahan--whereas; ami--I; sabe--just; sisu--a boy; paduya--student; navina--new.

TRANSLATION

"My dear sir, whereas you are a very learned scholar in all sorts of scriptures and are very experienced in composing poetry, I am only a boy--a new student and nothing more."






TEXT 35

tomara kavitva kichu sunite haya mana
krpa kari' kara yadi gangara varnana

SYNONYMS

tomara--your; kavitva--poetic integrity; kichu--something; sunite--to hear; haya--becomes; mana--mind; krpa--mercy; kari'--showing Me; kara--you do; yadi--if; gangara--of mother Ganges; varnana--description.

TRANSLATION

"Therefore I desire to hear your skill in composing poetry. We could hear this if you would mercifully describe the glory of mother Ganges."






TEXT 36

suniya brahmana garve varnite lagila
ghati eke sata sloka gangara varnila

SYNONYMS

suniya--hearing this; brahmana--the pandita, Kesava Kasmiri; garve--in pride; varnite--to describe; lagila--began; ghati--hour; eke--one; sata--hundred; sloka--verses; gangara--of the Ganges; varnila--described.

TRANSLATION

When the brahmana, Kesava Kasmiri, heard this, he became still more puffed up, and within one hour he composed one hundred verses describing mother Ganges.






TEXT 37

suniya karila prabhu bahuta satkara
toma sama prthivite kavi nahi ara

SYNONYMS

suniya--hearing this; karila--did; prabhu--the Lord; bahuta--very much; satkara--high praise; toma--you; sama--like; prthivite--in the world; kavi--poet; nahi--there is not; ara--anyone else.

TRANSLATION

The Lord praised him, saying, "Sir, there is no greater poet than you in the entire world."






TEXT 38

tomara kavita sloka bujhite kara sakti
tumi bhala jana artha kimva sarasvati

SYNONYMS

tomara--your; kavita--poetry; sloka--verses; bujhite--to understand; kara--whose; sakti--power; tumi--you; bhala--well; jana--know; artha--meaning; kimva--or; sarasvati--the goddess of learning.

TRANSLATION

"Your poetry is so difficult that no one can understand it but you and mother Sarasvati, the goddess of learning."

PURPORT

Replying to Kesava Kasmiri sarcastically, Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu indirectly minimized the value of his poetry by saying, "Yes, your compositions are so nice that no one but you and your worshipable mother, the goddess of learning, can understand them." Kesava Kasmiri was a favorite devotee of mother Sarasvati, the goddess of learning, but Caitanya Mahaprabhu, as the master of the goddess of learning, has the right to speak sarcastically of her devotees. In other words, although Kesava Kasmiri was proud of being favored by the goddess of learning, he did not know that she is controlled by Caitanya Mahaprabhu Himself because He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.






TEXT 39

eka slokera artha yadi kara nija-mukhe
suni' saba loka tabe paiba bada-sukhe

SYNONYMS

eka--one; slokera--of a verse; artha--the meaning; yadi--if; kara--you do; nija-mukhe--by your own mouth; suni'--hearing; saba--all; loka--persons; tabe--thereafter; paiba--we shall get; bada-sukhe--with great happiness.

TRANSLATION

"But if you explain the meaning of one verse, we can all hear it from your own mouth and thus be very happy."






TEXT 40

tabe digvijayi vyakhyara sloka puchila
sata slokera eka sloka prabhu ta' padila

SYNONYMS

tabe--thereafter; dig-vijayi--Kesava Kasmiri; vyakhyara--for explanation; sloka--a verse; puchila--inquired about; sata--one hundred; slokera--of the verses; eka--one; sloka--verse; prabhu--the Lord; ta'--then; padila--recited.

TRANSLATION

The Digvijayi, Kesava Kasmiri, inquired which verse He wanted explained. The Lord then recited one of the one hundred verses Kesava Kasmiri had composed.






TEXT 41

mahattvam gangayah satatam idam abhati nitaram
yad esa sri-visnos carana-kamalotpatti-subhaga
dvitiya-sri-laksmir iva sura-narair arcya-carana
bhavani-bhartur ya sirasi vibhavaty adbhuta-guna

SYNONYMS

mahattvam--greatness; gangayah--of mother Ganges; satatam--always; idam--this; abhati--shines; nitaram--without comparison; yat--because; esa--she; sri-visnoh--of Lord Visnu; carana--feet; kamala--lotus flower; utpatti--generation; subhaga--fortunate; dvitiya--second; sri--beautiful; laksmih--goddess of fortune; iva--like; sura-naraih--by demigods and human beings; arcya--worshipable; carana--feet; bhavani--of goddess Durga; bhartuh--of the husband; ya--she; sirasi--on the head; vibhavati--flourishes; adbhuta--wonderful; guna--qualities.

TRANSLATION

" 'The greatness of mother Ganges always brilliantly exists. She is the most fortunate because she emanated from the lotus feet of Sri Visnu, the Personality of Godhead. She is the second goddess of fortune, and therefore she is always worshiped both by demigods and by humanity. Endowed with all wonderful qualities, she flourishes on the head of Lord Siva.' "






TEXT 42

'ei slokera artha kara'----prabhu yadi baila
vismita hana digvijayi prabhure puchila

SYNONYMS

ei--this; slokera--of the verse; artha--explanation; kara--kindly do; prabhu--Lord Caitanya; yadi--when; baila--said; vismita--struck with wonder; hana--being; dig-vijayi--the champion; prabhure--unto the Lord; puchila--inquired.

TRANSLATION

When Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu asked him to explain the meaning of this verse, the champion, very much astonished, inquired from Him as follows.






TEXT 43

jhanjhavata-praya ami sloka padila
tara madhye sloka tumi kaiche kanthe kaila

SYNONYMS

jhanjha-vata--the strong wind of a storm; praya--like; ami--I; sloka--verses; padila--recited; tara--of them; madhye--in the midst; sloka--one verse; tumi--You; kaiche--how; kanthe--within the heart; kaila--have taken.

TRANSLATION

"I recited all the verses like the blowing wind. How could You completely learn by heart even one among those verses?"






TEXT 44

prabhu kahe, devera vare tumi----'kavi-vara'
aiche devera vare keho haya 'srutidhara'

SYNONYMS

prabhu--the Lord; kahe--replied; devera--of a superior power; vare--by benediction; tumi--you; kavi-vara--the most elevated poet; aiche--similarly; devera--of the Lord; vare--by the benediction; keho--someone; haya--becomes; sruti-dhara--one who can immediately remember.

TRANSLATION

The Lord replied, "By the grace of the Lord someone may become a great poet, and similarly by His grace someone else may become a great sruti-dhara who can memorize anything immediately."

PURPORT

In this connection, sruti-dhara is a very important word. Sruti means "hearing" and dhara means "one who can capture." Formerly, before the beginning of Kali-yuga, almost everyone, especially among the intelligent men, the brahmanas, was a sruti-dhara. As soon as a student heard any of the Vedic wisdom from his master, he would remember it forever. There was no need to refer to books, and therefore there were no written books in those days. The spiritual master delivered the Vedic hymns and their explanations to the student, who would then remember them forever, without consulting books.

To become a sruti-dhara, one who can remember simply by hearing, is a great achievement for a student. In the Bhagavad-gita (10.41) the Lord says:

yad yad vibhutimat sattvam
srimad urjitam eva va
tat tad evavagaccha tvam
mama tejo-'msa-sambhavam
"Know that all opulent, beautiful and glorious creations spring from but a spark of My splendor." (Bg. 10.41)

As soon as we find anything extraordinary, we should understand that such an extraordinary manifestation is the special grace of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu replied to the champion, Kesava Kasmiri, that just as he was greatly proud of being a favorite devotee of mother Sarasvati, so someone else, like He Himself, being favored by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, could become a sruti-dhara and thus memorize anything immediately simply by hearing it.






TEXT 45

slokera artha kaila vipra paiya santosa
prabhu kahe----kaha slokera kiba guna-dosa

SYNONYMS

slokera--of the verse; artha--explanation; kaila--made; vipra--the brahmana; paiya--obtaining; santosa--satisfaction; prabhu--the Lord; kahe--said; kaha--kindly speak; slokera--of the verse; kiba--what are; guna--qualities; dosa--faults.

TRANSLATION

Satisfied by the statement of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the brahmana [Kesava Kasmiri] explained the quoted verse. Then the Lord said, "Now kindly explain the special qualities and faults in the verse."

PURPORT

Not only did Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu pick out this one among the one hundred verses and remember it although the brahmana had recited them like the blowing wind, but He also analyzed its qualities and faults. Not only did He hear the verse, but He immediately made a critical study of it.






TEXT 46

vipra kahe sloke nahi dosera abhasa
upamalankara guna, kichu anuprasa

SYNONYMS

vipra kahe--the brahmana replied; sloke--in that verse; nahi--there is not; dosera--of fault; abhasa--even a tinge; upama-alankara--simile or metaphor; guna--quality; kichu--something; anuprasa--alliteration.

TRANSLATION

The brahmana replied, "There is not a tinge of fault in that verse. Rather, it has the good qualities of similes and alliteration."

PURPORT

In the last line of the verse quoted by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the letter bha is repeated many times, as in the words bhavani, bhartur, vibhavati and adbhuta. Such repetition is called anuprasa, or alliteration. The words laksmir iva and visnos carana-kamalotpatti are instances of upama-alankara, for they exhibit metaphorical beauty. The Ganges is water, and Laksmi is the goddess of fortune. Since water and a person are not actually similar, the comparison is metaphorical.






TEXT 47

prabhu kahena,----kahi, yadi na karaha rosa
kaha tomara ei sloke kiba ache dosa

SYNONYMS

prabhu kahena--the Lord replied; kahi--let Me say; yadi--if; na--do not; karaha--you become; rosa--angry; kaha--please tell Me; tomara--your; ei sloke--in this verse; kiba--what; ache--there is; dosa--fault.

TRANSLATION

The Lord said, "My dear sir, I may say something to you if you will not become angry. Can you explain the faults in this verse?"






TEXT 48

pratibhara kavya tomara devata santose
bhala-mate vicarile jani guna-dose

SYNONYMS

pratibhara--of ingenuity; kavya--poetry; tomara--your; devata--the Lord; santose--satisfies; bhala-mate--scrutinizingly; vicarile--on analyzing; jani--I know; guna-dose--there are faults and good qualities also.

TRANSLATION

"There is no doubt that your poetry is full of ingenuity, and certainly it has satisfied the Supreme Lord. Yet if we scrutinizingly consider it we can find both good qualities and faults."






TEXT 49

tate bhala kari' sloka karaha vicara
kavi kahe,----ye kahile sei veda-sara

SYNONYMS

tate--therefore; bhala--very carefully; kari'--doing it; sloka--the verse; karaha--do; vicara--judgment; kavi kahe--the poet said; ye kahile--what You have said; sei--that is; veda-sara--exactly right.

TRANSLATION

The Lord concluded, "Now, therefore, let us carefully scrutinize this verse." The poet replied, "Yes, the verse You have recited is perfectly correct.






TEXT 50

vyakaraniya tumi nahi pada alankara
tumi ki janibe ei kavitvera sara

SYNONYMS

vyakaraniya--a student of grammar; tumi--You are; nahi--do not; pada--study; alankara--poetic ornaments; tumi--You; ki--what; janibe--will know; ei--this; kavitvera--of poetic quality; sara--review.

TRANSLATION

"You are an ordinary student of grammar. What do You know about literary embellishments? You cannot review this poetry because You do not know anything about it."

PURPORT

Kesava Kasmiri first wanted to bluff Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu by saying that since He was not an advanced student in literary style, He could not review a verse full of metaphors and literary ornaments. This argument has some basis in fact. Unless one is a medical man one cannot criticize a medical man, and unless one is a lawyer he cannot criticize a lawyer. Therefore Kesava Kasmiri first depreciated the Lord's position. Because Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was to the champion a student of grammar, how could He dare criticize a great poet like him? Lord Caitanya, therefore, criticized the poet in a different way. He said that although He was certainly not advanced in a literary career, He had heard from others how to criticize such poetry, and as a sruti-dhara, possessing a complete memory, He could understand the process for such a review.






TEXT 51

prabhu kahena----ataeva puchiye tomare
vicariya guna-dosa bujhaha amare

SYNONYMS

prabhu kahena--the Lord said; ataeva--therefore; puchiye--I am asking; tomare--you; vicariya--completely reviewing; guna--qualities; dosa--faults; bujhaha--teach; amare--Me.

TRANSLATION

Taking a humble position, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu said, "Because I am not of your level, I have asked you to teach Me by explaining the faults and good qualities in your poetry."






TEXT 52

nahi padi alankara, kariyachi sravana
tate ei sloke dekhi bahu dosa-guna

SYNONYMS

nahi padi--I do not study; alankara--the art of literary embellishment; kariyachi--I have done; sravana--hearing; tate--by that; ei sloke--in this verse; dekhi--I see; bahu--many; dosa--faults; guna--good qualities.

TRANSLATION

"Certainly I have not studied the art of literary embellishments. But I have heard about it from higher circles, and thus I can review this verse and find in it many faults and many good qualities."

PURPORT

The statement kariyachi sravana ("I have heard it") is very important in the sense that hearing is more important than directly studying or perceiving. If one is expert in hearing and hears from the right source, his knowledge is immediately perfect. This process is called srauta-pantha, or the acquisition of knowledge by hearing from authorities. All Vedic knowledge is based on the principle that one must approach a bona fide spiritual master and hear from the authoritative statements of the Vedas. It is not necessary for one to be a highly polished literary man to receive knowledge; to receive perfect knowledge from a perfect person, one must be expert in hearing. This is called the descending process of deductive knowledge, or avaroha-pantha.






TEXT 53

kavi kahe,----kaha dekhi, kon guna-dosa
prabhu kahena,----kahi, suna, na kariha rosa

SYNONYMS

kavi kahe--the poet said; kaha dekhi--you say "I see"; kon--what; guna--qualities; dosa--faults; prabhu kahena--the Lord replied; kahi--let Me say; suna--please hear; na--do not; kariha--become; rosa--angry.

TRANSLATION

The poet said, "All right, let me see what qualities and faults You have found." The Lord replied, "Let Me speak, and please hear Me without becoming angry."






TEXT 54

panca dosa ei sloke panca alankara
krame ami kahi, suna, karaha vicara

SYNONYMS

panca--five; dosa--faults; ei sloke--in this verse; panca--five; alankara--literary embellishments; krame--one after another; ami--I; kahi--say; suna--kindly hear; karaha--give; vicara--judgment.

TRANSLATION

"My dear sir, in this verse there are five faults and five literary ornaments. I shall state them one after another. Kindly hear Me and then give your judgment."

PURPORT

In the verse beginning with mahattvam gangayah there are five literary ornaments and five examples of faulty composition. There are two examples of the fault called avimrsta-vidheyamsa and one example each of the faults viruddha-mati, punar-ukti and bhagna-krama.

Vimrsta means "clean," and vidheyamsa means "predicate." It is a general rule of composition to establish a subject first and then give its predicate. For example, according to Sanskrit grammar if one says, "This man is learned," his composition is in order. But if one says, "Learned is this man," the composition is not in order. Such a flaw is called avimrsta-vidheyamsa-dosa, or the fault of unclean composition. The subject matter to be known of the verse is the glorification of the Ganges, and therefore the word idam ("this"), or what is known, should have been placed before instead of after the glorification. The subject matter already known should be placed before the unknown so that its meaning will not be misconstrued.

The second instance of avimrsta-vidheyamsa-dosa occurs in the words dvitiya-sri-laksmir iva. In this composition the word dvitiya ("second") is vidheya, or unknown. Placing the unknown first to make the compound word dvitiya-sri-laksmir is another fault. The words dvitiya-srilaksmir iva were intended to compare the Ganges to the goddess of fortune, but because of this fault the meaning of the compound word was bewildering.

The third fault is that of viruddha-mati, or contradictory conception, in the words bhavani-bhartuh. The word bhavani refers to the wife of Bhava, Lord Siva. But since Bhavani is already known as the wife of Lord Siva, to add the word bharta, "husband," thus forming a compound meaning "the husband of the wife of Lord Siva," is contradictory, for thus it appears as if the wife of Lord Siva had another husband.

The fourth fault is punar-ukti, or redundancy, which occurs when the verb vibhavati ("flourishes"), which should have ended the composition, is further qualified by the unnecessary adjective adbhuta-guna ("endowed with wonderful qualities"). The fifth fault is bhagna-krama, which means "broken order." In the first, third and fourth lines there is anuprasa, or alliteration, created by the sounds ta, ra and bha, but in the second line there is no such anuprasa, and therefore the order is broken.






TEXT 55

'avimrsta-vidheyamsa'----dui thani cihna
'viruddha-mati', 'bhagna-krama', 'punar-atta',----dosa tina

SYNONYMS

avimrsta-vidheyamsa--unclean composition; dui thani--in two places; cihna--symptoms; viruddha-mati--a contradictory conception; bhagna-krama--broken order; punar-atta--redundancy (also called punar-ukti); dosa--faults; tina--three.

TRANSLATION

"In this verse the fault of avimrsta-vidheyamsa occurs twice, and the faults of viruddha-mati, bhagna-krama and punar-atta occur once each."






TEXT 56

'gangara mahattva'----sloke mula 'vidheya'
idam sabde 'anuvada'----pache avidheya

SYNONYMS

gangara mahattva--glorification of mother Ganges; sloke--in the verse; mula--chief; vidheya--unknown; idam--this; sabde--by the word; anuvada--the known; pache--at the end; avidheya--improper.

TRANSLATION

"The glorification of the Ganges [mahattvam gangayah] is the principal unknown subject matter in this verse, and the known subject matter is indicated by the word 'idam,' which has been placed after the unknown."






TEXT 57

'vidheya' age kahi' pache kahile 'anuvada'
ei lagi' slokera artha kariyache badha

SYNONYMS

vidheya--what is unknown; age--first; kahi'--after speaking; pache--at the end; kahile--if one speaks; anuvada--known things; ei lagi'--for this reason; slokera--of the verse; artha--meaning; kariyache--has been made; badha--objectionable.

TRANSLATION

"Because you have placed the known subject at the end and that which is unknown at the beginning, the composition is faulty, and the meaning of the words has become doubtful."






TEXT 58

anuvadam anuktvaiva
na vidheyam udirayet
na hy alabdhaspadam kincit
kutracit pratitisthati

SYNONYMS

anuvadam--things already known; anuktva--without mentioning; eva--certainly; na--not; vidheyam--unknown subject matters; udirayet--one should mention; na--not; hi--certainly; alabdha-aspadam--without having achieved a proper place; kincit--something; kutracit--anywhere; pratitisthati--has a position.

TRANSLATION

" 'Without first mentioning what is known, one should not introduce the unknown, for that which has no solid basis can never be established anywhere.' "

PURPORT

This is a verse from the Ekadasi-tattva.






TEXT 59

'dvitiya sri-laksmi'----ihan 'dvitiyatva' vidheya
samase gauna haila, sabdartha gela ksaya

SYNONYMS

dvitiya sri-laksmi--the word dvitiya-sri-laksmi ("all-opulent goddess of fortune"); ihan--this; dvitiyatva--the quality of being a second; vidheya--the unknown, which is to be explained; samase--in the compound word; gauna--secondary; haila--became; sabda-artha--the word's intended meaning; gela--became; ksaya--lost.

TRANSLATION

"In the word 'dvitiya-srilaksmi' ['the second all-opulent goddess of fortune'], the quality of being a second Laksmi is the unknown. In making this compound word, the meaning became secondary and the originally intended meaning was lost."






TEXT 60

'dvitiya' sabda----vidheya taha padila samase
'laksmira samata' artha karila vinase

SYNONYMS

dvitiya sabda--the word dvitiya ("second"); vidheya--the unknown; taha--that; padila--joined; samase--in the compound word; laksmira--with Laksmi; samata--equality; artha--meaning; karila--became; vinase--lost.

TRANSLATION

"Because the word 'dvitiya' ['second'] is the unknown, in its combination in this compound word the intended meaning of equality with Laksmi is lost."






TEXT 61

'avimrsta-vidheyamsa'----ei dosera nama
ara eka dosa ache, suna savadhana

SYNONYMS

avimrsta-vidheyamsa--avimrsta-vidheyamsa; ei--this; dosera--of the fault; nama--the name; ara--another; eka--one; dosa--fault; ache--there is; suna--hear; savadhana--carefully.

TRANSLATION

"Not only is there the fault avimrsta-vidheyamsa, but there is also another fault, which I shall point out to you. Kindly hear Me with great attention."






TEXT 62

'bhavani-bhartr'-sabda dile paiya santosa
'viruddha-mati-krt' nama ei maha dosa

SYNONYMS

bhavani-bhartr sabda--the word bhavani-bhartr ("the husband of Bhavani"); dile--you have placed; paiya--getting; santosa--very much satisfaction; viruddha-mati-krt--a statement of opposing elements; nama--named; ei--this; maha--great; dosa--fault.

TRANSLATION

"Here is another great fault. You have arranged the word 'bhavani-bhartr' to your great satisfaction, but this betrays the fault of contradiction."






TEXT 63

bhavani-sabde kahe mahadevera grhini
tanra bharta kahile dvitiya bharta jani

SYNONYMS

bhavani sabde--by the word bhavani ("the wife of Lord Siva"); kahe--is mentioned; mahadevera--of Lord Siva; grhini--the wife; tanra--her; bharta--husband; kahile--if we say; dvitiya--second; bharta--husband; jani--we understand.

TRANSLATION

"The word 'bhavani' means 'the wife of Lord Siva.' But when we mention her husband, one might conclude that she has another husband."






TEXT 64

'siva-patnira bharta' iha sunite viruddha
'viruddha-mati-krt' sabda sastre nahe suddha

SYNONYMS

siva-patnira--of the wife of Lord Siva; bharta--husband; iha--this; sunite--to hear; viruddha--contradiction; viruddha-mati-krt--that which creates a contradiction; sabda--such a word; sastre--in the scriptures; nahe--is not; suddha--pure.

TRANSLATION

"It is contradictory to hear that Lord Siva's wife has another husband. The use of such words in literature creates the fault called viruddha-mati-krt."






TEXT 65

'brahmana-patnira bhartara haste deha dana'
sabda sunitei haya dvitiya-bharta jnana

SYNONYMS

brahmana-patnira--of the wife of a brahmana; bhartara--of the husband; haste--in the hand; deha--give; dana--charity; sabda--these words; sunitei--hearing; haya--there is; dvitiya-bharta--another husband; jnana--knowledge.

TRANSLATION

"If someone says, 'Place this charity in the hand of the husband of the wife of the brahmana,' when we hear these contradictory words we immediately understand that the brahmana's wife has another husband."






TEXT 66

'vibhavati' kriyaya vakya----sanga, punah visesana
'adbhuta-guna'----ei punar-atta dusana

SYNONYMS

vibhavati kriyaya--by the verb vibhavati ("flourishes"); vakya--statement; sanga--complete; punah--again; visesana adbhuta-guna--the adjective adbhuta-guna ("wonderful qualities"); ei--this; punar-atta--repetition of the same word; dusana--fault.

TRANSLATION

"The statement by the word 'vibhavati' ['flourishes'] is complete. Qualifying it with the adjective 'adbhuta-guna' ['wonderful qualities'] creates the fault of redundancy."






TEXT 67

tina pade anuprasa dekhi anupama
eka pade nahi, ei dosa 'bhagna-krama'

SYNONYMS

tina pade--in three lines; anuprasa--alliteration; dekhi--I see; anupama--extraordinary; eka pade--in one line; nahi--there is not (alliteration); ei dosa--this fault; bhagna-krama--deviation.

TRANSLATION

"There is extraordinary alliteration in three lines of the verse, but in one line there is no such alliteration. This is the fault of deviation."






TEXT 68

yadyapi ei sloke ache panca alankara
ei panca-dose sloka kaila charakhara

SYNONYMS

yadyapi--although; ei sloke--in this verse; ache--there are; panca--five; alankara--literary embellishments; ei panca-dose--by the above-mentioned five faults; sloka--the verse; kaila--has been made; charakhara--spoiled.

TRANSLATION

"Although there are five literary ornaments decorating this verse, the entire verse has been spoiled by these five most faulty presentations."






TEXT 69

dasa alankare yadi eka sloka haya
eka dose saba alankara haya ksaya

SYNONYMS

dasa alankare--with ten instances of literary ornamentation; yadi--if; eka--one; sloka--verse; haya--there is; eka dose--by one fault; saba--all; alankara--ornaments; haya ksaya--become null and void.

TRANSLATION

"If there are ten literary ornaments in a verse but even one faulty expression, the entire verse is nullified."






TEXT 70

sundara sarira yaiche bhusane bhusita
eka sveta-kusthe yaiche karaye vigita

SYNONYMS

sundara--beautiful; sarira--body; yaiche--as; bhusane--with ornaments; bhusita--decorated; eka--one; sveta-kusthe--with a white spot of leprosy; yaiche--as; karaye--is made; vigita--abominable.

TRANSLATION

"One's beautiful body may be decorated with jewels, but one spot of white leprosy makes the entire body abominable."

PURPORT

The great sage Bharata Muni, an authority on poetic metaphor, has given his opinion in this connection as follows.






TEXT 71

rasalankara-vat kavyam
dosa-yuk ced vibhusitam
syad vapuh sundaram api
svitrenaikena durbhagam

SYNONYMS

rasa--with humors; alankara-vat--with ornaments (metaphors, similes, etc.); kavyam--poetry; dosa-yuk--faulty; cet--if; vibhusitam--very nicely decorated; syat--it becomes so; vapuh--the body; sundaram--beautiful; api--even though; svitrena--by a white spot of leprosy; ekena--one; durbhagam--unfortunate.

TRANSLATION

" 'As one's body, although well-decorated with ornaments, is made unfortunate by even one spot of white leprosy, so an entire poem is made useless by a fault, despite alliteration, similes and metaphors.' "






TEXT 72

panca alankarera ebe sunaha vicara
dui sabdalankara, tina artha-alankara

SYNONYMS

panca--five; alankarera--of the literary embellishments; ebe--now; sunaha--just hear; vicara--description; dui--two; sabda-alankara--ornaments of sound or ornaments of words; tina--three; artha-alankara--ornaments of meaning.

TRANSLATION

"Now hear the description of the five literary embellishments. There are two ornaments of sound and three ornaments of meaning."






TEXT 73

sabdalankara----tina-pade ache anuprasa
'sri-laksmi' sabde 'punar-uktavad-abhasa'

SYNONYMS

sabda-alankara--ornamentation of sound; tina-pade--in three lines; ache--there is; anuprasa--alliteration; sri-laksmi-sabde--in the words sri-laksmi; punar-ukta-vat--of repetition of the same word; abhasa--there is a tinge.

TRANSLATION

"There is a sound ornament of alliteration in three lines. And in the combination of the words 'sri' and 'laksmi' there is the ornament of a tinge of redundancy."






TEXT 74

prathama-carane panca 'ta'-karera panti
trtiya-carane haya panca 'repha'-sthiti

SYNONYMS

prathama-carane--in the first line; panca--five; ta-karera--of the letter ta; panti--very nice composition; trtiya-carane--in the third line; haya--there is; panca--five; repha--of the letter ra; sthiti--composition.

TRANSLATION

"In the arrangement of the first line the letter 'ta' occurs five times, and the arrangement of the third line repeats the letter 'ra' five times."






TEXT 75

caturtha-carane cari 'bha'-kara-prakasa
ataeva sabdalankara anuprasa

SYNONYMS

caturtha-carane--in the fourth line; cari--four; bha-kara--of the letter bha; prakasa--manifestations; ataeva--therefore; sabda-alankara--ornamental use of different sounds; anuprasa--alliteration.

TRANSLATION

"In the fourth line the letter 'bha' occurs four times. This arrangement of alliteration is a pleasing ornamental use of sounds."






TEXT 76

'sri'-sabde, 'laksmi'-sabde----eka vastu ukta
punar-ukta-praya bhase, nahe punar-ukta

SYNONYMS

sri-sabde--by the word sri; laksmi-sabde--by the word laksmi; eka vastu--one thing; ukta--is indicated; punar-ukta-praya--almost repetition; bhase--appears; nahe--but actually it is not; punar-ukta--repetition.

TRANSLATION

"Although the words 'sri' and 'laksmi' convey the same meaning and are therefore almost redundant, they are nevertheless not redundant."






TEXT 77

'sri-yukta laksmi' arthe arthera vibheda punar-uktavad-abhasa, sabdalankara-bheda

SYNONYMS

sri-yukta laksmi--Laksmi, possessed of opulence; arthe--in the sense; arthera--of the meaning; vibheda--difference; punar-ukta-vad-abhasa--tinge of punar-ukta-vat; sabda-alankara--ornamental use of words; bheda--different.

TRANSLATION

"Describing Laksmi as possessed of sri [opulence] offers a difference in meaning with a tinge of repetition. This is the second ornamental use of words."






TEXT 78

'laksmir iva' arthalankara----upama-prakasa
ara arthalankara ache, nama----'virodhabhasa'

SYNONYMS

laksmir iva--the words laksmir iva (like Laksmi); artha-alankara--ornamental use of the meaning; upama--analogy; prakasa--manifestation; ara--also; artha-alankara--ornamental use of meaning; ache--there is; nama--which is named; virodha-abhasa--possibility of contradiction.

TRANSLATION

"The use of the words 'laksmir iva' ['like Laksmi'] manifests the ornament of meaning called upama [analogy]. There is also the further ornament of meaning called virodhabhasa, or a contradictory indication."






TEXT 79

'gangate kamala janme'----sabara subodha
'kamale gangara janma'----atyanta virodha

SYNONYMS

gangate--in the river Ganges; kamala--lotus flower; janme--grows; sabara--of everyone; subodha--understanding; kamale--in the lotus flower; gangara--of the Ganges; janma--birth; atyanta--very much; virodha--contradiction.

TRANSLATION

"Everyone knows that lotus flowers grow in the water of the Ganges. But to say that the Ganges takes birth from a lotus flower seems extremely contradictory."






TEXT 80

'ihan visnu-pada-padme gangara utpatti'
virodhalankara iha maha-camatkrti

SYNONYMS

ihan--in this connection; visnu-pada-padme--in the lotus feet of Lord Visnu; gangara--of mother Ganges; utpatti--beginning; virodha--contradiction; alankara--literary decoration; iha--it; maha--very great; camatkrti--wonder.

TRANSLATION

"The existence of mother Ganges begins from the lotus feet of the Lord. Although this statement that water comes from a lotus flower is a contradiction, in connection with Lord Visnu it is a great wonder."






TEXT 81

isvara-acintya-saktye gangara prakasa
ihate virodha nahi, virodha-abhasa

SYNONYMS

isvara-acintya-saktye--by the inconceivable potency of the Supreme Lord; gangara--of the Ganges; prakasa--emanation; ihate--in this; virodha nahi--there is no contradiction; virodha-abhasa--appears to be a contradiction.

TRANSLATION

"In this birth of the Ganges by the inconceivable potency of the Lord, there is no contradiction although it appears contradictory."

PURPORT

The central point of all Vaisnava philosophy is to accept the inconceivable potency of Lord Visnu. What sometimes appears contradictory from a material viewpoint is understandable in connection with the Supreme Personality of Godhead because He can perform contradictory activities by dint of His inconceivable potencies. Modern scientists are puzzled. They cannot even explain how such a large quantity of chemicals has formed the atmosphere. Scientists explain that water is a combination of hydrogen and oxygen, but when asked where such a large quantity of hydrogen and oxygen came from and how they combined to manufacture the great oceans and seas, they cannot answer because they are atheists who will not accept that everything comes from life. Their thesis is that life comes from matter.

Where do all these chemicals come from? The answer is that they are produced by the inconceivable energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Living entities are part of the Supreme Godhead, and from their bodies come many chemicals. For example, the lemon tree is a living entity that produces many lemons, and within each lemon is a great deal of citric acid. Therefore, if even an insignificant living entity who is but a part of the Supreme Lord can produce so much of a chemical, how much potency there must be in the body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Scientists cannot perfectly explain where the chemicals of the world are manufactured, but one can explain this perfectly by accepting the inconceivable energy of the Supreme Lord. There is no reason for denying this argument. Since there are potencies in the living entities who are samples of the Personality of Godhead, how much potency there must be in the Supreme Godhead Himself. As described in the Vedas, nityo nityanam cetanas cetananam: "He is the chief eternal of all eternals and the chief living entity among all living entities." (Katha Upanisad 2.2.13)

Unfortunately, atheistic science will not accept that matter comes from life. Scientists insist upon their most illogical and foolish theory that life comes from matter, although this is quite impossible. They cannot prove in their laboratories that matter can produce life, yet there are thousands and thousands of examples illustrating that matter comes from life. Therefore in Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami says that as soon as one accepts the inconceivable potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, no great philosopher or scientist can put forward any thesis to contradict the Lord's power. This is expressed in the following Sanskrit verse.






TEXT 82

ambujam ambuni jatam kvacid api na jatam ambujad ambu
mura-bhidi tad-viparitam padambhojan maha-nadi jata

SYNONYMS

ambujam--lotus flower; ambuni--in the water; jatam--is grown; kvacit--at any time; api--certainly; na--not; jatam--grown; ambujat--from a lotus flower; ambu--water; mura-bhidi--in Krsna, the killer of Murasura; tat-viparitam--just the opposite of that; pada-ambhojat--from the lotus flower of His feet; maha-nadi--the great river; jata--has grown.

TRANSLATION

" 'Everyone knows that lotus flowers grow in the water but water never grows from a lotus. All such contradictions, however, are wonderfully possible in Krsna: the great river Ganges has grown from His lotus feet.' "






TEXT 83

gangara mahattva----sadhya, sadhana tahara
visnu-padotpatti----'anumana' alankara

SYNONYMS

gangara--of the Ganges; mahattva--opulences; sadhya--subject matter; sadhana--means; tahara--of that; visnu-pada-utpatti--her origin from the lotus feet of the Lord; anumana--called anumana (hypothesis); alankara--an ornament.

TRANSLATION

"The real glory of mother Ganges is that she has grown from the lotus feet of Lord Visnu. Such a hypothesis is another ornament, called anumana."






TEXT 84

sthula ei panca dosa, panca alankara
suksma vicariye yadi achaye apara

SYNONYMS

sthula--gross; ei--these; panca--five; dosa--faults; panca--five; alankara--literary ornaments; suksma--in detail; vicariye--we consider; yadi--if; achaye--there are; apara--unlimited.

TRANSLATION

"I have simply discussed the five gross faults and five literary embellishments of this verse, but if we consider it in fine detail we will find unlimited faults."






TEXT 85

pratibha, kavitva tomara devata-prasade
avicara kavye avasya pade dosa-badhe

SYNONYMS

pratibha--ingenuity; kavitva--poetic imagination; tomara--your; devata--of a demigod; prasade--by the grace; avicara--without good judgment; kavye--in the poetry; avasya--certainly; pade--there is; dosa--fault; badhe--obstruction.

TRANSLATION

"You have achieved poetic imagination and ingenuity by the grace of your worshipable demigod. But poetry not well reviewed is certainly subject to criticism."






TEXT 86

vicari' kavitva kaile haya sunirmala
salankara haile artha kare jhalamala

SYNONYMS

vicari'--with proper consideration; kavitva--poetic explanation; kaile--if done; haya--it becomes; sunirmala--very pure; sa-alankara--with metaphorical use of words; haile--if it is; artha--meaning; kare--does; jhalamala--dazzle.

TRANSLATION

"Poetic skill used with due consideration is very pure, and with metaphors and analogies it is dazzling."






TEXT 87

suniya prabhura vyakhya digvijayi vismita
mukhe na nihsare vakya, pratibha stambhita

SYNONYMS

suniya--hearing; prabhura--of the Lord; vyakhya--explanation; dig-vijayi--the champion; vismita--struck with wonder; mukhe--in the mouth; na--did not; nihsare--come out; vakya--words; pratibha--ingenuity; stambhita--choked up.

TRANSLATION

After hearing the explanation of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the champion poet was struck with wonder. His cleverness stunned, he could not say anything.






TEXT 88

kahite cahaye kichu, na aise uttara
tabe vicaraye mane ha-iya phanphara

SYNONYMS

kahite--to speak; cahaye--wants; kichu--something; na--not; aise--comes; uttara--any reply; tabe--thereafter; vicaraye--considers; mane--within the mind; ha-iya--becoming; phanphara--puzzled.

TRANSLATION

He wanted to say something, but no reply could come from his mouth. He then began to consider this puzzle within his mind.






TEXT 89

paduya balaka kaila mora buddhi lopa
jani----sarasvati more kariyachena kopa

SYNONYMS

paduya--student; balaka--a boy; kaila--made; mora--my; buddhi--intelligence; lopa--lost; jani--I can understand; sarasvati--mother Sarasvati; more--with me; kariyachena--must have been; kopa--angry.

TRANSLATION

"This mere boy has blocked my intelligence. I can therefore understand that mother Sarasvati has become angry with me."

PURPORT

In the Bhagavad-gita it is clearly said that all intelligence comes from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is situated in everyone's heart as Paramatma. The Paramatma gave the pandita the intelligence to understand that because he was proud of his learning and wanted to defeat even the Supreme Lord, by the will of the Lord and through the agency of mother Sarasvati he had been defeated. One should not, therefore, be too proud of one's position. Even if one is a greatly learned scholar, if he commits an offense to the lotus feet of the Lord he will not be able to speak properly, in spite of his learning. In every respect, we are controlled. Our only duty, therefore, is to surrender always to the lotus feet of the Lord and not be falsely proud. Mother Sarasvati created this situation to favor the champion pandita so that he might surrender unto Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu.






TEXT 90

ye vyakhya karila, se manusyera nahe sakti
nimani-mukhe rahi' bale apane sarasvati

SYNONYMS

ye vyakhya--which explanation; karila--He has made; se--that; manusyera--of any human being; nahe--there is not; sakti--power; nimani-mukhe--in the mouth of this boy Nimai; rahi'--remaining; bale--speaks; apane--personally; sarasvati--mother Sarasvati.

TRANSLATION

"The wonderful explanation the boy has given could not have been possible for a human being. Therefore mother Sarasvati must have spoken personally through His mouth."






TEXT 91

eta bhavi' kahe----suna, nimani pandita
tava vyakhya suni' ami ha-ilan vismita

SYNONYMS

eta bhavi--thinking like this; kahe--the pandita says; suna--hear; nimani pandita--O Nimai Pandita; tava--Your; vyakhya--explanations; suni'--hearing; ami--I; ha-ilan--have become; vismita--struck with wonder.

TRANSLATION

Thinking thus, the pandita said, "My dear Nimai Pandita, please hear me. Hearing Your explanation, I am simply struck with wonder."






TEXT 92

alankara nahi pada, nahi sastrabhyasa
kemane e saba artha karile prakasa

SYNONYMS

alankara--the literary use of words; nahi pada--You never read; nahi--nor is there; sastra-abhyasa--long practice in the discussion of the sastras; kemane--by which method; e saba--all these; artha--explanations; karile--You have made; prakasa--manifestation.

TRANSLATION

"I am surprised. You are not a literary student and do not have long experience in studying the sastras. How have You been able to explain all these critical points?"






TEXT 93

iha suni' mahaprabhu ati bada rangi
tanhara hrdaya jani' kahe kari' bhangi

SYNONYMS

iha suni'--hearing this; mahaprabhu--Caitanya Mahaprabhu; ati--very; bada--much; rangi--funny; tanhara--his; hrdaya--heart; jani'--understanding; kahe--says; kari'--doing; bhangi--indication.

TRANSLATION

Hearing this and understanding the pandita's heart, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu replied in a humorous way.






TEXT 94

sastrera vicara bhala-manda nahi jani
sarasvati ye balaya, sei bali vani

SYNONYMS

sastrera vicara--discussion of sastra; bhala-manda--good or bad; nahi jani--do not know; sarasvati--mother Sarasvati; ye balaya--whatever she speaks; sei--those; bali--I say; vani--words.

TRANSLATION

"My dear sir, I do not know what is good composition and what is bad. But whatever I have spoken must be understood to have been spoken by mother Sarasvati."






TEXT 95

iha suni' digvijayi karila niscaya
sisu-dvare devi more kaila parajaya

SYNONYMS

iha suni'--hearing this; dig-vijayi--the champion; karila--admitted; niscaya--decision; sisu-dvare--through this boy; devi--mother Sarasvati; more--unto me; kaila--has done; parajaya--defeat.

TRANSLATION

When he heard this judgment from Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the pandita sorrowfully wondered why mother Sarasvati wanted to defeat him through a small boy.






TEXT 96

aji tanre nivediba, kari' japa-dhyana
sisu-dvare kaila more eta apamana

SYNONYMS

aji--today; tanre--unto her; nivediba--I shall offer my prayers; kari'--performing; japa--chanting; dhyana--meditation; sisu-dvare--through a boy; kaila--has done; more--unto me; eta--so much; apamana--insult.

TRANSLATION

"I shall offer prayers and meditation to the goddess of learning," the champion concluded, "and ask her why she has insulted me so greatly through this boy."






TEXT 97

vastutah sarasvati asuddha sloka karaila
vicara-samaya tanra buddhi acchadila

SYNONYMS

vastutah--in fact; sarasvati--mother Sarasvati; asuddha--impure; sloka--verse; karaila--caused him to compose; vicara-samaya--at the time of reviewing; tanra--his; buddhi--intelligence; acchadila--covered.

TRANSLATION

Sarasvati had in fact induced the champion to compose his verse in an impure way. Furthermore, when it was discussed she covered his intelligence, and thus the Lord's intelligence was triumphant.






TEXT 98

tabe sisya-gana saba hasite lagila
ta'-saba nisedhi' prabhu kavire kahila

SYNONYMS

tabe--at that time; sisya-gana--the disciples; saba--all; hasite--to laugh; lagila--began; ta'-saba--all of them; nisedhi'--forbidding; prabhu--the Lord; kavire--unto the poet; kahila--addressed.

TRANSLATION

When the poetic champion was thus defeated, all the Lord's disciples sitting there began to laugh loudly. But Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu asked them not to do so, and He addressed the poet as follows.






TEXT 99

tumi bada pandita, mahakavi-siromani
yanra mukhe bahiraya aiche kavya-vani

SYNONYMS

tumi--you; bada pandita--greatly learned scholar; maha-kavi--of all great poets; siromani--the topmost; yanra--of whom; mukhe--in the mouth; bahiraya--emanates; aiche--such; kavya-vani--poetic language.

TRANSLATION

"You are the most learned scholar and the topmost of all great poets, for otherwise how could such fine poetry come from your mouth?"






TEXT 100

tomara kavitva yena ganga-jala-dhara
toma-sama kavi kotha nahi dekhi ara

SYNONYMS

tomara--your; kavitva--poetic ingenuity; yena--like; ganga-jala-dhara--the flowing of the waters of the Ganges; toma-sama--like you; kavi--poet; kotha--anywhere; nahi--not; dekhi--I see; ara--anyone else.

TRANSLATION

"Your poetic skill is like the constant flow of the waters of the Ganges. I find no one in the world who can compete with you."






TEXT 101

bhavabhuti, jayadeva, ara kalidasa
tan-sabara kavitve ache dosera prakasa

SYNONYMS

bhavabhuti--of the name Bhavabhuti; jayadeva--of the name Jayadeva; ara--and; kalidasa--of the name Kalidasa; tan-sabara--of all of them; kavitve--in the poetic power; ache--there is; dosera--of faults; prakasa--manifestation.

TRANSLATION

"Even in the poetic compositions of such great poets as Bhavabhuti, Jayadeva and Kalidasa there are many examples of faults."






TEXT 102

dosa-guna-vicara----ei alpa kari' mani
kavitva-karane sakti, tanha se vakhani

SYNONYMS

dosa-guna-vicara--therefore to criticize one's poetry as good or bad; ei--this; alpa--negligible; kari'--making; mani--I consider; kavitva--poetic ingenuity; karane--in performing; sakti--power; tanha--that; se--we; vakhani--describe.

TRANSLATION

"Such mistakes should be considered negligible. One should see only how such poets have displayed their poetic power."

PURPORT

In Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.5.11) it is said:

tad-vag-visargo janatagha-viplavo
yasmin prati-slokam abaddhavaty api
namany anantasya yaso 'nkitani yat
srnvanti gayanti grnanti sadhavah
"In explaining the glories of the Lord, inexperienced men may compose poetry with many faults, but because it contains glorification of the Lord, great personalities read it, hear it and chant it." Despite its minute literary discrepancies, one must study poetry on the merit of its subject matter. According to Vaisnava philosophy, any literature that glorifies the Lord, whether properly written or not, is first class. There need be no other considerations. The poetic compositions of Bhavabhuti, or Srikantha, include Malati-madhava, Uttara-carita, Vira-carita and many other similar Sanskrit dramas. This great poet was born during the time of Bhojaraja as the son of Nilakantha, a brahmana. Kalidasa flourished during the time of Maharaja Vikramaditya, and he became the state poet. He composed some thirty or forty Sanskrit dramas, including Kumara-sambhava, Abhijnana-sakuntala and Megha-duta. His drama Raghu-vamsa is especially famous. We have already described Jayadeva in Chapter Thirteen of this Adi-lila.






TEXT 103

saisava-capalya kichu na labe amara
sisyera samana muni na han tomara

SYNONYMS

saisava--childish; capalya--impudence; kichu--anything; na--do not; labe--please take; amara--My; sisyera--of disciples; samana--the equal; muni--I; na--not; han--am; tomara--your.

TRANSLATION

"I am not even fit to be your disciple. Therefore kindly do not take seriously whatever childish impudence I have shown."






TEXT 104

aji vasa' yaha, kali miliba abara
suniba tomara mukhe sastrera vicara

SYNONYMS

aji--today; vasa'--resting place; yaha--go back; kali--tomorrow; miliba--we will meet; abara--again; suniba--I shall hear; tomara mukhe--from your mouth; sastrera--on the sastras; vicara--discussion.

TRANSLATION

"Please go back home, and tomorrow we may meet again so that I may hear discourses on the sastras from your mouth."






TEXT 105

ei-mate nija ghare gela dui jana
kavi ratre kaila sarasvati-aradhana

SYNONYMS

ei-mate--in this way; nija ghare--to their respective homes; gela--went back; dui jana--both of them; kavi--poet; ratre--at night; kaila--performed; sarasvati--of mother Sarasvati; aradhana--worship.

TRANSLATION

In this way both the poet and Caitanya Mahaprabhu went back to their homes, and at night the poet worshiped mother Sarasvati.






TEXT 106

sarasvati svapne tanre upadesa kaila
saksat isvara kari' prabhuke janila

SYNONYMS

sarasvati--mother Sarasvati; svapne--in a dream; tanre--unto him; upadesa--advice; kaila--gave; saksat--directly; isvara--the Supreme Person; kari'--accepting; prabhuke--the Lord; janila--he understood.

TRANSLATION

In a dream the goddess informed him of the Lord's position, and the poetic champion could understand that Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu is the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself.






TEXT 107

prate asi' prabhu-pade la-ila sarana
prabhu krpa kaila, tanra khandila bandhana

SYNONYMS

prate--in the morning; asi'--coming back; prabhu-pade--at the lotus feet of the Lord; la-ila--took; sarana--shelter; prabhu--the Lord; krpa--mercy; kaila--showed; tanra--his; khandila--cut off; bandhana--all bondage.

TRANSLATION

The next morning the poet came to Lord Caitanya and surrendered unto His lotus feet. The Lord bestowed His mercy upon him and cut off all his bondage to material attachment.

PURPORT

The same process advocated by Lord Sri Krsna in His teachings of the Bhagavad-gita as it is--"Surrender unto Me in all instances"--was advocated by Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu. The champion surrendered unto the Lord, and the Lord favored him. One who is favored by the Lord is freed from material bondage, as stated in the Bhagavad-gita (4.9): tyaktva deham punar janma naiti mam eti so 'rjuna.






TEXT 108

bhagyavanta digvijayi saphala-jivana
vidya-bale paila mahaprabhura carana

SYNONYMS

bhagyavanta--very fortunate; dig-vijayi--the poetic champion; sa-phala--successful; jivana--life; vidya-bale--by the strength of learning; paila--got; maha-prabhura--of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu; carana--lotus feet.

TRANSLATION

The poetic champion was certainly most fortunate. His life was successful by dint of his vast learning and erudite scholarship, and thus he attained the shelter of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

PURPORT

Sri Narottama dasa Thakura has sung that the best qualification for taking shelter of the lotus feet of Lord Caitanya is to be the most fallen because the Lord came specifically to deliver the fallen souls. In this age there are very few scholars. Almost everyone is a fallen meat-eater, drunkard, woman-hunter or gambler. Such persons are never considered learned scholars, even if they pose as such. Because these so-called scholars superficially see that Caitanya Mahaprabhu associates with the fallen souls, they think that He is meant for a lower class of men but that they do not need Him. Thus such scholars do not take to the Krsna consciousness movement. To be puffed up with false learning, therefore, is a disqualification for accepting the Krsna consciousness movement. But here is a special example, for although the poetic champion was a greatly learned scholar, the Lord also favored him because of his humble submission.






TEXT 109

e-saba lila varniyachena vrndavana-dasa
ye kichu visesa ihan karila prakasa

SYNONYMS

e-saba--all these; lila--pastimes; varniyachena--has described; vrndavana-dasa--Vrndavana dasa Thakura; ye kichu--whatever; visesa--specifics; ihan--in this connection; karila--I have made; prakasa--presentation.

TRANSLATION

Srila Vrndavana dasa Thakura has described all these incidents elaborately. I have only presented the specific incidents he has not described.






TEXT 110

caitanya-gosanira lila----amrtera dhara
sarvendriya trpta haya sravane yahara

SYNONYMS

caitanya-gosanira lila--the pastimes of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu; amrtera dhara--drops of nectar; sarva-indriya--all senses; trpta--satisfied; haya--become; sravane--by hearing; yahara--of them all.

TRANSLATION

The nectarean drops of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's pastimes can satisfy the senses of everyone who hears them.






TEXT 111

sri-rupa-raghunatha-pade yara asa
caitanya-caritamrta kahe krsnadasa

SYNONYMS

sri-rupa--Srila Rupa Gosvami; raghunatha--Srila Raghunatha dasa Gosvami; pade--at the lotus feet; yara--whose; asa--expectation; caitanya-caritamrta--the book named Caitanya-caritamrta; kahe--describes; krsnadasa--Srila Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami.

TRANSLATION

Praying at the lotus feet of Sri Rupa and Sri Raghunatha, always desiring their mercy, I, Krsnadasa, narrate Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, following in their footsteps.

Thus end the Bhaktivedanta purports to Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Adi-lila, Sixteenth Chapter, describing the pastimes of the Lord in His childhood and youth.


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