19910629 Caitanya-caritāmṛta Antya līlā.6.1-37

The following is a lecture given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami on June 29^th 1991 in New Pānihāṭi dhāma in Atlanta Georgia. The class begins with a reading from the Caitanya-caritāmṛta Antya-līlā chapter 6, verse 1 – 37.

Cc. Antya 6.1

kṛpā-guṇair yaḥ kugṛhāndha-kūpādu ddhṛtya bhaṅgyā raghunātha-dāsam
nyasya svarūpe vidadhe ’ntar-aṅgaṁ śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanyam amuṁ prapadye

Translation: With the ropes of His causeless mercy, Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Mahāprabhu employed a trick to deliver Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī from the blind well of contemptible family life. He made Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī one of His personal associates, placing him under the charge of Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī. I offer my obeisance to Him.

Cc. Antya 6.2

jaya jaya śrī-caitanya jaya Nityānanda
jayādvaita-candra jaya gaura-bhakta-vṛnda

Translation: All glories to Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu! All glories to Lord Nityānanda! All glories to Śrī Advaita Ācārya! And all glories to all the devotees of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu!

Cc. Antya 6.3

ei-mata gauracandra bhakta-gaṇa-saṅge
nīlācale nānā līlā kare nānā-raṅge

Translation: Thus Lord Gaura candra performed various pastimes with His associates at Jagannātha Purī in varieties of transcendental pleasure.

Cc. Antya 6.4

yadyapi antare kṛṣṇa-viyoga bādhaye
bāhire nā prakāśaya bhakta-duḥkha-bhaye

Translation: Although Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu felt pangs of sepāration from Kṛṣṇa, He did not manifest His feelings externally, for He feared the unhappiness of His devotees.

Cc. Antya 6.5

utkaṭa viraha-duḥkha yabe bāhirāya
tabe ye vaikalya prabhura varṇana nā yāya

Translation: The transformations undergone by the Lord when He manifested severe unhappiness due to sepāration from Kṛṣṇa cannot be described.

Cc. Antya 6.6

rāmānandera kṛṣṇa-kathā, svarūpera gāna
viraha-vedanāya prabhura rākhaye parāṇa

Translation: When the Lord acutely felt pangs of sepāration from Kṛṣṇa, only Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya’s talks about Kṛṣṇa and the sweet songs of Svarūpa Dāmodara kept Him alive.

Cc. Antya 6.7

dine prabhu nānā-saṅge haya anya mana
rātri-kāle bāḍe prabhura viraha-vedana

Translation: Because the Lord associated with various devotees during the day, His mind was somewhat diverted, but at night the pangs of sepāration from Kṛṣṇa increased very rapidly.

Cc. Antya 6.8

tāṅra sukha-hetu saṅge rahe dui janā
kṛṣṇa-rasa-śloka-gīte karena sāntvanā

Translation: Two people — Rāmānanda Rāya and Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī — stayed with the Lord to pacify Him by reciting various verses about Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes and by singing appropriate songs for His satisfaction.

Cc. Antya 6.9

subala yaiche pūrve kṛṣṇa-sukhera sahāya
gaura-sukha-dāna-hetu taiche rāma-rāya

Translation: Previously, when Lord Kṛṣṇa was personally present, Subala, one of His cowherd boyfriends, gave Him happiness when He felt sepāration from Rādhārāṇī. Similarly, Rāmānanda Rāya helped give happiness to Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

Cc. Antya 6.10

pūrve yaiche rādhāra lalitā sahāya-pradhāna
taiche svarūpa-gosāñi rākhe mahāprabhura prāṇa

Translation: Previously, when Śrīmati Rādhārāṇī felt the pangs of sepāration from Kṛṣṇa, Her constant companion Lalitā kept Her alive by helping her in many ways. Similarly, when Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu felt Rādhārani’s emotions, Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī helped Him maintain His life.

Cc. Antya 6.11

ei dui janāra saubhāgya kahana nā yāya
prabhura ‘antaraṅga’ bali’ yāṅre loke gāya

Translation: To describe the fortunate position of Rāmānanda Rāya and Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī is extremely difficult. They were renowned as intimately confidential friends of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

Cc. Antya 6.12

ei-mata vihare gaura lañā bhakta-gaṇa
raghunātha-milana ebe śuna, bhakta-gaṇa

Translation: The Lord thus enjoyed His life with His devotees. O devotees of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, now hear how Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī met the Lord.

Jayapatākā Swami: So the first introduction explaining the intimate service Rāmānanda Rāya and Svarūpa Dāmodara were performing to Lord Caitanya established how inconceivably elevated, confidential, incomparably confidential servitors of the Lord they are. Raghunātha dāsa will become the assistant to Svarūpa Dāmodara. Will be, after them, very intimately associated with Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Now that we can appreciate the greatness of Svarūpa Dāmodara and Rāmānanda Rāya, now we can see that Raghunātha dāsa is going to become their assistant. He must also be pretty exceptional, pretty great. So, how Raghunātha das joining Svarūpa Dāmodara in Jagannātha Purī, this is explained now.

Cc. Antya 6.13

pūrve śāntipure raghunātha yabe āilā
mahāprabhu kṛpā kari’ tāṅre śikhāilā

Translation: When Raghunātha dāsa, during his family life, went to meet Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu at Śāntipura, the Lord gave him worthy instructions by His causeless mercy.

Cc. Antya 6.14

prabhura śikṣāte teṅho nija-ghare yāya
markaṭa-vairāgya chāḍi’ hailā ‘viṣayi-prāya’

Translation: Instead of becoming a so-called renunciate, Raghunātha dāsa, following the instructions of the Lord, returned home and played exactly like a pound-and-shillings man.

Cc. Antya 6.15

bhitare vairāgya, bāhire kare sarva-karma
dekhiyā ta’ mātā-pitāra ānandita mana

Translation: Raghunātha dāsa was inwardly completely renounced, even in family life, but he did not express his renunciation externally. Instead, he acted just like an ordinary businessman. Seeing this, his father and mother were satisfied.

Jayapatākā Swami: Previously Raghunātha dāsa, he decided he wanted to go and join Caitanya Mahāprabhu although his father and uncle living in a joint Vedic family, where at that time, the landlords under the feudal system of the Empire of the Hussein Shah, they were like small kings and they wanted a feudal system. They had to collect the taxes from the peasants and give it to the emperor. The share of tax they had to provide every year was 1 million two hundred thousand gold coins. How much is 1 million two hundred thousand krugerrands today?  So in those days, even hundred years ago, Prabhupāda said his father with a few rupees he would purchase enough food to feed the family for the whole year. They would buy one time all the grains for the year. It would cost several rupees. Common people didn't even use money, they used conchshells at this time. So that was their money, conchshells. To get something for rupee, you have to buy something very big. And so many rupees were equal to a gold coin that Sanātana Gosvāmī's servant Īśāna, with one gold coin, he lived his whole life opulently. So, if you have to pay that much tax, obviously making more than you pay tax. So they were very rich but Raghunātha dāsa was totally just disinterested. But he was trying to just artificially renounce everything and leave abruptly.

So Lord Caitanya said the sudden abrupt leaving one’s material situation is not recommended. You should use everything in the service of Kṛṣṇa. So the Pānihāṭi ciḍā-dahi-mahotsava or daṇḍa-mahotsava is also showing how a well-to-do Vaiṣṇava can engage his wealth, his energy, his devotion in the service of the Lord. It is one of the countless instructions to be gained in the example of Raghunātha dāsa.

Raghunātha dāsa was very sincere. He followed Lord Caitanya's instructions. Lord Caitanya told him, “Why do you keep trying to run away? You just be like a wife. If she has a paramour, she does her household work very carefully so she's not discovered. But her heart is always, her mind is always with her lover. And that way you do your material activities externally. No one will see that you are not interested in them. But actually you keep your mind always on Kṛṣṇa. This is the way that we should perform our devotional service. Throughout the scriptures that says that we should be detached and perhaps there should be detached from family. That doesn't mean they should neglect their responsibilities, but that while they're doing their activities, they should see the temporary nature of all these arrangements and keep their heart, keep their mind at the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. If somebody thinks that by some material arrangement I'll be happy, then that person is considered fallen into the dark well. But the Vaiṣṇava devotees know that by no material arrangement can we ever achieve ultimate peace or happiness. These are flickering happiness and then suffering, flickering happiness then suffering. So they keep their mind always at the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. They look for their spiritual inspiration by chanting

Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare,
Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare

So this is called yukta-vairāgya. Markaṭa-vairāgya is imitating a monkey, just give up everything and run away into the forest, appear very renounced and then do all type of nonsense. So Māyādevī wanted to test Raghunātha whether he was following Lord Caitanya's instructions or not.

Cc. Antya 6.17

hena-kāle mulukera eka mleccha adhikārī
saptagrāma-mulukera se haya ‘caudhurī’

Translation: At that time there was a Mohamadan official collecting the taxes of Saptagrāma.

Purport: Formerly, when the Muslim government was in power, the person appointed tax collector would collect the taxes of the local zamindars, or landholders. He would keep one fourth of the collection for himself as a profit, and the balance he would deliver to the treasury of the government.

Cc. Antya 6.18

hiraṇya-dāsa muluka nila ‘makrari’ kariyā
tāra adhikāra gela, mare se dekhiyā

Translation: When Hiraṇya dāsa, Raghunātha dāsa’s uncle, made an agreement with the government to collect taxes, the Mohamadan caudhurī, or tax collector, having lost his position, became extremely envious of him.

Cc. Antya 6.19

bāra lakṣa deya rājāya, sādhe biśa lakṣa
se ‘turuk’ kichu nā pāñā haila pratipakṣa

Translation: Hiraṇya dāsa was collecting 2,000,000 coins and therefore should have delivered 1,500,000 to the government. Instead, he was giving only 1,200,000, thus making an extra profit of 300,000 coins. Seeing this, the Mohamadan caudhurī, who was a Turk, became his rival.  

Cc. Antya 6.20

rāja-ghare kaiphiyat diyā ujīre ānila
hiraṇya-dāsa palāila, raghunāthere bāndhila

Translation: After sending a confidential account to the government treasury, the caudhurī brought the minister in charge. The caudhurī came, wanting to arrest Hiraṇya dāsa, but Hiraṇya dāsa had left home. Therefore the caudhurī arrested Raghunātha dāsa.

Cc. Antya 6.21

prati-dina raghunāthe karaye bhartsanā
‘bāpa-jyeṭhāre āna’, nahe pāibā yātanā

Translation: Every day, the Mohamadan would chastise Raghunātha dāsa and tell him, “Bring your father and his elder brother. Otherwise you will be punished.”

Cc. Antya 6.22

mārite ānaye yadi dekhe raghunāthe
mana phiri’ yāya, tabe nā pāre mārite

Translation: The caudhurī wanted to beat him, but as soon as he saw Raghunātha’s face, his mind changed, and he could not beat him.

Cc. Antya 6.23

viśeṣe kāyastha-buddhye antare kare ḍara
mukhe tarje garje, mārite sabhaya antara

Translation: Indeed, the caudhurī was afraid of Raghunātha dāsa because Raghunātha dāsa belonged to the kāyastha community. Although the caudhurī would chastise him with oral vibrations, he was afraid to beat him.

Purport: Raghunātha dāsa belonged to a very aristocratic family of the kāyastha community. He had substantial influence with the local people, and therefore the caudhurī, or minister, was afraid to beat him. Superficially he would chastise Raghunātha dāsa with threatening vibrations, but he did not beat him. The members of the kāyastha community in India are generally very intelligent and expert in business management. Formerly they were mostly government officers. They were mentioned even by Yājñavalkya, as quoted by Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura in his Amṛta-pravāha-bhāṣya:

mahā-sāhasikādibhiḥ cāṭa-taskara-durvṛttair
kāyasthaiś ca viśeṣataḥ pīḍyamānā prajā rakṣet

From this verse it appears that the governmental officials of the kāyastha community would sometimes chastise the citizens, and thus it was the duty of the king to protect the people in general from the atrocities of the kāyasthas. In Bengal the kāyastha community is honoured almost as much as the brāhmaṇa community, but in the up-country of India the kāyasthas are considered śūdras because they generally eat meat and drink wine. In any case, from history the kāyasthas appear very intelligent. Thus, the Mohammedan caudhurī was afraid of Raghunātha dāsa because he belonged to the kāyastha community.

Jayapatākā Swami: In other words, the government in India that due to the varṇāśrama system, kāyasthas were kind of combination of brāhmaṇas and kṣatriyas. They were doing the work of kṣatriyas traditionally but they had some connection with brāhmaṇa in the past. So they were very expert administrators. They were a kind of a special caste in themselves. But they were bit ruthless to get the job done. So the king had to protect the people, if the government administrators were too ruthless. So according to the varṇāśrama system with traditions, because they were trained in that way, the families were also following basic rules and regulations of a particular type. So, hereditarily these trades were handed down more predictably. Gradually, as they started to fall down from their status in the age of Kali, then they also became slightly more degraded and lost some of their edge. Still today, these caste kāyasthas are present but may be they don't have as much potency as they did in the past. Many kāyasthas exist even today in the government. Raghunātha of course, he is transcendental to the varṇāśrama system. This is generally what is understood hereditarily. Raghunātha dāsa of course is very exceptional.

Cc. Antya 6.24

tabe raghunātha kichu cintilā upāya
vinati kariyā kahe sei mleccha-pāya

Translation: While this was going on, Raghunātha dāsa thought of a tricky method of escape. Thus he humbly submitted this plea at the feet of the Mohamadan caudhurī.

Jayapatākā Swami: Actually he started to pray to the Mohamadan, “My dear sir, my father and his elder brother are both your brothers. So always brothers are fighting about something. Sometimes brothers have fights amongst each other, sometimes they're friendly. These changes are always taking place. So I'm sure today, although you're fighting, tomorrow you all three will be brothers sitting together in peace. Just as I am my father's son, so I'm also yours. I'm your dependent. You are my maintainer. For maintainer to punish the person he maintains is not good. You are an expert in all the scriptures. Indeed you are like a living saint.

Cc. Antya 6.25

eta śuni’ sei mlecchera mana ārdra haila
dāḍi vāhi’ aśru paḍe, kāṅdite lāgila

Translation: When the Muslim heard Raghunātha dāsa’s appealing voice, his heart softened. He began to cry, and tears glided down his beard.

Cc. Antya 6.30

mleccha bale, — “āji haite tumi — mora ‘putra’
āji chāḍāimu tomā’ kari’ eka sūtra”

Translation: The Mohamadan caudhurī told Raghunātha dāsa, “You are my son from this day on. Today, by some means, I shall have you released.”

Cc. Antya 6.31

ujire kahiyā raghunāthe chāḍāila
prīti kari’ raghunāthe kahite lāgila

Translation: After informing the minister, the caudhurī released Raghunātha dāsa and then began to speak to him with great affection.

Cc. Antya 6.32

tomāra jyeṭhā nirbuddhi aṣṭa-lakṣa khāya
āmi—bhāgī, āmāre kichu dibāre yuyāya

Translation: The elder brother, your father is less intelligent. He enjoys eight hundred thousand coins but since I am also a shareholder, he should give some portion of it to me.

Cc. Antya 6.33

yāha tumi, tomāra jyeṭhāre milāha āmāre
ye-mate bhāla haya karuna, bhāra diluṅ tāṅre

Translation: “Now you go arrange a meeting between me and your uncle. Let him do whatever he thinks best. I shall be dependent on his decision.”

Jayapatākā Swami: So Raghunātha dāsa arranged a meeting between his uncles the children, settled the matter and everything was peaceful. Otherwise Raghunātha dāsa had to deal with so many different matters, just like any other businessman. The tax collector got his share, government got their share, and Raghunātha dāsa’s uncle got his share. Everything was worked out. But all the time, Raghunātha dāsa, he was feeling extreme separation from Caitanya Mahāprabhu. So after a year, doing all this according to Lord Caitanya's instruction, but he was still determined. He wanted to meet Lord Caitanya. Again he wanted to leave home. He ran away again and again and he was caught. He ran again and again and was caught. His father had a whole army. Raghunātha dāsa’s mother spoke to his father.

Cc. Antya 6.38

“putra ‘bātula’ ha-ila, ihāya rākhaha bāndhiyā”
tāṅra pitā kahe are nirviṇṇa hañā

Translation: “Our son has become mad,” she said. “Just keep him by binding him with ropes.” His father, being very unhappy, replied to her as follows.

Jayapatākā Swami: Actually Lord Caitanya, when He was in Navadwīpa, He first came back from Gaya, He was so ecstatic with spiritual love of Kṛṣṇa that He would laugh loudly in kīrtana, He would be crying in their separation. Sometimes He would be stunned, sometime He'd be jumping and dancing in ecstasy. But no one had seen Him do this before. They thought that He ate some kind of plant or He got some displaced airs. He had gone mad or something.

So the people also were recommending to mother Śacī, “You should have your son tied up. Tie Him up, tie His legs. Feed Him green coconuts, put soothing oils on His head. Cool his brain down. He is overheated.” This was their idea. So then Lord Caitanya went to see Śrīvāsa Paṇḍita. “Why people are saying that I have gone mad? So you please tell me what is my disease.”

Śrīvāsa said, “Yes. You are having some disease, but I also want to have that disease! You are having the disease of love of Kṛṣṇa.”  Lord Caitanya was so happy to hear this that He embraced Śrīvāsa and said that, “If you had told me that I was mad, if I heard it from you, I would have jumped into the ocean, the Ganges River and taken my life. You have given me a new lease on life, a new desire to live, otherwise what is the use of living?”

Śrīvās explained to Him that, “You are feeling spontaneous attraction for Kṛṣṇa and separation of Kṛṣṇa. This is causing all of these emotions. This pure love of Kṛṣṇa is desired even by Brahmadeva and Lord Sīva. They hanker for it. It is very rare! All the devotees want to chant kīrtana with you and associate with you more intimately.” In this way the whole saṅkīrtana movement started.

So many times people think that devotees are crazy and Prabhupāda wrote a little pamphlet, “Who is crazy?” So Raghunātha dāsa’s mother also thought that our son has gone crazy. Who would want to leave a big palatial palace, 800,000 gold coins a year income? Who would want to leave beautiful family life, all opulence? 

When Śrīnivāsa Ācārya was looking for the stolen books he brought from Vṛndāvana and he went here and there, he finally ended up in the court of Vikram Mahadev Shah, the king of Bona Viṣṇupur. So this king, after seeing Śrīnivāsa defeat his guru, took Śrīnivāsa in the back and asked him who he was and Śrīnivāsa started to explain how there were the two brothers Rūpa and Sanātana, Dabir Khas and Sakāra Malik, who were the finance minister and the prime minister of the Hussein Shah.

Then that king interjected and said, “Yes, I had to go and pay my taxes to the emperor.” Kings have to pay one-third to the emperor. I guess landlords have to pay 3/4th, kings have to pay one-third, they could keep two thirds. That was the advantage of being a king. When Emperor would attack different kingdoms, if the King would surrender without a fight or make a truce after some fight, then the emperor would keep that king as a sub king. He would have to pay one-third of all of his taxes to the emperor. So he said “I had to go every year to pay my taxes to the emperor.  I had to give it to these two brothers, they were so powerful. They were more powerful than I was. They had so much power. The whole entire empire was under their hand. I thought that how crazy they were when they left everything and went on. Really cracked. He thought they were also crazy. Then Śrīnivāsa explained how they had gone off to join Caitanya Mahāprabhu and they got the full mercy of Caitanya Mahāprabhu, they had love for Godhead. So the history of all these great personalities is given in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta: Svarūpa, Rāmānanda Rāya, Rūpa, Sanātana Gosvāmī. Now Raghunātha dāsa. Highly qualified, highly qualified, intelligent. Every material facility was at their command. But they gave up the attachments. Ultimately they joined the saṅkīrtana movement of Caitanya Mahāprabhu fully.

Under certain rare circumstances Lord Caitanya would accept that someone fully give up. But for common people, if they give up their material situation abruptly thinking, “Oh this is too much headache. My wife is arguing with me, the bills are there, the  taxes are there, this is there, that is there, let me give up.” But they are not actually so attached to Kṛṣṇa. They are just frustrated. Then separation makes the heart grow dear. Once they separate from the family, from the difficulties, they start to forget all the troubles and they say, “Oh here in the āśrama there's also troubles. People steal my gamcha, they steal my socks, the president didn't smile at me today, this thing is wrong. That may be my parents weren't that bad after all, may be my husband or wife, this or that wasn’t that bad.” Then because they didn't develop a positive attraction to Kṛṣṇa, they just start picking up on other little difficulties and then māyā starts attacking their mind.

So Lord Caitanya didn't want people to separate themselves from their material situation unless they were actually very attached to Kṛṣṇa. Unless their attachment had reached a certain degree of maturity, so that their motive for entering that temple or for entering into full devotional service in a renounced or a more renounced way. Their motive was also because of their intense attraction and devotion for Kṛṣṇa, not just a negative reaction which is not very long-lasting.

Verified by Your Ever Servant Vinoda Gopīkeśa Dāsa 
On 09272024 Māyāpur