Introduction to chapter 4

This chapter describes Mahāprabhu’s journey with His devotees towards Mathurā, His stay for a few days during the journey at Rāmakeli, the infidel King of Bengal Hussain Shah’s deduction after hearing about Mahāprabhu’s opulences that Mahāprabhu was the Supreme Lord, the Lord’s return journey towards the south from Rāmakeli rather than continuing on towards Mathurā, the Lord’s arrival at the house of Advaita in Śāntipura on His way to Nīlācala, the child Acyutānanda’s firm faith in Lord Caitanya, Mother Śacī’s arrival at the house of Advaita, Śacī’s full satisfaction while offering foodstuffs to Mahāprabhu, Śrī Murāri Gupta’s recitation of prayers to Lord Rāmacandra before Mahāprabhu, the Lord’s questioning a leper who committed an offense at the feet of Śrīvāsa about the cause of his leprosy, the Lord’s display of anger at him and His arrangement for forgiving the offense of that leper by having him beg forgiveness from Śrīvāsa, and Śrī Advaita Acarya’s engaging Mahaprabhu and His associates in a grand saṅkīrtana festival for the worship of Śrī Mādhavendra Purī.

After removing the offenses of the offenders in Kuliyā, the place where offenses are eliminated, and after delivering the living entities there, Mahāprabhu with a group of devotees departed for Mathurā down the road by the side of the Ganges. The Lord went to the village of Rāmakeli, situated on the bank of the Ganges near Gauḍa, with the desire to spend four or five days at a solitary place there. But after news of Mahāprabhu’s arrival in Rāmakeli quickly spread everywhere, His loud roaring, kīrtana, crying, and His appeal to everyone to chant the holy name of Hari attracted the attention of even the infidels. When the local constable related the topics of this wonderful sannyāsī to the King, even that infidel King Hussain Shah considered that Mahāprabhu was the Supreme Lord.

Still, fearing that it was not impossible that the King’s mind might change through the conspiracy of wicked people, some devotees secretly sent a messenger to the Lord requesting Him to leave Rāmakeli. When a brāhmaṇa informed the Lord’s associates about this, their hearts filled with anxiety. The Lord, who is the Supersoul of everyone, then instilled fearlessness in them by personally revealing His own omnipotence and His supremacy that is unknown even to the Vedas, and He promised that He would distribute the holy name to everyone in this age except the offenders at the feet of Vaiṣṇavas. Mahāprabhu also predicted that His name would be spread to every town and village throughout the world.

Changing His plan to go to Mathurā, Mahāprabhu started walking south from Rāmakeli and eventually reached the house of Advaita in Śāntipura. In this connection the author relates an incident to show the difference between the extraordinary attachment for Lord Caitanya of Śrī Acyutānanda the son of Śrī Advaita and the behavior of Advaita’s other so-called sons, who are averse to Lord Caitanya. One day an exalted sannyāsī came to Śrī Advaita’s house and inquired from Him about how Keśava Bhāratī was related to Caitanya. According to worldly etiquette Śrī Advaita Ācārya said that Keśava Bhāratī was the spiritual master of Caitanya. On hearing this reply, the five-year-old naked Acyutānanda smilingly yet in an angry mood asked his father what kind of conclusion was it that the Supreme Personality of Godhead Lord Caitanya, the spiritual master of all, has a spiritual master? After hearing this conclusive statement from His five-year-old son Acyutānanda, Śrī Advaita Ācārya said that Acyuta was actually the father and He was the son. Acyutānanda has appeared in this world as His son to teach the actual truth. When after speaking in this way Advaita begged forgiveness from His son, Acyutānanda became embarrassed and bent his head down. And on seeing the proper exchange of etiquette between a perfect father and a perfect son, the sannyāsī became stunned and then happily left that place while chanting the holy name of Hari. In this regard Ṭhākura Vṛndāvana describes the glories of Śrī Acyutānanda, who is fixed at the lotus feet of Śrī Caitanya, and the position of Śrī Advaita’s other so- called sons, who are fit to be punished by Yamarāja. When Śrī Advaita Ācārya was thus overwhelmed by the behavior of Śrī Acyutānanda, Śrī Gaurasundara arrived there with His associates. Śrīman Mahāprabhu bestowed special mercy on Acyutānanda and stayed at the house of Advaita to enjoy His saṅkīrtana pastimes. Advaita Ācārya then sent a palanquin and some men to Navadvīpa to bring mother Śacī, who was afflicted with separation from the Lord and who was nondifferent from mother Yaśodā, to Śāntipura. Immediately after hearing about the Lord’s arrival, when mother Śacī along with Gaṅgādāsa Paṇḍita, Murāri Gupta, and other devotees came to Śāntipura, Mahāprabhu circumambulated her and offered prayers to her by addressing her as Devakī, Yaśodā, Devahūti, Pṛśni, Kauśalyā, and Aditi. The devotees glorified the wonderful extent of mother Śacī’s devotional service and praised the glories of the name āi.

Advaita Ācārya took permission from the Lord for mother Śacī to personally cook and feed Him. After Mother Śacī cooked various types of vegetables and as many as twenty varieties of the Lord’s favorite śāka (spinach) and offered them to the Lord, Mahāprabhu relished those foodstuffs with great satisfaction while praising mother Śacī’s wonderful cooking and the stimulation for varieties of service awakened by those various śākas, which are dear to Kṛṣṇa.

The nectarean remnants of Mahāprabhu were plundered and relished by the devotees. Then Śrī Murāri Gupta recited prayers in glorification to Lord Rāmacandra before Mahāprabhu and His associates. Placing His lotus feet on Murāri’s head, Mahāprabhu awarded him the benediction that he would remain the eternal servant of Rāma. When a leper approached Mahāprabhu and related to Him topics of his pathetic condition, Mahāprabhu became very angry, and after declaring that the leper was untouchable and unworthy of being spoken to, Mahāprabhu asked him to leave that place. He further pointed out that if he were unable to tolerate at present the pains of leprosy, then how would he tolerate the pains of suffering for unlimited future births in the hell known as Kumbhipāka? His present pathetic condition was the result of his committing offense at the feet of Śrīvāsa. In this regard Mahāprabhu glorified the unparalleled position of the Vaiṣṇavas by describing how worship of Vaiṣṇavas was superior to worship of Kṛṣṇa and how offense to the Vaiṣṇavas was more grave than offense at the feet of Kṛṣṇa. When the offending leper repented for his offensive act and surrendered at the lotus feet of the Lord, the Lord revealed to him that the only means for getting freedom from offense to a Vaiṣṇava was to sincerely beg forgiveness at the feet of the Vaisnava whom one had offended. When the leper then begged Śrīvāsa for forgiveness, by Śrīvāsa’s mercy he became free from offense. At the outset of describing Śrī Mādhavendra Purī’s appearance festival the author describes in brief the glories of Śrī Mādhavendra Purī and how he met Śrī Advaita Prabhu. While Mahāprabhu and His associates stayed at the house of Advaita, the appearance festival of Śrī Mādhavendra Purī arrived. Śrī Advaita Ācārya Prabhu along with Mahāprabhu and the devotees celebrated the occasion with a huge saṅkīrtana festival. In this regard the author describes the ecstatic condition of Mahāprabhu, Śrī Nityānanda Prabhu, Śrī Advaita Prabhu, and other devotees during the celebration of the festival, the cooking arrangements made by the Vaiṣṇavas’ wives under the direction of mother Śacī, Mahāprabhu’s ecstasy in the kīrtana, His revelation of Advaita’s glories and the method for worshiping Kṛṣṇa’s dear devotee Lord Śiva, Mahāprabhu and the devotee’s kīrtana during the festival honoring Mādhavendra Purī, the Lord’s pastime of honoring prasāda, and topics such as the Lord’s offering flower garlands and sandalwood pulp to the devotees headed by Śrī Nityānanda.