Chaitanya Bhagavata

by Bhumipati Dāsa | 2008 | 1,349,850 words

The Chaitanya Bhagavata 2.1.197, English translation, including a commentary (Gaudiya-bhasya). This text is similair to the Caitanya-caritamrita and narrates the pastimes of Lord Caitanya, proclaimed to be the direct incarnation of Krishna (as Bhagavan) This is verse 197 of Madhya-khanda chapter 1—“The Beginning of the Lord’s Manifestation and His Instructions on Krishna-sankirtana”.

Bengali text, Devanagari and Unicode transliteration of verse 2.1.197:

“চণ্ডাল ‘চণ্ডাল’ নহে—যদি ‘কৃষ্ণ’ বলে বিপ্র ‘বিপ্র’ নহে,—যদি অসত্পথে চলে” ॥ ১৯৭ ॥

“चण्डाल ‘चण्डाल’ नहे—यदि ‘कृष्ण’ बले विप्र ‘विप्र’ नहे,—यदि असत्पथे चले” ॥ १९७ ॥

“caṇḍāla ‘caṇḍāla’ nahe—yadi ‘kṛṣṇa’ bale vipra ‘vipra’ nahe,—yadi asatpathe cale” || 197 ||

“candala ‘candala’ nahe—yadi ‘krsna’ bale vipra ‘vipra’ nahe,—yadi asatpathe cale” (197)

English translation:

(197) “A caṇḍāla is not a caṇḍāla if he chants the name of Kṛṣṇa, and a

Commentary: Gauḍīya-bhāṣya by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura:

brāhmaṇa is not a brāhmaṇa if he engages in sinful activities.”

Even if a devotee of Kṛṣṇa is born in the family of dog-eaters, he is actually the topmost brāhmaṇa; and, according to śāstra, an atheist who is sinful and devoid of devotion to Kṛṣṇa, though born in a brāhmaṇa family, is certainly a dog-eater. Seeing either of them according to ordinary caste consideration is prohibited. Their varṇa should be ascertained according to their taste, occupation, and nature, or symptoms. This is the intention and conclusion of all scriptures, beginning with the śrutis, smṛtis, Purāṇas, Itihāsas, and Pañcarātras.

In his commentary on the Chāndogya Upaniṣad, Śrī Madhvācārya quotes from the Sāma-saṃhitāas follows:

ārjavaṃ brāhmaṇe sākṣāt śūdro ‘nārjava-lakṣaṇaḥgautamas tv iti vijñāya satyakāmam upānayat

“A brāhmaṇa possesses the quality of simplicity, and a śūdra possesses the quality of crookedness. Knowing this fact, Gautama awarded sacred thread initiation to Satyakāma and made him a first-class brāhmaṇa.”

In the Brahma-sūtra (1.3.34) it is stated: śug asya tad-anādara-śravaṇāt tad-ādravaṇāt sūcyate hi—“Pautrāyana was addressed as a śūdra because

he had approached Raikva while overwhelmed with sorrow after hearing disrespectful words spoken about himself.” Śrī Pūrṇaprajña Madhvācārya has stated in his commentary on this sūtra: nāsau pautrāyaṇaḥśūdraḥśucād-dravaṇam eva hi śudatvam—“King Pautrāyaṇa was not a śūdra at birth, but because he was lamenting he was considered a śūdra.” In other words, “One who is affected by lamentation is called a śūdra.” In the Padma Purāṇa it is stated:

rājā pautrāyaṇaḥśokāc- chūdreti muninoditaḥprāṇa-vidyām

avāpyāsmāt paraṃ dharmam avāptavān

“King Pautrāyaṇa was a kṣatriya, yet because of his lamentation, Raikva Muni called him a śūdra. Later the king attained the goal of life after learning confidential meditation on prāṇa from Raikva.”

In the Mahābhārata (Vana-parva 180.26) it is stated:

yatraital lakṣyate sarpa vṛttaṃ sa brāhmaṇaḥ smṛtaḥyatraitan

na bhavet sarpa taṃśūdram iti nirdiśet

“O snake, only a person endowed with the characteristics of a brāhmaṇa

can be called a brāhmaṇa, otherwise he is a śūdra.”

In his commentary on Mahābhārata (Vana-parva 180.23-26) Śrī Nīlakaṇṭha has written: “In the same way, if a śūdra has qualities like truthfulness, then he is a brāhmaṇa. The symptoms of a śūdra, such as lust, are not present in a brāhmaṇa, and the symptoms of a brāhmaṇa, such as peacefulness, are not present in a śūdra. If someone born as a śūdra has qualities like peacefulness, then he is a brāhmaṇa. And if someone born as a brāhmaṇa has qualities like lust, then he is a śūdra. There is no doubt about it.”

In the Mahābhārata (Śānti-parva 189.8) it is stated:

śūdre caitad bhavel lakṣyaṃ dvije tac ca na vidyate

na vai śūdro bhavec chūdro brāhmaṇo brāhmaṇo na ca

“If the symptoms of a brāhmaṇa are found in a śūdra and if the symptoms of a śūdra are found in a brāhmaṇa, then the śūdra should not be called a śūdra and the brāhmaṇa should not be called a brāhmaṇa.” In the Mahābhārata (Vana-parva 215.13-15) it is stated:

brāhmaṇaḥ patanīyeṣu vartamāno vikarmasu dāmbhiko duṣkṛtaḥ prājñaḥ śūdreṇa sadṛśo bhavet yas tu śūdro dame satye dharme ca satatotthitaḥ

taṃ brāhmaṇam ahaṃ manye vṛttena hi bhaved dvijaḥ

“After all, a brāhmaṇa who is proud and engaged in various sinful activities that result in his falling down into the degradation of being contaminated by impure karma is equal to a śūdra. And I consider a śūdra who is self-controlled, truthful, and always enthusiastic about executing his religious duties to be a brāhmaṇa. Indeed, the only criteria for being a brāhmaṇa is to possess pure behavior in the form of worshiping Hari.”

In the Mahābhārata (Śānti-parva 188.13 and 189.7) it is stated:

hiṃsānṛta-priyā lubdhāḥ

sarva-karmopajīvinaḥkṛṣṇāḥśauca-paribhraṣṭās te dvijāḥśūdratāṃ gatāḥ

sarva-bhakṣa-ratir nityaṃ sarva-karma-karo

śuciḥtyakta-vedas tv anācāraḥ sa vai śūdra iti smṛtaḥ

“When brāhmaṇas commit violence, speak lies, become greedy, earn their livelihood by any and all means, and lose their purity by engaging in sinful activities, then they become degraded into śūdras. One who is attached to eating all kinds of foods and performing all kinds of activities, who is impure, deviant from the principles of Vedic culture, and ill-behaved is known as a śūdra.”

In the Mahābhārata (Anuṣāsana-parva 143.50-51) it is stated:

na yonir nāpi saṃskāro na śrutaṃ na ca s antatiḥkāraṇāni dvijatvasya vṛttam eva tu kāraṇam

sarvo ‘yaṃ brāhmaṇo loke vṛttena tu vidhīyate vṛtte sthitas tu śūdro ‘pi brāhmaṇatvaṃ niyacchati

“Birth, purificatory processes, study of the Vedas, and good birth are not the criterion for being a brāhmaṇa. The only criterion is one’s occupation. A person is born as a brāhmaṇa in this world simply as a result of his nature. A śūdra situated in the occupation of a brāhmaṇa also becomes a brāhmaṇa.”

The Hari-bhakti-vilāsa (Tenth Vilāsa) quotes from the Padma Purāṇa as follows:

na śūdrā bhagavad-bhaktās te tu bhāgavatā matāḥsarva-varṇeṣu te śūdrā ye na bhaktā janārdane

“Devotees of the Lord are never śūdras, rather they are all first-class bhāgavatas. But if one is not a devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa, he should be considered a śūdra even if he was born in a brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya or vaiśya family.”

In the Atri-saṃhitā (372) it is stated:

brahma-tattvaṃ na jānāti brahma-sūtreṇa garvitaḥtenaiva sa ca pāpena vipraḥ paśur udāhṛtaḥ

“A person born in a brāhmaṇa family who proudly advertises himself as a sanctified brāhmaṇa but is ignorant of the Absolute Truth is because of this sin called an animal.”

In the Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad (3.9.10) it is stated:

etad akṣaraṃ gārgi viditvāsmāl lokāt praiti sa brāhmaṇaḥ

“O Gārgi, one who is acquainted with that infallible truth by which one transcends death is a brāhmaṇa.”

In the Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad (4.4.21) it is stated:

tam eva dhīro vijñāya prajñāṃ kurvīta brāhmaṇaḥ

“A wise person who knows the Supreme Lord, Parabrahman, through the process of devotion, is a brāhmaṇa.”

In the Padma Purāṇa (Uttara-khaṇḍa, Chapter 39) it is stated:

viṣṇor ayaṃ yato hy āsīt tasmād-vaiṣṇava ucyate sarveśāṃ caiva varṇānāṃ vaiṣṇavaḥśreṣṭhaḥ ucyate

“One who is related to Viṣṇu through devotion is known as a Vaiṣṇava. A genuine Vaiṣṇava is superior to all the varṇas and is the best of all.”

In the Padma Purāṇa (Svarga-khaṇḍa, Ādi 24) it is stated:

sakṛt praṇāmī kṛṣṇasya mātuḥ stanyaṃ piben na hi hari-pāde mano yeṣāṃ tebhyo nityaṃ namo namaḥ

pukkasaḥśvapaco vāpi ye cānye mleccha-jātayaḥte ‘pi vandyā mahābhāgā hari-pādaika-sevakāḥ

“One who even once completely gives up his false ego and offers obeisances to the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa will never again drink mother’s breast milk. One who keeps the holy feet of Hari within his mind is always worthy of worship. Whether one is a dog-eater or a mleccha, if he takes shelter of the lotus feet of Śrī Hari with pure devotion and serves Him with attachment, he is to be considered most fortunate and highly worshipable.”

It is stated in the Skanda Purāṇa:

na me ‘bhaktaś catur-vedī mad-bhaktaḥśvapacaḥ priyaḥtasmai deyaṃ tato grāhyaṃ sa ca pūjyo yathā hy aham

“Even though a person is a very learned scholar of the Sanskrit Vedic literatures, he is not accepted as My devotee unless he is pure in devotional service. Even though a person is born in a family of dog- eaters, he is very dear to Me if he is a pure devotee who has no motive to

enjoy fruitive activities or mental speculation. Indeed, all respects should be given to him, and whatever he offers should be accepted. Such devotees are as worshipable as I am.”

In the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (3.33.7) it is stated:

aho bata śva-paco ‘to ga vrīyān yaj-jihvāgre vartate nāma tubhyam tepus tapas te juhuvuḥ sasnur āryā brahmānūcur nāma gṛṇanti ye te

“Oh, how glorious are they whose tongues are chanting Your holy name! Even if born in the families of dog-eaters, such persons are worshipable. Persons who chant the holy name of Your Lordship must have executed all kinds of austerities and fire sacrifices and achieved all the good manners of the Āryans. To be chanting the holy name of Your Lordship, they must have bathed at holy places of pilgrimage, studied the Vedas and fulfilled everything required.”

The Bhakti-sandarbha (117) quotes the following verses from the Garuḍa Purāṇa:

brāhmaṇānāṃ sahasrebhyaḥ satra-yājī viśiṣyate satra-yāji-sahasrebhyaḥ sarva-vedānta-pāragaḥ

sarva-vedānta-vit-koṭyā viṣṇu-bhakto viśiṣyate vaiṣṇavānāṃ sahasrebhya ekānty eko viśiṣyate

“It is said that out of thousands of brāhmaṇas, one is qualified to perform sacrifices, and out of many thousands of such qualified brāhmaṇas expert in sacrificial offerings, one learned brāhmaṇa may have passed beyond all Vedic knowledge. He is considered the best among all these brāhmaṇas. And yet, out of thousands of such brāhmaṇas who have surpassed Vedic knowledge, one person may be a viṣṇu-bhakta, and he is most famous. Out of many thousands of such Vaiṣṇavas, one who is completely fixed in the service of Lord Kṛṣṇa is most famous.”

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