Chaitanya Bhagavata

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

The Chaitanya Bhagavata by Sri Vrindavan Das Thakura is a scripture belonging to the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition from the 16th century. It is similair in content to the Caitanya Caritamrita, but asserts that Chaitanya was the direct incarnation of Krishna (as Bhagavan). The Caitanya Bhagavata contains three major parts including many details regard...

Introduction to chapter 13

This chapter describes Nimāi’s victory over and deliverance of Digvijayī Paṇḍita, who had received the favor of Sarasvatī and who was proud of his knowledge.

When Nimāi Paṇḍita was residing in Navadvīpa as the crest-jewel of all teachers, a great Digvijayī Paṇḍita who had received a benediction from Sarasvatī arrived there. The Digvijayī had already defeated in argument the learned scholars of all provinces, and after hearing that the scholars of Navadvīpa were famous for their learning throughout India, he proudly arrived in Navadvīpa in order to defeat the scholars there. Hearing about the arrival of the Digvijayī Paṇḍita, the entire scholarly community of Navadvīpa became most restless and worried. When the students of Nimāi Paṇḍita gave Him this news, He told them, “The Supreme Lord and destroyer of everyone’s pride always destroys the pride of arrogant persons. Trees with fruits and persons with good qualities are always humble. Because great Digvijayī kings like Haihaya, Nahuṣa, Vena, Bāṇa, Naraka, and Rāvaṇa were excessively intoxicated with pride, the Lord ultimately destroyed their pride. Therefore the Lord will soon destroy the pride of this Digvijayī who has come to Navadvīpa.” After speaking in this way, the Lord sat on the bank of the Ganges that evening and began to contemplate how to conquer this Digvijayī. At that time, as the full moon shone in the sky, the Digvijayī arrived before the Lord and was informed by the students about the identity of the wonderfully effulgent Nimāi Paṇḍita. The Lord first exchanged a few words with the Digvijayī and then respectfully and tactfully requested him to describe the glories of the Ganges. Thereupon the Digvijayī began to quickly and incessantly compose and recite verses in glorification of Gaṅgādevī like the rumbling of hundreds of clouds. Everyone there was struck with wonder on seeing the amazing poetic ability of the great Digvijayī. When the Digvijayī stopped after incessantly reciting verses for three hours, the Lord requested him to explain the verses. As soon as Digvijayī began to explain, the Lord pointed out innumerable faults in alaṅkāra and other literary rules in the beginning, middle, and end of his description. The Digvijayī could not reply to any of the Lord’s challenges; all his ingenuity became overshadowed. When on seeing this, the Lord’s students were about to laugh, the Lord checked them and solaced the Digvijayī in various ways. He told the Digvijayī to go home, take rest, and, after studying further, return the next day. Being extremely embarrassed and saddened within, the Digvijayī began to think, “I have defeated even the extraordinary scholars of the six branches of philosophy, but due to providence I have finally been defeated by a young ordinary grammar teacher! How is it possible? It must be that I have committed some offense at the feet of Sarasvatī-devī.” Thinking in this way, he began to chant the Sarasvatī mantra and soon fell asleep. That very night, Sarasvatī appeared before Digvijayī Paṇḍita and disclosed to him the real identity of Nimāi Paṇḍita. She said, “Nimāi Paṇḍita is not an ordinary worldly scholar. He is the omnipotent and original Supreme Personality of Godhead. Sarasvatī-devī is only a shadow of His internal potency. This Sarasvatī, who is the shadow of the internal potency of the Lord, is ashamed to stand before Nārāyaṇa, therefore she remains in the background.” Devī further told the Digvijayī Paṇḍita that he had now actually achieved the fruit of his worship, because he had the good fortune of seeing the Lord of innumerable universes. Then, after instructing the Digvijayī to quickly go to the Lord and surrender at His lotus feet, she disappeared. When the Digvijayī awoke from his sleep, he immediately went to the Lord and informed Him with faltering words of the details of his dream and the instructions of Sarasvatī-devī. The Lord, who is the master of Sarasvatī, also instructed Digvijayī about the superiority of spiritual knowledge, which is favorable for worshiping the Supreme Lord, and the abomination of material knowledge, which is the source of false pride and domination. The Lord said, “The fruit of cultivating knowledge is to fix the mind at the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa, and devotion to Viṣṇu, or spiritual knowledge, is the only truth and desirable object.” After speaking these words of instruction, the Lord particularly forbade Digvijayī from revealing to anyone the truths that he had heard from Sarasvatī, which are confidential to even the Vedas. By the mercy of the Lord, devotion, detachment, and spiritual knowledge simultaneously manifest in the body of Digvijayī Paṇḍita and, being fully satisfied by achieving pure devotional service, he became tṛṇād api sunīca—“more humble than a straw in the street.” While describing the nature of Gaura’s mercy, the author has written, “Even a most proud person becomes extremely humble by the mercy of Gaura. Even persons who are intoxicated with pride due to material wealth give up royal happiness to live in the forest and worship Hari. If the most alluring objects desired by materialistic persons are abundantly available to persons who have received the mercy of the Lord, they can easily abandon them. What to speak of royal happiness, the devotees of Kṛṣṇa consider even the happiness of liberation as insignificant.” When the scholars of Navadvīpa saw the wonderful prowess of Nimāi Paṇḍita and His victory over the Digvijayī in this way, they desired to confer on Him the title of Bādisiṃha, and thus His matchless glories were declared.

Like what you read? Consider supporting this website: