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Śrī Caitanya Caritāmṛta Ādi 1.2

vande śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya-

nityānandau sahoditau

gauḍodaye puṣpavantau

citrau śan-dau tamo-nudau

SYNONYMS

vande — I offer respectful obeisances; śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya — to Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanyanityānandau — and to Lord Nityānandasaha-uditau — simultaneously arisen; gauḍa-udaye — on the eastern horizon of Gauḍapuṣpavantau — the sun and moon together; citrau — wonderful; śam-dau — bestowing benediction;tamaḥ-nudau — dissipating darkness.

TRANSLATION

I offer my respectful obeisances unto Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya and Lord Nityānanda, who are like the sun and moon. They have arisen simultaneously on the horizon of Gauḍa to dissipate the darkness of ignorance and thus wonderfully bestow benediction upon all.

 

" The Darkness Dispellers "

 

Caitanya Caritamrta Adi 1.2 
Mayapur, March 26, 1975 

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Pradyumna: "I offer my respectful obeisances unto Sri Krsna Caitanya and Lord Nityananda, who are like the sun and moon. They have arisen simultaneously on the horizon of Gauda to dissipate the darkness of ignorance and thus wonderfully bestow benediction upon all."

Prabhupada:


vande sri-krsna-caitanya-
nityandandau sahoditau
gaudodaye puspavantau
citrau sandau tamo-nudau
 [Cc. Adi 1.2]


So yesterday we discussed the first verse,


(vande) gurun isa-bhaktan
isam isavatarakan
tat-prakasams ca tac-chaktih
krsna-caitanya-samjnakam
 [Cc. Adi 1.1]


Krsna Caitanya, Sri Krsna Caitanya, He has got manyfold expansion. The first expansion is prakasa, svayam-prakasa, Balarama. And Nityananda is Balarama. Vrajendra-nandana yei, saci-suta hoilo sei, balarama hoilo nitai. We have to understand from the mahajana, Narottama das Thakura. Sometimes some foolish people interpret Nityananda as expansion of Radharani, but that is not the fact. Nityananda is Balarama. We have to know from mahajana. We cannot manufacture our own idea. That is blasphemy, sahajiya. Yata mat tata pat. These things are not accepted by mahajana. Mahajana means who follows the previous mahajana. This is the system. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu strictly followed this principle. Krsna also recommended evam parampara-praptam [Bg. 4.2]. We have to receive knowledge through the disciplic succession. Mahajana-gatah. You cannot manufacture. This concoction has killed the spiritual life of India. "You can think any way; I can think in my way" -- that is not at all scientific. You cannot think "Two plus two equal to three" or "five." Two plus two equal to four. You cannot think otherwise. (people talking in background) (aside:) Ask them to stop.

So Nityananda means prakasa, svayam-prakasa, Balarama. Balarama is, I mean to say, presenting Krsna. Therefore Balarama is guru-tattva. Guru is representative of Balarama, of Nityananda, Guru Nityananda, because He is exhibiting Krsna. He is presenting Krsna, prakasa. Just like when there is sunshine you can see everything very correctly. That is called prakasa. In the darkness everything is covered. At night we cannot see, but during daytime, when there is prakasa, illumination, then we can see everything. So Nityananda Prabhu is Balarama. Balarama is prakasa-tattva. He's manifesting Krsna. Balarama hoila nitai. So vande sri... Sri Krsna Caitanya is the Supreme Absolute Personality of Godhead, and next, Nityananda, or, yes, Nityananda, is exhibiting Him. When Nityananda was preaching in Bengal, He first of all delivered the Jagai and Madhai. That was his first business. He showed how to serve Sri Krsna Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Sri Krsna Caitanya means Krsna Himself. Sri-krsna-caitanya radha-krsna nahe anya. Radha-Krsna combined together is Sri Krsna Caitanya. And Nityananda is exhibiting Krsna Caitanyadeva.

So how one can exhibit Sri Krsna Caitanya Mahaprabhu, that is... By His personal example Nityananda Prabhu has given us lesson. When Caitanya Mahaprabhu was sending His devotees to preach and Nityananda Prabhu was doing that, He used to go with Haridasa Thakura to preach on the street, home to home. So when they saw there was a big crowd on the street, so Nityananda Prabhu inquired from the people, "Why there is so many people assembled?" He was informed that "There are two gundas, rogues. They are creating some trouble." The gundas, their business is to create trouble, that's all. Every one of us we know, especially at the present moment in Bengal. Yes. This is due to lack of preaching of Krsna consciousness. Nityananda Prabhu is not given the chance. Nityananda Prabhu is very eager to preach, but He's not given chance. Actually, those who are proud of becoming descendants of Nityananda Prabhu... In Bengal there is a family, they say that they are descendants from Nityananda Prabhu. So apart from controversy, even accepting that they are descendants from Nityananda Prabhu, their business is also to act like Nityananda Prabhu. So that business, what is that business? That is described by Narottama dasa Thakura, mahajana, papi tapi yata chilo, hari-name uddharilo, ta'ra saksi jagai-madhai. This is the business of Nityananda Prabhu along with Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Vrajendra-nandana yei, saci-suta hoilo sei, balarama hoilo nitai.

So here Krsna Caitanya and Nityananda, Their identification is Lord Krsna and Balarama. Now, in the Krsna incarnation, these two brothers were engaged as cowherd boys and friends of the gopis, sons of mother Yasoda and Nanda Maharaja. That is actual life in Vrndavana. Krsna and Balarama, They are village cowherds boy. That is the early age history of Krsna-Balarama. And Their another business, when They went to Mathura They killed Kamsa and the wrestlers, and then again, when They went to Dvaraka, They had to fight with so many demons. But Their childhood life, up to sixteenth year, They were in Vrndavana, happy life, simply love. That is paritranaya sadhunam [Bg. 4.8]. Sadhus, devotees, they are always anxious to see Krsna, Balarama and Their associates. They are always very much aggrieved on account of separation. To give them rejuvenation of life, Krsna-Balarama play Their childhood days in Vrndavana. And out of Vrndavana, beginning from Mathura up to Dvaraka and other places, the business was vinasaya ca duskrtam: killing. So They have got two businesses, one for pacifying the devotees, and the other is to kill the demons. Of course, Krsna and Balarama, They are Absolute Truth. There is no difference between killing and loving. They... Absolute. Those who were killed, you know, they were also delivered from this material bondage.

Now these same two brothers have again descended as Sri Krsna Caitanya-Nityananda. Sahoditau: simultaneously They have appeared. Not that one is appeared, another is not there. No. Both of Them, sahoditau. And They are compared with the sun and moon. The business of sun and moon is to dissipate darkness. The sun rises during daytime, and the moon rises at night. But this sun and moon, wonderful sun and moon, citrau, They have appeared together. But the business is the same, tamo-nudau. Business is to dissipate darkness, because we are in darkness. We, anyone who is in this material world, he's in darkness. Darkness means ignorant, no knowledge. They are mostly animals. "Why they are animals, so civilized men, so well-dressed and university education degrees? Why they are in darkness?" Yes, they are in darkness. "What is the proof?" The proof is that they are not Krsna conscious. This is the proof. That is their darkness. Ask anybody, item by item, that... Ask, what do they know about Krsna. Everyone is ignorant, dark. So that is the proof. How this is proof? Now, Krsna says. We do not say; Krsna says. How does He say? Na mam duskrtino mudhah prapadyante naradhamah, mayayapahrta-jnana [Bg. 7.15]. Apahrta-jnana means that although they have got university degrees, although they are called civilized, advanced in material civilization, but mayayapahrta-jnana. Their degrees, because they do not know Krsna thoroughly and therefore do not surrender to Krsna, which Krsna is canvassing personally, sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja... [Bg. 18.66]. He's personally canvassing. Because these rascals and fools, they are in darkness -- they do not know what is the goal of life -- Krsna is so kind that He is canvassing, sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja. This is the philosophy. So still, they are not doing so. Why? Naradhamah. Because the lowest of the mankind, naradhama. How they have become naradhama? Now, duskrtina, always committing sinful life. What is sinful life? Illicit sex, meat-eating, intoxication, and gambling. Because they are addicted to these things they are duskrtina and naradhama, lowest of the mankind. And whatever knowledge they are acquiring by so-called education, that is false knowledge. Mayayapahrta-jnana. This is the position.

So Sri Krsna Caitanya and Nityananda, They came, descended again, being merciful, same Krsna. Vrajendra-nandana yei, Saci-suta hoilo sei. Same Krsna. In a different way they canvassed the same principle. (aside:) You can sit down there. You are sleeping. Don't sleep. Don't show that sleeping. Go there. So this is the darkness. And Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu appeared to drive away this darkness -- same Krsna, the same Krsna. There is no difference between Krsna's preaching and Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu's preaching. There is no difference. The difference is that Krsna, as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He is demanding that "You rascal, you surrender unto Me. You are suffering so much. You are rascal. I am your father. I want to see you happy; therefore I have come. Surrender unto Me. I shall give you all protection." Aham tvam sarva-papebhyo [Bg. 18.66]. "You are suffering on account of your duskrti, all sinful activities. Whatever you are doing, all sinful activities." Except Krsna consciousness activities, whatever you do, that is sinful activity. But they have been summarized into four principles. The whole sinful activities of the world, they have been summarized in four lines: no illicit sex, no meat-eating, no gambling, no intoxication. This is the summary. But otherwise, of these activities there are many, many branches. But if you cut the root of sinful activities -- this illicit sex and gambling and meat-eating -- then generally, automatically other sinful activities will go. Therefore we who are propagating Krsna consciousness movement, we are just requesting that you give up this sinful life. Otherwise you will be implicated again.

What is that implication? Implication is that your sinful life will get you next body which is also sinful. And again you suffer. Suffering there is. As soon as you get material body, there is suffering. It may be a king's body or it may be a cobbler's body, it doesn't matter, the suffering is there. But because these people are mayayapahrta-jnana, they are accepting suffering as pleasure. This is called maya. He's suffering, but he is thinking it is a good pleasure. Just like the pig. He's eating stool, and he's thinking he's enjoying life. This is called ignorant. He does not know that he's suffering. Maya has given his body to suffer, but even in the pig's body, he's thinking that is enjoying life. This is called maya. Mohitam nabhijanati mam ebhyah param avyayam [Bg. 7.13]. This is called illusion. Illusion. Everyone in this material world, they are suffering in different grades. Just like in the prison house there are different grades of prisoner: first class, second class, third class. But if the first-class prisoner thinks they are enjoying life, that is ignorance. He should know that he's in the prison house. In the prison house where is there enjoyment? It is all suffering. Maybe first-class suffering, (laughter) but it is suffering. So they are all in the darkness, and Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Nityananda Prabhu appeared to dissipate, tamo-nudau, to dissipate this darkness of the whole human society. That is Their kindness. They are...

So Nityananda Prabhu, being prakasa, He is manifesting Caitanya Mahaprabhu. He's canvassing the same thing. Caitanya Mahaprabhu is canvassing to accept Krsna consciousness, and to accept Krsna consciousness through the mercy of Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Nityananda Prabhu and Their other assistants is easier, easier. Therefore we see practically, we have taught our disciples to chant first of all the Panca-tattva, sri-krsna-caitanya (devotees chant) prabhu-nityananda, sri-advaita gadadhara srivasadi-gaura-bhakta-vrnda. Thank you. So through the mercy of this Panca-tattva, easily you can approach Krsna, easily. Otherwise how it is possible? These Europeans, Americans, they did not know what was Krsna. Four or five years ago they were unknown. How they have become so devotee of Krsna that ten thousand miles, crossing over the sea, they have come here at Mayapur, unless they have got developed love for this? Their coming is not so easy from neighboring villages, but it costs. They have spent lakhs of dollars -- one dollar equal to eight rupees -- and they have come here. Why? Through the mercy of Sri Krsna Caitanya Mahaprabhu. (end)
 
>>> Ref. VedaBase => Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Adi-lila 1.2 -- Mayapur, March 26, 1975

 

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© 2001 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International. Used with permission.

 

comment:

svardhunyash charu-tire sphuritam ati-brihat-kurma-prishthabha-gatram

ramyaramavritam san-mani-kanaka-mahasadma-sanghaih paritam

nityam pratyalayodyat-pranaya-bhara-lasat-krishna-sankirtanadhyam

shri-vrindatavy-abhinnam tri-jagad-anupamam shri-navadvipam ide

 

"I praise that holy dham, Navadvipa, which, being entirely nondifferent from Shri Vrindavana, is completely different from the material world consisting of the three planetary systems. It is situated on the gorgeous banks of the Ganges covered by beautiful groves and gardens appearing in form like the back of a gigantic turtle. Situated there are many great palatial houses made of gold bedecked with brilliant jewels, where Krishna-sankirtana is always being performed in the mellow of ecstatic love."

 

shriman-mauktikadama-baddha-chikuram susmera-chandrananam

shri-khandaguru-charu-chitra-vasanam srag-divya-bhashanchitam

nrityavesha-rasanumoda-madhuram kandarpa-veshojjvalam

caitanyam kanaka-dyutim nija-janaih samsevyamanam bhaje

 

"I worship Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, who is being served by all His devotees and associates; whose hair is bound with strings of pearls; on whose moonlike face is the nectar of His gentle smile. His beautiful golden body is covered with lovely garments and various shining ornaments. He is so charming, being absorbed as He is in the enjoyment of sweet mellows in dancing, and is more splendid in His dress than even Cupid himself."

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