CHAITANYA, SAVIOUR OF MANKIND
Dr. Jai Maharaj
The Hindu
About five centuries ago, the whole of India, with the exception of
two areas, was a vast territory where the process of constant
hammering was being adopted to shatter Hindu religion into pieces,
and cast it to the winds. Such a tyrannical oppression by evil
forces necessitated God to descend on earth. Apart from this task,
which is simple for Him, His greater eagerness was to please the
numerous devotees who wanted His presence amidst them. One such
manifestation was His appearance as a great reformer and guide,
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
A non-violent fighter and a dauntless rebel who fought
superstitions, he saved the erring souls. There was none to
challenge when he marched on foot all over India carrying with him
the eternal flaming torch and flying the flag of Truth and Justice
in his hands. This saviour of mankind removed the sorrows of
people, bringing joy to them.
Chaitanya's prescription to humanity was the singing of the
glorious name of Lord Krshn. In his mission of spreading Divine
love, he adopted the instrument of recitation of God's name to
forge unity and make men rise in their spiritual stature.
The Divine name wipes out the sins and polishes the mirror of the
soul, extinguishes the raging conflagration of worldly life,
provides Bliss and chastens the entire outlook of a person, as he
himself says in his hymn ``Sikshashtakam.''
In 1486 CE, Chaitanya made his advent at Mayapur and his religious
life unfolds unique pathological symptoms of devotion, which are
unparalleled in history. His ecstatic dance and the sweet chanting
of the Krshn's name touched the hearts of everyone who came to him.
Scholars acknowledged his Divinity and millions embraced his creed
of ``Naam Sankeertan''. That the human body is like a boat, the
first and foremost use of which is to carry one across the ocean of
life and death to the shore of immortality, was one of his
messages, said Shri B.V. Paramahamsa Maharaj in a lecture on
Chaitanya's advent day (today).
The Gaudiya Math is the expansion of the Shri Chaitanya Matth in a
visible form into the heart of the world, the distinction being
analogous to that of one lamp lighted from another. Towards the end
of his life, after his 46th year, Chaitanya's ``love-in-
separation'' for God reached such a pitch of intensity that he
gradually lost all touch with public life, spending his days in a
state of intense devotion to his deity and in beatific visions. By
the grace of Krshn, even the ordinary person can reach the shore of
the ocean of devotion.
Not for commercial use. Solely to be fairly used for the
educational purposes of research and open discussion.
Jai Maharaj
Jyotishi, Vedic Astrologer
"A king, though endowed with little prowess,
starting on an expedition at the proper time, in
view of the good positions of the planets, achieves
greatness that is eulogised in the scriptures."
- Brhat Samhita, 104.60
http://www.flex.com/~jai
Om Shanti
Harinam
Lord Caitanya Mahäprabhu instructed His disciples to write books on the
Science of Krsna, a task which those who follow Him have continued to
carry out down to the present day. The elaborations and expositions on
the philosophy taught by Lord Caitanya are in fact most voluminous,
exacting and consistent due to the system of disciplic succession.
Although Lord Caitanya was widely renowned as a scholar in His youth, He
left only eight verses, called Siksästaka. These eight verses clearly
reveal His mission and precepts. These supremely valuable prayers are
translated herein.
1.
Glory to the Sri Krsna sankirtana, which cleanses the heart of all the
dust accumulated for years and extinguishes the fire of conditional
life, of repeated birth and death. This saěkértana movement is the prime
benediction for humanity at large because it spreads the rays of the
benediction moon. It is the life of all transcendental knowledge. It
increases the ocean of transcendental bliss, and it enables us to fully
taste the nectar for which we are always anxious.
2.
O my Lord, Your holy name alone can render all benediction to living
beings, and thus You have hundreds and millions of names like Krsna and
Govinda. In these transcendental names You have invested all Your
transcendental energies. There are not even hard and fast rules for
chanting these names. O my Lord, out of kindness You enable us to easily
approach You by Your holy names, but I am so unfortunate that I have no
attraction for them.
3.
One should chant the holy name of the Lord in a humble state of mind,
thinking oneself lower than the straw in the street; one should be more
tolerant than a tree, devoid of all sense of false prestige and should
be ready to offer all respect to others. In such a state of mind one can
chant the holy name of the Lord constantly.
4.
O almighty Lord, I have no desire to accumulate wealth, nor do I desire
beautiful women, nor do I want any number of followers. I only want Your
causeless devotional service birth after birth.
5.
O son of Mahäräja Nanda [Krsna], I am Your eternal servitor, yet somehow
or other I have fallen into the ocean of birth and death. Please pick me
up from this ocean of death and place me as one of the atoms at Your
lotus feet.
6.
O my Lord, when will my eyes be decorated with tears of love flowing
constantly when I chant Your holy name? When will my voice choke up, and
when will the hairs of my body stand on end at the recitation of Your
name?
7.
O Govinda! Feeling Your separation, I am considering a moment to be like
twelve years or more. Tears are flowing from my eyes like torrents of
rain, and I am feeling all vacant in the world in Your absence.
8.
I know no one but Krsna as my Lord, and He shall remain so even if He
handles me roughly by His embrace or makes me brokenhearted by not being
present before me. He is completely free to do anything and everything,
for He is always my worshipful Lord unconditionally.
Also read Caitanya Caritamrta, Caitanya Bhagavata, and Teachings of Lord
Caitanya