Lalita Madhava English Pdf

[Margit Szermer]

The Lalita-madhava is a description of Sri krsna pastimes in Dvaraka. These pastimes were made into a drama by Srila Rupa Gosvami, and the work was finished in the year 1459 Sakabda. The first part deals with festicities in the evening, the second with the killing of the Sandhacuda, the third with maddened Srimati Radharani, the fourth with Radharani's proceeding toward Krsna, the fifth with the achievement of Candravali, the sixth with the achievement of Lalita, the seventh with the meeting in Nava-vrndavana, the eighth with the enjoyment in Nava-vrndavana, the ninth with looking over pictures, and the tenth with complete satisfaction of the mind. Thus the entire drama is divided into ten parts."

"Actually going to Vrndavana involves taking shelter of the six Gosvamis by reading the Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhy, Vidagdha-madhava, Lalita-madhava and the other books that they have given. In this way one can understand the transcendental loving affairs between Radha and Krsna.

Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu said: I met Rupa Gosvami at Prayaga, and became very attracted to him because of his exalted qualities," Thereafter, Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu Praised Rupa Gosvami's use of metaphors and other literary ornaments, and said that without such poetic attributes there is no possibility of preaching transcendental mellows. The Lord then requested all His personal associates to bliss Rupa Gosvami so that he would be able to continuously describe the pastimes of Vrindavana, which are full of emotional love of Godhead.

Meanwhile, after arriving in Vrindavana, Rupa Gosvami became inspired to write a drama abut Lord Krishna's pastimes. After composing the introductory verses, Rupa Gosvami departed for Bengal, and along the way he made some notes and began writing the action of the drama.

Upon reaching Bengal, Anupama died, and because of the resultant delay, when Rupa Gosvami reached Navadvipa, he found that the devotees had already left for Jagannatha Puri. Being very anxious to se Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Rupa Gosvami departed alone, and along the way he rested for the night at a place known as Satyabhama-pura, near Kataka. In his sleep, Rupa Gosvami dreamed that a celestially beautiful woman came before him and ordered, "Write a separate drama about me, and by my mercy it will be extraordinarily beautiful."

After awakening when Rupa Gosvami thought about the dream, he concluded, "It is the order of Satyabhama that I write a separate drama for her. I had intended to describe, in one work, the pastimes that Lord Krishna had performed while at both Vridavana and Dvaraka. Now however, I shall divide them into two dramas."

According to the Puranas, Indradyumna, the king of Avanti, grew interested in venerating the deity Nilamadhava, made of sapphire.[3] He is described to have sent the younger brother of his royal priest, or sometimes a minister, Vidyapati, to locate the site of the deity's image in the Nilagiri region. Regional folklore states that the priest was welcomed by Vishvavasu, the chieftain of the Savara people. During the duration of his stay in the chieftain's house, the latter's daughter, Lalita, fell in love with him. Upon the chieftain's request, Vidyapati married her. He noticed that the chieftain would leave the house every evening, and only return the following noon. At his urging, Lalita revealed to him that these were her father's visits to the shrine of Nilamadhava, whose location was held secret within the community. Vidyapati persuaded his wife to ask Vishvavasu to take him along to see the image of the deity.[4] The chieftain agreed to take Vidyapati with him, but on the condition that he be blindfolded during the journey so that the shrine's location remained undisclosed. Lalita helped her husband devise a plan:[5] Vidyapati brought a bag of mustard seeds with him, scattering them all along the path to the shrine present in a cave, bearing witness to the deep blue image of Nilamadhava.[6][7] Returning to Avanti, he reported his discovery of the shrine to Indradyumna. After a few months, following the mustards seeds that had since germinated into plants, the king and his retinue travelled to the shrine, unable to locate the image. After praying to Vishnu for three days and nights, they heard the deity's voice thunder from the heavens, rebuking them for their scheme and informing them of his omnipresence. He announced that he would manifest as a wooden image (dāru) floating by the sea. He instructed them to construct a new temple upon a mountain that stood beside the seashore for his worship.[8]

In the Skanda Purana, by the time Vidyapati returned to inform the king of the site of the shrine, a great storm had buried the image of Nilamadhava under the sand. Despite his best attempts, the king was unable to locate the image. Upon the counsel of the sage divinity Narada, Indradyumna constructed a new temple, and performed a thousand ashvamedha yajnas at the site. Receiving guidance in the form of a divine dream, a great tree floating in the sea was felled and used to create the three wooden images of the temple, those of Jagannatha, Balarama, and Subhadra. The king travelled to Brahmaloka to invite Brahma to inaugurate the temple. With the passage of time, a king named Gala claimed to have been the temple's real architect, but with the return of Indradyumna to earth, he withdrew this claim. After Brahma had inaugurated the temple, Indradyumna returned to Brahmaloka, entrusting the upkeep of the site to Gala.[9][10]

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