Teach by Action: A Brief Glance at Śrī Caitanya’s Life & Deeds (Śrī Caitanya and Society Series – I)

    There are gods, there are demigods, there are deities, there are celestial beings, there are legends, there are heroes, and then there are those who are beyond or consisting of all the titles. Śrī Caitanya is one such figure. Whereas some consider him as an avatāra of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa, others hail him as a mahāpuruṣa (a great man). Whereas some celebrate him as a political figure and a socio-religious reformer, others look up to him as a teacher of dharma. Whereas some extol him as the god incarnate, others say that he was only a man who ascended to the height of divinity by his acts. Whosoever he really was, I will take you for a detour into his life, broadly depicting a few anecdotes from his life that might help a novice and curious mind to familiarize with the mode of teaching that the great master adopted to inculcate his visions.

    Regarded as the yugala avatāra (combined incarnation) of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa by the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava bhaktas (devotees), Śrī Caitanya was born on the pūrṇimā tithi (full moon night) which fell during a lunar eclipse dated 18^th of February in 1486 CE, at Navadvīpa (Nabadwip) to Jagannātha Miśra, a poor but wise brāhmaṇa,  and Śacī Devī, a beautiful homemaker. He was named Viśvambhara by his parents who were initially from Śilhat, a town in modern-day Bānglādeśa (Bangladesh), but migrated from there to Navadvīpa due to the tyranny of the Islamic invaders.

    Before Śrī Caitanya was born, Śacī Devī had eight daughters who had passed away just after their birth and a son named Viśvarūpa who would go on to take sannyāsa (renunciation) at his early teenage. Along with many other facts, this similarity between the demise of Śacī Devī’s eight daughters with that of Devakī, the biological mother of Kṛṣṇa, whose seven daughters had also passed away in a similar misfortune, led to the speculation that Śrī Caitanya is an incarnation of Kṛṣṇa. Apart from that, various auspicious symbols that deck Viṣṇu’s divine body were also said to have been observed in Śrī Caitanya’s body, along with abundant descriptions of his lustrous fair complexion, tall and handsome physique.

    In his initial years, Śrī Caitanya was a mischievous scallywag. His early childhood was spent mirthfully in the fields and forests of Navadvīpa. However, he was a precocious child. Admitted to the gurukula of Gaṅgādāsa, he rapidly excelled in the Vedas and the six domains of the Vedāṅga (i.e. Sanskrit grammar, phonetics, etymology, metrics, astronomy and rituals), surpassing all other pupils in the institute. However, his education was put to a halt when his elder brother, Viśvarūpa, took sannyāsa. As Viśvarūpa showed similar intelligence and interest in the lessons of dharma, Śrī Caitanya’s parents decided to terminate his education, fearing a similar recurrence of their second son. But Śrī Caitanya was deeply affected by it and started playing in the dirt and filth all the time. When asked why, he responded that it is unfair to expect an uneducated person to differentiate between the nectar and the gall, be it in childhood or in later life. His parents understood their mistake and readmitted him to the institute where he completed his studies. Such profound hands-on example from such a wee lad was not only a lesson to his parents without showing any disrespect, but it was also a hint on the approach that Śrī Caitanya would later adopt to inculcate bhakti. May be, he had understood at a very early age that our deeds always reign supreme over our oral theories.

    Śrī Caitanya’s father passed away when he was in his later teenage and, so, he had to take charge of the family. He opened his own gurukula after finishing his academic studies and, almost immediately, he was recognized as a scholar par excellence. As a result, many renowned scholars from all across the region used to come to Navadvīpa to compete with him in scholarly debates— only to be defeated again and again. Śrī Caitanya’s encounter with Digvijaya Paṇḍita, as narrated by Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja in Caitanya Caritāmṛta (1.16.23-105), deserves a special mention here. Digvijaya Paṇḍita was fierce debater and an unparalleled rhetorician. He was blessed by goddess Sarasvatī herself and, therefore, none could defeat him. As a result, he turned little boastfully arrogant. When he heard of a young scholar named Śrī Caitanya was preaching bhakti over petty scholarship, he readily sought after a debate with him. When the two sat near the riverbanks of the city to discuss on the derivation of true meaning out of the poetic expressions of an instantly composed śloka on river Gaṅgā, Śrī Caitanya easily refuted Digvijaya Paṇḍita by determining the flaws in merit of the guṇa-doṣa (poetic qualities and fallacies), alaṃkāra (rhetorical figures), samāsa (clause), vidheya (predication), and virodhābhāsa (contradiction). Befuddled at this defeat, Digvijaya Paṇḍita returned home passively and went to sleep, sulking at the goddess who had blessed him. Sarasvatī revealed herself in his dream and instructed him that Śrī Caitanya is the worshipper of Kṛṣṇa (or Viṣṇu) who is the lord of all gods and goddesses, and therefore it was only his insolence that fuelled him to compete with the great devotee. Digvijaya Paṇḍita understood his mistake and visited Śrī Caitanya the next day, renouncing his debater persona and embracing bhakti wholeheartedly.

    At the same time, one might also note that young Śrī Caitanya was also very considerate of the feelings of the people surrounding him. Once, the master and one of his friends from the catuṣpāṭhī (educational institution) both had composed manuscripts on the grammatology of Saṃskṛta (Sanskrit). One evening, they both were riding a boat on the riverfront and pondering over the merits of both the manuscripts. It turned out that Śrī Caitanya’s manuscript was the most comprehensive and cohesive of the two. This made his scholarly friend little disheartened. Understanding his friend’s dejection, Śrī Caitanya threw his manuscript into the river water, stating that only his friend’s work will get recognized amongst the scholars. How often do you see such gold-hearted gesture for a friend, whether in remote past or nowadays?

    Meanwhile, Śrī Caitanya developed feelings for a beautiful damsel named Lakṣmīpriyā, daughter of a poor Brāhmaṇa named Vallabha, and married her without any dowry, going against the established social norm. This can be regarded as another instance of how Śrī Caitanya not only lectured on social reforms, but also actively practised what he preached.  Lakṣmīpriyā is widely believed to be a reincarnation of goddess Lakṣmī (or alternatively, Rukmiṇī) by the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava devotees. However, after the marriage and a few heydays of conjugal life, Śrī Caitanya had to go to the Eastern regions of the Baṅga province (now Bānglādeśa) during which Lakṣmīpriyā had a very untimely departure. Young Śrī Caitanya was immensely hurt, but he consoled his mother and took the helm of the family. Afflicted to see her young and handsome son as a widower, his mother arranged for his second marriage to Viṣṇupriyā, daughter of a royal paṇḍita named Sanātana. Like Lakṣmīpriyā, Viṣṇupriyā is also regarded as a reincarnation of Satyabhāmā, one of the four queen-consorts of Kṛṣṇa. Unfortunately, this marital relationship too came to an abrupt end after the twenty-four-year-old Śrī Caitanya’s announcement of sannyāsa.

    However, before adopting sannyāsa, Śrī Caitanya was also initiated into the bhakti mārga by his first guru, Īśvara Purī, whom he met during his visit to Gayā for the piṇḍadāna (a solemn ritual) of his departed father. Īśvara Purī was a śiṣya of Mādhavendra Purī who, in turn, was a śiṣya of Śrī Madhvācārya, the founder of the dvaita school of Vedānta. The episode of Śrī Caitanya’s dīkṣā by Īśvara Purī is poetically captured by Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja’s Caitanya Caritāmṛta (1.9.7-10) where the poet compares Śrī Madhvācārya as the seed, Mādhavendra Purī as the sprout, Īśvara Purī as the plant, and Śrī Caitanya as the tree. The metaphor suggests that Śrī Madhvācārya’s dvaita darśana is the seed which grew as the tree in Śrī Caitanya’s acintyabhedābheda darśana.

    A marked shift in the life and thought of Śrī Caitanya can be observed afterwards. Upon his return to home, he had completely shunned the aura of a recondite academician and donned on the mantle of a humble devotee. He incepted the kīrtana (or saṃkīrtana) way of sādhanā which galvanized the crowd by storm. Not only it simplified the traditional methods of devotion, but it also paved the path for the integration of the followers of the Sanātana Dharma who stayed long divided by the perils of sectarianism and discrimination. This, however, raised the eyebrows of Ālāuddin Husain Śāh (who is often falsely described as a sultān with great religious tolerance). He summoned Cām̐d Kājī, the minister of the province of Navadvīpa, and ordered him to thwart the upsurge. Cām̐d Kājī heralded a diktat forbidding people to take part in the kīrtana to which Śrī Caitanya resisted. Along with his thousands of followers, he marched towards the castle of Cām̐d Kājī who immediately retreated and apologized. An apology also came from Ālāuddin Husain Śāh in which he acknowledged his mistake and allowed Śrī Caitanya to freely practise kīrtana wherever they wanted. Undoubtedly, this was a bold political move on the part of Śrī Caitanya, but one must not be mistaken that he had harboured any rancour against the other religious communities— a fact that can be testified by the fact that he would later go on to ascribe Haridāsa, an ex-Muslim, as the master of the ‘Hare Kṛṣṇa’ mantra. Apart from that, Śrī Caitanya also embraced many other Muslims who became his followers. He was an epitome of might and mercy together. Locanadāsa in his Caitanya Maṅgala (3.6.283-325) narrates that when two drunkard hooligans, Jagāi and Mādhāi, attacked the kīrtana troupe led by Śrī Nityānanda, he was deeply outraged. Śrī Caitanya, who had a long and virile physique, arrived with his followers to rescue the troupe, leaving those two drunkards terrified. While everyone wanted to punish them, Śrī Nityānanda and Śrī Caitanya decided to forgive them. Confronted with such opulent mercy, Jagāi and Mādhāi realized their guilt and became two ardent followers of Śrī Caitanya, abandoning all evil practices. Peace stays with power. Śrī Caitanya’s action exemplifies it.

            When Śrī Caitanya turned twenty four, he decided to renounce the family life and took sannyāsa. His decision devastated his mother, newly-wed wife, and many of his followers in Navadvīpa, but he was adamant. In no time, his dīkṣā was done by Svāmī Keśava Bhāratī, a follower of the advaita tradition popularized by Ādi Śaṅkarācārya. However, Śrī Caitanya had told his guru that he would not follow the advaita tradition in toto, but rather posit a different outlook altogether. Considered to be a reincarnation of Sāndīpana Muni who was the guru of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, Svāmī Keśava Bhāratī happily consented to Śrī Caitanya’s plans and immediately recognized the latter as an incarnation of Śrī Kṛṣṇa:

এই দৃঢ়যুক্তি করি প্রভু আছে ঘরে।
কেশব-ভারতী আইলা নদীয়া নগরে।।
প্রভু তাঁরে নমস্করি কৈল নিমন্ত্রণ।
ভিক্ষা করাইয়া তাঁরে কৈল নিবেদন—
তুমি ত ঈশ্বর বট সাক্ষাৎ নারায়ণ।
কৃপা করে কর মোর সংসারমোচন।
ভারতী কহেন— তুমি ঈশ্বর অন্তর্যামী।
যেই করাহ, সেই করিব, স্বতন্ত্র নহি আমি।।
এত বলি ভারতী গোসাঞি কটোয়াতে গেলা।
মহাপ্রভু তাহা যাই সন্ন্যাস করিলা।।

Caitanya Caritāmṛta (1.17.261-265)

[Once the lord (Śrī Caitanya) decided to take sannyāsa (renunciation), Keśava Bhāratī came to Nadīyā. The lord expressed his obeisance to him and, after making him accept his invitation, asked him to terminate his saṃsāra (mundane life). Keśava Bhāratī responded saying, “O lord, thou art the omniscient god! Whatever thou shall command, I shall obey as I am dependent on thy will!” Saying this, he went to Kātoyā (Katwa) where Śrī Caitanya joined him to take the vow of sannyāsa.]

For the next twenty-four years, he would travel to many cities and states as a parivrājaka (a wandering mendicant). From Śāntipura to Purī, from Gayā to Kāśī, from Vṛndāvana to Mathurā, from Dvārakā to Rāmeśvaram— he visited all the places associated with Kṛṣṇa and where Vaiṣṇava philosophers had lived. It is said that Śrī Caitanya particularly espoused the dvaitādvaita (or bhedābheda) theosophy of Śrī Nimbārkācārya.

                During his travels, he met many great philosophers and sādhakas, including Guru Nānak, the founder of the Śikkhī sampradāya of the Sanātana Dharma. Some scholars even speculate that it is Śrī Nityānanda, Śrī Caitanya’s lifelong associate, who imparted the lessons on theology to Guru Nānak. Another incident worth remembering is Śrī Caitanya’s meeting with Svāmī Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī, one of the most prominent sannyāsīs of the advaita tradition in Kāśī during that time. It is noted in all the hagiographies that the two had a conversation of theosophy and the latter was flabbergasted by young Śrī Caitanya’s rooted understanding of the nature of the brahma and māyā despite their differences in opinion. He is also said to have recognized the presence of divinity in Śrī Caitanya.

                The last six years of Śrī Caitanya’s life was spent in the Jagannātha Mandira of Purī. Here, he had already garnered many disciples and followers, including the king of the state, Pratāparudra. By this time, Śrī Caitanya’s acintyabhedābheda darśana had already secured its place as the latest school of the Vedānta tradition. On 14^th June, 1534, Śrī Caitanya relinquished his mundane life at the age of forty-eight. However, there is a mystery (or rather, a conspiracy theory) surrounding his departure which stems from the fact that most of the hagiographies either do not accurately delineate how he departed or they describe it metaphorically in elegiac forms. This led to the speculation if Śrī Caitanya had an unnatural death and had been murdered. Dr. Jaydev Mukhopādhyāya, an independent researcher and author, had penned three nonfictions (titled Khyapā Khuñje Fere, Dārubrahma Rahasya, and Kothā Gele Tomā Pāi) along with dozens of articles in the newspapers arguing that Śrī Caitanya was killed by the pāṇḍās (the guides) of the Jagannātha Mandira in Purī. However, neither the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava devotees nor the historians and scholars take his claims seriously. They both dismiss his research as a conspiracy theory due to his cherry-picking of facts, sheer neglect of the otherwise evidences, and lack of authentic methodology. Nevertheless, howsoever Śrī Caitanya might have departed, he has left a divine legacy unblemished till date. The impact he has upon history, literature, theology, philosophy, folk music, culture and society is unmatched by any medieval figure. Time and again, it may be freely corroborated that researchers on those aforementioned fields will have to look upon his illustrious life and deeds. As Kavi Karṇapūra prays:

स्वीयैर्लीलाविलसित रसैः पादसेवाविलासैर्लास्योल्लासैर्घदयमकरोत्पूर्णपूर्णां त्रीलोकीम्।
मन्ये भूयस्तदिह करुणा सैव नित्यं नवीना भूयो भूयः प्रणमतुतरां तामिमां जीवलोकः।।

(Caitanya Caritāmṛtam Mahākāvyam 1.5)

[I think as if the lord (Śrī Caitanya), who is gleeful by himself, is filling the world with eternal bliss by the joy of his dance! This is the novelty in his expression of grace (to us)! May the jīva (sentient beings) again and again bow down to his eternal grace!]

Today, the full-moon night of Holi, also marks the 539^th birth anniversary of the great master. As we celebrate the Holi, let us double our joy by celebrating the master’s legacy through our life and literature, art and aspiration, music and mirth.

(This article is the opening part of the Śrī Caitanya and Society Series. Every month, there will be an article on the master’s illustrious life and deeds, depicting how they transpired into a holistic framework for societal sustainability.)

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