Sri Candrasekhara Acarya (Acaryaratna) lived in Navadvipa near the house of Sri Nimai Pandit, his nephew. Since Candrasekhara had no children, he accepted Nimai Pandit as his own and often entertained the Lord within his home. After the disappearance of Sri Jagannatha Mishra, Acaryaratna served as Gauranga's guardian and father. Sri Gaurasundara would regularly hold kirtans and once enacted a play in Candrasekhara's house. Dressed as Sri Laksmi Devi, Lord Caitanya played the part so expertly that even Mother Saci couldn't recognize Him.
Overcome with intense pangs of separation, Candrasekhara fell down on the ground when he heard Lord Gauranga's plan to take sannyasa. "Are You going to plunge Nadia into darkness by going away?" he asked the Lord.
With tears spilling out of His lotus eyes Lord Gauranga embraced him and replied, "Acaryaratna, although I may accept sannyasa, I will forever remain bound within the temple of your heart. Please be patient, for you must assist in My sannyasa ceremony."
Sri Candrasekhara was one of the main branches of Sri Caitanya's sankirtana movement. From the beginning of Sri Caitanya's Navadvipa lila he and his innumerable disciples faithfully served the Lord. In Sridhama Mayapur, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura established the headquarters of Sri Caitanya Matha at the site of Candrasekhara Acarya's original home. His samadhi is behind the Madana Mohana temple and next to Sanatana Gosvami's samadhi. He is Subhadra or Candra-deva (moon god) in Krishna's divine pastimes.
Monday, July 6, 2009
Pastimes at Khanakula-Krishnanagara(Shri Abhirama Gopal Thakura)
Shri Abhirama Gopal Thakura was also known as Shri Rama Das. He was a great devotee of Lord Nityananda. On the order of Shri Nityananda Prabhu, he became a great acharya and preacher of Gaudiya Vaishnavism.He was a very influential personality, and atheists and blasphemers were very much afraid of him. Empowered by Shri Nityananda Prabhu, he was always in ecstasy and was kind to all fallen souls. It is siad that if he offered obeisances to any stone other than a shalagram-shila, it would immediately burst into pieces. According to Gaura-Ganodesha-Dipika (12) in Krishna-lila he was Shridama, one of the 12 prominent boy cowherd friends of Shri Krishna. He was Nityananda's dearmost devotee. Abhiram Gopal's wife's name was Shri Malini devi.
Abhirama Gopala Thakura lived in Khanakula Krishnanagara. Khanakula Krishanagar may be visited by taking the narrow gauge train from Howrah Station in Calcutta to Amta. It is located in the present Hooghly District of West Bengal. There, in Khanakula Krishnanagara, near the bankof the Khana river, is the temple of Abhirama Thakura. Because it is a town (nagara) with a Krishna temple, the town is called Krishna-nagara, and because the temple is on the kula (banks) of the Khana, it is called Khanakula-krishna nagara Just outside the temple is a bakula tree. This place is known as Siddha-bakula-kunja. It is said that Abhirama Thakura used to like sitting beneath this tree.
The story of how the Gopinath deity of Khanakula Krishnanagara was established is as follows. One day, the deity of Gopinatha appeared to Abhiram Gopal in a dream, and informed him that he wanted to manifest himself in Khanakula Krishnanagara. It is said that he was buried in the earth, and that in the dream he ordered Abhirama Gopal to excavate him and inaugurate his worship. Abhirama Gopal went to the place where the Lord had indicated he would be found, and began excavation. There, after digging for some time, he found the mind-enchanting deity of Shri Gopinatha. The place where this discovery was made is now called Rama kunda, and there is a small lake there. The Bhakti Ratnakara says, "After having excavated the Gopinatha deity, all the devotees headed by Rama Dasa (Abhirama Gopala) bathed in the sacred waters of the kunda near the spot where the deity had been found. From that day on the kunda became famous as Rama Kunda. Whoever bathes there becomes free from repeated birth and death."
One day Shri Abhirama Gopala was overwhelmed with the ecstasy of sakhya rasa, and had a desire to play the flute of a cowherd boy. Intoxicated by the bliss of Krishna-prema, he began searching the four directions for a suitable flute. As he searched through the forest for a suitable instrument all at once he saw before him a big log. The log was so huge that sixteen men could not move it. Grabbing hold of that log, he turned it into a flute and began to play upon it. The Chaitanya Charitamrita says, "Rama dasa was one of the principle branches of the Nityananda branch of the Chaitanya tree of bhakti. He was full of sakhya-prema—love of Krishna saturated with the mellow of friendship. He once picked up a log that sixteen men couldn't lift and used it as a flute."
Shri Abhirama Thakura had a bullwhip that was imbued with divine power. Its name was "Jayamangal." Whoever was struck with this whip became filled with Krishna prema. One day Shrinivasa Acharya went to take darshan of Abhiram Gopala. At that time, Abhiram Gopal touched him three times with Jayamangal. The Thakur's good wife, Malini, cried out, "My Lord! Do not touch him again. Calm yourself. Shrinivas is only a boy. If you touch him again he will lose consciousness." As a result of coming in contact with the whip of Abhirama Thakura, Shrinivasa Acharya became filled with Shri Krishna prema.
When Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu ordered Nityananda Prabhu to preach in Bengal, he sent Abhirama Gopal and Gadadhara Das along with him. Simply upon seeing Abhiram Gopal, atheists and blasphemers would flee in terror. He was a remarkable scholar, well-versed in all the scriptures. He married his wife, Malini, upon the order of Shri Nityananda Prabhu. His disappearance day is on the seventh day of the dark moon in the month of Chaitra, and on that day a great festival attended by thousands of devotees is held every year in Khanakula-Krishnanagara
Abhirama Gopala Thakura lived in Khanakula Krishnanagara. Khanakula Krishanagar may be visited by taking the narrow gauge train from Howrah Station in Calcutta to Amta. It is located in the present Hooghly District of West Bengal. There, in Khanakula Krishnanagara, near the bankof the Khana river, is the temple of Abhirama Thakura. Because it is a town (nagara) with a Krishna temple, the town is called Krishna-nagara, and because the temple is on the kula (banks) of the Khana, it is called Khanakula-krishna nagara Just outside the temple is a bakula tree. This place is known as Siddha-bakula-kunja. It is said that Abhirama Thakura used to like sitting beneath this tree.
The story of how the Gopinath deity of Khanakula Krishnanagara was established is as follows. One day, the deity of Gopinatha appeared to Abhiram Gopal in a dream, and informed him that he wanted to manifest himself in Khanakula Krishnanagara. It is said that he was buried in the earth, and that in the dream he ordered Abhirama Gopal to excavate him and inaugurate his worship. Abhirama Gopal went to the place where the Lord had indicated he would be found, and began excavation. There, after digging for some time, he found the mind-enchanting deity of Shri Gopinatha. The place where this discovery was made is now called Rama kunda, and there is a small lake there. The Bhakti Ratnakara says, "After having excavated the Gopinatha deity, all the devotees headed by Rama Dasa (Abhirama Gopala) bathed in the sacred waters of the kunda near the spot where the deity had been found. From that day on the kunda became famous as Rama Kunda. Whoever bathes there becomes free from repeated birth and death."
One day Shri Abhirama Gopala was overwhelmed with the ecstasy of sakhya rasa, and had a desire to play the flute of a cowherd boy. Intoxicated by the bliss of Krishna-prema, he began searching the four directions for a suitable flute. As he searched through the forest for a suitable instrument all at once he saw before him a big log. The log was so huge that sixteen men could not move it. Grabbing hold of that log, he turned it into a flute and began to play upon it. The Chaitanya Charitamrita says, "Rama dasa was one of the principle branches of the Nityananda branch of the Chaitanya tree of bhakti. He was full of sakhya-prema—love of Krishna saturated with the mellow of friendship. He once picked up a log that sixteen men couldn't lift and used it as a flute."
Shri Abhirama Thakura had a bullwhip that was imbued with divine power. Its name was "Jayamangal." Whoever was struck with this whip became filled with Krishna prema. One day Shrinivasa Acharya went to take darshan of Abhiram Gopala. At that time, Abhiram Gopal touched him three times with Jayamangal. The Thakur's good wife, Malini, cried out, "My Lord! Do not touch him again. Calm yourself. Shrinivas is only a boy. If you touch him again he will lose consciousness." As a result of coming in contact with the whip of Abhirama Thakura, Shrinivasa Acharya became filled with Shri Krishna prema.
When Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu ordered Nityananda Prabhu to preach in Bengal, he sent Abhirama Gopal and Gadadhara Das along with him. Simply upon seeing Abhiram Gopal, atheists and blasphemers would flee in terror. He was a remarkable scholar, well-versed in all the scriptures. He married his wife, Malini, upon the order of Shri Nityananda Prabhu. His disappearance day is on the seventh day of the dark moon in the month of Chaitra, and on that day a great festival attended by thousands of devotees is held every year in Khanakula-Krishnanagara
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Pastimes at Shri Khanda (Narahari Sarakara, Mukunda Dasa & Raghunandana Thakura)
Mukunda Dasa
Sri Mukunda acted as the royal physician to Emperor Hussain Shah. Upon seeing a shimmering peacock fan waving before the king, he fell down in ecstasy. Seeing the peacock feathers flooded the pure heart of Mukunda with overwhelming memories of Lord Sri Krishna.
Sri Caitanya once jokingly asked Mukunda, "Who is the father and who is the son?"
Mukunda replied, "My son, Raghunandana, is actually the father because through him I have understood Krishna consciousness. Therefore, he is my real father."
Lord Caitanya confirmed his realization, "Yes, whoever give us Kzishna-bhakti is our guru and our real father."
To expand the preaching in Sri Khanda, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu assigned different duties to the Sarakara family. Mukunda Sarakara, working as a doctor already, was told to make money, follow the regulative principles, and increase his spiritual wealth. Narahari Sarakara Thakura was ordered to stay with the Lord's devotees and preach Krishna consciousness. Raghunandana, Mukunda's son, was asked to worship the family Deity of Sri Caitanya Deva. By this pastime Lord Gaurasundara teaches that by different activities everyone can engage in the service of Lord Krishna.
Mukunda Dasa serves Radha-Murlimanohara as Vrnda-devi in Vraja Gokula.
Raghunandana Thakura
Shri Mukunda Dasa, Shri Madhava Dasa and Shri Narahari Sarakara Thakura were three brothers who lived in Shri Khanda. Shri Mukunda Dasa Thakura's son was Shri Raghunandan Thakura. Mukunda Dasa Thakura was the doctor in the court of the muslim king. He was always absorbed in Krishna, whatever work he did.
An example of this is found in what happened to Mukunda Dasa one day when he went to the court of the king to give him some medical advice. The king was seated on an elevated throne. Mukunda Dasa sat before him, a little lower, on a half-elevated seat, and began inquiring about his health. At taht time a servant came with a large peackock fan to fan the king. The sight of peacock feathers filled Mukunda with a deep memory of Krishna's pastimes. He fainted. When the king saw Mukunda laying on the ground he was alarmed. He thought, "Is he dead?" Gradually they managed to bring him back to consciousness. The king asked him, "What is the nature of your disease?" Shri Mukunda Dasa replied, "I am not greatly ill." The king asked him the cause of his behavior. Hiding his real ailment (separation from Krishna) from the king, Mukunda told him that he had epilepsy and sometimes fainted. He told him, "It is nothing. Don't worry." Although Mukunda Dasa did his best to hide his devotional sentiments from the king, the king could understand that Mukunda Dasa was a highly elevated soul, a perfected being. With great respect he sent Mukunda Dasa home.
Every year Mukunda Dasa, Madhava Dasa and Narahari Sarakara would go to Jagannatha Puri to take darshan of the holy feet of Shri Chaitanya and to dance and chant in Rathayatra kirtan. One day, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu affectionately asked Mukunda Dasa, "Mukunda! Betweend you and Raghunandan, who is the father and who is the son?" Mukunda said, "Raghunandana is my father. Through him I have found Krishna consciousness, so he is really my father." The Lord said, "Your judgement is correct. Whoever gives us Krishna-bhakti is our guru and our father." The Lord ordered Raghunandana to serve the deity, without thinking of anything else.
When he was a boy, Raghunandan used to make the deity eat laddu. Shri Uddhava Dasa has described this subject in a very beautiful way:
prakata shri khandavasa nama shri mukunda das
ghare seva gopinatha jani
gola kon karyanatare seva karibara tare
shri rahunandane daki ani
ghare ache krishna-seva yatna kare khaoyaiba
eta boli mukunda chalila
pitara adesha paiya sevara samagri loiya
gopinather sammukhe aila
shri raghunandana ati vayakrama sishumati
khao bole kandite kandite
krishna se premer vashe na rakhiya avasheshe
sakala khaila alakshita
asiya mukunda dasa kahe balakera pasha
prasada naivedya ano dekhi
shishu kahe vap shuno sakali khailo punah
avashesha kichui na rakhi
shuni aparupa heno vismita hridoye punah
ara dine balake kahiya
seva anumati diya varir bahira hoiya
punah asi rahe lukaiya
shri raghunandana ati hoiya harisha mati
gopinathe laddu diya kare
khao khao bale ghana arddhaka khaite heno
samaye mukunda dekhi dvare
ye khailo rahe heno ara na khaila puna
dekhiya mukunda preme bhora
nandana kariya dole gadgad svare bole
nayane varishe ghana lora
adhyapi shri khandapure ardha laddu ache kare
dekhe yata bhagvyavanta jane
abhinna madana yei shri raghunandana sei
ei uddhava dasa rasa bhane
Shri Raghunandana Thakura made his appearance within this world in Shri Khanda. In his home he became acquainted with the worship of Shri Gopinatha from an early age. One day his father, Mukunda Dasa, who was a doctor, had to go away on medical business. He called Raghunandana to his side. He told Raghunandana to see to it that their deity was served with great care and attention. He told him to be sure and feed the deity. At the appointed hour, taking the order of his father on his head, Raghunandan went to peform the service. He took the offering of food into the deity. Raghunandan was just a little boy. He told the deity: "Eat! Eat!" When he saw that the offering appeared untouched, he began to cry. Not being able to resist the child's intense devotion, Krishna ate everything on the plate, leaving no remnants.
When Mukunda Dasa returned, he asked the boy, "Bring me the prasada remnants of the offering you made earlier." The boy said, "Father, listen. I made the deity eat as you told me to. He left no remnants. He ate everything on his plate." Mukunda was amazed at what the child was saying. Ordering the boy to offer food as before, Mukunda hid himself outside the house and watched through the window. Raghunandana, then, with great delight, offered Gopinatha a laddu. "Eat! Eat!" he said. The Lord ate half the laddu. Meanwhile, Mukunda, who was watching from outside, beheld all this in great amazement. He could understand that since the deity had already eaten once, and had not left any remnants, his hunger was satisfied. As a result, he could only finish half the laddu.
He embraced his son and held him on his lap. His voice was choked with divine emotion. Tears poured from his eyes like rain from a thundercloud. It is said that even today that half a laddu may be seen in Shri Khanda, where it is kept in one of the temples there.
For the pleasure of that great devotee whose bodily beauty resembles that of Cupid himself, Uddhava Dasa narrates this story.
The great devotee Shri Abhirama Gopala Thakura and Shri Raghunandan Thakura once danced together in Krishna prema in the house of a devotee in Boro-Dangita. Shri Raghunandana Thakura's nupura, or ankle-bracelet, opened while he was dancing and fell into a pond in Akai-hatta. From that time on, the pond has been known as Nupura-kunda. It is said that at present, in the town of Akaihatta, south of Boro-grama that nupura may be seen in a temple maintained by the local devotees.
According to certain authorities, Shri Raghunandana Thakura was Kandarpa Manjari. According to others, he was one of Krishna's sons in Dvaraka whose name was Kandarpa. This is on the basis of Kavi Karnapura's Gaura-Ganodesha-dipika.
Raghunandana Thakura had a son named Kanai Thakura. The descendants of Raghunandan Thakura's line live today in Shri Khanda. One of the most famous of them is a person by the name of Panchanana Kaviraja, who was born in the line of Shri Raghunandana. Raghunandana Thakura was born in the Saka year 1432.
Quoting from Shrila Bhaktivinoda Thakura's commentary on Chaitanya Charitamrita, Bhaktivedanta Swami writes: "Shri Mukunda dasa was the son of Narayana dasa and eldest brother of Narahari Sarakara. His second brother's name was Madhava dasa, and his son was named Raghunandana dasa. Descendents of Raghunandana dasa still live four miles west of Katwa in the village named Shri Khanda, where Raghunandana dasa used to live. Raghunandana had one son named Kanai, who had two sons—Madana Raya, who was a disciple of Narahari Sarakara Thakura, and Vamshivadana. It is estimated that at least four hundred men descended in this dynasty. All their names are recorded in the village known as Shri Khanda. In the Gaura-ganoddesha-dipikca it is stated that the gopi whose name was Vrindadevi became Mukunda dasa, lived in Shri Khanda village and was very dear to Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. His wonderful love and devotion for Krishna are described in the Madhya-lila, Chapter Fifteen of the Chaitanya Charitamrita. It is stated in the Bhakti-Ratnakara, Chapter Eight, that Raghunandana used to serve a Deity of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu."
Narahari Sarakara Thakura
Sri Mukunda acted as the royal physician to Emperor Hussain Shah. Upon seeing a shimmering peacock fan waving before the king, he fell down in ecstasy. Seeing the peacock feathers flooded the pure heart of Mukunda with overwhelming memories of Lord Sri Krishna.
Sri Caitanya once jokingly asked Mukunda, "Who is the father and who is the son?"
Mukunda replied, "My son, Raghunandana, is actually the father because through him I have understood Krishna consciousness. Therefore, he is my real father."
Lord Caitanya confirmed his realization, "Yes, whoever give us Kzishna-bhakti is our guru and our real father."
To expand the preaching in Sri Khanda, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu assigned different duties to the Sarakara family. Mukunda Sarakara, working as a doctor already, was told to make money, follow the regulative principles, and increase his spiritual wealth. Narahari Sarakara Thakura was ordered to stay with the Lord's devotees and preach Krishna consciousness. Raghunandana, Mukunda's son, was asked to worship the family Deity of Sri Caitanya Deva. By this pastime Lord Gaurasundara teaches that by different activities everyone can engage in the service of Lord Krishna.
Mukunda Dasa serves Radha-Murlimanohara as Vrnda-devi in Vraja Gokula.
Raghunandana Thakura
Shri Mukunda Dasa, Shri Madhava Dasa and Shri Narahari Sarakara Thakura were three brothers who lived in Shri Khanda. Shri Mukunda Dasa Thakura's son was Shri Raghunandan Thakura. Mukunda Dasa Thakura was the doctor in the court of the muslim king. He was always absorbed in Krishna, whatever work he did.
An example of this is found in what happened to Mukunda Dasa one day when he went to the court of the king to give him some medical advice. The king was seated on an elevated throne. Mukunda Dasa sat before him, a little lower, on a half-elevated seat, and began inquiring about his health. At taht time a servant came with a large peackock fan to fan the king. The sight of peacock feathers filled Mukunda with a deep memory of Krishna's pastimes. He fainted. When the king saw Mukunda laying on the ground he was alarmed. He thought, "Is he dead?" Gradually they managed to bring him back to consciousness. The king asked him, "What is the nature of your disease?" Shri Mukunda Dasa replied, "I am not greatly ill." The king asked him the cause of his behavior. Hiding his real ailment (separation from Krishna) from the king, Mukunda told him that he had epilepsy and sometimes fainted. He told him, "It is nothing. Don't worry." Although Mukunda Dasa did his best to hide his devotional sentiments from the king, the king could understand that Mukunda Dasa was a highly elevated soul, a perfected being. With great respect he sent Mukunda Dasa home.
Every year Mukunda Dasa, Madhava Dasa and Narahari Sarakara would go to Jagannatha Puri to take darshan of the holy feet of Shri Chaitanya and to dance and chant in Rathayatra kirtan. One day, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu affectionately asked Mukunda Dasa, "Mukunda! Betweend you and Raghunandan, who is the father and who is the son?" Mukunda said, "Raghunandana is my father. Through him I have found Krishna consciousness, so he is really my father." The Lord said, "Your judgement is correct. Whoever gives us Krishna-bhakti is our guru and our father." The Lord ordered Raghunandana to serve the deity, without thinking of anything else.
When he was a boy, Raghunandan used to make the deity eat laddu. Shri Uddhava Dasa has described this subject in a very beautiful way:
prakata shri khandavasa nama shri mukunda das
ghare seva gopinatha jani
gola kon karyanatare seva karibara tare
shri rahunandane daki ani
ghare ache krishna-seva yatna kare khaoyaiba
eta boli mukunda chalila
pitara adesha paiya sevara samagri loiya
gopinather sammukhe aila
shri raghunandana ati vayakrama sishumati
khao bole kandite kandite
krishna se premer vashe na rakhiya avasheshe
sakala khaila alakshita
asiya mukunda dasa kahe balakera pasha
prasada naivedya ano dekhi
shishu kahe vap shuno sakali khailo punah
avashesha kichui na rakhi
shuni aparupa heno vismita hridoye punah
ara dine balake kahiya
seva anumati diya varir bahira hoiya
punah asi rahe lukaiya
shri raghunandana ati hoiya harisha mati
gopinathe laddu diya kare
khao khao bale ghana arddhaka khaite heno
samaye mukunda dekhi dvare
ye khailo rahe heno ara na khaila puna
dekhiya mukunda preme bhora
nandana kariya dole gadgad svare bole
nayane varishe ghana lora
adhyapi shri khandapure ardha laddu ache kare
dekhe yata bhagvyavanta jane
abhinna madana yei shri raghunandana sei
ei uddhava dasa rasa bhane
Shri Raghunandana Thakura made his appearance within this world in Shri Khanda. In his home he became acquainted with the worship of Shri Gopinatha from an early age. One day his father, Mukunda Dasa, who was a doctor, had to go away on medical business. He called Raghunandana to his side. He told Raghunandana to see to it that their deity was served with great care and attention. He told him to be sure and feed the deity. At the appointed hour, taking the order of his father on his head, Raghunandan went to peform the service. He took the offering of food into the deity. Raghunandan was just a little boy. He told the deity: "Eat! Eat!" When he saw that the offering appeared untouched, he began to cry. Not being able to resist the child's intense devotion, Krishna ate everything on the plate, leaving no remnants.
When Mukunda Dasa returned, he asked the boy, "Bring me the prasada remnants of the offering you made earlier." The boy said, "Father, listen. I made the deity eat as you told me to. He left no remnants. He ate everything on his plate." Mukunda was amazed at what the child was saying. Ordering the boy to offer food as before, Mukunda hid himself outside the house and watched through the window. Raghunandana, then, with great delight, offered Gopinatha a laddu. "Eat! Eat!" he said. The Lord ate half the laddu. Meanwhile, Mukunda, who was watching from outside, beheld all this in great amazement. He could understand that since the deity had already eaten once, and had not left any remnants, his hunger was satisfied. As a result, he could only finish half the laddu.
He embraced his son and held him on his lap. His voice was choked with divine emotion. Tears poured from his eyes like rain from a thundercloud. It is said that even today that half a laddu may be seen in Shri Khanda, where it is kept in one of the temples there.
For the pleasure of that great devotee whose bodily beauty resembles that of Cupid himself, Uddhava Dasa narrates this story.
The great devotee Shri Abhirama Gopala Thakura and Shri Raghunandan Thakura once danced together in Krishna prema in the house of a devotee in Boro-Dangita. Shri Raghunandana Thakura's nupura, or ankle-bracelet, opened while he was dancing and fell into a pond in Akai-hatta. From that time on, the pond has been known as Nupura-kunda. It is said that at present, in the town of Akaihatta, south of Boro-grama that nupura may be seen in a temple maintained by the local devotees.
According to certain authorities, Shri Raghunandana Thakura was Kandarpa Manjari. According to others, he was one of Krishna's sons in Dvaraka whose name was Kandarpa. This is on the basis of Kavi Karnapura's Gaura-Ganodesha-dipika.
Raghunandana Thakura had a son named Kanai Thakura. The descendants of Raghunandan Thakura's line live today in Shri Khanda. One of the most famous of them is a person by the name of Panchanana Kaviraja, who was born in the line of Shri Raghunandana. Raghunandana Thakura was born in the Saka year 1432.
Quoting from Shrila Bhaktivinoda Thakura's commentary on Chaitanya Charitamrita, Bhaktivedanta Swami writes: "Shri Mukunda dasa was the son of Narayana dasa and eldest brother of Narahari Sarakara. His second brother's name was Madhava dasa, and his son was named Raghunandana dasa. Descendents of Raghunandana dasa still live four miles west of Katwa in the village named Shri Khanda, where Raghunandana dasa used to live. Raghunandana had one son named Kanai, who had two sons—Madana Raya, who was a disciple of Narahari Sarakara Thakura, and Vamshivadana. It is estimated that at least four hundred men descended in this dynasty. All their names are recorded in the village known as Shri Khanda. In the Gaura-ganoddesha-dipikca it is stated that the gopi whose name was Vrindadevi became Mukunda dasa, lived in Shri Khanda village and was very dear to Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. His wonderful love and devotion for Krishna are described in the Madhya-lila, Chapter Fifteen of the Chaitanya Charitamrita. It is stated in the Bhakti-Ratnakara, Chapter Eight, that Raghunandana used to serve a Deity of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu."
Narahari Sarakara Thakura
About four miles west of Katwa, within the Barddhaman district is Shri Khanda, the birthplace of Narahari Sarakara Thakura. Shri Mukunda Dasa, shri Madhava Dasa and Shri Narahari Dasa were brothers. Shri Mukunda's son was Shri Raghunandana Thakura.
Shri Krishnadasa Kaviraja Goswami mentions the devotees of Shri Khanda as a major branch of the Chaitanya tree of Krishna-prema (CC Adi 10:78-79): "The residents of Shri Khanda include Mukunda Dasa, Shri Raghunandana, Narahari Dasa, Chiranjiva, and Sulochana. All of them together form a major branch of the Shri Chaitanya tree. As such they were an abode of the Lord's mercy. This branch produced the fruits and flowers of bhakti in profusion."
Shri Narahari Thakura was connected with many of Mahaprabhu's pastimes. Narahari Chakravarti Thakura writes in Bhakti Ratnakara: "Shri Narahari Thakura's glories are wonderful. In Vrindavana he was Madhumati, and his excellences are boundless." Shri Lochan Dasa Thakura was a dear disciple of Narahari Sarakara Thakura. In his Chaitanya Mangala he describes his gurudeva as follows: "Shri Narahari Dasa is my Lord. He has taught me transcendental knowledge, and I am under his influence in many other ways. His abundant Krishna-prema saturates his very being; its symptoms are clearly evident in his body. No one can understand the extent of his devotion and Krishna-prema. In his former existence in Vrindavana he was known as Madhumati, a dear gopi friend of Shri Radha who was a storehouse of sweetness. That very sakhi friend of Shri Radha appeared in the pastimes of Shri Gauranga during the age of Kali as Narahari. He was a stores house of Radha-Krishna prema."
Shri Bhaktivinoda Thakura has mentioned Narahari Sarakara in his Gaura-Aroti song: "narahari adi kori chamara dulaya, sanjaya mukunda vasughosh adi gaya." Shri Narahari Sarakara Thakura was as great a singer as he was a poet. He wrote many poems and songs in connection with the pastimes of Shri Gauranga and Shri Nityananda. He has written a Sanskrit book of songs called Shri Bhajanamrita. A book of songs called Padakalpataru, describing intense separation from Shri Gauranga has been attributed to Narahari Sarakara Thakura, as have some other books.
Almost all of the songs of Shri Narahari Sarakara Thakura have been included in Bhakti Ratnakara by Narahari Chakravarti Thakura. Therefore, it is sometimes difficult to tell just which parts of Bhakti Ratnakara are the songs of Narahari Sarakara being quoted by Narahari Chakravarti, and which parts have been written by Narahari Chakravarti Thakura. By the same token it is hard to say exactly which songs of Gaura-lila included in Bhakti Ratnakara are written by Narahari Sarakara Thakura. What complicates this is that both authors bear the same name and often end a song simply by saying "This song was sung by Narahari." This has led to a degree of confusion about the specific authorship of certain parts of the work, although both Naraharis are great devotees and Bhakti Ratnakara is revered as an authorized Vaishnava scripture describing the lives of the great Vaishnava saints.
Shrila Lochan Dasa Thakura has written "Before the birth of Shri Gauranga many different ragas were written by Narahari which sang of Vraja-rasa." Before he wrote songs of Gauranga, Narahari Sarakara Thakura composed many songs glorifying Krishna. Shrila Narahari Thakura passed away on the Krishna ekadashi (the eleventh day of the dark moon) in the month of Agrahayana.
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