Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Carita | Book 3 Chapter 16

Sixteenth Sarga

Darśana of Lord Jagannātha

1

O learned brāhmaṇa, as the sole friend of all the worlds travelled on the path, He saw some ancient tamāla trees, and laughing, He embraced them. By the mere touch of His hands, He delivered those trees from material bondage.

2

Then those trees assumed their original forms of seven gandharvas and seeing Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya, they became immersed in an ocean of transcendental happiness. relinquishing the sinful reaction which had been brought upon them by the curse of a sage, they offered obeisances before the Lord and departed for their own dazzling domain.

3

Thereafter being intoxicated by Śrī Kṛṣṇa-rasa, the Supreme Brahma chanted these names of the Lord, which are auspicious combinations of transcendental sound: "Śrī Rāma! Govinda! Hare! Murāri! Janārdana! Śrīdhara! Vāsudeva!

4

"Sva-bhakta-rakākara! Rāghavendra! Sītā-pati! Lakmaṇa-prāṇa-nātha! Sugrīva-ha! Bāli-vadhāti-duḥkha! Marut-sutānanda-da! Rāvaṇāri!"

5

Thus intoxicated by quaffing the ambrosia distilled from these and many other names of Bhagavān, Śrī Hari swiftly circumambulated Śrī Setu-Bandha, where Lord Rāma with His monkey army built the bridge to Śrī Laṅkā. There He saw the wonderful Rāmeśvara-liṅgam which was worshipped by Lord Rāma for that purpose. Certainly Śaṅkara is forever very dear to Śrī Hari.

6

The Lord of all lords, Śrī Gaura Prabhu bowed down before Sadā Śiva with His hands folded in supplication. Gazing upon he who bestows the science of rasa on goddess Gaurī, He danced at that spot, and the earth bowed down at every step.

7

All the people gazed in unlimitedly astonished at Śrī Gaura Candra, the only friend of the all worlds, who was blissfully entranced, relishing the rasa of His own confidential identity of Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa. Then creating an illusion, the Lord disappeared from their vision.

8

Having seen all the holy tīrthas one after another, our Prabhu, who is like a vast ocean of compassion, felt an intense yearning to see Jagannātha Swāmī, and thus He returned His steps towards the holy king of kṣetras.

9

Following the bank of the Godāvarī river, Gaura Prabhu, who is the sole meaning in life for the saintly men of this age, by His heart-felt desire came to stay again with Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya. Seated in the home of that best amongst the twice-born, the son of Śacī shone in jubilation as that sage of rasa nicely again honoured Him.

10

Later that night, after discussing the Lord's journeys to the tīrthas, they relished the rasa-tattva of Śrī-Rādhikā-Kṛṣṇa.

Then the Lord ordered Rāmānanda, "You must come soon to see the lotus-eyed Jagannātha, for there exists no higher pleasure than His darśana."

11

Thus the crest-jewel among rasikas, resembling the splendid golden full moon, spent that night in Kṛṣṇā-kathā with Rāya Rāmānanda, and it passed away like an instant. Then the Lord again felt an intense hankering to see Jagannātha Swāmī, and He immediately resolved to go to Him.

12

Mahāprabhu travelled in the company of a brāhmaṇa named Viṣṇu-dāsa and saw Ālālanātha Janārdana. He offered obeisances and resided there a few days. Then He went on to Nīlācala, the blue mountain, home of the Supreme Lord.

13

Again Śrī Gaura Hari stayed in the house of Kāśīnātha, and there He met with Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya and the other bhaktas. His heart naturally yearned for the sight of Lord Jagannātha, and so after first bathing His feet, He entered the splendorous jewel-temple.

14

As Gaura Kṛṣṇa, the Lord of Lakṣmī, stood by the pillar named Garuḍa Stambha, overwhelmed with bhakti-rasa, He gazed from the heart of His heart upon the controller of all controllers, the Supreme Lord, the original and ultimate reality, who was accompanied by His elder brother, Śrī Balabhadra.

15

When Gaura's devotees saw on either side of the altar those two beautiful black and golden forms, Śyāmala-sundara and Gaura-sundara, they became merged in an ocean of bliss, in which they found no point of satiation. They were just like misers who acquire wealth and become unable to speak of anything else.

16

Śrī Nityānanda Rāma, the guru of all rasa, His mind immersed in Gaura-prema, gazed with the other bhaktas upon the two black and golden forms of rasa, and roared incessantly like a lion as He danced in great ecstasy and shouted, "Jaya! Jaya! All glories to that person who grants love to one and all! All glories to the Lord whose vision fills full the eyes of Gadādhara!"

17

Lord Śrī Gaura Candra who loves to give honour His bhaktas, was standing in the assembly of His bhaktas. Suddenly by the order of Śrī Jagannātha, the pūjārī who was highly discerning and intelligent, presented to Him Lord Jagannātha's prasādam garland which was entwined with Tulasī leaves.

18

 Śrī Hari who had appeared to deliver fallen souls, His eyes brimming with tears of prema and His body covered by pulakas, placed the prasāda-mālā of Śrī Jagadīśvara upon His own head and fell to the ground and bowed before Him.

Thus ends the Sixteenth Sarga entitled "Darśana of Lord Jagannātha," in the Third Prakrama of the great poem Śrī Caitanya Carita.