When a man is greatly learned in the Vedānta-sūtras, he is known as a paṇḍita, or learned scholar. Generally this qualification is attributed to brāhmaṇas and sannyāsīs. Sannyāsa, the renounced order of life, is the topmost position for a brāhmaṇa, a member of the highest of the four varṇas (brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya and śūdra). According to public opinion, a person born in a brāhmaṇa family, duly reformed by the purificatory processes and properly initiated by a spiritual master, is an authority on Vedic literature. When such a person is offered the sannyāsa order, he comes to occupy the topmost position. The brāhmaṇa is supposed to be the spiritual master of the other three varṇas, namely kṣatriya, vaiśya and śūdra, and the sannyāsī is supposed to be the spiritual master even of the exalted brāhmaṇas.
Generally brāhmaṇas and sannyāsīs are very proud of their spiritual positions. Therefore, to cut down their false pride, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu preached Kṛṣṇa consciousness through Rāmānanda Rāya, who was neither a member of the renounced order nor a born brāhmaṇa. Indeed, Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya was a gṛhastha belonging to the śūdra class, yet Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu arranged for him to be the master who taught Pradyumna Miśra, a highly qualified brāhmaṇa born in a brāhmaṇa family. Even Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu Himself, although belonging to the renounced order, took instruction from Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya. In this way Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu exhibited His opulence through Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya. That is the special significance of this incident.