Five (CC Madhya-lila)
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta
CC Madhya-lila
here are also descriptions of the stages known as vibhāva, anubhāva, sāttvika, vyabhicārī and sthāyi-bhāva, all on this high platform of devotional service. Thus there are five waves in the dakṣiṇa-vibhāga division. In the western division (paścima-vibhāga) there is a description of the chief transcendental humors derived from devotional service.
In that part there is a description of devotional service in neutrality, further development in love and affection (called servitude), further development in fraternity, further development in parenthood, or parental love, and finally conjugal love between Kṛṣṇa and His devotees. Thus there are five waves in the western division.
There is also a discussion of how spiritual feelings can be present when one simply imitates them and of how such mellows are far superior to the ordinary mellows of mundane love, and there are descriptions of different ecstasies, the awakening of ecstasy, transcendental qualities, the distinction of dhīrodātta, the utmost attractiveness of conjugal love, the ecstatic features, the permanent ecstatic features, the mellows divided in five transcendental features of direct loving service, and indirect loving service, considered in seven divisions.
For five consecutive days all the people gathered to see the Lord, and still there was no rest. Out of fear of the crowd, Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu left at night and went to the town of Kuliyā (present-day Navadvīpa).
Walking and walking, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu arrived at Śāntipura and remained at the house of Advaita Ācārya for five to seven days.
In the Ādi-līlā he outlined the pastimes of the Lord in the five stages of boyhood, leaving the details of the description to Śrīla Vṛndāvana dāsa Ṭhākura. Now in this chapter the pastimes that took place at the end of the Lord's life are summarized.
“In My loving affairs there is a person named Madana. His qualities are thus: Personally He possesses no gross body, yet He is very expert in giving pains to others. He has five arrows, and fixing them on His bow, He shoots them into the bodies of innocent women. Thus these women become invalids. It would be better if He took My life without hesitation, but He does not do so. He simply gives Me pain.
There was sukhta, bitter melon mixed with all kinds of vegetables, defying the taste of nectar. There were five types of bitter and pungent sukhtas.
There were small cakes in sweet and sour sauce and five or six kinds of sour preparations. All the vegetables were so made that everyone present could take prasādam.
Śrī Advaita Ācārya said, "The amount of food that three people can eat does not constitute even a morsel for You. In proportion to that, these edibles are not even five morsels of food for You."
There is a railway station named Baleśvara, and five miles to the west is the village of Remuṇā. The temple of Kṣīra-corā-gopīnātha still exists in this village, and within the temple the samādhi tomb of Rasikānanda Prabhu, the chief disciple of Śyāmānanda Gosvāmī, can still be found.
The ingredients of pañca-gavya are milk, yogurt, ghee (clarified butter), cow urine and cow dung. All these items come from the cow; therefore we can just imagine how important the cow is, since its urine and stool are required for bathing the Deity. The pañcāmṛta consists of five kinds of nectar—yogurt, milk, ghee, honey and sugar. The major portion of this preparation also comes from the cow. To make it more palatable, sugar and honey are added.
Ten brāhmaṇas cooked the food grains, and five brāhmaṇas cooked both dry and liquid vegetables.
Five to seven men prepared a huge quantity of capatis, which were sufficiently covered with ghee (clarified butter), as were all the vegetables, rice and dhal.
The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement has spread all over the world within a very short time (within five years), and mundane people are very much astonished at this. However, by the grace of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, we understand that everything is possible by the grace of Kṛṣṇa. Why does Kṛṣṇa have to take five years? In five days He can spread His name and fame all over the world like wildfire. Those who have faith in and devotion to Kṛṣṇa can understand that these things happen so wonderfully by the grace of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.
From four in the morning until ten at night (from maṅgala-ārātrika to śayana-ārātrika), there must be at least five or six brāhmaṇas to take care of the Deity. Six ārātrikas are performed in the temple, and food is frequently offered to the Deity and the prasādam distributed.
The food offered to Gopāla in the Annakūṭa ceremony contained only these five ingredients. Only demoniac people are attracted to other types of food, which we will not even mention in this connection. We should understand that in order to prepare nutritious food, we require only grains, ghee, yogurt and milk.
When all the pots of sweet rice, remnants left by Gopīnātha, were placed before Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, He became very pleased. In order to feed the devotees, He accepted five of them.
The seven remaining pots were pushed forward and delivered to the priest. Then the five pots of sweet rice the Lord had accepted were distributed among the five devotees, and they ate the prasādam.
The five forests situated on the eastern side of the river Yamunā are Bhadra, Bilva, Loha, Bhāṇḍīra and Mahāvana. The seven forests situated on the western side of the Yamunā are Madhu, Tāla, Kumuda, Bahulā, Kāmya, Khadira and Vṛndāvana. After visiting all these forests, these pilgrims went to a place known as Pañcakrośī Vṛndāvana.
King Bhīṣmaka of Vidarbha wanted to offer Kṛṣṇa his daughter, Rukmiṇī, but Rukmī, the eldest of his five sons, objected. Therefore Bhīṣmaka withdrew his decision and decided to offer Rukmiṇī to the King of Cedi, Śiśupāla, who was a cousin of Kṛṣṇa's.
On that journey, the Lord visited a place known as Bālihastā, or Bālakāṭīcaṭi. He then visited the city of Bhuvaneśvara, where Lord Śiva's temple is located. The temple of Bhuvaneśvara is situated about five to six miles from Bālakāṭīcaṭi. The temple of Lord Śiva is mentioned in the Skanda Purāṇa, in the narration about the Lord's garden and the one mango tree.
When more than two or three transcendental transformations are manifest and it is still possible to conceal them, although with great difficulty, that stage is called jvalitā (lighted). When four or five symptoms are exhibited, the dīpta (blazing) stage has been reached. When five, six or all eight symptoms are simultaneously manifest, that position is called uddīpta (inflamed).
Actually, at the present moment all systems of religion deny the worship of the form of the Lord due to ignorance of His transcendental form. The first-class materialists (the Māyāvādīs) imagine five specific forms of the Lord, but when they try to equate the worship of such imaginary forms with bhakti, they are immediately condemned.
“There are five kinds of liberation: sālokya, sāmīpya, sārūpya, sārṣṭi and sāyujya.
Sālokya means that after material liberation one is promoted to the planet where the Supreme Personality of Godhead resides, sāmīpya means remaining an associate of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, sārūpya means attaining a four-handed form exactly like that of the Lord., sārṣṭi means attaining opulences like those of the Supreme Lord, and sāyujya means merging into the Brahman effulgence of the Lord. These are the five types of liberation.
Śrīla Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī has sung, kaivalyaṁ narakāyate. The impersonalist's conception of becoming one with the effulgence of the Lord is exactly like hell. Therefore, of the five types of liberation, the first four (sālokya, sāmīpya, sārūpya and sārṣṭi) are not so undesirable because they can be avenues of service to the Lord.
“The word "mukti" refers to five kinds of liberation. But its direct meaning usually conveys the idea of becoming one with the Lord.
After staying five days at the home of Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu personally asked his permission to depart for South India.
The Jiyaḍa-nṛsiṁha temple is situated on the top of a hill about five miles away from Visakhapatnam. There is a railway station on the South Indian Railway known as Siṁhācala. The temple known as Siṁhācala is the best temple in the vicinity of Visakhapatnam. This temple is very affluent and is a typical example of the architecture of the area.
Rāmānanda Rāya replied, "My Lord, although You have come to correct me, a fallen soul, my mind is not yet purified simply by seeing You. Please stay for five or seven days and kindly cleanse my polluted mind. After that much time, my mind will certainly be pure."
“There is a gradual order of improvement in transcendental mellows from the initial ones to the later ones. In each subsequent mellow the qualities of the previous mellows are manifested, counting from two, then three, and up to the point of five complete qualities.
“The qualities in the material elements—sky, air, fire, water and earth—increase one after another by a gradual process of one, two and three, and at the last stage, in the element earth, all five qualities are completely visible.
In the sky (space) there is the quality of sound. Similarly, in air there are the qualities of sound and touch. In fire, there are three qualities—sound, touch and form. In water there are four qualities—sound, touch, form and taste. Finally, in earth there are all five qualities—sound, touch, form, taste and also smell. Now, one can see that the quality of the sky is in all—namely in air, fire, water and earth. In earth we can find all the qualities of material nature.
The Supreme Lord has many holy names like Paramātmā, Brahman and "the creator," but one who worships the Lord as the creator cannot understand the relationship between a devotee and the Lord in the five types of transcendental mellows, nor can he understand the conception of Kṛṣṇa. One cannot understand the six transcendental opulences of the Lord simply by understanding the Supreme Personality of Godhead as impersonal Brahman.
Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī first smears Her body with the paste of Kṛṣṇa's affection for Her. She then takes Her bath in the water of mercy. After passing the paugaṇḍa age (from five to ten years), Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī first appears as mercy. The second bath is taken at noon in the water of tāruṇyāmṛta, or the nectar of youth. This is the actual expression of Her new youthfulness.
“"Alas, before We met there was an initial attachment between Us brought about by an exchange of glances. In this way attachment evolved. That attachment has gradually grown, and there is no limit to it. Now that attachment has become a natural sequence between Ourselves. It is not that it is due to Kṛṣṇa, the enjoyer, nor is it due to Me, for I am the enjoyed. It is not like that. This attachment was made possible by mutual meeting. This mutual exchange of attraction is known as manobhava, or Cupid. Kṛṣṇa"s mind and My mind have merged together. Now, during this time of separation, it is very difficult to explain these loving affairs. My dear friend, though Kṛṣṇa might have forgotten all these things, you can understand and bring this message to Him. But during Our first meeting there was no messenger between Us, nor did I request anyone to see Him. Indeed, Cupid's five arrows were Our via media. Now, during this separation, that attraction has increased to another ecstatic state. My dear friend, please act as a messenger on My behalf, because if one is in love with a beautiful person, this is the consequence.’
“In his liberated stage the devotee is attracted by one of the five humors in the transcendental loving service of the Lord. As he continues to serve the Lord in that transcendental mood, he attains a spiritual body to serve Kṛṣṇa in Goloka Vṛndāvana.
Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura comments that the word siddha-deha, "perfected spiritual body," refers to a body beyond the material gross body composed of five elements and the subtle astral body composed of mind, intelligence and false ego.
Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura gives the following summary of the conversations between Rāmānanda Rāya and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Rāmānanda Rāya replied to five questions of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and these questions and their replies are recorded in verses 57–67.
There are also friends like Śrīdāmā and Sudāmā, who embody service in fraternity. Nanda Mahārāja and mother Yaśodā are the embodiments of parental love. Above all of these are Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī and Her assistants, the gopīs Lalitā, Viśākhā and others, who embody conjugal love. In this way all five mellows—śānta, dāsya, sakhya, vātsalya and mādhurya—exist eternally in Vrajabhūmi.
Viṣṇu-kāñcī is situated about five miles away from Kāñcīpuram. It is here that Lord Varadarāja, another form of Lord Viṣṇu, resides. There is also a big lake known as Ananta-sarovara.
The Brahma-saṁhitā also explains the demigod Gaṇeśa, Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, the origin of the Gāyatrī mantra, the form of Govinda and His transcendental position and abode, the living entities, the highest goal, the goddess Durgā, the meaning of austerity, the five gross elements, love of Godhead, impersonal Brahman, the initiation of Lord Brahmā, and the vision of transcendental love enabling one to see the Lord.
In his childhood Madhvācārya was known as Vāsudeva, and there are some wonderful stories surrounding him. It is said that once when his father had piled up many debts, Madhvācārya converted tamarind seeds into actual coins to pay them off. When he was five years old, he was offered the sacred thread. A demon named Maṇimān lived near his abode in the form of a snake, and at the age of five Madhvācārya killed that snake with the toe of his left foot.
When Madhvācārya returned from Badarikāśrama, he went to Gañjāma, which is on the bank of the river Godāvarī. There he met with two learned scholars named Śobhana Bhaṭṭa and Svāmī Śāstrī. Later these scholars became known in the disciplic succession of Madhvācārya as Padmanābha Tīrtha and Narahari Tīrtha. When he returned to Uḍupī, he would sometimes bathe in the ocean. On such an occasion he composed a prayer in five chapters.
"When one dedicates the duties of varṇāśrama-dharma to Kṛṣṇa, he is eligible for five kinds of liberation. Thus he is transferred to the spiritual world in Vaikuṇṭha. This is the highest goal of life and the verdict of all revealed scriptures."
“Pure devotees reject the five kinds of liberation; indeed, for them liberation is very insignificant because they see it as hellish.
“"Pure devotees always reject the five kinds of liberation, which include living in the spiritual Vaikuṇṭha planets, possessing the same opulences as those possessed by the Supreme Lord, having the same bodily features as the Lord"s, associating with the Lord and merging into the body of the Lord. The pure devotees do not accept these benedictions without the service of the Lord.’
There were five Apsarās named Latā, Budbudā, Samīcī, Saurabheyī and Varṇā. It is said that these five beautiful dancing girls were sent by Indra to break the severe austerity of a saintly person called Acyuta Ṛṣi. This action was typical of Indra, the King of heaven. Whenever Indra discovered someone undergoing severe austerities, he would begin to fear for his post.
When the five Apsarās went to break Acyuta Ṛṣi's meditation, they were all chastised and cursed by the saint. As a result, the girls turned into crocodiles in a lake that came to be known as Pañcāpsarā. Lord Rāmacandra also visited this place. From Śrī Nārada Muni's narration, it is understood that when Arjuna went to visit the holy places, he learned about the condemnation of the five Apsarās.
In this way they discussed topics about Lord Kṛṣṇa continually for five to seven days.
Rāmānanda Rāya and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu discussed Kṛṣṇa day and night, and thus they passed from five to seven days in great happiness.
Not understanding the process of disciplic succession, so-called logicians put forward the theory of pañcopāsanā, in which a person worships one of five deities—namely Viṣṇu, Śiva, Durgā, the sun-god or Ganeśa. In this conception the impersonalists imagine one of these five deities as supreme and reject the others. Such philosophical speculation, which is certainly idol worship, is not accepted by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu or by Vaiṣṇavas.
Bhavānanda Rāya had five sons, one of whom was the exalted personality known as Rāmānanda Rāya. Bhavānanda Rāya first met Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu after His return from South India. At that time Rāmānanda Rāya was still serving at his government post; therefore when Bhavānanda Rāya went to see Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, he went with his other four sons. They were named Vāṇīnātha, Gopīnātha, Kalānidhi and Sudhānidhi. A description of Bhavānanda Rāya and his five sons is given in the Ādi-līlā (10.133–34).
"You are Mahārāja Pāṇḍu himself, and your wife is Kuntīdevī herself. All your highly intellectual sons are representatives of the five Pāṇḍavas."
Appreciating Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's favor, Bhavānanda Rāya also said, “Along with my home, riches, servants and five sons, I surrender myself at Your lotus feet.
"Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya is coming within five to seven days. As soon as he arrives, My desires will be fulfilled. I take great pleasure in his company."
“When Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu enters the Guṇḍicā garden, you should also go there and read the five chapters of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam about Lord Kṛṣṇa's dancing with the gopīs. In this way you can catch hold of the Lord's lotus feet.
The King said, “The son of Bhavānanda Rāya named Vāṇīnātha, along with five or seven other men, went there to obtain the remnants of Lord Jagannātha's food.
Svarūpa Dāmodara was chosen as the leader of the first party and was given five assistants to respond to his chanting.
The five who responded to the singing of Svarūpa Dāmodara were Dāmodara Paṇḍita, Nārāyaṇa, Govinda Datta, Rāghava Paṇḍita and Śrī Govindānanda.
The five singers who responded to the singing of Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura were Gaṅgādāsa, Haridāsa, Śrīmān, Śubhānanda and Śrī Rāma Paṇḍita. Śrī Nityānanda Prabhu was appointed as a dancer.
There then arrived five or seven loads of plates made of the leaves of the ketakī tree. Each man was supplied ten of these plates, and in this way the leaf dishes were distributed.
The Herā-pañcamī festival takes place five days after the Ratha-yātrā festival. Lord Jagannātha has left His wife, the goddess of fortune, and gone to Vṛndāvana, which is the Guṇḍicā temple. Due to separation from the Lord, the goddess of fortune decides to come to see the Lord at Guṇḍicā.
“Apart from other commodities, just hear about his offering of coconuts. A coconut is sold at the rate of five gaṇḍās each.
“Every day five to seven coconuts are clipped and put into water to keep cool.
When a Bengali emperor named Ādiśūra first came from Kānyakubja, or Kānauj, he brought with him five brāhmaṇas and five kāyasthas. Since the king is supposed to be accompanied by his associates, the brāhmaṇas accompanied the King to help him in higher spiritual matters. The kāyasthas were to render other services.
""In the morning, afternoon and evening one should worship the Deity, chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, offer oblations, perform a fire sacrifice and feed the brāhmaṇas. These five activities constitute puraścaryā. To attain full success when taking initiation from the spiritual master, one should first perform these puraścaryā processes.""
Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu became very happy just to speak of the glories of His devotees. Indeed, when He spoke of their glories, it was as if He had five faces.
In this way, by and by, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu reduced the duration to five days. Thus for five days He regularly accepted the Bhaṭṭācārya's invitation to lunch.
A sannyāsī should not cook food for himself or accept an invitation to eat at a devotee's house continuously for many days. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was very kind and affectionate toward His devotees, yet He would not accept a long invitation at Sārvabhauma's house. Out of affection, He accepted only five days in the month. The ten sannyāsīs living with the Lord were (1) Paramānanda Purī, (2) Svarūpa Dāmodara, (3) Brahmānanda Purī, (4) Brahmānanda Bhāratī, (5) Viṣṇu Purī, (6) Keśava Purī, (7) Kṛṣṇānanda Purī, (8) Nṛsiṁha Tīrtha, (9) Sukhānanda Purī and (10) Satyānanda Bhāratī.
Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya then submitted that Paramānanda Purī Gosvāmī would accept a five-day invitation at his place. This had already been settled before the Lord.
During the entire month, consisting of thirty days, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu would visit Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya for five days, Paramānanda Purī Gosvāmī would visit for five days, Svarūpa Dāmodara for four days, and the eight other sannyāsīs for two days each. In this way the thirty days of the month would be filled.
There was a soup made with fried urad dhal and mung dhal, defeating nectar. There were also sweet chutney and five or six kinds of sour preparations, beginning with baḍāmla.
When Nityānanda Prabhu described all the activities of Sākṣi-gopāla, transcendental bliss increased in the minds of all the Vaiṣṇavas.
For these activities refer to Madhya-līlā, Chapter Five, verses 8–138.
His orders read: “In every village you should construct new residences, and in five or seven new houses you should store all kinds of food.
| Page Title: | Five (CC Madhya-lila) |
| Compiler: | Visnu Murti |
| Created: | 11 of Sep, 2010 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=135, OB=0, Lec=0, Con=0, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 135 |