Leprosy

Expressions researched:
"leper" |"lepers" |"leprosy" |"leprotic"

SB Preface and Introduction

SB Introduction:

After this incident the Lord began to preach and propagate His Bhāgavata-dharma, or saṅkīrtana movement, more vigorously, and whoever stood against this propagation of the yuga-dharma, or duty of the age, was properly punished by various types of chastisement. Two brāhmaṇa gentlemen named Cāpala and Gopāla, who also happened to be maternal uncles of the Lord, were inflicted with leprosy by way of chastisement, and later, when they were repentant, they were accepted by the Lord.

SB Canto 2

SB 2.7.9, Purport:

Mahārāja Vena became a king, undoubtedly due to his past deeds of righteousness, but because he willfully neglected the great souls, he was punished by the loss of all the above-mentioned acquisitions. In the Vāmana Purāṇa the history of Mahārāja Vena and his degradation are fully described. When Mahārāja Pṛthu heard about the hellish condition of his father, Vena, who was suffering from leprosy in the family of a mleccha, he at once brought the former king to Kurukṣetra for his purification and relieved him of all sufferings.

SB Canto 3

SB 3.16.5, Translation:

A wrong act committed by a servant leads people in general to blame his master, just as a spot of white leprosy on any part of the body pollutes all of the skin.

SB Canto 4

SB 4.14.45, Purport:

It is said in the śāstras that the head of the body represents the brāhmaṇas, the arms represent the kṣatriyas, the abdomen represents the vaiśyas, and the legs, beginning with the thighs, represent the śūdras. The śūdras are sometimes called black, or kṛṣṇa. The brāhmaṇas are called śukla, or white, and the kṣatriyas and the vaiśyas are a mixture of black and white. However, those who are extraordinarily white are said to have skin produced out of white leprosy. It may be concluded that white or a golden hue is the color of the higher caste, and black is the complexion of the śūdras.

SB Canto 7

SB 7.1.19, Translation:

Although these two men—Śiśupāla and Dantavakra—repeatedly blasphemed the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Viṣṇu (Kṛṣṇa), the Supreme Brahman, they were quite healthy. Indeed, their tongues were not attacked by white leprosy, nor did they enter the darkest region of hellish life. We are certainly most surprised by this.

SB 7.5.27, Purport:

Murderers of brāhmaṇas are later afflicted by tuberculosis, drunkards become toothless, those who have stolen gold are afflicted by diseased nails, and sinful men who have sexual connections with the wife of a superior are afflicted by leprosy and similar skin diseases.

SB Cantos 10.14 to 12 (Translations Only)

SB 11.23.16, Translation:

Whatever pure fame is possessed by the famous and whatever praiseworthy qualities are found in the virtuous are destroyed by even a small amount of greed, just as one's attractive physical beauty is ruined by a trace of white leprosy.

CC Adi-lila

CC Adi 13.117, Translation and Purport:

She blessed the newborn child by placing fresh grass and paddy on His head and saying, "May You be blessed with a long duration of life." But being afraid of ghosts and witches, she gave the child the name Nimāi.

Ḍākinī and Śāṅkhinī are two companions of Lord Śiva and his wife who are supposed to be extremely inauspicious, having been born of ghostly life. It is believed that such inauspicious living creatures cannot go near a nima tree. At least medically it is accepted that nima wood is extremely antiseptic, and formerly it was customary to have a nima tree in front of one's house. On very large roads in India, especially in Uttar Pradesh, there are hundreds and thousands of nima trees. Nima wood is so antiseptic that the Āyurvedic science uses it to cure leprosy. Medical scientists have extracted the active principle of the nima tree, which is called margosic acid. Nima is used for many purposes, especially to brush the teeth. In Indian villages ninety percent of the people use nima twigs for this purpose. Because of all the antiseptic effects of the nima tree and because Lord Caitanya was born beneath a nima tree, Sītā Ṭhākurāṇī gave the Lord the name Nimāi.

CC Adi 16.70, Translation:

“One's beautiful body may be decorated with jewels, but one spot of white leprosy makes the entire body abominable.

CC Adi 16.71, Translation:

“"As one"s body, although well-decorated with ornaments, is made unfortunate by even one spot of white leprosy, so an entire poem is made useless by a fault, despite alliteration, similes and metaphors.’

CC Adi 17.45, Translation:

After three days, leprosy attacked Gopāla Cāpāla, and blood oozed from sores all over his body.

CC Adi 17.47, Translation:

Since leprosy is an infectious disease, Gopāla Cāpāla left the village to sit down on the bank of the Ganges underneath a tree. One day, however, he saw Caitanya Mahāprabhu passing by and spoke to Him as follows.

CC Adi 17.48, Translation:

“My dear nephew, I am Your maternal uncle in our village relationship. Please see how greatly this attack of leprosy has afflicted me.

CC Adi 17.49, Purport:

It appears that although Gopāla Cāpāla was sinful, talkative and insulting, he nevertheless had the qualification of simplicity. Thus he believed Caitanya Mahāprabhu to be the incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead who had come to deliver all fallen souls, and he appealed for his own deliverance, seeking the mercy of the Lord. He did not know, however, that the deliverance of the fallen does not consist of curing their bodily diseases, although it is also a fact that when a man is delivered from the material clutches his material bodily diseases are automatically cured. Gopāla Cāpāla simply wanted to be delivered from the bodily sufferings of leprosy, but Śrī Caitanya, although accepting his sincere appeal, wanted to inform him of the real cause of suffering.

CC Madhya-lila

CC Madhya 3.99, Purport:

In the Bṛhad-viṣṇu Purāṇa it is stated that one who considers mahā-prasādam to be equal to ordinary rice and dhal certainly commits a great offense. Ordinary edibles are touchable and untouchable, but there are no such dualistic considerations where prasādam is concerned. Prasādam is transcendental, and there are no transformations or contaminations, just as there are no contaminations or transformations in the body of Lord Viṣṇu Himself. Thus even if one is a brāhmaṇa he is certain to be attacked by leprosy and bereft of all family members if he makes such dualistic considerations. Such an offender goes to hell, never to return. This is the injunction of the Bṛhad-viṣṇu Purāṇa.

CC Madhya 7 Summary:

The Lord began chanting the mantra "kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa he." In whatever village He spent the night, whenever a person came to see Him in His shelter, the Lord implored him to preach the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. After teaching the people of one village, the Lord proceeded to other villages to increase devotees. In this way He finally reached Kūrma-sthāna. While there, He bestowed His causeless mercy upon a brāhmaṇa called Kūrma and cured another brāhmaṇa, named Vāsudeva, who was suffering from leprosy. After curing this brāhmaṇa leper, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu received the title Vāsudevāmṛta-prada, meaning "one who delivered nectar to the leper Vāsudeva."

CC Madhya 7.1, Translation:

Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu, being very compassionate toward a brāhmaṇa named Vāsudeva, cured him of leprosy. He transformed him into a beautiful man satisfied with devotional service. I offer my respectful obeisances unto the glorious Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

CC Madhya 7.136, Translation:

There was also a brāhmaṇa named Vāsudeva, who was a great person but was suffering from leprosy. Indeed, his body was filled with living worms.

CC Madhya 7.137, Translation:

Although suffering from leprosy, the brāhmaṇa Vāsudeva was enlightened. As soon as one worm fell from his body, he would pick it up and place it back again in the same location.

CC Madhya 7.139, Translation:

When the leper Vāsudeva came to Kūrma's house to see Caitanya Mahāprabhu, he was informed that the Lord had already left. The leper then fell to the ground unconscious.

CC Madhya 7.140, Translation:

When Vāsudeva, the leper brāhmaṇa, was lamenting due to not being able to see Caitanya Mahāprabhu, the Lord immediately returned to that spot and embraced him.

CC Madhya 7.141, Translation:

When Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu touched him, both the leprosy and his distress went to a distant place. Indeed, Vāsudeva's body became very beautiful, to his great happiness.

CC Madhya 7.148, Purport:

Although Vāsudeva Vipra was a leper and had suffered greatly, still, after Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu cured him He instructed him to preach Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Indeed, the only return the Lord wanted was that Vāsudeva preach the instructions of Kṛṣṇa and liberate all human beings. That is the process of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. Each and every member of this Society was rescued from a very abominable condition, but now they are engaged in preaching the cult of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. They are not only cured of the disease called materialism but are also living a very happy life. Everyone accepts them as great devotees of Kṛṣṇa, and their qualities are manifest in their very faces. If one wants to be recognized as a devotee by Kṛṣṇa, he should take to preaching work, following the advice of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

CC Madhya 7.150, Translation:

Thus I have described how Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu reclaimed the leper Vāsudeva and so received the name Vāsudevāmṛta-prada.

CC Madhya 7.151, Translation:

Thus I end my description of the beginning of the tour of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, His visiting the temple of Kūrma and His liberating the leper brāhmaṇa Vāsudeva.

CC Madhya 17.104, Purport:

Simply by worshiping the form of the Lord, one is purified. However, Māyāvādī sannyāsīs are impersonalist philosophers, and they describe the form of the Lord as māyā, or false. How can one be purified by worshiping something false? Māyāvādī philosophers have no sufficient reason for being impersonalists. They blindly follow a principle that cannot be supported by reason or argument. This was the situation with Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī, the chief Māyāvādī sannyāsī of Benares. He was supposed to teach Vedānta philosophy, but he would not accept the form of the Lord; therefore he was attacked with leprosy. Nonetheless, he continued to commit sins by describing the Absolute Truth as impersonal. The Absolute Truth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, always displays pastimes and activities, but Māyāvādī sannyāsīs claim that these activities are false.

CC Antya-lila

CC Antya 3 Summary:

From Benāpola, Haridāsa Ṭhākura went to the village known as Cāndapura, where he lived at the house of Balarāma Ācārya. Thereafter, Haridāsa Ṭhākura was received by two brothers known as Hiraṇya and Govardhana Majumadāra, but in the course of a discussion he was offended by a caste brāhmaṇa known as Gopāla Cakravartī. Because of this offense, Gopāla Cakravartī was punished by being afflicted with leprosy.

CC Antya 3.209, Translation:

Within three days that brāhmaṇa was attacked by leprosy, and as a result his highly raised nose melted away and fell off.

CC Antya 3.210, Translation:

The brāhmaṇa's toes and fingers were beautiful like golden-colored campaka buds, but because of leprosy they all withered and gradually melted away.

CC Antya 3.213, Purport:

A Vaiṣṇava strictly follows this principle of being humbler than the grass and more tolerant than a tree, expecting no honor from others but offering honor to everyone. In this way, a Vaiṣṇava is simply interested in chanting about the Supreme Personality of Godhead and glorifying Him. Haridāsa Ṭhākura epitomized this foremost order of Vaiṣṇavism.

Kṛṣṇa, however, cannot tolerate any insults or blasphemy against a Vaiṣṇava. For example, Prahlāda Mahārāja was chastised by his father, Hiraṇyakaśipu, in so many ways, but although Prahlāda tolerated this, Kṛṣṇa did not. The Lord therefore came in the form of Nṛsiṁhadeva to kill Hiraṇyakaśipu. Similarly, although Śrīla Haridāsa Ṭhākura tolerated the insult by Gopāla Cakravartī, Kṛṣṇa could not. The Lord immediately punished Gopāla Cakravartī by making him suffer from leprosy.

CC Antya 3.214, Translation:

Haridāsa Ṭhākura was unhappy when he heard that the brāhmaṇa Gopāla Cakravartī had been attacked by leprosy. Thus after informing Balarāma Ācārya, the priest of Hiraṇya Majumadāra, he went to Śāntipura, the home of Advaita Ācārya.

CC Antya 4.189, Translation:

“You embraced the leper Vāsudeva, whose body was fully infected by worms. You are so kind that in spite of his condition You embraced him.

CC Antya 12.37, Purport:

"Anyone who offers respects and obeisances to the Deity while wearing garments on the upper portion of his body is condemned to be a leper for seven births."

CC Antya 20.57, Translation:

“The wife of a brāhmaṇa suffering from leprosy manifested herself as the topmost of all chaste women by serving a prostitute to satisfy her husband. She thus stopped the movement of the sun, brought her dead husband back to life and satisfied the three principal demigods (Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Maheśvara).

CC Antya 20.57, Purport:

The Āditya Purāṇa, Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa and Padma Purāṇa tell about a brāhmaṇa who was suffering from leprosy but had a very chaste and faithful wife. He desired to enjoy the company of a prostitute, and therefore his wife went to her and became her maidservant, just to draw her attention for his service. When the prostitute agreed to associate with him, the wife brought her the leprotic husband. When that leper, the sinful son of a brāhmaṇa, saw the chastity of his wife, he finally abandoned his sinful intentions. While coming home, however, he touched the body of Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi, who thus cursed him to die at sunrise. Because of her chastity, the woman was very powerful. Therefore when she heard about the curse, she vowed to stop the sunrise. Because of her strong determination to serve her husband, the three deities—namely Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Maheśvara—were very happy, and they gave her the benediction that her husband would be cured and brought back to life.

Teachings of Lord Caitanya

Teachings of Lord Caitanya, Chapter Prologue:

The keen understanding of Sārvabhauma saw the truth, beauty and harmony of arguments in the explanations given by Caitanya and obliged him to utter that it was the first time that he had found one who could explain the Brahma-sūtras in such a simple manner. He admitted also that the commentaries of Śaṅkara never gave such natural explanations of the Vedānta-sūtras as he had obtained from Mahāprabhu. He then submitted himself as an advocate and follower. In a few days Sārvabhauma turned out to be one of the best Vaiṣṇavas of the time. When reports of this came out, the whole of Orissa sang the praise of Kṛṣṇa Caitanya, and hundreds and hundreds came to him and became his followers. In the meantime Mahāprabhu thought of visiting Southern India, and he started with one Kṛṣṇadāsa Brāhmaṇa for the journey.

His biographers have given us a detail of the journey. He went first to Kūrmakṣetra, where he performed a miracle by curing a leper named Vāsudeva. He met Rāmānanda Rāya, the Governor of Vidyānagara, on the banks of the Godāvarī and had a philosophical conversation with him on the subject of prema-bhakti. He worked another miracle by touching (making them immediately disappear) the seven tāla trees through which Rāmacandra, the son of Daśaratha, had shot his arrow and killed the great Bali Rāja. He preached Vaiṣṇavism and nāma-saṅkīrtana throughout the journey. At Raṅgakṣetra he stayed for four months in the house of one Veṅkata Bhaṭṭa in order to spend the rainy season. There he converted the whole family of Veṅkata from Rāmānuja Vaiṣṇavism to Kṛṣṇa-bhakti, along with the son of Veṅkata, a boy of ten years named Gopāla, who afterwards came to Vṛndāvana and became one of the six Gosvāmīs or prophets serving under their leader Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 5.5.5 -- Vrndavana, October 27, 1976:

The cats and dogs, big, big professors, they are thinking so long this body is there, by chance, by accident, we have got this body, and as soon as the body is finished, everything is finished. That means they do not know ātma-tattvam. On this misconception of life they are inventing so many "isms."

Just now in the morning we were talking that inventing some means for curing the leprosy. That is good, but why there should be leprosy? That they do not know. Why one man is suffering from leprosy, another man is not suffering? Is there no arrangement? Who is making this arrangement, that one man is suffering from leprosy, another is not suffering, he's quite in good health? So unless there is some arrangement, how it is happening? They do not question. Jijñāsu. That inquisitiveness is absent, dull.

Lecture on SB 7.6.3 -- Vrndavana, December 4, 1975:

So there is a story of the prostitute, Lakṣahīra. There was a prostitute whose charges was one lakh of pieces of diamond. It doesn't matter, a big diamond or small diamond. That was her charges. So one man was suffering from leprosy and he was being assisted, he was being assisted by his wife, very faithful wife. So still, he was morose. The wife asked the husband, "Why you are morose? I am giving you so much service. You are leper, you cannot move. I can take you... I take you on a basket and carry you. Still, you feel unhappy?" So he admitted, "Yes." "Oh, what is the cause?" "Now, I want to go to the prostitute, Lakṣahīra." Just see. He is leper, a poor man, and he is aspiring to go to a prostitute who charges 100,000 of pieces of diamond. So anyway, she was a faithful wife. She wanted to satisfy her husband. Some way or other, she arranged. Then, when the leper was at the house of the prostitute, the prostitute gave him very nice dishes of food but everything in two dishes, everything, one in the golden pot, another in iron pot. So while he was eating, so he inquired the prostitute, "Why you have given me in two pots?" "Now, because I wanted to know whether you will feel different taste in different pots." So he said, "No, I don't find any difference of taste. The soup in the golden pot and the soup in the iron pot, the taste is the same." "Then why you have come here?" This is foolishness. The whole world is going on like that. They are simply trying to taste the same thing in different pot.

Lecture on SB 7.9.8 -- Calcutta, March 5, 1972:

If Kṛṣṇa is truth, His creation is also truth. We employ everything to the service of Kṛṣṇa. Therefore, anyone who is engaged in the service of the Lord is always situated in the transcendental platform. They will never come down. Because it is so sweet, it is so nice, they will never agree. Any student of this institution, if you ask him, if you try to cheat him that you give up this idol worship, come down, go and worship the poor, the leper, and this and that, so many things, they will not. They will not. They will not come down. They will engage themselves always in the service of the Lord.

Lecture on SB 7.9.39 -- Mayapur, March 17, 1976:

The kṛpaṇā bahu-duḥkha-bhājaḥ, they know, "After the sex I'll have to meet so many botherations," either illicit or licit sex. Either you get so many diseases, syphilis and this, and from syphilis so many other disease, up to madness, up to leprosy, one disease after one disease, one disease. This sex... The sex syphilitic disease is called in India by the Ayurvedic physician as phairāṅga-roga. It has come from the Western country. I do not wish to discuss, but the point is that illicit sex has many, many aftereffects who is not very nice. And even it is legal sex, there is also botheration. If there is no botheration, why they are killing their own child? There is botheration. Sex life is botheration. Therefore it should be controlled, undoubtedly.

1969 Conversations and Morning Walks

Lord Caitanya Play Told to Tamala Krsna -- August 4, 1969, Los Angeles:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: There's a scene about Lord Caitanya embracing the leper Vasudeva.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Is that a nice scene to perform?

Prabhupāda: Yes. While He was traveling in South India, in a village that leper Vasudeva, he was coming to see Caitanya from a very distant place. And then when he came to see Him, Caitanya Mahāprabhu had already left. So he was so sorry and crying. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu came back and embraced him and he was cured. These are some of the miracles.

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- March 6, 1974, Mayapura:

Devotee: ...proof that the cause of cancer is beef-eating.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Devotee: I have...

Prabhupāda: Leprosy. Leprosy is also due to beef-eating.

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Meeting with Endowments Commissioner -- August 24, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: Everyone has got Kṛṣṇa bhakti eternally. It is not artificial. They have not become Kṛṣṇa bhakta artificially. It is the eternal link that has been awakened.

Minister: There's no doubt of that, Swamiji. Let us say there are hundred leprosy patients. There are one thousand orphans. We put them there, give them food, and make them pray to Kṛṣṇa...

Prabhupāda: Well, you are... They are mistaken. But if you have to awaken Kṛṣṇa bhakti, why you go to the lepers?

Minister: No, they have come here. They are all there in the temple. They are not allowing others to pray properly. They are all, one thousand... In the past...

Prabhupāda: We have no objection, because our principle is kṛṣṇa-bhakti nitya-siddha. So Kṛṣṇa bhakti is there in everyone. So leper and non-leper.

Meeting with Endowments Commissioner -- August 24, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: If you have got so broad vision that Nārāyaṇa is everywhere, therefore we see everyone, so why you particularly take the daridra-nārāyaṇa? Similarly, Kṛṣṇa bhakti is everywhere. It is in the leper or non-leper. So why should we take particularly the lepers? So that is outwardly a social service that they are taking care of the leper. So if that vision it will not be right. Kṛṣṇa bhakti even requires, even a karmī like big, big owner of factories, he's more diseased than the leper. Because he has no Kṛṣṇa bhakti. So we have to take care of the leper and the richest man also if he has no Kṛṣṇa bhakti.

Minister: That also. That also.

Prabhupāda: No, therefore we should not make any distinction that only the lepers will be taken care of.

Minister: (Hindi) a rich man or somebody comes, prays...

Prabhupāda: Everyone is more than leper.

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- January 31, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Prabhupāda: The Einstein, he gave so many improvement of life, but he is dying. He's tasting the same bitterness as a dog is tasting. Therefore we do not give any position better than the dog. Why you are dying? Why you cannot change this taste? Stop this. Then you are scientist.

Hari-śauri: He died in a leper colony, didn't he?

Prabhupāda: Whatever it may be, he died.

Hari-śauri: He went to help some lepers. He went to do some work in the leper colony at the end of his life, trying to save them.

Prabhupāda: That is another imagination, as if by leper colony he'll stop his death. It is not possible. The real solution, real problem, is this, that "Why you are dying?" Stop this.

1968 Correspondence

Letter to Aniruddha -- San Francisco 9 April, 1968:

Milk and salt should never be mixed, it is improper, and will cause leprosy. But salt can be mixed with yogurt.