Raghava Pandita's sister Damayanti was the dear maidservant of the Lord

Expressions researched:
"Damayanti" |"Raghava" |"was the dear maidservant of the Lord"

CC Adi-lila

CC Adi 10.25, Translation and Purport:

Rāghava Paṇḍita's sister Damayantī was the dear maidservant of the Lord. She always collected various ingredients with which to cook for Lord Caitanya.

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura writes in his Anubhāṣya, “In the Gaura-gaṇoddeśa-dīpikā (167) it is mentioned, guṇamālā vraje yāsīd damayantī tu tat-svasā: The gopī named Guṇamālā appeared as Rāghava Paṇḍita's sister Damayantī. On the East Bengal railway line beginning from the Sealdah station in Calcutta, there is a station named Sodapura, which is not very far from Calcutta. Within one mile of this station, toward the western side of the Ganges, is a village known as Pānihāṭi, in which the residential quarters of Rāghava Paṇḍita still exist. On Rāghava Paṇḍita's tomb is a creeper on a concrete platform. There is also a Madana-mohana Deity in a broken-down temple nearby. This temple is managed by a local zamindar of the name Śrī Śivacandra Rāya Caudhurī. Makaradhvaja Kara was also an inhabitant of Pānihāṭi.”

CC Adi 10.26, Translation:

The foods Damayantī cooked for Lord Caitanya when He was at Purī were carried in bags by her brother Rāghava without the knowledge of others.

CC Antya-lila

CC Antya 10 Summary:

The following summary of Chapter Ten is given by Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura in his Amṛta-pravāha-bhāṣya. Before the Ratha-yātrā ceremony, all the devotees from Bengal started for Jagannātha Purī as usual. Rāghava Paṇḍita brought with him various kinds of food for Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. The food had been cooked by his sister, Damayantī, who then packed it in bags (jhāli). Thus the stock of food was generally known as rāghavera jhāli, "the bags of Rāghava." Makaradhvaja Kara, an inhabitant of Pānihāṭi who accompanied Rāghava Paṇḍita, was the secretary in charge of accounting for the rāghavera jhāli.

CC Antya 10.13, Translation:

Rāghava Paṇḍita came with bags full of food prepared very nicely by his sister, Damayantī.

CC Antya 10.14, Translation:

Damayantī made varieties of unparalleled food just suitable for Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu to eat. The Lord ate it continually for one year.

CC Antya 10.15-16, Translation:

These are the names of some of the pickles and condiments in the bags of Rāghava Paṇḍita: āmra-kāśandi, ādā-kāśandi, jhāla-kāśandi, nembu-ādā, āmra-koli, āmsi, āma-khaṇḍa, tailāmra and āma-sattā. With great attention, Damayantī also made dried bitter vegetables into a powder.

CC Antya 10.18, Translation:

Since Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He extracts the purpose from everything. He accepted Damayantī’s affection for Him, and therefore He derived great pleasure even from the dried bitter leaves of sukutā and from kāśandi (a sour condiment).

CC Antya 10.19, Translation and Purport:

Because of her natural love for Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Damayantī considered the Lord an ordinary human being. Therefore she thought that He would become sick by overeating and there would be mucus within His abdomen.

Because of pure love, the devotees of Kṛṣṇa in Goloka Vṛndāvana, Vrajabhūmi, loved Kṛṣṇa as an ordinary human being like them. Yet although they considered Kṛṣṇa one of them, their love for Kṛṣṇa knew no bounds. Similarly, because of extreme love, devotees like Rāghava Paṇḍita and his sister, Damayantī, thought of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu as a human being, but their love for Him was boundless. By overeating, an ordinary human being becomes prone to a disease called amla-pitta, which is a product of indigestion characterized by acidity of the stomach. Damayantī thought that such a condition would afflict Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

CC Antya 10.20, Translation:

Because of sincere affection, she thought that eating this sukutā would cure the Lord's disease. Considering these affectionate thoughts of Damayantī, the Lord was very pleased.

CC Antya 10.22, Translation:

Damayantī powdered coriander and anise seeds, cooked them with sugar and made them into sweetmeats in the shape of small balls.

CC Antya 10.33, Translation:

I could not mention the names of all these wonderful eatables, even in a lifetime. Damayantī made hundreds and thousands of varieties.

CC Antya 10.34, Translation:

Damayantī made all these preparations following the order of her brother, Rāghava Paṇḍita. Both of them had unlimited affection for Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and were advanced in devotional service.

CC Antya 10.35, Translation:

Damayantī took earth from the Ganges, dried it, powdered it, strained it through a fine cloth, mixed in aromatic ingredients and rolled it into small balls.

CC Antya 10.37, Translation:

From small bags Damayantī made bags that were twice as large. Then with great attention she filled all the large ones with the small ones.