Sri Jayadeva Goswami Tirobhava tithi [disappearance day]
Wednesday, February 3, 2021 [Mayapura, West Bengal, Bharata Bhumi time]
compiled by Yasoda nandana dasa
As described by the Vaiṣṇava poet Jayadeva Gosvāmī,
pralaya-payodhi jale dhṛtavān asi vedam
This verse gives an idea of the highest perfection of the evolutionary process. As described by the Vaiṣṇava poet Jayadeva Gosvāmī, pralaya-payodhi jale dhṛtavān asi vedam **. Let us begin tracing the evolutionary process from the point of devastation (pralaya), when the whole universe is filled with water. At that time there are many fishes and other aquatics, and from these aquatics evolve creepers, trees, etc. From these, insects and reptiles evolve, and from them birds, beasts and then human beings and finally civilized human beings. Now, the civilized human being is at a junction where he can make further evolutionary progress in spiritual life. Here it is stated (sva-dharma-niṣṭhaḥ) that when a living entity comes to a civilized form of life, there must be sva-dharma, social divisions according to one’s work and qualifications Books : Srimad-Bhagavatam : Canto 4: “The Creation of the Fourth Order” : SB 4.24: Chanting the Song Sung by Lord Siva : SB 4.24.29 : PURPORT :
Jayadeva Gosvāmī therefore sings: sadaya-hṛdaya-darśita-paśu-ghātam
The devotees are pained to see the hunting and killing of animals in the forest, the wholesale slaughter of animals in the slaughterhouses, and the exploitation of young girls in brothels that function under different names as clubs and societies. Being very much compassionate upon the killing of animals in sacrifice, the great sage Nārada began his instructions to King Prācīnabarhiṣat. In these instructions, Nārada Muni explained that devotees like him are very much afflicted by all the killing that goes on in human society. Not only are saintly persons afflicted by this killing, but even God Himself is afflicted and therefore comes down in the incarnation of Lord Buddha. Jayadeva Gosvāmī therefore sings: sadaya-hṛdaya-darśita-paśu-ghātam. Simply to stop the killing of animals, Lord Buddha compassionately appeared. Some rascals put forward the theory that an animal has no soul or is something like dead stone. In this way they rationalize that there is no sin in animal-killing. Actually, animals are not dead stone, but the killers of animals are stonehearted. Consequently, no reason or philosophy appeals to them. They continue keeping slaughterhouses and killing animals in the forest. The conclusion is that one who does not care for the instructions of saintly persons like Nārada and his disciplic succession surely falls into the category of naṣṭa-prajña and thus goes to hell. Books : Srimad-Bhagavatam : Canto 4: “The Creation of the Fourth Order” : SB 4.26: King Puranjana Goes to the Forest to Hunt, and His Queen Becomes Angry : SB 4.26.9 : PURPORT :
These incarnations are described in Vedic literature, and Jayadeva Gosvāmī
has described ten important incarnations in summary
Svāyambhuva Manu is the leader of mankind, and he has given a book called Manu-saṁhitā to guide human society. Herein he directs us to follow the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His different incarnations. These incarnations are described in Vedic literature, and Jayadeva Gosvāmī has described ten important incarnations in summary (keśava dhṛta-mīna-śarīra jaya jagad-īśa hare, keśava dhṛta-nara-hari-rūpa jaya jagad-īśa hare, keśava dhṛta-buddha-śarīra jaya jagad-īśa hare, etc.). Svāyambhuva Manu instructs us to follow the instructions of God’s incarnations, especially Kṛṣṇa’s instructions of Bhagavad-gītā As It Is. Books : Srimad-Bhagavatam : Canto 8: “Withdrawal of the Cosmic Creations” : SB 8.1: The Manus, Administrators of the Universe : SB 8.1.16 : PURPORT :
In this verse from the Gīta–govinda (3.1), Jayadeva Gosvāmī describes Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s leaving the rāsa–līlā to search for Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī
kaṁsārir api saṁsāra-
vāsanā-baddha-śṛṅkhalām
rādhām ādhāya hṛdaye
tatyāja vraja-sundarīḥ
SYNONYMS
kaṁsa–ariḥ—Lord Kṛṣṇa, the enemy of Kaṁsa; api—moreover; saṁsāra—for the essence of enjoyment (rāsa–līlā); vāsanā—by the desire; baddha—tied on; śṛṅkhalām—who was like the chains; rādhām—Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī; ādhāya—taking; hṛdaye—in the heart; tatyāja—left aside; vraja–sundarīḥ—the other gopīs.
TRANSLATION
“Lord Kṛṣṇa, the enemy of Kaṁsa, left aside the other gopīs during the rāsa dance and took Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī to His heart, for She is the helper of the Lord in realizing the essence of His desires.”
PURPORT
In this verse from the Gīta–govinda (3.1), Jayadeva Gosvāmī describes Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s leaving the rāsa–līlā to search for Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī. https://prabhupadabooks.com/cc/adi/4/219
viśveṣām anurañjanena janayann ānandam indīvara-
śreṇī-śyāmala-komalair upanayann aṅgair anaṅgotsavam
svacchandaṁ vraja-sundarībhir abhitaḥ praty-aṅgam āliṅgitaḥ
śṛṅgāraḥ sakhi mūrtimān iva madhau mugdho hariḥ krīḍati
SYNONYMS
viśveṣām—of all the gopīs; anurañjanena—by the act of pleasing; janayan—producing; ānandam—the bliss; indīvara–śreṇī—like a row of blue lotuses; śyāmala—bluish black; komalaiḥ—and soft; upanayan—bringing; aṅgaiḥ—with His limbs; anaṅga–utsavam—a festival for Cupid; svacchandam—without restriction; vraja–sundarībhiḥ—by the young women of Vraja; abhitaḥ—on both sides; prati–aṅgam—each limb; āliṅgitaḥ—embraced; śṛṅgāraḥ—amorous love; śakhi—O friend; mūrtimān—embodied; iva—like; madhau—in the springtime; mugdhaḥ—perplexed; hariḥ—Lord Hari; krīḍati—plays.
TRANSLATION
“My dear friends, just see how Śrī Kṛṣṇa is enjoying the season of spring! With the gopīs embracing each of His limbs, He is like amorous love personified. With His transcendental pastimes, He enlivens all the gopīs and the entire creation. With His soft bluish-black arms and legs, which resemble blue lotus flowers, He has created a festival for Cupid.
PURPORT
This is a verse from Jayadeva Gosvāmī’s Gīta–govinda (1.11). https://prabhupadabooks.com/cc/adi/4/224
Jayadeva was born during the reign of Mahārāja Lakṣmaṇa Sena of Bengal
in the eleventh or twelfth century of the Śaka Era
vidyāpati, jayadeva, caṇḍīdāsera gīta
āsvādena rāmānanda-svarūpa-sahita
SYNONYMS
vidyāpati—the author of the name Vidyāpati; jayadeva—of the name Jayadeva; caṇḍīdāsera—of the name Caṇḍīdāsa; gīta—their songs; āsvādena—tastes; rāmānanda—of the name Rāmānanda; svarūpa—of the name Svarūpa; sahita—along with.
TRANSLATION
The Lord used to read the books of Vidyāpati, Jayadeva and Caṇḍīdāsa, relishing their songs with His confidential associates like Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya and Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī.
PURPORT
Vidyāpati was a famous composer of songs about the pastimes of Rādhā–Kṛṣṇa. He was an inhabitant of Mithilā, born in a brāhmaṇa family. It is calculated that he composed his songs during the reign of King Śivasiṁha and Queen Lachimādevī in the beginning of the fourteenth century of the Śaka Era, almost one hundred years before the appearance of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu. The twelfth generation of Vidyāpati’s descendants is still living. Vidyāpati’s songs about the pastimes of Lord Kṛṣṇa express intense feelings of separation from Kṛṣṇa, and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu relished all those songs in His ecstasy of separation from Kṛṣṇa.
Jayadeva was born during the reign of Mahārāja Lakṣmaṇa Sena of Bengal in the eleventh or twelfth century of the Śaka Era. His father was Bhojadeva, and his mother was Vāmādevī. For many years he lived in Navadvīpa, then the capital of Bengal. His birthplace was in the Birbhum district in the village Kendubilva. In the opinion of some authorities, however, he was born in Orissa, and still others say that he was born in southern India. He passed the last days of his life in Jagannātha Purī. One of his famous books is Gīta–govinda, which is full of transcendental mellow feelings of separation from Kṛṣṇa. The gopīs felt separation from Kṛṣṇa before the rāsa dance, as mentioned in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, and the Gīta–govinda expresses such feelings. There are many commentaries on the Gīta–govinda by many Vaiṣṇavas.
Caṇḍīdāsa was born in the village of Nānnura, which is also in the Birbhum district of Bengal. He was born of a brāhmaṇa family, and it is said that he also took birth in the beginning of the fourteenth century, Śakābda Era. It has been suggested that Caṇḍīdāsa and Vidyāpati were great friends because the writings of both express the transcendental feelings of separation profusely. The feelings of ecstasy described by Caṇḍīdāsa and Vidyāpati were actually exhibited by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. He relished all those feelings in the role of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, and His appropriate associates for this purpose were Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya and Śrī Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī. These intimate associates of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu helped the Lord very much in the pastimes in which He felt like Rādhārāṇī.
Śrī Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura comments in this connection that such feelings of separation as Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu enjoyed from the books of Vidyāpati, Caṇḍīdāsa and Jayadeva are especially reserved for persons like Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya and Svarūpa Dāmodara, who were paramahaṁsas, men of the topmost perfection, because of their advanced spiritual consciousness. Such topics are not to be discussed by ordinary persons imitating the activities of Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu. For critical students of mundane poetry and literary men without God consciousness who are after bodily sense gratification, there is no need to read such a high standard of transcendental literature. Persons who are after sense gratification should not try to imitate rāgānuga devotional service. In their songs, Caṇḍīdāsa, Vidyāpati and Jayadeva have described the transcendental activities of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Mundane reviewers of the songs of Vidyāpati, Jayadeva and Caṇḍīdāsa simply help people in general become debauchees, and this leads only to social scandals and atheism in the world. One should not misunderstand the pastimes of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa to be the activities of a mundane young boy and girl. The mundane sexual activities of young boys and girls are most abominable. Therefore, those who are in bodily consciousness and who desire sense gratification are forbidden to indulge in discussions of the transcendental pastimes of Śrī Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa. https://prabhupadabooks.com/cc/adi/13/42
doṣa-guṇa-vicāra–ei alpa kari’ māni
kavitva-karaṇe śakti, tāṅhā se vākhāni
SYNONYMS
doṣa–guṇa–vicāra—therefore to criticize one’s poetry as good or bad; ei—this; alpa—negligible; kari‘-making; māni—I consider; kavitva—poetic ingenuity; karaṇe—in performing; śakti—power; tāṅhā—that; se—we; vākhāni—describe.
TRANSLATION
“Such mistakes should be considered negligible. One should see only how such poets have displayed their poetic power.
PURPORT
In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.5.11) it is said:
tad-vāg-visargo janatāgha-viplavo
yasmin prati-ślokam abaddhavaty api
nāmany anantasya yaśo ‘ṅkitāni yat
śṛṇvanti gāyanti gṛṇanti sādhavaḥ
“In explaining the glories of the Lord, inexperienced men may compose poetry with many faults, but because it contains glorification of the Lord, great personalities read it, hear it and chant it.” Despite its minute literary discrepancies, one must study poetry on the merit of its subject matter. According to Vaiṣṇava philosophy, any literature that glorifies the Lord, whether properly written or not, is first class. There need be no other considerations. The poetic compositions of Bhavabhūti, or Śrīkaṇṭha, include Mālatī–mādhava, Uttara–carita, Vīra–carita and many other similar Sanskrit dramas. This great poet was born during the time of Bhojarāja as the son of Nīlakaṇṭha, a brāhmaṇa. Kālidāsa flourished during the time of Mahārāja Vikramāditya, and he became the state poet. He composed some thirty or forty Sanskrit dramas, including Kumāra–sambhava, Abhijñāna-śakuntala and Megha–dūta. His drama Raghu–vaṁśa is especially famous. We have already described Jayadeva in Chapter Thirteen of this Ādi-līlā. Sri Caitanya-caritamrta – 1975 Edition : Cc. Adi-lila : Adi 16: The Pastimes of the Lord in His Childhood and Youth : Adi 16.102 :
The incident is also described in the prayer of Jayadeva Gosvāmī
concerning the ten incarnations:
jala pāna kariyā nāce hañā vihvala
yamunākarṣaṇa-līlā dekhaye sakala
SYNONYMS
jala—water; pānakariyā—after drinking; nāce—dances; hañā—becoming; vihvala—ecstatic; yamunā–ākarṣaṇa—attracting the river Yamunā; līlā—pastimes; dekhaye—sees; sakala—everyone.
TRANSLATION
After drinking the water, Lord Caitanya became so ecstatic that He began to dance. Thus everyone saw the pastime of attracting the river Yamunā.
PURPORT
Yamunākarṣaṇa-līlā is the pastime of attracting Yamunā. One day, Śrī Baladeva wanted the Yamunā River to come before Him, and when the river Yamunā refused, He took His plow, wanting to dig a canal so that Yamunā would be obliged to come there. Since Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is the original form of Baladeva, in His ecstasy He asked everyone to bring honey. In this way, all the devotees standing there saw the yamunākarṣaṇa-līlā. In this līlā, Baladeva was accompanied by His girlfriends. After drinking a honey beverage called Vāruṇī, He wanted to jump into the Yamunā and swim with the girls. It is stated in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.65.25-30, 33) that Lord Baladeva asked Yamunā to come near, and when the river disobeyed the, order of the Lord, He became angry and thus wanted to snatch her near to Him with His plow. Yamunā, however, very much afraid of Lord Balarāma’s anger, immediately came and surrendered unto Him, praying to the Lord, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and admitting her fault. She was then excused. This is the sum and substance of the yamunākarṣaṇa-līlā. The incident is also described in the prayer of Jayadeva Gosvāmī concerning the ten incarnations:
vahasi vapuṣi viśade vasanaṁ jaladābhaṁ
halahati-bhīti-milita-yamunābham
keśava dhṛta-haladhara-rūpa jaya jagad-īśa hare
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta – 1975 Edition : Cc. Adi-lila : Adi 17: The Pastimes of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu in His Youth : Adi 17.117
These two verses are from the Gīta–govinda (3.1, 2), written by Jayadeva Gosvāmī
itas tatas tām anusṛtya rādhikām
anaṅga-bāṇa-vraṇa-khinna-mānasaḥ
kṛtānutāpaḥ sa kalinda-nandinī
taṭānta-kuñje viṣasāda mādhavaḥ
SYNONYMS
itaḥtataḥ—hither and thither; tām—Her; anusṛtya—searching out; rādhikām—Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī; anaṅga—of Cupid; bāṇa–vraṇa—by a wound from the arrow; khinna–mānasaḥ—whose heart is injured; kṛta–anutāpaḥ—repentant for misbehavior; saḥ—He (Lord Kṛṣṇa); kalinda–nandinī—of the river Yamunā; taṭa–anta—on the edge of the bank; kuñje—in the bushes; viṣasāda—lamented; mādhavaḥ—Lord Kṛṣṇa.
TRANSLATION
“Being afflicted by the arrow of Cupid and unhappily regretting His mistreating Rādhārāṇī, Mādhava, Lord Kṛṣṇa, began to search for Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī along the banks of the Yamunā River. When He failed to find Her, He entered the bushes of Vṛndāvana and began to lament.’
PURPORT
These two verses are from the Gīta–govinda (3.1, 2), written by Jayadeva Gosvāmī. Sri Caitanya-caritamrta – 1975 Edition : Cc. Madhya-lila : Madhya 8: Talks Between Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Ramananda Raya : Madhya 8.107
Śrī SvarūpaDāmodara used to read the poems of Vidyāpati and Caṇḍīdāsa and Jayadeva Gosvāmī’s Śrī Gīta–govinda
vidyāpati, caṇḍīdāsa, śrī-gīta-govinda
ei tina gīte karā’na prabhura ānanda
SYNONYMS
vidyāpati—an old Vaiṣṇava poet from the province of Mithilā; caṇḍīdāsa—a Bengali Vaiṣṇava poet born in the village of Nānnura, in the Birbhum district; śrī–gīta–govinda—a celebrated poem by Jayadeva Gosvāmī; ei—these; tina—three; gīte—songs; karā’na—cause; prabhura—of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu; ānanda—happiness.
TRANSLATION
Śrī SvarūpaDāmodara used to read the poems of Vidyāpati and Caṇḍīdāsa and Jayadeva Gosvāmī’s Śrī Gīta–govinda. He used to make Śrī CaitanyaMahāprabhu very happy by singing these songs. Sri Caitanya-caritamrta – 1975 Edition : Cc. Madhya-lila : Madhya 10: The Lord’s Return to Jagannatha Puri : Madhya 10.115 :
The Lord especially liked to hear Bilvamaṅgala Ṭhākura’s Kṛṣṇa–karṇāmṛta,
the poetry of Vidyāpati and Śrī Gīta–govinda by Jayadeva Gosvāmī
karṇāmṛta, vidyāpati, śrī-gīta-govinda
ihāra śloka-gīte prabhura karāya ānanda
SYNONYMS
karṇāmṛta—the book Kṛṣṇa–karṇāmṛta; vidyāpati—the author Vidyāpati; śri–gīta–govinda—the book Śrī Gīta–govinda by Jayadeva Gosvāmī; ihāra—of these; śloka–gīte—verses and songs; prabhura—for Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu; karāya—create; ānanda—happiness.
TRANSLATION
The Lord especially liked to hear Bilvamaṅgala Ṭhākura’s Kṛṣṇa–karṇāmṛta, the poetry of Vidyāpati and Śrī Gīta–govinda by Jayadeva Gosvāmī. Śrī CaitanyaMahāprabhu felt great pleasure in His heart when His associates chanted verses from these books
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta – 1975 Edition : Cc. Antya-lila : Antya 15: The Transcendental Madness of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu : Antya 15.27
RāmānandaRāya would quote verses from the books of Vidyāpati and Caṇḍīdāsa,
and especially from the Gīta–govinda by Jayadeva Gosvāmī
vidyāpati, caṇḍīdāsa, śrī-gīta-govinda
bhāvānurūpa śloka paḍena rāya-rāmānanda
SYNONYMS
vidyāpati—the author Vidyāpati; caṇḍīdāsa—the author Caṇḍīdāsa; śrī–gīta–govinda—the famous book by Jayadeva Gosvāmī; bhāva–anurūpa—according to the ecstatic emotion; śloka—verses; paḍena—recites; rāya–rāmānanda—Rāmānanda Rāya.
TRANSLATION
RāmānandaRāya would quote verses from the books of Vidyāpati and Caṇḍīdāsa, and especially from the Gīta–govinda by Jayadeva Gosvāmī, to complement the ecstasy of Śrī CaitanyaMahāprabhu. Sri Caitanya-caritamrta – 1975 Edition : Cc. Antya-lila : Antya 17: The Bodily Transformations of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu : Antya 17.6
Sometimes He recited verses from Jayadeva Gosvāmī’s Gīta–govinda
The following summary study of the Twentieth Chapter is given by Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura in his Amṛta–pravāha–bhāṣya. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu passed His nights tasting the meaning of Śikṣāṣṭaka in the company of Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī and Rāmānanda Rāya. Sometimes He recited verses from Jayadeva Gosvāmī’s Gīta–govinda, from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, from Śrī Rāmānanda Rāya’s jagannātha–vallabha–nāṭaka or from Śrī Bilvamaṅgala Ṭhākura’s Kṛṣṇa–karṇāmṛta. In this way, He became absorbed in ecstatic emotions. For the twelve years Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu lived at Jagannātha Purī, He relished the taste of reciting such transcendental verses. The Lord was present in this mortal world for forty-eight years altogether. After hinting about the Lord’s disappearance, the author of Caitanya–caritāmṛta gives a short description of the entire Antya–līlā and then ends his bookSri Caitanya-caritamrta – 1975 Edition : Cc. Antya-lila : Antya 20: The Siksastaka Prayers
Jayadeva Gosvāmī, in his Gīta–govinda, has sung as follows: “The Lord has saved the Vedas in His form as a fish, and He has borne the whole universe on His back in the form of a tortoise. He has picked up this earthly planet from the water in the form of a boar. He has killed Hiraṇyakaśipu in the form of Nṛsiṁha. He has cheated Mahārāj Bali in the form of Vāmana. He has annihilated all the dynasties of the kṣatriyas in the form of Paraśurāma. He has killed all the demons in the form of Lord Rāma. He has accepted the great plow in the form of Balarāma. He has annihilated all the atheistic persons in the form of Kalki. And He has saved all the poor animals in the form of Lord Buddha.”* These are some of the descriptions of the incarnations emanating from Kṛṣṇa, and from the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is understood that innumerable incarnations are always coming out from the body of Kṛṣṇa, just like waves in the ocean. No one can even count how many waves there are, and similarly no one can count how many incarnations are coming from the Lord’s body. The Nectar of Devotion – 1970 Edition: NoD 22: Qualities of Krsna Further Explained: 58. The Original Source of All Incarnations:
This literature, that is (indistinct), that should be kept in reserve
for persons who are already liberated
Dr. Sukla: Have the writings of Vidyāpati come to attention, and if they have…
Srila Prabhupāda: That is very higher, not for ordinary persons. Vidyāpati’s writing is meant for realized souls, not ordinary. Ordinary, they will take as love affairs between girls and boys. Therefore, it is not for them. Those who are already advanced, liberated, then these love affairs of Kṛṣṇa and Rādhā, they will be discussed.
Dr. Sukla: Is there any plan of bringing those things out, publishing them, his poems and translations?
Srila Prabhupāda: It is not for ordinary. Cāṇḍīdāsa, Vidyāpati. Caitanya Mahāprabhu used to discuss Jayadeva’s books, Vidyāpati’s books, very confidentially amongst a few devotees. Not publicly.
Dr. Sukla: So, you think they might be misused.
Srila Prabhupāda: Yes, they are being misused. They take Kṛṣṇa as debauch. They do not understand. Therefore, the Kṛṣṇa’s līlā with the gopīs, they are described in the Tenth Canto. That is also middle of Tenth Canto, and nine cantos required to understand Kṛṣṇa, beginning with janmādy asya yataḥ [SB 1.1.1]. So that is the Absolute Truth. These things should be discussed in the beginning. Then when one is fully convinced that Kṛṣṇa has nothing to do with this material world, as Śaṅkarācārya said, nārāyaṇaḥ para avyaktāt, avyaktāt anna sambhava. This material world is a production… [break] It has to be purified. Sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁ tat–paratvena nirmalam [Cc. Madhya 19.170]. When it is nirmalam, then it is first-class. The first process is nirmalam. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ smaraṇaṁ pāda–sevanam, arcanaṁ vandanaṁ dāsyam [SB 7.5.23]. This process is first-class. Not all of a sudden jump over. This literature, that is (indistinct), that should be kept in reserve for persons who are already liberated. Otherwise it will be misunderstood. Conversations : 1976 Conversations : July, 1976 : Conversation with Prof. Saligram and Dr. Sukla — July 5, 1976, Washington, D.C.