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Chapter Summary -
Chaitanya-bhagavata - Adi-khanda Ch.
13
Brief Summary: All glories to the emperor of the brahmanas and the crest jewel among all teachers. All glories to the society of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's devotees; The Lord of Vaikuntha, Nimai, was immersed in the mellow of an insolent and arrogant scholar; Their sport was debate and in their intolerant and impatient ways they did whatever was required to win an argument. Even if a well-respected superior scholar made valuable points, others would disagree with him; Lord Nimai's habit was to constantly rebuke the other scholars and refute their arguments right in front of them. There was no teacher in Nabadwip who could confront the Lord's arguments and offer a second opinion; Yet His illusionary energy prevented anyone from knowing Him in truth; This chapter pretty much concentrates solely on the episode between Nimai Pandita and the famous scholar holding the title Digvijaya; By the brahmana's desire and fortune he received benediction from her (Mother Sarasvati) to become a Digvijaya scholar. All the scriptures were on the tip of his tongue. No one in this world could challenge him. Many could not even follow his introduction to the main dissertations, so he went unchecked and unchallenged everywhere; Nabadwip bustled with excitement as time for the trial of intellectual strength drew near; After offering his obeisances to the Ganga, the Digvijaya moved a little closer to the Lord. On noticing him, Nimai smiled at him and affectionately offered him a seat. Having already conquered all the scholars in the land, the Digvijaya Pandita was naturally fearless, yet in the presence of the Lord he was filled with awe. By the design of the omnipotent Supreme Lord, whoever approaches Him in a challenging mood will feel both awe and fear; Upon the Lord's request the Digvijaya spent over an hours using poetry to glorify the River Ganges, but upon inspection the Lord point out three areas of fault, eventually rendering the Digvijaya's facilities to zero; While the Digvijaya Pandita was struggling to swallow his ignominious defeat, the students began laughing and giggling excitedly. The Lord immediately stopped them and spoke soft, soothing words to the Pandita, "Today let us stop here. Please return to your home and tomorrow we can continue our discussion. You must be tired after composing such a lengthy recitation. It is also very late now; soon it will be time to sleep;" In his dream Mother Sarasvati looked compassionately upon the brahmana and spoke confidentially to him. "O learned brahmana, listen to me. I will now reveal to you that knowledge which is undisclosed even in the Vedas. If for any reason you reveal this secret to anyone, you will immediately forfeit your body. The person who defeated you today is actually the Supreme Lord of the entire cosmic manifestation. I am an eternal servant at His lotus feet, and out of shyness I hesitate to stand before Him; To become the greatest of all the scholars of the world is not the real result of chanting the mantra I gave you. You have received the factual result; you were able to see in person the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Lord of the entire cosmic creation; "O brahmana, go quickly to him and take shelter of His lotus feet. Surrender yourself completely to Him. Do not imagine my advice to be a dream or hallucination. The power behind the mantra you chant has brought me here and forced me to reveal the most esoteric knowledge of the Vedas." Sri
Gaura Sundara replied, "O learned brahmana, you are very fortunate because
Mother Sarasvati resides Within moments the
brahmana's arrogance and vanity diminished and he grew as humble and meek
as a blade of grass. He
renounced everything - his elephants, horses, palanquins, money and the
undesirable associates he has The hundreds of Bhattacarya scholars residing in Nabadwip were distraught with anxiety and abandoned all activities; Nabadwip bustled with excitement as time for the trial of intellectual strength drew near. He entered Nabadwip in a great procession of horses, elephants, palanquins and men; To become the greatest of all the scholars of the world is not the real result of chanting the mantra I gave you. You have received the factual result; you were able to see in person the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Lord of the entire cosmic creation (Mother Sarasvati to Digvijaya); The Supreme Lord does not tolerate anyone Who indulges in continual insolence. Whenever He finds someone burdened by arrogance over some personal quality, He invariably removes the cause of their pride. A fruit-laden tree and a person endowed with good qualities will inevitably bend down in humility; You defeated me three times, yet You kept my honor intact. Is such behavior possible for anyone other than the Supreme Lord? I am convinced that You are that Supreme Personality of Godhead. I have traveled far and wide - Bengal, Trihatta, Kasi, Gujarat, Vijaya Nagara, Anga, Banga, Tailanga, Udra and many other places. The most qualified scholars in each place were defeated by me. They could not even understand my discourses, let alone find fault with them. But in your presence all my education and intellect seemed to flee - I know not where. I now realize that this was not an extraordinary feat for you, because you are the Lord and master of Mother Sarasvati. She personally revealed this to me;
1. In regards to the brahmana race, what object is Lord Chaitanya referred to as? A- The emperor 2. What was the common practice of Nimai Pandita when confronted with the scholars of Nabadwip? A- He would arrange for a formal debate with them. 3. What is the meaning of the title, Digvijaya? A- One who has conquered scholars in all
directions 5. At the time, what was Nabadwip famous for? A- Being situated on the banks of the Ganges. 6. What is the potential inspiration that can manifest if one turns to the Supreme Personality of Godhead? A- Devotional Service 7. How can one come to understand and know the Lord's true identity? A- By studying the Vedas 8. Nimai praised the Digvijaya for ability of his? A- The Digvijaya's great memory. 9. Where did Nimai, the Lord of Vaikuntha, find fault in the Digvijaya's statements. A- The very last verse. 10. What was Nimai's mercy upon the Digvijaya? A- He made it appear to all that the Digvijaya had
actually won the debate. 11. What was Srila Rupa Goswami's name before meeting Lord Chaitanya? A- Ghaazi Analogies: All glories to Lord GauraChandra, the brightest lamp in the brahmana race; Listen brothers, and I will tell you the actual situation. The Supreme Lord does not tolerate anyone Who indulges in continual insolence. Whenever He finds someone burdened by arrogance over some personal quality, He invariably removes the cause of their pride. A fruit-laden tree and a person endowed with good qualities will inevitably bend down in humility; Devotee Mentioned: Srila Rupa Gosvami - who was also known as Dabir Khas Flowery
Language: A sweet smile decorated the glowing moon-like face of
the Lord, and His two beautiful eyes Blessings:
Misc. Facts: That mercy
(from Lord Chaitanya) could make a king leave his palace and take up a beggar's bowl.
The remarkable example
of this was Srila Rupa Gosvami who was also known as Dabir Khas. He left
his kingly position and
lived in the forests of Vrndavana. A servant of Krishna can ignore the
material wealth, position and Words:
Answers: 1-C; 2-C; 3-A; 4-B; 5-D; 6-C; 7-D; 8-D; 9-B&D; 10-C&D; 11-C; |