Chapter Summary - Chaitanya-bhagavata - Adi Lila Ch. 12
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Brief Summary:  This Chapter concentrates completely on Nimai Pandita, the consummate scholar of Nabadwip.  Nimai was fully engaged in performing His transcendental pastimes as a scholar in Nabadwip. Always with a book in hand, He went about Nabadwip challenging all the scholars and teachers to debate on
practically any subject matter, but no one could meet His challenge. The Lord was supposed to have studied only grammar. Yet He regarded acclaimed and titled scholars with disdain; Several new names are added to, Devotees Mentioned;  Nimai Pandita meets Gadadhara Pandita who agrees to the Nimai's challenge. The Lord asks, Tell me the symptoms of liberation; Gadadhara could only think of escaping Nimai's association; Everyone now recognized Nimai as an erudite scholar; The only thing that disheartens me is that He does not worship Lord Krishna; The Vaishnavas often prayed for Nimai's welfare, especially that He become attached to Lord Krishna; The Lord affectionately replied, "I am truly very fortunate that all of you are so intent about teaching Me the path of devotional service to Krishna. Within My heart I know that whoever receives your blessings is most fortunate; The citizens of Nabadwip were equally happy to meet Sri Gaura Chandra and whenever they saw him they offered respect; After holding class for several hours, Gaurasundara and his students would break at midday for their bath in the Ganga. After that the Lord would return home for His daily worship of Lord Vishnu. He offered water to Tulasi Devi, circumambulated her, and then sat down to eat his meal while chanting the name of Lord Hari;

Laksmi Devi served the prasada to her Lord while mother Saci looked on, drinking in the Lord's beauty to her full satisfaction. After eating the Lord chewed some betel leaf and lay down while Laksmi massaged His lotus feet. For a while He would rest in a transcendental sleep, and upon rising He would again take his books in His hand and leave the house. Out in the street, Gaurasundara gave and received great pleasure in talking with anyone He met.

Each of the townspeople saw the Lord according to his own mentality. With His disciples the Lord would walk wherever He desired, visiting the weaver, milkman, perfumer, florist, pan dealer, conch-shell dealer, and astrologer - with emphasis given by the author on the milkman and astrologer. The milkmen brought milk, clarified butter, yogurt, cream and curd and offered it to the Lord.

This chapter covers a variety of areas from the pastimes of Nimai Pandita. In the Most Memorable section five more important summaries are mentioned; pastimes with Sridhara, Nimai's air disorder, supernatural things Mother Saci witnessed, the zenith of all the Lord's activities, and wonderful prayers and thoughts by the author.

Most Memorable:   1) The Lord's dealings with Sri Sridhara are especially nice along with the author's brief descriptions of various supernatural occurrences witnessed by Mother Saci.  2)  People continued to try to cure the Lord by applying a variety of oils over His head and body. He dripped with oil.  3) I am not going to touch Your hidden wealth now: that I will get later, assured Nimai. But if you give Me banana root and some banana stalks right now without taking money, then I will not fight with you any more.  Yes that is a very satisfactory agreement, said Nimai. There should be no further fights, but please see to it that I get good quality bananas, banana stalk and radish. Daily the Lord ate with Sridhara from his leaf cups, relishing his bananas, banana stalks, radishes and Sridhara's cooking, in general. Sridhara thought to himself, "He is a very aggressive brahmana. Someday He might even beat me. But even if He does beat me, what can I do? I really cannot afford to give him whatever He wants free each day. But I see He has a godly form; He is not an ordinary personality by any means. If He takes my things by force or by some other tricky means, then He is free to do so. I think this is my good fortune, and in spite of my poverty I will continue to give Him whatever He wants." 4) In His Nabadwip pastimes the Lord liked to be very arrogant, in fact, no one could match that arrogance. Whenever the Supreme Lord performed any pastime, His activities could not be equaled by anyone. When the Lord feels like performing His chivalrous pastimes, then there is no one to challenge His mastery over weapons. And when He wants to reveal His amorous pastimes, then He captivates the hearts of millions of beautiful damsels. When He wants to enjoy opulence, then His opulence and magnificence is unmatched. Now in His pastimes as an erudite scholar there is no one to match His insolent arrogance, and when the same Lord accepts the renounced order of life, then who can excel Him in devotion, dedication and renunciation? Is there anyone in the three worlds to match Him? Yet in all His incarnations and pastimes the zenith of all activities is voluntary loving defeat by the hands of His pure unalloyed devotees. 5) Srila Vrndavana dasa Thakura prays: There was no way to gauge the amount of good fortune that those people accumulated and the bliss they experienced just by seeing the Lord ...But alas for me, I have taken a sinful and wretched birth. I could not be born at that time. My life is bereft of that beautiful transcendental sight of Lord Gaurasundara. In spite of all this, O Lord Gaura Chandra, please grant me the mercy that I may remember this pastime of yours in every birth. Wherever You and my Lord Nityananda perform your transcendental pastimes with your eternal associates, may I also be present there as your humble and insignificant servant.

Quiz: (see answers below)

1. One day Nimai Pandita quite unexpectedly met Mukunda on the road and quickly engaged him in debate, letting Mukunda decide the subject matter.  After being defeated at every turn, what did Mukunda think to himself?

A-  That even though he wasn't the one to overcome Him, one day Nimai would meet His match and be defeated because there is always one who is greater that comes along.
B-  "It is not possible for a human being to posses such knowledge,"
C-  Since Nimai knew everything, He must actually be Lord Krishna.
D-  "I must immediately tell everyone that the Lord has arrived."

2.  Sri Gadadhara Pandita was another Vaishnava that Nimai Pandita enjoyed tormenting with His game of questions.  How did Gadadhara explain to the Lord how liberation was attained.

A- Ony by the mercy of Sri Guru.
B- Only by chanting Hare Krishna.
C- Only after the result of extreme suffering.
D- By bathing in the Ganga and other holy rivers.

3. What would the Lord take from the Vaishnavas of Nabadwip?

A- Their clothes
B- Their food
C- Their blessings, knowing that only through such blessings could love of Krishna be achieved.
D- Their pride

4.  What did Buddhimanta Khan do to the Lord?

A-  Soundly defeated Him in debate.
B-  Gave him gold to pay off his many debts.
C-  Rushed to Nimai's aid when the Lord fell unconscious from a "wind disorder".
D-  Gave Him some food that made Nimai ill.

5.  What was the most spiritual aspect of Nimai Pandita's illness?

A-  That harassing Vaishnava's lead to sickness.
B-  That food should never be accepted from a non-devotee.
C-  That Nimai was not God because the true Lord never gets sick.
D-  Nimai revealed His real identity during His illness but still no one recognized Him because of the Lord's internal potency.

6.  What was the main treatment used to cure the Lord?

A-  Oils were rubbed all over Him.
B-  Hot cloths were applied to His feet.
C-  He was given banana roots to chew.
D-  He was given copious amounts of Ganges water to drink

7.  What would the Milkmen call Nimai Pandita?

A-  Uncle
B-  Lord
C-  Gurudeva
D-  Nimai

8.  What did the Lord want from the Astrologer?

A-  He wanted to know if His recent illness was going to return.
B-  He wanted to know how long He would live, asking as a form of hidden joke just to see how the astrologer would reply
C-  He wanted to know who He was in His previous birth.
D-  Since He was married to Laxmidevi, He wanted to know how many children they would have.

9.  When Nimai Pandita asked the astrologer who He was in a previous birth, the astrologer chanted his Gopala mantra and began to meditate.  What happened next?

A-  The astrologer suddenly got up and began dancing.
B-  Tears began to stream down the astrologer's face.
C-  He told the Lord that instead of the past that he could only see Nimai's future.
D-  He had vision after vision of all the different manifestations of Lord Krishna: the dark, monsoon-cloud complexion of the four-handed form of Lord Krishna,  the Lord bathed in divine effulgence, Krishna as a newborn baby in kamsa's prison and Sri Vasudeva carrying Him to Gokula for safety, as a charming two-handed little boy without any clothes, the curved form of Lord Syamananda Krishna playing His flute while the gopis around Him played on different musical instruments, the Lord holding a bow, as Varaha the boar, he saw Lord Nrsimhadeva,  Vamana, Matsya, Lord Balarama carrying His divine plough, Jagannatha and Balarama with Subhadra standing between them

10.  What did Nimai Pandita accuse His dear-most  friend, Sridhara of?

A-  Keeping the best vegetable back for himself and thus not offering them to Him to eat.
B-  Being an impersonalist.
C-  Hiding great wealth in his house.
D-  Harboring jealousy toward Him.

11.  What was growing on Sridhara's roof top that the Lord had Sridhara cook into a special preparation made with milk and hot spices?

A-  a gourd
B-  a pumpkin
C-  yellow squash
D-  carrots

12.  What esoteric truth did Nimai Pandita reveal to His dearest friend, Sridhara

A-  That in a previous birth He was Govinda, the cowherd boy.
B-  That He is the husband of the Goddess of Fortune and that He would tell her to bring blessing upon Sridhara.
C-  The He is the source of the Holy Ganges River.
D-  That He was the Yuga-avatar for Kali-yuga.

13.  What musical instrument did Nimai play?

A- mirdunga
B- sitar
C- flute
D- Kartyls

14.  Mother Saci would often see supernatural occurrences in her home: many people singing, dancing and playing instruments; she saw divinely beautiful ladies; effulgent demigods who would appear and disappear within a moment.  What were the divinely beautiful ladies holding in their hands?  

A-  pots of yogurt
B-  flower garlands
C-  incense
D-  lotus flowers

15.  How does Srivasa Pandita attempt to correct Nimai Pandita?

A-  By reading part of the Srimad Bhagavatam to Him.
B-  By angrily scolding Him.
C-  By introducing Nimai to Nabadwip's greatest Saint who is then able to put Nimai onto the path of devotional service.
D-  By asking Nimai five questions followed by a few words of encouragement.

16.  Vrndavana das Thakura finally settles on just one analogy to best describe Nimai Pandita with His students on the bank of the Ganges.  Which one is it?

A-  He looked like the moon surrounded by a starry firmament.
B-  He is as beautiful as Cupid.
C-  On the banks of the Jamuna, Sri Nandakumar Krishna sat surrounded by his young cowherd boyfriends. That same Krishna Chandra and the same cowherd boys were also sitting on the banks of river Ganga.
D-  It was as one were seeing the great sage, Brhaspati.

Lord Chaitanya aka:  Sri Sacinandana;  Gaurasundara;

Devotee Mentioned: Sanjaya; Buddhimanta Khan

Mother Saci:   Mother Saci's visions were certainly not imagination. She was the embodiment of devotional service to the Supreme Lord Krishna and all the Vedas glorify her. Merely her glance on any person could purify him so that he could also have the same transcendental visions.

Analogies:   The author writes: It seems that all analogies are inappropriate except the one which is readily accepted by my heart. On the banks of the Jamuna, Sri Nandakumar Krishna sat surrounded by his young cowherd boyfriends. That same Krishna Chandra and the same cowherd boys were also sitting on the banks of river Ganga. Whoever beheld the charming face of the Lord at that time experienced inexplicable ecstasy.

Words:
extirpation - to remove or destroy totally; do away with; exterminate
erudite - characterized by great knowledge
cynosure - something that strongly attracts attention by its brilliance, interest, etc.

 Answers:  1-B;  2-C;  3-C;  4-C;  5-D;  6-A;  7-A;  8-C;  9-D;  10-C;  11-A;  12-C;  13-C;  14-D;  15-D;  16-C  

Chapter Summary - Chaitanya-bhagavata - Adi Lila Ch. 11
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Brief Summary:  Chapter 11 is pure nectar for the heart.  Twice while reading it I had to stop reading to make a little note in the margin to express my delight; it opens with Nitai Pandita a full-fledged, young scholar, the most formidable intellect in all of Nabadwip;  however, depending on "their eyes," the different segments of society perceived Nitai Pandita differently: 1) The materialistic fruitive workers who were attached to family and home saw Him as the Lord and experienced an inexplicable wonder. "How remarkable that every house He graces should always have prosperity," 2) The ladies saw Him as the most attractive cupid. 3) The scholars were convinced that Brhaspati, the most learned priest of the demigods, had taken birth on earth. 4) The atheists He struck fear as the God of death.  5) The Vaishnavas were seriously concerned about Gauranga and His behavior. "He is endowed with such sublime physical beauty," they sadly commented, "yet He shows no attraction for Lord Krishna. What will all His learning and erudition bring Him except years of wasted time."; Mukunda had become a respected scholar by such meetings with the Lord, and he would argue with the Lord, presenting pros and cons to establish his arguments. Of course the Supreme Lord recognized His devotees and enjoyed such exchanges; Chaitanya also harassed Srivasa in the same manner whenever He saw him, so most of the Vaishnavas tried to avoid meeting the Lord which simply wasted their time in useless sophistry and argument; One day when Nimai Pandita observed His beloved Mukunda sneaking off the main road to avoid meeting Him, Nimai Pandita made this prediction: Alright Mukunda, we will see how long you can avoid me," laughed the Lord. Let me catch you another day and you will see how much of a Vaishnava I am. I will become such a Vaishnava devotee that Siva and Lord Brahma will come and stand at My doorstep. So my brothers, now hear from Me carefully. I will become the most famous Vaishnava. Those who are running away at the sight of me now will also sing my glories; The author next writes about the offensive materialist of Nabadwip and their insults to the Vaishnava community, criticizing their devotional dancing, emotions, loudness... They are singing only with the hope of filling their bellies; Advaita Acarya's was the leader of the Nabadwip Vaishnavas and his house was their main headquarters;  {Now the suspense builds: Advaita Acarya Prabhu could hardly tolerate insults to the devotees and grew enraged like an incarnation of Lord Rudra, the destroyer of the material world. He roared furiously, "I shall destroy everyone! ...My dear brothers, please remain patient a little longer, then here in Nadia itself you shall see Krishna reveal His wonderful pastimes; The remainder of Chapter 11 covers the visit to Nabadwip of the giant of a Saint, Sri Isvara Chandra Puri - dressed as a ekadandi sannyasa, he was a magnanimous personality, always absorbed in tasting the nectar of love of Krishna.  He is the esteemed disciple of Madhavendra Puri.  Several episodes describe Nimai Pandita meeting with Sri Isvara Puri; In one of their interactions, Isvari Puri was triumphant in arguing with the Visvambhara.  The Lord was overjoyed that his servant and devotee was victorious over Him. That was the Lord's magnanimous nature through which He always increased the name frame and victory of his disciples;  Regarding a book that Isvara Puri had written and his asking Nimai Pandita to critique it, the Lord responded by saying: "These are descriptions of Lord Krishna by a pure devotee," replied Nimai. If anyone finds any mistake, then he is a sinful offender. The pure devotee never writes anything from his imagination, devoid of a scriptural basis. These writings are bonafide and always pleasing to Lord Krishna. When offering obeisances in the temple an ignorant person might make a grammatical mistake in addressing Lord Krishna while a learned scholar would address him using proper grammar. But the Supreme Lord Krishna accepts both their obeisances. The Supreme Lord is not impressed with mere learning, but He is supplicated by the inner mood of surrender of the living entities. Whoever looks for faults in your writings is actually at fault himself because Krishna is fully satisfied by the writing of this pure devotee. Whatever you have written is an expression of your love for Krishna. Who has the audacity to find some discrepancy in it?"  Chapter concludes with nice blessing for the reader.

Most Memorable:

1. At Advaita Acarya's house the Vaishnavas described the insults they had received from the Nabadwip community. Advaita Acarya Prabhu could hardly tolerate insults to the devotees and grew enraged like an incarnation of Lord Rudra, the destroyer of the material world. He roared furiously, "I shall destroy everyone! My Lord, the carrier of the Sudarsana disc will soon appear here in Nadia and then everyone will see what He does. I shall report all these offenses to my Supreme Lord Krishna. Then only will
this slave Advaita be worthy to be called the servant of Krishna. My dear brothers, please remain patient a little longer, then here in Nadia itself you shall see Krishna reveal His wonderful pastimes."

2. Sri Puripada would read Krishna Lilamrta which he had composed himself and then explain the different esoteric truths. Lord Chaitanya visited Isvara Puri every evening after teaching his students. Isvara Puri was always glad to see him. Although he did not know that Nimai was the Supreme Personality of Godhead, his love and affection for him flowed unrestrained. He spoke affectionately to the Lord, "I know you are a
great scholar. I have written a book about Lord Krishna. I want you to go through it and find the mistakes. This will please me very much."

"These are descriptions of Lord Krishna by a pure devotee," replied Nimai. If anyone finds any mistake, then he is a sinful offender. The pure devotee never writes anything from his imagination, devoid of a scriptural basis. These writings are bonafide and always pleasing to Lord Krishna. When offering obeisances in the temple an ignorant person might make a grammatical mistake in addressing Lord Krishna while a learned scholar would address him using proper grammar. But the Supreme Lord Krishna accepts both their obeisances. The Supreme Lord is not impressed with mere learning, but He is supplicated by the inner mood of surrender of the living entities. Whoever looks for faults in your writings is actually at fault himself because Krishna is fully satisfied by the writing of this pure devotee. Whatever you have written is an expression of your love for Krishna. Who has the audacity to find some discrepancy in it?"

Isvara Chandra Puri felt ecstasy surge through his entire body with the explanation of Nimai Pandita. Yet he affectionately persisted, "I know you are not critical but in my works there may be so many types of errors. Please point them out to me." Such discussions between Sri Puri and Nimai Pandita were a daily occurrence and everyone enjoyed such occasions together.

Quiz: (see answers below)

1.  What factor made Nimai Pandita the unquestioned leader among His friends.

A-  His beautiful features.  
B-  Because their teacher told them that Nimai deserved the utmost respect.
C-  Nimai Pandita had a library at His home that nobody could come close to matching.  Many of the book had once belonged to His father, grandfather, and great grandfather.
D-  On the strength of His superior intelligence and learning.

2.   In all of Nabadwip there was only one person capable is discussing with Nimai Pandita.  Who was this person?

A-  Mother Saci 
B-  The brahmana Gangadasa Pandita 
C-  His wive, Laksmi Devi
D-  Sri Banamali

3.  How did the materialistic, fruitive workers who were attached to family and home view Nimai Pandita?

A-  As a rebel rouser  
B-  Only as a smart student  
C-  As the famous troublemaker of Nabadwip that everyone knew so well.
D-  They saw Him as the Lord and experienced an inexplicable wonder. "How remarkable that every house He graces should always have prosperity," they exclaimed.

4.  How did the Vaishnava community view Nimai Pandita?

A-  As a great saint.  
B-  As the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
C-  The Vaishnavas were seriously concerned about Gauranga and His behavior. "He is endowed with
such sublime physical beauty," they sadly commented, "yet He shows no attraction for Lord Krishna.
What will all His learning and erudition bring Him except years of wasted time."
D-  They considered him an incarnation of Vyasadeva.

5.  What was Nabadwip famous for at this time?

A-   Best climate in India 
B-   The oldest temple in India was located there. 
C-   Enormous banana plantations
D-   A center for scholars, from all over India.

6.  Why was Sri Mukunda so loved by all the other Vaishnavas?

A-  Because of his beautiful singing he could melt anyone's heart.   
B-  Because only Mukunda could defeat Vishvambhara in debate  
C-  Because everyone recognized Mukunda as the greatest saint in all of Nabadwip.
D-  Because of the delicious prasadam he always gave out to the Vaishnavas.

7.  How did Sri Mukunda become a respected scholar?

A-  There was nobody in all of India who could defeat Mukunda's logic in debates.  
B-  By his famous poetry. 
C-  By becoming the best teacher in all of Nabadwip.
D-  By often engaging Nimai Pandita in debate.

8.  Why did Mukunda sneak away to avoid meeting Nimai Pandita on the road?

A-   Because he owned Nimai 2 talas of gold and did not have them.   
B-   To avoid Nimai's habit of constantly asking him to engage in mundane arguments.
C-   He was sick and did not want to infect the Lord.
D-   Because of his great shame at loosing a recent debate.

9.  In what manner did Sri Isvara Chandra (moonlike, very soothing)  Puri arrive in Nabadwip?

A-  As a lowly sannyasa.    
B-  On the back of a great elephant. 
C-  Carried on a palanquin
D-  Walked into town with hundreds of his disciples.

10.  How did Advaita Acharya know that Isvara Puri was an exalted devotee of the Lord?

A-  By his large number of disciples. 
B-  By Isvara Puri's efulgence.  
C-  By his unparalleled intelligence.
D-  By the many books he had written.

11.  How often would Nimai Pandita visit Isvara Puri

A-  daily in the evenings after teaching His students. 
B-  seldom  
C-  once every week
D-  Since Gopinatha Acarya's house (where Isvara Puri stayed as a guest) was so far away, Nimai only visited once a month.  Even then it required the use of a small boat to visit him.

12. Why did Nimai Pandita not want to render judgment regarding the book Isvara Puri had written and who had asked the Lord to critique it?

A-   "These writings are descriptions of Lord Krishna by a pure devotee," replied Nimai. "If anyone finds any
mistake, then he is a sinful offender." 
B-   Nimai was concerned with the social etiquette at the time that forbid such a thing on His part.  
C-   Because Isvara Puri was much older than himself, thus to do so would be offensive.
D-   Because Nitai Pandita wasn't knowledgeable enough on the subject and didn't want to be make a mistake.

13.  Why was the Lord overjoyed that his servant and devotee (Isvari Puri) was victorious over Him?

A-  Because Nimai Padita didn't want all the fame.  
B-  Because it showed the world that he was big enough to be wrong some of the time.
C-  Because He always increased the name, frame and victory of His disciples.
D-  By loosing to Isvari Puri proved that Nimai was even handed.

14.  Why did Isvara Chandra Puri have to leave Nabadwip?

A-  Since spring was right around the corner, he wanted to leave before the yearly rains.
B-  It was time to meet his guru, Sri Madhavendra Puri.  
C-  He was sick and needed special medicine that only grew in Vrndavana.
D-  He could never remain long in one place because the restlessness of ecstatic devotional love tugged at his heart.

Devotee Mentioned:  Gangadasa Pandita {No scholar in Nabadwip dared to find faults in His dissertations. Only the brahmana Gangadasa Pandita, a very pious and fortunate soul, was capable of discussing with the Lord.}; Sri Mukunda was especially loved by all the other Vaishnavas because he could melt anyone's heart
with his beautiful singing. Govinda {Nimai Pandita's servant}; Sri Isvara Chandra Puri (aka Sri Puripada); Gopinatha Acarya (Sri Isvara Puri stayed at Gopinatha Acarya's home for 7 months); Srivasa (as Nimai Pandita did with Sri Mukunda, the Lord often engaged Srivasa in materialistic debates;

Blessings:  Whoever is fortunate enough to attentively hear these wonderful narrations about Isvara Chandra Puri is immediately transported to the place where the lotus feet of Lord Krishna are ever offering shelter and mercy. 

Misc. Facts:  Nabadwip was the seat of learning in those days and students and scholars came there from all over. There were many pure Vaishnava devotees amongst them, especially from Chattograma, who had come to live near the bank of the Ganga. By the Lord's desire all those Vaishnava devotees had appeared in Nabadwip; Towards evening, the devotees would gather in Sri Acarya's house and when Mukunda would sing devotional songs to Lord Krishna; Mukunda had become a respected scholar by such meetings with the Lord, and he would argue with the Lord, presenting pros and cons to establish his arguments.

Words:

Chandra: moonlike, very soothing
 

 Answers:  1-D;  2-B;  3-D;  4-C;  5-D;  6-A;  7-D;  8-B;  9-A;  10-B;  11-A;  12-A;  13-C;  14-D  
 

Chapter Summary - Chaitanya-bhagavata - Adi Lila Ch. 10
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Brief Summary:   This chapter focuses on Lord Chaitanya's youthful pastimes as a great scholar at the ripe-old age of 16.  There is nobody more intelligent that God and here we find an excellent purport of this fact in the life of Nimai Pandita.  One of the older students who became an important player in the life of Lord Chaitanya was Murari Gupta.  Exactly how Nimai Pandita won-over His dear friend is explained.  Eventually the Lord became very impressed with Murari Gupta's erudition and this exchange led to Murari accepting Lord Chaitanya as his personal teacher.  Significantly the author mention that Lord Chaitanya at one point (after the Lord accepted defeat from Muraur's magnificent explanations) touched Murari and in so doing surcharged Murari's being. It was in the temple courtyard at Sri Mukunda Sanjaya home (his son was one of Nimai's student) that Nimai would gather with his disciples and teach, on occasion speaking out against the other teachers of Nabadwip.  Nimai looked down upon them for flouting their big titles like Bhattacarya and Misra when in fact they were only kali-yuga men, actually unqualified due to their lack of knowledge regarding the fundamental knowledge about the conjugation of verbs (see below, words); It was also at this time that Mother Saci desired for her son to be married.  It was a brahmana friend of Mother Saci (Sri Banamali) who was instrumental in Nimai's marriage to the daughter of Sri Vallabha Acarya;

Quiz: (see answers below)

1.  What would Nimai Pandita and his friends do at the home of their teacher, Sri Gangadasa?   

A- eat the wonderful prasada that had been offered to their teacher's diety  
B- enjoy nocturnal kirtans  
C- conduct debates  
D- enact Krishna lila plays

2.  The author describes the general mood, the way that Nimai carried Himself and how He projected Himself to His Peers?  How is that described?

A-  a humble servant  
B-  the mood of a valiant, arrogant prince 
C-  full of joy 
D-  transcendental

3.  How did Nimai Pandita treat the students who were not within His circle of close friends?    

A- with great respect  
B- like His equal  
C- would joke with them  
D- Nimai was quick to taunt them.

4.  Older than most of the students, by profession Murari Gupta was:   

A-  a professional singer 
B-  magistrate judge  
C- famous poet   
D- Ayurvedic doctor

5.  How was Murari Gupta's spiritual greatness explained? 

A- He was the partial expansion of Rudra, Lord Siva     
B-  he was an expansion of Lord Brahma  
C- He was the great monkey, Hanuman, who retrieved medicine for Sri Laksmana  
D- he was Lord Vishnu personified

6.  How did Nimai first meet Sri Laksmi devi, who later became His wife? 

A- They met at school   
B- Sri Laksmi devi once met Sri Gaurasundara on the banks of the Ganga when they had each gone for a bath   
C- They were first introduced to each other when they were much younger, by Nimai's father  
D- She was selling bananas at the market and Nimai had gone there on an errand for His mother

7.  What did Laksmi devi do when she first met Nimai Pandita?

A- hid from him  
B-  made fun of his arrogant manners 
C- gave him some prasadam to eat  
D- offered Him prayers as she clasped His lotus feet

8. How did Mother Saci react when Sri Banamali first approached the subject with her concerning the marriage of her son to the beautiful daugher of Vallabha Acarya?

A- With an apathetic reply 
B- With great excitement  
C- With anger 
D- She refused to discuss the idea

9. What made Mother Saci change her mind about the marriage?

A- A chance meeting between Nimai and Sri Banamali  
B- A divine vision  
C- Her neighbors persuaded Her 
D- Her astrologer showed her special signs in Nimai's chart

10. Vallabha Acharya was concerned that he was too poor to offer as a dowry anything other than his daughter along with what five other items? 

A- 5 gold tala bars 
B- 5 sacred cows  
C- 5 pieces of sacred clay  
D- 5 pieces of auspicious hartaki (an auspicious fruit)

11. How many days did the wedding ceremony last? 

A- 2  
B- 7  
C- 3  
D- 5

12.  Other than the actual day of the wedding, what was the main activity mentioned by Vrndavana das Thakura that everyone participated in?

A- Swimming in the Ganga  
B- Eating a special wedding feast 
C- listening to music and watching dancers  
D- circumambulating the village temple

13. At what time of day did the wedding take place? 

A- at dawn  
B- exactly at noon  
C- at midnight 
D- in the evening

14.  According to the marriage customs, Laksmi devi was lifted off the ground and carried how many times around the Lord?

A- 3
B- 7  
C-  5  
D- 12

15.  What mode of transportation was used to take the Lord and His new bride back to Nimai's house?

A- rode in a cart pulled by sacred cows   
B- simply walked with everyone in a huge procession 
C- carried on a palanquin  
D- were taken there by boat

16.  What mystical occurrences did Mother Saci observe right after their marriage ceremony?

A- saintly forms could be seen floating through her house  
B- soft-heavenly music could be heard but there was nobody in the house singing  
C- beautiful lights and the smell of lotus flowers   
D- swirling incense would magically appear with the most wonderful fragrance

 Devotee Mentioned:    Murari Gupta; Sri Mukunda Sanjaya (the father of one of Nimai Pandita's students); Sri Vallabha Acarya (a good and pious brahmana, equal to King Janaka, the father of Sita devi, whose daugher Nimai married); Sri Laksmi devi; Banamali;

Flowery Language:  Sri Laksmi offered Him a garland of flowers at His lotus feet. She worshipped Him, surrendering herself as though she were those very flowers.

Blessings:   Whoever hears the narration of the Lord's marriage with devotion will certainly be able to break the ties of material bondage.

Words:

erudition (scholarship)
Brhaspati (seeks to learn. He then imparts his knowledge to others)
conjugation (the inflection of verbs; the whole set of inflected forms of a verb or the recital or display thereof in a fixed order: The conjugation of the Latin verb amo begins amō, amas, amat; a class of verbs having similar sets of inflected forms: the Latin second conjugation)
oblations (The act of offering something, such as worship or thanks)
 

 Answers: 1-C;  2-B;  3-D;  4-D;   5-A;  6-B;  7-D;   8-A;  9-A;  10-D;  11-A; 12-C; 13-D;  14-B;  15-C;  16-A

Chapter Summary - Chaitanya-bhagavata - Adi Lila Ch. 9
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Brief Summary:  Chapter 9 is the longest encountered so far, mostly covering the life of Lord Nityananda from his birth (1473 A.D.12^th Feb.) till called by Lord Chaitanya to finally join Him;  Lord Nityananda appeared in the village of  Ekacakra . His father was a brahmana named Hadai Pandita (aka: Mukunda Bandyopadhyay ) and his mother was Srimati Padmavati devi; Nityananda was born with a serene disposition and He was highly intelligent; young nitai absorbed Himself playing with His friends, enacting all the famous stories from the ancient history of India, thus hiding His supreme identity from all; Nobody could fathom where in the world such a young child could have learned the stories He and His friends played out with such precise detail;  Not even 13 years old, Nimai leaves home to travel until His 32nd year - all over India visiting the sacred places of pilgrimage.  The author of this book gives a brief, yet detailed description of the many places the Lord traveled to, culminating with his meeting Sri Madhavendra Puri, along with the famous devotees, Isvara Puri & Brahmananada Puri; Sri Madhavendra Puri said, "Nowhere have I found the exhibition of such supramundane love par excellence as in Lord Nityananda. Wherever that love is found becomes the best of all the holy pilgrimages"; the author warns that whoever harbors even a tinge of apathy for Lord Nityananda is forever cast aside by Lord Krishna; Nitai Chandra is devoted exclusively to Lord Caitanya so no one can attain His shelter without His blessings.

Quiz: (see answers below)

1.  As a child, Lord Nityananda concealed His true identity by: 

A - Reading the Holy Scripture all the time   
B - Going to school   
C - Playing with the children of His village   
D - Memorizing the Bhagavada-gita

2.  What was the main question that those living in Ekacakra had about Lord Nityananda 

A - How could such a young boy play for so many long hours    
B - Why did Nitai always fight with the other boys?  
C - Was Nitai an incarnation of Lord Krsna?   
D - How does a mere child know so many transcendental pastimes of Lord Krishna?

3.  Enacting the pastimes of Lord Krishna, at times Nitai would... 

A - Beat the ground with a stick  
B - He would cry so intensely that tears flowed like a gushing river    
C - He would jump incessantly for hours on end  
D - He would stay outside all night and not come home.

4.  In one of His plays, Lord Nityananda and his friends enacted the pastime of Lord Ramachandra's monkey army throwing rocks into the ocean to build a bridge.  What did the Nitai and His friends use to make his pretend bridge?  

A - Used cushions that floated like rocks  
B - Threw boulders into the water that they found at a rock quarry  
C - Felled some castor oil trees and threw them on the water  
D- Used palm branches that naturally float and were plentiful all throughout the forest

5.  During the children's games of enacting the pastime of killing Indrajit, what was thrown at Nitai that made him go unconscious? 

A- a rock that accidentally hit Him on the head   
B- a lotus flower    
C- a coconut   
D- A hollow basket

6.  Where did the medicine come from that revived little Nimai? 

A- His family's doctor 
B- From nearby watercress growing in a stream 
C- Gandharva hill  
D- coconut juice

7.  At what age did Nimai leave His beloved home? 
A- 22   
B- 21 
C- 14 
D- 12

8.  What is Lord Nityananda famous for? 

A- He once walked on water 
B- Going into a trance for three entire days  
C- Inundating the universe with love of God     
D-  as Lord Caitanya's spiritual master

9.  Who is the original or first devotee of Lord Caitanya?   

A- Brahma   
B- Mother Saci 
C- Lord Nityananda  
D-Madhavendra Puri 

10.  What does the author of the Caitanya-bhagavata wish to do in the company of his spiritual master, Lord Nityananda? 

A- He desires to study Srimad Bhagavatam in Lord Nityananda's presence  
B- He desires to go swimming in the Ganges River with Lord Nityananda  
C- He desires to sing with Lord Nityananda  
D- He desires to re-trace with the Lord the same pilgrimage that Nityananda made for 20 years

Devotee Mentioned:   Isvara Puri ;  Brahmananada Puri ;  Sri Madhavendra Puri  (Lord Chaitanya often remarked that Sri Madhavendra Puri was the main trunk of the tree of nectarine devotional mellows); [the author, Vrndavana dasa Thakura gives a second warning in the chapter when he mentions that "those who misinterpret the remarks of Advaita Acarya Prabhu or Lord Nityananda as criticism of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu should realize that those remarks were in fact shaded glorifications of my Lord. All the Vaishnava associates of Lord Chaitanya are externally liberated and enlightened souls. What is wrongly understood to be disturbing arguments or abusive language used between them is actually one way they express their deep love for each other. An ordinary person is therefore discouraged from taking sides in such a mock fight, for if he criticizes anyone then he places himself in a precarious position."]

Lord Nityananda aka:   Nitai Chandra

Blessings:  Those faithful souls who hear this narration of the wonderful meeting between Sri Madhavendra and Lord Nityananda will surely attain the highest perfection, love of Krishna; One can obtain full devotion at Lord Chaitanya's lotus feet simply by worshipping Lord Nityananda;  All obstacles and misfortunes in life are extirpated as soon as the knowledge of the truth about Lord Nityananda dawns upon one; Whoever hears these narrations with devotion is crowned with the most precious gem of success - love of Godhead. 

Misc. Facts:  Hanuman, who is also known as Mahavira; Sri Advaita Acarya Prabhu is foremost amongst Sri Madhavendra Puri's disciples, Isvara Puri, Brahmananada Puri; Nimai's father's name was also Mukunda Bandyopadhyay 

Words:
percipience:  perception

 Quiz Answers: 1-C;   2-D;   3-B;   4-D;   5-B;    6-C;   7-D;    8-C;   9-C;   10-A
 

Chapter Summary - Chaitanya-bhagavata - Adi Lila Ch. 8
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Brief Summary:  Chapter 8 begins by describing the events surrounding young Nimai being awarded the sacred thread by his father. This led to Niamai being accepted as a student by the crown jewel of Nabadwip's numerous teachers, Sri Gangadasa Pandita; Overnight, Nimai became the best student in all of Nabadwip, able to argue a subject from many different points of view, often refuting his own arguments to show off; As a young student, Nimai love to pick arguments with the other boys, challenging them to debate that often ended up in splashing each other, throwing sand and fighting; because the Lord swam daily in the Holy Ganga River, finally finally this sacred river was able to achieve what the  Jamuna River experienced when She had Lord Krishna blessing her waters when He was present on earth 5000 years ago; Jugganatha Misra tells Saci of a dream he had where Nimai shaves off his sikha, dressed beautifully in sannyasi robes and is followed by millions chanting the Holy Names.  Even Advaita Acharya was following Nimai in Sri Misra's dream; Because of the pain the author feels discussing Nimai's father's passing away it is only briefly mentioned, which occurred when Nimai was just a boy;  As a growing boy, Nimai had a quick temper and was quick to lash out and break things if his wishes were not immediately fulfilled; an amazing story of Niamai's anger at not immediately receiving the things from His mother that he had asked for is described.  The Lord broke everything and then fell into a divine slumber upon the ground that made up the courtyard of His home; Later Nimai gave His mother 2 tolas gold pieces to buy more bhoga for their house; the fallen condition of the inhabitants of the Nabadwip region is given; ends with description of devotee lamenting fallen condition of everyone as they pray to The Lord for a blessing.

Quiz: (see answers below)

1.  What did Nimai carry in his hand as he went from house to house begging alms as part of His sacred-thread ceramony? 

A -Pot   
B-Tulasi leaf   
C-Stick    
D-Sack to put everything in

2.  In the mood of who did Nimai assume during His sacred-thread ceramony?

A- Lord Siva    
B- The Gopies  
C- Ananta Sesa   
D- Lord Vamana

3.  What was the name of Nimai's first teacher? 

A- Sri Gangadasa Pandita  
B- Sri Murari Gupta   
C- Jagadisa Pandita   
D- Sri Chandrasekhar

4.  What would Nimai often give his mother so she could buy more bhoga  and other household items after his father passed away? 

A- Diamonds  
B- tala gold pieces  
C- Rupees  
D- coins from begging alms.

5.  Before he passed away, Jugganatha Misra had a dream about his Son, Lord Caitanya.  What did the Lord do in this dream?

A- Exhibit his four-arm form    
B- Go to Vrndavana    
C- Turn into Vamana Deva   
D-  Shave off his SikhaLord Chaitanya aka:   Visvambhara Raya; Sri Gaura Chandra; Sacinandana; Nimai Thakura;

Devotee Mentioned:  Sri Sarasvati devi - Sri Parvati devi [and the chaste and dedicated wives of other great sages appeared on the scene for Nimai's sacred-thread ritual of begging door-to-door]; Sri Gangadasa Pandita [Nimai's teacher, crown jewel amongst teachers]; [fellow students: Sri Murari Gupta - Sri Kamla Kanta -  Sri Krishnananda]

Blessings:   Just by hearing the pastimes of Lord Chaitanya, devotional service to the Supreme Lord is immediately achieved; Anyone who hears the narration of Lord Visvambhara accepting the sacred thread attains the supreme shelter of Sri Chaitanya-Chandra's lotus feet.

Misc. Facts:  The author, Srila Vrndavana dasa Thakura, makes this prediction: Just by hearing the pastimes of Lord Chaitanya, devotional service to the Supreme Lord is immediately achieved;  Impediments of any sort never appear in the life of any person who remembers your lotus feet, my Lord;

Quiz Answers: 1-C;   2-D;   3-A;   4-B;   5-D
 

Chapter Summary: Chaitanya-bhagavata    Adi Lila Ch. 7
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Brief Summary:  Chapter 7 transitions from Nimai rebellious years to the opening of a new page in His life of a young scholar.  The author explains this new era more fully in chaper 8.  This chapter, while leading there, instead concentrates on things that occurred just before Nimai's official period of studies.  While still touching briefly on Nimai's mischievous behavior, the first part of Chapter 7 is dedicated to Nimai's brother, Sri Visvarupa and His sadness and departure as a sannyasi. "Because of the inherent characteristics of the supersoul, Lord Krishna is able to attract the affection of the Gopis. This fact is applicable only to the devotees for a non-devotee can never feel affection for the Lord. Lord Krishna resided within the heart of Kamsa and other demons, so why were they envious and inimical towards Him? The reason was that these demons had committed grievous offenses in their previous lives. Everyone agrees that the sweetness of sugar is easily discernible; only a diseased person will find its taste bitter. The tongue is diseased; it is not the fault of the sugar. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Chaitanya is the sweetest of all."  The last part of this chapter addresses Nimai schooling and how He overcame Hid father's grief-filled logic of keeping Nimai away from study, all together.  This brought about a final spat of misbehavior and finally triumph so that He could once and for all begin his student life in all earnest and put rest forever His pastimes of tormenting the citizens of Nadia.
 

Most Memorable: 

1.  One day when Mother Saci had completed her cooking she told Sri Visvambhara to bring His elder brother home to eat. Bearing that instruction, Lord Visvambhara ran to Sri Advaita Acarya's residence to retrieve His brother. At the Acarya's house He saw the assembly of Vaishnavas discussing the most auspicious topics of Krishna lila.

Sri Gaurasundara, who is Lord Krishna Himself, felt satisfied to hear the devotees glorify Him, and He captivated them with His glances. Every line of the Lord's transcendental form seemed to defy the extremities of delicate beauty; the radiance of millions upon millions of moons lost their luster when compared to the effulgence of even one of the Lord's finger nails.

Bare-chested and covered with dust, Visvambhara smiled and addressed His elder brother. "Brother, come to eat. Mother is calling you." He caught hold of Visvarupa's dhoti and together they walked home. Sri Visvambhara's enchanting beauty held the devotees in a trance. They stared at Him in wonder, unable to move. The devotees entered into meditation, experiencing the ecstasy of love of Godhead. Even the discussions on Krishna could not be continued.

2.  Sri Visvarupa's disappearance left the hearts of Mother Saci and Sri Misra in intense grief. With the other family members and friends, the parents wailed in lamentation. Sri Visvambhara was unable to bear the separation of His brother and He fell unconscious. I am unable to depict the scene of intense grief and lamentation which struck the house of Sri Misra. 

Quiz: 

1. Though His mother tried to correct Him with sweet advice and in the presence of good instruction, How did Nimai respond to the pleas of His Loving Parents?

A.  He said he was sorry and would never behave poorly again.
B.  He went to the forest to meditatate.
C.  He created twice as much mischief.
D.  He prayed to His family Deity for forgiveness.

2. Although the Lord feared no one, there was one person who Nimai humbled Himself before, who was that?

A.  The chief of police.
B.  The family Salagram Sila
C.  When he would meet is teacher.
D.  In the presence of His elder brother Visvarupa, He became soft and humble.

3.  How is Visvarupa described in the Chaitanya-bhagavata?

A.  He was Narada Muni who had taken his birth in Nadia just to be with his beloved Lord.
B.  He was actually Lord Brahma.
C.  He was the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
D.  He was a very pious Brahmin who achieved greatness by studying the Bhagavada-gita.

4.  What was Visvarupa's favorite pastime?

A.  He love to swim.
B.  Visvarupa was always found in the association of pure Vaishnava devotees discussing topics about Krishna, engaging in Krishna's service or worshipping the Lord in devotion.
C.  He loved to debate amongst all the scholars that lived in Nadia.
D.  He would take long walks and meditate on the Supersoul.

5. How would the materialistic people of Nadia treat the Vaishnavas when they saw them?

A.  They would taunt them with words.
B.  They would always pay them great respect.
C.  The custom was to fold their hands and bow down before theses Saintly personalities.
D.  They would always engage them in debates

6.  What would Visvarupa do each day?

A.  Go to the forest and meditate.
B.  Go to school where He was a teacher.
C.  Stay home with His wife.
D.  Each day at dawn, after a bath in the Ganga, Sri Visvarupa would visit the house of Sri Advaita Acarya Prabhu.

7. What is the most definitive statement by Srila Vrndavana dasa Thakura regarding the identity of Sri Visvarupa?

A.  That in a previous birth he was Hanuman.
B.  When Lord Krishna played with his friends in the forests and hills of Vrndavana, Sri Visvarupa was one of the Lords cowherd boyfriends.
C.  Sri Visvarupa is the non-different, direct expansion of Lord Nityananda, the original Sankarsana.
D.  Sri Visvarupa is none other than the great wandering Saint Narada Muni, thus explaining why Visvarupa was unable to stay in one place for long.

8.  The Vaishnava community was devastated by sudden disappearance of Sri Visvarupa, their life and soul.  What did Advaita Acharya tell them to do?

A.  "Go and happily sing Lord Krishna's Holy Name."
B.  "Those of you who cannot tolerate the abuse of the atheists should go to the forest and follow Visvarupa.  Those who are able to remain must go the the Gunga and after bathing call upon Lord Krishna to protect Visvarupa as he wanders to the Holy places of pilgrimage."
C.  "Go to Jugannatha Misra and Mother Saci and console them as their hearts are broken."
D.  "Since Visvarupa has chosen the most glorious path, let us celebrate with an enormous feast in his honor."

9.  Following the departure of His beloved brother, how did Nimai react?

A.  He became wild with grief and his restless way increased even more.  Nobody could now check how the Lord tormented the people of Nadia.
B.  He would not speak to anyone for an entire month.
C.  After much grief, Nimai set off in search of His brother, searching all the forest caves and mountains.
D. Lord Visvambhara minimized His restless and mischievous behavior. Nimai stayed by the side of His mother and father to mitigate their grief in separation from Visvarupa.

10.  Instead of being happy upon hearing about the unparalleled intelligence of his son, Nimai, Jugannatha Misra felt intense anxiety.  What was the reason for his grief?

A.  Jugannatha Misra was unhappy because he could not find a suitable wife for Nimai because there were no girls in all of Nadia who would be able to understand his intelligent son.
B.  He felt that Nimai would reach the same conclusion about the material world as did Visvarupa and follow in His footsteps and also leave.
C.  Jugannath Misra was sad because he could see that those who possess extraordinary intelligence are never happy and thus his son was destined to be miserable.
D.  Jugannath Misra knew that there was always someone more intelligent in life and thus Nimai would surely one day meet his match and have to surrender to another, even having to pay and monthly tithe to that person for the remainer of Nimai's life, thus burdening him with a tax upon His shoulders that would forever keep his son poor.

11. How did Jagannatha Misra decide to resolve his grief? 

A.  To send Nimai to a special school located in  South India where the girls there are renowned for their intelligence, thus Nimai would surely find happiness.
B.  To only allow Nimai to study classical Indian dance, in this way with His mind off deeper subjects of life, surely Nimai would remain a householder and stay in Nadia forever.
C.  He forbid his son to study, thus thinking that if he kept Nimai ignorant He would just become a simple brahmin and stay at home.
D.  Jagannatha Misra decided to place Nimai in a school for Ayurvedic Medicine where the long hours of complicated study would keep Nimai's attention off of leaving home.

12.  With idle time on His hands now that Nimai was no longer in school, one day He and His friends spotted a banana plantation full of delicious bananas and decided to raid it one night.  The hid under a blanket to escape all blame.  What did the owner of the plantation think was destroying his crop?

A.  A bull
B.  A mad elephant
C.  A tiger
D.  A cow

13.  Sometimes Nimai and His friends tied the neighbor's doors from the outside so that they could not leave the house to use the outdoor lavatory.  Day and night the Lord of Vaikuntha and His friends performed endless pranks. How was this segment of Nimai's childhood pastimes finally put to rest?

A.  As He became older in time, Nimai simply outgrew His mischievous ways.
B.  Jagannatha Misra finally made good on his threats to beat the Supreme Lord and this put an end to His misbehavior.
C.  Nimai finally felt sorry for all the trouble He was causing His parents.
D.  The Lord sat atop a pile of contaminated cooking pots.

14.  Even though Mother Saci's neighbors pointed out that whatever Lord Krishna desires will always come to true, still they presented a good argument for Nimai to return to schooling.  What did they say?

A.  Since, unlike most children who do not desire to study, and because Nimai genuinely wanted to learn, Jagannatha Misra and Mother Saci should be very pleased and realize how fortunate they were and encourage Nimai to study, rather than keeping him away from his schooling.
B.  If Nimai was kept ignorant of the ways of the world, He would never be able to support a proper wife.
C.  Only by becoming educated would Nimai ever hope to find a suitable wife to match his extraordinary intelligence.  Smart girls would not be interested in an uneducated man.
D. If Nimai didn't continue studying, how would he learn the Vedic Mantras necessary in the life of any Brahmin.  Without schooling Nimai would be relegated to the chores of a sudra. 

Lord Chaitanya aka:  The Supreme Personality of Godhead Lord Narayana; Navadvipa-candra (the moon of Navadvipa); Sri Sacinandana Chaitanya (is the supersoul within everyone's heart); Sri Gaurasundara; Lord GauraChandra

Advaita Acharya:   aka: Advaita Mahasaya

Blessings:  Whoever hears the pastime of Sri Visvarupa accepting the sannyasa order of life is freed from the noose of karma and attains devotional service to Lord Krishna; Devotional service to Lord Krishna is perfected by sincerely hearing this story: sitting on the pile of contaminated pots.

Misc. Facts:  Nimai's brother: Sri Visvarupa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, was the treasure house of all divine qualities and a renunciate from His very birth. Visvarupa explained that the essence of all scriptures was the path of devotional service to the Supreme Lord. No one has ever had the power to refute His explanations. He was totally absorbed in Lord Krishna and by engaging His hearing, speech, mind and all other senses in the service of the Lord, He grew disinterested in anything else; Sri Visvarupa in particular felt great anguish over the absence of kirtana of the name of His beloved Krishna Chandra; Each day at dawn, after a bath in the Ganga, Sri Visvarupa would visit the house of Sri Advaita Acarya Prabhu; The materialistic person is unable to comprehend the Lord's transcendental activities of attracting and alluring the hearts of His devotees; a non-devotee can never feel affection for the Lord; Everyone agrees that the sweetness of sugar is easily discernible; only a diseased person will find its taste bitter. The tongue is diseased; it is not the fault of the sugar; Sri Visvarupa took the renounced order of sannyasa with the name Sri Sankararanya; If any member in the family takes the sannyasa order of life, then innumerable generations become eligible to live in the transcendental abode of Vaikuntha; Sri Visvarupa  is the non-different, direct expansion of Lord Nityananda, the original Sankarsana; From the day Sri Visvarupa left the house to become a sannyasi, Lord Visvambhara minimized His restless and mischievous behavior; After studying any aphorism once, (a terse saying embodying a general truth, or astute observation, as “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely”) Nimai mastered it so well that when questioned on it, He bettered everyone else; {After Visvarupa took sannyasi and left home, Lord Caitanya's father forbid him to continue his studies in fear that He, too, once he reached an understanding of the Holy Scriptures - just as Visvarupa, Nimai would also leave home.  So Jugganatha Misra wanted to keep Nimai ignorant of the Scriptures and have him stay at home for good.  This pushed Nimai back into his restless ways and dressed as a bull under a blanket, with friends He raided a banana grove}; While sitting on contaminated pots outside his house, Nimai spoke the non-dual absolute truth in the mood of His previous incarnation Lord Dattatreya; Misra Mahasaya is another name that Jagannatha Misra was called by the author;

Words:
mirthful: joyous; gay; jolly
reprobate: morrally depraved, bad
aphorism: a terse saying embodying a general truth, or astute observation, as “Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely



 

 Answers:  1-C;  2-D;  3-C;  4-B;  5-A;  6-D;  7-C;  8-A;  9-D;  10-B;  11-C;  12-A;  13-D;  14-A

Chapter Summary: Chaitanya-bhagavata    Adi Lila Ch. 6

 

Brief Summary:  Chapter six make a final bridge from Niamis childhood pastimes to His activities as a boy between 7 and 10 years old.  A nice story is told of Nimai's refusal to stop crying until the delicious food being offered by two local brahmins and friends of Jugannatha Misra was brought to Nimai to eat. The author then jumps to Nimai as a young boy, acting more like Dennis the Menace rather than the God He is. Vrndavana das Thakura writes the rest of this chapter around Nimais abusive manner and behavior toward the residents of his village while all are taking bath at the sacred river.  The list of complaints are numerous: stealing clothes, offerings, scriptures, deities, and flowers; splashing, spitting, contaminating, touching, spoiling, disturbing, eating, pulling, climbing on, making cry, throwing sand, lying, quarreling, and shouting at.  Those who he offended were actually His eternal associates and a mundane person cannot understand such activities of the Lord.

Most Memorable:   "Everything was just as it should be. His body was covered with dust, He was dressed in the same clothes and they were dry. His hair was also dry and he had His books."

Physical descriptions:   His body covered in grayish dust and speckled with drops of black writing ink.

Lord Chaitanya aka:  Sri Sacinandana Chaitanya is the supersoul within everyone's heart; Sri Gaurasundara; Nimai;

Quiz:

1. Jagadisa Pandita and Hiranya Pandita both were friends of Jugannatha Misra and his wife, Mother Saci.  Their homes were nearby.  One day little Nimai wouldn't stop crying.  How were these two brahmins involved in soothing Nimai's feeling so that he no longer cried and cried?
A.  They were both magicians and little Nimai wanted to see their magic show.
B.  They also had little boys and if they would only come visit, then Nimai would have friends to play with and wouldn't have to cry.
C.  Nimai said if He could only eat their offerings to their Deities, then He would become healthy and calm and be able to act normal and not cry.
D.  These were the two best singers in the entire province and if only if they would come to His home and sing the Lord's Names, then would little Nimai become happy.

2.   Only by  developing  spiritual intelligence can  one perform devotional service.  And only through devotional service can the Supreme Lord, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, be known as He is. How is this spiritual intelligence obtained?
A.  By chanting japa.
B.  By only eating food offered to Lord Krishna.
C.  By Krishna's mercy.
D.  By worshiping tulsai.

3.  As Nimai grew into a boyhood, he was often seen with what kind of marks all over His body?
A. Tumeric drops from helping His mother cook.
B. As a young brahmin, Nimai worshiped their family Deity day and night.  Often he was covered in sandalwood paste marks which everyone noticed.
C. At the place where Nimai and His friend would go swimming every day there was a lot of dark clay and wherever the Lord went people could see this dark clay on his body.
D. Drops of black writing ink.

4.  Where did Nimai mostly get into trouble?
A.  At the open-air market place where all the young girls sold vegetables.
B.  At the Ganga where everyone came to bath and worship.
C.  In His own house is where He mostly got into trouble.
D.  At school where the older boys picked on the Lord out of jealousy since Nimai was so much smarter than they were.

5.  What did Nimai do with okada seeds?
A.  He would throw them in the girls hair because they were very difficult to comb out.
B.  He would put them in their shoes which would make their feet hurt.
C.  He would put them in their food and make everything too bitter to eat.
D.  He would squeeze them and get a red liquid out of the seeds and throw it at everyone.  This would stain their skin red.

6.  What did Jugannatha Misra find odd about the events surround Nimai's misbehavior?
A.  Nobody would accuse Nimai of bad behavior directly to him.  There were only rumors.
B.  All the accusers soon changed their minds about Nimai's guilt.
C.  Sri Misra saw that Nimai was covered with dust and there were no signs of His having taken a bath.  Everything was just as it should be. His body was covered with dust, He was dressed in the same clothes and they were dry. His hair was also dry and he had His books.
D.  Only the most pretty girls in Nimai's village would accuse Him of misbehavior.

 
7.   What is the best way to understand the residents of Nabadwip, who as a young boy Lord Caitanya would treat so harshly.
A.  They deserved being treated that way because in previous births they fought against Lord Krishna.
B.  As described in the opening chapters of this book, the citizens of Nadia were sinful and thus deserved this punishment from the Lord.
C.  All of those who experience Nimai's torment were simply working of their bad karma.
D.  The personalities of Nadia were eternal devotees and associates of the Supreme Personality of Godhead Sri Krishna. The Supreme Lord performed various transcendental pastimes with His intimate servitors; a mundane person cannot understand such activities of the Lord.

Devotee Mentioned:  {Jagadisa Pandita & Hiranya Pandita (two brahmins who little Nimai summoned so that He could eat their offerings: "If you want to save my life, then quickly go to the houses of the two brahmins Jagadisa Pandita and Hiranya Pandita. "I am very attracted to the homes of these two pure devotees, and if I could eat their offerings I would become healthy and calm and I could behave normally." Jagadisa Pandita and Hiranya Pandita were topmost Vaishnava devotees and inseparable friends of Sri Jagannatha Misra. When they heard Nimai's request they were filled with joy. The two brahmin Vaishnavas said, "This is a very extraordinary story. We have never seen such an intelligent child. How could He know that today was Ekadasi and that a large variety of food had been offered to the Lord?};

Flowery Language:  Shining brightly like the moon, he carried beautiful books in His hands. Blotches of writing ink on different parts of Nimai's body appeared like decorations on His golden complexion. It looked as though a sweet smelling golden champaka flower had attracted a swarm of black bumblebees; 

Misc. Facts:   Only by Krishna's mercy can one develop the spiritual intelligence to perform devotional service; Only through devotional service can the Supreme Lord, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, be known as He is; One of His worst tricks is that while the women and men are bathing He mixes up their clothes and when they want to dress they become quite disturbed;

Words:
cogitations (concerted thought or reflection; meditation; contemplation)

 Answers: 1-C;  2-C;  3-D;  4-B;  5-A;  6-C;  7-D