Radhanath Swami: I offer my very sincerest gratitude to all of you for so kindly coming to be with us this evening to celebrate the appearance of Lord Shri Nityananda Prabhu. Recently, I was in Calcutta and found a great treasure. There is a library of over 3,000 very rare, precious manuscripts, many of them originals by our acharyas that was just given to the Bhaktivedanta Research Centre. One very dear friend exalted Vaishnav Srila Bodhayan maharaj who is the successor of Prabhupad’s godbrother Bhaktipramod Puri Maharaj. In a very magnanimous gesture, he had what devotees try to get for years and years and couldn’t was given to him and then he gave it to our devotees. So I was looking through some of the manuscripts. There was notebooks by Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur, diaries by Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur that have never been published, that hardly anyone has ever seen. There was also some original notebooks by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur in his own personal handwriting. I was looking through one in particular of Bhaktivinoda Thakur’s personal notebooks and I saw page after page of songs and prayers which were the original compositions of Thakur Bhaktivinoda. Gaur Aarti which we sing every evening, Radha Krishna Aarti and you know it’s the originals because sometimes he would have verse 1, verse 2, verse 3 then he would have a line going to the top of the page to the bottom and insert a verse. And one of the songs that I was so blessed to see the original composition of I’d like to sing for you this evening.
Singing in front of my dear brother, godbrother Vayasakhi Prabhu, is like a little baby child crying in front of an eloquent poet.
(Sings a Bhajan)…Nadiya Godrume Nityananda Mahajan:
nadiya-godrume nityananda mahajan
patiyache nam-hatta jiver karan
(Sraddhavan jan he, sraddhavan jan he)
prabhur ajïäy, bhai, magi ei bhikñä
bolo ‘krsna,’ bhajo krsna, koro krsna-siksa
aparadha-sunya ho’ye loho krsna-naam
krsna mata, krsna pita, krsna dhana-präë
kåñëera saàsära koro chäòi’ anäcär
jéve doyä, kåñëa-näm-sarva-dharma-sär
In the land of Nadiya, on the island of Godruma, the magnanimous Lord Nityananda has opened up the Marketplace of the Holy Name, meant for the deliverance of all fallen souls. O people of faith! O people of faith! By the order of Lord Gauranga, O brothers, I beg these three requests of you: Chant “Krsna!”, worship Krsna, and teach others about Krsna. Being careful to remain free of offenses, just take the holy name of Lord Krsna. Krsna is your mother, Krsna is your father, and Krsna is the treasure of your life. Giving up all sinful activities, carry on your worldly duties only in relation to Lord Krsna. The showing of compassion to other souls by loudly chanting the holy name of Krsna is the essence of all forms of religion.
Thank you for tolerating my broken words Vayasakhi Prabhu. You are too humble. When I was holding this original composition by Bhaktivinoda Thakur just an old notebook, so old that the paper was filled with tiny little holes, each page had hundreds and hundreds of tiny holes from either ants or worms eating it away. Almost a hundred years old, seeing Bhaktivinoda’s writings, little crossouts, and he would write on the lines and then he would think of something and put a line and put it up vertically and then margin. Just touching, I felt so immensely purified. But of course the sound vibration of these prayers and these songs are immortal. In the song we have sung today, he is expressing his deep gratitude and appreciation for the mercy of Lord Nityananda Prabhu.
Nature of spiritual love
Today being Nityananda Triyodasi, the appearance day of Shri Nityananda Prabhu, we would like to speak something in the spirit of this song of Bhaktivinoda Thakur…brajendra-nandana jei çacé-suta hailo sei balaräma hailo nitäi…In this age of Kaliyuga, Lord Krishna appears as Lord Chaitanya and Shri Balram appears as Lord Nityanand Prabhu… parama karuëa, pahü dui jana nitäi gauracandra…These two brothers are supremely merciful, unlimitedly kind because they are giving freely to everyone and anyone without discrimination the most intimate revelations of love of God. The very perfection and essence of every spiritual path and they are doing it in such an accessible and simple way. All that is required is our faith, our willingness to live a life of servitude with humility and in that spirit to chant the holy names. Today in morning His Holiness Devamrita Swami Maharaj presented a brilliant, dramatic class on Lord Nityananda and Lord Chaitanya’s intimate, loving relationship. Of how Lord Nityananda would disobey Lord Chaitanya, Lord Chaitanya would chastise and criticize Lord Nityananda. Oh, in the feeling of ecstatic love. Because spiritual love is the whole perfection of the love of the soul and the various emotions that we experience in love in this world which are filtered through the ego hence the mind contaminated by arrogance and anger and greed and lust and illusion. But the same emotions in their absolute perfections exist between the Lord and his devotees. For anger and chastisement is something very beautiful. Raghunathdas Goswami writes that he is quoting Krishna and more than hearing the praises of the priests and the pandits who are perfectly chanting scriptural prayers in glorification of the Lord, Krishna says I feel more satisfaction being chastised by the elderly Gopis of Vrindavan and even more satisfaction by the young Gopis of Vrindavan. Krishna explains how He, in his different avatars he killed Hiranyakashipu, Hiranyaakshar the most powerful demons in all of creations history, were creating such disturbance and the Lord, He did away with Agasura and Putana and Prahlamba and Vatasura and Kamsa but he finds millions of times more happiness being defeated in wrestling by little cowherd boys. This is the nature of the intimacy of spiritual love. It is because these types of relationships in this world cause pain because pain because love is so easily betrayed in this world and that hurts our hearts so much or if it’s not exactly suddenly betrayed, it just kind of wears off, the thrill is gone and it’s just like what are we doing with each other, we get tired of it, look for something new or even if it lasts pretty well inevitably somebody is going to die. So let’s not worry about this love stuff because it’s just too painful. Let’s just try to find peace and extinguish all desires but we find beyond that realization is perfect spiritual love where there is unlimited varigatedness. So Lord Chaitanya and Lord Nityananda they appeared within this world to give that, the highest revelations of love in the spiritual world through the chanting of God’s names. Now Lord Chaitanya, we read…Shri Krishna Chaitanya Radha Krishna nahi anya…The Mahaprabhu is Radha and Krishna in one form. Krishna takes on the emotions and the complexion of Shri Radha, the feminine aspect of the absolute truth and in Lord Chaitanya’s Lila we find sometimes he assumes directly the role of Krishna when he sits on the throne in the house of Shrivas and he accepts worship of his devotees. Or sometimes he actually manifests his form of Krishna to intimate associates and other times he was immersed in the feelings of Shrimati Radharani, tasting the sweetness of the ecstasy of her love for Krishna. But something else, please hear carefully, when Chaitanya Mahaprabhu accepted the mood of Shri Radha not only did he taste the highest pleasure of her love, something that he could not even fathom without taking this form but as Shrimati Radharani the loving mother of all living beings, he was expressing her compassion to all living beings. Shri Radha’s all forgiving motherly love for the fallen souls who had forsaken her, betrayed her since time immemorial but as the Supreme mother, she may not be pleased with us but whoever we are, whatever we’ve done, her love always remains the same. Its infinite, its inexhaustible, its unlimited and seeing the conditioned souls in this world, bereft of their natural spiritual happiness, broke her heart. This breaking of heart is not like the breaking of hearts in this world. Breaking hearts in this world is frustration due to something that we may not be able to control but it has happened to us due to attachment but her broken heart is an expression of her love, her desire for every living being to be happy. Shri Radha wants to see every living being again with Krishna and this was Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s mood. And he expressed his mood of Radharani’s compassionate side most openly to Lord Nityananda Prabhu.
Appearance of Lord Nityananda
Nityananda Prabhu appeared on this day, 13th day of the waxing moon in the month of Magh in Ekachakra. There was a massive drought in the whole area but as soon as Nitai came out from the womb of Padmavati as the son of Hadaipandit, there was beautiful rains and instantly crops, flowers and fruits and grains started growing abundantly. He was so beautiful and so kind nobody knew who he was that he was Balaram himself. He was God but he hid, he hid his opulences just so that he could enjoy and be enjoyed intimately by his Devotees. When he would sit on somebody’s lap, he had a beautiful golden complexion and his limbs were so soft, he is described like a little puppet made out of butter. And even if somebody had the most difficult problems in life, tremendous frustration, anxiety, disappointment, bewilderment they just took they knew if they just took Nitai on their lap and just looked at his beautiful lotus like eyes and saw his beaming smile whatever worries, frustrations, anxieties disappeared forever. They could never come back. What did that mean? Didn’t mean that the problems weren’t there. You see people who approach religion or spirituality or God with a material mind, were praying let the problems go away so I could be happy. But however much problems go away they come back either in this form or another form. But Nityananda’s little smile was only about this big but those little lips of his baby form had such power it mitigated all problems forever. How? Because you experienced such love, feeling his love that all the problems in the world were insignificant. That is the transcendental stage. Krishna tells in Gita…dukhalayam ashashvatam… In this material world birth, old age, disease and death are the nature. How could we really find deep happiness where there is birth, old age, disease and death? The real happiness is to go beyond it, to go deeper, to realize…param drisva ne varteta…that higher taste of experiencing Krishna’s love and once we experience Krishna’s love, our love naturally manifests. It’s reciprocal.
Lord Nityananda’s pastimes
So this was little Nitai in Ekachakra. He would just smile and everybody would be liberated forever. And when he got a little older or he started running around with friends day and night he would just play games but all his games were dramas enacting Krishna’s pastimes. And Nityananda Prabhu very small children 3 – 4 years old, 5 years old, 6 years he would do this, his whole childhood, all day. Sometimes when all the friends would go and Nityananda Prabhu would be the producer and the director and sometimes he was the main actor and he would put his all his friends in perfect little costumes, someone would play Kaliya and he would play Krishna and then he would sometimes even Kamsa, do Ram’s Lila, Krishna’s Lila, Datatreya’s Lila, Varaha’s Lila, Narsimha’s Lila and was so perfect and usually because he would be with his friends all day, they would play parents would get angry but because all the children were with Nityananda, they were completely happy.
Nitai’s travel to different Holy places
One time they asked little Nitai how do you know all the lines of the scriptures so perfectly in all these dramatic little performances you do. And he spoke the truth but nobody could understand. He smiled and said these are my pastimes. So can you imagine how thoroughly attached they became to him but then when he was 12 years old, this sanyasi came to the house of Hadaipandit and spoke the whole night about Krishna and then the next morning, Hadaipandit said I am your servant, ask anything of me and I will give you. Of course he was a Brahman, he didn’t have much. The sanyasi said please give me your son Nityananda because I am on a pilgrimage and I require a nice assistant. Now in those days when you give a 12 year old boy to a sanyasi you probably will never ever, ever see him again. There was no emails or anything to keep contact with each other. He was travelling all over. He was going to be travelling to the peaks of the Himalayas into the shores of South India, everywhere. Although this is the most painful thing Hadaipandit and Padmavati, they understood they gave their word and they must fulfill it. And little Nitai, he just blissfully left home. But then when he left, the parents realized what they had just done. They just gave away their son, they gave away their life, their soul, their everything, the only thing they lived for. And when the news spread to Ekachakra everyone in the village felt the same way. People were running in all directions looking for the Swami and they all had the same determination, when we find him we’ll give him our sons but let us have Nityananda back. Because everyone loved Nityananda more than they loved their own lives, their own family, their own everything. But he was gone. Hadaipandit could not eat, he could not sleep for weeks and weeks. The only thing that kept him alive was remembrance of Nityananda. And ultimately some months later chanting the name Nitaichand, he passed from the world and Padmavati also. Meanwhile Nityananda Prabhu travelled for about 20 years going to holy places but he never told anyone about Krishna because he came to be the instrument of Lord Chaitanya’s compassion. And then when he heard news he would go to holy places including Vrindavan, it was there and he would ask people where is Krishna, I don’t see Krishna and they said oh! Krishna, he is in a beautiful golden form now living in Nadia. If you want to find him, you have to go there. So when Lord Chaitanya started the Sankirtana movement, Nityananda Prabhu and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu met at the house of Shri Nandan acharya. And from that time, the two brothers were together. The next day Lord Chaitanya brought Lord Nityananda to meet Sachidevi and for those of you who know the story, Sachidevi’s elder son Vishwaroop left home and took Sanyas when he was a young man also and she never saw him again but Vishwaroop was an expansion of Nityananda. They were identically the same person in two different forms. So when Sachidevi first saw Nityananda Prabhu the same exact ecstatic ‘bhav’ of her heart for her elder son Vishwaroop and even more awakened in her heart and she embraced Nityananda – you are my son, you are my son, you are my very son.
Lord Chaitanya’s order to Lord Nityananda
And Nitai and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu were most intimate brothers enjoying beautiful kirtans together. When we read in the song by Thakur Bhaktivinoda how Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in His spirit of Shrimati Radharani’s motherly love for every living being would reveal His mind to Nityananda Prabhu. Because they were one and the same person, Nitai Gaurachandra in two forms, but Nityananda Prabhu was always in the mood of the servant. Nityananda prabhu knew Lord Chaitanya’s heart so perfectly and there are so many occasions where Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, as Devamrita Maharaj was saying this morning, wanted to teach lessons to the world but Nityananda Prabhu knew his heart, he knew his intentions so perfectly. Therefore the Lord revealed his heart so intimately to Nitai. In the mood of Shri Radha, Lord Chaitanya would weep, he would cry to see people committing sinful activities, binding themselves with Karma in which they would have to suffer so bad. And even pious people who would be generally become very very proud of their piety and never humble themselves sincerely with devotion to God. Literally this broke the heart of Lord Chaitanya. And one day he approached Haridas Thakur and Nityananda Prabhu with an astonishing request, not a request an order. Something no one has ever done. He said I want you to go to every house door to door, to every marketplace, shop to shop, on the street, person to person and give this message – Krishna is your mother, Krishna is your father, Krishna is your real wealth, Krishna is your very life and soul, chant Krishna’s names, worship Krishna, speak about Krishna and if you do so you will be my very life and soul. Lord Chaitanya was so kind when he personally asked people to do this if anyone whoever they were, whatever they did in the past if they would just take Krishna’s names sincerely Lord Chaitanya would personally put a garland on their necks, He would embrace them with tears in his eyes. He would express His debt to them and what do they do. They just accepted his love. He would tell these people you are my life and soul for accepting my love. But there were people who Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu had not approached. He wanted Nityananda Prabhu and Thakur Haridas to reach everyone and he told them do not discriminate who is fit or who is unfit. And Nityananda Prabhu, please understand, he was an ascetic, he was in the renounced order of life since he was 12 years old. And he was going house to house, person to person and when they would see an ascetic, a renunciate coming to their house, they all knew what they wanted – some donation, isn’t that what swamis do when they come to your house. Now in those days, there were many ascetics and it was a common thing. Pious people would just take a handful of rice and put it in their bag and they would go house to house and get a few handfuls of rice and then they would eat that day. When Nityananda Prabhu came they saw another ascetic, ok here’s the rice, and he would fold his palms with tears in his eyes and say I don’t want anything from you. I don’t want your rice. I only want to give you something. What? You have come as a beggar to give me something. He said yes. I’ve come to give you this blessing. Please do this one thing for me chant the names of Krishna, worship Krishna, don’t you understand that the highest bliss that you are always looking for birth after birth is within your own heart, it’s your love for God. This chanting of the holy names will awaken your love for God. Krishna has appeared as Lord Gauranga to give this greatest of all benedictions, take the name of Krishna, be grateful to Krishna and make your life perfect. That’s all I ask of you. Some people were very suspicious but he was so sincere that he melted their hearts. Other people they refused, who are you, a beggar to tell me what to do. At that time Nityananda who is so Supreme, absolute truth, the creator of all the universes, the God of the bible who throws thunderbolts and destroys civilizations, who can condemn you to suffering or enjoyment, source of the avataars that we read about like Narasimhadev or Balaram. And here he is in his original form begging envious, corrupt people please be happy and take the name of God. You see Nityananda Prabhu’s mood was for everyone but he especially focused on the people who were in the worst condition, who were the most corrupt and sinful. Just like the body, when the body is injured, then the maximum energy of the whole body goes to that injured part. Yes that’s the way God made the body. If you sprain your finger, then the maximum energy of your whole body is going to be to bring blood and bring so much energy to heal that wound. In the same way, Lord Chaitanya, Lord Nityananda, wherever there was the worst problem in human consciousness they would focus on putting the maximum energy there. Some people to Lord Nityananda, ah, who are you telling me what to do – out from here. And Haridas and Nityananda were getting a really bad reputation. People were spreading horrible rumors, don’t let them come to your house. They are thieves, they are robbers, they are hypocrites. Who do they think they are? They are coming to your house, they are looking inside to see what you have and then at night they’ll come and beat you and rob you. And here is the Lord, such horrible accusations and blasphemies and rumors against Him. But they carried on. Lochandas Thakur explains to such people Lord Nityananda would fall at their feet and he would roll around like a golden mountain in the dust with tears in his eyes, begging whatever you say I don’t mind but it breaks my heart to see you forgetting the jewel of your life. Chant the holy names.
Deliverance of Jagai and Madai
And then when they met Jagai and Madhai, we won’t tell the whole story, just trying to be in the mood of Nityananda not wanting to see anyone suffer. A 1000 people in this small room is tapasya. So they saw this Jagai and Madhai and please understand these were terrible, terrible people and Nityananda and Haridas saw them, drunk state. Every sentence that they spoke had several what we would call four letter words. Nasty language, they were violent. Nityanand and Haridas found out that they were murderers, they were thieves, they would burn people’s house. Every day they would rape innocent women and no one could stop them because they actually had government power. Chandkazi actually gave them powers. They practically ruled over Nadia. People were extremely afraid. Wherever they made their camp, people were terrified and nobody could stop them. And they had a whole crew of vicious, killing bandits. When Nityananda Prabhu approached them, and asked them I hate to see you suffering like this. Just take the name of Krishna and be happy. Krishna is your mother, Krishna is your father, Krishna is your life and soul. Now Jagai and Madhai were tantrics, black tantrics. According to historians when the moguls invaded India, most Hindus were very, very non-violent kind of people. So this black tantricism was very much promoted amongst certain places to make people really harsh and violent. And their particular religion was to drink intoxication, to eat, to slaughter animals and eat their flesh and blood, to have all sorts of obscene violations of sexual relationships. It was meant to make people very, very passionate, very violent and very cruel. So that those people would actually stand up against other cruel people. Please understand, in those days, black tantrics, they were powerful, dangerous and vicious and Jagai and Madhai were the kings. They would slaughter people. Anyone they dint like, immediately they’d kill him and nobody could say anything. And their sense gratification was to come to your house when you are sleeping and light it on fire and watch it burn and anyone inside. Horrible people. And they hated vaishnavas because they considered vaishnavas to be degrading society because these black tantrics, they were proud of being powerful, violent, harsh men. And they considered vaishnavas made men feminine. All this humble stuff, being humble and forgiving and gentle and honest and pious. Oof!! How will we ever conquer our invaders if people are like this? So literally they hated vaishnavas. They considered it one of the greatest threat for people to become vaishnavas. So here’s Nityananda Prabhu telling him to chant Krishna’s name which is vaishnava. They were very mad, very angry. But we know the story. Nityananda kept coming back even though they chased them and threatened to kill them and eventually Nityananda went back again and Madhai picked up a big pot and with all of his strength and he was really strong, he smashed Nityananda Prabhu on the forehead with it and blood started gushing over his eyes, drenching his clothes. And Nityananda Prabhu is trying to hold the blood but then he slipped up with Madhai. It doesn’t hurt me that you hit my head but it hurts me that you are going to have to suffer so much. Just take the name of Krishna, give up these activities of yours. When Lord Chaitanya heard about this, with an army of devotees, he approached and called for his sudarshan chakra. But let me tell you a secret about Nityananda Prabhu, that our acharyas reveal. When he got hit on the head, he was especially in ecstasy. The reason because Madhai wouldn’t listen to Nityananda Prabhu but Nityananda Prabhu never considered that he had the power to deliver anyone. He considered the entire power was from Lord Chaitanya. This was his mood in the role of a devotee that I am just giving Lord Chaitanya’s instruction and that instruction is all powerful. And by giving these instructions I can connect them to Lord Gauranga and Lord Gauranga could deliver anyone and everyone to the highest platform of spiritual love. Now Jagai and Madhai refused Nityananda Prabhu, there is nothing I can do for them. But then when he was hit on the head and really hard and he was bleeding, he was ecstatic because he knew that now Lord Chaitanya is going to personally come to deliver them. And his strategy worked. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu came and Nityananda Prabhu’s feeling was when Mahaprabhu comes he has to come when his own devotee is bleeding like this and he is going to come before them and they are going to surrender to him and then my Lord is going to give them pure love of God. But something happened. When Lord Chaitanya comes, Madhai did not surrender to him. So Lord Chaitanya with a red cove and angry eyes he called for his sudarshan chakra and the chakra came and this is the chakra of universal destruction, appeared on Lord Chaitanya’s hand. And Nityananda Prabhu, He said to Lord Chaitanya because He knew Lord Chaitanya’s heart. Here Lord Chaitanya is appearing to be in such an angry mood, He wants to kill these people. But Nityananda prays to him. Actually in previous avatars, in previous incarnations you did these things to the most sinful people but in this incarnation we don’t do this. We forgive them and give them pure love of God and make them happy. But that didn’t work. Then Nityananda Prabhu said actually it doesn’t even hurt. To be honest with you Madhai accidentally hit me. He didn’t really mean it. And it is just a slight cut and it doesn’t hurt. But that didn’t work either. Then he said but you know he would have killed me but Jagai stopped him you see, his hand was holding Madhai’s hand. He stopped him from hurting me, he saved me. And then Lord Chaitanya, Oh! Jagai you helped my devotee. I will give you love of God today. And the chakra disappeared. And then Madhai, his heart changed and he said please give me love of God too. Nityananda said if I have done anything to please you in my life, I don’t ask anything in return except this. Give love of God to Madhai and forgive him, that’s all I ask of you. And Lord Chaitanya said to Madhai. Madhai he was very much afraid, he said you just gave my brother love of God. Whatever I did he did, so give it to me too. Said you have hurt Nityananda, turn to him. Only he can save you. And he fell at Nityananda’s feet and Nityananda gave him to Lord Chaitanya and they both gave him a simple instruction. Just stop causing harm to others, be humble, grateful and live by a pure lifestyle and chant the names of God. And when they agreed to do that they gave them the highest perfection…deena heena yata chilo, harinäme uddhärilo, tära säkñé jagäi mädhäi… Just by giving them God’s names, he gave the two most notorious gangsters such humble lives of love, so much so that Jagai and Madhai, all they wanted to do for the rest of their lives was just serve others and love others. This was Lord Nityananda Prabhu.
Pastimes indicating Lord Nityanada knew Lord Chaitanya’s heart
I will tell a few more instances of how the Lord knew, how Nityananda Prabhu knew Lord Chaitanya’s compassion and heart. After the Lord took sannyas, he was going to Vrindavan but Nityananda Prabhu knew in his heart that Lord Chaitanya wanted to give pleasure to his devotees who were so much in anguish because he left home. So he had a little cowherd boy give Lord Chaitanya the wrong directions to send him in the opposite way back to meet his devotees. Lord Chaitanya chastised him. But it’s really what the Lord wanted.
Breaking of Danda pastime
And Devamrit Maharaj talked about this breaking of the danda. Nityananda Prabhu was asked to hold the danda when Mahaprabhu was going to have darshan of Koteshwar Mahadev and he looked at the danda and he said the very Lord who I carry in my heart is carrying you, this is not right. Broke it in three places. And Lord Chaitanya appeared angry but this is actually what the Lord wanted.
Pastime of Lord Nityananda’s arrangements for king Prataprudra
And then there was the king Prataparudra. Because Lord Chaitanya was a sanyasi, one in renunciation and in those days there was very strict cultural principles. Today they are not so much but if a renunciate, a swami mixes with people who are in very high material positions then people will think that they are after their money or they are after some enjoyment. So Lord Chaitanya would not meet and the King Prataparudra, he wanted so much to see Lord Chaitanya but Lord Chaitanya to show this external example of the proper etiquette, he refused to see the king and the king decided I will give up my kingdom and become a beggar if I can get the mercy of the Lord. But Nityananda knew his heart and he started making all arrangements. He brought some cloth of the Lord to the king, he brought the Lord’s son and ultimately he arranged for the Lord to meet the king in a very special way.
Pastime of KalaKrishna das shown mercy by Lord Nityananda
Similarly when KalaKrishnadas, KalaKrishnadas was a assistant of the Lord who engaged in immoral activities and betrayed the Lord while they were travelling. He abandoned the Lord, so Lord Chaitanya said to KalaKrishnadas or he said to the devotees when they returned to Puri, I don’t want to see him, he can go anywhere he wants. So Lord Nityananda went out of his way to give him service. Now what is it that he was doing? He was doing what Lord Chaitanya in his heart wanted to do. So simultaneously they are one person serving the same purpose in different ways. In these instances Lord Chaitanya is teaching the principle that people have to follow and Lord Nityananda is showing his mercy.
Pastime of Chota Haridas shown mercy by Lord Nityananda
Chota Haridas, Lord Chaitanya was very strong on Chota Haridas for improper behavior. But Nityanada Prabhu was always begging Lord Chaitanya please be kind to him, always trying to encourage him. Because the feminine energy, the feminine nature of God is all forgiving, all kind, all compassionate, the Supreme mother. And this was the spirit of Radharani that Mahaprabhu was manifesting in his compassionate side. And Nityananda Prabhu as his most intimate associate was the very instrument of that compassion. The soul of every living being is pure, the soul of every living being is intimately loved by God.
Srila Prabhupad’s carry forward’s the mission of Lord Nityananda
Nityananda Prabhu saw everything on that platform and interestingly, our beloved Gurumaharaj, Srila Prabhupada, how similar his mission was to Lord Nityananda’s. Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati in 1922, gave Prabhupada practically the same instruction as Lord Chaitanya gave to Lord Nityananda. Go to the west. Now without discrimination give love of God in the English language all over the world. Whose ever given an instruction like that before and in the spirit of Nityananda Prabhu, Prabhupada took that as his life and soul and he went. Just as Nityananda Prabhu was like a beggar, an ascetic beggar going house to house, Srila Prabhupada arrived in New York City with no money whatsoever. He did not know anyone. Just an instrument of the compassion of Lord Chaitanya and Lord Nityananda. So it is that mercy, it is that kindness of Nityananda that so perfectly and fully manifested through Srila Prabhupada’s heart. And that is what touched our lives. All of us here today to bring us such joy such hope and such love.
On this holy day let us pray…Nitai padakamala kotichandrashushithala ye jayaya jagat judai… The lotus feet of Lord Nityananda are most refreshingly cool like tens and millions of moons and one who takes shelter receives shade from the scorching heat of material existence. If we are just grateful for this gift of God’s love coming through Nityananda, Srila Prabhupada then our hearts will be a fertile field for that love to grow. And not only transform our own lives but we could be instruments to transform so many other lives through the chanting of the holy names…Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare…Thank you very much.
