MAHAPRABHU’S SANNYAS
They all opposed Mahaprabhu’s sannyasa. Some of them raised their voices in protest: “You—Kesava Bharati! We won’t allow you to give sannyasa to this young man. He has a family, his mother and wife. We won’t allow it. If you give sannyasa to this charming, young, beautiful boy, we will break down your asrama immediately. It can’t be!”
But Nimai Pandita kept pressing for sannyasa. At last, Kesava Bharati asked him, “So, you are that Nimai Pandita about whom we have heard so much? Many big scholars came to conquer Navadwipa, the famous seat of learning, and You have defeated them all. Are You that Nimai Pandita?” “Yes,” said Nimai. Kesava Bharati told him, “I can give You sannyasa, but You must take the permission of Your mother—otherwise I won’t, I can’t do it.” Nimai suddenly began running towards Navadwipa to ask permission, but Kesava Bharati thought, “He has such a commanding personality, He can do anything.”
Nimai was called back. Kesava Bharati told him, “With Your most extraordinary personality You can do anything. You will go there, charm Your guardians, get permission, and return. Nothing is impossible for You.”
The ordinary public was very much enraged, saying to Kesava Bharati, “We can’t allow you, Swamiji, to give sannyasa to this young boy. It is impossible! If you do, then we shall smash your asrama.” Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu began performing kirtana, chanting Hare Krishna and dancing madly. And the angry mob grew, sometimes creating a disturbance. In this way the whole day passed with no decision. The night passed in sankirtana. And the next day, Nimai’s will prevailed, although there was still some opposition.
TEARS FROM THE EYES OF MILLIONS
Nityananda Prabhu, along with Nimai’s maternal uncle Candrasekhara, Mukunda Datta and Jagadananda Pandita, gradually arrived there. And that afternoon, the sannyasa function began. Candrasekhara Acarya was asked to perform the ceremony on behalf of Nimai Pandita, who began to chant and dance and charm the audience.
laksa-locanasru-varsa-harsa-kesa-kartanam
koti-kantha-krsna-kirtanadhya-danda-dharanam
nyasi-vesa-sarva-desa-ha-hutasa-kastaram
prema-dhama-devam eva naumi gaura-sundaram
“While showers of tears fell from the eyes of millions, He delighted in having His beautiful hair shaved away. Millions of voices sang the glories of Krishna, as Sri Krishna Chaitanya accepted the staff of renunciation. From that time on, wherever He went, whoever saw Him in the dress of a sannyasi cried in grief. I sing the glories of that beautiful Golden God, the giver of divine love.”
The scene was at Katwa. Four-hundred and seventy-four years ago, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu took sannyasa. He was young and beautiful, with a tall figure. He was only twenty-four and had beautiful curling hair. A barber was asked to shave Him, and approached Him, but then withdrew. The barber could not venture to touch Nimai’s body. He began to cry. “How can I remove such beautiful hair from such a beautiful head?”
And so many others were also crying aloud, “What a horrible thing is being done here! Who is the creator of this sannyasa? Who is so hard-hearted that he created the sannyasa-asrama, where one must give up all that is near and dear and go from door to door, begging, leaving his own friends and relatives crying helplessly? What is this creation of the Supreme? Is it logical? Is it a happy thing? It is most cruel!”
Nimai Pandita was smiling. After the barber was ordered repeatedly, somehow he was forced to shave Nimai’s head. At first, he could not venture to touch His hair, saying, “I can’t touch Him.” But at last, he had to do the service of shaving the beautiful, curling hair of the beautiful face of the twenty-four year old genius boy. He began with his shears. Some people could not stand the scene. Some even became mad. In the midst of the weeping, wailing, and crying of the threatening mob, it was done.
Nimai Pandita was senseless. After being only half-shaved, He stood up and began chanting in kirtana and dancing in ecstatic joy. After He was shaved, the barber promised, “I will never again shave anyone with this hand! I would rather live by begging. This is my last service as a barber.” After this, that barber took up the occupation of a sweetmaker.
Ultimately Nimai’s appeals pacified the mob, and a little before noon the inevitable gradually came: the sannyasa function was performed. Candrasekara Acarya, the maternal uncle of Nimai Pandita, was deputed to take charge of the rituals in the ceremony of sannyasa. When the mantra was to be conferred, Nimai Pandita asked Kesava Bharati, “Is this the mantra you will give me? I heard it in a dream.” He whispered the mantra in the ear of his guru who accepted, saying, “Yes, this is the mantra I shall give You.” Then that mantra was given.
And the name of this sannyasi was not given in an ordinary way either. A most peculiar name came through Kesava Bharati: “Krishna Chaitanya.” None of the ten names generally given to sannyasis was given to Nimai Pandita, but the name that was given to Him was Krishna Chaitanya. As soon as they heard that name, the mob began to cry, “Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu ki jaya!” “All glories to Sri Krishna Chaitanya!”
The father of Srinivasa Acarya was a class-friend of Nimai Pandita. On his way to his father-in-law’s house, he heard that Nimai Pandita had come to take sannyasa. He ran there, and seeing everything, he became dumb—he was devastated and went half-mad. After that, nothing came from his mouth but “Chaitanya!” After he heard the name “Krishna Chaitanya,” whatever anyone said to him, he would only say, “Chaitanya!” He became mad. After that, his name became Chaitanya dasa. His former name vanished, and everyone used to call him Chaitanya dasa. He could not stand the scene of Nimai Pandita’s sannyasa.
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, newly dressed in red robes, embraced His guru, and both of them began to dance, chanting the name of Krishna. After some time, the meaning of the name was given. Kesava Bharati Maharaja said, “Sri Krishna Chaitanya means that You arouse Krishna consciousness throughout the entire world. You have descended to make all people Krishna conscious. So the most suitable name for You cannot but be Sri Krishna Chaitanya.”
THE NECTARINE WORLD
Mahaprabhu was very cheerful, thinking, “I am going to relieve so many souls from their eternal misery and affliction. I have promised to deliver the whole world from this ocean of misery and take them to the nectarine world, and now I am going to accept that task.” He was cheerful, but everyone around Him was diving in the ocean of despair and sorrow.
Some scholars stress that Chaitanya Mahaprabhu took sannyasa from Kesava Bharati, who was a mayavadi, an impersonalist. But although Kesava Bharati may have externally showed himself in that way, it is seen that by coming in connection with Mahaprabhu, he became a devotee. Otherwise, we may also think that he was a devotee who came in the garb of an impersonalist to help the preaching of Mahaprabhu by assisting Him with the social formality of taking sannyasa. At that time, all over India, mayavadi sannyasis had greater recognition than Vaisnava sannyasis, and Kesava Bharati was already situated in that post. Mahaprabhu took the garb of a sannyasi from him for His own purpose, to help His preaching activity. All these things may be explained in different ways. In any case, after Mahaprabhu took sannyasa, Kesava Bharati began to sing and dance with Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. He joined in sankirtana and was immediately converted.
KRISHNA CONCEPTION: UNION IN SEPARATION
In this way, the sannyasa of Nimai Pandita took place. What is the meaning of His sannyasa? Is it redundant, auxiliary, or a necessary part of spiritual advancement? Is it desirable? Although apparently undesirable, still it has its necessity. In the Krishna conception of theism, there is a deep-rooted correlation between union with the Lord and separation from Him. Without separation, union cannot be deep-rooted. The pain of separation can enter into the depth of the heart much more than cheerfulness. Such apprehension increases our satisfaction. The greater our want, the greater our satisfaction. This is especially true in love affairs. If there is no necessity of a thing, it has no value. This principle is found everywhere. A glass of water is ordinary, but according to the degree of its necessity, its value will increase. So the degree of necessity is most important. Necessity means separation. Necessity independent of fulfillment is separation, hunger.
Separation plays the most important part in both Navadwipa and Vrndavana lila. How many years of union were there between Krishna and the gopis? Krishna was only in Vrndavana from the age of seven years up to the age of twelve: five years. Then, He went to Mathura. Of course, it is mentioned in the Padma Purana that in peculiar or extraordinary cases, growth should be measured by multiplying by one and a half. So when Krishna is eight years old, He should be considered twelve. When He is twelve, He should be considered eighteen years of age. So according to His growth, Krishna was in Vrndavana from the age of twelve to eighteen, but according to His years, from the age of seven to twelve.
THE DEPTH OF DIVINE LOVE
He stayed in Dvaraka for a long time; altogether He lived here on this Earth for one hundred and twenty-five years. After He left Vrndavana at the age of twelve, the pangs of separation were felt by the gopis throughout their whole lives. Their long, long separation has made their devotion so dignified; the test of separation shows whether love is real. Such a long-standing separation and such a great test has never been found in history; still, the depth of their love did not diminish. Rather, an inconceivable, ever increasing depth of divine love was found there.
And in both Navadwipa and Vrndavana, the background is almost similar. In Navadwipa, to gain victory over the opposition party, Mahaprabhu left His household life. And in vrndavana-lila it is also similar. The opposition in vrndavana-lila came from Mathura in the form of Agha, Baka, Putana, Trnavarta, and other demons who were being sent by King Kamsa. To uproot the opposition, Krishna had to go to Mathura. And when He went there, He found that the opposition was widespread. Kamsa’s father-in-law, Jarasandha, Kalayavana, Sisupala, Dantavakra, and many others were inimical to Krishna. So Krishna promised the gopis that after finishing His enemies, He would return to Vrndavana to play peacefully with them. To uproot the opposition party, Krishna had to go away. And He told the gopis in Kuruksetra, “I have some other enemies; after finishing with them, I will be reunited with you.” That sort of hope was given to the gopis in Kuruksetra.
Here also, to conquer the opposition party, Mahaprabhu had to leave Navadwipa. Later, after His conquest of all the Indian scholars and religionists of different positions and creeds, after five years, when He returned to Navadwipa, everyone was transformed. The mass approached Him madly. It is difficult to conceive with what madness the mass approached Sri Chaitanyadeva, the child of their own village..
This chapter, “A Tragedy of Separation,” is excerpted from The Golden Volcano of Divine Love, a book by Srila Sridhar Maharaj that was published in 1983 to commemorate the Five Hundredth Anniversary of the Appearance of Sri Krishna Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
MAHAPRABHU’S SANNYAS
A great tragedy
We must return back to Godhead, back to home. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu says, “Your home is a beautiful land. You must try for that. Why are you always troubled with the horrors of war, epidemic, earthquake, undesirable disease, stealing, dacoiting, and fighting with so many neighbors? At the bottom of all this is the fact that you have identified yourself with this material world and this body of flesh and blood. You have to retrace your path and go back to your home.” That is what is necessary. Our homeland is such a lovely and beautiful and divine place. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s sannyasa is all for us, and it is for the purpose of taking us back home, where we can have home comforts, home sweetness. If we have any home-consciousness within, then we must appreciate such a proposal: home sweet home.
Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu’s sannyasa is apparently very cruel to His devotees, and to His family members, but it was meant only to take us to our home. To work out the ecstasy of union, it was necessary for Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu to show separation from His devotees and relatives. Separation and union are mutually helpful. Mahaprabhu’s sannyasa, His renunciation, is a great tragedy of separation.
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