Lord Nityananda's grand bathing at the house of Raghava Pandita

Nityananda Charitamrita, Antya Khanda Chapter 4

Lord Nityananda's grand bathing at the house of Raghava Pandita

O brothers, listen attentively to the topics of Antya-khanda that describe the pastimes of Nitaicandra. One day Shri Gaurasundara, the Supreme Personality of Godhead appearing in human form, sat alone with Nityananda.



prabhu bale suna nityananda mahamati
satvare calaha tumi navadvipa prati
pratigya kariya achi apanara mukhe
murkha nica daridra bhasaba prema sukhe
tumio thakila yadi muni dharma kari
apana uddama bhava saba parihari
tabe murkha nica yata patita samsara
bala dekhi ara keba kariba uddhara
bhakti rasa data tumi tumi sasvarile
tabe avatara ba ki nimitte karile
eteke amara vakya yadi satya cao
tabe avilambe tumi gaudadesa yao
murkha nica patita duhkhiya yata jana
bhakti diya kara giya sabare mocana



Lord Gauranga said, "Listen, magnanimous Nityananda. Go immediately to Navadvipa. I promised that I would drown everyone, including fools, fallen, and sinners, in the ocean of krishna-prema. If You remain here with me as an ascetic, keeping a vow of silence and concealing Your enthusiasm, who will deliver the fallen souls of this world? You are the bestower of love and devotion. Please tell me, if You must always check Yourself, what's the use of Your incarnation? If You want to make My words true, go to Bengal at once. Deliver everyone by giving prema-bhakti to all the foolish, fallen, low class and the distressed."

Instructed by Lord Gauranga, Nityananda Prabhu promptly left for Bengal with His own associates. Ramadasa, Gadadharadasa, and Raghunatha Vaidya, who were filled with love and devotion, Krishnadasa Pandita, Paramesvara dasa, and the most blissful Purandara Pandita all went with Nityananda Svarupa to Bengal. As He began His journey, He first induced His associates to become ecstatic. They all forgot themselves. There was no end to the ecstatic symptoms that arose in their bodies. For example, the mood of Shri Gopala manifested in the body of Ramadasa the foremost among the Vaishnavas. On the way, Ramadasa transfigured into a threefold bending form and remained unconscious for nine hours.

Gadadhara dasa absorbed in the mood of Radhika suddenly began to laugh loudly saying, "Who will buy yogurt?" The broad-minded Raghunatha Vaidya Upadhyaya displayed the mood of Revati. Both Krishnadasa and Paramesvara dasa constantly created mischief in the mood of cowherd boys. Purandara Pandita climbed on a tree and jumped down saying, "I am the great Angada." Nityananda Prabhu, the origin of Shri Ananta, inspired everyone to revive his original mood.

They walked very fast, sometimes forgetting themselves and walking in the wrong direction. They often asked the local people, "Brothers, please tell us how to reach the bank of the Ganges." People would reply, "Alas, alas! You're on the wrong path. You just wasted six hours of your journey." Getting proper directions, they would return to their original path. When they again asked for the right way, the people told them to take a twenty-mile detour to reach the original path. All of them smilingly walked along the road. They did not know their own selves, what to speak of the roads. None of them felt the urges of the body such as hunger, thirst, fear, or distress. They were totally merged in bliss. No one can describe the unlimited pastimes Nityananda Prabhu did on the way to Bengal. Nityananda, the source of Shri Ananta, finally reached the village of Panihati* on the bank of the Ganges.

Nityananda Prabhu along with His devotees arrived at the house of Raghava Pandita* at Panihati. Raghava Pandita was overjoyed to see Nityananda Prabhu. Shri Makaradhvaja Kara* who was a disciple of Raghava Pandita also became very happy.

Nityananda Prabhu along with His associates lived happily in the village of Panihati. He would roar loudly in of ecstasy. Always overwhelmed with prema, he would go into rapturous trance. When Nityananda desired to dance, three famous singers quickly assembled there. The most pious Madhava Ghosha was expert in doing kirtana. There was no better singer in the world. He was known as the singer of Vrindavana and was very dear to Nityananda Svarupa. As the three brothers Madhava, Govinda, and Vasudeva began to sing, the Supreme Lord Nityananda Prabhu began to dance. When the most powerful Avadhuta Nityananda danced, it seemed like the earth shook with every step.

Nityananda continually chanted the name of Hari and shouted loudly. Seeing His tottering dancing, people were struck with wonder. Sometimes He glanced on someone while dancing. That person would fall on the ground filled with love of God and transcendental mellows. This marked the auspicious beginning of Lord Nityananda's deliverance of the fallen souls. He danced for a long time showing all the signs of ecstatic love.

After some time, He sat down on a throne and ordered His servants to do abhisheka to Him. All His devotees headed by Raghava Pandita quickly arranged the abhisheka bringing thousands of pitchers of Ganges water mixed with various perfumes. With great satisfaction, they poured this scented water on the head of Lord Nityananda. Everyone chanted "Hari, Hari!" on all sides. They all recited suitable mantras while doing abhisheka and sang His glorification. All His associates submerged in the ocean of bliss. After abhisheka, they put new cloth on Him and applied sandalwood paste to His body. They decorated His broad chest with beautiful flower garlands mixed with Tulasi. They set a throne decorated with gold before the Lord. Lord Nityananda sat on the throne while Shri Raghavananda held an umbrella above His head. The devotees began to glorify Him and there arose a crying sound on all sides. Everyone raised their hands and exclaimed, "Save us!" They all went into a rapture of krishna-prema.

Lord Nityananda, absorbed in His own blissful mood, glanced at everyone showering prema, love of God, on them. Nityananda Prabhu ordered, "Raghava Pandita, please make a garland of kadamba flowers and bring it to me quickly. I am very fond of kadamba flowers. In fact I always reside in the forest of kadamba."
Raghavananda folded his hands and said, "Lord, it's not the season for kadamba trees to flower."

Lord Nityananda said, "Go home and look carefully. There may be a flower or two some place." Raghava Pandita straight away went to his house. To his complete surprise, he saw something most wonderful! Beautiful kadamba flowers blossomed on the lemon tree in his courtyard. How wonderful were the colors and fragrance of those flowers! Just seeing them frees one from material bondage. Seeing those beautiful kadamba flowers, Raghava Pandita began to swoon in ecstasy. Controlling himself, he quickly made a garland of kadamba flowers and brought it before Lord Nityananda. Nityananda Prabhu was very pleased and put the garland on at once.

The sweet fragrance of kadamba flowers overwhelmed the Vaishnavas and they all felt very happy. Suddenly the most wonderful thing happened. Everyone could smell the scent of some wonderful flowers. The enchanting aroma of damanaka flowers filled all the ten directions.

Nityananda Prabhu smilingly said, "Listen, brothers. Can you tell Me what you smell?" Everyone folded their hands and replied, "We smell the fragrance of wonderful flowers; the smell comes from all directions." Nityananda, out of His causeless mercy, began to explain most confidential topics. "Listen to the mystery, for you must know the truth in detail. Today, Chaitanya Gosai came here from Nilacala to hear our kirtana. He wore a garland of damanaka flowers and sat in a tree unseen. All the four directions filled with the aroma of that wonderful garland. To see your chanting and dancing, the Lord came from Nilacala. Give up all other affairs and always sing the glories of Krishna. May all of you forever glorify Shri Krishna Chaitanyacandra and be fully merged in the ocean of krishna-prema."

Saying this, Nityananda Prabhu shouted loudly and showered love of God on all directions. Being drenched in the rain of prema, everyone swooned in ecstasy.

O dear brothers, please hear the potency of Nityananda Prabhu how He awarded prema-bhakti to everyone in this world. By His mercy, everyone easily received the prema-bhakti of the gopis of Vrindavana described in Shrimad-Bhagavatam.

As Nityananda sat on the gold throne, all His associates continued to dance in front of Him. Someone climbed a tree, walked on the leaves, and yet did not fall down. Out of ecstasy, someone shouted loudly and jumped down from a tree. Someone roared like a lion and caught the root of the tree, pulling it out of the ground while chanting "Hari! Hari!" Someone went to the forest of betel nuts and gathered five or six trees together. With immense strength due to love of God, he uprooted them all.

All the symptoms of love mentioned in Shrimad-Bhagavatam, such as shedding tears, being stunned, heavy breathing, perspiring, hair standing on end, roaring loudly, faltering of voice, paleness, and falling unconscious were fully manifest in the bodies of everyone by the causeless mercy of Lord Nityananda. In any direction Nityananda Mahasaya mercifully glanced, he showered love and devotion. Anyone Nityananda looked upon would fall unconscious due to ecstatic krishna-prema. They would try to catch hold of Nityananda Svarupa who smiled sitting on His golden throne. Lord Nityananda invested His energies in all His chief associates. They became omniscient; their words became perfect. They looked as beautiful as Cupid. Whomever they touched with their hands was overwhelmed with love of God and forgot everything. Nityananda Prabhu lived like this in the village of Panihati for three months and continued His pastimes of distributing love and devotion.

For three months, all the devotees were lost in ecstatic trance. They stopped all bodily activities. They did not eat for three months. All they did was continuously dance in ecstatic bliss. The blissful pastimes Nityananda Prabhu enjoyed in the village of Panihati will be described in the four Vedas. Who can describe the extent of the pastimes Lord Nityananda performed within one and a half hours? From time to time, He would personally dance with His devotees on all sides. Sometimes, He would sit down in a hero's posture and encourage all the devotees to dance. The dancing of only one of His servants flooded all the surroundings with krishna-prema.