The First Gaura Purnima Festival The Journey to Kheturi

In the morning the travelling party started for Kantaka Nagara and on their way Krsnadasa of Akaihata joined them. Yadunandana and others warmly welcomed them to the house of Gauranga. Meanwhile Sri Raghunandana and his companions from Sri Khanda arrived there on their way to Kheturi. The numerous mahantas in their party which was travelling to Kheturi included Sivananda, Baninath Vraja, Vallabha, Caitanyadasa, Sri Hari Acarya, Bhagavata Acarya, Nartaka Gopala, Jita Misra, Kasinath Misra, Nayana Misra, Kastakata Jagannatha, Uddhava, Sri Puspha Gopala, Raghunatha, Laksminath Pandita and others. People of the village took great pleasure in the meeting of the Vaisnavas. When the mahantas visited the place from where Mahaprabhu had started his ascetic life they shed tears in grief. By the wish of Mahaprabhu they controlled their emotions after sometime. They were glad to hear that Dasa Gadadhara had seen Sri Gauranga in his dream.

Sri Jahnava cooked various types of delicious food which she first offered to Gaura Candra and then fed affectionately to the different mahantas. Sri Yadunandana and his followers did not take their meal until after Sri Isvari had eaten. After the meal, they all engaged in nama sankirtana in the courtyard of Gauranga. Thereafter Sri Yadunandana and his followers prepared for the trip to Kheturi. Within each village, people were satisfied to see the mahantas on their way to the great festival. Because of the presence of the great Vaisnavas, each village they entered became a holy place and the people of the village became fortunate. That day they rested in the village of Telia Budhari and the happiness of the villagers was boundless. When they left Budhari for Kheturi, the villagers accompanied them to the bank of the river Padmavati. Sri Santosh Dutta had hired a large boat which took them to the opposite bank of the river. Upon the arrival of the Vaisnavas and Mahantas, Kheturi village became the center point of divine happiness.

Srinivasa and Sri Narottama led the party which came forward to receive the honored guests and the village people fell at the feet of the great Bhagavatas. Seeing the reception one man commented that formerly the villagers had been heretics but by the association of Narottama they had all become religious.

Srinivasa and Narottama arranged individual living places for each guest. The vaisnavas were astonished to see so many living places, such a vast stock of food and so many attendants taking responsibility for the festival.

The people of Kheturi forgot their individual miseries upon getting the association of the great Bhagavatas, and they all looked forward to the beginning of the grand festival. They considered themselves very fortunate because the village was blessed by the dust of the feet of the great devotees. They were impressed with the decorations on the houses of the mahantas and on the throne of Mahaprabhu although the Lord had not yet sat upon it. The next day was Phalguna Purnima and the six deities of Krsna would be placed on the thrones. Tomorrow the great devotees would assemble and even the demigods would observe the grand festival. Everyone eagerly awaited the performance of sankirtana.

Someone spoke appreciatively of the fortunate king Santosh Dutta who had taken great care to arrange everything for thefestival. He decorated the compound which would be used for sankirtana by erecting a beautiful canopy and placing banana trees all around. Another person commented that never in his life had he seen so many persons making flower garlands and sandal paste. Another person said that he had never seen so many types of musical instruments, nor so many singers and dancers assemble in his life. Another man wished that the night would pass quickly, for the next day he would see the Bhagavatas and pass the entire day with them, feeling no need to return home. Then he chastised himself for returning home simply to eat. Enthusiasm for the festival was heightened by the sound of musical instruments, indicating that morning was not far off.

Installation of the deities by Srinivasa Acarya

Early in the morning everyone went to the temple to see the beautiful deities. The mahantas assembled in the courtyard of Sri Gauranga wearing new clothes and decorated with vaisnava tilaka. They took their respective seats and Sri Jahnava took her seat in a separate place. Srinivasa Acarya and Narottama were pleased with the well decorated area and Mahaprabhu's companions gave permission for Srinivasa to start the ceremonial bathing of the deities. Srinivasa bowed to the Mahantas and other Vaisnavas before he began the rituals and carefully installed each of the six deities on His own throne. According to the wish of the Lord he announced the names of the deities as Sri Gauranga, Sri Vallabhi Kanta, Sri Vraja Mohana, Sri Krsna, Sri Radha Kanta and Sri Radha Ramana. The mahantas shed tears as they observed the beauty of the six deities, and even the demigods in heaven showered down flowers. The name of Sri Hari resounded and the musicians began to play the different instruments. The brahmins uttered hymns from the Vedas while Srinivasa carefully dressed the deities in gorgeous clothes. He offered scented sandal paste and flower garlands to Mahaprabhu. After performing the ceremony of worship for the deities, Srinivasa arranged for an offering of lamps before the deities. The mahantas called out the name of Hari and prostrated themselves on the ground before the Lords. Narottama composed a verse by which he paid his respects to the deities by singing the names of Gauranga, Vallabhi Kanta, Sri Krsna, Vraja Mohan, Radha Raman, and Radha Kanta.

Although the courtyard had insufficient space, many hundreds of people assembled in the temple to watch the offering of lamps. After that offering Srinivasa Acarya offered many tasteful food preparations to the deities, placing each in a different utensil. He then offered water for washing and betel leaves for chewing. He offered the deities flower garlands and sandal paste and then fanned Them with a chamara. When he opened the door of the temple, the sweet scent from the bodies of the deities filled the entire courtyard. Everyone was overwhelmed by the shining glow from the bodies of the Lords. Even Srinivasa lost control of his emotions seeing the beauty of the deities and fell on the ground to pay obeisances. He bowed humbly at the feet of the companions of Mahaprabhu and embraced them all with tears of joy. He lay prostrate at the feet of Sri Isvari who affectionately ordered him to distribute the offered garlands and sandal paste to the assembled devotees. Srinivasa carried each garland in a different vessel and offered them all to the companions of Mahaprabhu. Sri Isvari ordered Nrsimha Caitanya to offer the garlands to Srinivasa, Narottama and their followers. Sri Isvari was so overwhelmed by the touch of the garland and sandal paste that she lost control of her emotions.

Sankirtana of Thakura Narottama and his followers

Sri Jahnava Isvari stared continuously at Narottama, infusing him with spiritual power beyond the comprehension of common men. The son of Advaita Acarya, Sri Acyuta nanda, blessed Thakura Narottama and the mahantas gave him their permission to begin the sankirtana. The companions of Narottama were all expert in singing, dancing and musical instruments.

Devidasa, who sat on the left side of Narottama, started by stroking the sweet mardala. The other musical instruments joined in, each one seeming to speak in sweet words. Narottama led the kirtana and Sri Vallabha dasa and others repeated each line in turn. Sri Gauranga dasa and others played other instruments and sang in a sweet pitch. There are two methods of kirtana, namely unbinding and binding. Sri Gokula sang the first method and his sweet voice impressed everyone. The audience was mesmerized by the dramatic performance and the musicians.

Surrounded by his musicians, Narottama looked like the moon surrounded by stars. During the kirtana Narottama and the other singers absorbed themselves in thoughts of Caitanya, Nityananda and Advaita, dedicating themselves to the mercy of those Lords. By their tuning, volume, scale and modulation, the ragas and raginis they sang seemed to take life. The depth of their songs increased the tempo of the instrumentalists and as the volume of the song increased so also the pleasure of the Vaisnavas increased. Khandavasi Sri Raghunandana offered sandal paste and flower garlands to the Srikhola and Karatala, the personal instruments of Mahaprabhu, and then embraced Narottama and the other singers in a wave of emotion. He garlanded Narottama and each singer and they in turn bowed to him.

Thereafter Narottama changed to the bindingstyle of kirtana which explained the mental condition of Nadia Candra in the mood of Sri Radhika. The singers themselves became emotional during their performance and this heightened the ecstasy of the audience. Sri Jahnava Isvari cried when she listened to the song describing the spiritual and devotional qualities of Sri Gaura. Sri Acyutananda, Sripati, Srinidhi and others lost control of their emotions and shivered in ecstasy.

People discussed the kirtana recital of Narottama in various ways. One person appreciated most the way Narottama expressed the inner meaning of each song. Another person appreciated the overall masterful prestentation. One person said that Narottama had attempted to duplicate the method of kirtana enjoyed by Mahaprabhu at the house of Svarupa Damodara in order to attract Mahaprabhu Himself to the kirtana. Another man agreed that Mahaprabhu must be enjoying the kirtana with His beloved companions. One devotee expessed his inner desire to see the Lord and His companions manifest within the sankirtana. They all appreciated the quality of the kirtana with its fine tuning, meaning and rhythm, saying that the Gandharvas and Kinnaras would be ashamed of their own songs.

During the kirtana recital, demigods from heaven poured flowers on the singers. Narada and other famous saints and ascetics came in disguise from heaven to attend the kirtana. Even the animals, birds, snakes and other creatures were mesmerised by the songs. As the ocean of sankirtana little by little overflowed its banks, the people in the sankirtana pavilion forgot their own existence and bathed in their tears.

The manifestation of Mahaprabhu in the sankirtana pavilion

While listening to the sankirtana Lord Gaura Rai decided to reveal Himself. Within the pavilion area Caitanya, Nityananda, Sri Advaita, and other companions were suddenly manifest like lightning within a cloud. Charming the universe with their appearance, they became the precious jewels of the sankirtana. This pastime of Mahaprabhu enjoying and participating in sankirtana was beyond the comprehension of even Lord Brahma and other demigods. The audience was enchanted by the beautiful dress and graceful gestures of those divine beings. In the midst of the sankirtana they danced gracefully in time with the increasing beat of the musical instruments. Mahaprabhu's indescribable dance in that kirtana seemed to shower love throughout the world. Sri Nityananda's dance caused the whole world to tremble, while Sri Advaita Candra danced like a mad lion and roared in joy. Pandita Gadadhara danced jovially with Srinivasa. The joyful dancing of Srivasa Pandita, Murari Gupta, Vakresvara, Haridasa Thakura, Svarupa Gosvami, Dasa Gadadhara, Rai Ramananda, Vasudeva Sarvabhauma and Vidya Vachaspati lifted the people out of their sorrows and miseries.Acyutananda danced with tears of joy flowing from his eyes while the dance of Mukunda, Sri Narahari, Sri Raghunandana, Gauridasa Pandita, Sripati, Sri Nidhi, Govinda, Madhava and Vasu Ghosh enchanted the world. Hundreds and thousands of people participated in that dance including Mukunda, Sri Acarya Pundara, Vasudeva Dutta, Brahmacari Suklambara, Sriman Pandita, Yadu, Sri Mukunda Dutta, Sri Madhusudana, Sri Natha, Mahesa, Sridhara, Sankara, Jagadish, Sri Yadunandana, Kasiwara, Sri Raghunatha Bhatta, Rupa, Sanatana, Sri Nakula Brahmacari, Dhanajaya, Vipra Vaninatha, Sikhi, Kanai, Vijaya, Suryadasa, Sri Nrsimha, Hrdaya Caitanya, Syamananda, Srinivasa, Sri Narottama and others. Even the demigods and Gandharvas danced with them.

Gauracandra loves His disciples and thus He fulfilled the desires of Srinivasa and Narottama by appearing before them during the sankirtana. When He embraced Srinivasa and Narottama He softly told them something confidential which others could not hear. Then Mahaprabhu and His companions disappeared, leaving His followers in utter despair. Their pitiful lamentation broke the hearts of all who witnessed the scene.

The sudden disappearance of Mahaprabhu within that sankirtana created a sense of despair amongst the entire audience. Upon the disappearance of the Lord, people were struck by the reality of their miserable lives and in disappointment they lamented piteously. One person cried out for Mahaprabhu while another looked everywhere, trying to find Sri Advaita or Nityananda. Someone else longed for another glance of Sri Pandita Gadadhara while still another asked for Haridasa and Vakresvara. One person called out for Srivasa and Murari while another asked about Sri Mukunda and Narahari. One devotee wanted to see Gauridasa and Gadadhara while another looked for Sri Svarupa Damodara. At last they all abandoned hope, rolling on the ground and crying loudly because they would never see Mahaprabhu and His associates again. Their tears flowed so profusely that the ground became muddy. Even heretics who had come to the sankirtana only for fun also began to cry. Lifting their hands high in the air, they prayed to Mahaprabhu to protect them from sin and misery. When Sripati, Srinivasa and others regained their external senses they could not believe that they had actually enjoyed the association of the Lord. The people in the audience were also amazed by the vision they had seen. Srinivasa and Narottama explained to them that they had been witness to another lila of Mahaprabhu and that the Lord's pastimes are always beyond the comprehension of the laymen. Sri Jahnava Isvari confirmed this by saying that Mahaprabhu had fulfilled the great desires of His beloved devotees by appearing in living form during their sankirtana. By this merciful appearance Mahaprabhu delivered many heretics from sin and damnation and lifted mankind out of its ocean of sorrow.

From rla Narahari Cakravart hkuras Bhakti-ratnkara Ch. 10