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ARTICLE : Thus spoke Lord Caitanya
Lord Caitanya, the Preacher of Srimad Bhagavatam, in His debate with the
great learned pandit Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya, continued:
In the Padma Purana it is stated that the Personality of Godhead ordered
His Lordship Siva to deviate the human race from Him ( the Personality of
Godhead). The Personality of Godhead was to be covered so that people
would be encouraged to generate more and more population. His Lordship
Siva said to Devi: "In the Kali-yuga, I shall preach the Mayavada
philosophy, which is nothing but clouded Buddhism, in the garb of a brahmana."
After hearing a;; these speeches of the Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the
Bhattacarya was struck with wonder and awe and regarded Him in dead
silence. The Lord then encouraged him with assurance that there was no
cause to wonder. "Isay that devotional service unto the Personality of
Godhead is the highest goal of human life." He then quoted a sloka from
the Bhagavatam and assured him that even the liberated souls who are
absorbe on the spirit and spiritual realization also take to the
devotional service of the Lord Hari because the Personality of Godhead has
such transendental qualities that He attracts the heart of the liberated
soul too.
Then the Bhattacarya desired to listen to the explanation of the
"atmarama" sloka from the Bhagavatam (1.7.10). The Lord first of all asked
Bhattacarya to explain it, and after that He would explain it. The
Bhattacarya then explained the sloka in a scholarly way with special
reference to logic. He explained the sloka in nine different ways chiefly
based on logic because he ws the most renowned scholar of logic of the time.
The Lord, after hearing the Bhattacarya, thanked him for the scholarly
presentation of the sloka, and then, at the request of the Bhattacarya,
the Lord explaine the sloka in sixty-four different ways without touching
the nine explanations given by the Bhattacarya.
Thus afterhearing the explanation of the atmarama sloka from the Lord, the
Bhattacarya was convinced that such as scholarly presentation is imposible
for an earthly creature. Before this, Sri Gopinatha Acarya had tried to
convince him of the divinity of the Lord, but at the time he could not so
accept Him. But the Bhattacarya was astounded by the Lord's exposition of
the Bedanta-sutra and explanations of the atmarama sloka, and thus he
began to think that he had committed a great offense at the lotus feet of
the Lord by not recognizing Him to be Krsna Himself. He then surrendered
unto Him, repenting for his past dealings with Him, and the Lord was kind
enough to accept the Bhattacarya. Out of His causeless mercy, the Lord
manifested before him first as fourhanded Narayana and then again as
two-handed Lord Krsna with a flute in His hand.
The Bhattacarya at once fell down at the lotus feet of the Lord and
composed many suitable slokas in praise of the Lord by His grace. He
composed almost one hunred slokas in praise of the Lord. The Lord then
embraced him, and out of transcendental ecstasy the Bhattacharya lost
consciousness of the physical state of life. Tears, trembling, throbing of
the heart, perspiration. emotional waves, dancing, singing, crying and all
the eight symptons of trance were manifested in the body of the
Bhattacarya. Sri Gopinatha Acarya became very glad and astonished by this
marvelous conversion of his brother -in-law by the grace of the Lord.
Out of the hundred celebrated slokas composed by the Bhattacarya in praise
of the Lord, the following two are most important, and these two slokas
explain the mission of the Lord in gist.
1. Let me surrender unto the Personality of Godhead who has appeared now
as Lord Sro Caitanya Mahaprabhu. He is the ocean of all mercy and has now
come down to teach us material detachment, learning and devotional service
to Himself.
2. Since pure devotional service of the Lord has been lost in the oblivion
of time, the Lord has appeared to renovate the principles, and therefore I
offer my obeisances unto His lotus feet,
The Lord explained the word mukti to be equivalent to the word Visnu, or
the Personality of Godhead. To attain mukti, or liberation from the
bondage of material existance, is to attain to the service of the Lord.
