Vaishnavism, Shaivism and Minor Religious Systems v2.c13.41.2

v2.c13.41.2

When he was about twenty-three years of age, he went to Gayā to make offerings to his manes and on his return he began the mission of his life. He condemned the ritualistic system of the Brāhmaṇas and preached faith in Hari and the love of him as well as singing his name as the only effectual ways to salvation. He also preached the doctrine of the brotherhood of men, denouncing the system of castes. It is stated that the doctrine of faith and love had been preached before Caitanya by a person of the name of Advaitācārya, whose practice it was, after the performance of the usual Brāhmanic rites, to go to the banks of the Ganges and call out for the appearance of God to substitute the doctrine of faith and love for that of the performance of various rites. It is also said that this Ācārya was at first the instructor of Caitanya and afterwards became his pupil. Whatever it may have been, the new doctrine was first publicly proclaimed to the exclusion of others by Kṛṣṇa Caitanya. He was assisted by his brother Nityānanda, who was regarded as an incarnation of Balarāma, the brother of the god Kṛṣṇa. Caitanya now began to hold meetings for the singing and glorification of the name of Hari. These were at first private and held in the house of a pupil named Srībāsa.