Early History of the Vaishnava Faith and Movement in Bengal, from Sanskrit and Bengali Sources c11.s2.6

c11.s2.6

The *Caitanya-caritāmṛta*¹ of Murāri-gupta, the earliest known systematic biographical work, is offered as an extensive Kāvya of four Prakramas, seventy-eight cantos and, according to its own computation (iv. 26. 21), nineteen hundred and twenty-seven stanzas; but its length is hardly commensurate with its literary merit or with the slenderness of its theme. The first Prakrama of sixteen cantos ends with Viśvambhara's journey to Gayā, and describes the occasion of the work, the necessity of Caitanya's descent along with his disciples; his birth, his parents (his father is described as belonging to the Vātsya-gotra); his elder brother Viśvarūpa who crossed the river and left home for Saṃnyāsa at the age of sixteen; his childhood, boyhood and youth; his studies; death of his father; his marriage to Lakṣmī (i. 9, 10); his journey to East Bengal; death of Lakṣmī; Śacī's lament in one whole canto (i. 12), couched in the Viyoginī metre in the approved Kāvya manner; his second marriage to Viṣṇupriyā (i. 13, 14); his journey to Gayā and meeting with Īśvara Purī (i. 15, 16). The second Prakrama of eighteen cantos continues the story up to Caitanya's Saṃnyāsa. The incidents narrated are not many, for the greater part of this section is taken up with the description of Caitanya's Bhāva or devotional passion and ecstatic acts consequent upon it after his return from Gayā. It describes his Varāha-Āveśa (ii. 2) and Balabhadra-Āveśa (ii. 14), his Mahāprakāśa and Mahābhiṣeka (Great Manifestation and Consecration) as the supreme deity at the house of Śrīvāsa (ii. 12), his passionate realisation of the sports of Kṛṣṇa and Rādhā, and his continuous rapture of dancing, singing and Kīrtana. He listens to Murāri's *Rāmāṣṭaka*, a panegyric of Rāma in eight stanzas (ii. 7. 10-18), but admonishes Murāri's leaning towards Advaita Vedānta, learnt from Advaita Ācārya, and makes him a devotee of Kṛṣṇa by deprecating the worship of all other deities. In Caitanya's first meeting with Nityānanda (ii. 8). who was at that time residing at the house of Nandana Ācārya at Navadvīpa, the theophanic forms of Caitanya as the six-armed, four-armed and two-armed Kṛṣṇa are successively revealed. A curious explanation is given of Caitanya's motive for Saṃnyāsa by the story of a curse pronounced by a Brahman (ii. 13. 18-22), who was refused admisssion into Caitanya's presence by the stupid door-keepers; but we are also told later on that Caitanya was inspired by a dream to take to Saṃnyāsa (ii. 18. 1-2). Keśava Bhāratī, who visits Navadvīpa, eulogises Caitanya as Śuka, Prahlāda and even as the Bhagavat himself (ii. 18. 12), the Saṃnyāsa occurring immediately afterwards at Kaṇṭaka-grāma (Katwa).