Early History of the Vaishnava Faith and Movement in Bengal, from Sanskrit and Bengali Sources c6.s2.106

c6.s2.106

¹ Lokanātha's life is held up as a fine example of the spirit of selfless devotion and service to the cause, which the personality of Caitanya could inspire in his disciples. Particulars about his life are hardly to be found in the standard biographies of Caitanya, but later Vaiṣṇava works in Bengali, especially the *Bhakti-ratnākara* i, p. 21 f, *Prema-vilāsa* vii and the *Narottama-vilāsa* i, give some details. He was the son of Padmanābha Cakravartin, a Brahman of Tālgaḍi or Tālkhēḍa in Jessore, and his wife Sītā. A fellow-student of Caitanya at Gaṅgādāsa's *tol* (*Advaita-prakāśa*), he showed religious tendencies in early life and became a disciple of Advaita. He wrote a commentary on the 10th Skandha of the *Bhāgavata* at the direction of Advaita (H. P. Sastri, *Cat. of Skt. Mss in ASB*, vol. v, Purāṇa, no. 3624). Commissioned by Caitanya to a life-long task of pioneering at Vṛndāvana, he left the more attractive life of ardent fellowship at Navadvīpa and set out on the difficult journey. According to the *Prema-vilāsa*, this despatch of Lokanātha occurred at about the time of Caitanya's Saṃnyāsa. Reinforced later by Rūpa and Sanātana, he succeeded in fulfilling the mission proposed to him by Caitanya and lived there, much respected for his piety and austerity. He is mentioned with respect by Sanātana.