> # SRI CAITANYA BHAGAVATA

> ## Madhya Lila Chapter 14

> O Lord Gauranga, Your exquisite form is bubbling over with the nectar of love of Godhead as You dance within Yourself.

> Lord Siva, Lord Brahma and the other demigods came regularly to serve Lord Caitanya. But without the Lord's permission no one could see them.

> Everyday they witnessed the different pastimes of the Lord and when the Lord went to sleep for the night they would also disappear only to return the next day ready to render any service to the Lord. They had witnessed how Jagai and Madhai had been delivered, and now they were returning in a jubilant mood.

> They were discussing with each other, "The Lord has such unlimited compassion for the fallen souls that He even liberated those two most abominable characters. This gives me great hope that one day I too shall certainly cross over this ocean of nescience."

> Yamaraja, the demigod of death was also a daily visitor and he witnessed Lord Caitanya's pastimes. He inquired from his assistant Chitragupta, who tabulates and calculates virtuous and sinful activities of human beings. "What is the extent of sin that these two persons have committed, and what does it mean to exonerate them?"

> Chitragupta replied, "O Yamaraja, why pursue this matter - it is futile? If my assistant writers sit down to list the sins of these two they will never finish even after a month, and if you want to sit and hear their sins, then after hearing many millions of them you can decide whether to continue. All the messengers constantly describe their sins so much that the writers always feel harassed unable to cope up with the voluminous scores of sins."

> The messenger said, "The amount of sins they commit forces me to the brink of complete exhaustion and breakdown from recording them. The bottomless pits where these records are kept will bear witness to my plight - these two have made us writers weep. But now with utmost ease, Lord Caitanya has absorbed their mountainous pile of sins. Permit me to cast the records into the ocean bed."

> Yamaraja had never before witnessed such a display of compassion of one for another. Yamaraja was an elevated Vaisnava, the embodiment of religious principles. He was well-conversant with the injunctions of the Srimad-Bhagavatam. When he heard Chitragupta he went into a trance in love of Krsna. He fell down unconscious inside his chariot. Chitragupta and his assistants became concerned and tried to pick him up, unable to control their flow of tears.

> The demigods who were returning were jubilantly performing kirtana. Yamaraja's chariot had come to a halt and he was lying unconscious inside. Lord Siva, Lord Brahma, Ananta Sesa, Narada Muni and the other demigods were experiencing a new type of happiness glorifying Lord Caitanya, seeing how His boundless magnanimity had delivered these two who were considered the worst of sinners.

> When the others noticed that Yamaraja's chariot had halted they came and found him lying inside unconscious. They were astonished to see him in this condition not knowing why he was unconscious. Chitragupta explained to them the reason for his present condition. Lord Siva and Lord Brahma could immediately perceive the symptoms of ecstasy in love of Krsna manifesting in Yamaraja. They began a loud kirtana, singing into his ears.

> The kirtana revived Yamaraja's consciousness. When he recovered he got up and began dancing like a madman. The kirtana reached a crescendo and Yamaraja, son of the sun demigod, matched it with his own wild dancing. The demigods became infected with Yamaraja's dancing and they joined him. Lord Siva, Narada Muni and everyone else were drawn in by the mood of love of Godhead. These are very confidential matters and one day the Vedas will reveal these activities of the demigods.

> Yamaraja now freed from his feelings of shame and intoxicated by love of Krsna lost himself in the movements of the dance. Remembering the pastimes of Lord Caitanya he cried out, "Hallowed be the Lord, the most munificent Lord, the friend of the fallen souls."

> The movements of his body were accompanied with ecstatic symptoms of uproarious calls, horripilation all over his body, and a continuous flow of ecstatic emotions as he wept thinking of the Lord. His assistants and companions were over-flowing with joy watching Yamaraja. Chitragupta was a devotee who was very attached to the lotus feet of Krsna. He joined with unrestrained loud and charming appreciation. Soon all were rolling on the ground.

> Lord Siva was also dancing in intense rapture unaware that his clothes were strewn everywhere; naked, he danced about in love of Krsna. As a very exalted Vaisnava devotee, he was blessing the world by chanting Lord Krsna's holy name. His matted locks cascaded down and flared up with each upward movement of his body. Seeing their master in such raptures, Ganesh and Kartika also joined Lord Sankara as they were all remembering the unlimited mercy just exhibited by Lord Caitanya.

> Four-headed Lord Brahma, whose life and soul is devotional service to the Supreme Lord, also began to dance in the company of his family members. Kasyapa Muni, Kardama Muni, Daksa Prajapati, Muniara Mana, and Bhrigu Muni all joined in with Lord Brahma, for they were stalwarts in the realm of devotional service and expert in relishing spiritual mellows with Lord Krsna. They wept and danced encircling Lord Brahma, releasing sighs of devotional feelings.

> Devarsi Narada in streams of tears of love danced beside Lord Brahma. He forgot his vina as he relished the glories of the Lord and His holy name. Sukadeva Goswami was a beloved devotee of Lord Caitanya, one who knew perfectly the science of devotion. He also joined the dancing and while repeating the names of Jagai and Madhai he rolled in the dust, offering his obeisances to the Lord.

> Indra, the king of the demigods, almost invincible due to his thunder weapon was feeling repentant. Tears flowed constantly from his thousand eyes like rivers. Now his thousand eyes, which he received due to Gautama Muni's curse, were able to see for the first time the glorious pastimes of Lord Caitanya. He now considered that curse a blessing in disguise. Indra was experiencing such great happiness that he was rolling on the ground with no concern for his kingly position; his weapons felt impotent and his priceless and opulently studded kirti necklace laid limp and neglected. These are fully the symptoms indicating the influence of love of Krsna.

> Candra, Surya, Kuvera, Varuna and all the demigods, servants of Lord Krsna were dancing intoxicated by the nectar of love for Krsna which they had just drunk with their eyes in the form of Lord Caitanya's pastimes. They jostled freely with each other oblivious to each other's higher or lower status or position. They were intoxicated and happy.

> Lord Ananta Sesa was dancing accompanied by Garuda. Lord Sesa holds the entire creation on one of His hoods, but now He was fully absorbed in love for Krsna. Lord Siva, Lord Brahma and others surrounded Him as He danced and sang with His thousand hoods of the unparalleled pastimes of Lord Gauracandra who had delivered the worst kind of sinners.

> They were all in the grips of spiritual ecstasy. Some wept, others laughed, while others laid unconscious on the floor. Someone said, "How wonderful to see Lord Caitanya's pastimes. O how blessed are Jagai and Madhai." The unlimited azure vault reverberated with their joyous pandemonium, purifying the entire cosmic creation with praises of Krsna. They dispelled the gloom of inauspiciousness.

> The all-auspicious sound of Gaura-lila Satyaloka, permeated the vast coverings of the material world down to the lowest material planet, pabalaloka. Everywhere there echoed Lord Gauranga's pastimes of delivering the two sinners, Jagai and Madhai. Having now once relished the nectar of Gauranga's pastimes, they continued to glorify Lord Caitanya as they returned to their abodes.

> All glory to Lord Gauracandra who has appeared in this material world to benedict the conditioned souls, for He is the Lord of all living entities, the Lord of the Universe. Just as You have so munificently delivered these two most fallen sinners, please similarly kindly shower Your mercy on everyone. O Lord! You are most gracious because You have come to save the fallen souls.

> Lord Sri Krsna Caitanya and Lord Nityananda Prabhu are my life and soul.

> I, Vrndavana dasa, string a garland of songs in their praise and offer it at Their lotus feet.

> Next Chapter