श्रीचैतन्याष्टकम् (३)
Śrī Caitanyāṣṭakam (3)
Eight verses in prayer to Śrī Caitanyadeva
By Śrīmad Rūpa Gosvāmīpāda
Introduction
Śrī Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda introduces this poem in his commentary as follows:
atha puruṣottama-kṣetre virājamānaṁ śrī-caitanya-devaṁ paśyan stauti—upāsitetyādibhiḥ |
“Now, seeing Śrī Caitanyadeva shining in Puruṣottama Kṣetra, the author praises [him] with upāsita …. and so forth [i.e., with this third poem of eight verses starting with the word upāsita].”
उपासितपदाम्बुजस्त्वमनुरक्तरुद्रादिभिः
प्रपद्य पुरुषोत्तमं पदमदभ्रमुद्भ्राजितः ।
समस्तनतमण्डलीस्फुरदभीष्टकल्पद्रुमः
शचीसुत मयि प्रभो कुरु मुकुन्द मन्दे कृपाम् ॥१॥
upāsita-padāmbujas tvam anurakta-rudrādibhiḥ
prapadya puruṣottamaṁ padam adabhram udbhrājitaḥ |
samasta-nata-maṇḍalī-sphurad-abhīṣṭa-kalpa-drumaḥ
śacī-suta mayi prabho kuru mukunda mande kṛpām ||1||
He whose lotus feet are worshiped
By devout Rudra and others,
He who is resplendent upon having reached
The abundant abode of Puruṣottama,
He who is a shimmering wish-fulfilling tree
For his entire bowed entourage—
You,
O Son of Śacī,
O Prabhu,
O Mukunda,
Please bestow [your] grace upon me, a wretch.
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda comments that “by devout Rudra and others” (anurakta-rudrādibhiḥ) refers to Rudra and other devatās present in the forms of Advaita Ācārya and other associates of Śrī Caitanyadeva (anuraktair ācāryādi-rūpatayā sthitaiḥ rudrādibhiḥ). Moreover, “He who is resplendent upon having reached the abundant abode of Puruṣottama” (prapadya Puruṣottamaṁ padam adabhram udbhrājitaḥ) can also mean, “He who has become effulgent after having offered obeisance to the Deity of Jagannātha (yad vā Puruṣottamaṁ Jagannāthaṁ padaṁ vastu prapadya tat-pratipattiṁ kṛtvodbhrājito labdha-cchavir ity arthaḥ). Further, his “bowed entourage” refers to the group of Śrī Caitanyadeva’s own bhaktas (nata-maṇḍalī sva-bhakta-gaṇaḥ).
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda doesn’t comment specifically on the names Prabhu (“Master”) and Mukunda used in the verse, but it may be the author’s intention that the name Prabhu allude to Śrī Caitanyadeva’s being well known by the name Mahāprabhu and the name Mukunda allude to Śrī Kṛṣṇa of Vraja such that the implied sense of these addresses is that the Son of Śacī Devī, that is, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, is a selfsame form of Svayaṁ Bhagavān Śrī Kṛṣṇa.
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda introduces the following verse as follows:
prabhoḥ stave svasyāsāmarthyaṁ darśayann āha—nv iti |
“Observing his own inability to praise Prabhu, the author says nu … [i.e., he states the second verse].”
नु वर्णयितुमीशते गुरुतरावतारायिता
भवन्तमुरुबुद्धयो न खलु सार्वभौमादयः ।
परो भवतु तत्र कः पटुरतो नमस्ते परं
शचीसुत मयि प्रभो कुरु मुकुन्द मन्दे कृपाम् ॥२॥
nu varṇayitum īśate gurutarāvatārāyitā
bhavantam uru-buddhayo na khalu sārvabhaumādayaḥ |
paro bhavatu tatra kaḥ paṭur ato namas te paraṁ
śacī-suta mayi prabho kuru mukunda mande kṛpām ||2||
Since Sārvabhauma and others
Possessed of vast intelligence
Like highly venerable avatāras
Are not able to describe you,
Who else could be proficient at that?
Therefore, I just offer obeisance unto you.
O Son of Śacī,
O Prabhu,
O Mukunda,
Please bestow [your] grace upon me, a wretch.
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda comments that “like highly venerable avatāras” (gurutarāvatārāyitāḥ) means like the avatāras, such as Dattātreya and Bādarāyaṇa, who are the gurus of all the sages (gurutarāḥ sarva-muni-guravaś ca te’vatārāś ca Dattātreya-Bādarāyaṇādayas ta iva ācarantīti gurutarāvatārāyitāḥ), and that the rhetorical question, “Who else could be proficient at that?” (paro bhavatu tatra kaḥ paṭuḥ) implies that no one is capable of aptly describing Śrī Caitanyadeva (varṇanākṣamās tatra paro’nyaḥ paṭur nipuṇaḥ ko bhavet, na ko’pīti bhāvaḥ). Thus, the author feels, “Unto you let just the obeisance be [offered] of I who am inferior to all and devoid of intelligence, and not, rather, any effort at description” (sarvāvarasya buddhi-hīnasya me te tubhyaṁ paraṁ kevalaṁ namo’stu na tu varṇanodyama iti bhāvaḥ), that is, the author feels that if even great paṇḍitas like Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya, who are as intelligent as avatāras, are incapable of aptly describing Śrī Caitanyadeva, then what possibility could there be of him aptly doing so given that he feels himself greatly incapable of a task so profound.
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda introduces the following verse as follows:
nanu tādṛśās te tad-varṇane kuto’kṣamās tatrāha—na yad iti |
“[A question is raised:] ‘Well, why are they who are such [i.e., they who are endowed with extremely sharp intelligence] incapable in regard to describing you?’ To this [question], the author says na yad … [i.e., he states the third verse].”
न यत्कथमपि श्रुतावुपनिषद्भिरप्याहितं
स्वयं च विवृतं न यद्गुरुतरावतारान्तरे ।
क्षिपन्नसि रसाम्बुधे तदिह भक्तिरत्नं क्षितौ
शचीसुत मयि प्रभो कुरु मुकुन्द मन्दे कृपाम् ॥३॥
na yat katham api śrutāv upaniṣadbhir apy āhitaṁ
svayaṁ ca vivṛtaṁ na yad gurutarāvatārāntare |
kṣipann asi rasāmbudhe tad iha bhakti-ratnaṁ kṣitau
śacī-suta mayi prabho kuru mukunda mande kṛpām ||3||
The jewel of bhakti,
Which was by no means imparted
Even by the Upaniṣads in the Śruti,
And which was not expounded
By [you] yourself in [your various] highly venerable avatāras—
You, O Ocean of rasa,
Are [now] broadcasting that
Here on the earth.
O Son of Śacī,
O Prabhu,
O Mukunda,
Please bestow [your] grace upon me, a wretch.
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda comments that “by no means” (na … katham api) means by no manner expressive of the essential nature of bhakti (kenāpi bhakti-svarūpa-prakāśakena prakāreṇa na), the purport being that the Upaniṣads do establish the jewel of bhakti in a covered manner by means of statements such as the following (‘tā hi śraddhā-bhakti-dhyāna-yogād avaiti,’ ‘yasya deve parā bhaktir,’ ‘bhaktir asya bhajanam’ ityādibhir mudritavat tad avasthāpayantīti bhāvaḥ), which is to say that there are statements in the Upaniṣads that teach bhakti but there are not statements there that reveal the nature of bhakti with the same depth and clarity that bhakti was taught by Śrī Caitanyadeva. The examples of descriptions of bhakti in the Upaniṣads cited by Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda are as follows:
śraddhā-bhakti-dhyāna-yogād avaiti |
(Kaivalya Upaniṣad: 2)
“One attains [that, i.e., Brahma-vidyā] by means of conviction (śraddhā), bhakti, and meditation (dhyāna).”
yasya deve parā bhaktir yathā deve tathā guruḥ |
tasyaite kathitā hy arthāḥ prakāśante mahātmanaḥ ||
(Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad: 6.23)
“These discussed subjects [i.e., the teachings a guru gives to a disciple regarding Brahma-vidyā] are revealed to the great soul who has pure bhakti to Deva, and as to Deva, so also to guru.”
bhaktir asya bhajanam | tad ihāmutropādhi-nairāsyenāmuṣmin manaḥ-kalpanam | etad eva ca naiṣkarmyam |
(Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad: Pūrva, 14)
“Bhakti is worship (bhajana) of him [i.e., Śrī Kṛṣṇa]. It is engaging in [alt., offering to] him [along with the other senses] the mind free from all upādhis [i.e., material desires, forms of conditioning, etc.] related to this world and the next. And this is indeed [secondarily] transcendence of karma (naiṣkarmyam) [i.e., mukti, or, jñāna].”
That the jewel of bhakti was “not expounded by [you] yourself in [your various] highly venerable avatāras” (svayaṁ ca vivṛtaṁ na yad gurutarāvatārāntare) means that it was not expounded by Bhagavān Śrī Kṛṣṇa himself in his manifestations as Dattātreya, Vyāsa, and so forth because of the non-attainment of exposition of pure bhakti in the statements of those avatāras, since the principal subject matter of their statements is karma, yoga, and a semblance of non-dualism (svayaṁ Bhagavatā Śrī-Kṛṣṇena ca yad-bhakti-ratnaṁ gurutarāvatārāntare Dattātreya-Vyāsādi-prādurbhāva-madhye na vivṛtam, karma-yogayor advaita-cchāyāyāś cāntarāntaroktyā tad-vākyeṣu śuddha-bhakter vivṛty-ālābhāt). “You, [however,] O Ocean of rasa [i.e., O Śrī Kṛṣṇa now manifest as the Son of Śacī and absorbed in relishing the rasa of that jewel of bhakti], are now broadcasting that [jewel of bhakti] here on the earth” (kṣipann asi rasāmbudhe tad iha bhakti-ratnaṁ kṣitau), meaning, you are now liberally scattering jewels of bhakti, which were [previously] kept confidential by the Veda and by Bhagavān himself, as though they are a heap of rice grains (dhānya-rāśim iva kṣipann asi vedena bhagavatā ca gopitāni bhakti-ratnāny evaṁ vikirataḥ), that is, you are now widely making available to human beings previously highly confidential jewels of bhakti in a manner similar to how a farmer broadly casts grains of rice out into a field as he plants a freshly tilled plot at the beginning of a new season of cultivation. Thus, the purport is this, “Describing you who are possessed of such profound liberality is impossible for everyone” (te mahodārasya varṇanaṁ sarva-duḥśakam iti bhāvaḥ).
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda also notes that Śrī Prabodhānanda Sarasvatīpāda has also made the following statement to this effect (evam uktam … iti prabodhānandaiḥ):
kva sā niraṅkuśa-kṛpā kva tad vaibhavam adbhutam |
kva sā vatsalatā śaure yādṛg gaure tavātmani ||
(Śrī Caitanya-candrāmṛta: 56)
“Where is that unchecked grace, where is that astonishing magnificence, and where is that affectionateness, O Śauri [i.e., O Śrī Kṛṣṇa], as is present in your Gaura form?”
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda introduces the following verse as follows:
nijeti trīṇy atra sambuddhy-antāni—nijeti |
“The three [compounds beginning] njia … here [i.e., in the following verse] have vocative endings: njia … [i.e., he states the fourth verse].”
निजप्रणयविस्फुरन्नटनरङ्गविस्मापित-
त्रिनेत्रनतमण्डलप्रकटितानुरागामृत ।
अहङ्कृतिकलङ्कितोद्धतजनादिदुर्बोध हे
शचीसुत मयि प्रभो कुरु मुकुन्द मन्दे कृपाम् ॥४॥
nija-praṇaya-visphuran-naṭana-raṅga-vismāpita-
trinetra nata-maṇḍala-prakaṭitānurāgāmṛta |
ahaṅkṛti-kalaṅkitoddhata-janādi-durbodha he
śacī-suta mayi prabho kuru mukunda mande kṛpām ||4||
O you because of the amazement of whose dancing,
Manifesting from uninhibited love (praṇaya) for your self,
He of three eyes becomes astonished,
O you by whom the nectar of loving attachment (anurāga)
Is manifested to your bowed entourage,
O you who are difficult to understand
For arrogant persons spoiled by egotism and others,
O Son of Śacī,
O Prabhu,
O Mukunda,
Please bestow [your] grace upon me, a wretch.
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda comments that “He of three eyes” (trinetra) refers to Śiva and Śiva’s avatāra as Śrī Advaita Ācārya (Trinetraḥ Śivas tad-avatāro’dvaitācāryaḥ), that “spoiled by egotism” (ahaṅkṛti-kalaṅkita) means marred by pride based nobility, erudition, and so on (ahaṅkṛtir ābhijātya-pāṇḍityādi-hetuko’bhimānas tena kalaṅkitā lāñchitāḥ), and that Śrī Caitanyadeva’s being said to be difficult to understand for persons spoiled by such egotism is in accord with the Smṛti [i.e., the following statement in the Smṛti-śāstra]:
ahaṅkāra-viyuktānāṁ keśavo na hi dūragaḥ |
ahaṅkāra-yutānāṁ tu madhye parvata-koṭayaḥ || iti smṛteḥ |
“Keśava is not far from those who are free from egotism, but there are mountain peaks between [him and] those who are possessed of egotism.”
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda introduces the following verse as follows:
nanu mande tvayi mat-kṛpā kathaṁ syāt tatrāha—bhavantīti |
“[A question is raised by Śrī Caitanyadeva:] ‘Well, why should my grace be [bestowed] upon you, a wretch?’ To this, he says bhavanti … [i.e., he states the fifth verse].”
भवन्ति भुवि ये नराः कलितदुष्कुलोत्पत्तय-
स्त्वमुद्धरसि तानपि प्रचुरचारुकारुण्यतः ।
इति प्रमुदितान्तरः शरणमाश्रितस्त्वामहं
शचीसुत मयि प्रभो कुरु मुकुन्द मन्दे कृपाम् ॥५॥
bhavanti bhuvi ye narāḥ kalita-duṣkulotpattayas
tvam uddharasi tān api pracura-cāru-kāruṇyataḥ |
iti pramuditāntaraḥ śaraṇam āśritas tvām ahaṁ
śacī-suta mayi prabho kuru mukunda mande kṛpām ||5||
Out of abundant, endearing compassion,
You deliver even those persons in the world
By whom birth in a low family is incurred.
Therefore, with a delighted heart,
I have taken shelter in you.
O Son of Śacī,
O Prabhu,
O Mukunda,
Please bestow [your] grace upon me, a wretch.
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda comments that “You deliver even those persons in the world by whom birth in a low family is incurred” (bhavanti bhuvi ye narāḥ kalita-duṣkulotpattayas tvam uddharasi tān api) indicates that you fully deliver even persons of sinful behavior because of their being from a low family (tān api duṣkulīnatvāt pāpa-cārān tvaṁ samuddharasi) and that the reason for this is because of your “abundant, endearing compassion,” meaning, because of your being abounding in most desirable grace (kuto hetor ity āha—pracureti kamanīya-kṛpā-nirbharād ity arthaḥ). “Therefore, with a delighted heart, I have taken shelter in you” (iti pramuditāntaraḥ śaraṇam āśritas tvām ahaṁ) thus indicates that the author rests assured, “My deliverance will [certainly] come to be even though I am such [i.e., even though I am low born and guilty of sinful behavior] (tādṛśasyāpi me nistāro bhāvīti).
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda introduces the following verse as follows:
mukhety atra sambodhana-dvayam |
“Here in mukha … [i.e., in the following verse], there are two vocatives [i.e., two vocative compounds addressing Śrī Caitanyadeva].”
मुखाम्बुजपरिस्खलन्मृदुलवाङ्मधूलीरस
प्रसङ्गजनिताखिलप्रणतभृङ्गरङ्गोत्कर ।
समस्तजनमङ्गलप्रभवनामरत्नाम्बुधे
शचीसुत मयि प्रभो कुरु मुकुन्द मन्दे कृपाम् ॥६॥
mukhāmbuja-pariskhalan-mṛdula-vāṅ-madhūlī-rasa-
prasaṅga-janitākhila-praṇata-bhṛṅga-raṅgotkara |
samasta-jana-maṅgala-prabhava-nāma-ratnāmbudhe
śacī-suta mayi prabho kuru mukunda mande kṛpām ||6||
O you because of whom there occurs
A profusion of amazement
For all the bees bowed to the lotus of your mouth
Produced by their deep attachment
To the nectar of the gentle words oozing out [from that lotus],
O you who are an ocean of the jewels
Of names by which production occurs
Of all types of auspiciousness for all people,
O Son of Śacī,
O Prabhu,
O Mukunda,
Please bestow [your] grace upon me, a wretch.
Commentary
In this verse, the author compares the manner in which Śrī Caitanyadeva’s bhaktas relish the teachings and other speech that issues forth from his mouth to the manner in which bees bow into a lotus and relish the nectar that oozes out from it, and as precious gems from the ocean produce great wealth and thereby well-being for those who harvest them, so the names of Śrī Bhagavān, which were so aboundingly present in Śrī Caitanyadeva that he is here compared to an ocean of the jewels of such names, produce all types of auspiciousness for all people, meaning, they are comparable to wish-fulfilling jewels that fulfill whatever worldly or spiritual desires those who chant them foster, as is indicated in the verse from Padma Purāṇa that begins nāma cintāmaṇiḥ ….
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda introduces the following verse as follows:
rūpaṁ nirūpayan sambodhayati—mṛgāṅketi |
“The author depicts the figure [of Śrī Caitanyadeva] and addresses [him]: mṛgāṅka… [i.e., he states the seventh verse].”
मृगाङ्कमधुरानन स्फुरदनिद्रपद्मेक्षण
स्मितस्तवकसुन्दराधर विशङ्कटोरस्तट ।
भुजोद्धतभुजङ्गमप्रभ मनोजकोटिद्युते
शचीसुत मयि प्रभो कुरु मुकुन्द मन्दे कृपाम् ॥७॥
mṛgāṅka-madhurānana sphurad-anidra-padmekṣaṇa
smita-stavaka-sundarādhara viśaṅkaṭoras-taṭa |
bhujoddhata-bhujaṅgama-prabha manoja-koṭi-dyute
śacī-suta mayi prabho kuru mukunda mande kṛpām ||7||
O you of face sweet like the moon,
O you of shining, sleepless, lotus eyes,
O you of lips beautiful with the blossom cluster of a gentle smile,
O you of broad flanked chest,
O you of arms that resemble constricting pythons,
O you of luster like that of crores of Kāmadevas,
O Son of Śacī,
O Prabhu,
O Mukunda,
Please bestow [your] grace upon me, a wretch.
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda comments that Śrī Caitanyadeva’s face being “sweet” (madhura) like the moon means that it is bright with delight and luminosity (āhlāda-prakāśābhyāṁ ruciram) and that his eyes being “sleepless” (anidra) means they widely dilate like a fully blossoming lotus (praphulle padme).
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda introduces the following verse as follows:
pāpātmāpy ahaṁ tava svabhāvaṁ vīkṣya kṛtārthaḥ syām iti hṛṣṭa-citto’smīti bhāvenāha—aham iti |
“[The author expresses to Śrī Caitanyadeva:] ‘Although I am sinful, after having observed your disposition, I [am confident that I] shall become successful. Thus, I am of delighted heart.’ With this intent, the author says aham … [i.e., he states the eighth verse].”
अहं कनककेतकीकुसुमगौर दुष्टः क्षितौ
न दोषलवदर्शिता विविधदोषपूर्णेऽपि ते ।
अतः प्रवणया धिया कृपणवत्सल त्वां भजे
शचीसुत मयि प्रभो कुरु मुकुन्द मन्दे कृपाम् ॥८॥
ahaṁ kanaka-ketakī-kusuma-gaura duṣṭaḥ kṣitau
na doṣa-lava-darśitā vividha-doṣa-pūrṇe’pi te |
ataḥ pravaṇayā dhiyā kṛpaṇa-vatsala tvāṁ bhaje
śacī-suta mayi prabho kuru mukunda mande kṛpām ||8||
O you who are irradiant like a golden ketaki flower,
On this earth, [it is] I [who] am depraved.
You are not a seer of even a trace of fault
[However] Even in one who is full of various faults.
Therefore,
O you who are affectionate to the pitiable,
With a humble heart
I worship you.
O Son of Śacī,
O Prabhu,
O Mukunda,
Please bestow [your] grace upon me, a wretch.
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda comments that “I am depraved” (ahaṁ duṣṭaḥ) means “I am polluted by lust, anger, and the like (kāma-krodhādi-dūṣito’smi) and that “therefore” (ataḥ) describes the reason the author is resolved to worship Śrī Caitanyadeva, that reasoning being, “Because of trust in the relationship between myself and the munificence of you, my deliverer” (uddhārakasya tavaudāryeṇa mayā saha sambandha-pratyayād dhetoḥ), meaning, that the author is resolved to worship Śrī Caitanyadeva because he trusts that Śrī Caitanyadeva’s munificent disposition is such that it will certainly compel Śrī Caitanyadeva to overlook his faults and deliver him despite the faults that he perceives within himself.
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda introduces the final verse as follows:
aṣṭaka-pāṭha-phalam āha—idam iti |
“The author describes the result of reciting this poem of eight verses: idam … [i.e., he states this final verse].”
इदं धरणिमण्डलोत्सव भवत्पदाङ्केषु ये
निविष्टमनसो नराः परिपठन्ति पद्याष्टकम् ।
शचीहृदयनन्दन प्रकटकीर्तिचन्द्र प्रभो
निजप्रणयनिर्भरं वितर देव तेभ्यः शुभम् ॥९॥॥
idaṁ dharaṇi-maṇḍalotsava bhavat-padāṅkeṣu ye
niviṣṭa-manaso narāḥ paripaṭhanti padyāṣṭakam |
śacī-hṛdaya-nandana prakaṭa-kīrti-candra prabho
nija-praṇaya-nirbharaṁ vitara deva tebhyaḥ śubham ||9||
O you who are a festival for the sphere of the earth,
O you who are the darling of Śacī’s heart,
O you who are a moon of manifest glory,
O Prabhu,
O Divine One,
Please bestow
A blessed abundance of intimate love (praṇaya) for yourself
Upon those human beings
Of mind fixed upon your footmarks
Who recite in full
This poem of eight verses.
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda comments that “an abundance of intimate love for yourself” (nija-praṇaya-nirbharaṁ) refers to the fortune of prema for yourself (sva-prema-sampatti).
Meter
Pṛthvī
Source
Stava-mālā editions by Śrī Purī Dāsa Mahāśaya, Śrī Rāma Nārāyaṇa Vidyāratna, and Nirṇaya Sāgara Press.