Jagannath Misra Das is with Madhavi Dasi
Greetings, namaskar, Jaya Jagannath, and Happy akshya-tritya to one and all. I have almost finished my translation of a book called the Mahābhāva-prakash, which was written in the Oriya language, in Jagannāth Purī Dhāma during the manifest lila of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. The book has just over 600 verses and only 3 chapters. Below is a summary of Chapter 1 which contains 159 verses. I will be printing the entire document sometime soon.
Mahābhāva-prakāśh
Chapter 1.
Summary of Chapter 1
Verses [1-15] the poet commences with an auspicious invocation declaring Lord Jagannāth to be like a wish-fulfilling tree who resides on the magnificent blue-mountain known as Nīlādri. Lord Jagannāth is the Lord of Laksmī who reclines in blissful repose upon his snake-bed and creates the triple-worlds from a lotus that sprouts from his navel. He has dark-hued limbs, wears golden-coloured robes, sports a waist-belt of tinkling bells, bracelets grace his wrists, and he always has a big smile on his face because he is happy when he sees that his devotees have been bound to his lotus-feet. Laksmī serves his lotus-like feet and forever sings of their exquisite charm while she inwardly contemplates the divine symbols that gloriously decorate them.
Verses [16-37] tell of Chaitanya Mahāprabhu’s arrival in the holy-city of Jagannāth Purī as he vanquishes the unrighteous through hari-nāma. He, the son of Śaci, has languid and soft limbs which are refulgently bright like the sun, and the poet presents him as being a unification of a part of Rādhā, and a part of Krishna. He is the younger brother of Nityānanda and the treasure of the devotee’s hearts. He dispels the grief of his devotee, is the life and soul of Jagāi and Mādhāi, and the giver of salvation to all. With his arrival, the land of Orissa became full of the nectar of Krishna-līlā, and one surely recalls the beauty of the son of Nanda if one happens to look upon the thrice-curved form of Mahāprabhu. His feet, comparable to a wish-fulfilling tree, are the treasure of the devotee’s heart. Kāśi Mishra and Sārvabhauma speak of their wondrous glory, and the Gajapati keeps them close to his heart.
Verses [38-45] the poet Kahnāi speaks of his family and their ancestral dwelling place in Haricaṇdi sāhi, which is close to the blue mountain, and flooded with the glories of the Devī Haracandi. Everyone in his family are the servants of lord Jagannāth and Haracaṇdi devī.
Verses [46-84] describe Mahāprabhu’s astonishing dancing on the occasion of the vijaya procession during the ratha-yātrā festival. The poet recalls how he derived much joy from watching Mahāprabhu dance, which was so wild and unpredictable that he was told, by one of the temple priests through disapproving hand gestures, not to come too close to the Deities. The poet writes how he beheld a miraculous ray of light merging from Lord Jagannāth’s face, which then landed on the face of Mahāprabhu, which it has gratified him to define with the pleasing phrase of: “an exchange of mahā-bhāva between them.” After witnessing this fantastic phenomenon he writes how he then personally caught-hold of Mahāprabhu’s feet with his own hands and sought refuge there. He continues to detail Mahāprabhu’s dancing, how one moment he is lost in a wildly exuberant dance, and how the very next instant he is entirely bound-up in the laps of his devotees. The poet also tells us that his heart seemed to crack when he heard the sound of Mahāprabhu grinding his teeth, and that, due to close proximity, his own cheeks were moistened by Gaurānga’s tears. Occasionally he was seen crawling about on the ground, then next moment he was utterly still, and as he fell unconscious and foam-like bubbles oozed from his nose, Lord Jagannāth approached and Mahāprabhu and the devotees rose-up and furiously started to dance in gopī-bhāva. At this point the poet observes that Lord Jagannāth appeared like a black-elephant, and that Mahāprabhu looked like the elegantly-swaying golden-trunk of that elephant.
Verses [85-99] The poet recounts that not only did he have Mahāprabhu’s daraśan, but he even travelled around in the Lord’s company. As such, he got to serve many Vaiṣṇavas and, due to their company, always keep himself immersed in hari-nāma. He calculates that he got to see 59 Vaiṣṇava’s altogether, among them was a certain dignitary who had a son named Sikhi. Together, the father and son, would plunder of the Vaiṣṇava’s food remnants in the dead of night. He further catalogues how Mahāprabhu’s devotees from Bengal would enter Purī via the Atharanala bridge, and mentions the names of some of the most exalted devotees.
Verses [100-144] the poet praises his own good-fortune which allowed him to be present on the blessed occasion when many Vaisnavas had gathered in Kashi Mishra’s courtyard. Mahāprabhu was in bhāva, and starts to reveal to all the Vaiṣṇavas who sat around his feet, that he beheld the brahmajoyti when he was exchanging smiles with Lord Jagannāth in the temple during his morning daraśan. Then, as he was talking with his eyes half-closed while gazing upon the nilacakra, a divine-light crept out of Mahaprabhu’s forehead, a light quite unlike anything ever seen before. Then his nose turned black, his lower-lip became bright-red in colour, and Gaurānga effectively assumed, although momentarily, the facial appearance of Lord Jagannāth. Rāmānanda Rāya now starts to question Mahāprabhu, who promises to reveal the “mahā-bhāva.”
Verses [145-159] the poet testifies that it was Vakeśwar Pandita who told him to write down whatever Mahāprabhu said in reply to Rāyā’s questions, which he did, and whatever he wrote was called by the Vaiṣṇava’s who were present as the “Mahābhāva-prakaśh.” The poet hopes that the Vaiṣṇavas will appreciate his book, and not hold a grudge against him, for whatever he wrote, came directly from the mouth of Chaitanya Mahāprabhu.
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