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EDITORIAL July 13, 1999 VNN4290 Comment on this story The Cleansing Of The Gundica-temple BY IMLI-TALA EDITORIAL, Jul 13 (VNN) — Thuesday, 13 th July, 1999, Month Vamana, 513 Gaurabda: Sri Gundija - marjana (Cleansing of the Gundica temple) excerpted from: Sri Caitanya Caritamrta, Madhya -lila, chapter 12, by Srila A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada TEXT 1 sri-gundica-mandiram atma-vrndaih sammarjayan ksalanatah sa gaurah sva-citta-vac chitalam ujjvalam ca krsnopavesaupayikam cakara Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu washed and cleansed the Gundica temple with His devotees and associates. In this way He made the temple as cool and bright as His own heart, and thus He made the place befitting for Lord Sri Krsna to sit. TEXT 2 jaya jaya gauracandra jaya nityananda jayadvaita-candra jaya gaura-bhakta-vrnda All glories to Gauracandra! All glories to Nityananda! All glories to Advaitacandra! And all glories to the devotees of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu! TEXT 3 jaya jaya srivasadi gaura-bhakta-gana sakti deha,--kari yena caitanya varnana All glories to the devotees of Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, headed by Srivasa Thakura! I beg their power so that I can properly describe Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. TEXT 71 ei-mata nana range dina kata gela jagannathera ratha-yatra nikata ha-ila In this way, the Lord passed some days in great jubilation. Then the car festival of Lord Jagannatha approached. TEXT 72 prathamei kasi-misre prabhu bolaila padicha-patra, sarvabhaume bolana anila Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu first of all called for Kasi Misra, then for the superintendent of the temple, then for Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya. TEXT 73 tina-jana-pase prabhu hasiya kahila gundica-mandira-marjana-seva magi' nila When these three people came before the Lord, He begged them for permission to wash the temple known as Gundica. PURPORT The Gundica temple is situated two miles northeast of the Jagannatha temple. At the time of the Ratha-yatra festival, Lord Jagannatha goes to the Gundica temple from His original temple and stays there for one week. After one week, He returns to His original temple. It is understood by hearsay that the wife of Indradyumna, the King who established the Jagannatha temple, was known as Gundica. There is also mention of the name of the Gundica temple in authoritative scripture. The area of the Gundica temple is estimated to be 288 cubits by 215 cubits. The main temple inside is about 36 cubits by 30 cubits, and the kirtana hall is 32 cubits by 30 cubits. TEXT 74 padicha kahe,--ami-saba sevaka tomara ye tomara iccha sei kartavya amara Upon hearing the Lord's request for them to wash the Gundica temple, the padicha, the superintendent of the temple, said, "My dear sir, we are all Your servants. Whatever You desire is our duty to perform. TEXT 75 visese rajara ajna hanache amare prabhura ajna yei, sei sighra karibare TRANSLATION "The King gave a special order for me to do without delay whatever Your Lordship orders. TEXT 76 tomara yogya seva nahe mandira-marjana ei eka lila kara, ye tomara mana "My dear Lord, washing the temple is not service befitting You. Nonetheless, if You wish to do so, it is to be accepted as one of Your pastimes. TEXT 77 kintu ghata, sammarjani bahuta cahiye ajna deha--aji saba ihan ani diye "To wash the temple, You need many waterpots and brooms. Therefore order me. I can immediately bring all these things to You." TEXT 78 nutana eka-sata ghata, sata sammarjani padicha aniya dila prabhura iccha jani' As soon as the superintendent understood the desire of the Lord, he immediately delivered a hundred new waterpots and a hundred brooms for sweeping the temple. TEXT 79 ara dine prabhate lana nija-gana sri-haste sabara ange lepila candana The next day, early in the morning, the Lord took His personal associates with Him and, with His own hand, smeared sandalwood pulp on their bodies. TEXT 80 sri-haste dila sabare eka eka marjani saba-gana lana prabhu calila apani He then gave each devotee a broom with His own hand, and taking all of them personally with Him, the Lord went to Gundica. TEXT 81 gundica-mandire gela karite marjana prathame marjani lana karila sodhana In this way the Lord and His associates went to cleanse the Gundica temple. At first they cleansed the temple with the brooms. TEXT 82 bhitara mandira upara,--sakala majila simhasana maji' punah sthapana karila The Lord cleansed everything inside the temple very nicely, including the ceiling. He then took up the sitting place [simhasana], cleansed it and again put it in its original place. TEXT 83 chota-bada-mandira kaila marjana-sodhana pache taiche sodhila sri-jagamohana Thus the Lord and His companions cleansed and swept all the temple's buildings, big and small, and finally cleansed the area between the temple and the kirtana hall. TEXT 84 cari-dike sata bhakta sammarjani-kare apani sodhena prabhu, sikha'na sabare Indeed, hundreds of devotees were engaged in cleansing all around the temple, and Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was personally carrying out the operation just to instruct others. TEXT 85 premollase sodhena, layena krsna-nama bhakta-gana 'krsna' kahe, kare nija-kama Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu washed and cleansed the temple in great jubilation, chanting the holy name of Lord Krsna all the time. Similarly, all the devotees were also chanting and at the same time performing their respective duties. TEXT 86 dhuli-dhusara tanu dekhite sobhana kahan kahan asru-jale kare sammarjana The entire beautiful body of the Lord was covered with dust and dirt. In this way it became transcendentally beautiful. At times, when cleansing the temple, the Lord shed tears, and in some places He even cleansed with those tears. TEXT 87 bhoga-mandira sodhana kari' sodhila prangana sakala avasa krame karila sodhana After this, the place where the Deity's food was kept [bhoga-mandira] was cleansed. Then the yard was cleansed, and then all the residential quarters, one after the other. TEXT 88 trna, dhuli, jhinkura, saba ekatra kariya bahirvase lana phelaya bahira kariya After Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu collected all the straw, dust and grains of sand in one place, He gathered it all in His cloth and threw it outside. TEXT 89 ei-mata bhakta-gana kari' nija-vase trna, dhuli bahire phelaya parama harise Following the example of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, all the devotees, in great jubilation, began to gather straws and dust with their own cloths and throw them outside the temple. TEXT 90 prabhu kahe,--ke kata kariyacha sammarjana trna, dhuli dekhilei janiba parisrama The Lord then told the devotees, "I can tell how much you have labored and how well you have cleansed the temple simply by seeing all the straw and dust you have collected outside." TEXT 91 sabara jhyantana bojha ekatra karila saba haite prabhura bojha adhika ha-ila Even though all the devotees collected dirt in one pile, the dirt collected by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was much greater. TEXT 92 ei-mata abhyantara karila marjana punah sabakare dila kariya vantana After the inside of the temple was cleansed, the Lord again allotted areas for the devotees to cleanse. TEXT 93 suksma dhuli, trna, kankara, saba karaha dura bhala-mate sodhana karaha prabhura antahpura The Lord then ordered everyone to cleanse the inside of the temple very perfectly by taking finer dust, straws and grains of sand and throwing them outside. TEXT 94 saba vaisnava lana yabe dui-bara sodhila dekhi' mahaprabhura mane santosa ha-ila After Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu and all the Vaisnavas cleansed the temple for the second time, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was very happy to see the cleansing work. TEXT 95 ara sata jana sata ghate jala bhari' prathamei lana ache kala apeksa kari' While the temple was being swept, about a hundred men stood ready with filled waterpots, and they simply awaited the Lord's order to throw the water from them. TEXT 96 'jala ana' bali' yabe mahaprabhu kahila tabe sata ghata ani' prabhu-age dila As soon as Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu called for water, all the men immediately brought the hundred waterpots, which were completely filled, and delivered them before the Lord. TEXT 97 prathame karila prabhu mandira praksalana urdhva-adho bhitti, grha-madhya, simhasana In this way, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu first washed the main temple and then thoroughly washed the ceiling, the walls, the floor, the sitting place [simhasana] and everything else within the room. TEXT 98 khapara bhariya jala urdhve calaila sei jale urdhva sodhi bhitti praksalila Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu Himself and His devotees began to throw water onto the ceiling. When this water fell, it washed the walls and floor. TEXT 99 sri-haste karena simhasanera marjana prabhu age jala ani' deya bhakta-gana Then Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu began to wash the sitting place of Lord Jagannatha with His own hands, and all the devotees began to bring water to the Lord. TEXT 100 bhakta-gana kare grha-madhya praksalana nija nija haste kare mandira marjana All the devotees within the temple began to wash. Each one had a broom in his hand, and in this way they cleansed the temple of the Lord. TEXT 101 keha jala ani' deya mahaprabhura kare keha jala deya tanra carana-upare Someone brought water to pour into the hands of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, and someone poured water on His lotus feet. TEXT 102 keha lukana kare sei jala pana keha magi' laya, keha anye kare dana The water that fell from the lotus feet of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was drunk by someone who hid himself. Someone else begged for that water, and another person was giving that water in charity. TEXT 103 ghara dhui' pranalikaya jala chadi' dila sei jale prangana saba bhariya rahila After the room was washed, the water was let out through an outlet, and it then flowed and filled the yard outside. TEXT 104 nija-vastre kaila prabhu grha sammarjana mahaprabhu nija-vastre majila simhasana The Lord mopped the rooms with His own clothes, and He polished the throne with them also. TEXT 105 sata ghata jale haila mandira marjana mandira sodhiya kaila--yena nija mana In this way all the rooms were cleansed with a hundred waterpots. After the rooms had been cleansed, the minds of the devotees were as clean as the rooms. TEXT 106 nirmala, sitala, snigdha karila mandire apana-hrdaya yena dharila bahire When the temple was cleansed, it was purified, cool and pleasing, just as if the Lord's own pure mind had appeared. TEXT 107 sata sata jana jala bhare sarovare ghate sthana nahi, keha kupe jala bhare Since hundreds of men were engaged in bringing water from the lake, there was no place to stand on the banks. Consequently someone began to draw water from a well. TEXT 108 purna kumbha lana aise sata bhakta-gana sunya ghata lana yaya ara sata jana Hundreds of devotees brought water in the pots, and hundreds took the empty pots away to fill them up again. TEXT 109 nityananda, advaita, svarupa, bharati, puri inha vinu ara saba ane jala bhari' With the exception of Nityananda Prabhu, Advaita Acarya, Svarupa Damodara, Brahmananda Bharati and Paramananda Puri, everyone was engaged in filling the waterpots and bringing them there. TEXT 110 ghate ghate theki' kata ghata bhangi' gela sata sata ghata loka tahan lana aila Many of the waterpots were broken when people collided with one another, and hundreds of men had to bring new waterpots to fill. TEXT 111 jala bhare, ghara dhoya, kare hari-dhvani 'krsna' 'hari' dhvani vina ara nahi suni Some people were filling the pots, and others were washing the rooms, but everyone was engaged in chanting the holy name of Krsna and Hari. TEXT 112 'krsna' 'krsna' kahi' kare ghatera prarthana 'krsna' 'krsna' kahi' kare ghata samarpana One person begged for a waterpot by chanting the holy names "Krsna, Krsna," and another delivered a pot while chanting "Krsna, Krsna." TEXT 113 yei yei kahe, sei kahe krsna-name bkrsna-nama ha-ila sanketa saba-kama Whenever anyone had to speak, he did so by uttering the holy name of Krsna. Consequently, the holy name of Krsna became an indication for everyone who wanted something. TEXT 114 premavese prabhu kahe 'krsna' 'krsna'-nama ekale premavese kare sata-janera kama As Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was vibrating the holy name of Krsna in ecstatic love, He Himself was performing the work of hundreds of men. TEXT 115 sata-haste karena yena ksalana-marjana pratijana-pase yai' karana siksana It appeared as though Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu were cleansing and washing with a hundred hands. He approached every devotee just to teach him how to work. TEXT 116 bhala karma dekhi' tare kare prasamsana mane na milile kare pavitra bhartsana When He saw someone doing nicely, the Lord praised him, but if He saw that someone was not working to His satisfaction, He immediately chastised that person, not bearing him any grudge. TEXT 117 tumi bhala kariyacha, sikhaha anyere ei-mata bhala karma seho yena kare The Lord would say, "You have done well. Please teach this to others so that they may act in the same way." TEXT 118 e-katha suniya sabe sankucita hana bhala-mate karma kare sabe mana diya As soon as they heard Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu say this, everyone became ashamed. Thus the devotees began to work with great attention. TEXT 119 tabe praksalana kaila sri-jagamohana bhoga-mandira-adi tabe kaila praksalana They washed the Jagamohana area and then the place where food was kept. All other places were also washed. TEXT 120 natasala dhui' dhuila catvara-prangana pakasala-adi kari' karila praksalana In this way the meeting place was washed, the entire yard, the raised sitting places, the kitchen and every other room. TEXT 121 mandirera catur-dik praksalana kaila saba antahpura bhala-mate dhoyaila Thus all places around the temple were thoroughly washed within and without. TEXT 122 hena-kale gaudiya eka subuddhi sarala prabhura carana-yuge dila ghata-jala After everything was thoroughly washed, a Vaisnava from Bengal, who was very intelligent and simple, came and poured water on the lotus feet of the Lord. TEXT 123 sei jala lana apane pana kaila taha dekhi' prabhura mane duhkha rosa haila The Gaudiya Vaisnava then took that water and drank it himself. Seeing that, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu felt a little unhappy and was also outwardly angry. TEXT 124 yadyapi gosani tare hanache santosa dharma-samsthapana lagi' bahire maha-rosa Although the Lord was certainly satisfied with him, He became angry externally in order to establish the etiquette of religious principles. TEXT 125 siksa lagi' svarupe daki' kahila tanhare ei dekha tomara 'gaudiya'ra vyavahare The Lord then called for Svarupa Damodara and told him, "Just see the behavior of your Bengali Vaisnava. TEXT 126 isvara-mandire mora pada dhoyaila sei jala apani lana pana kaila "This person from Bengal has washed My feet within the temple of the Personality of Godhead. Not only that, but he has drunk the water himself. TEXT 127 ei aparadhe mora kahan habe gati tomara 'gaudiya' kare eteka phaijati! "I now do not know what My destination is because of this offense. Indeed, your Bengali Vaisnava has greatly implicated Me." PURPORT It is significant that Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu told Svarupa Damodara Gosvami that the Bengali Vaisnava was "your Gaudiya Vaisnava." This means that all Gaudiya Vaisnavas who are followers of the Caitanya cult are subordinate to Svarupa Damodara Gosvami. The parampara system is very strictly observed by Gaudiya Vaisnavas........ TEXT 128 tabe svarupa gosani tara ghade hata diya dheka mari' purira bahira rakhilena lana At this point Svarupa Damodara Gosvami caught the Gaudiya Vaisnava by the neck and, giving him a little push, ejected him from the Gundica Puri temple and made him stay outside. TEXT 129 punah asi' prabhu paya karila vinaya 'ajna-aparadha' ksama karite yuyaya After Svarupa Damodara Gosvami returned within the temple, he requested Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu to excuse that innocent person. TEXT 130 tabe mahaprabhura mane santosa ha-ila sari kari' dui pase sabare vasaila After this incident, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was very much satisfied. He then asked all of the devotees to sit down in two lines on both sides. TEXT 131 apane vasiya majhe, apanara hate trna, kankara, kuta lagila kudaite The Lord then personally sat down in the middle and picked up all kinds of straw, grains of sand and dirty things. TEXT 132 ke kata kudaya, saba ekatra kariba yara alpa, tara thani pitha-pana la-iba While Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was picking up the straws and grains of sand, He said, "I shall gather everyone's collection, and I shall ask whoever has collected less than all the others to pay a fine of sweet cakes and sweet rice." TEXT 133 ei mata saba puri karila sodhana sitala, nirmala kaila--yena nija-mana In this way all the quarters of the Gundica temple were completely cleansed and cleared. All quarters were cool and spotless, like one's cleansed and pacified mind. TEXT 134 pranalika chadi' yadi pani vahaila nutana nadi yena samudre milila When the water from the different rooms was finally let out through the halls, it appeared as if new rivers were rushing out to meet the waters of the ocean. TEXT 135 ei-mata puradvara-age patha yata sakala sodhila, taha ke varnibe kata Outside the gateway of the temple, all the roads were also cleansed, and no one could tell exactly how this was done. PURPORT In commenting on the cleansing of the Gundica temple, Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura says that Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, as the world leader, was personally giving instructions on how one should receive Lord Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, within one's cleansed and pacified heart. ...................... TEXT 136 nrsimha-mandira-bhitara-bahira sodhila ksaneka visrama kari' nrtya arambhila Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu also cleansed the Nrsimha temple inside and outside. Finally, He rested a few minutes and then began dancing. PURPORT The Nrsimha temple is a nice temple just outside the Gundica temple. In this temple there is a great festival on the day of Nrsimha-caturdasi. There is also a Nrsimha temple at Navadvipa where the same festival is observed, as described by Murari Gupta in his book Caitanya-carita. TEXT 137 cari-dike bhakta-gana karena kirtana madhye nrtya karena prabhu matta-simha-sama All around Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu all the devotees performed congregational chanting. The Lord, just like a maddened lion, danced in the middle. ******** TEXT 221 gundica-marjana-lila sanksepe kahila yaha dekhi' suni' papira krsna-bhakti haila I have briefly described the pastimes of the Lord in washing and cleansing the Gundica temple. By seeing or hearing these pastimes, even sinful men can awaken their Krsna consciousness. TEXT 222 sri-rupa-raghunatha-pade yara asa caitanya-caritamrta kahe krsnadasa Praying at the lotus feet of Sri Rupa and Sri Raghunatha, always desiring their mercy, I, Krsnadasa, narrate Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, following in their footsteps. Thus end the Bhaktivedanta purports to Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Madhya-lila, Chapter Twelve, describing the washing and cleansing of the Gundica temple. 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