Śrī Śrī Prabhu Rāmacandra Gosvāmī

Śrī Śrī Prabhu Rāmacandra Gosvāmī

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Overview

‘Śrī Śrī Prabhu Rāmacandra Gosvāmī’ was first published by Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura in Sajjana Toṣaṇī Vol. 2, issue 4 in 1885. This is a brief biography of Rāmacandra Gosvāmī (Ramāi Ṭhākura), the adopted son of Jāhnavā Devī.

(translated by Swami B.V. Giri)

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The third issue of Sajjana Toṣaṇī has been published. The name of this issue is the ‘Rāmacandra-Bhagavān’ issue. Rāmacandra Prabhu appeared in 1455 of the Śaka Era (1533 CE). Thus:

caudda-śata pañcannate janma labhilā
pañca-daśa caturthete līlā sambarilā

(“He appeared in 1455 and his līlā ended in 1504.”)

The day of Caitra Pūrṇimā is the appearance festival of Śrī Śrī Prabhu Rāmacandra Gosvāmī.

madhu-māsa śukla-pakṣa pūrṇimā divase
ei kāle avirbhūta haila ṭhākura

(“In the month of Madhu, during the śukla-pakṣa on the full moon day, at that time the Ṭhākura appeared.”)

Rāmacandra Prabhu resided in Navadvīpa-dhāma and was the grandson of Śrī Śrīmad Vaṁśivadanānanda, the beloved associate of Śrī Śrīmad Caitanyadeva. Muralī-vilāsa and other Vaiṣṇava texts have described this. Before Vaṁśivadanānanda’s disappearance, he addressed his son Caitanya’s childless wife and said, “Mother! Don’t be sad about losing me. I have to become your unborn son and propagate vraja-līlā again in Gauḍa-deśa. Caitanyadeva has instructed me like this.”

Vaṁśī remained in the womb of his daughter-in-law for ten months and ten days, in accordance to his own promise and the instruction of Mahāprabhu, and on the aforementioned auspicious day he emerged from the womb like the full moon. The men and women felt joy in their hearts upon seeing their son’s beauty, and they began to shout words of praise (jayadhvani). On an appointed day, paṇḍitas who were versed in astrology made calculations and named the son Rāma.

According to Muralī-vilāsa and other texts, Rāmacandra Prabhu was the second avatāra of Vaṁśī. Śrī Śrīman Nityananda’s śakti, Śrīmati Jāhnavā Ṭhākurāṇī, accepted him as her adopted son and he took dīkṣā from her. In his youth, he went to Vraja-dhāma with his guru, Jāhnavā Mātā.

After living in Vraja for some time, he took the two Deities of Śrī Śrī Rāma-Kṛṣṇa, and returned to Gauḍa-deśa, where he liberated a tiger by giving it hari-nāma, and installed Śrī Śrī Rāma-Kṛṣṇa in Śrīpāṭ Bāghnāpāḍā-dhāma. He showed his power to Vīracandra Prabhu when one night during the month of Pauṣa, he fed to full satisfaction 1,200 people by creating mangoes from bakula trees, hilsa fish from the pond known as Yamunā and rice from sprinkling a handful of water. Rāmacandra Prabhu performed many such miraculous deeds.*

Today, we have only published a fraction of Rāmacandra’s biography starting with this issue of Sajjana Toṣaṇī. If Muralī-vilāsa and other works are printed, readers will be able to see his entire biography.

*Translators Note: It is said that Vīracandra Gosvāmī wanted to test Rāmacandra Prabhu’s potency and sent 1,200 disciples known as neḍā-neḍīs (who were formerly Buddhist monks and nuns) to him late at night. When Rāmacandra asked them what they would like to eat, they told him hilsa fish and mangoes, although it was winter and mangoes and hilsa fish were unavailable. Rāmacandra procured all these items miraculously.

(‘Śrī Śrī Prabhu Rāmacandra Gosvāmī’ by Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was first published by Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura in Sajjana Toṣaṇī Vol. 2, issue 4 in 1885, and translated into English by Swami B.V. Giri)
Brahmo-DharmaGenuine improvement within Brahmo Dharma (Brāhmo Dharma Prakṛta Unnati)
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