The Store House Of Devotional Service

The Store House Of Devotional Service
Srila Bhaktisiddhanata Saraswati Thakura
One day, under the order of Sri Advaita Acarya, all the devotees began to glorify the names, qualities, and pastimes of the incarnation of Lord Caitanya. Hearing this, the Acarya began to dance and roar loudly. He danced with the devotees while chant¬ing a song He personally composed about Lord Caitanya. When Mahaprabhu heard the sound of kīrtana and came there, the devotees, under the leadership of Advaita Acarya, began to glorify Lord Caitanya’s names, forms, qualities, and pastimes with even more enthusiasm. Mahaprabhu is the teacher of all living entities and thus personally took up the mood of being a devotee of Sri Krishna. To protect His mission of being “the covered incar-nation”, upon hearing His glorification, Mahapra¬bhu, left that place and returned to His residence exhibiting a sulky mood. The devotees headed by Srivasa Pandita then went to the Lord’s residence, where Mahaprabhu indicated to them that in His covered incarnation, His identity was to remain concealed. In response, Srivasa made a gesture of trying to conceal the sun with his hands to show that by any attempt to cover a self-manifested object could never be successful. In fact, even if it were possible to cover the sun with one’s hands, it was not possible for Lord Caitanya to remain hidden, for His glories were spread throughout the entire world. At that time, innumerable dev¬otees from various provinces suddenly arrived there glorifying the names, forms, qualities, and pastimes of the incarnation of Sri Caitanya and thereby substantiated the words of Srivasa. As a result, Mahaprabhu enhanced the glories of His devotee by accepting defeat.
The fully verified truth of Sri Krishna Caitanya’s position as the origin of all incarnations is accept¬ed by the entire disciplic succession. When He is accepted by personalities like Sri Advaita and Sri Nityananda as the source of all incarnations; and when He exhibits the unique characteristics found only in Lord Krishna, then to not accept Him as the Supreme Personality of Godhead and to consider Him as something else is nothing but staunch atheism.
When Sri Rupa and Sanatana came before Ma¬haprabhu and expressed their humility, Mahapra¬bhu glorified their renunciation and instructed them to take shelter of the lotus feet of Sri Advaita Acarya to obtain loving devotional service. When Mahaprabhu said that Advaita Acarya was the storekeeper of devotional service, the Acarya re¬plied that Mahaprabhu was actually the proprietor of that storehouse, and the storekeeper is allowed to distribute goods only under the order of the proprietor. In other words, He revealed His sub-ordination to Mahaprabhu.
Following this, Mahaprabhu ordered Sri Rupa and Sanatana to go to Mathura-mandala and de¬liver all people from the clutches of sinful activities and improper behaviour by preaching pure devo¬tional service. Then Mahaprabhu awarded Sakara Mallika the spiritual name Sanatana.
When Mahaprabhu inquired from Srivasa about the Vaisnava status of Advaita, Srivasa said that Sri AdvaitaAcarya was a Vaisnava in the category of Sukadeva and Prahlada. This caused Mahaprabhu to manifest His pastime of anger. In that angry mood the Lord picked up a fishing pole and was about to beat Srivasa. However, the Lord’s anger quickly transformed into compassion and He then revealed that Sri Advaita was the primeval Lord, the source of all universal elements, the Supersoul of everyone, and the incarnation of Mahavisnu. Therefore, compared to Him, personalities like Sukadeva and Prahlada were nothing but children. The exalted author then proves the inconceivable and unique behaviour of the perfected Vaisnavas by relating the incident of Bhṛgu described in the Tenth Canto of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam. He concludes this chapter by saying that only by taking shelter of Krishna and attaining His mercy can one realize the transcendental characteristics of the Vaisnavas, which are so difficult to comprehend.
— Chapter Summary to Śrī Caitanya Bhāgavata, Antya Khaṇḍa, Chapter 9, written by Sri Srimad Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami. Published by Vrajaraja Press.Translated by Bhumipati Das