Chaitanya Bhagavata

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Śrī Caitanya-bhāgavata (

Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition. The text details Chaitanya's theological position as a combined Avatar of both Radha and Krishna within the belief of his close associates and followers. The writing of Chaitanya Bhagavata was commissioned by Nityananda, who was the guru
of Vrindavana Dasa Thakura and close friend of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.

Name

Initially, the Chaitanya Bhagavata was named Chaitanya Mangala. Krishnadasa Kaviraja also mentioned this work by this name. According to the Premavilasa of Narottama Dasa, when it was discovered that the poet Lochana Dasa had also written a work with this title, the leading members of the Vaishnava community in Vrindavan met and decided that Vrindavana Dasa's book would be known as the Chaitanya Bhagavata with Lochana Dasa's book remaining as the Chaitanya Mangala.[1]

Divisions

The Chaitanya Bhagavata is divided into three parts: the Adi-khanda, Madhya-khanda and Antya-khanda:

Adi-khanda

The Adi-khanda consists of sixteen adhyayas (chapters). It deals with the socio-religious situation of

Ishvara Puri
.

Madhya-khanda

The Madhya-khanda consists of twenty-seven adhyayas (chapters). It narrates Chaitanya's growing external displays of devotion, the disciples which join his devotional creed, the conversion of the debauchees Jagai and Madhai, and Chaitanya's civil disobedience movement against the Muslim Chand Kazi who tries to stop the congregational chanting of the names of Krishna.

Antya-khanda

The Antya-khanda consists of ten adhyayas (chapters). It portrays Chaitanya's acceptance of

Puri, his meeting with the logician Sarvabhauma Bhattacharya
and his relationships and interactions with different devotees.

In two of the manuscripts of the Chaitanya Bhagavat, three additional chapters are found at the end of the Antya-khanda, which are not accepted as the part of the original text by most of the modern scholars.[2]

Importance

The Chaitanya Bhagavata (similarly to the

Gaudiya Vaishnavas to be the Vyasa
of Chaitanya's pastimes because of revealing his true nature and mission.

The Bhagavata has been praised for its simplicity in that it does not cross into the ontological nuances that are found in

Krishna Dasa Kaviraja's Chaitanya Charitamrita. The Charitamrita of Krishna Dasa gives a more sophisticated and theological view of the life of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and provides more information on his years in Puri as an ascetic. Together, the texts of the Chaitanya Bhagavata and the Chaitanya Charitamrta provide a complete picture of the life and teachings of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu although there are many more of his biographies and other writings[4]
about him.

Scholars are of the opinion that

Vrindavana Dasa
wrote the Chaitanya Bhagavata somewhere in the mid-1540s.

Notes

  1. , p.261
  2. , p.269
  3. ^ pṛthivī-parjanta jata āche deŝa-grāma sarvatra sañcāra hoibek mora nāma, C.Bh. Antya 4.126
  4. ^ Vedic Encyclopedia, Library

References