In honour of the disappearance day of Srila Vrindavan Das Thakur today, we are presenting a short excerpt from Sri Chaitanya-bhagavata in which he expresses his heart and the gist of his gift to the world.
May the vigorous devotion he described, praised, and exemplified take hold in our hearts.
sarva-vaiṣṇavera pāye mora namaskāra
ithe aparādha kichhu nā labe āmāra
I offer my obeisance at the feet of all Vaishnavs. Should I make any offence in doing so, I pray they will forgive me.
āmāra prabhura prabhu śrī-gaurasundara
e baḍa bharasā chitte dhari nirantara
My master’s master is Sri Gaurasundar. I hold this great hope in my heart forever.
mukheha ye jana bale ‘nityānanda-dāsa’
se avaśya dekhibeka chaitanya-prakāśa
Anyone who says, “I am Nityananda’s servant,” will certainly behold Sri Chaitanya.
chaitanyera priyatama nityānanda-rāya
prabhu-bhṛtya-saṅga yena nā chhāḍe āmāya
Nityananda Ray is most dear to Sri Chaitanya. I associate with Nityananda so that Sri Chaitanya does not reject me.
jagatera prema-dātā hena nityānanda
tāna hañā yena bhajo̐ prabhu-gaurachandra
Nityananda is the giver of prem to this world, thus through Him I serve Sri Gaurachandra.
saṁsārera pāra hai’ bhaktira sāgare
ye ḍubibe se bhajuka nitāi-chāndere
May those who desire to cross over samsara and dive in the ocean of devotion serve Sri Nitaichand.
kāṣṭhera putalī yena kuhake nāchāya
ei-mata gaurachandra more ye bolāya
As a puppet master causes a puppet dance, so Gaurachandra causes me to speak.
pakṣī yena ākāśera anta nāhi pāya
yata śakti thāke, tata dūra uḍi’ yāya
ei-mata chaitanya-kathāra anta nāi
yāra yata-dūra śakti sabe tata gāi
As birds cannot reach the limit of the sky but fly into it as far as they are able, so discussion of Sri Chaitanya has no end and I chant His glories as far as I am able.
śrī-kṛṣṇa-chaitanya-nityānanda-chānda jāna
vṛndāvana-dāsa tachhu pada-yuge gāna
Embracing Sri Krishna Chaitanya and Nityanandachand as his life and soul, Vrindavan Das sings the glories of Their feet.
Source: Sri Chaitanya-bhagavata: Madhya-khaṇḍa, 28.185, 191–199.
Note: Verse 195 is engraved on Srila Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswami Maharaj’s Temple of Love and Affection.