9. Sri Nityanandastakam

Sri Nityanandastakam
Composed by Srila Vrindavan dasa Thakura

1

sarac-candra-bhrantim sphurad-amala-kantim gaja-gatim hari-premonmattam dhrta-parama-sattvam smita-mukham sada ghurnan-netram kara-kalita-vetram kali-bhidam bhaje nityanandam bhajana-taru-kandam niravadhi 

I perpetually worship Sri Nityananda Prabhu, the root of the Krsna-bhakti tree, whose bright face mocks the full autumn moon, whose pure complexion glistens, whose gait is like that of a maddened elephant, who is always intoxicated in Krsna prema, who embodies pure spiritual energy, whose face holds a gently smile, whose eyes are always rolling due to His absorption in Krsna prema, whose lotus hand holds a glowing staff, and who by the performance of nama-sankirtana pierces the influence of Kali yuga. 

2

rasanam-agaram svajana-gana-sarvasvam -atulam tadiyaika-prana-pratima-vasudha-jahnava-pati sada premonmadam param-aviditam manda-manasam bhaje nityanandam bhajana-taru-kandam niravadhi 

I perpetually worship Sri Nityananda Prabhu, the root of the Krsna-bhakti tree, who is the mainstay of all the rasas, who is everything to His devotees, who is incomparable, who is the master of both Vasudha and Jahnava-devi, who consider Him more dear than their own lives, who is always maddened in Krsna- prema, and who is unknown only to those of meagre intelligence. 

3

saci-sunu-prestham nikhila-jagadistam sukhamayam kalau majjaj-jivoddharana-karanoddama-karunam harer-akhyanad-va bhava-jaladhi-garvonnati haram bhaje nityanandam bhajana-taru-kandam niravadhi 

I perpetually worship Sri Nityananda Prabhu, the root of the Krsna-bhakti tree, who is very dear to Sri Saci-nandana, who is worshipped by the entire universe, who is the embodiment of happiness, who possesses infinite mercy for delivering the souls who are drowning in the age of Kali, and who by the performance of Sri Harinama-sankirtana thwarts the progressing false pride of the ocean of repeated birth and death. 

4

aye bhratar-nrnam kali-kalusinam kinnu bhavita tatha prayascitam racaya yad-anayasata ime vrajanti tvam-ittham saha bhagavata mantrayati yo bhaje nityanandam bhajana-taru-kandam niravadhi 

I perpetually worship Sri Nityananda Prabhu, the root of the Krsna-Bhakti tree, who said to Sri Krsna Chaitanya, "Hey broher Gauranga! What will be the destination of the sinful souls of Kali-yuga, and how will they be redeemed? Please devise a method by which they will easily attain You." 

5

yathestam re bhratah! kuru hari-hari-dhvanam-anisam tato vah samsarambudhi-tarana-dayo mayi laget idam bahu-sphotair-atati ratayan yah pratigrham bhaje nityanandam bhajana-taru-kandam niravadhi 

I perpetually worship Sri Nityananda Prabhu, the root of the Krsna-bhakti tree, who wandered around Bengal and aproaching the door of each and every home, threw open His arms and exclaimed: "Hey brothers! All of you perpetually perfom Sri Hari Nama sankirtana in union. By doing so, I will take the responsability to deliver you all from the ocean of material existence. 

6

balat samsarambhonidhi-harana-kumbhodbhavam-aho saram sreyah-sindhunnati-kumuda-bandhum samuditam khala-sreni-sphurjat-timira-hara-surya-prabham-aham bhaje nityanandam bhajana-taru-kandam niravadhi 

I perpetually worship Sri Nityananda Prabhu, the root of the Krsna-bhakti tree, who is the Agastya Muni who forcibly swallows the ocean of repeated birth and death, who is a rising full moon which increases the ocean of the saintly persons welfare and who is a sun which dissipates the darkness of ignorance cast by the various classes of miscreants. 

7

natantam gayantam harim-anuvadantam pathi pathi vrajantam pasyantam svam-api na dayantam jana-ganam prakurvantam santam sakurana-drgantam prakalanad bhaje nityanandam bhajana-taru-kandam niravadhi 

I perpetually worship Sri Nityanand Prabhu, the root of the Krsna-bhakti tree, who wandered on every path in Bengal dancing, singing and calling out: "Hari bol! Hari Bo!", and who lovingly bestowed merciful sidelong glances upon those who were not compassionate to even their own selves. 

8

subibhranam bhratuh kara-sarasi-jam komalataram mitho vaktralokocchalita-paramananda -hrdayam bhramantam madhuryair-ahaha! madayantam pura-janan bhaje nityanandam bhajana-taru-kandam niravadhi 

I perpetually worship Sri Nityananda Prabhu, the root of the Krsna-bhakti tree, who held the supremely soft lotus-hand of His brother Sri Gauranga Mahaprabhu, whose heart became filled with the highest bliss when the two brothers gazed into each other's faces and who wandered here and there delighting the townspeople with His sweetness. 

Sri Nityananda Prabhu ki Jaya!

2. Nityananda Prabhu is Lord Balarama

The glories of Lord Nityananda as the incarnation of Lord Balarama, the origin of both the spiritual and material world, are given in the revealed Vedic scriptures as follows:

Vayu Purana

(1) balaramo mamaivamsah, so 'pi mat-prstham esyati;

nityananda iti khyato nyasi-cudamanih ksitau

In the Vayu Purana, the Lord tells Brahma: "Lord Balarama, who is My first expansion and non-different from Me will also appear by My side as Lord Shri Nityananda. He will become the crest jewel of all renunciants on the earth."

(2) krtvavadhuta-vesam sa, dharman bhagavatan bahun;

grahayitva janan ittham grhinam asramam tatah.

"Assuming the dress of an avadhuta, He will freely distribute bhagavata dharma i.e. love of God. He will distribute this pure love through various means and deliver all the living entities. He will do so first as a brahmacari and later as a householder."

(3) jahnavy-adibhir atmanam, darsayisyati manavan.

"Accompanied by His eternal consort Shrimati Jahnavi-devi and many other intimate associates, He (Nityananda) will reveal His transcendental pastimes to the people."

Ananta-Samhita of Atharva Veda

nityanando maha-kayo, bhutva mat-kirtane ratah;

vimudhan bhakti-rahitan, mama bhaktan karisyasi.

In the Ananta-Samhita, the Lord states to Anantadeva: "When I appear in Navadvipa in Kali-yuga, You will become Nityananda. You will have a very tall, beautiful and large body, and You will be constantly absorbed in chanting My name and glories. In this way, by Your causeless mercy You will convert many bewildered fools who are devoid of devotion into My pure unalloyed devotees."

Shri Chaitanya-Charitamrita, Adi 1.7-11

sankarshanah karana-toya-sayi

garbhoda-sayi ca payobdhi-sayi

seshas ca yasyamsa-kalah sa nitya-

nandakhya-ramah saranam mamastu

 May Shri Nityananda Prabhu be the object of my constant remembrance. Sankarshana, Mahavishnu, Garbhodakshayi Vishnu, and Kshirodakshayi Vishnu, as well as Sesha are His expansions and the expansions of His expansions. That same Nityananda Prabhu, is none other than Balarama. (Cc. Adi 1.7)

mayatite vyapi-vaikuntha-loke

purnaisvarye shri-catur-vyuha-madhye

rupam yasyodbhati sankarshanakhyam

tam shri-nityananda-ramam prapadye

I surrender unto the lotus feet of Shri Nityananda Rama, who is known as Saokarshana in the midst of the catur-vyuha. He has full opulences and resides in Vaikunthaloka far beyond the material creation. (Cc. Adi 1.8)

maya-bhartajanda-sanghasrayangah

sete sakshat karanambhodhi-madhye

yasyaikamsah shri-puman adi-devas

tam shri-nityananda-ramam prapadye

I offer my full obeisances unto the feet of Shri Nityananda Rama, whose partial representation called Karanodakasayi Vishnu, lying on the Karana ocean, is the original Purusha, the master of the illusory energy and the shelter of all the universes. (Cc. Adi 1.9)

yasyamsamsah shrila-garbhoda-sayi

yan-nabhy-abjam loka-sanghata-nalam

loka-srashtuh sutika-dhama dhatus

tam shri-nityananda-ramam prapadye

 I offer my full obeisances unto the feet of Shri Nityananda Rama, a partial part of whom is Garbhodakshayi Vishnu. From the navel of Garbhodakshayi Vishnu sprouts the lotus stem that is the birthplace of Brahma, the engineer of the Universe. The stem of that lotus is the resting place of the multitude of planets. (Cc. Adi 1.10)

yasyamsamsamsah paratmakhilanam

poshta vishnur bhati dugdhabdhi-sayi

kshauni-bharta yat-kala so 'py anantas

tam shri-nityananda-ramam prapadye

I offer my full obeisances unto the feet of Shri Nityananda Rama, whose secondary part is the Vishnu lying in the ocean of milk. That Kshirodakashayi Vishnu is the Supersoul of all living entities and the maintainer of all the universe. Sesha Naga is His further sub-part. (Cc. Adi 1.11)

Lord Nityananda Baladeva is the Original Sankarshana

5.7

shri-balarama gosani mula-sankarshana

panca-rupa dhari' karena krishnera sevana

apane karena krishna-lilara sahaya

shrishti-lila-karya kare dhari' cari kaya

Lord Balarama is the original Sankarshana. He assumes five other forms to serve Lord Krishna. He helps in the pastimes of Lord Krishna, and He does the work of creation in four other forms. (Cc. Adi 5.8,9)

Balarama and Nityananda are non Different

5.8

prema-pracarana ara pashanda-dalana

dui-karye avadhuta karena bhramana

 For two purposes to spread the cult of bhakti and to defeat and subdue the atheists Lord Nityananda, the most dedicated devotee of the Lord, moved throughout the country. (Cc. Antya 3.149)

Translated and Compiled By His Holiness

Bhaktiratna Sadhu Swami Gaurangapada

http://nitaigaurnam.org/bio/

 

1. Who is Lord Nityananda?

Lord Nityananda is the eternal associate of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Rarely is the name Nimai (Chaitanya Mahaprabhu) taken without that of Nitai (Lord Nityananda).Mahaprabhu cannot be approached or understood without the mercy of Nityananda Prabhu, who is the cardinal guru of all the universes and serves as an intermediary between Mahaprabhu and His Devotees. He is the Lord's active principle in both creation and lila. He is the second body of the Lord, manifesting as Balaram to Shri Krishna, Lakshman to Shri Ram and Nityananda Prabhu to Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. All other forms and expansions of the Lord emanate from this second body. Nityananda Prabhu is thus the source of Sankarshan, all the Vishu's, and Ananta Shesha. As Vishnu tattva He and Advaita Acharya are worshipped in the same category as Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. In the manifested earthly lila, Nityananda Prabhu is senior to Chaitanya Mahaprabhu by more than a decade. He is statue like His Master, with the whitish complexion of Lord Balarama. His garments resemble a cluster of blue lotus flowers and His effulgence is said to surpass the grandeur of a rising moon at sunset. He has a deep melodious voice, constant singing the glories of Shri Krishna and carries a red stick with benedictions for the Devotees, but feared by the demoniac. He has the carefree mood of a wild avadhuta, so absorbed is He in the love of Godhead, and no one knows what He will do next.

   Nityananda Prabhu was born in Ekachakra, a small village in present West Bengal, around the year 1474. His birthsite is commemorated by a Temple named Garbhashva and is visited by throngs of pilgrims today. His father, Hadai Ojha and mother Padmavati, were pious Brahmans originally from Mithila. Nityananda Prabhu was born on the auspicious thirteenth day of the bright fortnight of the month of Maga. As a child, Nitai (as Nityananda Prabhu was called), loved to enact the pastimes of Shri Krishna or Lord Rama. He did this so authoritatively and with such rapture, that the entire village would be immersed in the love of Godhead.

   Nitai's favorite part was that of Lakshman, and He enacted it with so many apparently authentic scenes not described in the Ramayana, that people would wonder if He was making it up or actually relishing His own pastimes. The village of Ekachakra was completely absorbed in the love of little Nitai, where He spend the first 12 years of his earthly life. In the 13th year, a travelling sannyasi, said to be the famous Lakshmipati Tirtha, enchanted by Nitai's devotion and service, requested Nitai from his parents, as a travelling companion. His parents, bound by Vedic culture, could not refuse the request of a guest and reluctantly parted with Nitai. However, devastated by the separation with Nitai, that Hadai Pandit soon gave up his life.

   Nitai traveled with Lakshmipati Tirtha for about 20 years, during which He visited all the holy places in the country, reminiscent of the manner that Balarama traveled while the battle at Kurukshetra raged on. Nitai is said to be later on initiated by Lakshmipati Tirtha. He also associated with another of Lakshmipati Tirtha's famous disciple, Madhavendra Puri, who although his godbrother, was revered by Nitai was as a spiritual master. Madhavendra Puri is famous for establishing the sweet truth of Madhurya-rasa which later become an integral part of Gaudiya Vaishnavism. Among the other disciples of Madhavendra Puri is Advaita Acharya, and Ishavara Puri (the spiritual master of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu).

   Nityananda Prabhu met Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in 1506, when He was 32 years old and the Lord 20 years. It is said that when Nityananda Prabhu reached the land of Nadia, He hid in the house of Nandanacharya, to heighten the ecstasy of meeting through separation. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu aware of the arrival of His eternal associate dispatched Haridas Thakur and Shrivas Pandit to search out Nitai, but they failed. Finally unable to bear the separation any longer, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu Himself went directly to Nityananda Prabhu and the ecstasy of the meeting was so transcendental that every one witnessing it were awed by the sublime experience. A Temple called Shri Gaura-Nityananda commemorates this meeting place in Nadia.

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu aware of the arrival of His eternal associate dispatched Haridas Thakur and Shrivas Pandit to search out Nitai, but they failed. Finally unable to bear the separation any longer, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu Himself went directly to Nityananda Prabhu and the ecstasy of the meeting was so transcendental that every one witnessing it were awed by the sublime experience. (In the wallpaper: Meeting of Lords Nimai and Nitai at Nandanacharya's house).

   Nityananda Prabhu in His role as the original spiritual master, was instrumental in spreading the yuga dharma of sankritana all over the Gaudia desh (Bengal, Orrisa). His mercy knew no bounds, and people fortunate to come in contact with Him were inundated with the love of Godhead. It was by His mercy that Raghunatha dasa, one of the six Goswamis started the famous Danda Mahotsava festival of Panihatti, a tradition that continues to this day, and was thus able to serve Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. He extended His mercy to even fallen souls like Jagai and Madhai, delivering them from the sinful lives and protecting them from the wrath of even Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Indeed His mercy knew no bounds, and fortunate were the people who tasted the nectar of His instructions.

   When Nityananda Prabhu returned to Bengal at the request of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, He decided to abandon His avadhuta status and become a grahastha (householder). He married Jahnava Devi and Vashudha, the two daughters of Suryadasa Sarakhel, who the brother of Gauridasa Pandit (an intimate associate of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and the spiritual master of the famous Shyamananda Pandit). Nityananda Prabhu had a son (Virchandara) and a daughter (Ganga Devi) from Vashudha. Soon after Vashudha passed away and Jahanva Devi looked after the children. She later initiated Virchandra, and also became an instructing spiritual master to the likes of Shyamananda Pandit, Shrivasa Pandit and Narottama dasa Thakur. Jahnava Devi is revered as a Vaishnavi and she established the pre-eminent positon of women in the Vaishanava tradition.

   Lord Nityananda wound up His earthly pastimes, by merging into the Deity of Krishna, known as Bankim Ray, not far from Ekachakra. Vaishanava acharyas emphatically state that people who try to understand Chaitanya Mahaprabhu without getting the mercy of Nityananda Prabhu will never succeed. One must pray very sincerely to Lord Nityananda Prabhu as the adi-guru (original spiritual master) to be delivered to the Lotus feet of Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. The presence of Nityananada Prabhu is always felt in the presence of one's own guru, for the guru is considered to be the living manifestation of Nityananda Prabhu's love and mercy, and his shakti (power) is what gives the disciple the ability to perform devotional service and experience spiritual bliss. (http://gaudiyahistory.com/lord-nityananda-prabhu)

Always Chant:

Nityananda! Gauranga! Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare!

For more, visit http://www.nitaigaurnam.org/