Sri Advaita Acharya.
All over the world the glories of Sri Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu and Nityananda Prabhu are sung. However, without Sri Advaita
Acharya Prabhu, also known as Gaur Ana Thakur, He who brought Gaura to
this world, there would be no Mahaprabhu.
Sri Advaita Acharya was the first among the associates
of Lord Chaitanya and He appeared on our earth some 50 &? 60 years
before Sri Chaitanya's own advent. Sri Advaita Acharya is recognized as
a combined incarnation or expansion of Sri Maha Vishnu and Sri Sadashiva,
Lord Shiva in Golok dham.
In Chaitanya Charitamrita, Srila Krishnadas Kaviraj Goswami
quotes the following evidence from the diary of Swarupa Damodar to describe
the ontological principle of Advaita Acharya:
maha-vishnur jagat-karta mayaya yah srijaty adah
tasyavatara evayam advaitacarya ishvarah
advaitam harinadvaitad acaryam bhakti-shasanat
bhaktavataram isham tam advaitacaryam ashraye
Maha Vishnu is the master of the universe, which He creates
through his power of Maya. Advaita Acharya is the incarnation of this form
of the Supreme Lord. He is known as Advaita because he is none other than
Hari, as Acharya because he is the preceptor of devotion. I take shelter
of the Supreme Lord Advaita Acharya who is the Incarnation of a Devotee.
When Sri Advaita Acharya manifested in this world, Srila
Madhavendra Puri, Sri Ishwar Puri, Sri Sachi Mata and Sri Jagannath Mishra
also made their appearances.
Sri Advaita Acharya was a disciple of Srila Madhavendra
Puri and forms one of the main figures amongst the Pancatattva – Sri Krishna
Chaitanya, Prabhu Nityananda, Sri Advaita, Gadadhar pandit and Srivasa.
Advaita Acharya
Srila Madhavendra Puri-Spiritual Master of Advaita Acharya.
Sri Advaita Acharya Prabhu was born in 1434 in Nabagram,
Bengal to Sri Kubera Pandit and Srimati Nabha devi. They were originally
inhabitants of Nabagram village near Sri Hatta, but later moved to Santipur
on the banks of the Ganga. He disappeared in the year 1559, at the age
of 125 years.
Sri Advaita Acharya studied the Vedas and other scriptures
under a scholar named Santacharya in Phullavati village near Santipura,
where He was awarded the title Acharya.
Before the appearance of Sri Gauranga Mahaprabhu, all
the Vaishnava Devotees in the Navadwip area used to gather at the house
of Advaita Acharya. In these meetings, Advaita Acharya preached on the
basis of the Bhagavad Gita and Srimad Bhagavatam.
In the house of Advaita Acharya, the devotees took pleasure
in Krishna Katha, worshipping Krishna and chanting the Lord’s names. Sri
Advaita Acharya was a spiritual guru and had many followers. Sri Chaitanya’s
older brother Vishwarup used to visit Advaita Acharya’s house every day
to engage in the chanting and dancing of naam sankirtan.
He spent most of his adult life in the town of Shantipur,
with his wife and family, where he became the well-respected leader of
the small vaishnava community encouraging everyone to follow the path of
bhakti – loving service to Sri Krishna.
Seeing all around Him the growing tendency for people
to abandon their spiritual practices for the pursuit of wealth and short-lived
materialistic gains, Advaita Acharya felt greatly pained. He wondered how
the masses would ever be liberated.
It is said Advaita Acharya prayed fervently to the Lord
for several months–He worshipped His shaligram shilas lovingly with sacred
Tulasi leaves and Ganges water calling out aloud to the Lord to manifest
and show a way to the worldly people to reach the eternal spiritual abode.
In the age of Kali, the Lord will not appear at the call
of mere mortals. Knowing this His plenary expansion Sri Maha Vishnu appeared
and compelled Sri Krishna Himself to manifest in His most munificent avatar.
Advaita Acharya
Sri Krishna Chaitania-Yuga Avatara. United form of Radha and Krishna.
By the momentum of his spiritual fervour, his loud cries pierced
the coverings of the material universe and echoing through the transcendental
Vaikunta lokas, reached the ears of Sri Krishna in Goloka. Hearing this
urgent cry saturated with devotion, Sri Krishna advented Himself as Sri
Krishna Chaitanya in Mayapur, Bengal as the son of Sri Jagannath Mishra
and Saci Devi.
jaya jaya advaita isvara avatara
krsna avatari kaila jagat-nistara
"All glories to Advaita Prabhu, the incarnation of the
Supreme Personality of Godhead. He induced Krsna to descend and thus delivered
the entire world."
When Kubera Pandit and Nabha Devi disappeared, Advaita
Acharya went to Gaya to perform their pinda daan ceremonies and thence
continued on a pilgrimage tour of the holy places in India.
He came to Vrindavan and became absorbed in the worship
of Krishna. He discovered the deity of Sri Madan Mohan or Madan Gopal which
He later entrusted to the care of a Choube brahmin in Mathura before continuing
on his pilgrimage tour. It was this deity that was later served by Srila
Sanatan Goswami.
Sri Advaita Acharya had two wives; one was named Sri,
the other Sita. In the Gaura-ganoddesha-dipika, it is written that the
divine Yogamaya took the form of Advaita’s wife Srimati Sita devi, and
that Sri is her prakasha expansion.
The Caitanya-caritamrita gives a history of Sri Advaita's
sons. One of these, Achyutananda, is described in the Gaura-ganoddesha-dipika
(87-8) as the incarnation of Karttikeya, the son of Lord Shiva.
Advaita Acharya
Sri Advaita Acarya worshiped the shaligram shila and called out to the
Lord to descend to this world.
Sri Advaita Acharya Prabhu’s leelas are too multifarious
and mystical to be understood by mundane intellects. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
Himself glorified Advaita Acharya and described the underlying truth of
his nature in the following way:
Advaita Acharya is God himself. As a result of his association,
I have become purified. Because there is noone equal to him in devotion
to Krishna, nor in knowledge of the scriptures, he is called Advaita Acharya.
By his mercy, even the mlecchas become devotees of Krishna, who can describe
the extent of his powers or his devotion?
The Narasimha shaligram shila and Deities made in the
image of Sri Sri Madan-Gopal that were worshiped by Sri Advaita Acarya
are still to be found at Santipur in Madan-Gopal Para.
The place on the banks of the Ganga where Sri Advaita
Acarya worshiped the shaligram shila and called out to the Lord to descend
to the world is known today as Babla. A temple has been built in memory
of Advaita Acarya's pastimes there.