Caitanya Caritamrta – Madhya Lila – 12.212 | HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj | ISKCON Chennai | 28 June 2025
Text 212
প্রফুল্ল-কমল জিনি’নয়ন-যুগল ।
নীলমণি-দর্পণ-কান্তি গণ্ড ঝলমল ॥ ২১২ ॥
praphulla-kamala jini’ nayana-yugala
nīlamaṇi-darpaṇa-kānti gaṇḍa jhalamala
Synonyms
praphulla-kamala — blossoming lotus flower; jini’ — conquering; nayana-yugala — two eyes; nīlamaṇi — sapphire; darpaṇa — mirror; kānti — luster; gaṇḍa — neck; jhalamala — bright.
Translation
The eyes of Lord Jagannātha conquered the beauty of blossoming lotus flowers, and His neck was as lustrous as a mirror made of sapphires.
Purport
Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu usually saw Lord Jagannātha from a distance, standing behind the column of Garuḍa. But because he had not seen Lord Jagannātha for fifteen days, Caitanya Mahāprabhu felt great separation from Him. In great eagerness, Caitanya Mahāprabhu crossed the meeting hall and entered the room where food was offered, just to see the face of Lord Jagannātha. In verse 210, this action is called maryādā-laṅghana, a violation of the regulative principles. This indicates that one should not come very near a superior. Both the Lord’s Deity form and the spiritual master should be seen from a distant place. This is called maryādā. Otherwise, as it is said, familiarity breeds contempt. Sometimes coming too near the Deity or the spiritual master degrades the neophyte devotee. Personal servants of the Deity and the spiritual master should therefore always be very careful, for negligence may overcome them in their duty.
Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s eyes have been compared to thirsty bumblebees, and Śrī Jagannātha’s eyes have been compared to blossoming lotus flowers. The author has made these comparisons in order to describe Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu while the Lord was deeply absorbed in ecstatic love for Lord Jagannātha.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj:
Okay. So for 15 days after the Snana yatra, when the paint is removed and Lord Jagannath is again painted, the public is not allowed to see Jagannath. Lord Caitanya’s routine was every day he would have darshan of Jagannath. So for 15 days he could not see him. So this is a type of separation. After that separation and then again Jagannath is revealed and then the Ratha Yatra takes place. So these verses describe how after that separation when Jagannath is revealed to the public, Lord Caitanya was full of joy.
So this verse describes how Jagannath’s eyes were like blossoming lotuses or rather they surpassed blossoming lotuses. So often, of course Krishna’s eyes are compared to lotuses. We say the lotus eyed Lord. Of course the eyes are not lotuses, but this is a poetic devices to express the great beauty of the Lord’s eyes. So in the material world we often compare one thing into another, in order to praise it. So we say that warrior is brave like a lion or he is big as an elephant. So similarly for beauty, the lotus is often used. Of course there are many beautiful flowers, but the lotus is particularly used when describing a person’s beauty. So of course why is that?
So one of course is the lotus blossoms during the day. When the sun rises then the petals open up. And that lotus even though it is blossoming in the day, it has a very cooling effect. So heat is often compared to pain and cooling to taking away the pain. So as the lotus takes away the heat of the day, so the eyes of the Lord also take away the pain of material existence. The lotus also has a very delicate fragrance. It is sweet and also cooling. The color of the lotus is a light pinkish color. The eyes of the Lord are often described as having reddish or pinkish corners to them. The lotus petal is very graceful and is shaped like the eye. So in this way, the eye of the Lord is often compared to the lotus. Of course Jagannath’s eye is very special. It is actually very big and round. So not just like the lotus petal, it is like the whole lotus. And as the blossoming, ‘praphulla’ – of course means blossoming, it also means joyful. The word ‘ praphulla’ also means blossoming and it also means pure joy. When the word ‘praphulla’ is used, it refers to the fully blossomed eyes. But that wide open eye expresses joy and astonishment. So this is a very fitting description of Jagannath’s eyes, very huge and very joyful and very astonished.
Here also his effulgence or his complexion is compared to a sapphire mirror. So the complexion of Krishna is blackish. And the set of course is often compared, the complexion is often compared to a sapphire, nilamani. So nilamani or sapphire is a jewel, which is dark blue. Now a bad cheap sapphire of course does not have much sparkle. But a fine sapphire, even if it is dark, will radiate a great sparkle, the blueness to it. So the complexion of Krishna is often compared to this sapphire. This dark blue or ‘shyama’ of course is very famous, but it’s also famous because it’s the color of Madhurya rasa. So in the rasa shastras and in the Nectar of Devotion, when it’s describing the rasas, then it assigns a color to each rasa. For instance, the color of Shanta rasa is white. And in this way, each of the twelve rasas have a different color. Krodha rasa or anger is a dark red [Laughs]. So in this way we have different colors. So the color of Madhurya rasa is shyama. So the very color of Krishna that is sapphire, shyama color, dark blue, also indicates Madhurya rasa.
Of course here it’s not only sapphire, it’s a sapphire mirror – ‘darpana’. Where do we see this word used? That we have ‘ceto-darpana marjanam’. Sankirtan cleans the mirror of the heart. If the mirror is dirty, it does not shine, if it is clean, then it will reflect nicely. So what does the mirror of the heart reflect, when it is bright and shiny? So it reflects the image of Krishna. Very easily if we have been purified, then the mind can think of Krishna. In the case of Krishna of course, his whole body is like a mirror. So what is the mirror reflecting? And obviously, it will reflect the bhakti and prema of the devotees. So in other words the Lord recognizes and accepts all of the offerings and service of the devotees. As Bhagavad Gita says, as you serve me, I respond. So the Lord very nicely, perfectly, responds to each devotee.
So in this way, Caitanya Mahaprabhu appreciated the form of Jagannath, after being separated for some time. Of course even when one is separated from the Lord one can think of the Lord. Nevertheless, actually seeing the Lord is very satisfying. So when Krishna left Vrindavan and went to Mathura, he sent Uddhava back with a message. And then Uddhava gave that message to the Gopis. So Krishna apologized for being away and was unavoidable, because he had to serve the Yadus. So he pacified the Gopis by saying even if I am not present, you can meditate upon me. And that is as good as my being present. So that is true and of course we will find many verses in Bhagavad Gita and Bhagavatam talking about how the devotees should meditate on the Supreme Lord. And then the Lord manifests within the heart. So that is actually true. But the Gopis were not satisfied with that answer. And they were thinking, this is not a very good consolation for us. We are not yogis. In fact, in Bhagavad Gita and in Bhagavatam and Krishna himself, he says I am not attracted to yogis. So the Gopis were thinking why is Krishna telling us to be yogis? It is not satisfying to us. We want Krishna to be here in front of us. So in this way of course yes internal realization of the Lord is very good, but the devotee longs to directly perceive the Lord. And that is what happens when a person attains the bhava stage. He has a direct perception of the Lord. So that is always very satisfying to the devotees.
And thus, we see that though Lord Caitanya and his devotees could always meditate on Jagannath, when they actually saw Jagannath face to face they were overjoyed. So the devotees were very happy when they saw Jagannath in person. So the deity form actually is a consolation for the devotee. Most of the devotees are performing sadhana bhakti, so they don’t directly perceive the Lord. At the same time, it is rather difficult to simply meditate on the Lord. So the Lord is very merciful and he reveals himself in the form of the deity. And though in sadhana we are not qualified to see the Lord directly by seeing the deity form, we get this opportunity. So in this way the Lord is very merciful to reveal himself in the form of the deity. Of course the devotee himself has to see that deity with eyes of devotion. And the more devotion he has then the more directly he will perceive the Lord. If he attains bhava or prema then when he sees the deity he directly sees the Lord completely. And then the Lord also responds directly to the devotee. So this is of course very famous. Even Jagannath responds directly to his devotees in different ways in has pastimes with his devotees. We see Sakshi Gopal responded to his devotee. We have many such deities like that, who respond nicely to their devotees. So if we are not at a high stage, still we can at least see the deity and to the extent that we have devotion then we can have a direct experience of the Lord.
Lord Caitanya, of course is the Supreme Lord himself, but acting like a devotee. And then when he gets to see the Lord, he is also acting like a devotee. But when he sees that deity, then again he can actually directly see in Jagannath the form of Krishna. So whatever description here is given of Jagannath, we can apply that to the very form of Krishna. Lotus eyes, black body like sapphire etc. So the deity form is a form of mercy by which the devotees get an opportunity to directly perceive the Lord, even though they are not so qualified.
Q & A :
1.) So Maharaj when a devotee attains the level of Bhava or Prema they don’t see the deities anymore. They just have a personal form of the Lord. That’s how they relate to the deities Maharaj ?
Well, in Bhava and Prema if there is a deity, then in that deity, they directly see the Lord and interact with him. But if there is no deity, then the Lord reveals himself directly to that devotee. So we see in the story of Narada Muni, after his mother died then he performed devotional service and eventually, he was able to see the Lord. Of course we see the case of Dhruva. He saw the Lord.
2.) Maharaj, in olden days, South Indian Brahmins do ‘Hare Rama; Hare Krishna’ mantra, performing samskaras, following vedic injunctions nicely. Is pitru loka eternal or not ? What is their destination ? Can they be promoted or do they have any access to spiritual planets from Pitru Loka?
[Clarification of the Question by Maharaj]
Whether you chant Hare Rama or Hare Krishna, as long as you chant the name of the Lord, it’s fine. Lord Caitanya always used to chant Hare Krishna. He chanted Gopal, Govinda Ram, Shri Madhusudana. So many things. So the name of the Lord is all powerful. And of course some people chant Hare Rama first, because some forms of the Kali Santhana Upanishad have Hare Rama first. So they chant like that. But Lord Caitanya chanted Hare Krishna first, so we chant that way.
However, again our destination will depend upon our knowledge. If we chant with aparadh and think Krishna has got a material body, we don’t get anything. And if we chant trying to attain the Lord for material benefits, yes we can get material benefits. Some people may chant the name of Krishna to get liberation. They can get liberation. But the most intelligent people will understand that the highest goal is Prema. So if they make that their goal by chanting Hare Krishna or Hare Rama they can get Prema.
Devotee: One more clarification. The Pitru loka is eternal or Pitrus can have any chances of going to spiritual planets?
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: No. Pitru Loka is a material place.
3.) Maharaj, whatever example is given here, those are material example. But how can we explain this material example with Krishna ? Because he is unlimited.
Of course we use this comparisons, to give us some idea of the beauty of the Lord. So even in the material world, we use poetic comparisons for showing the beauty or whatever. Of course we can also say, that if you argue that well the lotus is material, so how we can compare that to Krishna’s spiritual eye? Then we can also say well there is a spiritual lotus in the spiritual world also [Laughs]. So the spiritual lotus is very beautiful, but Krishna’s eye is even more beautiful.
Devotee: So does it mean that whatever scripture gives analogy or comparison, its all spiritual not the material? Does it mean like this?
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: Yes. So if we think that, comparing Krishna’s eyes to lotuses or his complexion to a sapphire gives us some material contamination then we can think of it all as spiritual sapphire, spiritual lotus, spiritual sun or whatever. So in the spiritual world we have trees and flowers and birds and animals and stars and moon and sky and clouds just like the material world. Of course though we call it a cloud or a tree in the spiritual world, it’s also quite different from material cloud or tree. And when we say there are clouds and mountains and trees and birds in the spiritual world, definitely we are going to have some sort of material conception in our mind also. But at least those descriptions of the spiritual world give us some idea about the spiritual world even though with our mind at the moment we cannot fully appreciate.
This question, of course is raised in the Bhagavatam in the 87th chapter of the 10th Canto. So the question is, how can material words express Brahman or anything spiritual? And the answer is that, the words that describe spiritual Brahman and whatever in the spiritual world, they are not material words [Laughs], they are spiritual words [Laughs]. So then when sometimes we speak of Brahman, it means the Vedas. Vedas are full of words, but it’s all spiritual. When we read those words, of course we will also have material connotations in our mind. It will talk about trees and whatever so many things and we will have material connotations, but that in no way puts a fault on the words themselves, because they are spiritual. So if we are qualified by faith etc. then we can begin to understand the spiritual import of those words.
Devotee: Can we also say that, when a neophyte devotee chant ‘Hare Krishna’ – as this sound is connected to Krishna, so can we say that although the person may be materialistic or neophyte, but the sound coming from him is spiritual ?
[Clarification of the Question by Maharaj]
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: Well, we say the name of the Lord is spiritual. Non different from the Lord. It appears in the material world. It may look like it is material, because we say it and we can hear it with the material ear. But ultimately that sound or the name is Para. It is spiritual. But its described that para or spiritual sound takes on coverings of Pasyanti, Madhyama and finally Vaikari. When it becomes Vaikari then we can hear it and say it. So the qualified person will get the Para effect of that word. An unqualified person will just get the Vaikari aspect. Oh it is a material sound [Laughs].
4.) Tomorrow we are celebrating Ratha Yatra and you had explained in the class that, although Jagannath, for the neophyte normally he appeared as a deity. And for those who are in Bhava and Prema, they don’t see the deity. They see Krishna himself. So my question is that as we are taking Jagannath, and when Jagannath is going out to give darshan to many neophyte, many non devotees and others also. And as a devotee, what should be the attitude of taking Jagannath outside for the Ratha Yatra?
So like the name, so with the form of the Lord, if people may be unqualified or whatever, they still get some effect by seeing the form of Jagannath. So we have an offense that we don’t preach the glories of the name to the faithless. But they can hear the name and they get benefit from that. So similarly with the form of Jagannath, if they see the form, they get benefit.
Devotee: Suppose someone sees the Jagannath, if he considers that it’s all Jagannath, his form is a material, then there is a problem.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: So similar to the name, people hear the name of the Lord, oh that’s a material sound they may think. So they get very little effect because they have offense. But we see the power of Krishna’s name is such that even for a person like Shishupala, who was very offensive in chanting the name of Krishna, even then eventually he became purified [Laughs]. So by repeating the name or repeatedly seeing the form of the Lord, even if a person is offensive, eventually he will get purified. So it is said that, whether in hatred or fear or even kama or love or whatever, you meditate on the Lord, you can attain the Lord. So Shishupala was thinking Krishna Krishna, I hate you, I hate you, I hate you, thinking of the form of Krishna, but he got purified eventually by that [Laughs].
5.) Maharaj, with regard to Lord Jagannath, his eyes are specifically glorified as compared to other forms of the Lord. So does it mean Jagannath’s eyes are most merciful than any other forms of the Lord’s eyes?
So this is more or less subjective. If there’s a devotee of Jagannath, he’ll say Jagannath’s eyes are the most merciful. If he’s a devotee of Balaji, he’ll say Balaji’s eyes are more merciful. If he’s a devotee of Radharaman and Vrindavan, he’ll say Radharaman’s eyes are the most merciful [Laughs]. So there’s nothing wrong with that, because ultimately according to one’s own devotion, the Lord responds. So if you have a great attachment to Jagannath, Jagannath responds. If you have a great attachment to Radharaman, Radharaman responds.
6.) Lord Jagannath is direct form of Krishna or expansion of Krishna ? And the message to Gopis through Uddhava is sent by Vasudeva Krishna or Shyamasundar form ?
Well, the Lord in any form is non-different from other forms. And the deity also is non-different from the Lord himself. In the case of Jagannath, if you think of him as a Dwarka form, then you say, well, that’s an expansion from the Vrindavan Krishna. But you can also, as Lord Caitanya did, you can see that Jagannath form as a Vrindavan Krishna as well. And then he’s not an expansion [Laughs]. So by seeing Jagannath, then you can see the pastimes of Krishna and Vrindavan, or you could also see the pastimes of Krishna and Dwarka.
7.) There are some popular beliefs that Krishna’s heart is present in Jagannath deity at Puri. They call us Brahma Padartha. Is this a bona fide understanding?
[Clarification of the Question by Maharaj]
Well, we don’t know, because it’s all secret [Laughs]. But apparently there is something within the, there’s a hole in the thing and it’s transferred from the old Jagannath to the new Jagannath when they make a new deity.
Devotee: Maharaj, in fact, we have Shalagrama Sheela within the Jagannath deity of ours.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: So some say it is a Shalagrama, others say, it is what the remnants of the heart of Krishna, when he was cremated or something in Dwarka or whatever like that. There are so many different stories like that, we don’t know.
8.) Regarding the response by deities, only deities properly installed and worshipped can respond or many people just buy from handcraft shop also and worship. How to understand?
If you don’t install the deity, then according to Pancharatra, it’s not a deity. If we are not acting according to Pancharatra and we are great devotees, of course, the Lord can appear anywhere just by our devotion. But most devotees don’t claim they are very great, so therefore, they follow the rules of Pancharatra.
Devotees: HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj Ki.. Jai !!