Rajashekhara Dasa
From the book “Chaurasi-kosa Vraja Mandala Parikrama”:
Shrila Vishwanatha Chakravarti Thakura was an important acharya of the Gaudiya Vaishnava sampradaya in the latter part of the 17th Century, and rose to prominence some sixty years after the disappearance of Shrila Jiva Goswami. Vishwanatha Chakravarti was born into a brahmana family in Bengal in the year 1638, and first arrived at Radha-kunda around 1655. He was still very young at the time and took shelter of Mukunda Dasa, a disciple of Krishnadasa Kaviraja and stayed with him in the old bhajana-kutira of the Kaviraja. After some time he went back to Bengal for a short stay but soon returned making Radha-kunda the main base of his activities. At that time he established his own bhajana-kutira next to the old bhajana-kutira of Raghunatha Dasa Goswami. Vishwanatha is considered one of the greatest scholars of the Gaudiya sampradaya and while staying at Radha-kunda, he wrote many of his celebrated books which numbered over forty including: Vraja-riti-chintamani, Shri Krishna Bhavanamrita, Sankalpa-kalpa-druma, Madhurya-kadambini, Mantrartha Dipika and Chamatkara-chandrika. His commentary on the Srimad-Bhagavatam was very highly acclaimed and was one of the commentaries used as a reference by Shrila Prabhupada while writing his own now famous Bhagavatam commentary. He also composed a number of important bhajans and kirtans, the most famous of which is the Shri-Shri-gurvastaka (Prayers to the Spiritual Master), which is sung in all ISKCON temples every morning during mangala aratika
Once during the writing of his book Mantrartha Dipika, which was an explanation of the kama-gayatri mantra, after extensively researching all the known scriptures on the subject, he concluded there were twenty-five full syllables contained in the mantra. But after reading Chaitanya-charitamrita he became extremely perplexed, because Krishnadasa Kaviraja had stated that there were only twenty four and a half syllables contained in the kama gayatri. Vishwanatha began to think that Krishnadasa Kaviraja must have made a mistake, as all previous authorities and Vedic scholars had stated that there were twenty five syllables in the gayatri-mantra, and this was also his own conclusion. Because of thinking that Krishnadasa Kaviraja had committed an error in Chaitanya-charitamrita, Vishwanatha condemned himself for harboring such an offensive mentality, even though all the known Vedic shastras stated there were twenty five full syllables in the kama-gayatri. Vishwanatha felt the only solution to remove such doubts was simply to commit suicide, rather than remain a doubting offender at the lotus feet of such a great devotee like Krishnadasa Kaviraja.
Having decided to fast unto death, Vishwanatha remained awake the whole night chanting the holy names while at the same time feeling immense sorrow at his wretched plight.
As dawn approached, Vishwanatha, feeling drowsy closed his weary eyes and momentarily dozed off. Suddenly in a dream Shrimati Radharani appeared before him smiling benevolently and spoke to Vishwanatha in a very sweet and soothing voice saying, ‘Oh Vishwanatha, please do not lament anymore. What Krishnadasa has written is true, he is My confidential maidservant and thus he knows everything about My innermost moods. The kama-gayatri is the mantra for worshiping Me. Indeed, I am revealed by the syllables of this mantra. Without My mercy, no one can understand the mystery of this mantra. Look at the book known as Varnagama-bhasvadi to find the solution to the half syllable. Krishnadasa read this book and wrote as he did. Please listen carefully, the vi, as in the words kama devaya vidmahe, is considered to be only a half syllable, because this half syllable falls on Krishna’s forehead, and because Krishna’s forehead is shaped like the halo of a half-moon, then the vi can only be considered as a half syllable. All other letters in the mantra are considered as full syllables and are therefore all full-moons. Now wake-up, read the book Varnagama-bhasvadi and compile the evidence for everyone’s benefit.’ Immediately waking up on Radharani’s command, Vishwanatha found himself immersed in ecstatic feelings while his whole being felt illuminated having witnessed in his dream the divine vision of Srimati Radharani. Vishwanatha immediately searched out the book Varnagama-bhasavi from the kutira of Krishnadasa Kaviraja and after having fully digested its Contents, completed his book Mantrartha Dipika, explaining all the most confidential meanings of the kama-gayatri mantra.
After the departure of the great Gaudiya Vaishnava acharya, Shrila Jiva Goswami in the year 1608, a great vacuum arose and gradually many philosophical differences created confusion amongst the followers of Jiva Goswami. This was because there were no empowered devotees of any stature present in Vrindavana during the interceding period in the early 17th Century, prior the emergence of Shrila Visvanatha Chakravarti Thakura. The conflict arose from a division amongst Jiva’s followers regarding whether Radha and Krishna were actually married or not. One group began worshiping Radha and Krishna as being married (svakiya-vada), while the others continued to worship the ‘divine lovers’ as paramours (parakiya-vada). This controversy began to arise even during the time of Jiva’s presence amongst a group of neophytes who considered themselves as great panditas or scholars. In order to accommodate these less-intelligent misguided neophytes, Jiva Gosvami, in his commentary on Rupa Goswami’s Ujjvala-nilamani, had acknowledged the svakiya-vada. Unfortunately, none of the panditas could realize that in other literatures written by Jiva, the parakiya-vada has been stressed.
Before the appearance of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the worship of Radharani was non-existent and there were no Deities of Radharani in any temple. Besides this, the parakiya-rasa enjoyed by Radha and Krishna as unmarried lovers or paramours, was not openly discussed due to the strict social and religious practices prevalent in Indian society at the time. There were many religious-minded moralists who firmly believed that the Vrindavana pastimes of Radha and Krishna were simply the immoral activities of an ordinary boy and girl. The propagation of the parakiya-vada as being the pinnacle of Krishna’s pastimes and the promotion of Radharani as the Supreme Goddess and the source of even Lakshmi and Savitri, was unheard off and completely revolutionary at the time. Lord Chaitanya gave the responsibility of revealing the philosophical evidence about the exalted nature of parakiya-vada, solely in the hands of the Six Goswamis. Therefore, in the early days of the Lord Chaitanya’s movement, misunderstanding amongst neophytes was not uncommon. Even today, there are many neophytes and so-called religious moralists, who are unable to comprehend Krishna’s gopi-lila and the amorous pastimes of parakiya-vada. The so-called scholars amongst Jiva Goswami’s followers, due to their mundane and rigid moralistic viewpoint, and lack of true philosophical understanding, eventually became militant in their advocacy of svakiya-vada being the highest truth.
From the point of view of Lord Chaitanya’s philosophy and teachings, Radha and Krishna are eternally paramours, because the highest expression of transcendental loving emotions like gopi-bhava, vipralambha-bhava, and maha-bhava, can only be experienced within the highly exalted parakiya-rasa which is manifest only in Vraja-Vrindavana. In Vaikuntha, the parakiya-rasa is unknown and Lakshmi and Narayana are eternally married. This means that the so-called marriage of Radha and Krishna that takes place during Their earthly pastimes in Vrindavana, is simply to fulfill the transcendental desires of Their most confidential devotees such as Mother Yashoda and Nanda Maharaja, who according the Gopala-champu of Jiva Goswami, had arranged the marriage of Radha and Krishna at a place near Mahavana after Krishna had returned from Kurukshetra.
As Vishwanatha slowly emerged as the spiritual heir to Jiva Goswami, due to his vast knowledge of Vaishnava scripture and the writings of the Six Goswamis, he was able to defeat one by one the arguments presented by so-called panditas and proponents of svakiya-vada. Being in utter disarray after having been so soundly defeated by Vishwanatha and unable to present any substantial arguments to support their svakiya-vada philosophy, the deviant so-called panditas, out of sheer frustration and unable to take their defeat lightly, hatched a plot to eliminate Vishwanatha Chakravarti. Knowing that Vishwanatha was performing solitary bhajana and the seva-puja of his Deity at Radha-kunda, some of the deviant panditas affiliated to the group supporting svakiya-vadi, secretly entered the nearby forest and hid in the bushes waiting for Vishwanatha to pass by, with the intention of beating him to death.
After waiting in the forest for a considerable time, there was no sign of Vishwanatha anywhere. Suddenly the panditas noticed a beautiful young girl of not more than twelve years of age picking flowers in the forest; the panditas came out from hiding and asked the girl if by chance she had seen Vishwanatha. The girl replied that she had indeed seen him, but now he had gone elsewhere to pick flowers. While talking to the little girl, the panditas were so enchanted by her effulgent complexion and natural beauty, as well as her charm and graceful mannerisms, they completely forgot their enmity towards Vishwanatha and felt fully contented simply talking to the sweet and innocent little girl. The panditas then asked the girl who she was and for whom she was picking flowers. The girl very innocently replied that she was a maidservant of Shrimati Radharani and had been sent to pick flowers so that Radha could make a garland for her beloved paramour Shri Krishna. The panditas were totally shocked by the reply and simply looked at each other in utter astonishment, being completely bewildered by what they had just heard. When they were about to ask the girl for a further explanation, as they turned around to speak to her, she had disappeared, and they saw only Vishwanatha in the distance, picking flowers for his seva-puja.
The panditas could immediately understand that the vision they had just seen was extraordinary, and they concluded that the form of the girl they saw, was in fact Vishwanatha’s eternal spiritual form (siddha-deha) as a manjari maidservant of Radharani. They realized the mercy being bestowed upon them by the Lord and they immediately prostrated themselves before Vishwanatha, while begging forgiveness for their sinful and offensive mentality. Vishwanatha immediately forgave them and then asked the panditas a simple question: which village lies between Radha’s home in Varsana and Krishna’s home at Nandagrama. The panditas replied that it was the village of Sanket. Vishwanatha then said that if Radha and Krishna were actually married, why did They always meet secretly at Sanket at the dead of night, and not at one of Their homes, which would be the natural place for a married couple to meet. The panditas could not reply, because even from an ordinary social perspective, they could understand that Radha and Krishna never met publicly at Varsana or Nandagrama, or at any other place. The panditas, who were all Vaishnava followers of the Six Goswamis and specifically owed allegiance to Jiva Goswami, were thus saved by the mercy of Vishwanatha, and consequently they accepted him as their siksha guru.
While living at Radha-kunda, Vishwanatha Chakravarti began worshiping the small Deity of Gokulanandaji and also took over the worship of the govardhana-shila of Raghunatha Dasa Goswami given to Raghunatha as a gift by Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu; both these Deities were later installed in the Radha Gokulananda Mandira in Vrindavana. Vishwanatha Chakravarti had one very brilliant disciple named Baladeva Vidyabhushana who became the next acharya in the disciplic succession of the Gaudiya Vaishnava sampradaya. Vishnanatha Chakravarti Thakura disappeared from the world in 1708, and his samadhi is located in the garden of the Radha Gokulananda Mandira in Vrindavana. It is said that in Krishna’s Vrindavana pastimes, Vishwanatha is Vinoda Vallari-manjari.
