Chapter 16

The Pastimes of the Lord
in His Childhood and Youth

This chapter fully describes Lord Caitanya’s kaiSora-lilG, or the activities He
performed just before attaining youth. During this time He studied deeply and was
victorious over greatly learned scholars. During His Ra/§ora-li/a the Lord also sported
in the water. He went to East Bengal to secure financial assistance, cultivate knowl-
edge and introduce the safkirtana movement, and there He met Tapana Misra,
whom He instructed about spiritual advancement and ordered to go to Varanasi.
While Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu was touring East Bengal, His wife, Laksmidevi,
was bitten by a serpent or by the serpent of separation, and thus she left this
world. When the Lord returned home, He saw that His mother was overwhelmed
with grief because of Laksmidevi's death. Therefore at her request He later married
His second wife, Visnupriya-devi. This chapter also describes the Lord’s argument
with Kesava Kasmiri, the celebrated schotar, and the Lord's criticism of his prayer
glorifying mother Ganges. In this prayer the Lord found five kinds of literary orna-
ments and five kinds of literary faults, thus defeating the pardita, Later the Kasmiri
Pandita, who was known to have been victorious all over the country, submitted
himself to the goddess of learning, and by her order he met Lord Caitanya
Mahaprabhu on the morning of the next day and surrendered unto Him.

TEXT 1

srrqa-afay fauna tarast> |
Aorta HH SiS we CowMSISL STH NS 1
krpd-sudhd-sarid yasya visvam dplavayanty api
nicagaiva sad@ bhati tarn cattanya-prabhurm bhaje
SYNONYMS

Rrp@-sudha—of the nectar of the mercy; sarit—river; yasya—whose; visvarm—the
whole universe; @p/@vayant?—inundating; api—although; nicaga eva—more inclined
to the poor and fallen; sodé—always; bhati—is manifest; tam—Him; caitanya-
prabhum—Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu; bAaje—1 worship.

TRANSLATION

| worship Lord Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, whose nectarean mercy flows like a
great river, inundating the entire universe. Just as a river flows downstream, Lord
Caitanya especially extends Himself to the fallen.

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