Śrīla Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī Appearance Day

Identity in the spiritual world

Dāsa-śrī-raghunāthasya pūrvākhyā rasa-mañjarī

amuṁ kecit prabhāṣante śrīmatīṁ rati-mañjarīm

Śrīla Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī was formerly the gopī named Rasa-mañjarī. Sometimes it is said that he was Rati-mañjarī [Śrī Gaura-gaṇoddeśa-dīpikā 186].

Bhajan Sung for the Six Gosvāmīs

Śrī Śrī Ṣaḍ-gosvāmy-aṣṭakam

The Meeting of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī

Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Antya-līlā, chapter six

Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī had been attempting to come to the lotus feet of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu for a long time, and finally he left his home and met the Lord. When Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu had gone to Śāntipura on His way to Vṛndāvana, Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī had offered to dedicate his life at the Lord’s lotus feet. In the meantime, however, a Muslim official became envious of Hiraṇya Dāsa, Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī’s uncle, and induced some big official court minister to have him arrested. Thus Hiraṇya Dāsa left his home, but by the intelligence of Raghunātha Dāsa the misunderstanding was mitigated. Then Raghunātha Dāsa went to Pānihāṭi, and following the order of Nityānanda Prabhu, he observed a festival (ciḍā-dadhi-mahotsava) by distributing chipped rice mixed with yogurt. The day after the festival, Nityānanda Prabhu gave Raghunātha Dāsa the blessing that he would very soon attain the shelter of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. After this incident, Raghunātha Dāsa, with the help of his priest, whose name was Yadunandana Ācārya, got out of his house by trickery and thus ran away. Not touching the general path, Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī secretly went to Jagannātha Purī. After twelve days, he arrived in Jagannātha Purī at the lotus feet of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu entrusted Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī to Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī. Therefore another name for Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī is Svarūpera Raghu, or the Raghunātha of Svarūpa Dāmodara. For five days Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī took prasādam at the temple, but later he would stand at the Siṁha-dvāra gate and eat only whatever he could gather by alms. Later he lived by taking alms from various chatras, or food distributing centers. When Raghunātha’s father received news of this, he sent some men and money, but Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī refused to accept the money. Understanding that Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī was living by begging from the chatras, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu presented him with His own guñjā-mālā and a stone from Govardhana Hill. Thereafter, Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī used to eat rejected food that he had collected and washed. This renounced life greatly pleased both Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. One day Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu took by force some of the same food, thus blessing Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī for his renunciation.

Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī transforms paddy fields in to Rādhā-kuṇḍa and Śyāma-kuṇḍa

Text from Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā verse 18.3 purport

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu danced in ecstasy, but when He arrived at Āriṭ-grāma, His sense perception was awakened."

Āriṭ-grāma is also called Ariṣṭa-grāma. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu understood that in that village Ariṣṭāsura had been killed by Śrī Kṛṣṇa. While there, He inquired about Rādhā-kuṇḍa, but no one could tell Him where it was. The brāhmaṇa accompanying Him could also not ascertain its whereabouts. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu could then understand that the holy places known as Rādhā-kuṇḍa and Śyāma-kuṇḍa were at that time lost to everyone's vision. He therefore discovered Rādhā-kuṇḍa and Śyāma-kuṇḍa, which were two reservoirs of water in two paddy fields. Although there was very little water, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was omniscient and could understand that formerly these two ponds were called Śrī Rādhā-kuṇḍa and Śyāma-kuṇḍa. In this way Rādhā-kuṇḍa and Śyāma-kuṇḍa were discovered.

Text from Bhakti-ratnākara, Fifth Wave, Śrī Narahari Cakravartī

“O Śrīnivāsa, presently these paddy fields are seen as two kuṇḍas [Rādhā-kuṇḍa and Śyāma-kuṇḍa] full of water. Please listen while I briefly describe the transformation of the two paddy fields into beautiful kuṇḍas.”

“One day Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī suddenly considered to himself that if these kuṇḍas were filled with water it would be very good. Considering that for this purpose money would be needed, Raghunātha Dāsa remained silent. He scolded himself again and again, thinking why he had desired such a thing. Solacing himself, he decided to stay alone and behave cautiously for some time. However, when a devotee desires something, that cannot be denied, for Kṛṣṇa always fulfills His devotees' desires.

“Meanwhile, one rich person had gone to Badarikāśrama to get the Lord's darśana. He offered Lord Nārāyaṇa a large sum of money. That night in a dream the Lord ordered the man, ‘Take this money to Āriṭ-grāma in Vraja. There you will find the best of the Vaiṣṇava, Raghunātha Dāsa. Give the money to him in My name. If Raghunātha does not agree to take the money, you should remind him about his desire to clean the two kuṇḍas for bathing and drinking water.' “Speaking these words, the Lord disappeared, and that sincere devotee happily came here to Āriṭ-grāma. Going before Raghunātha Dāsa he fell to the ground, offered his obeisances, and then gave the money to Raghunātha Dāsa. He explained the instruction given to him by the Lord in his dream. Raghunātha became stunned for some time. After some time he repeatedly praised his fortune and requested the rich man to excavate the two kuṇḍas without delay. Hearing this, that fortunate man was filled with ecstasy and proceeded to engage many people for the work. Very soon the kuṇḍas were dug out.

Now hear why Śyāma-kuṇḍa was dug in an irregular shape. “Everyone decided that the following day a few old trees on the bank of Śyāma-kuṇḍa should be cut. That night Raghunātha had a dream in which King Yudhiṣṭhira told him, ‘My brothers and I are living within those trees. Tomorrow morning go to Manasā-pāvana-ghāṭa, identify those five trees, and protect them from being cut.' After the dream, Raghunātha went early the next morning to identify the trees and order the people not to cut them. For that reason they could not make Śyāma-kuṇḍa square. The two kuṇḍas were then filled with clear water and Śrī Raghunātha became very satisfied.

Lessons from the life of Śrīla Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī

1. Divine Providence: The Lord orchestrates events to fulfill the desires of His devotees. Despite Raghunātha Dāsa initially hesitating to express his desire for the transformation of the paddy fields into kuṇḍas, the Lord arranged for a devotee to bring the necessary resources to make it happen.

2. Devotional Desires: When a devotee desires something sincerely for the service of the Lord or for the benefit of others, it is eventually fulfilled by the divine will. This highlights the importance of having pure intentions and selfless desires in spiritual practice.

3. Humility and Acceptance: Raghunātha Dāsa's initial reluctance and self-scolding demonstrate humility and a lack of attachment to material desires. Despite his reservations, he ultimately accepts the divine arrangement and the assistance offered by the devotee sent by the Lord.

4. Divine Guidance: The dream experiences of both the rich man and Raghunātha Dāsa highlight the idea of receiving divine guidance. The dream of the rich man directs him to offer help to Raghunātha Dāsa, while Raghunātha Dāsa's dream instructs him to protect the trees near Śyāma-kuṇḍa. This underscores the belief in the presence of divine communication and intervention in the lives of devotees.