Śrī Lokanātha Gosvāmī Disappearance Day

Identity in the spiritual world

lokanāthākhya gosvāmī śrī līlā mañjarī purā

Lokanātha Gosvāmī was known as Līlā mañjarī in Kṛṣṇa Līlā [Śrī Gaura-gaṇoddeśa-dīpikā 187].

A great devotee of Caitanya Mahāprabhu

From Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 18.49

Śrī Lokanātha Gosvāmī was a personal associate of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and a great devotee of the Lord. He was a resident of a village named Tālakhaḍi in the district of Yaśohara (Jessore), in Bengal. Previously he lived in Kācanāpāḍā. His father’s name was Padmanābha, and his only sibling was a younger brother named Pragalbha. Following the orders of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Śrī Lokanātha went to Vṛndāvana to live. He established a temple named Gokulānanda. Śrīla Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura selected Lokanātha dāsa Gosvāmī to be his spiritual master, and Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura was his only disciple. Because Lokanātha dāsa Gosvāmī did not want his name mentioned in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta, we do not often see it in this celebrated book. On the E.B.R. Railroad, the Yaśohara station is located in Bangladesh. From the railway station one has to go by bus to the village of Sonākhāli and from there to Khejurā. From there one has to walk or, during the rainy season, go by boat to the village of Tālakhaḍi. In this village there are still descendants of Lokanātha Gosvāmī’s younger brother.

Prayers to Lokanātha Gosvāmī

From Śrī Caitanya: His Life & Associates, Swami B.B. Tirtha, 2001, Mandala Publishing House

Praṇām mantra for Śrī Lokanātha Gosvāmī [Śrī Bhakti-ratnākara 1.2.297]

śrīmad-rādhā-vinodaika sevā-sampat-samanvitam

padmanābhātmajaṁ śrīmāl-lokanātha prabhuṁ bhaje

I worship the lotus feet of Śrī Lokanātha Gosvāmī Prabhu, the son of Sri Padmanābha. He is a storehouse of single-minded service to Śrī Śrī Rādhā-vinoda deity.

In his maṅgalācaraṇa to the Hari-bhakti-vilāsa, Sanatāna Goswāmī offers his respects to Lokanātha Gosvāmī as follows:

jīyāsur ātyantika-bhakti-niṣṭhāḥ śrī-vaiṣṇavā māthura-maṇḍale ’tra

kāśīśvaraḥ kṛṣṇa-vane cakāstu śrī-kṛṣṇa-dāsaś ca sa-lokanāthaḥ

May these blessed vaiṣṇavas who are fixed in uninterrupted devotion (ātyantika-bhakti) live long here in Mathura-mandala! May Kāśīśvaraḥ and Śrī Kṛṣṇadāsa along with Lokanātha shine in Vṛndāvana, the forest of Kṛṣṇa [for a long time].

Sanatāna Goswāmī has also mentioned Lokanātha Gosvāmī's name in his maṅgalācaraṇa prayers to his Bṛhad-vaiṣṇava-toṣaṇī commentary to Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.1.1:

vṛndāvana-priyān vande śrī-govinda-padāśritān

śrīmat-kāśīśvaraṁ lokanāthaṁ śrī-kṛṣṇa-dāsakam

I praise those to whom Vṛndāvana is dear. They, like Śrī Kāśīśvaraḥ, Śrī Lokanātha, and Śrī Kṛṣṇadāsa, took shelter at Sri Govinda's feet.

Pastimes in Vṛndāvana

From Śrī Caitanya: His Life & Associates, Swami B.B. Tirtha, 2001, Mandala Publishing House

Śrī Lokanātha Gosvāmī goes to Vṛndāvana

Lokanātha Gosvāmī renounced the householder life and came to meet Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu in Navadvīpa. Mahāprabhu immediately told him to go and live in Vṛndāvana, saying to him that it was His own intention to take sannyās very shortly and go there Himself. Lokanātha Gosvāmī started to cry when he imagined the Lord with His beautiful curls shaven and the distress the devotees would feel at His departure. When the Lord saw Lokanātha Gosvāmī’s anxiety, He embraced him and consoled him with various spiritual instructions and Lokanātha Gosvāmī surrendered completely to Him.

Though he had come to Vrindavan on Mahāprabhu’s order, Lokanātha Gosvāmī constantly felt intense separation from the Lord and shed copious tears in his desire to see Him again. When he received the news that Mahāprabhu had taken sannyās and gone to Puri and from there to the South on pilgrimage, Lokanātha Gosvāmī hurried to Southern India in order to join Him. When he arrived in the South, he heard that Mahāprabhu was no longer there, but had gone to Vṛndāvana. Lokanātha Gosvāmī immediately set off for Vṛndāvana, hoping to see the Lord there, but by the time he arrived, he heard that the Lord had gone on to Prayāg. Disappointed, but still determined to see the Lord, Lokanātha Gosvāmī decided to set off once again for Prayāg.

This time, however, Mahāprabhu appeared to him in a dream and told Lokanātha Gosvāmī to stop moving about and remain in Vrindavan to perform his bhajan. Not long afterwards, Rūpa, Sanatāna and Gopāla Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī, and other associates of the Lord started coming to live in Vraja.

Lokanātha Gosvāmī and Rādhāvinoda

Lokanātha Gosvāmī constantly travelled throughout Vraja, ecstatically visiting the various holy places where Kṛṣṇa had engaged in His pastimes. Once, he went to Khadiravan. Then he visited Kishor Kund near the village of Umarao by Chatravan. He was so impressed by the beauty of the site that he stayed there for some time to do his bhajan in isolation. After being absorbed in bhajan for some time, Lokanātha Gosvāmī developed a deep desire to worship Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa in their deity form.

The Lord knows the desires of his devotees and feels Himself obliged to fulfill them. He thus came personally to give Lokanātha Gosvāmī a deity, telling him before disappearing that its name was Rādhāvinoda.

Lokanātha Gosvāmī’s first reaction was astonishment at seeing the deity, then he became filled with anxiety at the thought that the Lord Himself had just come and gone. But Rādhāvinoda cast his sweet glance on Lokanātha Gosvāmī and said to him, “I have been living here in this village of Umarao on the banks of Kishor Kund. I saw your eagerness to serve Me and so came here on My own. Who else but Me could have brought Me to you? Now I am very hungry, so quickly prepare something for Me to eat.”

When Lokanātha Gosvāmī heard these words, tears began to flow from his eyes. He quickly started cooking for Rādhāvinoda and then made an offering that the deity ate with great satisfaction. Lokanātha Gosvāmī then made Rādhāvinoda a bed of flowers upon which he placed Him, fanned him with branches and joyfully massaged His feet. Thenceforward, Lokanātha Gosvāmī devoted himself to Rādhāvinoda in body, mind and soul.

Lokanātha Gosvāmī wondered where he would keep his deity, as he was constantly wandering through the land of Vraja. Finally, he decided to make a large bag, which he made into Rādhāvinoda’s temple. Wearing the bag around his neck, he was able to keep his worshipable deity close to his heart like a necklace. When they saw the affectionate relationship between Lokanātha Gosvāmī and his Lord, the people of Vraja were attracted to him and asked if they could build a house for him and Rādhāvinoda, but Lokanātha Gosvāmī refused. His spirit of renunciation was so strong that he declined to accept anything but what he absolutely needed for the deity’s service.

Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura becomes Śrī Lokanātha Gosvāmī’s disciple

After spending some time at Kishore Kund, Lokanātha Gosvāmī came to Vṛndāvana. He learned that Rūpa and Sanatāna Gosvāmī had ended their pastimes in this world and lamented their departure in great sadness. At around this time, Narottama Dāsa Ṭhākura, who was the son of the Raja Krishnananda Datta of Gopalpur in Rajshahi (now in Bangladesh), came to Vṛndāvana and met him there. Many years earlier, when Mahāprabhu was traveling through Bengal, He cried in ecstasy after telling Nityānanda to go to Puri. This took place at a spot on the banks of the Padmavati River that is now known as Prematali. In fact, Mahāprabhu was storing His divine love there for Narottama Dāsa’s later benefit. Years later, when Narottama Dāsa took his bath in the river at Prematali, he was immediately overcome with Prema, and was inspired to cut off all family ties and go to Vṛndāvana.

Upon his arrival in Vraja, Narottama Dāsa met Rūpa, Sanatāna and Lokanātha Gosvāmī. He received Lokanātha Gosvāmī’s special mercy, for he became his one and only disciple. Lokanātha Gosvāmī was extremely renounced and had made a vow not to accept any disciples. But Narottama Dāsa also made a vow- to take initiation from no one other than Lokanātha Gosvāmī. Narottama Dāsa repeatedly asked Lokanātha Gosvāmī to give him initiation, but Lokanātha Gosvāmī was firm in his refusal. To win his favor, Narottama Dāsa went in the middle of the night to clean the area he used as a toilet. Lokanātha Gosvāmī was so surprised to see that the place was being kept clean that he became curious to find out who was doing this service. One evening, he went and hid there in some bushes, chanting japa the entire night while waiting for his anonymous benefactor to come. At midnight, Lokanātha Gosvāmī saw someone come and begin cleaning the place. Lokanātha Gosvāmī was astonished that Narottama Dāsa, the son of a king, was engaged in doing such a filthy task. He felt embarrassed and asked him what his purpose was in doing it. Narottama Dāsa immediately began to cry. He fell at Lokanātha Gosvāmī’s feet and said, “My life is useless unless I obtain your mercy.” When Lokanātha Gosvāmī saw Narottama Dāsa’s humility and pain, his resolve to never give anyone initiation softened, and he imparted mantras to Narottama Dāsa.