Sri Caitanya Caritamrta Madhya-lila Chapter 17 Verse 15

SYNONYMS

svarupa kahe -- Svarupa Damodara Gosvami said; ei -- this; balabhadra-bhattacarya -- Balabhadra Bhattacarya; tomate -- unto You; su-snigdha -- affectionate; bada -- very; pandita -- educated; sadhu -- honest; arya -- advanced in spiritual consciousness.

TRANSLATION

Svarupa Damodara then said, "Here is Balabhadra Bhattacarya, who has great love for You. He is an honest, learned scholar, and he is advanced in spiritual consciousness.

PURPORT

Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu wanted a new man, not a person like Kala Krishnadasa who would fall for women. Svarupa Damodara therefore immediately pointed out a new brahmana named Balabhadra Bhattacarya. Sri Svarupa Damodara Gosvami had studied this person very thoroughly and had seen that he had great love for Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Not only did he love the Lord, but he was also learned and honest. He was not duplicitous, and he was advanced in Krishna consciousness. According to a Bengali proverb, ati bhakti corera lakshana: "Too much devotion is a symptom of a thief." A person who assumes himself to be a great devotee but mentally is thinking of something else is duplicitous. One who is not duplicitous is called sadhu. Svarupa Damodara immediately pointed out that Balabhadra Bhattacarya was quite fit to accompany the Lord because he was a learned scholar and was simple and had great love for Sri Krishna Caitanya Mahaprabhu. He was also advanced in Krishna consciousness; therefore he was considered appropriate for accompanying the Lord as a personal servant.

The words snigdha ("very peaceful") and su-snigdha ("affectionate") are used in verses fourteen and fifteen respectively, and they are also found in Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.1.8): bruyuh snigdhasya sishyasya guravo guhyam apy uta. "A disciple who has actual love for his spiritual master is endowed, by the blessings of the spiritual master, with all confidential knowledge." Srila Sridhara Svami has commented that the word snigdhasya means prema-vatah. The word prema-vatah indicates that one has great love for his spiritual master.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Founder Acarya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness