nirapekṣaṁ muniṁ śāntaṁ
nirvairaṁ sama-darśanam
anuvrajāmy ahaṁ nityaṁ
pūyeyety aṅghri-reṇubhiḥ
- Srimad Bhagavata 11.14.16
(Meaning : With the dust of My devotees’ lotus feet I desire to purify the material worlds, which are situated within Me. Thus, I always follow the footsteps of My pure devotees, who are free from all personal desire, rapt in thought of My pastimes, peaceful, without any feelings of enmity, and of equal disposition everywhere.)
Tirth or pilgrimage in Vedic Tradition is the journey to holy places where knowledge, devotion and association of Saints is easily accessible.But unlike normal human beings ,a Sage visits holy places just to purify the material desires of others.Jagnnath Puri is one of the Holiest sites of Vaishnavism.This temple is associated with pastimes of many great personalities.Srimanta Sankardeva Visited Purusttama khestra twice,First somewhere near 1481 AD and later in 1550 AD.Whereas,Dinanath bezbarua wrote that the Mahapurush visited the temple thrice.Worth mentioning that in 1550AD, Sankardev is hundred and one years old.Here's a brief description of his second visit to Sri Jagannath Puri.
Tirtha jaibar ischa karila Sankare
.....................................................
Pachima Disak lagi larila Sankara
(Ramananda Dvija's Charit)
Along with Madhavdev ,Ramarama and other associates Sankardeva went to Tirtha (west). Yathat rahanta toite milanta utsava ,Bhagvata Harinama Hari Mahotsava , wherever they reached, there held the great festivals of Hari nama and Bhagavata .
At Tota Gopinath temple, They have seen Sri Chaitanya (!) Hearing the Hari nama,Chaitanya came out of his math and gaze at Sankardeva with tearful eyes . (This event is historically impossible as Krishna Chaitanya Bharati disappeared from the mortal world in 1534 AD) Without a conversation and obeisance both Sankara and Chaitanya then bade farewell .
When the disciples of Sri Sankar reached the Simha dwara of Jagannath,they have witnessed the batraprahara of Pandas . At that time ,Sri Madhavdeva composed this verse-
Harira Grihara dware Baitrar prahar jyogya
Brahma Indra adi devojaka
(in sanskrit /Unknown author - Yatra vetrapraharena patramridradaya sura Murare bhavana dwari warakastatra ke vyayam)
Sankardeva and all this associates then visited the Nat mandir. During the aarti time, Odiya devotees like Harivyas,,Nityanada,Ramanandi ,Sisu Jaggnath,Garima joined them too . A Devadasi was dancing to please Jagannath Mahaprabhu . All of them were witnessing that ceremony .While, during a dance move, Flowers on the crown of the Devadasi slipped , Sri Sankardeva laughed at that moment ! The disappointed Odiya devotees asked Him the reason for his Laugh ! He replied that there's a panda ,cooking prasada for the Lord inside the kitchen .While holding the hot utensil he licked some of food remained in tip of his fingers, he did not even wash his fingers and I laughed for that reason .The surprised devotees went to the cooking hall and exactly found the same priest unknowingly licking that food remaining !
Another Priest namely Suka developed friendship with Sankara's Associates . He gave them the Mahaprasada , But at that Time Sankara said to Madhava,"o Madhava ,Take the prasad; we have roamed the Puri ,so after taking the evening bath ,we will eat the holy Prasad ''.Suka was not happy with this reply from Gurujan.. So he criticized the devotees for neglecting the Mahaprasad .That evening,when Sankara ate only half of his share of the prasad, remaining of his food was kept in a bag of cloth. That very night , in form of a golden cat,Sri Jagannath himself come to eat the food remains of His devotee Sankara !At that time only Madhavdeva composed - Jadava Leela Janba Kai, Brahma Shiva Surapati chintile akul hui ..Who can completely know the plays of Krsna ! Brahma and others Deities think of Him with due respect .
Another morn , Srimanta Sankara along with his disciples went to Mohana temple, from that place ,they had the darsan of Daru Brahma Jagannath .Some priest took them to Sri Mandir,But Sankara refused the entry through that corner. He said that there are Shilagrama Shilas of King Indradumna down in the ground and above them is the proposed way!Then the priest received the Holy Shilas while digged up the ground .Then they visited other temples like Gundica,Vansidhari,Vat-Govinda,Matsya Madhav,Vimala-swanaghat,Nirsimha .Sankara's hand impressions are still there in the Laxmi Stambha .
Sankardeva initiated total twelve disciples into Eka Sarana Dharma in Jagnnath Khestra ,they are: Sukadanta,Ram,Ramananda,Hari,Haridas,Jay,Jaymuni,Sriram,Yadu and Krishnakam.
Sri Sankardeva's both visits to Jagannath puri influenced the Culture of the state too, the Bhagavat Tungi of Odhisa is no other than a different from of Namghars of Assam (!). On the other hand,Bhagavan Jagannath inspired Sri Sankara too.He composed the Uresha Varnana Kavya glorifying the legend and customs of Jagannath temple. Govinda Nayak,a Odiya poet devotee wrote a hagiography of the saint in Odiya mixed Brajavali language (Sankara Gosai Charit,preserved in the Sishu Math,Puri).In this book, he described an episode of Sankardeva as Ashtabahu Vishnu (Eight handed form of Lord Narayana).Worth mentioning that,During Sankardeva's first visit (near 1483 AD) to Jagannath, neither Sri Chaitanya Deva nor Sri Achyutananada was even born ! After visiting all the tirths in the Northern and the Southern India respectively,when Sankara revisited the temple,there's a probability of meeting of Srimanta Sankara and Balarama Dasa ( a ten-year old child then!) as because Balaram Dasa's father migrated to Jagannath Puri at that period .This is a matter of research, we just as an ordinary Bhakti follower,offering our obeisances to all devotees of Lord Krishna , Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya .
Reference books:
1. SRI SRI SANKAR MADHAVCHARIT ,DAITARI THAKUR
2.GURU CHARIT,RAMANANDA DVIJA
3.KATHA GURUCHARIT
Nice story!!!
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