Ten meters to the right of the house of Advaita Acharya is the place where the house of Gadadhara Pandita once stood.
On the altar there are the Deities of Lord Caitanya (left) and Sri Gadadhara (right).
Gadadhara Pandita and Pundarika Vidyanidhi
Gadadhara Pandita and Mukunda were close friends. Once Mukunda said to Gadadhara:
- Rejoice! You always wanted to meet a pure Vaisnava, and today your desire will come true. Today a great saint has come to Navadvipa.
Together they went to the house of a local devotee, and there Sri Pundarika Vidyanidhi appeared before their eyes. Gadadhara bowed respectfully to him.
Pundarika Vidyanidhi was reclining on a soft wooden couch covered with clean, expensive cloth, and silk pillows supported his back. Nearby, at arm's length, stood water jugs and shiny brass plates with betel leaves laid out on them. Two servants stood on either side of Pundarika, gently waving at him with long webs of peacock feathers.
When Gadadhara Pandita saw this sight, doubts crept into his heart. “What is this Vaisnava who surrounds himself with such luxury? Listening about him, I was filled with such respect for him, but now ... "
Mukunda understood what was happening in the heart of Gadadhara, and decided to demonstrate to him the exalted qualities of Pundarika Vidyanidhi. With a sweet voice, he sang a verse from the Bhagavatam describing the glories of devotional service: “Putana always craved the blood of human children. Motivated by this desire, she came to kill Krsna, but due to the fact that she gave the breast to the Lord, she attained the highest perfection. Although Putana was a terrible witch, due to the fact that Krsna embraced her with pleasure and sucked her breasts, she took His mother's position in the transcendental world, attaining the highest perfection. "
As soon as these words reached the hearing of Pundarika Vidyanidha, he cried. He showed all the signs of the highest love of God, and then lost consciousness. Soon, when he came to, he began to beg: "Speak, speak!" In spiritual feelings, he began to scatter everything that came to his hand. Shiny brass jugs of water, plates with betel leaves, pillows, sheets on the bed - everything flew to the floor. He tore expensive clothes on himself, and his well-groomed hair was disheveled. “O Krishna! Oh my lord! My soul, my life! I forgot about You, and my heart became solid as a stone! ”He shouted. After some time, the surge of emotions passed, and Pundarika fell into oblivion.
Gadadhara Pandita watched him with great amazement and scolded himself: “How could I think badly of such a great saint?”
He hugged Mukunda, and, drenched in tears, said:
- Probably, in the whole world there is no other devotee like Pundarika. When I saw this luxury, I thought it was that he was a simple materialist, attached to the joys of life. But you understood what I was thinking, and generously showed me his love for God. I decided to take refuge with Pundarika Vidyanidhi. I know that by becoming his student I will atone for my insult.
Sri Pundarika Vidyanidhi could not recover for six whole hours, and then he woke up and sat calmly. Gadadhara Pandita was unable to restrain the tears of joy, and seeing this, Sri Vidyanidhi embraced him and pressed him to his chest.
After some time, Gadadhara Pandita asked Lord Caitanya for permission to take initiation from Pundarika Vidyanidhi, and the Lord said:
- Yes, do it as soon as possible.
Translated from dhama.dayalnitay.ru