Lord Nityananda - The Merciful Avatar

Lord Nityananda - The Merciful Avatar

Who is Lord Nityananda?

Lord Nityananda is the eternal associate of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu cannot be approached or understood without the mercy of Nityananda Prabhu, He serves as an intermediary between Mahaprabhu and His devotees. He is the second body of the Lord, manifesting as Balarama to Sri Krishna; Lakshmana to Sri Rama and Nityananda Prabhu to Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.

Nityananda Prabhu has the whitish complexion of Lord Balarama. He has a deep melodious voice, constantly singing the glories of Sri Krishna and carries a red stick with benedictions for the devotees, but feared by the demoniac. He has the mood of an avadhuta and He is so absorbed in love of Godhead.

Nityananda Prabhu was born in Ekachakra, a small village in present West Bengal, around the year 1474. His birth site is commemorated by a temple named Garbhavasa and is visited by pilgrims even today. His father, Hadai Ojha and mother Padmavati, were pious brahmanas originally from Mithila. Nityananda Prabhu was born on the auspicious thirteenth day of the bright fortnight of the month of Magha. As a child, Nitai loved to enact the pastimes of Sri Krishna and Sri Rama.

The village of Ekachakra was completely absorbed in the love of little Nitai, where He spent the first 12 years of His earthly life. In the 13th year, a travelling sannyasi, enchanted by Nitai’s devotion and service, requested Nitai from His parents, as a travelling companion. His parents, bound by Vedic culture, could not refuse the request of a guest and reluctantly parted with Nitai.

Nityananda Prabhu met Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in 1506, when He was 32 years old and Chaitanya 20 years. Nityananda Prabhu in His role as the original spiritual master was instrumental in spreading the yuga dharma of sankirtana all over the Gauda desh (Bengal, Odisha). His mercy knew no bounds, and fortunate were the people who tasted the nectar of His instructions.

He married Jahnava devi and Vasudha, the two daughters of Suryadasa Sarakhel, who was the brother of Gauridasa Pandit (an intimate associate of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and the spiritual master of the famous Shyamananda Pandit). Nityananda Prabhu had a son (Virabhadra) and a daughter (Gangadevi) from Vasudha.

Lord Nityananda wound up His earthly pastimes, by entering into the Deity of Krishna, known as Bankima Raya, not far from Ekachakra. Vaishnava acharyas emphatically state that people who try to understand Chaitanya Mahaprabhu without getting the mercy of Nityananda Prabhu will never succeed and one must pray very sincerely to Lord Nityananda Prabhu as the adi-guru (original spiritual master) to be delivered to the lotus feet of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu

Hanuman Chalisa Predicts the Distance between Sun and Earth

Hanuman Chalisa predicts the distance between Sun and Earth

Hanuman Chalisa was composed by Gosvami Tulasidasa. He was a great devotee of Lord Ramachandra who lived in the 16th century. He composed the Rama-charita-manasa, the epic story of Lord Rama retold in the vernacular language. Many devotees regularly recite Hanuman Chalisa, a prayer glorifying Shri Hanuman, composed by this great saint and poet.

It is believed that in one of these verses of Hanuman Chalisa, Tulasidasa had given an accurate calculation of the distance between the Sun and Earth.

The Quest of Astronomers to find the distance of Sun

The Greek Astronomers were known for their contribution to the scientific field in understanding the heavenly bodies.

    Archimedes, an ancient Greek Mathematician and Philosopher of the 3rd century BC, estimated the distance of Sun from Earth as 10000 times the radius of Earth.

    Later, Hipparchus (2nd century BC) gave an estimate of 490 times the radius of Earth.

    Ptolemy considered the distance to be 1210 times the radius of Earth.

However, Johannes Kepler (1571 – 1630), a German Mathematician and Astronomer realized that these estimates were significantly low. Kepler’s law of Planetary Motion allowed astronomers to calculate the relative distance of the planets from Sun. This was also aided by the invention of telescope in the beginning of the 17th century which helped them to get more accurate measurements.

However the most modern calculations in 20th century estimate the distance to be somewhere around 23455 times the radius of Earth (149,431,805 kms assuming radius of Earth to be 6371 kms).

Srila Prabhupada writes in one of his purports:

Modern scientific calculations are subject to one change after another, and therefore they are uncertain. We have to accept the calculations of the Vedic literature. These Vedic calculations are steady; the astronomical calculations made long ago and recorded in the Vedic literature are correct even now. Whether the Vedic calculations or modern ones are better may remain a mystery for others, but as far as we are concerned, we accept the Vedic calculations to be correct.

According to modern calculation:

Average distance between the Sun and Earth =149 million kms = 92 million miles.

However, the orbit of the Earth is not a perfect circle, but an ellipse. Sometimes the Earth is closer to the Sun and sometimes it is farther.

Shortest distance between Sun and Earth (perihelion) = 91 million miles = 147 million kms (early January)

Longest distance between Sun and Earth (aphelion) = 94.5 million miles = 152 million kms (early July)

It is surprising to note that Tulasidasa who lived in 16th century could give the most accurate

Sri Hanuman Jayanti – May 21, 2017

Sri Hanuman Jayanti – May 21, 2017

Hanuman Jayanti is the celebration of the auspicious appearance day of Sri Hanuman, an ardent devotee and eternal servitor of Lord Sri Ramachandra.

In India, there are hundreds and thousands of temples dedicated to Hanuman. In all the Vaishnava temples, there is at least a shrine dedicated to him. Devotees worship and pray to him to remove the obstacles in the path of their devotional service. In our temple there is a small shrine for the Deity of Hanuman near the entrance of Prahlada Narasimha Temple.

In various parts of the country, Hanuman Jayanti is celebrated on different days. In some places (especially in Maharashtra) it is observed on Chaitra Purnima. In Tamilnadu and Kerala, it is celebrated in the month of Margazhi (December – January). As per the Odiya calendar it is celebrated on the first day of Vaishaka month. In Karnataka and Andhra