The Vaishnava saint Shri Shankardev
Shri Shankardev
At the time of Gauranga’s manifest lila, there was a great
Vaishnava named Shankardev who was promoting Krishna Bhakti in the region of
Assam. Shankardev was said to have been born in 1449 (or 1463 by some) and live
until 1568 and Gaurahari appeared in 1486 and merged into Jagannath in 1534,
therefore they were present at the same time and both propagating the path of
Krishna Bhakti. Shankardev also accepted the Bhagavatam and the 9 fold process
of bhakti (Navadha Bhakti) but there was no place for Radha in his schema of
worship and he rather stressed the sole worship of Krishna in the mood of a
servant (dasya bhava). His rejection or downplaying of Radha and the gopis in
this regard may have been due to his rejection of the erotic vulgarities of the
Assamese Sakta cult which he regarded as degraded in his time. He perhaps did
not want people to misunderstand the love of Krishna and the gopis to be on
this type of degraded level and therefore may have deemphasised it. His path is
known as Ekasharan Dharma (the path of one pointed surrender). Shankardev and
his followers established many beautiful temples called Satras (monasteries)
and congregational meeting places called namghars (prayer houses). These are
mainly seen in the region of Assam but there are namghars in other places such
as Jagannath Puri too. There are other interesting things worth knowing
regarding Shankardev’s movement and devotion and interested readers may research
these for themselves lest we digress from the point of this article.
Throughout the Chaitanya Vaishnava literature, there seems
to be only 2 personalities referred to as Shankar. Firstly we have the young
brother of Damodar Pandit.
“Seeing Shankar, Prabhu (Chaitanya) turned to Damodar Pandit
and said, "My love for you is mixed with reverence, whereas I love Shankar
with all my heart. For this reason I am putting him under your care."
(Chaitanya Charitamrita 2.11.146-7)
Damodar answered, "Shankar is younger than me, but from
this day on, by your grace, I will treat him as my elder." During Mahaprabhu’s
later pastimes, Shankar stayed in his direct association and slept in the same
room. The Lord would even sleep sometimes with his feet resting on Shankar’s
body, as a result of which he received the nickname prabhu-padopadhana -
"Mahaprabhu’s foot pillow".
This Shankara is definitely not the Assamese Shankardev. However,
there is a possible reference to Shankardev of Assam in Narahari Chakravarti’s
Bhakti Ratnakar.
advaitacharyera shaakha shankar namete
gyaanpakshe taar nishta hoila valo mate
advaita shankar prati kahe baar baar
manorath siddhi mui koilu ei prakaar
chaar chaar ore pagal nashta hoila
teho na chaare tare advaita tyaag koila
Shankar is a branch of Advaita Acharya
Who firmly holds onto the path of knowledge (gyaanpakshe)
Advaita Acharya had told Shankar again and again the path
Of his own spiritual fulfilment
Advaita advised him to give up his crazy ways
But Shankar is firm and hence Advaita renounces him (advaita
tyaag koila)
Here Shankar is portrayed as a strong follower of Gyaan
(Jnana), the path of knowledge. I can not say how much Shankardev tread on the
path of knowledge but he did stress worshipping Krishna in the mood of a
servant (dasya bhava) and it is mentioned by Dr Jibendranath Siddhanta that
Shankardev worshipped Krishna with a tinge of the knowledge (Jnana) element. Shankardev’s
Kirtan Ghosh begins with “Pay respects to the primeval Brahman, the first cause
of all incarnations, Shri Narayan”.
In other works, Shankardev is also described as a rather
grave and calm bhakta. We can not say conclusively whether this passage refers
to Shankardev of Assam but it is certainly something to be considered.
The Mahapurushias and Bamunias
Shankardev had 2 leading disciples, Madhava and Damodar. The
followers of Madhava are known as Mahapurushias and the followers of Damodar
are called Bamunias. These two names identify the 2 communities.
The Mahapurushias do not have any special affection for
Gauranga and he doesn’t appear in any of the works by Shankardev or Madhava
specifically.
The followers of Damodar however, do mention Shri Chaitanya
in their works and even consider him as an incarnation.
Mention of Gauranga in the Ekasharan Dharma’s books
A book named “Gurulila” written by Damodar’s disciple Ramakanta
Dvija mentions an encounter between Shri Gauranga and Shankardev. On page no 4
of the printed edition, there is an illustration of Shri Gauranga seated in the
picture with his face turned left (away from) whilst Shankar, Damodar, Madhava,
Gopal, Baladev, Paramananda, Banamali and Mishra gaze at him with their full
concentration (according to the Rangpur Sahitya Parishat Patrika magazine).
This painting certainly seems to depict Shri Gauranga in a much higher position
spiritually and as an object of reverence and fascination for the other
Vaishnava saints of the Ekasharan Dharma. The same interpretation of the
painting is also suggested in Biman Behari Majumdar’s “Lord Chaitanya, A
biographical critique”.
Another one of Damodar’s disciples named Krishna Bharati
also mentions different details of Shri Gauranga’s lila in his book
“Santanirnaya”.
Other books such as Santabanghabali, Narsimha Kritya and
Dipikachanda also mention Shri Chaitanya but the authenticity of these three
works would require a longer discussion than necessary. I have just mentioned
them for completeness.
Shankardev’s encounter with Shri Chaitanya
Three old books of the Mahapurushia (Madhava’s line) speak
of an encounter between Shri Chaitanya and Shankar when Shankar visited
Jagannath Puri for the second time. They did not speak to each other however.
One Ramcharan Thakur has written in his book “Shankar Charit”
duiko dui muhurtek chaahi acchilanta
sambhashan na karia chalia goilanta
Each gazed at one another but speaking no words, the two
greats departed
Bhushan Dwijkavi also mentions the speechless meeting of
Shankardev with Gauranga.
Bejbarua in his book “Shankardev” adds some more detail to
their meeting and adds several Sanskrit lines of rhyme whilst portraying that
Shri Chaitanya and Shankardev had tears in their eyes for each other. - (Shankardev
578 – 579 Payar)
Bejbarua quotes a passage from another book named
“Gurucharitra” by Bardoba which refers to a meeting between Shri Chaitanya and
Shankar and also a discussion with Nityananda Prabhu.
Shri Chaitanya and Shankardev were supposedly witnessing a
dance performed by a devadasi for the pleasure of Lord Jagannath. Shankar then
discusses the subject of Jagannathdeva’s mercy with Shri Chaitanya. Thereafter
Shankar gazed at Shri Chaitanya for some time and praised him profusely as a
divine power.
Nityananda Prabhu also had a witty conversation with one of
Shankar’s disciples and asked him two questions regarding the relationship of a
disciple’s attitude towards his Guru.
Nityananda Prabhu was largely preaching in Bengal during
this time and Shri Chatanya’s attendance of a dance show seems somewhat odd.
Shri Chaitanya did spent a lot of time in Puri absorbed internally tasting
Radha Bhava but we do know that he did spend time during the day performing
other activities; therefore we can not rule it out completely.
Unlikely stories from Krishna Bharati’s “Santanirnaya”
There is a strange story wherein Shri Chaitanya allegedly
refuses to meet a shudra and also a story in which Shri Chaitanya instructs
Shankardev to write his regional variant of the Bhagavatam. Both of these seem
untrue. As we know, Shri Chaitanya did not care for a person’s caste, if he did
indeed refuse to meet the shudra, it would have been for another reason and not
merely due to his birth in a shudra family, that we can say for certain.
Premananda Das Thakur captures this truth in his pada whilst narrating the
drama of Gauranga’s divine play on Earth “Gauranga Bina Nahi Aar” (There’s no
one like Gauranga) very eloquently
hasiya kadiya, preme gadagadi,
pulake vyapila anga
candale-brahmane, kare kolakuli,
kabe va chila e ranga
Laughing and weeping, their voices choked with love and
their hairs standing on end, even the candalas (untouchables/of lower
birth) and brahmanas embrace one another [being freed from all
material designations]. When has such a drama ever been seen before?”
It is also deemed doubtful by those such as Dr Biman Behari
Majumdar that Shri Chaitanya ever instructed Shankardev to write an Assamese version
of the Shrimad Bhagavat. For had this been true, Shankardev would have surely
emphasised the worship of Radha. On one hand, this seems like a good reason to
doubt the authenticity of the account but we must also remember that Shri
Chaitanya had members of the Pancha Sakha school as followers in Jagannath Puri
and their ideas are different to Rupa Goswami’s school of Vaishnava Dharma and
what Shri Chaitanya himself advocated and practised.
Shrimad Bhagavatam decorated manuscript
Shri Chaitanya’s alleged tour to Assam
Map of India, Assam highlighted in red
In a book named “Santabangshabali” there is some account of
Gauranga’s tour of Assam, but the year of the tour is not mentioned. In both
“Santabangshabali” and the aforementioned “Santanirnaya” there is reference to
Gauranga giving mercy to a person named Ratneshwar, giving of advice to
Kantabhushan to study the Bhagavatam and mercy given to Kanthahar Kandali. It
also mentions that Shri Chaitanya gave initiation to a devotee named Kavishekhara
Brahma.
In a Sanskrit book named “Shri Krishna Chaitanya Doyabali”
by one Pradymuna Mishra, it speaks of Gauranga going to Shrihatta (modern day
Sylhet in Bangladesh) right after he took the vows of Sanyasa. However those
who had witnessed him at Shantipur after his taking of Sanyasa spoke of his
going directly to Nilachal Puri instead.
One writer Achyuta Tattvanidhi believes in the Shrihatta
hypothesis but clarifies in his own book “Chaitanyera Purvanchal Parivraman”
that Shri Chaitanya visited Shrihatta as a professor and made a copy of the
Chandi in his own handwriting. This is however, before he took Sanyasa.
Regarding the visit to Assam, Dr Majumdar is himself sure
that Shri Chaitanya visited Assam whilst going to Orissa since the details of
his travel when leaving Benaras and reaching Puri are unknown.
It is possible that during that middle period, he visited
Assam as it is difficult to dismiss so many accounts of Gauranga being present
in Assam, if even he was there for a short period only.
A verse strikingly familiar to that attributed to Shri
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
There is a Sanskrit verse attributed to Shri Chaitanya that
most of you are probably familiar with
naham vipro na ca nara-patir napi vaishyo na shudro
naham varni na ca griha-patir no vanastho yatir va
kintu prodyan-nikhila-paramananda-purnamritabdher
gopi-bhartuh pada-kamalayor dasa-dasanudasah
I am not a brahmana, I am not a kshatriya, I am not a
vaishya or a shudra. Nor am I a brahmacari, a householder, a vanapratha or a
sannyasi. Krishna is like an ocean of nectar, and he is the cause of universal
transcendental bliss. He is always existing with brilliance. I identify myself
only as the servant of the servant of the servant of the lotus feet of Lord
Shri Krishna, the maintainer of the gopis.
Now this verse appears in both Chaitanya Charitamrita Madhya
13.80 and Rupa Goswami’s Padyavali
In the book edition of “Kirtan Ghosha Aru Nama Ghosha” which
is a 2 in 1 version of the respective books of Shankardev and his disciple
Madhava we practically find a translation of Mahaprabhu’s Sanskrit verse
Noho jana ami cari jati caruia ashram noho ati
Noho dharmasila daan brat tirtha gami
Kintu purnananda samudrar gopi varta pada kamalar
Dasar das tan das bhailo ami
I do not consider myself as part of the 4 jatis (like
varnas), nor am I linked to any of the ashrams. I’m not interested in
pilgrimage, charity, fasting or anything like that.
Krishna is like an ocean of nectar, and he is the cause of
universal transcendental bliss. He is always existing with brilliance. I
identify myself only as the servant of the servant of the servant of the lotus
feet of Lord Shri Krishna, the maintainer of the gopis. - Page 824, verse 670
of Kirtan Ghosha and Nama Ghosha.
A.N. Chaterjee in his “SriKrsnaCaitanya: A historical study
on Gaudiya Vaisnavism” says
“Thus in many respects, the Vaisnava movement led by
Sankaradeva in Assam was similar to that initiated and shaped by Caitanya in
Bengal and Orissa earlier. A study of the Vaisnava movement of Assam amply
substantiates that Sankaradeva had drawn inspiration, mainly from Caitanya. The
Vaisnava movement of Assam and its social impact can thus be taken as an
extension of the Caitanya movement.” – on page 177
It is hard for me to say without further research exactly
how true A.N Chaterjee’s statement really is. Shankardev seems to have begun
his Vaishnava revolution some time before Gauranga begun his sankirtan pastimes.
Of course, the spread and success of Gauranga’s prema dharma is many times more
over than that thus far achieved by Shankardev’s movement but exactly to what
extent Shankardev was influenced is not easy to say.
If we are to believe some or all of the accounts of
Shankardev’s meeting with Shri Chaitanya, then there may indeed be some truth
to A.N. Chaterjee’s statement.
Furthermore a detailed study of Shankardev’s life and
chronological events would help better determine whether Gauranga really influenced
Shankardev’s movement. He may have changed the course and activities of his
preaching after hearing news of the revolution that Gauranga was igniting in
Bengal and Orissa respectively, but I can not say much more on the matter
without due research.
A.N. Chaterjee’s statement can however be further
strengthened by the level of reverence that both the books of the
aforementioned Mahapurushias of Madhava and Bamunias of Damodar give to Shri
Chaitanya. These references could then imply a powerful influence on their
movement and activities.
The saint Kabeer and Shri Chaitanya
Art depicting Kabir
In the Assamese text “Shankar Charit” written by Ramcharan
Thakur, there is an account that describes Gauranga’s presence during the
funeral of the saint Kabeer whom Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs all revere alike and
whose songs are included also within the Sikh Scripture, “Guru Granth Sahib”.
According to the text, Shri Chaitanya took hold of Kabeer’s
lifeless body in order to float it on the river Ganga. Kabeer had both Hindu
and Muslim disciples and each group insisted on their own funeral rites being
performed for their spiritual master. Floating the body downstream was sort of
a midway agreement between both groups instead of burning or burying it
although one would think that they could have put it into Samadhi or a tomb,
which is practically a burial ceremony and should have been acceptable to all
of the disciples. However, this is what some of the scholars say regarding the
floating of the body.
The King is then said to have wondered how Shri Chaitanya
could carry the lifeless body of a non-Brahmin. Shri Chaitanya then espoused
how one’s spiritual prowess is important and not the caste to which one is born
into. The King was most satisfied by Shri Chaitanya’s philosophy. The Sanskrit
verses of Shri Chaitanya’s explanation are preserved by the Asiatic Society but
it’s not known for certain whether these were actually uttered by him. Dr
Majumdar himself does believe that the report regarding Shri Chaitanya’s
presence during Kabeer’s funeral is possible.
Mentions of Rupa and Sanatan Goswamis in the Ekasharan
Dharma books
Ramcharan Thakur has also mentioned Rupa Goswami and Sanatan
Goswami in his book “Shankar Charit”. It is mentioned that Shankardev met both
Rupa and Sanatan Goswamis when he went for his first pilgrimage. He had set off
from Jagannath Puri and travelled for 75 days when he happened to run across
the two Goswami brothers. Both of the Goswamis carried musical instruments in
their hands and Rupa is meant to have allegedly referred to Shankardev as the
Lord of the world who had now disguised himself. Rupa also requested Shankardev
to help free him (possibly from his royal duties).
As a sequel to their encounter, there is a rather strange
account wherein the two brothers renounce their previous lives and set out for
a life of austerity and worship. Shankardev kindly allows Rupa Goswami’s wife
to follow her husband as they set out and there is mention of the two brothers
accompanying Shankardev to Sitakunda.
Doubt regarding the authorship and date of Ramcharan
Thakura’s biography
It should be mentioned that the authorship of the biography
credited to Ramcharan Thakur, Daityari Thakur's father, is doubted and it is
generally dated to the 17th-century and classed with the late biographies. This
is mentioned in the book “Early History of the Vaiṣṇava Faith and Movement in
Assam: Sankaradeva and his times” by Maheswar Neog.
In Bhushan’s early biography of Shankardev, there is also a
mention of our two Goswami brothers but it is only in the form of a description
given to Shankardev about the two brothers by a monk at Aligar.
As we know from the Goswamis writings and by the detailed
accounts given in the Gaudiya Vaishnava literature, the Goswamis worshipped
Shri Chaitanya and they have not mentioned Shankardev anywhere. What seems more
likely is that the fame of Rupa and Sanatan Goswamis had spread wide and far
and because of this, the late class of biography credited to Ramcharan Thakur
has included an episode wherein Rupa Goswami specifically lavishes praise and
confirms the divinity of Shankardev. The motive therefore becomes clearer. The
confirmation of Shankardev’s divinity by the famed Goswami brothers would
surely be advantageous if believed.
Final words
It is most wonderful that at such a crucial point in the
Medieval history of India, three (in particular) luminaries arose to promote
Krishna Bhakti. These three contemporaneous personalities were no other than
Shri Shankardev, Shri Vallabha Acharya (Pushti Marga) and of course our very
own Shri Gauranga, Madhuryamoy Krishna himself.
What is interesting to note is that Shankardev focused on Assam, Vallabha Acharya
in Gujarat and Rajashtan and Shri Chaitanya in Bengal and Orissa. It could be
asserted that this was no coincidence and all due to the desire of Shri
Chaitanya/Krishna. Whatever the case, may my heart always honour the Vaishnavas
and may they all bless me “Sabe mili koro doya” to increase on the path of
Bhakti. Joy Gadhai Gaura!
Notable References:
A.N Chatterjee’s “SriKrsnaCaitanya: A Historical study on
Gaudiya Vaisnavism”
Biman Behari Majumdar’s “Lord Chaitanya, A Biographical
Critique”
Maheswar Neog’s “Early History of the Vaiṣṇava Faith and
Movement in Assam: Sankaradeva and his times”
Sotai Sattra (monastery)
Dakhinpat Temple
Assamese Namghar (house of the holy name)
If
you're wondering why it would take 3 births being killed by Bhagavān
in his forms as Narsimha, Rāma
and Krsna to attain Bhagavān
for the Jaya and Vijaya who were not associates from Vaikuntha, then
see Laghu Bhāgavatāmrta,
Part 1, Chapter 5, texts 40 – 64 in reference to Sisupāla's
complete absorption in Krsna through hatred. I may compile a separate blog later.
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