Cadamanidasa's Gauränga-Vijaya was edited by Prof. Sukumar Sen on the basis of an incomplete manuscript in the possession of the Asiatic Society. Compared to the works of Vṛndavana Däsa and Krsnadasa Kaviraja's biographies of Śri Caitanya Cadamanidasa's work apparently seems insig- nificant. Strangely however this less known and certainly less esteemed poem contains interesting and significant infor- mation about the early life of Caitanya and also of Nitya- nanda. There is no doubt that these information are correct since Cudamanidasa was a disciple of Dhananjaya Pundit- a close associate of Nityananda. Hence Cudamanidasa must have come to know about these events from Dhananjaya Pundit. The poem is written in a simple lucid style.
It is sincerely hoped that this book will be proud posses- sion of not only those who are interested in Middle Bengali literature in general but also who are interested in the life of Śri Caitanya in particular.
The Middle Bengali poem printed here for the first time is based on a single manuscript copy that has been lying in the library of the Asiatic Society for about a hundred years. It is an almost unknown biography of Caitanya and was written not long after the demise of the Great Master. Unfor- tunately the Ms. is mutilated at both ends, and no other copy of the work is known to exist.
Considering the age of the Bengali Mss. generally our Ms. is pretty old. Paper, ink and style of writing show that it was copied sometime in the middle of the seventeenth century. Beside some fragments the folia preserved. number 132. The size of the Ms. is 16" x 4" and on an average there are six lines on a page.
That the title of the poem is Gauranga-vijaya is known from the last few lines of the last folium preserved. In the body of the text it is once or twice referred to us Bhuvanamangala. The entire poem consisted of three parts (khanda), the preserved portion being the first ('Adikhanda'). This part ends with Caitanya's return from his visit to Gaya.
The name of the author is Cudamanidasa. He was, as he has often mentioned, that his guru was Dhananjaya Pandita. Dhananjaya was among the twelve select followers of Nityananda, who were known as the Twelve Gopalas ("Dvadasa Gopala') as they were believed to have been representa- tives of the twelve playmates of Krsna and Balarama in Vṛndāvana. Dhanañ- jaya was noted for his devotion and spirit of detachment. The author received the material for the biography not only from his guru but also from other followers of Nityananda, such as Gadadharadasa and Ramadasa. Cüḍāmani has mentioned more than once that he had collected particular informations when Nityananda was speaking to Dhananjaya and Gadadharadāsa.
For privacy concerns, please view our Privacy Policy
Send as free online greeting card
Email a Friend
Manage Wishlist