Gadadhara Dasa Thakura – Biography

   Sri Gadadhara dasa Thakura used to live in Navadwipa dhama, but after the disappearance of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, he moved to Katwa. Finally he moved to a village called Endiyadaha-grama, where he made his ultimate residence.
 
   Gadadhara dasa Thakura had a disciple in Katwa named Yadunandana Chakravarti. Gadadhara dasa was one of the eternal associates of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Nityananda Prabhu. The Gaura-ganodesa-dipika mentions Gadadhara dasa as the extension of Shrimati Radharani's beauty and luster. There it is written: 
 
   "The gopi named Chandrakanti, who was a vibhuti (expansion) of Sri Radha, appeared in Gaura-lila as Gadadhara dasa, a close associate of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu." 
Gadadhara Dasa Goswami

The Gaura-ganodesa-dipika mentions Gadadhara dasa as the extension of Shrimati Radharani's beauty and luster. (In the image: Shrimati Radharani, Chandra doya Mandir, Shri Mayapur Dham).

 
   Sri Gadadhara dasa was not one of the Gopalas who served Nityananda Prabhu in the mood of sakhya-rasa, friendship. Rather he was always merged in the mellow of madhurya-rasa. Shripad Bhaktivedanta Swami Maharaja writes as follows of Gadadhara dasa in his Chaitanya-Charitamrta commentary: "About eight or ten miles from Calcutta on the banks of the Ganges is a village known as Endiyadaha-grama. Shrila Gadadhara dasa was known as an inhabitant of this village…After the disappearance of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu Gadadhara dasa came from Navadwipa to Katwa. Thereafter he came to Endiyadaha-grama and resided there. He is stated to be the luster of the body of Srimati Radharani, just as Shrila Gadadhara Pandita is an incarnation of Shrimati Radharani Herself. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is sometimes explained to be radha-bhava-dyuti-suvalita, or characterized by the emotions and bodily luster of Shrimati Radharani. Gadadhara dasa is this dyuti or luster. He counts among the associates of both Shrila Gaurahari and Nityananda Prabhu….Even though he was an associate of Lord Nityananda Prabhu, he was not among the cowherd boys but was situated in the transcendental mellow of conjugal love. He established a Temple of Shri Gaurasundara in Katwa."
 
   In 1434 sakabda (1534 A.D.) when Lord Nityananda Prabhu was empowered by Lord Chaitanya to preach the sankirtana movement in Bengal, Shri Gadadhara dasa was one of Lord Nityananda's chief assistans. He preached the sankirtana movement by requesting everyone to chant the Hare Krishna maha-mantra. When Srila Gadadhara dasa was preaching the cult of hari-kirtana, there was a magistrate who was very much against his sankirtana movement. Following in the footsteps of Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, Shrila Gadhadhara dasa one night went to the house of the Kazi and requested him to chant the "Hare Krishna" mantra. The Kazi replied, "All right, I shall chant "Hare Krishna" tomorrow." On hearing this, Shrila Gadadhara dasa Prabhu began to dance, and he said, "Why tomorrow? You have already chanted the "Hare Krishna" mantra, so simply continue."
 
   "…Srila Gadadhara dasa is considered to be a united form of Chandrakanti, who is the effulgence of Shrimati Radharani, and Purnananda, who is an expansion of Lord Balarama's dear girlfriend. Thus Srila Gadadhara dasa was one of the associates of both Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and Nityananda Prabhu. Once while Srila Gadadhara dasa Prabhu was returning to Bengal from Jagannatha Puri with Nityananda Prabhu, he forgot himself and began talking very loudly as if he were a girl of Vrajabhumi selling yogurt, and Srila Nityananda Prabhu noted this. 
 
   Another time, while absorbed in the ecstasy of the gopis, he carried a jug filled with Ganges water on his head as if he were selling milk. When Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu appeared in the house of Raghava Pandita while going to Vrindavana, Gadadhara dasa went to see Him, and Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was so glad that He put His foot on his head. When Gadadhara dasa Prabhu was present in Endiyadaha he established a Balagopala murti for worship there. Shri Madhava Ghosh performed a drama known as Dana-khanda with the help of Shri Nityananda Prabhu and Shri Gadadhara dasa."
 
   "The tomb of Gadadhara dasa Prabhu, which is in the village of Endiyadaha, was under the control of the Satyogi Vaishnavas and later under the direction of Siddha Bhagavan dasa Babaji of Kalna. By his order, Shri Madhusudana Mullik, one of the members of the aristocratice Mullik family of the Narikeladanga in Calcutta, established a padavadi (monastery) there in the Bengali year 1256. He also arranged for the worship of a Deity named Sri Radhakanta. His son, Balaichanda Mullik, established Gaura-Nitai Deities there in the Bengali year 1312. Thus on the throne of the Temple are both Gaura-Nityananda Deities and Radha-Krishna Deities."
 
   When Chaitanya Mahaprabhu sent Nityananda Prabhu to Bengal to preach the nectar of the Holy Name, he sent Shri Rama dasa and Shri Gadadhara dasa with him. Once when he was carrying a waterpot on his head, Gadadhara dasa, in the mood of a gopi called out "Who will buy milk? Who will buy yogurt?" Saying this, he laughed at the joke.
 
   The details of how Gadadhara dasa delivered the Kazi are as follows: One day, Gadadhara dasa went to the house of the Kazi, overwhelmed with Krishna-prema, madly dancing and performing hari-sankirtana. When he arrived at the Kazi's door, he began loudly calling for the Kazi. The Kazi, enraged, went outside his house ready to chastise Gadadhara dasa for disturbing the peace. But when he beheld the beautiful form of Gadadhara dasa, who was the personification of Shri Radhika's divine luster, he was stunned. When Gadadhara dasa embraced the Kazi with great affection the Kazi said, "Thakura! Why have you come?" Gadadhara dasa said, "I want to have a talk with you."
   "What do you wish to talk about?" 
   "Gaura-Nityananda have appeared upon this earth to deliver humankind with divine love by distributing the sweet nectar of the Holy Name of Hari. Why don't you chant this sweet name of Hari?"
   "Tomorrow I shall chant the name Hari."
   "Why chant the Holy Name tomorrow? I have come to deliver you with the Holy Name of Krishna. Now you have begun your life of auspiciousness by vibrating the Holy Name of Hari. From today on all your sins and miseries will disappear by the grace of the Holy Name if you simply continue this chanting – this is why I have come: to deliver you."
 
   Hearing the words of Gadadhara dasa, the Kazi was bewildered. At length, he smiled and again said, "Tomorrow I will chant the Holy Name of Hari." 
   Upon hearing the Holy Name of Hari issuing from the mouth of the Muslim Kazi, Gadadhara dasa at once became mad in the ecstasy of Krishna prema. 
   At last he said, "Why tomorrow! Just now you have said the name "Hari".  All your sins will now melt away and you will become supremely purified by the power of the Holy Name."
 
    Purified by the grace of Gadadhara dasa and the Holy Name of Krishna, the Kazi took shelter of the holy feet of Gadadhara dasa. In this way, Gadadhara dasa delivered countless sinners, nonbelievers, and yavanas with the Holy Name of Krishna. He disappeared on the eight day of the full moon in the month of Kartika. 
Gadadhara Dasa Goswami

"Why chant the Holy Name tomorrow? I have come to deliver you with the Holy Name of Krishna. Now you have begun your life of auspiciousness by vibrating the Holy Name of Hari. From today on all your sins and miseries will disappear by the grace of the Holy Name if you simply continue this chanting - this is why I have come: to deliver you." (In the image: Highlights of Krishna's Village of Peace at Polish Woodstock 2012).