Festival of Sri Haridasa Thakura's passing away

Expressions researched:
"Festival" |"Haridasa Thakura gave up his body" |"Haridasa Thakura" |"departure of Haridasa Thakura" |"passed away" |"passing away" |"wonderful death of Haridasa Thakura"

CC Adi-lila

Haridāsa Ṭhākura's passing away is described in the Antya-līlā of Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Eleventh Chapter.

CC Adi 10.43, Translation and Purport:

The twentieth branch of the Caitanya tree was Haridāsa Ṭhākura. His character was wonderful. He used to chant the holy name of Kṛṣṇa 300,000 times a day without fail.

Certainly the chanting of 300,000 holy names of the Lord is wonderful. No ordinary person can chant so many names, nor should one artificially imitate Haridāsa Ṭhākura's behavior. It is essential, however, that everyone fulfill a specific vow to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. Therefore we have prescribed in our Society that all our students must chant at least sixteen rounds daily. Such chanting must be offenseless in order to be of high quality. Mechanical chanting is not as powerful as chanting of the holy name without offenses. It is stated in the Caitanya-bhāgavata, Ādi-khaṇḍa, Chapter Two, that Haridāsa Ṭhākura was born in a village known as Buḍhana but after some time came to live on the bank of the Ganges at Phuliyā, near Śāntipura. From the description of his chastisement by a Muslim magistrate, which is found in the Sixteenth Chapter of the Ādi-khaṇḍa of Caitanya-bhāgavata, we can understand how humble and meek Haridāsa Ṭhākura was and how he achieved the causeless mercy of the Lord. In the dramas performed by Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Haridāsa Ṭhākura played the part of a police chief. While chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra in Benāpola, he was personally tested by Māyādevī herself. Haridāsa Ṭhākura's passing away is described in the Antya-līlā of Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Eleventh Chapter. It is not definitely certain whether Śrī Haridāsa Ṭhākura appeared in the village named Buḍhana that is in the district of Khulnā. Formerly this village was within a district of twenty-four pargaṇas within the Sātakṣīrā division.

CC Adi 10.46, Translation:

After the passing away of Haridāsa Ṭhākura, the Lord Himself took his body on His lap and danced with it in great ecstasy.

CC Madhya-lila

CC Madhya 1.257, Translation:

At Jagannātha Purī, Haridāsa Ṭhākura passed away. The incident was very wonderful because the Lord Himself performed the festival of Ṭhākura Haridāsa's departure.

CC Antya-lila

CC Antya 11 Summary:

The summary of this chapter is given by Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura in his Amṛta-pravāha-bhāṣya as follows. In this chapter it is described how Brahmā Haridāsa Ṭhākura gave up his body with the consent of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and how the Lord Himself personally performed the funeral ceremony and carried the body to the sea. He personally entombed the body, covered it with sand and erected a platform on the site. After taking a bath in the sea, He personally begged prasādam of Jagannātha from shopkeepers and distributed prasādam to the assembled devotees.

CC Antya 11.57, Translation:

Seeing the wonderful death of Haridāsa Ṭhākura by his own will, which was just like a great mystic yogī’s, everyone remembered the passing away of Bhīṣma.

CC Antya 11.74, Translation:

"I am begging prasādam for a festival honoring the passing away of Haridāsa Ṭhākura," the Lord said. "Please give Me alms."

CC Antya 11.91-93, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu gave this benediction: “Anyone who has seen the festival of Śrī Haridāsa Ṭhākura's passing away, anyone who has chanted and danced here, anyone who has offered sand on the body of Haridāsa Ṭhākura, and anyone who has joined this festival to partake of the prasādam will achieve the favor of Kṛṣṇa very soon. There is such wonderful power in seeing Haridāsa Ṭhākura.

Every year on the date of Ananta-caturdaśī there is a festival to commemorate the passing away of Haridāsa Ṭhākura.

CC Antya 11.101, Translation and Purport:

Thus I have spoken about the victorious passing away of Haridāsa Ṭhākura. Anyone who hears this narration will certainly fix his mind firmly in devotional service to Kṛṣṇa.

At Puruṣottama-kṣetra, or Jagannātha Purī, there is a temple of Ṭoṭā-gopīnātha. If one goes from there to the sea, he can discover the tomb of Haridāsa Ṭhākura still existing. Every year on the date of Ananta-caturdaśī there is a festival to commemorate the passing away of Haridāsa Ṭhākura. At the same place, Deities of Nityānanda Prabhu, Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Advaita Prabhu were established about one hundred years ago. A gentleman named Bhramaravara from Kendrāpāḍā, in the province of Orissa, contributed funds to establish these Deities in the temple. The management of the temple was under the Ṭoṭā-gopīnātha gosvāmīs.

CC Antya 11.102, Translation:

From the incident of Haridāsa Ṭhākura's passing away and the great care Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu took in commemorating it, one can understand just how affectionate He is toward His devotees. Although He is the topmost of all sannyāsīs, He fully satisfied the desire of Haridāsa Ṭhākura.

CC Antya 11.104, Translation:

Out of His causeless mercy the Lord personally covered the body of Haridāsa Ṭhākura with sand and personally begged alms from the shopkeepers. Then He conducted a great festival to celebrate the passing away of Haridāsa Ṭhākura.

It was Haridāsa Ṭhākura's great fortune that he passed away before Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

CC Antya 11.105, Translation and Purport:

Haridāsa Ṭhākura was not only the topmost devotee of the Lord but also a great and learned scholar. It was his great fortune that he passed away before Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

Haridāsa Ṭhākura is mentioned here as the most learned scholar, parama-vidvān. Actually, the most important science to know is the science of getting out of the clutches of material existence. Anyone who knows this science must be considered the greatest learned person. Anyone who knows the temporary situation of this material world and is expert in achieving a permanent situation in the spiritual world, who knows that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is beyond the jurisdiction of our experimental knowledge, is understood to be the most learned scholar. Haridāsa Ṭhākura knew this science perfectly. Therefore, he is described in this connection as parama-vidvān. He personally preached the importance of chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, which is approved by the revealed scriptures. As stated in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (7.5.24):

iti puṁsārpitā viṣṇau bhaktiś cen nava-lakṣaṇā

kriyeta bhagavaty addhā tan manye ‘dhītam uttamam

There are nine different processes of devotional service to Kṛṣṇa, the most important being śravaṇaṁ kīrtanam (SB 7.5.23)—hearing and chanting. Haridāsa Ṭhākura knew this science very well, and he can therefore be called, technically, sarva-śāstrādhītī. Anyone who has learned the essence of all the Vedic scriptures is to be known as a first-class educated person, with full knowledge of all śāstra.

1969 Conversations and Morning Walks

Lord Caitanya Play Told to Tamala Krsna -- August 4, 1969, Los Angeles:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: ...first speak in detail about Ṭhākura Haridāsa's disappearance. So tell me maybe how you want it to be performed.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Ṭhākura Haridāsa was living in a cottage which was... Just like I am living here, and the garage site a little far off, Haridāsa was living a little distance. So when Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu used to go to the sea for taking bath, He every day, every morning He used to go to Haridāsa Ṭhākura and taking his informa..., "Haridāsa, what you are doing?" Because Haridāsa was Mohammedan by birth, so out of his meekness he did not go to the temple. But in those... Especially in those days they were very strict. They do not allow anyone except Hindus to enter the temple. Nowadays, of course, there is law. If somebody is, actually has come to the Hindu way of life, he's allowed. Our Jayagovinda and others were allowed to see Jagannātha temple. But in those days there were no such system and Haridāsa out of his own accord, he did not want to disturb But Lord Caitanya, God Himself, used to come to see him every day. So one day when Caitanya came, he looked little bit depressed. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu asked him, "Haridāsa, you do not look very well today. What is the matter?" "Sir, I'm not very feeling well. And because I do not feel well, I could not finished my chanting." He was chanting daily 300,000 times. "So I could not finish my chanting." So Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, "All right. You are growing old. You may not follow the rules now strictly. You can make it later." Haridāsa Ṭhākura said, "No, Sir, so long my life is there I shall try to follow. When the life is over, that is different thing. But I have got one desire if You fulfill." "What is that?" "Now I can understand that You will also leave this world very soon. So I cannot tolerate that. So best thing is that before You'll go, I go. And my another request is that You shall stand before me, and I shall leave this body." So Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, "Oh, if that is your desire, that will be all right. That is not difficult." So next day, when Caitanya Mahāprabhu came, Haridāsa Ṭhākura said, "Sir, today I wish to leave. So You please stand before me." So Caitanya Mahāprabhu also could understand that he's leaving. So He asked His devotees to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, and in the presence of Caitanya Mahāprabhu he left. Then Caitanya Mahāprabhu took this body, and Himself He went... He carried the body. He was very stout and strong. And He was dancing and... Then He went to the seaside, and He bathed the body, and in His own hands He buried Caitanya, uh, Haridāsa Ṭhākura's body within the sand. So that burial place is still there in Purī, Haridāsa Ṭhākura's samādhi. Then He personally went to the shopkeepers and begged prasādam. "You give Me some prasādam." All people gave Him so many things. Caitanya Mahāprabhu was so well-known. So He asked all the devotees to take prasādam after the burial ceremony was over. In this way Haridāsa Ṭhākura's... Niryāna. This is called departure of Haridāsa Ṭhākura. That is stated in Caitanya-caritāmṛta.