Satyaraja Khan

Expressions researched:
"Satyaraja Khan" |"Satyaraja Vasu" |"Satyaraja"

CC Adi-lila

CC Adi 10.48, Translation and Purport:

One subbranch of Haridāsa Ṭhākura consisted of the residents of Kulīna-grāma. The most important among them was Satyarāja Khān, or Satyarāja Vasu, who was a recipient of all the mercy of Haridāsa Ṭhākura.

Satyarāja Khān was the son of Guṇarāja Khān and father of Rāmānanda Vasu. Haridāsa Ṭhākura lived for some time during the Cāturmāsya period in the village named Kulīna-grāma, where he chanted the holy name, the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, and distributed his mercy to the descendants of the Vasu family. Satyarāja Khān was allotted the service of supplying silk ropes for the Jagannātha Deity during the Ratha-yātrā festival. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's answers to his inquiries about the duty of householder devotees are vividly described in the Madhya-līlā, Chapters Fifteen (CC_Madhya_15) and Sixteen (CC_Madhya_16).

The village of Kulīna-grāma is situated two miles from the railway station named Jaugrāma on the Newcord line from Howrah to Burdwan. Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu very highly praised the people of Kulīna-grāma, and He stated that even a dog of Kulīna-grāma was very dear to Him.

CC Adi 10.80, Translation:

Satyarāja, Rāmānanda, Yadunātha, Puruṣottama, Śaṅkara and Vidyānanda all belonged to the twentieth branch. They were inhabitants of the village known as Kulīna-grāma.

CC Madhya-lila

CC Madhya 10.89, Translation:

The inhabitants of Kulīna-grāma—Satyarāja, Rāmānanda and all the other devotees there—came and joined Advaita Ācārya.

CC Madhya 11.91, Translation:

“And here are all the residents of Kulīna-grāma, such as Satyarāja Khān and Rāmānanda. Indeed, all of them are present here. Please see.

CC Madhya 13.44, Translation:

There was a saṅkīrtana party from the village known as Kulīna-grāma, and Rāmānanda and Satyarāja were appointed the dancers in this group.

CC Madhya 14 Summary:

For nine continuous days during Ratha-yātrā, the Lord remained at Sundarācala, and on the fifth day He and Svarūpa Dāmodara observed the pastimes of Lakṣmī, the goddess of fortune. During that time, there was much talk about the pastimes of the gopīs. When the ratha was again being drawn and the chanting resumed, two devotees from Kulīna-grāma-Rāmānanda Vasu and Satyarāja Khān-were requested to bring silk ropes every year for the Ratha-yātrā ceremony.

CC Madhya 14.248, Translation:

Rāmānanda Vasu and Satyarāja Khān were present from Kulīna-grāma, and Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, with great respect, gave them the following orders.

CC Madhya 14.249, Translation and Purport:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu ordered Rāmānanda Vasu and Satyarāja Khān to become the worshipers of these ropes and every year bring silken ropes from their village.

It is understood that silken rope was being manufactured by the local inhabitants of Kulīna-grāma; therefore Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu asked Rāmānanda Vasu and Satyarāja Khān to get ropes every year for Lord Jagannātha's service.

CC Madhya 14.251, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu then informed Rāmānanda Vasu and Satyarāja Khān that this rope was the abode of Lord Śeṣa, who expands Himself into ten forms and serves the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

CC Madhya 14.252, Translation:

After receiving orders from the Lord for the rendering of service, the fortunate Satyarāja and Rāmānanda Vasu were highly pleased.

CC Madhya 14.253, Translation:

Every year thereafter, when the Guṇḍicā temple was being cleansed, Satyarāja and Rāmānanda Vasu would come with the other devotees and with great pleasure bring silken rope.

CC Madhya 15 Summary:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, with great humility, sent some Jagannātha prasādam and a cloth from Lord Jagannātha to His mother through Śrīvāsa Ṭhākura. When the Lord bade farewell to Rāghava Paṇḍita, Vāsudeva Datta, the residents of Kulīna-grāma and other devotees, He praised them for their transcendental qualities. Rāmānanda Vasu and Satyarāja Khān asked some questions, and Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu instructed them that all householder devotees must engage themselves in the service of Vaiṣṇavas exclusively devoted to chanting the holy name of the Lord.

CC Madhya 15.99, Translation and Purport:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu then said, “Guṇarāja Khān of Kulīna-grāma compiled a book named Śrī Kṛṣṇa-vijaya, in which there is a sentence revealing the author's ecstatic love of Kṛṣṇa.”

Śrī Kṛṣṇa-vijaya is a book of poems considered to be the first poetry book written in Bengal. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura states that this book was begun in the year 1395 Śakābda (A.D. 1473). After seven years, it was completed (in 1402 Śakābda). This book was written in plain language, and even half-educated Bengalis and women could read it very clearly. Even ordinary men with little knowledge of the alphabet could read this book and understand it. Its language is not very ornamental, and sometimes the poetry is not very sweet to hear. Although according to the sonnet style each line should contain fourteen syllables, there are sometimes sixteen, twelve or thirteen syllables in his verse. Many words used in those days could be understood only by local inhabitants, yet this book is still so popular that no bookstore is complete without it. It is very valuable for those who are interested in advancing in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Śrī Guṇarāja Khān was one of the topmost Vaiṣṇavas, and he translated the Tenth and Eleventh Cantos of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam for the understanding of the common man. The book Śrī Kṛṣṇa-vijaya was highly praised by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and it is very valuable for all Vaiṣṇavas. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura gives a genealogical table and family history of Guṇarāja Khān. When a Bengali emperor named Ādiśūra first came from Kānyakubja, or Kānauj, he brought with him five brāhmaṇas and five kāyasthas. Since the king is supposed to be accompanied by his associates, the brāhmaṇas accompanied the King to help him in higher spiritual matters. The kāyasthas were to render other services. In the northern Indian high country, the kāyasthas are accepted as śūdras, but in Bengal the kāyasthas are considered among the higher castes. It is a fact that the kāyasthas came to Bengal from northern India, specifically from Kānyakubja, or Kānauj. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura says that the kāyasthas who came from Kānyakubja were high-class men. Of them, Daśaratha Vasu was a great personality, and the thirteenth generation of his family included Guṇarāja Khān.

His real name was Mālādhara Vasu, but the title Khān was given to him by the Emperor of Bengal. Thus he became known as Guṇarāja Khān. Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura gives the following genealogical table of Guṇarāja Khān: (1) Daśaratha Vasu; (2) Kuśala; (3) Śubhaśaṅkara; (4) Haṁsa; (5) Śaktirāma (Bāgāṇḍā), Muktirāma (Māinagara) and Alaṅkāra (Baṅgaja); (6) Dāmodara; (7) Anantarāma; (8) Guṇīnāyaka and Vīṇānāyaka. The twelfth generation included Bhagīratha, and the thirteenth Mālādhara Vasu, or Guṇarāja Khān. Śrī Guṇarāja Khān had fourteen sons, of whom the second son, Lakṣmīnātha Vasu, received the title Satyarāja Khān. His son was Śrī Rāmānanda Vasu; therefore Rāmānanda Vasu belonged to the fifteenth generation. Guṇarāja Khān was a very well known and wealthy man. His palace, fort and temples are still existing, and from these we can deduce that the opulence of Guṇarāja Khān was certainly very great. Śrī Guṇarāja Khān never cared for the artificial aristocracy introduced by Ballāl Sena.

CC Madhya 15.102, Translation:

After this, Rāmānanda Vasu and Satyarāja Khān both submitted questions at the lotus feet of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

CC Madhya 15.103, Translation:

Satyarāja Khān said, "My dear Lord, being a householder and a materialistic man, I do not know the process of advancing in spiritual life. I therefore submit myself unto Your lotus feet and request You to give me orders."

CC Madhya 15.104, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu replied, "Without cessation continue chanting the holy name of Lord Kṛṣṇa. Whenever possible, serve Him and His devotees, the Vaiṣṇavas."

CC Madhya 15.105, Translation:

Upon hearing this, Satyarāja said, "How can I recognize a Vaiṣṇava? Please let me know what a Vaiṣṇava is. What are his common symptoms?"

CC Madhya 15.106, Translation:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu replied, “Whoever chants the holy name of Kṛṣṇa just once is worshipable and is the topmost human being.

CC Antya-lila

CC Antya 10.60, Translation:

The dancers in the other groups were Vakreśvara Paṇḍita, Acyutānanda, Paṇḍita Śrīvāsa, Satyarāja Khān and Narahari dāsa.

CC Antya 10.140-141, Translation and Purport:

They would extend invitations to the Lord. Vāsudeva Datta, Gadādhara dāsa, Murāri Gupta, the inhabitants of Kulīna-grāma and Khaṇḍa and many other devotees who were not brāhmaṇas by caste would purchase food offered to Lord Jagannātha and then extend invitations to Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.

The inhabitants of Kulīna-grāma, such as Satyarāja Khān and Rāmānanda Vasu, were not brāhmaṇas by caste, nor were the inhabitants of Khaṇḍa, such as Mukunda dāsa, Narahari dāsa and Raghunandana. Therefore they would purchase prasādam from the market where the remnants of Lord Jagannātha's food was sold and then extend invitations to Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, whereas Ācāryaratna, Ācāryanidhi and others who were brāhmaṇas by caste would cook at home when they invited the Lord. Caitanya Mahāprabhu observed the etiquette then current in society by accepting only prasādam cooked by members of the brāhmaṇa caste, but on principle He accepted invitations from His devotees, regardless of whether they were brāhmaṇas by caste.

Nectar of Instruction

Nectar of Instruction 5, Purport:

When Śrīla Satyarāja Khān, a great devotee of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, asked the Lord how a Vaiṣṇava could be recognized, the Lord replied:

prabhu kahe,—"yāṅra mukhe śuni eka-bāra

kṛṣṇa-nāma, sei pūjya,—śreṣṭha sabākāra"

"If one hears a person say even once the word 'Kṛṣṇa,' that person should be accepted as the best man out of the common group." (CC Madhya 15.106) Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu continued:

"ataeva yāṅra mukhe eka kṛṣṇa-nāma

sei ta 'vaiṣṇava, kariha tāṅhāra sammāna"

"One who is interested in chanting the holy name of Kṛṣṇa or who by practice likes to chant Kṛṣṇa's names should be accepted as a Vaiṣṇava and offered respects as such, at least within one's mind." (CC Madhya 15.111)