Once his education was finished, Raghunatha Bhattacharya did something no dutiful brahmana son was expected to do: he simply left. Sri Chaitanya-charitamrita says it almost bluntly. He gave up all his duties and set out for Jagannatha Puri, taking only a servant to carry his baggage. He wanted to see Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu again.
| Detail | Description |
|---|---|
| Reason for the journey | To see Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu again after completing his education |
| Companion met on the road | Ramadasa Vishvasa, a kayastha official and devotee of Lord Ramachandra |
| Length of first stay at Puri | Eight months |
| Service performed | Cooking for the Lord; taking His remnants afterward |
| The Lord's instruction on departure | Do not marry; serve your aged parents; study Srimad-Bhagavatam from a realized Vaishnava |
An Unlikely Companion on the Road #
Somewhere in Bengal, Raghunatha met Ramadasa Vishvasa. Ramadasa was a high-ranking government secretary of the kayastha caste, learned in Sanskrit poetics, who had chanted the holy name of Lord Ramachandra all his life. Ramadasa was travelling the same road for the same reason. He wanted to renounce his household and see Lord Jagannatha. When he learned that Raghunatha was a brahmana, he insisted on serving him for the rest of the way. He carried Raghunatha's baggage on his own head and even massaged his feet. Raghunatha was embarrassed that a man of Ramadasa's standing and learning should serve him so humbly, and he tried to refuse. Ramadasa's reply has survived in the text almost word for word: "I am a shudra, a fallen soul. To serve a brahmana is my duty and religious principle." He continued chanting the holy name of Rama the entire way.
Recognized at Once #
When Raghunatha finally reached Jagannatha Puri, he fell flat before Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu like a fallen rod: full obeisance, without holding anything back. The Lord, Chaitanya-charitamrita says, embraced him at once, "knowing well who he was." Raghunatha conveyed the respects of his father Tapana Mishra and of Chandrasekhara Vaidya from Varanasi, and Mahaprabhu asked eagerly after them both. Govinda, the Lord's personal servant, was told to arrange lodging for him, and Mahaprabhu Himself introduced the young man to His inner circle of devotees, headed by Svarupa Damodara Gosvami.
Nectar From His Own Hands #
For eight months Raghunatha remained at Puri. Here a second gift of his came to light: by every account, he was an extraordinary cook. Whatever he prepared, Chaitanya-charitamrita says, tasted like nectar. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu accepted his offerings with real satisfaction, and afterwards Raghunatha would take the Lord's own remnants, prasadam already touched by Mahaprabhu's mouth. Ramadasa Vishvasa's experience during these same months was very different. Despite his learning and his renunciation, Mahaprabhu showed him no special mercy. As the text explains, this was because Ramadasa privately held the desire to merge into an impersonal Absolute and lose his separate existence. Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu never encouraged this philosophical position in anyone. Ramadasa settled at Puri afterward and taught poetics to a local family. His story is only a side note beside Raghunatha's own far warmer reception.
Sent Home With an Order #
After eight months, Mahaprabhu said farewell to Raghunatha and gave him instructions that would shape the rest of his life. He forbade him outright to marry. He told him to return to Varanasi and serve his aged parents, who were themselves devotees. He also told him to study Srimad-Bhagavatam only under a truly self-realized Vaishnava, never from a professional or non-devotee reciter, however learned. He then removed His own neck beads and placed them on Raghunatha's neck with His own hands, telling him to come back to Nilachala again. Raghunatha was overwhelmed and wept at the thought of the coming separation. He took leave of Svarupa Damodara and the assembled devotees and made the long walk back to Kashi. He carried with him an instruction that would soon draw him away from home for good. What happened when he returned to Puri a second time, and where Mahaprabhu finally sent him, is told in Sent to Vrindavana by the Lord's Order.
