Kholavecha Sridhara ( Kholāvecā Śrīdhara IAST ; also known as Sridhara Pandita , Śrīdhara Paṇḍita IAST ) is a Krishna saint who lived in Bengal in the late XV - early XVI century . Belongs to the group of twelve Hare Krishna saints dvadasa-gopal . [one]
| Kholavecha Sridhara | |
|---|---|
| Kholāvecā Śrīdhara | |
| Birth | end of the 15th century Bengal |
| Death | mid 16th century Bengal |
| Is revered | in Gaudiya Vaishnavism |
| In the face | |
Kholavecha Sridhara was a very poor brahmana . [2] It is described that he was so poor that he lived in a hut with a decrepit, perforated roof. [2] He had no money for the dishes, so he drank water from an old, cracked iron jug. [2] When at night, Kholavecha Sridhara chanted the Hare Krsna mantra , the neighbors thought that he did this because he could not sleep because of the hunger that tormented him. [2] Kholavechi Sridhara had a plot of land with a banana grove. He earned a living by collecting leaves, bark and the core of banana palm trees and daily selling all this on the market. [2] Despite his poverty, he spent half of his income on worshiping the Ganges , and half he left for his own needs. [2]
Kholavecha Sridhara was a great devotee of Caitanya Mahaprabhu, who was very attached to him. [2] In his youth, Caitanya came to the market daily and bought pumpkins and bananas, as well as roots, stems and flowers from Kholavechi Sridhara. [2] Amorous quarrels often occurred between them, because Chaitanya refused to pay the asking price. [2] An angry Sridhara quarreled with Caitanya, sending him to shop elsewhere. [2] Then Chaitanya simply took everything he needed and left without paying a penny. [2] Sridhara grabbed Caitanya and brought him back, wailing, “I am only a poor old brahmana. And the little that I get, I spend on the worship of the Ganges . " [2] In the end, Kholavecha Sridhara agreed to give several bananas for free to Chaitanya every day. [2]
When Caitanya began a civil disobedience movement against the Muslim ruler of Navadvipa , Sridhara, along with thousands of other Vaisnavas, took part in a street kirtan where he danced with joy. It is also described that Chaitanya often drank water from his jug. Shortly before Caitanya accepted sannyasa , Sridhara brought Sachidevi a pumpkin to prepare it for his son.
After Caitanya settled in Puri , Kholavecha Sridhara came there every year to see him. According to Kavikarnapura , in the pastimes of Krishna in Vrindavan, Kholavecha Sridhara was a cowherd named Kusumasawa. [2] In the Gaura-ganoddesa dipika (133) it says: "A cowherd named Kusumasawa, who participated in Krishna-lila, later in the lila of Caitanya Mahaprabhu in Navadvipa, became Kholavecha Sridhara."
In the region of 64 samadhi in Vrindavan is located the pushpa-samadhi of Kholavechi Sridhara. [2]
Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, in his commentary on the Bhagavata Purana , speaks of Kholavec Sridhara: “Here is a typical example of how a poor person who has no material property can become an exalted devotee of the Lord. So material wealth will not help us take shelter at the lotus feet of Lord Krsna or Sri Caitanya Gosani: this shelter can only be obtained through pure devotional service. ” [3]
Notes
- ↑ Edward C. Dimock . The place of the hidden moon: erotic mysticism in the Vaiṣṇava-sahajiyā cult of Bengal . - Motilal Banarsidass , 1991 .-- P. 94-95. - 299 p. - ISBN 8120809963 .
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 Mahanidhi Swami . The Gaudiya Vaisnava samadhis in Vrndavana . - 1993. - P. 102. - 193 p.
- ↑ AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda . Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam: with a short life sketch of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, the ideal preacher of Bhāgavata-dharma, and the original Sanskrit text, its roman transliteration, synonyms, translation and elaborate purports . - Bhaktivedanta Book Trust , 1975 .-- T. 5 .-- P. 234-235. - 534 p. - ISBN 091277679X .