CC Madhya 17.51
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
TEXT 51
- tathāpi tāṅra darśana-śravaṇa-prabhāve
- sakala deśera loka ha-ila ‘vaiṣṇave’
SYNONYMS
tathāpi—still; tāṅra—His; darśana—of seeing; śravaṇa—of hearing; prabhāve—by the potency; sakala—all; deśera—of countries; loka—people; ha-ila—became; vaiṣṇave—pure devotees of the Lord.
TRANSLATION
Although Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu did not manifest His natural ecstatic love, everyone became a pure devotee simply by seeing and hearing Him.
PURPORT
Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī has described Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu as mahā-vadānya-avatāra, the most munificent incarnation. Although Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is not physically present now, simply by chanting His holy name (śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu-nityānanda śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda) people throughout the world are becoming devotees. This is due to the ecstatic chanting of the holy name of the Lord. It is said that a pure devotee can see the Lord at every moment, and because of this he is empowered by the Lord. This is confirmed in the Brahma-saṁhitā (BS 5.38): premāñjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena santaḥ sadaiva hṛdayeṣu vilokayanti. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu appeared five hundred years ago, but it cannot be said that now the potency of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra is less than it was in His presence. By hearing Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu through the paramparā system, one can be purified. Therefore in this verse it is said, tathāpi tāṅra darśana-śravaṇa-prabhāve. It is not that everyone is able to see Kṛṣṇa or Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Mahāprabhu physically, but if one hears about Him through books like Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta and through the paramparā system of pure Vaiṣṇavas, there is no difficulty in becoming a pure Vaiṣṇava, free from mundane desires and personal motivations.