Śrī Prapanna-Jīvanāmṛtam Invocation

श्री प्रपन्न-जीबनामृतम्

Śrī Prapanna-Jīvanāmṛtam

by
His Divine Grace

Jagat-Guru

Bhakti Rakṣaka Śrīdhara deva Goswāmī

In a new translation
compiled and edited with Sanskrit, Bengali
and Roman transliteration
by 
Michael Dolan, B.V. Mahāyogi

प्रथमो ऽध्यायः

Prathamo’dhyāyaḥ

First Chapter

उपक्रमामृतम्

Upakramāmṛtam:

Preamble to āmṛta

अथ मङ्गलाचरनम्

athā maṅgalācaranam

Invocation

5

आत्म-विज्ञप्तिः--

अत्य्-अर्ब्बाचीन-रूपो ‘पि प्राचीनानाम् सुसम्मतान् ।

श्लोकान् कतिपयान् अत्र चाहरामि सतां मुदे ॥५॥

ātma-vijñaptiḥ--

aty-arbbācīna-rūpo ‘pi prācīnānām susammatān

ślokān katipayān atra cāharāmi satāṁ mude [5]

A heartfelt request: in spite of my own faults I have gathered these verses here for the benefit of the pure souls.  Please accept them in the following spirit: In Bhāgavatam Nārada instructs Vyāsa: 

 (5)

6

“तद्-वाग्-विसर्गो जनताघ-विप्लवो

यस्मिन् प्रति-श्लोकम् अबद्धबत्य् अपि ।

नामान्य् अनन्तस्य यशो ‘ङ्कितानि यत्

शृण्वन्ति गायन्ति गृणन्ति साधवः” ॥६॥

“tad-vāg-visargo janatāgha-viplavo

yasmin prati-ślokam abaddhabaty api

nāmāny anantasya yaśo ‘ṅkitāni yat

śṛṇvanti gāyanti gṛṇanti sādhavaḥ” [6]

(SB 1.5.11)

"We must accept the essence of a thing. The grammatical mistakes and other such ornamental mistakes made in our prayers are overlooked by the Lord. He reads the heart; the language of heart is all in all. The sin will be removed, washed away by those words, which may be full of grammatical mistakes, but surcharged with the real spirit of devotion.

Other literatures may have poetry, style, beautiful language, but if you dive deep, you will find no mention of the glory of the Lord. In mundane prose we find the writer is rather putting himself in the center with fine ornamental language, and all these things, but it is lifeless.

The outward dress may be very fine and attractive. The decoration may be very nice, but if there is something wrong with the inner substance, then what is the necessity of that?

Rather, such mundane words work as poison to us.

But on the other hand the outer grandeur may not be so charming, a work may have many literary faults, but if the very subject, the substance within, is nectar-like, then it is a very desirable thing. We must try to accept that.

Ignore the ornamental, but accept the substance within – that should be the aim of our life.  On the other hand, those works where every verse is written to stir the hearts of impious people are accepted, sung and heard by sadhus, even if they have some defect, because they glorify the Holy Names of the unlimited Supreme Lord.

So here, my humble petition is that you all accept my Prapanna-jīvanāmṛta, even if it may have some literary faults or may not be perfect in its conception and execution, just as in the Bhāgavatam it is said that even if the verse is broken and the line is poorly composed, the sādhus will take the essence when the purpose is sincere. When the purpose is to sing the holy name and describe the glories of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, Reality the Beautiful, the sādhus  are pleased.

  It is my humble prayer that you will take this book in that way. In the same spirit, Rūpa Goswāmī says the following: 

(6)

7

“अभिब्यक्ता मत्तः प्रकृति-लघु-रूपाद् अपि बुधा

विधात्री सिद्धाऋथान् हरि-गुणमयी वः कृतिर् इयम्

पुलिन्देना[य् अग्निः किम् उ समिधम् उन्मथ्य जनितोर्

हिरण्य-श्रेणीनाम् अपहरति नान्तः कलुषतम्

abhivyaktā mattaḥ prakṛti-laghu-rūpād api budhā

vidhātrī siddhāṛthān hari-guṇamayī vaḥ kṛtir iyam

pulindenā[y agniḥ kim u samidham unmathya janitor

hiraṇya-śreṇīnām apaharati nāntaḥ kaluṣatam” [7]

Chaitanya Caritamṛta  1.139, quoted from Vidagdha Mādhava of Rūpa Goswāmī

Rupa Goswāmī says,

 "O, you erudite bhaktas,  I am naturally base and unschooled,

 yet somehow this book, "Vidagdha-Madhava" has come through me. 

It's filled with the divine qualities of Hari, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, Reality the Beautiful. 

I may have many faults, 

but shouldn't a book like this help one reach the highest goal of life? 

A fire kindled by  a low-class man  can still purify gold. 

And while I am low and fallen,  

I hope  this book may purify the dust from the hearts of the golden devotees."

8

यथोक्ता रुप-पादेन, निचेनोत्पादिते ‘नले ।

हेम्नः शुद्धिस् तथैवात्र, विरहार्त्ति-हृतिः सताम् ॥ ८॥

yathoktā rupa-pādena, nicenotpādite ‘nale

hemnaḥ śuddhis tathaivātra, virahārtti-hṛtiḥ satām 8]

Rūpa Goswāmī says here that a fire kindled by a barbarian can purify gold. 

In this spirit, I have lit this lamp of a book to dispel the darkness that pure devotees sometimes feel as they live in the pain of separation from Śrī Kṛṣṇa and Śrī Guru.

9

अन्तः कवि-यशस्-कमं, साधुतावरणं बहिः।

शुध्यन्तु साधवः सर्ब्बे, दुश्चिकित्स्यम् इमं जनम् ॥९॥

antaḥ kavi-yaśas-kamaṃ, sādhutāvaraṇaṃ bahiḥ

śudhyantu sādhavaḥ sarbbe, duścikitsyam imaṃ janam [9]

I ask for your blessings, my friends. You pure-hearted sādhus  please have mercy on me. Disguised as a saintly person I secretly covet the fame of a poet and am haunted by the malady of insincerity.

 (9)

10

कृष्ण-गाथा-प्रिया भक्ति, भक्ति-गाथा-प्रियो हरिः

कथञ्चिद् उभयोर् अत्र, प्रसङ्गस् तत् प्रसीदताम् [१०]

kṛṣṇa-gāthā-priyā bhakti, bhakti-gāthā-priyo hariḥ

kathañcid ubhayor atra, prasaṅgas tat prasīdatām [10]

News of Kṛṣṇa is dear to the bhaktas. In the same way, news of the bhaktas is dear to Kṛṣṇa. 

And since this book is filled with news both of Kṛṣṇa and of his bhaktas, I hope that  it will be pleasing to both.

11

स्बभाब-कृपया सन्तो, मद् उद्देश्य-मलिनताम् ।

संशोध्याङ्गीकुरुध्वं भो, ह्य् अहैतुक कृपाब्धयः ॥११॥

svabhāva-kṛpayā santo, mad uddeśya-malinatām

saṁśodhyāṅgīkurudhvaṃ bho, hy ahaituka kṛpābdhayaḥ [11]

This is my humble request, O saints: Please help me. 

By your grace purify my bad intentions, cure my insincerity by taking these words about surrender to your hearts and accepting them as nectar. 

You great souls are like an ocean of mercy and are all naturally kind, and so I hope that you will accept this work which I offer you as my service.  

 (11)

Ambrosia in the lives of the Surrendered Souls