Chaitanya Mahaprabhu

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu Biography

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was a saint of eastern India who lived in the 15^th and 16^th century (1486–1534). He is being worshipped by followers of Gaudiya Vaishnavism as the full incarnation of Lord Krishna. His followers are known as Gaudiya Vaishnavas. Sri Krishna Chaitanya was a notable proponent for the Vaishnava school of Bhakti yoga and founded the Achintya Bheda Abheda of Vedanta. He worshipped the forms of Krishna and well popularised the chanting of the Hare Krishna mantra. He also composed eight devotional prayers in Sanskrit named Siksastakam. He was also sometimes referred to by the names Gaura and Nimai as he was born beneath a neem tree. He is revered by devotees as an incarnation of Krishna and Radharani as avatars of the Parmatma

His birth name is Vishvambar and he was born approximately in the year 1486. Sri Chaitanya was the second son of Jagannath Misra and Sachi Devi who lived in Nabadwip town. His grandfather, Madhukar Mishra was an emigrant from present day Bangladesh. He was primarily known as an erudite scholar during his youthful days. Kashinath Mukhopadhyay was his private tutor and young Chaitanya was known for his intelligence in winning arguments. He was attracted to Krishna at a younger age. But he was equally interested in knowledge and learning Sanskrit as well.

When he travelled to Gaya to complete his father’s last rituals, he happened to meet his guru, the ascetic Ishvara Puri. This meeting marked a significant change in Mahaprabhu's outlook and once returned the villagers were stunned seeing the total change of his character – from a scholar to a devotee. He received the sannyasa order by Keshava Bharati and travelled throughout India. He spent the last 24 years of his life in Puri, Odisha.

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Updated: March 12, 2014