Exhibitions of Divinity
[Adi 17]
Along with His remarkable displays of ecstatic chanting, Nimai proved His divinity through a series of miraculous occurrences. Although His advent was in the guise of a devotee, on numerous occasions His Supreme position became apparent to all.
Mahaprakash-lila – Once, in the home of Srivas Thakur, Nimai sat upon the throne of Vishnu and received worship for 21 consecutive hours. In return, He offered each devotee a suitable benediction according to their spiritual relationship with Him.
Sad-bhuja darsana – After the mahaprakash-lila, Nimai revealed his six-armed form (sadbhuja-rupa) to Nityananda Prabhu. He manifested two arms of Krishna, two arms of Rama, and His own two arms, thus confirming that all three incarnations were indeed the same Supreme Person.
Seeing Krishna and Balaram – Sachimata once had a dream that Nimai and Nityananda were none other than Krishna and Balaram. When Nityananda arrived for prasadam the following day, she saw Them sitting together and could immediately grasp Their identity.
Mango party – One day, after chanting for many hours with His devotees, Nimai sowed a seed in the ground which immediately fructified into hundreds of juicy mangos. He happily distributed them to the fatigued devotees.
Caitanya Simha – When Srivas recited the thousand names of Vishnu and reached the name 'Narasimha,' Nimai immediately adopted that ferocious mood and proceeded to run through the city streets, club in hand, ready to attack all the atheists!
Astrological calculations – Nimai once requested a learned astrologer to elucidate information of His previous birth. After making the calculation, the astrologer was struck with wonder – he could understand that Nimai was the self-same Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Yamunakarsana-lila – Once, Nimai manifested the mood of Balaram, and, acting as though intoxicated, He re-enacted the pastime to attract the Yamuna river.
Events at Srivas Thakur’s house – Nimai would hold all-night kirtans at Srivas Thakur’s home. Here, a variety of wondrous events took place: Srivas’s dead son began instructing the family, his niece Narayani received the prasadam remnants of Nimai, his Muslim tailor had a vision of the Supreme Lord, and Srivas himself had some profound spiritual discussions with Nimai.
Although these astonishing occurrences caused wonder in Navadvip, the greatest miracle was the unbounded spiritual love that Nimai displayed and induced within others. Everyone from stuffy intellectuals to village simpletons, ministers and officials to housewives and children, temple priests to social outcastes – all were swept up in the devotion that He exuded with such intensity. He was able to penetrate beyond the superficial façade of every individual and infuse their hearts with divine love.
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