PAÑCA-TATTVA MAHĀ-MANTRA

(jaya) śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya
prabhu nityānanda
śrī-advaita gadādhara
śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda
I offer my respectful obeisances unto
Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Lord
Nityananda, Sri Advaita,
Gadadhara Pandit, Srivas Thakur, and
all the devotees of Lord Caitanya.
Nityananda Prabhu

Sri Caitanya Mahāprabhu

Advaita acharya

Srivasa thakur Gadadara Pandit

 PANCHA TATTVA
Sri Krishna Caitanya, Prabhu Nityananda, Sri Advaita, Gadadhara, and Srivasa are
the Five Truths or Pancatattva. Sri Krishnadasa Kaviraja Goswami in the Caitanya
Caritamrita describes them as follows:

“Spiritually, there are no differences between these five tattvas, for on the
transcendental platform everything is absolute. Yet, there are also varieties in the
spiritual world, and in order to taste these spiritual varieties, one should
distinguish between them” (C.C.Adi 7.5)

“Let me offer my obeisances unto Lord Sri Krishna, who has manifested Himself
in five as a devotee (Lord Caitanya), expansion of a devotee (Lord Nityananda),
incarnation of a devotee (Advaita Acarya), pure devotee (Srivasa), and devotional
energy (Gadadhara)” (C.C.Adi 7.6)
CC.Adi 7.5Purport:
The supreme energetic, the Personality of Godhead, manifesting in order to enjoy five kinds
of pastimes, appears as the members of the Panca-tattva. Actually, there is no difference
between them because they are situated on the absolute platform, but they manifest
different spiritual varieties as a challenge to the impersonalists to taste different kinds of
spiritual humors (rasas). In the Vedas it is said, parasya saktir vividhaiva sruyate: ‘The
varieties of energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead are differently known.’ From this
statement of the Vedas one can understand that there are eternal varieties of humors, or
tastes, in the spiritual world. Sri Gauranga, Sri Nityananda, Sri Advaita, Sri Gadadhara and
Srivasa Thakura are all on the same platform, but in spiritually distinguishing between them
one should understand that Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is the form of a devotee, Nityananda
Prabhu appears in the form of a devotee’s spiritual master, Advaita Prabhu is the form of a
bhakta (devotee) incarnation, Gadadhara Prabhu is the energy of a bhakta, and Srivasa
Thakura is a pure devotee.
Thus there are spiritual distinctions between them. The bhakta-rupa (Sri Chaitanya
Mahaprabhu), the bhakta-svarupa (Sri Nityananda Prabhu) and the bhakta-avatara (Sri
Advaita Prabhu) are described as the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself, His
immediate manifestation and His plenary expansion, and They all belong to the Visnu
category. Although the spiritual and marginal energies of the Supreme Personality of
Godhead are nondifferent from the Supreme Personality of Godhead Vishnu, they are
predominated subjects, whereas Lord Vishnu is the predominator.

As such, although they are on the same platform, they have appeared differently in order
to facilitate tasting of transcendental mellows. Actually, however, there is no possibility of
one being different from the other, for the worshiper and the worshipable cannot be
separated at any stage. On the absolute platform, one cannot be understood without the
other.
 LORD CHAITANYA MAHAPRABHU
“The loving affairs of Sri Radha and Krishna are transcendental
manifestations of the Lord’s internal pleasure-giving potency.
Although Radha and Krishna are one in Their identity, They
separated Themselves eternally. Now, these two transcendental
identities have again united, in the form of Sri Krishna Caitanya.
I bow down to Him, who has manifested Himself with the
sentiment and complexion of Srimati Radharani, although He is
Krishna Himself.” (C.C.Adi 1.5)

“Desiring to understand the glory of Radharani’s love, the wonderful qualities in Him that
She alone relishes through Her love, and the happiness She feels when She realizes the
sweetness of His love, the Supreme Lord Hari, richly endowed with Her emotions, appeared
from the womb of Srimati Saci devi as the moon appeared from the ocean” (C.C.Adi 1.6)
Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu is the source of
energy for all His devotees. He is maha-
vadanyavatara, the most magnanimous
incarnation of the Lord, for He does not consider
the offenses of the fallen souls. In order to take
full benefit of the Hare Krishna Mahamantra, we
must first take shelter of Sri Caitanya
Mahaprabhu.
SRI NITYANANDA PRABHU

“I surrender unto the lotus feet of Sri Nityananda Rama, who is

known as Sankarsana in the midst of the catur-vyuha [consisting of
Vasudeva, Sankarsana, Pradyumna and Aniruddha]. He possesses full
opulences and resides in Vaikunthaloka, far beyond the material
creation.” (C.C.Adi 1.8)

“I offer my full obeisances unto the feet of Sri Nityananda Rama,

whose partial representation called Karanadakasayi Visnu, lying on
the Karana Ocean, is the original Purusa, the master of the illusory
energy, and the shelter of all the universes.” (C.C.Adi 1.9)
Devotees understand that Lord Nityananda
is Balarama Himself — the first expansion
of Krishna. Vrindavan das Thakur, author
of Caitanya Bhagavat prays, “I offer my
respectful obeisances unto Sri Caitanya
Mahaprabhu and Sri Nityananda Prabhu,
whose long arms extend to Their knees.
They have splendid golden complexions,
and They inaugurated the congregational
chanting of The Holy Names of the Lord.
Their eyes resemble the petals of lotus
flowers. They are the maintainers of all the
worlds, the best of the brahmanas, the
protectors of religious principles for this
age. They bring happiness to the people of
the world, and are the most merciful
incarnations.”
Lord Nityananda is even more merciful than Sri
Caitanya Mahaprabhu because after Nitai was
struck on the head with an earthen pot by the
sinful Jagai and Madhai, He stopped Lord Caitanya
from killing the two criminals. He begged the Lord
to spare their lives because after all, their mood
was to make devotees by killing the demoniac
tendencies within, not by slaying wrong-doers. The
Lord agreed to do this if the demoniac brothers
would give up their sinful activities and change
their bad habits into Krishna Conscious ones. By
His request, Mahaprabhu spared the brothers. By
this mercy, the brothers fell at the feet of Caitanya
Mahaprabhu and immediately surrendered their
lives in devotion to Lord Caitanya.
 SRI ADVAITA ACHARYA

“Because He is nondifferent from Hari, the Supreme

Lord, He is called Advaita, and because He propagates
Krishna Consciousness, He is called Acarya. He is the
Lord and the incarnation of the Lord’s devotee.
Therefore I take shelter of Him” (C.C.Adi 1.13)

Advaita means non-dual because He is non-

different from the Supreme Lord. Acarya means He
is disseminating Krishna Consciousness. Advaita is
Mahavisnu, whose main function is to create the
cosmic world through the actions of Maya
Advaita Acarya is in the Visnu-tattva with Sri
Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Sri Nityananda Prabhu.
These are the three masters, but Nityananda and
Advaita are servants of Mahaprabhu. It was
Advaita Gosai who prayed to the Lord by offering
water and Tulasi leaves to His Salagram Sila
Krishna Deity by loudly roaring his request for the
Lord to appear.
SRI GADADHARA PANDITA

The pleasure potency of Śrī Kṛṣṇa formerly known as

Vṛndāvaneśvarī is now personified in the form of Śrī
Gadādhara Paṇḍita in the pastimes of Lord Caitanya
Mahāprabhu.” Śrī Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī has pointed
out that in the shape of Lakṣmī, the pleasure potency of
Kṛṣṇa, she was formerly very dear to the Lord as
Śyāmasundara-vallabhā. The same Śyāmasundara-vallabhā
is now present as Gadādhara Paṇḍita. Formerly, as Lalitā-
sakhī, she was always devoted to Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī.”
(C.C.Adi 10.15 purport)
 Gadadhara Goswami is a representative of a perfect
brahmana spiritual master He is the Pleasure Potency of
Sri Krishna (Srimati Radharani) He is a learned scholar
and Gadadhara Pandit is simultaneously an incarnation
of Srimati Radharani and Lalita-sakhi

Gadadhara is the incarnation of devotional energy

and of the internal potency who is shakti tattva, the
confidential worshipper of the Visnu tattva. In this
incarnation, Radharani was able to spend time with
Her Lord as an intimate associate who helped spread
the pastimes and glories of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.
 SRI SRIVASA THAKURA

“These two captains, with Their soldiers, such as Srivasa

Thakura, travel everywhere, chanting the holy name of the
Lord” (C.C.Adi 3.75)

“The devotees headed by Srivasa are His smaller limbs.

They are like His hands, face and eyes and His disc and
other weapons” (C.C.Adi 6.38)

There are innumerable pure devotees of the Lord,

headed by Srivasa Thakura, who are known as unalloyed
devotees” (C.C.Adi 7.16)
Srivasa Thakura is the incarnation of the pure
devotee of the Lord. He is jiva-tattva, the
leader of all pure unalloyed devotees.The
Lord’s marginal energy is Srivas Thakur.

Even cats and dogs in the household of Srivasa

Thakura were liberated. Cats and dogs and other
animals are not expected to become devotees, but, in
the association of a pure devotee, they are also
delivered.The entire family of Srivasa was made up of
exalted spiritual personalities.
“In the Gaura-ganodesa dipika (90), Srivasa Pandita is
described as an incarnation of Narada Muni, and Sri Rama
Pandita, his younger brother, is said to be an incarnation of
Parvata Muni, a great friend of Narada’s. Śrīvāsa Paṇḍita’s wife,
Mālinī, is celebrated as an incarnation of the nurse Ambikā,
who fed Lord Kṛṣṇa with her breast milk, and his niece
Nārāyaṇī, the mother of Ṭhākura Vṛndāvana dāsa, the author of
Śrī Caitanya-bhāgavata, was the sister of Ambikā in kṛṣṇa-līlā.
We also understand from the description of Śrī Caitanya-
bhāgavata that after Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu’s acceptance of
the sannyāsa order, Śrīvāsa Paṇḍita left Navadvīpa, possibly
because of feelings of separation, and domiciled at
Kumārahaṭṭa.” (C.C.Adi 10.8)
Jai Srila Prabhupada!