 Preface
from Jaiva Dharma
Published by Sri Gaudiya Math
Kedaranath,
who was subsequently known for his pre eminence in the Vaishnava
World as Thakur Bhakti Vinode, was bom in 1838 in
a well known aristrocratic family who were the owners of Govindpur,
the present site of Fort William of Calcutta. Kedaranath in his
fourteenth year was admitted in a Hindu Charitable Institution
in Calcutta where he studied for four years during which period
he began to write and compose articles and poems in English. During
these days, Kedaranath used to write articles for "Hindu intelligence",
a very famous newspaper edited by his relation Kaliprasad Ghosh,
a well known person in the reamed society of Calcutta. He studied
the works of Addison and Edward Young under Rev. Greaves. He studied
the works of Carlyle, William Hazlitt, Jeffery, Macaulay and published
his many English poems in the Library Gazette. Mrs. Locke admired
very much his poem "Poriyed."
Kedaranath entered the Hindu School as a student of the first
class in 1856 when the University of Calcutta was just established.
The late Mr. Satyendranath Tagore, the first Indian l.C.S. brother
of the poet Rabindra Nath Tagore, Ganendra Nath Tagore and Kesava
Sen, afterwards the famous Brahma Samaj leaders were his school
friends. Kedaranath wrote his first part of his English book "Poriyed" in
1856. He soon published his two other volumes. Rev. Duff highly
praised it and asked him to compose such poems dealing with the
Zamindars' oppression and torture of their tenants. He came in
close contact with Rev. duff and Mr. George Thompson who taught
him how to become an effective orator. Mr. Thompson told him
that he used to deliver lectures to the com fields on his way
from his house to the Parliament. He was the most intimate friend
of Dwijendra Nath Tagore, elder brother of his class friend Satyendra
Nath Tagore. He studied the works of Kant, Goethe, Hizel, Swedenburg,
Schopenhuer, Hume Voltaire and others with Dwijendra Nath. At
that time Kedaranath used to lecture in the literary meetings.
His friend Sir Tarak Nath Palit who bore all expenses for the
establishment of Science College, Calcutta persuaded him to lecture
before the British Indian society of pro British Zamindars of
Bengal which many Europeans attended. At the next meeting of
the said society he read his dramatic rendering of Vital Pancha
Vingsati which was followed by a heated discussion.
Kedaranath studied the works of Brahma movement after having
come in contact with his friend Dwijendra Nath, Satyendra Nath
and others of the Tagore family who were the leaders and guides
of the said Movement. He had very frequent discussions with Rev.
Duff at whose direction he studied the Bible and other Christian
books.
Now he occupied himself in studying the religious books. He deeply
read the works of Mr. Channing and the controversy between Raja
Ram Mohan and the Christian Missionaries.He read the koran. He
deeply read the works of Theodore Parker, Newman and others.
He frankly admits in his biography that he preferred Christianity
to Brahmoism on account of clear admission regarding the transcendence
of God head and spiritual function. He was always in favour of
one God, never liked the F;ahma system of worship. But he never
ceased his discussion with Dwijendra Nath. He remarked in his
biography that if I had any friend of my heart among mankind,
it was Dwijendra Nath. This was the time of Sepoy Mutiny. He
discussed it with the editor of Tattava Bodhini and the great
Pandit Baneswar Tarkalankar.
He went to Chutimangalpur in the district of Bhadruk in Orissa
where his grandmother and grandfather were living. They inherited
some landed property there from Raja Rajballav.Pandit Iswar Chandra
Vidyasagar was his great pattem. In 1860, he wrote his "Maths
of Orissa" in English. His next work was his Bijangram written
in Bengali blank verse. This is the first work ever written and
published in blank verse in the history of Bengali language and
literature. It is not correct to say that Michael Madhusudan
Dutta was the inventor of the blank verse in Bengali.
First he started his life as a school teacher and soon he entered
into the executive services and became the Deputy Magistrate
and Deputy Collector at Chapra in 1866, at the age of 28. Here
he reamed "Urdu" and "Persia" under a Munsi.
He wrote his Valedi Registry in Urdu. In March 1868, he was appointed
Deputy Magistrate at Dinajpur.
Here in Dinajpur he came in contact with Vaishnavism, which was
prevalent there under the patronage of Raya Saheb Kamala Lochana,
the great Zamindar of Dinajpur, who was the descendant of Ramananda
Vasu, an ardent follower of Sri Chaitanya. He made the acquaintance
with many Vaishnavas. Here he secured the printed Chaitanya Charitamrita,
and the Bengali translation of the Bhagavata; also copy of Bhaktamala.
On first reading the Chaitanya Charita, he fommed a high opinion
of Sri Chaitanya and began to regard Sri Chaitanya as God and
was seriously engaged in this study of Sri Chaitanya's religion
in the company of the Vaishnavas at Dinajpur. Now Kedaranath
became an out and out Vaishnava. He deeply studied the literature
of Brahmoism, Christianity and Islam. He made a comparative study
of Vaishnavism with reference to other religions, but he found
the perfect consummation of his own taught in Vaishnavism. He
was next transferred to Champran for a few months, and later
posted at Puri. Now his devotion to Sri Chaitanya grew very intense.
He came to Puri with his family, taking with him his two very
favourate books, Sri Chaitanya Charita and the Bhagavata. He
was happy for having been posted at Puri where his God, Sri Chaitanya
had spent so many years. His stay at Puri gave a great impetus
to his religious feeling for Vaishnavism. He appointed one Gopinatha
Pandita u.nth whom he studied the whole of the Bhagavata with
its commentary by Sridhara Swami. Two other Pandits named Hariharadasa
and Markandeya Mahapatra who studied the Nyaya and Vedanta in
NavadvIpa and Benares began to study the Bhagavata a',ong with
him Kedaranath leamt Sanskrit grammar and literature under the
great Isvara Chandra Vidyasagara, Dwijendra Nath Tagore and others
during his school days in Calcutta. He continued his study of
Sanskrit all through. Having finished the Bhagavata he studied
Jiva Goswami's Sadsandarbha, Baladeva Vidyabhusana's Govinda
Bhasya, Prameyaratnavali, Rupa's Bhaktirasamrita Sindhu and Hari
Bhaktikalpalatika, and others which he could secure from the
library of the Raja of Puri. Now he mastered the philosophy of
Gaudiya Vaishnavism. Here he finished his Sanskrit book "Datta
Kaustubha" and began his famous Sanskrit work 'Sri Krishna
Samhita'. The latter is philosophical, on Gaudiya Vaishnava philosophy.
Besides these many other works were composed during this time.
Now he started a class for teaching the Bhagavata. He formed
a society styled the Bhagavata Samsad, in the Jagannatha Vallabha
Garden, for the study and culture of the Bhagavata All the principle
Vaishnava leaders were impressed with his reaming and religious
fervour. He was in charge of Jagannatha temple on behalf of the
Govemment. He started another society called Vidvat Sabha for
promoting the study of Bhakti literature. He came in contact
with a very great Vaishnava saint named Svarupadasa. He was a
great ascetic and wholly devoted to God. Kedaranath had high
regard for him. Everyday Kedaranath used to hold a conference
at the Jagannatha temple and discussed various doctrinal aspects
of Vaishnavism. He stayed at Puri for five years.
From Puri he was posted at different places in Bengal and he
visited principal places of pilgrimages of the Vaishnavas. He
was stationed in the Narail in the District of Jessore in 1878.
He became very popular in the subdivision as a great Vaishnava
Magistrate. Many Kirtana singers used to come to him entertain
him with their songs. Here he published his Krishna Samhita in
1889 and Kalyan Kalpataru, a collection of his own Pada poems,
in 1880. Krishna Samhita was highly praised throughout the country.
Sir Reinhold Rest of the India Office, London, has written the
following remarks on it "By presenting Krishna's character
and His worship in a more sublime and transcendent light than
has hithert o been the custom to regard him in, you have rendered
an essential service to your coreligionists, and no one would
have taken more delight in your work than my departed friend
Goldstucker, the sincerest and most zealous advocate the Hindus
ever had in Europe, " Dated 16th April 1880.
Here at Narail he was initiated by Sri Bipin Vihari Goswami.
He adopted all Vaishnava practices in its strictest fomm. Now
he resolved to interest the educated people in Gaudiya Vaishnavism.
With this purpose in view he started a Bengali monthly called
Sajjana Tosani dealing with Vaishnava religion. It was the first
Vaishnava newspaper. After stay for three years at Narail for
a period of three years he made a pilgrimage to Allahabad, Ayodhya,
Benares, Vrindavana and so on. At Vrindabana he met the famous
Jaganathadasa Babaji, the head of the Gaudiya Vaishnavas. He
subsequently became the religious guide of Kedaranatha and helped
him in his misionary activities. The late Sarada Charana Mitter
who afterwards became a judge of the Calcutta High Court, brought
for him a good collection of the manuscripts of Vaishnava books
of which Viswanath Chakravarti's commentaries on the Bhagavata
and the Gita were particularly mentionable.
Now he decided to take up the preaching of the Gaudiya doctrine
in earnest. He founded a printing press known as Vaishnava Depository.
Philosophical books of the Vaishnavas were in Sanskrit. He undertook
to place before the educated public the system of Gaudlya Vaishnava
philosophy in a simple and popular form. He possessed a style
that was easy, invigorating, cheerful lucid and uniform, and
enriched with fresh store house of Sanskrit and adopted to Bengali
in a natural way. The Bengali language in his hands has thus
been improved as a very powerful vehicle for the conveyance of
the sublimes" and most highly philosophical truths of religion,
with an ease and precision that makes his works highly interesting
and at the same time perfectly intelligible to the most ordinary
reader.
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