The Çrépät of Sundarananda Thakur, Nityänanda Prabhu’s intimate associate, is the village of Mahespura in Jashore district (formerly Jessore), which stands on the Vetravati River. There are many local legends about this river. An aged lady named Vetravati had been living there. Once, on the occasion of Gaìgä-snäna, she sent a flower garland to the pilgrims as an offering to Gaìgä Devé.
When the pilgrims threw the garland into the river in offering, immediately Gaìgä Devé accepted it and appeared in her personal form. Seeing this, they became astonished. To investigate the matter they went to find the old lady, but she ran away, and the path she took turned into a river. Still today there are some remains of that river.
In Çré Gaura-gaëoddeça-dépikä (verse-127) it is said, “Lord Kåñëa’s cowherd friend, Sudämä, appeared in Caitanya-lélä as Sundara Öhäkura.”
Similarly, Çré Caitanya-bhägavata states, “Sundarananda is an ocean of sacred rapture. He is chief amongst the associates of Nityänanda Prabhu.” (Cb. Antya-khaëda 5.728). And Çré Caitanya-caritämåta (Ädi-lélä 11.23) states,
sundarānanda — nityānandera śākhā, bhṛtya marma
yāṅra saṅge nityānanda kare vraja-narma
“Sundarānanda, another branch of Śrī Nityānanda Prabhu, was Lord Nityānanda’s most intimate servant. Lord Nityānanda Prabhu perceived the life of Vrajabhūmi in his company.”
Sundarānanda possessed great mystic powers. On one occasion, he dived into a river and pulled out a crocodile. He was a naiñöhika-brahmacäré, and always stayed with Nityänanda Prabhu. Descendants of the disciples of his relative-brothers are staying different places. Some of his relatives established a temple in Mangaladihi, in Birbhum district.
His Çrépät is now situated at Mahespur in Jhenidah district. Nothing stands there but his birthplace. The torchbearer of the Gauòéya-sampradäya, Çréla Bhaktisiddanta Sarasvaté Öhäkura, came with his associates to the Çrépät on February 23, 1925, while performing Gaura-maëòala parikramä. He delivered a long speech about Sundarananda and spoke on the topic of the difference between the religion of soul and religion of mind. A new temple in the name Sundarananda Çrépät is established in Mahespur town.
How to Go There
Maheshpur can be easily reached by buses on the Dhaka-Darshana route. This place is very near to Kotchandpur, Jhenidah.
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