Badi Baithak: Shrimad Gokul Baithakji Number 2

Shri Mahaprabhuji’s second seat at Gokul, is the largest of the three and it was there Shri Mahaprabhuji used to take His meals and give divine discourses. Once the disciples of the renowned Shri Krishna Chaitanya felt that they had the right to serve Shri Nathji, but Shri Nathji Himself advised them that their qualification was to worship Him by chanting His divine names, for through that worship; their liberation would occur. The Lord further explained that the right to His personal Services lay only in the hands of Shri Mahaprabhu Vallabhacharya.

 

The saints of Vrindavan, curious about who Shri Mahaprabhuji was, sent one man, Shyama Nanda, to Gokul. He arrived there and hung his Shaligram on a tree and went in to have the sight of Shri Mahaprabhuji. Upon returning, he noticed that his shaligram was no longer on the tree, so he again approached Shri Mahaprabhuji and questioned, “Someone, perhaps one of your disciples has taken my Shaligram.”

Shri Mahaprabhuji replied, “No one has stolen your shaligram. Go again and see.”

Upon returning to the tree, he saw it was covered with shaliframs; and feeling confused, he again approached Shri Mahaprabhuji saying, “Now there are countless shaligrams, and I am unable to recognize my own. “Shri Mahaprabhuji then questioned, “How can you properly serve your shaligram kf you can not even recognize it? Through this type of worship, can you ever come to know your Lord? Now you go again to that tree and see.” Returning to the tree, he found only one shaligram, and taking it, retyrned to Vrindavan and reported the strange series of events to his guru brothers.