[Advaita-l] [advaitin] Caricature of Advaita, Shankaracharya, etc. by the Gaudiya head

[jaldhar at braincells.com]

On Thu, 3 Nov 2022, sunil bhattacharjya via Advaita-l wrote:

> Dear friends,
>
> Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu was a disciple of Shri Keshava Kashmiri
> Bhattacharya, who was the 32nd  Mathadhipati of the Nimbaraka's  '
> *Dvaita-advaita*' *or* '*Bhedabheda*' Sampradaya

I thought the story was Chaitanya as a young man defeated Keshava Kashmiri 
in debate at Navadwipa and the latter became his disciple?  In any case, 
this looks like another Gaudiya stretch of the truth.  For a start, in the 
Nimbarkas' own guru parampara list, he is number 29 not 32.

Also there is a story in the Bhaktamal of Sant Nabhadas which was a 
hagiographical history in Brajbasha of the great saints of Northern India 
in medieval era that when Sikandar Lodi was Sultan of Delhi, he made a 
punitive tax on pilgrims to Mathura until Keshava Kashmiri frightened him 
with his Yogic powers into rescinding it.  Now Sikandar Lodis dates do 
overlap with Chaitanya therefore so would Keshava Kashmiris' which makes 
it possible that they met.

However in the 20th century a document was discovered granting land in 
Mathura to the Nimbarkas, specifically Keshava Bhatta for delivering the 
land from the oppression of the (unnamed) Muslim ruler.  It is dated 
Samvat 1217 (which would be 1161 AD.)  Additional texts confirms the 
ownership by Shribhatta the 30th acharya Shribhatta wrote a kayya called 
Yugalashataka which he himself dates to Samvat 1351 (1296 AD.) Note both 
dates are well before Chaitanya.  So the author of Bhaktamal must have 
confused Sikandar Lodi (himself an oppressor of Hindus) with some earlier 
sultan.  Or to be fair, the Nimbarka dates could be unreliable. If 
Shribhatta was the disciple of Keshava, it is rather unlikely that he was 
still around 134 years after his guru. Assuming the deed is even genuine, 
either there would have to be two Keshava Kashmiris, two Shribhattas, or 
there would be no direct relationship between the two.  In any case, there 
dates would not match with Chaitanya.


> Shri Keshava Kashmiri Bhattacharya was a devout worshipper of Mother Sarada
> (or Mother Saraswati or  Bani or *Bharati*). The Gaudiya math generally
> mentions Shri Keshava Bharati ot Keshaba Bharati) as the guru of Shri
> Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
>

Keshava Bhatta or Bhattacharya had the title Bharati as a mark of honor 
for  his extensive learning.  Similarly Shri Gambhiraraya and his son Shri 
Bhaskararaya were also known as Bharati for the same reason.  He was also 
called Kashmiri because he went to Kashmir and stayed there for several 
years defeating the Pandits (who were Shaivas.)  Swami Keshava Bharati who 
was Chaitanyas dikshaguru is totally separate.  He was a Dandi swami. (The 
Nimbarkas are Tridandis.)

The Nimbarkas were well entrenched in Vraj, administering many of the 
tirthas there.  Also as you noted, their philosophy is very similar 
(though it is svabhavika bhedabheda not achintya bhedabheda)  These could 
be factors in cooperation between the two panths or perhaps rivalry.

-- 
Jaldhar H. Vyas <jaldhar at braincells.com>