A summary of some of the activities of Smt. Candrasasi Mukherjee, 
better known as Pisima Gosvamini, and her Gaura-Nitai

Mukunda Datta Das

(They are in a very small temple right across the street from 
Bankhandi Mahadeva, about three doors down from the intersection of 
the Loi and Bankhandi bazars. It looks rather like a closet door, 
beneath the second floor window of a plain, whitewashed building. I 
think it's unmarked too. Coming from Krishna-Balarama Mandir, it will 
be on the left as one heads for Radha-Syamasundar, Radha-Ramana, etc.)

In a village named Rayapura (Siudi District, Bengal), there were 
Deities of Sri Gaura-Nitai that were worshiped by the descendants of 
Sri Murari Gupta, the eternal associate of Lord Caitanya. These 
Deities of the Lords Caitanya and Nityananda in childhood form were 
worshiped until there was no one left in Murari Gupta's family to look 
after Them; after an outbreak of malaria, everyone had left the area 
and it became overgrown by the jungle. The temple was abandoned, the 
Deities were eventually buried beneath so much foliage and dirt, and 
having forgotten the history of the place, people began to use the 
area a pasturing ground for their cows. Once, a gopa noticed that his 
most productive cow used to drip her milk into a spot on the ground. 
Curious, they dug in that spot and found the Deities there. Removing 
Gaura-Nitai, they saw that the word "dasamurarigupta" was written on 
their base.

The Deities were again established in a temple with first-class 
worship. After some time, and according to directions he had received 
in a dream, one resident of Orissa, Balaramadasa Babaji, came there 
and began to worship Gaura-Nitai.

Fortuitously, a respectable young brahmani named Candrasasi 
Mukhopadhyaya had come to Rayapura on business related to her wealthy 
family's nearby land holdings (around year 1900). She happened to be 
staying near the Gaura-Nitai temple. Daily taking darsana of the 
Deities, a desire to render Them service arose in her - she wanted to 
make Them some payesh (sweet rice khir) for Their bhoga offering. She 
later had a dream in which Gaura and Nitai came to her, saying, "Ma, 
we're very hungry. Feed us some payesh that you've cooked for us." 
When she later told the temple priest Balaramadasa Babaji about this, 
he said, "According to Vaishnava sastras, an uninitiated person cannot 
cook for the Deity." Smt. Candrasasi Mukherjee then accepted her 
mantra from Balaramadasa and thus she fulfilled her desire to prepare 
bhogas for Gaura-Nitai with her own hands.

That very night in a dream Gaura-Nitai came again and pulling on her 
ancala (the edge of her sari) said, "Ma! Don't go away. If you go 
away, who will feed us payesh? You are our Mata. We won't let you go." 
Candrasasi affectionately smiled and told Them to let go of her cloth, 
but They wouldn't let go; from Their repeated tugging at her ancal, a 
piece of it finally ripped and the swatch of her cloth was in Gaura's 
hand. Candrasasi's dream broke and she woke up. But she saw that the 
corner of her ancala had indeed ripped! At that very moment, she went 
to inform Balaramadasa everything about her dream.

At that time, before the sun had risen, the temple wasn't opened yet. 
Balaramadasa went to the temple to wake the Deities. To the amazement 
of all present, everyone saw that the piece missing from Candrasasi's 
cloth was in Gaura's hand. All were immersed in premananda and 
everyone began to praise Candrasasi's good fortune. Candrasasi lost 
all sense of her body and mind, and began to dive and surface in 
thousands of unprecedented, transcendental feelings all at once.

She forgot all thoughts of going back to her native place. The 
illusions of family, prestige, wealth, and so forth had been lost. She 
began to serve Gaura-Nitai in the temple as her life and soul. On 
account of her leaving home at such an age (she was only 20 at that 
time) to live in the temple along with the Babaji, people naturally 
began to talk about their relationship in so many ways and this gave 
her intolerable mental distress. One night, after praying repeatedly 
and having emptied her heart before Gaura-Nitai, she eventually fell 
asleep in that state. Gaura-Nitai came to her in a dream and hanging 
on to her neck They said, "Ma, take us to Vrndavana now - chalo (let's 
go)."

Immediately she took Gaura-Nitai and along with Balaramadasa Babaji 
proceeded by boat to Vrndavana. As They arrived there, a devoted lady 
from Nadiya named Bhakta devi was bathing in the Yamuna and saw Them. 
She respectfully invited Them to her home in Vanakhandi-mohalla. In 
great ecstasy, Candrasasi began to serve Gaura-Nitai in her home and 
Bhakta devi used to assist her. People in the neighborhood called 
Bhakta "Pisima," and so they began to call Candrasasi "Pisima" as 
well. Consistent with the Lords' statement to that effect, Pisima used 
to dandle and nurture Gaura-Nitai as if They were her own sons. 
Gaura-Nitai were always pleased by her service. One day, as she was 
busily cooking for Them, she noticed indications of her monthly 
stri-dharma. Going outside of the temple kitchen, she remained in the 
courtyard looking again and again in the direction of Gaura-Nitai and 
crying - "Today I won't be able to offer my own cooking for 
Gaura-Nitai's bhoga!" Thus suffering over the matter, she saw a kind 
of dream-vision, even though she was awake. Both brothers, Gaura and 
Nitai, came and said, "Ma, there's nothing to be sad about. You just 
do what mothers in your condition usually do. There's no fault in 
that. Get up. Take your bath and give us something to eat. We're very 
hungry. From now on, you'll be free of this disease." Pisi Ma did as 
she was told. After that, she never had her courses again.

After coming to Vrndavana, Sri Sri Gaura-Nitai began to play with many 
other devotees and perform various pastimes. Sometimes, if there was a 
need for this or that, they would beg, borrow, or steal it from 
anywhere and everywhere. For example, Gaura-Nitai had no shoes. They 
asked Pisi Ma for them, but since she didn't want Them to leave her 
even for a moment she probably simply told Them, "What do You need 
shoes for? Do you have to come or go anywhere?" Thus, Gaura-Nitai 
remained on the watch for some other devotees who might come there.

Once, in the month of Savan, a woman of a Bengali family traveling 
from Serpura Beguda came to Vrndavana to see the swing festival. They 
stayed near Gaura-Nitai's temple, in Cidiyakunja. That very day, in 
the midmorning it was raining. Pisima was sitting on the temple 
veranda. With her left hand, she was pulling the rope attached to 
Gaura-Nitai's fan. With her right hand, she was chanting on her 
japa-mala. It began to rain very hard. Pisi Ma dozed off a little. At 
that time, she saw that Nitai had left the temple and was running 
about the courtyard in the water. Gaura then followed Him. Pisima 
shrieked, "Oh! Where are you going? You'll catch a cold!" This dream 
was as clear as if it weren't a dream at all - it seemed as if she saw 
it while yet awake. But she again began pulling on the pankha and 
eventually dozed off again.

Meanwhile, Nitai-Gaura had arrived in Cidiyakunja. The woman from 
Serpura Beguda was sleeping at that time. Gaura-Nitai went in and sat 
at the end of the bed. Shaking Their heads, they said, "Have you come 
here to sleep? Get up!"

In her sleeping state, the woman mumbled, "Wha... who are you?"

"Our names are Nitai and Gaura; we're the sons of Pisi Ma of 
Vanakhandi."

"Pisi Ma's kids? How's that?"

"People in the mohalla just call us Pisi Ma's boys. Everybody in 
Vrndavana knows we're her children."

"So why are you here?"

"Look at how our feet are covered with mud. Give us some shoes."

Upon seeing Gaura-Nitai's extraordinary beauty, the woman became 
fascinated. She had never before imagined such beauty. Awakening, she 
began to cry, remembering the two boys. Weeping thus, she left the 
house, even though it was still pouring rain. On the road, she asked 
anybody she saw where Pisi Ma's children lived. One Vrajavasi showed 
her Nitai Gaura's mandira at Banakhandi. The woman went inside. Pisi 
Ma was still pulling the pankha and chanting japa. The woman asked, 
"Is this the house of Pisi Ma's Gaura-Nitai?"

"Yes, mother, this is the home of Pisi Ma's Gaura Nitai. Mataji, why 
are you crying?"

"Where are your two boys? I want to see them," the highly agitated 
woman said, trying to be demure and respectful.

Pisi Ma respectfully seated the woman and opened the mandira. Taking 
Gaura-Nitai's darsana in the temple, which exactly resembled the 
vision in her dream, the woman burst into tears. Her very being was 
filled with trembling in all her limbs. She was simply unable to do 
anything at all; for a long time she remained fallen on the floor in a 
state of faint. Upon coming to consciousness and controlling herself, 
she related the whole story of her dream to Pisi Ma. Pisi Ma too told 
of what she had seen. For quite some time, both simply remained in an 
embrace, shedding tears of ecstasy. That fortunate woman later made 
silver shoes for Gaura-Nitai, which remain in Their possession even 
today. Nitai and Gaura continue to use them with love.

Prasanna dasi of Serpura Beguda lived in Vrndavana. One day she dreamt 
that Gaura and Nitai were decorated with all kinds of dazzling 
ornaments and came before her. Showing Their lotus feet, which were 
marked with flag, ankusa, thunderbolt, etc., and which are desired 
even by Brahma and Siva, They said: "Look at all the ornaments We got. 
But We don't have nupura (footbells). Give us nupura." Upon awakening, 
Prasanna dasi went to Pisi Ma and narrated the whole story, streaming 
tears of love. Having them made and then putting the golden nupura on 
Gaura-Nitai's lotus feet, her life became successful.

For some days one babaji, a very pure, dear servant of Lord, was 
assisting Pisi Ma in the seva-puja of Nitai Gaura. An impure idea 
arose in his mind. Opening the temple door at night, he stole the 
ornaments worth Rs. 500 and left with them. Arising early next 
morning, Pisi Ma was horrified to see that the door was opened and the 
Deities were without Their jewels. She thought, "Oh who has done this 
despicable thing? Is there anyone so sinful living in this world?" 
Full of anxiety, she fell down in the corridor of the temple and 
remained there, devastated and depressed. She saw Gaura-Nitai in her 
mind and said, "Who took your jewelry? They replied, "Ma, that 
Vaisnava is very poor, but he fed us brothers so much rabdi. So we 
gave it to him. Please, don't say anything to him about it."

What did she do? She was furious over the behavior of these spoiled 
children. From where would she get more jewelry? Personally, she had 
already left her own incomparable wealth long ago - coming to 
Vrndavana in beggar's dress, her only possession was now Sri Sri 
Gaura-Nitai. Laughing, she said, "Okay. You can either give Your 
things to somebody or keep them. What's it to me? If you need 
something again, then You'll get it from somewhere. You certainly 
aren't bashful about asking people for things."

In another dream, Gaura-Nitai told Pisi Ma, "Take us out for 
Braja-mandala-parikrama." She then readied a palanquin and assembled 
some devotees for Harinama-sankirtana and they set out the very next 
day. The Deities were extremely happy on this trip. After a month or 
so, when They were concluding the parikrama and were at the outskirts 
of Mathura, Pisi Ma went with one devotee, Krsnadasa, to make 
arrangements ahead. Mathuradasa followed behind with the palanquin. At 
that time, there were British soldiers camped in Mathura. Some of the 
soldiers were curious about the spectacle of the parikrama procession. 
Pointing at the palanquin, they asked, "What's in that?"

Mathuradasa replied, "Thakuraji is inside."

The soldiers garrulously said, "Let's see Thakuraji!"

Mathuradasa became afraid - somehow the mlecchas shouldn't touch the 
Deities. He replied in a very humble voice, "Just now Thakuraji's 
darsana won't be possible."

His comment had escaped the attention of the soldiers, who overwhelmed 
him and tried to see the Deities. At that very moment, a blinding 
flash of light bolted from the palanquin, as powerful as thunder, and 
blasting them away, scorched the eyes of the soldiers. Screaming out, 
"Oh God!" they all fled in terror.

When Mathuradasa later narrated the whole episode to Pisi Ma, she 
said, "Now my boys are able to take care of Themselves. I'm very happy 
to know this. Now I have no anxiety."

Pisima thus passed many years, serving Gaura-Nitai faithfully. Even 
when she was 100 years old, she continued to take three baths daily in 
the sacred Yamuna and personally performed Gaura-Nitai's seva herself. 
But gradually this became impossible for her to continue and so she 
entrusted the seva-puja to Gopesvara Gosvami, a devotee in the family 
line of Lord Nityananda. He was a staunch bhakta but wasn't very 
experienced in Deity seva. Thus he happened to bathe Gaura-Nitai in 
cool water once, at the beginning of the cold season. They caught a 
cold and Their noses began to drip. But Gopesvara Gosvami didn't even 
notice this. Pisima mostly stayed on the second floor - she could not 
easily negotiate the stairs anymore.

But in temple, the Deities were sad because Pisima wasn't there 
anymore to pamper Them with her maternal attentions. Somehow Pisima 
perceived this. She came down one day and saw that Gaura-Nitai's eyes 
were red and Their noses were dripping. Going near Them, she felt that 
They were hot. She could not bear this. She wiped Their noses with the 
edge of her sari and called for Gopesvara Gosvami. Crying, she said in 
disbelief, "How could you do this? Bathing Them in cold water, you've 
now made Them sick! See how Their noses are running!" She wiped Their 
noses and showed it to him. Gopesvara didn't believe it and he told 
her so. Pisima fairly bristled with anger. She indignantly held the 
other end of her sari to Gaura's nose and then thrust it into his 
face, saying, "Gaura's snot!" Just then, Gaura's nose began to drip 
again. This filled the temple with an unprecedented, divine fragrance 
from beyond this world. Astonished and full of remorse, Gopesvara fell 
at Pisima's feet and begged forgiveness.

When she was 103, Pisima mentioned to Gopesvara Gosvami that she would 
someday leave her body. On that very day, in good health, while 
sitting before Gaura-Nitai, beholding Their beautiful moonlike faces 
and chanting Their names, she gave up her earthly body and entered the 
eternal pastimes of the Lord.


Sri Gopesvara Gosvami Prabhu and Srimati Pisima's Gaura-Nitai

During Pisima's presence, everyone was afraid of inciting her wrath. 
Everything had to go according to her desire. If anything at all went 
against her wishes, she would become enraged and no shortcoming could 
withstand the face of her display of anger.

Ten lamps used to be lit above the temple doorway. On the 
Kojgara-purnima day, Gaura-Nitai used to enjoy Themselves on the 
veranda. One day it was Kojgara-purnima. After the evening arati, 
Gopesvara Prabhu had gone out somewhere, extinguishing the ten lamps, 
since their oil was expensive. That day Gaura-Nitai were not even 
taken out onto the veranda. In the temple, only one flame was burning, 
in a large brass ghee lamp. Pisima was seated on the veranda chanting 
Hare Krsna. All at once there was a loud sound. The temple was then 
engulfed in darkness. Gaura had lifted up the lamp and thrown it into 
a corner of the mandira. It took no time for Pisima to understand the 
anger of Gaura. Upon Gopesvara's return, she said, "Gopesvara! You 
didn't take Gaura-Nitai out on the veranda today. You also put out the 
ten lamps. Just see - for this reason Gaura in His anger threw His 
lamp and sits in the darkness. Why do you act like this?"

Pisima's order to Gopesvara Gosvami was not to give prasada to anyone 
before having taken their donation. One day, someone placed two annas 
before the Deity and requested prasada. Gopesvara Gosvami neglected 
Pisima's order, or perhaps he didn't notice the donation, but he gave 
prasada to that person. This time too, Pisima was sitting on the 
veranda chanting japa. She saw that a candana-grinding stone came 
barreling out from within the mandira, as if someone had very 
forcefully thrown it. Dashing and knocking against the sides of the 
veranda, it went into an adjoining room and struck a large pot filled 
with grains of rice. The pot was shattered, the rice scattered. 
Calling Gopesvara prabhu, Pisima said, "See Gaura's two-anna's worth 
of anger? He broke my big pot and scattered all the rice. Why do you 
do things that make Him so angry?" After this incident, Gopesvara 
prabhu became more careful in Gaura-Nitai's seva.

Once, after the disappearance of Gosvamini Pisima, Gopesvara Prabhu 
became dreadfully ill with smallpox and was bedridden for a month. He 
eventually lost the power to speak and then even fell into a coma. It 
seemed as if he would die but even in that condition he was able to 
render service to Sri Sri Gaura-Nitai internally. Late one night he 
saw that a fearsome raksasi was trying to take him away but just at 
that time Pisima Gosvamini and Gaura-Nitai came to his bedside and the 
raksasi disappeared. The greatly merciful Nitai stroked Gopesvara's 
limbs with His transcendental hand and said, "Dada (uncle), if you 
remain so listless, who will give us anything to eat? Get up! We're 
very hungry." Shortly thereafter, Gopesvara Prabhu regained 
consciousness and coughed up a great deal of phlegm. Sitting up in 
bed, it then seemed that there was no more disease in his body.

Srila Gopesvara prabhu was a brahmacari from his childhood. He always 
used to tour holy places before coming to the service of Sri Sri 
Gaura-Nitai. It was against his nature to be bound to one place. 
Therefore he initially hadn't wanted to accept the service of 
Gaura-Nitai. But, being helpless, in the face of Pisima's strong 
insistence, as well as Gaura-Nitai's desire, he had to accept the 
seva. He would personally do all of the cooking, offer all of the 
bhogas, all of the aratis, all of the sringaras, sing the kirtanas, 
even up to scrubbing the Thakuraji's pots, and all the other services 
as well. Sometimes, becoming fatigued after this work, he would even 
abusively swear at Sri Sri Gaura-Nitai.

Some time after Pisima's disappearance, one day Gopesvara Prabhu 
considered, "What is the gain from all of this seva that I have done? 
So many days I have spent doing puja, but nothing has happened. If I 
go to do bhajana in seclusion, something would happen." Thinking in 
this way, he entrusted the seva to another person and went to Kusuma 
Sarovara with the intent of doing his own bhajana. At midnight on the 
third day, while doing his bhajana seated beneath a bakula tree on the 
bank of the sarovara, he saw a transcendental vision - it seemed as if 
Nitai and Gaura were coming to him. Arriving there, They stood before 
him and said, "Dada! Today, for three days we haven't had any food or 
water - chalo!"

Clearly Gopesvara prabhu's bhajana was finished. So he left. One 
mahatma at Govardhana saw him on the way and said, "Ah, Gopesvara! Now 
you've come - last night in a dream Nitai-Gaura said to me that They 
haven't eaten anything in three days! Listen, bhai, go to Vrndavana - 
do Their seva and make Them happy." Gopesvara prabhu thought, "Accha, 
now these Two are going all over the place slandering me!" His mind 
filling with indignation, he said to the mahatma, "I will not go to 
Vrndavana; I'll do bhajana right here!" The mahatma told him to take 
prasada and get a little rest. A little later, when his anger had 
subsided, he was contrite and agreed to go to Vrndavana. As he arrived 
in the village of Datiya, it was dusk, and it began to rain very hard. 
With the intention of waiting out the evening there, he stayed in the 
house of a Vrajavasi.

Meanwhile in Vrndavana Gaura-Nitai were anxiously awaiting his 
arrival. Each and every second was a great burden for Them. As soon as 
it was morning, one tanga-wala (horse cart man) who had been searching 
everywhere for Gopesvara Gosvami, arrived at the house of the 
Vrajavasi. He said, "Where is Gopesvara Gosvami? I'm here to take him 
to Vrndavana. I was ordered to do so in a dream." Climbing onto the 
tanga, Gopesvara prabhu went to Vrndavana. As soon as he arrived in 
the doorway of the temple, he perceived a terrible odor. He asked the 
pujari, "What's this smell?" The pujari answered, "I don't know; for 
three days I haven't even been able to go into the temple on account 
of the stench." Gopesvara prabhu went into the temple and 
investigating every direction, saw that a rat had died on top of the 
Deities' mosquito net. He then cleansed the temple and washing and 
wiping everything, he started the seva again.

Gopesvara Gosvami was a staunch devotee of Lord Caitanya but he 
aspired to worship the Lord in sakhya-rasa. During the time of Pisima 
Gosvamini, Nitai-Gaura had the forms of children, in accordance with 
her maternal devotion (vatsalya-rasa). The core of his heart wasn't 
fully satisfied in the service of Bala-Gaura and Bala-Nitai. As soon 
as Gopesvara Gosvami prabhu assumed the seva, an extraordinary thing 
happened. According to some, Gopesvara Gosvami had incessantly prayed 
to Nitai-Gaura, and as a result of his supplications, They gradually 
began to grow, such that within a few years, They assumed Their 
present form as full-fledged youths. But others say that when 
Gopesvara once told Pisima that he wouldn't be able to worship such 
small Deities with complete love, she then went to the temple with him 
and lifting both brother's chins, raised Them up to Their current 
dimensions. Whatever happened, those who had seen Them in both 
conditions attested that the two Deities were previously smaller.
