Discovery of Lord Sri Caitanya’s Birthsite (1888)

During the Christmas break, the Thakura took a train to Navadvipa with his wife. He writes, “Upon arriving there and surveying the land in all four directions, the hairs on my body stood on end.” Proceeding to the Rani Dharmasala, the Thakura arranged for an offering to be cooked for Lord Caitanya. He then took grains for the first time in many days and commented: “Since my birth, I had not eaten such nectarean food.” After this, the Thakura gradually regained his strength and began to come to Navadvipa every Saturday to search out the site of Śrī Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s birth.However, most of the local people had little interest in or actual knowledge of the holy sites of Navadvipa, and the Thakura became a little discouraged. Most of the local inhabitants expressed the opinion that the site of Lord Caitanya’s birth was in Navadvipa, but the Thakura was not convinced. Another theory was that the actual site had been lost under the shifting path of the Ganges. Still not satisfied, he continued to try to establish where the authentic birthplace was located.
One Saturday evening, the Thakura was sitting on the roof of the Rani Dharmasala in Navadvipa with his third son, Kamal Prasad, and a friend who was a clerk. It was 10 o’clock and very dark, as the sky was covered with clouds. The Thakura gives his account: “Across the Ganga, in the northern direction, I saw a large mansion flooded with light. When I asked Kamal [about this], he confirmed that he had seen it also. When I asked the clerk, he said, ‘I didn’t see anything.’ I was utterly amazed by that. When I looked carefully at that area in the morning from the roof of Rani’s house, I saw a tal [palm] tree located there. Inquiring from others about the place, they said it was known as Ballaldighi, which was near the ruins of the old fort and kingdom of Laksman Sen.” Upon inquiring of various persons, the Thakura learned that adjacent to that place was the large pond of King Ballal Sen from which the town got its name, and aside from that there was nothing of importance. The following Saturday he went to Ballaldighi where at night he again had a wonderful vision. He spent the next day wandering all over the site. The elderly locals told him that this was indeed the location of Śrī Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s birth. They pointed out an extensive mound covered with Tulasi plants as the actual site of His appearance.
In order to substantiate his growing conviction, the Thakura began to conduct an investigation utilizing old manuscripts of the Caitanya- bhāgavata, Bhakti-ratnākara and Narahari Sarakār Ṭhākura’s Navadvipa- parikrama-paddhati, as well as antique maps of the district. In particular, he found an old map from the time of Ganga-Govinda Singh, who was the Naib Diwan of the Kalsa and founder of the Paikpara Raj family which flourished in the latter part of the eighteenth century. The name “Śrī Māyāpura” was found on the map to indicate the site of what became known as Ballaldighi. He ascertained a good deal about the different villages of the area from his research with the manuscripts and maps and from the local villagers as well. He found to his great astonishment that the town on the western banks of the Ganges, now called Navadvipa, was actually a place of less than one-hundred years standing, and that there were still people living there who declared that in their youth they had moved to the new town from the old site at Ballaldighi. He also found that this town of Navadvipa could not possibly be the site of Lord Caitanya’s appearance, because Lord Caitanya had appeared on the eastern bank of the Ganges. Furthermore, the elderly villagers of Ballaldighi even called the area Mayapura. Then, while reading the Bhakti-ratnākara, the Thakura found the following verse which confirmed his discovery beyond a doubt:
navadvipa madhye mayapura name sthān
yathāya janmilen gauracandra bhagavān
“In the center of Navadvipa there is a place called Mayapura. At this place the Supreme Lord, Gauracandra, took His birth.”
This monumental discovery took place toward the beginning of 1888, and it was a landmark event in the history of Vaisnavism. The site of the divine appearance of Lord Caitanya, after being lost for several generations, was again revealed to the world by Śrila Bhaktivinoda Thakura. Wishing to confirm it even more resoundingly, the Ṭhākura later requested Śrīla Jagannatha dasa Bābājī Mahārāja, the head of the Gaudiya Vaisnava community, to come to the site. The aged bābājī, who was more than 120 years old at that time, was so weak that he was carried everywhere in a basket by his disciple, Bihārī. Many curious persons accompanied him. He was so old that his eyelids completely covered his eyes, and they had to be propped open with his hand if he wanted to see someone. When he was brought to the spot discovered by the Thakura, he became overwhelmed with ecstasy and jumped into the air, crying, “ei to ‘nimāi-janma-bhūmi!” (“This is indeed the birthplace of Lord Nimai!’) Thus, by the additional and absolute confirmation of the paramahaṁsa bābājī the site was forever certified beyond doubt. Thus, from both an empirical and spiritual point of view, the place of Lord Caitanya’s birth was ascertained. Just as Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmi and Śrila Sanatana Gosvāmi excavated the lost sites of Krsna’s pastimes in Vṛndāvana, the Thakura discovered this lost site of Gaurānga’s advent and other pastimes in Navadvīpa. This discovery led to his undertaking further research, and he eventually discovered many of the sites of Lord Caitanya’s pastimes and described them in his book Śrī Navadvīpa- dhāma-māhātmyam, which he wrote in Krishnanagar and published in 1890.After the discovery of the birthplace of Lord Caitanya, Śrīla Jagannātha dāsa Bābājī Mahārāja and Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Thakura spent some time worshiping the Lord there. Śrila Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s son, Lalita Prasad, relates that one of the Thakura’s sons was suffering from a skin disease, and that Śrīla Bābāji Mahārāja told him to lie down at the site of the Lord’s birth. The boy did so, and was cured by the next day.
(Reference – Seventh Goswami: Biography of Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura – Chapter 18)

Information – In 1890 Bhaktivinoda Thakur established Sri Nabadwip Dham Pracharini Sabha, with the ruling prince of Tripura as its president. The purpose of the Sabha was to arrange for the proper maintenance of the temple and worship of the Deities there. Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur was so devoted to this project that he was willing to go door to door himself, if necessary, to solicit contributions for the cause. The Amrita Bazaar Patrika noted the event with the following statement:
Babu Kedarnath Dutt, the distinguished Deputy Magistrate, who has just retired from the service, is one of the most active members. Indeed, Babu Kedarnath Dutt has been deputed by the committee to raise subscription in Calcutta and elsewhere and is determined to go from house to house, if necessary, and beg a rupee from each Hindu gentleman for the noble purpose. If Babu Kedarnath Dutt, therefore, really sticks to his resolution of going round with a bag in hand, we hope no Hindu gentleman whose house may be honoured by the presence of such a devout bhakta as Babu Kedarnath will send him away without contributing his mite, however humble it may be.
(Amrita Bazaar Patrika 1890)

All the Vaiṣṇavas eventually sat down and decided that service should be established at the Lord’s birthplace and at Śrīvāsāṅgana. Finally, Śrīyuta Jagannātha Dāsa Bābājī Mahāśaya expressed the idea that at the birthplace, Śrī Jagannātha Miśra and Śrī Śacī Devī should be installed in one building, and Śrī Viṣṇupriyā and Lakṣmī Devī should have another building, with the youthful Deity of Śrī Mahāprabhu along with them. Let the Pañca-Tattva be established at Śrīvāsāṅgana.
(Avirbhāvotsava (‘The Lord’s Appearance Festival’) published in Sajjana Toṣaṇī, Vol.4, Issue 12 in 1893.)

Surprisingly, what Śrī Nityānanda Prabhu had said (that four-hundred years after the Lord’s birth, the Deity of Śrī Gaurāṅga would reappear in the temple of Śrī Jagannātha Miṣra) came true. O devotees! O mahā-māhopādhyāyas! O rich gentlemen! O fortunate residents of Bengal! Satisfy your eyes and make your birth successful by taking darśana of these Deities that charm the entire world on the 7th of Caitra. A lunar eclipse on Phalguṇa Pūrṇimā did not occur again after the birth of the Lord. This time it is happening four-hundred and eight years later. You should understand that this is due to the manifestation of the Deities in Śrī Māyāpura. During this mahā-yoga*, one cannot determine how many results are bestowed on a jīva who bathes in the Gaṅgā at Śrī Gaṅgā-nagara ghāṭa and takes darśana of the Deities at the Mahā-Yogapīṭha. For those who observe this date and take darśana at the Yogapīṭha and bathe at Gaṅgā-nagara, even four-headed Brahmā offers them jaya-dhvani. Oh! All the devotees of Śrī Navadvīpa-maṇḍala are dancing in ecstasy longing for the manifestation of Śrī Gaurāṅga.
(Śrīdhāma Māyāpura’ published in Sajjana Toṣaṇī Vol.5, Issue 12 in 1893)

Those who will be born as devotees amongst all the nations of the world, will one day hope to see the birth-place of Śrī Śrī Mahāprabhu from many, many distant lands. Those who endeavour to keep the flow of services in Māyāpura strong, will be counted amongst the main benefactors of the world of Vaiṣṇavas that will appear in the future. There is no doubt that by all these activities, the dharma of Śrī Mahāprabhu will be especially propagated throughout the world.
(‘Gata-varṣa (The Last Year)’ is an editorial written by Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura for Sajjana Toṣaṇī, Vol.12, Issue 1 in 1900.)

“To Baira belongs the little town of Mayapura (near the Burdwan boundary) where I am told the tomb exists of one Maulana Sirajuddin who is said to have been the teacher of Hussain Shah, king of Bengal, (1494–1522),”
(A Statistical Account of Bengal Volume 1, Page 367, Year 1875)