Murāri Gupta: The Physician of Body and Soul

Śrīla Murāri Gupta never accepted charity from friends, nor did he accept money from anyone. He practiced as a physician and maintained his family with his earnings….. Murāri Gupta was an ideal gṛhastha, for he was a great devotee of Lord Rāmacandra and Caitanya Mahāprabhu. By practicing as a physician he maintained his family and at the same time satisfied Lord Caitanya to the best of his ability. This is the ideal of householder life.
(CC Adi 10.50)

As Murāri Gupta treated his patients, by his mercy both their bodily and spiritual diseases subsided.
PURPORT
Murāri Gupta could treat both bodily and spiritual disease because he was a physician by profession and a great devotee of the Lord in terms of spiritual advancement. This is an example of service to humanity. Everyone should know that there are two kinds of diseases in human society. One disease, which is called adhyātmika, or material disease, pertains to the body, but the main disease is spiritual. The living entity is eternal, but somehow or other, when in contact with the material energy, he is subjected to the repetition of birth, death, old age and disease. The physicians of the modern day should learn from Murāri Gupta. Although modern philanthropic physicians open gigantic hospitals, there are no hospitals to cure the material disease of the spirit soul. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement has taken up the mission of curing this disease, but people are not very appreciative because they do not know what this disease is. A diseased person needs both proper medicine and a proper diet, and therefore the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement supplies materially stricken people with the medicine of the chanting of the holy name, or the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, and the diet of prasādam. There are many hospitals and medical clinics to cure bodily diseases, but there are no such hospitals to cure the material disease of the spirit soul. The centers of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement are the only established hospitals that can cure man of birth, death, old age and disease.
(CC Adi 10.51)

When Murāri returned home, his heart was overwhelmed. He would chuckle to himself as he said one thing and did something else. In jubilation, he said, “I will eat now.” Then his chaste wife brought lunch for him. Being overwhelmed with love for Lord Caitanya, Murāri Gupta threw handfuls of rice to the floor while calling out, “Eat! Eat!” As he threw rice mixed with ghee to the floor, he repeatedly exclaimed, “Eat Kṛṣṇa! Eat!” On seeing Murāri’s behavior, his chaste wife laughed. She repeatedly brought more rice and placed it on his plate. Murāri’s chaste wife knew that he was a mahā-bhāgavata, so she cautioned him by chanting the name of Kṛṣṇa. Whatever Murāri offered, the Lord ate. The Lord never disregarded Murāri’s request. Whatever rice Murāri offered, the Lord ate.
Early the next morning, the Lord went to Murāri Gupta’s house to meet him. Mahāprabhu arrived as Murāri Gupta was sitting there enjoying the ecstasy of Kṛṣṇa’s names. Upon seeing the Lord, Murāri offered his obeisances. Murāri then respectfully offered the Lord a place to sit, and the son of Jagannātha Miśra sat down. Murāri Gupta asked, “O Lord, what brings You here?” The Lord replied, “I came for treatment.” Murāri Gupta then said, “What is the cause of Your indigestion? What foods did You eat yesterday?” The Lord said, “My dear friend, how will you know? You threw rice on the floor and said, ‘Eat! Eat!’ You forgot, but your wife knows everything. You offered it to Me, so how could I refuse to eat? What is the use of your treatments and remedies? I got indigestion by eating your rice. Drinking water relieves indigestion. My indigestion was caused by eating your rice, so the cure is drinking your water.” After speaking in this way, the Lord, fully absorbed in the mellows of devotional service, picked up Murāri’s waterpot and drank from it. Seeing the Lord’s display of mercy, Murāri fell unconscious. Gupta’s entire family then cried in ecstatic love of God.
How glorious is the Lord, how glorious is His devotional service, and how glorious are His servants! Such devotional service was manifested by the mercy of Lord Caitanya. The mercy received by Murāri Gupta’s servants could not even be seen by the Bhaṭṭācāryas of Navadvīpa. Nothing is achieved through education, wealth, and fame. The fruits of devotional service are achieved by the mercy of the Vaiṣṇavas. Whoever the servants and maidservants of the Vaiṣṇavas may be, the Vedas declare, “They are the best of all.” In this way, Mahāprabhu personally bestowed mercy on Murāri every day. Just hear the wonderful topics concerning Murāri Gupta, for by hearing these topics one achieves the treasure of devotional service.
(Sri Caitanya Bhagavata Madhya-khaṇḍa 20.054 – 20.077)

Śrīvāsa Paṇḍita, Śrīrāma Paṇḍita, and Śrī Candraśekhara are worshiped throughout the three worlds. They, along with Śrī Murāri Gupta, who cures the living entities of their material disease, all took birth in Śrīhaṭṭa.
(Sri Caitanya Bhagavata Ādi-khaṇḍa 2.34 – 2.35)