Antardvipa

This is the first island of Navadvipa Dham. It embodies the devotional mellow of atma-nivedanam, or surrendering everything to the Lord. Lord Caitanya appeared on this island. This island is non-different from Mahavana in Braja. Sri Antardvipa spreads from Bharadvaja Tila, to some portions of Vamana Pukara, Sri Mayapur, Ganga Nagara, and Chand Kazi’s Samadhi. According to the sastra Navadvipa Dham parikrama should begin here. Antardvipa is on the eastern bank of the Ganges.

Because Lord Caitanya revealed His internal feelings to Brahma, this island is known as Antardvipa. Antar means “internal.”
Lord Sri Caitanya’s Appearance Place (Yoga Pitha)

On the evening of the full moon of the month of Phalguna (Feb/March) in 1486 Lord Caitanya appeared here underneath a neem tree. This present tree at this place is said to be a cutting of the original tree. To mark the birthplace there is a small house with deities of Lord Caitanya’s father, Jagannath Misra; His mother, Sacidevi; and baby Nimai, which was Lord Caitanya’s name as a boy. Just in back of the hut is a small temple which contains a Siva-linga known as Ksetra-pal Siva (also called Gopisvara Mahadeva), which is non-different than Gopisvara Mahadeva in Vrindavana. It is tradition to pay obeisances to this Siva-linga before doing Gaura Mandala parikrama. This Siva-linga is about 7m (20 ft) in back of the appearance place.

The appearance place of Lord Caitanya is at the center of Sri Dhama Mayapur. This place is also called the Yoga Pitha, which means the meeting place. At the Yoga Pitha Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu is sitting on a jeweled throne. On His right is Lord Nityananda, on His left is Gadadhara Pandita, in front with folded hands is Advaita Acarya, and Srivasa is holding an umbrella over Their heads.

When you walk in the main gate from the road, on your right is a temple dedicated to Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur. To your left is the main temple which has about a 100 foot high tower. The Deities on the left altar are Radha-Madhava. There are also Deities of Sri Krishna Caitanyadeva and Lord Jagannatha.

The Deities on the center altar are Lord Caitanya (Gaura-Narayana) and His two wives—Vishnupriya and Laksmipriya. Also on this altar is a small four-armed Deity of Adhoksaja Vishnu, which was discovered in 1934 by Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur during the temple excavation. Adhoksaja Vishnu was the worshipable Deity of Jagannatha Misra. This Deity is in front of the Deities of Gaura-Narayana. This black colored Deity is about 8 inches tall with four arms, holding the symbols of Lord Vishnu, disc, club, conchshell and lotus. On the side of this Deity are Laksmi and Bhu. (You may have to request to have darshan of this Deity)

On the right altar is the Panca-tattva, which includes (left to right): Advaita Acarya, Lord Nityananda, Lord Caitanya, Gadadhara, and Srivasa Thakur. In front of them is a Deity of Lord Jagannatha.

In back of the main hall there are Laksmi Narasimha Deities, which are over 60 years old. There are also Gaura-Gadadhara Deities.
Next to the temple complex is Gaura Kunda.

How To Get There To get here you make a right when you exit the ISKCON Temple gate and then go about 1½ km. A rickshaw costs Rs 6 to Rs 8.

Temple Timings Darshan is from 8.30 to 11 am and 3.30 to 8 pm.

Vridha Siva (Siva Doba)
Behind the birth-site is a Siva-linga called Vridha Siva or Ksetra-pala, the protector (guardian) of the holy dhama. One should worship the merciful Lord Siva to obtain the blessings of devotional service to the Supreme Lord. During the time of Lord Caitanya a temple of Vridha Siva was at this place, but it was later covered by the Ganges. This is where the praudha-maya energy (yoga maya) is eternally situated. This ghata is now known as Siva Doba.

How To Get There This Siva-linga is about 10m (30 ft) from the appearance place of Lord Caitanya.

Lord Caitanya’s Appearance
“In this way Lord Krishna came to a decision; simultaneously the time came for the incarnation of the age. At that time Sri Advaita was earnestly worshipping Him; Advaita attracted Him through His loud calls. First Lord Krishna made his parents and elders appear, then Sri Krishna Himself, with the sentiments and bodily complexion of Sri Radhika appeared in Navadvipa on the full moon night, from the womb of Sacimata, which is like the ocean of pure milk. (Caitanya Caritamrita Adi 4.2)
In the month of January in 1485 Lord Caitanya entered the bodies of Jagannatha Misra and Saci Mata. He took his birth in the month of Phalguna (Feb-March) in 1486. Therefore, the Lord entered the bodies of His parents 13 months before His birth. Lord Caitanya appeared on the full-moon evening of the month of Phalguna. At the same time there was a lunar eclipse, the planet Rahu was covering the full moon. It is customary in India that all the followers of the Vedic scriptures take bath in the Ganges or the sea when there is a solar or lunar eclipse and chant the names of the Lord. At the time of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s birth, because of the lunar eclipse, there were many people bathing and chanting the holy names of the Lord.

Srivasa Thakura and Candrasekhara came to the birth ceremony of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.
Lord Caitanya’s Childhood Pastimes

In Caitanya Bhagavata it is described that while the Lord was crawling on His knees a snake came into the yard. Nimai then captured the snake like a curious child. The snake then coiled around the Lord. The Lord then rested on the snake, and after a while the snake just went away.

The Lord would cry, but He would immediately stop upon hearing the holy names of the Lord. Therefore the ladies would chant when ever He would cry. As long as the ladies continued to chant, the Lord would not cry.

One day a brahmana came to the house of Jagannatha Misra. Jagannatha Misra gave him food for cooking. When the brahmana was offering the food to Lord Vishnu, child Nimai came and began to eat the food, and because of this the brahmana thought the whole offering was spoiled. The brahmana cooked again and Nimai again came and ate the offering. For a third time the brahmana cooked and Nimai again came and ate the food, even though He had been locked in a room. The brahmana then decided to fast. Lord Caitanya then came to the brahmana and said, “Formerly I was the son of mother Yasoda. At that time you also became a guest in the house of Nanda Maharaja, and I disturbed you in this way. Since I am pleased with your devotion, therefore, I am eating the food you have prepared.” The brahmana was then greatly pleased, understanding his great fortune.

Child Nimai would be decorated with gold ornaments. In His childhood the Lord was abducted by two thieves outside His home. While they were thinking they were safely carrying the child away to rob Him of His ornaments, the Lord misled them, and thus instead of going to their own home, the thieves came back to the home of Jagannatha Misra. Therefore the thieves, thinking it dangerous to remain, went away and left Nimai.
One Ekadasi pretending to be sick, the Lord asked for some food from the house of Hiranya and Jagadisa. Lord Caitanya asked His father to go and ask Hiranya and Jagadisa for some special Vishnu prasada because He was feeling sick. Nimai was feeling sick, but immediately after eating the Vishnu prasada He was cured.

He would go to the houses of his friends and steal their eatables and eat them. Sometimes the children fought among themselves. All the children lodged complaints with Sacimata about the Lord’s fighting with them and stealing from the neighbor’s houses. Therefore sometimes she used to chastise or rebuke her son. Then Sacimata would take her son on her lap and pacify Him, and the Lord would be very much ashamed, admitting His own fault.

Once Nimai chastised his mother with His hand and His mother fainted. Seeing this, the Lord began to cry. The neighboring ladies told Him: “Dear child, please bring a coconut from somewhere, and then Your mother will be cured. He then immediately went outside and brought back two coconuts.

Sri Caitanya’s Later Navadvipa Pastimes
Jagannatha Misra had the sacred thread ceremony performed for Nimai when He was seven. When he was eight He went to the school of Gangadasa Pandita in Ganganagara. Sri Gadadhara, Mukunda, Svarupa Damodara and Jagadananda were his classmates. In just two years Nimai mastered Sanskrit grammar and philosophy.

When He was ten years old he studied at home. When He was 12 years old, His older brother, Visvarupa left home and took sannyasa. Lord Caitanya’s father left this world when his was 13. At the age of 14, Nimai met Laksmipriya while he was walking along the Ganges. Lord Caitanya married her, but after four years she left her body.
Around the age of 17, Lord Caitanya started his own school. When He was 17, He went to Gaya and took Vaishnava initiation from Isvara Puri, a disciple of Madhavendra Puri.

When Lord Caitanya returned to Navadvipa he started the sankirtana movement. Around this time Sri Nityananda Prabhu came to Navadvipa. During this time the devotees would have ecstatic kirtanas in the house of Srivasa Pandita, Jagai and Madhai, and the Chand Kazi were delivered by the Lord. At the age of 24 Nimai Pandita went to Katwa and accepted sannyasa from Keshava Bharati.

Bhaktivinoda Thakur Discovers Lord Caitanya Birthplace.
After being lost for many years, the house of Jagannatha Misra, Lord Caitanya’s father was rediscovered about 100 years ago by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakur. Then he personally went door to door to raise funds for the construction of the original temple memorializing Lord Caitanya’s birthplace.

Sri Srivasa Angan (Srivasa’s House)
This place is also called Khol Bhanga Danga—where the mrdanga was broken by the Chand Kazi’s men. In Srivasa Angan Lord Caitanya and His confidential associates first started the Sankirtana movement. Lord Caitanya and Prabhu Nityananda would dance in ecstasy here. Every night for one year Lord Caitanya and

His associates would perform ecstatic sankirtana behind closed doors. When you enter the gate, to the right is a temple marking the location where Srivasa Thakur’s house was. On the left altar are Deities of Radha-Krishna. There is also a Deity of Lord Caitanya with His arms raised in the air. Lord Caitanya and Lord Nityananda are on the right altar.

On the center altar is Lord Caitanya in his maha-prakash form. In this form He reveals Himself to be God. Srivasa is holding an umbrella over Him and Gadadhara is holding a camara fan. He is in the mood of the Supreme Lord of the universe. This is where Lord Caitanya’s showed His maha-prakash form by exhibiting His different incarnations and fulfilling His devotees’ desires. While doing so He accepted worship for 21 hours displaying His divine form to all His devotees in a manner just suitable for each of them. There is also a 10 inch high Lord Narasimha Deity on the center altar.

At Srivasa Angan, Lord Caitanya showed Nityananda Prabhu His six-armed form holding a bow and arrow, a flute, and a water pot and a danda.

This is where Chand Kasi and his men broke the mrdanga. Therefore it is also called Khol Bhanga Danga, the place where the mrdanga was broken.

How To Get There When you exit the gate of the ISKCON Temple you make a right. You then go about 1¾ km and this place is on your right. It is less than a half kilometre past Lord Caitanya’s appearance place.

Temple Timings Darshan times are 8.30 to 11 am and 3.30 to 8.30 pm.

Lord Caitanya’s Maha Prakasa Form
One day in the house of Srivasa Thakura, Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu sat down on the bed of Vishnu, and all the devotees worshiped Him with the Vedic mantras of the Purusa-sukta. At this time the devotees performed abhishek (bathing) of the Lord. All the devotees worshiped Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu in this way, and the Lord remained in ecstasy for twenty-one hours. He took this opportunity to show the devotees that He is the original Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krishna, who is the source of all other incarnations. Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu exposed all the private desires of the devotees, and thus all of them became fully confident that Lord Caitanya is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Some devotees called this exhibition of ecstasy by the Lord sata-prahariya bhava, or “the ecstasy of twenty-one hours,” and others called it mahabhava-prakasa or maha-prakasa.

At this time Lord Caitanya called for Sridhar and showed him His maha-prakasa form. Then He called for Murari Gupta and showed him His feature as Lord Ramacandra. He offered His blessing to Haridasa Thakura, and at this time He also asked Advaita Prabhu to explain Bhagavad-gita and showed special favor to Mukunda. (Caitanya Caritamrita Adi 17.18 purport)
Pastimes At Srivasa Angan

One night Lord Caitanya was having kirtana in Srivasa’s courtyard. During the kirtana Srivasa’s son died from some disease. All the ladies in the house started to cry. Srivasa Pandita came into the house and ordered all the ladies to stop crying so they would not disturb the dancing of Lord Caitanya. Srivasa told the ladies that if I got the opportunity to have such a death, then my life would be complete. Srivasa then joined the Lord in kirtana. By now everyone understood that Srivasa’s child had just died, but no one revealed this due to fear that they would disturb the ecstatic dancing of the Lord.

After several hours Lord Caitanya stopped and inquired whether something strange had happened. The Lord was informed that Srivasa’s child had just died. They then asked the Lord permission to take the child for the cremation ceremony. The child had been dead for seven and a half hours. When they brought the child from the house, Lord Caitanya spoke to the child. “Why are you leaving the house of Srivasa?”

The child then sat up and started to speak. “I was living in this house as long as I was destined to live here. Now that the time is over, I am going elsewhere, according to Your direction. I am Your eternal servant, a dependent living being. I must act only according to Your desire. Beyond Your desire, I cannot do anything. I have no such power.” Hearing these words of the dead son, all the members of Srivasa Thakura’s family received transcendental knowledge. Thus there was no cause for lamentation. After the discourse between the dead boy and Caitanya Mahaprabhu, funeral ceremonies were performed, and Lord Caitanya assured Srivasa Thakura, “You have lost one son, but Nityananda Prabhu and I are your eternal sons. We shall never be able to give up your company.”

One day Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was sitting on the throne of Vishnu in the house of Srivasa Prabhu, and in a mood of His own, He said, “My mother has offended the lotus feet of Advaita Acarya. Unless she nullifies this offense at the lotus feet of a Vaishnava, it will not be possible for her to achieve love of Krishna.” Hearing this all the devotees went to bring Advaita Acarya there. While coming to see the Lord, Advaita Acarya was glorifying the characteristics of mother Sacidevi, and thus upon arriving He fell down on the ground in ecstasy. Then, under the instruction of Lord Caitanya, Sacidevi took advantage of this situation to touch Advaita Acarya’s lotus feet. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was very pleased by His mother’s action. (Caitanya Caritamrita Adi 17.10). When Visvarupa took sannyasa, Sacimata thought that Advaita Acarya had persuaded Him to do so. Therefore she accused Him of this, which was an offense at Advaita Acarya’s lotus feet.

In his house, Srivasa Thakur worshiped Lord Caitanya by the process of abhiseka (bathing). All the devotees, according to their means, worshiped the Lord with all kinds of paraphernalia, and the Lord gave benedictions to each devotee according to his desire.

Sri Advaita Bhavan
The small temple here has Deities of Advaita Acarya sitting at the feet of Lord Caitanya. This is where Advaita Acarya lived. At this place Advaita Acarya offered prayers to Lord Krishna to invoke the Lord to descend. He would sit on the bank of the Ganges and worships his Shalagram-shilas and he would beg the Lord to descend.

Advaita Acarya taught his students Bhagavad-gita and Srimad Bhagavatam at this place. Visvarupa, the elder brother of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was one of his students. At this place great Vaishnavas such as Srivasa Pandita, Haridasa Thakur,

Candrasekhara and Murari would come and hear Sri Advaita Acarya speak about Krishna.
After Lord Caitanya accepted sannyasa, Advaita Acarya moved back to Santipur, where he was originally from.

How To Get There Outside of the main temple at Srivasa Angan you can see two little temples about 30 metres (100 ft) away. They are both within the same compound. The one on your left is Sri Advaita Bhavan.

Sri Gadadhara Angan
The small temple to the right of Sri Advaita Bhavan is called Sri Gadadhara Angan. In this temple are Deities of Caitanya Mahaprabhu and Gadadhara. Gadadhara was an incarnation of Srimati Radharani.

How To Get There This place is about 10m (30 ft) east of Advaita Bhavan, in the same compound as Srivasa Angan.

Svarupa Damodara’s and Jagadananda Pandita’s House
Svarupa Damodara’s house was near the house of Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Jagadananda Pandit’s House was also nearby. At the present time it is not known where their houses were located.

Sri Caitanya Math
Srila Bhaktisiddhanta called the area of this compound Vraja Pattana, which means the place where Vrindavana is manifested. This is where the house of Candrasekhara was located. His wife, Malati, was the younger sister of Srimati Sacidevi. They had no children of their own When Jagannatha Misra, the father of Lord Caitanya, left this world, Candrasekhara acted as the Lord’s father. He accepted Lord Caitanya as his son and took full responsibility of Sacimata.

Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu used to perform dramas with Advaita Prabhu, Srivasa, and other devotees in the house of Candrasekhara. He would also perform kirtana at this place. Nityananda played Paurnamasi, Srivasa Pandita played Narada Muni, Advaita Acarya played Sadasiva, and Haridasa Thakura played a guard from Vaikuntha, Gadadhara played Laksmi Devi.

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakur established Sri Caitanya Math in 1918. You can get some books in English by Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja and Bhaktivinoda Thakur here.

If you enter the main gate (the second gate when coming from the ISKCON temple) 25m (75 feet) ahead and to your right there is a temple dedicated to Radha-Govinda. On the altar to the right of Radha-Govinda are two Lord Caitanya Deities, with Their right arms raised. When you walk around the Deities you will see four altars, one for each of the Vaisnavas acaryas—Sri Madhvacarya, Sri Vishnuswami, Sri Nimbarka, and then Sri Ramanujacarya.

To your right after leaving the Radha-Govinda Temple is Govardhana Hill. There are hundreds of large Govardhana-shilas on it. Next to Govardhana Hill is a pond called Radha Kunda. This pond is supposed to be non-different from Radha Kunda in Vrindavana. There is also Syama Kunda here and Keli Kadamba, the tree that Krishna jumped from to chastise the Kaliya snake.
How To Get There Sri Caitanya Math is about a kilometre (half a mile) pass Lord Caitanya’s birthplace. There are two gates at this place, the main entrance (the second gate) is by the Radha-Govinda Temple and the other entrance is by Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja’s Samadhi, where there is a sign that says Sri Caitanya Math to the left of a colorful gate. If you go by rickshaw you can have them drop you at one gate and pick you up at the other gate.

Samadhi of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur
Behind the Radha-Govinda Temple is the samadhi of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Saraswati Thakur. If you come from the first compound entry gate when coming from ISKCON, this will be the second building on your right. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja appeared on February 6, 1874 and left this world on January 1, 1937. Directly facing his samadhi is Syama Kunda.

Samadhi of Gaura Kishor Das Babaji
Next to the Radha-Govinda Temple is Srila Gaura Kishor Das Babaji Maharaja’s Samadhi Temple. He is the spiritual master of Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Maharaja. He left this world on November 19, 1915 in Koladvipa.
Previously his samadhi was on the western bank of the Ganges in Kuliagram at the place called Mutanchada, the present city of Navadvipa. In 1932, 16 years after he attained samadhi, the Ganges River rose to within a few feet of his samadhi. At this time Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Gosvami Thakur had his disciple move the samadhi by boat to this place.

Mahaprabhu Ghata
Six metres north of Vridha Siva is Mahaprabhu Ghata, at a dried-up Ganges river bed. At this place Nimai would take bath daily. Lord Caitanya in his childhood would play in the water here.

Jagai and Madhai Ghata
Jagai and Madhai were born into a high class brahmana family in Navadvipa. Their names were Jagananda and Madhavananda Bandopadiya. Due to bad association they became meat eaters, drunkards, sexmongers, gamblers and murderers. Because they caused so much disturbance respectable people totally avoided them.

When Lord Caitanya inaugurated the sankirtana movement He told Nityananda Prabhu and Haridasa Thakur to go door to door and request whom ever they met to chant the holy names of the Lord. They decided since Jagai and Madhai were the most fallen they were suitable candidates to receive the Lord’s mercy. They approached Jagai and Madhai to chant the holy names of Krishna. Jagai and Madhai became enraged and chased Prabhu Nityananda and Haridasa Thakur, who had to run for their lives. On the next day, Madhai struck Nityananda Prabhu on the head with a piece of earthen pot, thus drawing blood. When Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu heard this, He immediately came to the spot, ready to punish both brothers, but when the all-merciful Lord Gauranga saw Jagai’s repentant behavior, He immediately embraced him. By seeing the Supreme Personality of Godhead face to face and embracing Him, both of the sinful brothers were at once cleansed. Thus they received initiation into the chanting of the Hare Krishna maha-mantra from the Lord and were delivered.

How To Get There This place is about 30m north of Mahaprabhu Ghata.

Barakona Ghata
At this place Mahaprabhu studied and discussed scriptures. He also taught His students Sanskrit grammar at this place. During the time of Lord Caitanya, Navadvipa was India’s eastern center for Sanskrit and Vedic studies.

A maha pandita (great scholar) named Keshava Kashmiri came to Navadvipa to challenge the panditas of Navadvipa. In Bhakti-ratnakara it is stated that he was a favorite devotee of mother Sarasvati, the goddess of learning. By her grace he was the greatest champion among all the scholars in India. Therefore he got the title digvijayi, which means “one who has conquered everyone in all directions.” At this place Lord Caitanya defeated Keshava Kashmiri. Lord Caitanya had him describe the glory of mother Ganges. Keshava Kashmiri then recited 100 verses describing mother Ganges. Lord Caitanya then recited one of the verses and pointed out five faults with the verse, thus defeating Keshava Kashmiri.

In the past there were many learned scholars in India who were champions in learning, such as Keshava Kashmiri, who had came from the state of Kashmir. He traveled all over India and then came to Navadvipa to challenge the learned scholars there. He was then defeated by the boy scholar Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Later he understood that Caitanya Mahaprabhu is none other than the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Thus he surrendered to Him and later became a pure Vaishnava in the Nimbarka sampradaya. He wrote Kaustubha-prabhu, a commentary on the Vedanta commentary of the Nimbarka-sampradaya. By the order of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, he gave up the profession of winning championships and became a great devotee.
This ghata is said to have been originally constructed by Visvakarma, the architect of the demigods.

How To Get There This place is about 12m (35 ft) north of Jagai and Madhai Ghata.

Nagariya Ghata
Lord Caitanya came here with his huge sankirtana party when he was going to defeat Chand Kazi. He would also bathe here on His way home from the school of Ganga Dasa Pandita, Whom He studied under for two years.

Sometime the Lord would perform water sports with His school friends at this place.
Mother Saci first saw Laksmipriya at this ghata and mentally selected her to be the wife of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

At this ghata Nimai would sometimes splash water on the brahmanas while they were chanting their mantras. The brahmanas would then go to Jagannatha Misra and complain. Jagannatha Misra would then come to the ghata with a stick in his hand to chastise Nimai. Nimai would then rush home by another route and would smear dust and drops of ink on his body and his hair would be dried by the hot sun. When Jagannatha Misra would return home he would see his son with no visible proof of His naughtiness and he would not chastise Him.

How To Get There This place is about 10m (30 ft) north of Barakona Ghata.

Ganga Nagara
This place is at the end of Antardvipa. When the Ganges first came to earth it descended in the Himalayas and then proceeded to the bay of Bengal. King Bhagiratha led the way, blowing a conch shell. When the Ganges arrived in Navadvipa Dhama, she stopped and would not go any further. Bhagiratha came to this place and started to perform austerities. Satisfied by these austerities Ganga Devi appeared before him. Bhagiratha told her if she did not proceed his forefathers would not be delivered. Ganga Devi told Bhagiratha that it was now the month of Magh and that she would stay in Navadvipa until purnima (full moon) of the Phalguna month. After this time she would follow him and free his ancestors. She said, “this is the place where Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu will appear and I am the water that emanates from His lotus feet. I would like to stay here and perform austerities to please Him.”

One who fasts, takes bath in the Ganges here and worships Gauranga will cross over the ocean of material existence along with his ancestors. Along with one thousand ancestors, he attains Goloka Vrindavana after death, no matter where he dies.
At this place Ganga Dasa Pandita had his school. Nimai studied at this school from the age of eight to ten. Ganga Dasa Pandita is Sandipani Muni, who instructed Krishna and Balarama in Krishna-lila.

How To Get There The place that is said to be where Ganga Nagara was located is a field next to the Sridhama Mayapur Post Office. It is also said that at the present time this place is covered by the Ganges River.

Atopur Village
Lord Brahma performed austerities in Atopur 5,000 years ago. Lord Brahma stole the cowherd boys and calves in Vrindavana. Knowing that Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was very merciful, Brahma worshiped the Lord at this place to be forgiven for his offenses.

Lord Caitanya, being pleased by the austerities of Lord Brahma appeared before him and offered him a benediction. Lord Brahma begged to be able to take birth in a low class family and to be able to render service to Him. Lord Caitanya then gave him the benediction that he would take birth in a Muslim family during the time of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Brahma took birth as Namacarya Haridas Thakur. Since he would have the mood of Srimati Radharani, he would have a gold body color like Radharani. He also told him that he would spread the Hari Nama sankirtana movement.

Because Lord Caitanya revealed His internal feelings to Brahma, this island is known as Antardvipa. Antar means “internal.” Atopur in the local language is the name for the word Antardvipa.

Murari Gupta’s House
There is a small temple here with Deities of Sita, Rama, and Hanuman, said to have been worshiped by Murari Gupta. There is also a Narayana Deity, which was found when the temple was excavated. This Deity is located on the right side of Sita and Rama. The age of this Deity is unknown.

Lord Caitanya exhibited His Varaha form in the house of Murari Gupta. After seeing this form he offered the Lord prayers. One day Caitanya Mahaprabhu began to cry out, “Sukara, Sukara!” Thus crying out for the boar incarnation of the Lord, He assumed His form as the boar incarnation and got up on the shoulders of Murari Gupta. He carried a small gadu, a small waterpot with a nozzle, and thus He symbolically picked up the earth from the depths of the ocean, for this is the pastime of Lord Varaha.

How To Get There This temple is located on the other sides of some fields from the Caitanya Math, near the bank of Ballal Dighi and east of Yogapitha. To get here you could walk out the exit by Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja’s samadhi, and then walk about ten minutes through the rice fields. You then come to a road and can see the temple.

You can also get here by going down the road between Lord Caitanya’s appearance place and Srivasa Angan. If you follow this road for about five minutes you come to this temple. It will be on the right.

Prithu Kunda (Ballal Dighi)
Prithu Maharaja had a lake dug here. Later when the Sena dynasty ruled Bengal they had their capital here. King Laksman Sena had this kunda dug out and enlarged. He then renamed the kunda after his father, King Ballal Sena. It became known as Ballal Dighi. Laksmana Sena’s house was once here. About a mile due north from here is Ballal Dhipi, the remains of Laksman Sen’s old palace. The Archaeological Society of India has excavated parts of the huge palace walls.

In Satya yuga, Prithu Maharaja was leveling the earth by cutting down the hills As they were leveling this place, a great effulgence light came from the earth. Prithu Maharaja came to see this phenomenon. Because he was a saktyavesa-avatara, an empowered incarnation, he could understand by meditation that this place was Navadvipa, the place where Sri Caitanya would appear. He then had a kunda dug here and this kunda became known as Prithu Kunda.
It is said that on the banks of this kunda Srila Jayadeva Gosvami composed the Dasavatara Stotram.

How To Get There This place is not far from Murari Gupta’s house.

Sridhar Angan
This place is called Visrama Sthana (the place of resting) because Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu would take rest here after performing kirtana. This is where the learned brahmana named Kolaveca Sridhar lived.

He sold banana leaf cups for his livelihood. He would use half of what he would earn to worship the Ganges, and the balance he used for his subsistence. Lord Caitanya would come daily to Sridhar’s house daily to collect vegetables, bananas and banana flowers. After Lord Caitanya chastised Chand Kazi the Sankirtana party came here and rested. Sridhar presented a squash to Sacidevi to cook before Lord Caitanya took sannyasa. Every year he went to see Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu at Jagannatha Puri. Every day Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu jokingly snatched fruits, flowers and pulp from Sridhar and drank from his broken iron pot.

This place is considered non-different than Madhuvana in Vrindavana. The cowherd boy named Kusumasava in Krishna-lila took birth as Kolaveca Sridhara. After the mass nagara-sankirtana in protest against the magistrate Chand Kazi, all the devotees rested here and drank water from Sridhara’s damaged iron pot. The Lord accepted the water because the pot belonged to a devotee.

How To Get There The former home of Kolaveca Sridhara is about a seven minute walk behind the Jagannatha Temple, in a field, past a mango grove. This place is in the northeastern corner of Antardvipa. If you just came out of the enclosure of the Jagannatha temple you go to the left towards the main road for about 100m. You then make a left into the fields and walk about five minutes. You will come to a grove of trees with a small temple in the middle. This marks the place.

Nandana Acarya’s House and Sri Isodhyan
This is where Lord Caitanya and Lord Nityananda first met. The Sri Gaura-Nityananda Gaudiya Math temple is said to mark the site where the house of Nandana Acarya used to be. This temple is on the way from the ISKCON Temple to the Navadvipa boat ghata.

The area from the sangam of the Ganges and Sarasvati to the samadhi of Srila Prabhupada is known as Isodanvana (Isodhyan). This is where Nandana Acarya had his house.

When Lord Nityananda learned that Caitanya Mahaprabhu had begun his sankirtana pastimes He came to Navadvipa Dhama to the house of Nandana Acarya and hid Himself. He knew that if Krishna had appeared as Gauranga, then he would come and find Him. Lord Caitanya knew that Nityananda Prabhu had arrived. He sent Srivasa Pandita and Haridasa Thakur to go out and find Him. But they returned without finding Him. Lord Caitanya then went directly to the house of Nandana Acarya. Lord Caitanya and Prabhu Nityananda then embraced each other. It is here that Nityananda Prabhu first met all the devotees of Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu.

When Caitanya Mahaprabhu exhibited His maha-prakasa, He asked Ramai Pandita to call Advaita Prabhu, who was hiding in the house of Nandana Acarya, for Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu could understand that He was hiding. Lord Caitanya also sometime hid in the house of Nandana Acarya.

How To Get There Make a left when you come out of the main gate of the ISKCON temple. A few minutes after you pass Srila Prabhupada’s samadhi you will come to this place. There are many Gaudiya Math temples located in this area.
Meghera Cara

Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura says that once when Lord Caitanya was performing sankirtana a short ways from this village, some clouds appeared overhead. By the supreme will of the Lord, the clouds were asked to disperse, and they did.

How To Get There The village of Belapukhuriya, which was formerly situated in a different place, called Taranavasa, is now called Meghara Cara.
Gaudiya Math Temples (of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta) at Sri Isodhyan

Sri Gaura Gadadhara Ashram
This temple was established by Sri Rasananda Maharaja, a disciple of Sri Bhakti Hridaya Bon Maharaja. Sri Bon Maharaja was a disciple of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Maharaja who was sent to preach in England, Germany and France.

Sri Gaudiya Ashram
This temple was established by one of the disciples of Srila Bhakti Svarupa Parvata Maharaja, a disciple of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja.

Sri Gaura-Nityananda Mandir
This temple is said to be the site of Nandana Acarya’s house, the place where Lord Caitanya and Nityananda Prabhu first met.
This temple was established by Srila Bhakti Saranga Gosvami, who was one of the main disciples of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Maharaja. He was the publisher of the weekly magazine Sajjana Tosani, which was established by Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja. He was sent to the West to preach.

Sri Caitanya Gaudiya Math
This math was established by Srila Bhakti Dayita Madhava Maharaja, one of the chief disciples of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja. He also established temples in Vrindavana and Jagannatha Puri.

Sri Caitanya Bhagavad Math
This math was established by Sri Bhakti Vichara Yayavara Maharaja. He was the last sannyasa disciple of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja. He would perform sweet kirtana. His samadhi is also here.

Sri Krishna Caitanya Math
This math was established by Sri Bhakti Kamal Madhusudhana Maharaja, who was a disciple of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja. He worked as coeditor of the daily newspapers Amrit Bazaar. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja gave him the service of managing many Maths. He was a good speaker of Srimad Bhagavatam.

Sri Gopinath Gaudiya Math
This math was established by Sri Bhakti Pramod Puri Maharaja, a great preacher of Krishna consciousness. He would write articles in the daily Nadia Prakash, the weekly Gaudiya Magazine and the Paramtik Magazine.

Sri Gauranga Gaudiya Math
This math was established by Sri Bhakti Saurabha Sar Maharaja, a disciple of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Maharaja. He took sannyasa from Sri Saranga Maharaja.

Sri Paramahamsa Gaudiya Math
This math was established by disciples of Sri Bhakti Yaloka Paramahamsa Maharaja, who was a disciple of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati. Bhakti Yaloka Paramahamsa Maharaja managed the Gaudiya Printing Press in Krishnanagar, where the Nadia Prakash and other publications of Srila Bhaktisiddhanta were published. He also managed some temples in Mayapur. His disciples named this temple after him.

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