Jagannātha dāsa Bābājī Mahārāja
gauravirbhava-bhumes tvam nirdeshta saj-jana-priyah
vaishnava-sarvabhaumah shri-jagannathaya te namah
I offer my respectful obeisances to Jagannatha dasa Babaji, who is respected by the entire Vaishnava community and who discovered the place where Lord Caitanya appeared.
(760221 – Lecture Festival Appearance Day, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati – Mayapur)
As all of you know, here in Navadvīpa, Caitanya Mahāprabhu appeared. His father came from Sylhet where he used to reside on the banks of Gaṅgā. His wife was Śacī-devī, the daughter of Nilambar Cakravartī Ṭhākura. Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was very keen to find the original birthplace of Mahāprabhu. People used to say that Mahāprabhu’s birthplace had disappeared, but he did not believe that. There was a tulasi forest at Yoga-pīṭha in to Māyāpura where Jagannātha dāsa Bābājī would sing bhajana. He revealed to Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura that this was the place where Mahāprabhu appeared. “mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ” (Sri Caitanya Caritamrta Madhya 17.186) Jagannātha dāsa Bābājī was very old. He would constanstly chant Hari-nāma. He lived in Vṛndāvana, and later moved (to Māyāpura) and lived here. Based on his revelation, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura tried his utmost to develop the place to the best of his financial ability. He took charge of the place, and then he formed the ‘Dhāma Pracārinī Sabhā’ to invoke the interest of the people.
(740929 – Lecture Bengali – Mayapur)