I saw this on Facebook posted by Abhinanda Prabhu, but originally compiled by Drutakarma Prabhu for “Back to Godhead Magizine”
The Passing of Haridas Thakur
By Drutakarma Das
There he passed almost the whole day and night simply chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. He softly repeated the sacred syllables hour after hour, keeping count on his prayer beads until, long after sunset, the holy names had crossed his lips no less than three hundred thousand times.
Not far from Haridāsa Ṭhākura’s secluded hermitage lived Lord Caitanya and His followers, who loudly chanted the mahā-mantra, proclaiming the glories of Kṛṣṇa. People honored Lord Caitanya as an extraordinary devotee, and a select few knew that He was an incarnation of Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and that He had come to this world to spread the chanting of the maha-mantra.
Since Haridāsa was fully dedicated to chanting the mahā-mantra, Lord Caitanya felt especially affectionate towards him and numbered him among His inner circle. Lord Caitanya and His followers visited Haridāsa often.
One day Lord Caitanya’s personal servant Govinda brought Haridāsa a present of prasāda, vegetarian food first offered to Kṛṣṇa and then distributed to others. In India devotees of the Lord traditionally share prasāda among themselves to express spiritual friendship.
Govinda wanted to give Haridāsa the prasāda, but he saw that Haridāsa was lying on his back and chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa very slowly.
“Please get up and take your prasāda,” Govinda said.
“I am fasting today,” said Haridāsa. “I have not yet fulfilled my daily vow of chanting three hundred thousand names. How, then, can I eat in good conscience?”
After a moment, Haridāsa reconsidered. “You have brought maha-prasāda,” he said, “so how can I neglect it?” He then offered prayers and took a little portion.
The next day, Lord Caitanya Himself came to see Haridāsa. With great concern He inquired, “Haridāsa, are you well?”
Haridāsa bowed down to the Lord and replied, “My body is all right, but my mind and intelligence are not well. My disease is that I cannot finish my prescribed amount of chanting.”
Lord Caitanya tried to console Haridāsa. “Now that you are old,” He said, “you may reduce your chanting. You have already done more than enough to spread the glories of Kṛṣṇa’s names in this dark material world.”
But Haridāsa remained in a somber mood. He had something else on his mind.
“My Lord,” he said, “kindly hear my real plea. I feel in my heart that You will soon end Your pastimes in this world and return to Your spiritual home. Before that time comes, kindly let my poor body fall dead at Your lotus feet. I do not wish to witness Your last days.”
Lord Caitanya answered gravely, “My dear Haridāsa, Kṛṣṇa is so merciful that He must do whatever you want—but whatever happiness is Mine is all due to your being present with Me here in Purī, and it is not at all fitting that you go away and leave Me aside.”
Still, Haridāsa would not be dissuaded. Catching Lord Caitanya’s feet, he cried, “My Lord, do not create an illusion! You have millions of devotees more useful than me. If an insignificant insect like me dies, what is the loss?
Besides, You are always affectionate to Your devotees, and although I am only an imitation devotee, I still hope that You will fulfill my desire.”
Lord Caitanya then embraced Haridāsa Ṭhākura, and after agreeing that He would return the next day, He left to perform His noontime duties.
The next day, the Lord returned with all His associates, and upon seeing them Haridāsa Ṭhākura bowed down with deep humility. Lord Caitanya inquired, “My dear Haridāsa, what is the good news?” Haridāsa replied, “My Lord, the good news is whatever mercy You can bestow upon me.”
Upon hearing this, Lord Caitanya began great congregational chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, and all His devotees surrounded Haridāsa Ṭhākura and joined the chanting.
Then Lord Caitanya began praising Haridāsa Ṭhākura for his saintly qualities. The more the Lord praised Haridāsa, the more the pleasure the Lord felt. All the devotees were struck with wonder, and they bowed down at Haridāsa’s lotus feet.
Then Haridāsa asked Lord Caitanya to sit down before him, and he fixed his eyes on the Lord’s moonlike face and placed the Lord’s lotus feet upon his chest. As he chanted the Lord’s name, tears fell from his eyes. Soon he gave up his life—his soul passed from his body.
At that very moment, everyone was roaring Kṛṣṇa’s holy names, and Lord Caitanya became overwhelmed with spiritual ecstasy and love for His departed devotee. He raised Haridāsa’s body and placed it on His lap and then danced in the courtyard in great ecstatic love. All the devotees joined Him in dancing and chanting.
Later, the devotees raised Haridāsa’s body onto a carrier and took the carrier on their shoulders toward the sea. All the way there they chanted, and Lord Caitanya danced in front. Upon reaching the shore, Lord Caitanya bathed Haridāsa’s body in the waves and declared, “From this day on, this sea is a great pilgrimage site.”
The devotees dug a hole on the beach and placed Haridāsa’s body in it. Then Lord Caitanya started covering the body with handfuls of sand and chanting “hari bol! hari bol!”—”Chant the holy name of the Lord!” The devotees took up the chanting and threw more sand, and then they constructed a platform to mark the spot.
Lord Caitanya danced and chanted all around the platform, and the whole universe became filled with the vibration of Kṛṣṇa’s names. Afterward, Lord Caitanya and His devotees swam and sported in the sea.
At last Lord Caitanya went to the temple of Jagannātha (“the Lord of the universe”—Kṛṣṇa) to get prasāda from all the shopkeepers near the main gate.
“I am begging prasāda for a festival to celebrate the passing of Haridāsa Ṭhākura,” the Lord said. “Please give Me alms.”
Greatly pleased with the Lord’s request, all the shopkeepers came forward with big baskets of prasāda.
But just then Svarūpa Dāmodara, one of the Lord’s chief devotees, stopped the shopkeepers, and after they returned to their shops, he and other devotees went around to the shops, gathered all the prasāda, and found servants to carry it to Lord Caitanya’s residence.
There, after asking all the devotees to sit in rows, Lord Caitanya personally started distributing the prasāda.
Since Lord Caitanya was not accustomed to eating small amounts of prasāda, He put enough on each plate for at least five men. After some time, the devotees begged the Lord, “Please sit down and watch—we shall distribute the prasāda.”
When the prasāda was served, all the devotees waited for Lord Caitanya to start eating, and then they themselves started. Before long, everyone was filled to the neck, because the Lord kept telling the servers, “Give them more! Give them more!”
After all the devotees finished their prasāda, Lord Caitanya garlanded them with flowers.
Then the Lord gladly informed the devotees, “Anyone who has seen the festival of Haridāsa Ṭhākura’s passing, anyone who has chanted and danced here, anyone who has thrown sand over Haridāsa’s body, and anyone who has partaken of the prasāda will very soon achieve Kṛṣṇa’s favor.”
The Lord praised Haridāsa Ṭhākura. “Being merciful upon Me, Kṛṣṇa gave Me the company of Haridāsa Ṭhākura, but now He has separated us. When Haridāsa wanted to leave this world, I could not stop him—he simply gave up his life and went away. And now, without him, this world has lost its most valuable jewel.”
Lord Caitanya then ordered everyone: “Say ‘All glories to Haridāsa Ṭhākura!’ and chant the holy name of Kṛṣṇa.” After saying this He began to dance, and everyone chanted and danced with Him. Finally, Lord Caitanya bade all the devotees farewell, and then with mixed feelings of happiness and distress He rested.
Surely Lord Caitanya and His associates lamented the passing of Haridāsa but they also knew that he had gone back to Kṛṣṇa in the spiritual world—and for that reason they rejoiced.
Near Purī, in a grove by the seashore there still stands a small, grayish temple of Kṛṣṇa, the Tota Gopīnātha temple. If you were to walk from this temple to the sea, along the way you would find the samādhi (tomb) of Haridāsa Ṭhākura. There the devotees hold a yearly festival to honor his passing.
On a wall of the samādhi, a marble plaque bears a verse by the great devotee Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura (1838-1914). It explains how Lord Caitanya and His devotees were able to rejoice at the passing of a great Vaiṣṇava, a great devotee of the Lord:
“He reasons ill who tells that Vaiṣṇavas die, when thou art living still in sound. The Vaiṣṇavas die to live, and living try to spread the holy name around”.
The history of Haridāsa Ṭhākura’s passing is more fully described in Śrī Caitanya caritamrta, translation and commentary by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami PrabhupādaTo better understand the significance of Śrīla Prabhupāda’s passing, we can look back Five hundred years, to another historic moment.