Now, the sevak of Shri Acharyaji Mahaprabhu, Laghu Purushottamdas Kshatriya, was a poet. He lived in Kashi. The feeling of his story is being told.
Bhav Prakash (Revealing the Sentiment): In the Divine Play, he is the bard (Bhat) in the house of Shri Nandrayaji. His name in the Divine Play is Umashankar. He was born in Kashi in the house of a Kshatriya. When he was eight years old, he began composing verses and couplets (kavitt and doha). He used to write poetry for kings, wealthy men, and merchants.
When Shri Acharyaji came to Kashi, he was performing his evening prayers at the Manikarnika Ghat. Krishnadas, Seth Purushottamdas, and others were all standing there. At that time, Laghu Purushottamdas, the poet, arrived. Then Seth Purushottamdas became afraid, thinking, “He composes verses for rich people; if he sings my praise in front of Shri Acharyaji, it would not be appropriate.”
So Seth Purushottamdas came near the feet of Laghu Purushottamdas and said, “When you perform now, do not recite any verses or couplets about me.” Then Laghu Purushottamdas said, “Then when will I ever meet you again? I have come here to compose poetry about you, and I will do it. If it pleases you, give me something; if not, then don’t. You are about to give me money, yet you forbid me from composing verses, that is not right.”
Then Seth Purushottamdas gave him five rupees and said, “Come to my house later, and I will give you something more. But at this time, Shri Acharyaji, my Guru, is performing evening prayers. In his presence, do not mistakenly sing my praises.” Then Laghu Purushottamdas happily said, “I will recite verses about the kings before Shri Acharyaji, not yours.” Then Seth Purushottamdas said, “Do not recite my verses; you may do as you wish with others.”
Then the poet Laghu Purushottamdas went to Shri Acharyaji and recited ten to fifteen verses about various kings. Then Shri Acharyaji, recognizing him as a divine soul, looked upon Laghu Purushottamdas with grace and said:
“Laghu Purushottamdas! You are the bard (Charan) of Shri Nandrayaji’s house. It is not right that you have abandoned singing the glory of Shri Thakurji and are instead praising worldly kings. You are a poet, an intelligent man. The praises you have sung of these kings, do they truly possess those virtues? They are filled with many diseases and sorrows, sinful like the dead, and by praising them, you have spoken falsely. That is not good. The only one truly worthy of praise is Shri Thakurji.”
As soon as Laghu Purushottamdas heard this, he came to realize. Then he bowed down to Shri Acharyaji and pleaded: “Maharaj! I have wasted my entire life in false speech. Now I have taken refuge in you. Please bless me so that I may always sing only the glories of Shri Thakurji. I have no knowledge of the praises of Shri Thakurji; therefore, I sang praises of worldly men.”
Then Shri Acharyaji said, “Go bathe in the Ganga; then I will instruct you.” Then Laghu Purushottamdas bathed in the Ganga and came to Shri Acharyaji. Shri Acharyaji initiated him by giving him a divine name, made him surrender, and gave him his own charanamrit (nectar of the Lord’s feet). Then Laghu Purushottamdas attained knowledge of Shri Thakurji’s divine pastimes and realized the true form of Shri Acharyaji.
Prasang 1 – The Poet Who Sang the Glory of Shri Govardhannathji
After that, he began composing verses of Shri Govardhannathji and Shri Acharyaji, treating them as one and the same. In this way, he began to know Shri Acharyaji as the direct manifestation of the Supreme Lord Purushottam. From that day onward, he stopped going to kings and wealthy men and stopped composing verses for them.
After some time, Shri Thakurji began to reveal his loving presence to him. He remained constantly absorbed in the divine play of the Lord. Thus, Shri Acharyaji showered his grace upon Laghu Purushottamdas. Therefore, Laghu Purushottamdas became a great devotee of God. His story is told up to this point.