Page:History of Bengali Language and Literature.djvu/451

 J.) BENGALI LANGUAGE & LITERATURE. কাও formed into Mayapur by the orthodox Vaisnavas who can not bring themselves to call Chaitanya Deva’s birth place by a Mahammadan name. 11 was in the evening of the 7th day of the month of Phalgun (18th of February) when the full moon had just emerged from the shadow of an eclipse and the air was resounding with cries of ‘Krisna’ ‘Krisna’ ‘O Lord’ ‘O Lord’ as is wont of Hindus on an occasion like this, that the birth of the devotee who was to preach the Krisna-cult all his life, took place. Chaitanya Deva’s ancestors were inhabitants of Jajpur in Orissa who owing to the oppression of Raja Bhramarbara, had settled in the village of Dhaka-Daksina in Sylhet. Jagannath Micra the father had come to Navadwipa to complete his education and there married Cachi Devi a daughter of Nilamvara Chakravarty originally an inhabitant of Sylhet, who was now settled in Navadwipa. Jagannath Micra and this Cachi Devi had eight daughters and two sons. ‘The daughters all died in infancy. The elder son was Vigvarupa and the younger Vicvambhara. They called him, however, by the pet name Nimai because he had been born in a shed under a Nimba-tree. This Nimai after- wards became famous as Chaitanya Deva. The eldest son Vicvarupa was about to be married when he was only sixteen. On the night previous to the date fixed for his marriage the boy whose ascetic tendencies, had been already marked, left home and took the vow of a Sannyasin. His parents rose in the morning with hearts full of joy at the prospect of celebrating Vigva- Birth, ancestry and family- history.