Page 51 - Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu (English)

The Adolescent Scholar 21

One evening while wandering with His students
on the bank of the Gaìgä, Nimäi met Keçava
Käçméré. After offering respect, Nimäi asked him
to demonstrate his scholarship by reciting some
verses in praise of Mother Gaìgä. Within half an
hour Keçava Käçméré composed one hundred verses.
Nimäi then requested him to further demonstrate
his skills by selecting any one of those verses and
analyzing its qualities and faults. Keçava Käçméré
asserted that the verses were flawless.
When Nimäi repeated one of the stanzas the
paëòita became astonished: “How could You recall
it? I uttered those verses like the blowing wind.
How can You recall even one of them?” Nimäi
replied, “As you are blessed by the goddess of
learning Mother Sarasvaté, so am I. I am a çruti-
dhara (one who perfectly remembers everything
he hears).” Keçava Käçméré proceeded to analyze
the verse, pointing out the merits of the Sanskrit
composition. “There is not even a trace of error in
it,” he concluded.

“If you do not mind,” Nimäi suggested, “I could
also say something about this stanza.” Thinking
that a young boy had no right to comment on the
poetry of such a famous scholar as himself, the
digvijaya-paëòita was reluctant to let Nimäi speak.