Syamananda Prabhu was born in 1534 AD[1] in the town of Dharenda Bahadurpura, which is near the Kharigapura railway station in Medinipura, in the state today known as Orissa, formerly known as Utkala or Utkaladesh.
His father was Sri Krishna Mandal and his mother Durika. Krishna Mandal’s home town was Dandesvara, which lies on the banks of the Suvarnarekha River.
Here is the Gaudiya Vaisnava Abhidhana version on Syamananda’s birth:
“Sri Krishna Mandal used to live in a place called Ambuwa, near Dandesvara. He formerly lived in Gauda[2] and only later moved to Dandesvara, just across the present-day border in Orissa. Syamananda’s disciples have established five principle seats in the towns of Dharenda, Bahadurapura, Rayani, Gopiballabhapura, and Nrisinghapura.”
Prior to Syamananda’s birth, his parents had lost several children in childbirth and they vowed to surrender their next child to Vishnu if he survived. Having suffered so much grief in the loss of their previous children, when he was born they named him “Duhkhi”, or “unhappy”, to ward off further distress[3].
Krishna Mandala was the best of the Sadgopa caste, of impeccable character. Krishna was everything to him. We cannot describe the virtues of his parents, so many they were.
Here is another version of Syamananda’s birth:
“On the full moon day of the month of Caitra, by the mercy of Lord Jagannatha, Syamananda took his birth at a very auspicious moment. It is as though Lord Jagannatha has personally brought him here in order to propagate His teachings, and therefore He is personally maintaining him. He looks just like a new cupid. One’s eyes and mind are soothed just by looking at him.”
Everyone said that this child would be a very high-souled saintly person.
[1] Full moon day of Caitra in 1456 of the Saka era or the Krishna pratipad tithi in the month of Asad. Some say he was born in 1535. In this case he would have been born in the same year of Mahaprabhu’s disappearance.
[2] The part of Bengal which lies on the banks of the Bhagirathi River.
[3] Bhakti-ratnakara 1.351-5, 359.
This is a section of the book “Syamananda, the Joy of Radharani (English)”.
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