Text 84
caitanya-līlā-ratna-sāra, svarūpera bhāṇḍāra,
teṅho thuilā raghunāthera kaṇṭhe
tāhāṅ kichu ye śuniluṅ, tāhā ihāṅ vistāriluṅ,
bhakta-gaṇe diluṅ ei bheṭe
caitanya-līlā — the pastimes of Lord Caitanya; ratna-sāra — the topmost jewel; svarūpera — of Svarūpa Dāmodara; bhāṇḍāra — of the storehouse; teṅho — he; thuilā — kept; raghunāthera kaṇṭhe — in the throat of Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī; tāhāṅ — there; kichu ye — whatever little; śuniluṅ — I have heard; tāhā — that only; ihāṅ — in this book; vistāriluṅ — I have described; bhakta-gaṇe — to the pure devotees; diluṅ — I gave; ei — this; bheṭe — presentation.
The pastimes of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu are the topmost of jewels. They have been kept in the storehouse of Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī, who has explained them to Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī, who has repeated them to me. Whatever little I have heard from Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī I have described in this book, which is presented to all devotees.
All the activities of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu were noted by His personal secretary Svarūpa Dāmodara and repeated to Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī, who memorized them. Whatever Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī heard is recorded in Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta. This is called the paramparā system, from Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu to Svarūpa Dāmodara to Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī to Kavirāja Gosvāmī. Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī has distributed this information in his book Caitanya-caritāmṛta. In other words, Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta is the essence of the instruction given through the paramparā system of the disciplic succession stemming from Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu.