SRI PURI DHAM MAHATMYA-MUKTA-MALA

(27) Sri Paramananda Puri’s Well of Devotion

prabhu bale—“ami ya achhiye prthivite
janiha kevala puri gosanira prite”

‘The Lord said, “Know that it is only owing to Puri Goswami’s love that I am present here in this world.”’

(Sri Chaitanya Bhagavata, 3.3.255)

Sri Madhavendra Puri had one more disciple – his name is Paramananda Puri. Paramananda Puri came to Sri Puri Dham together with Mahaprabhu and stayed there together with the Lord. He is a dear associate of the Lord, and it is written in the scriptures that in Dvapar-yuga he was actually Uddhav Maharaj. So, his devotion to Mahaprabhu was in vatsalya-rasa.

When Mahaprabhu came to Puri, He begged Kashi Misra for a spare room, and He gave that room to Paramananda Puri. Mahaprabhu treated him with much respect.

This is how Paramananda Puri settled near Lord Jagannath’s temple. After a while, he made a small temple in his house and a well next to it. But the water in the well was bitter, so nobody could drink from it. One day, Mahaprabhu came there and prayed to Lord Jagannath for the Ganges to come to that well and make its water sweet. Lord Jagannath heard His prayer and the Ganges herself entered the well.

Mahaprabhu declared in front of all the devotees that from that day the water in Paramananda Puri’s well was pure Ganges, and whoever bathed in that water or drank it would get the result of bathing in the Ganges or getting her darshan.

Devotees happily place drops from Sri Paramananda Puri's well on their heads.

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