Siddha Bakula


Siddha Bakula

Siddha Bakula is located behind Kashi Mishra house. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu personally arranged for Srila Haridasa Thakura to reside at this place. Siddha Bakula is the bhajana kutir of Haridasa Thakura, the place where he chanted 3,00,000 names of Krishna daily.


Mahaprabhu with Haridasa Thakura


Deity of Srila Haridasa Thakura

Sri Chaitanya requested Haridasa, "Remain here and chant the Hare Krishna maha-mantra. I shall personally come here to meet you daily. Remain here peacefully, and look at the cakra on top of Lord Jagannath's temple and offer obeisances. As far as your Prasadam, I shall arrange to have that sent here."


Haridasa Thakura Chanting under tree

In order to provide shade for Thakur Haridasa, Sri Chaitanya planted a used tooth stick of Lord Jagannath. All of a sudden it grew up and appeared as a great shade tree. Rupa Gosvami recited Lalitha Madhava and Vidagdha Madhava under this tree before Sri Gauranga and his followers. During his stay Sanatana Gosvami lived with Haridasa Thukura here. Haridasa Thakur left his body here and Lord Chaitanya danced in ecstasy here.


Hollow trunk of the Siddha Bakul tree

In course of time, the King of Orissa ordered his officers to cut down the tree here in order to construct Lord Jagannatha's Ratha yatra cart. Big amount of wood is needed, since the carts are about 13 m high and each year new ones are constructed. They come to cut this tree but Srila Jagannatha Gosvami objected, informing them that the tree had been planted by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu for giving shade to Haridasa Thakura. But they refused and decided to cut this tree in the next day. Overnight, the tree becomes hollow. The trunk remained standing, but its insides were empty. The next morning when the royal officers came they found the tree hollow and returned without cutting it.


Stones tie on branchs of Siddha Bakula

The tree was not ordinary tree, having been used as a toothbrush for Lord Jagannatha, and then planted in the ground by Mahaprabhu’s own hand, and acting as shelter for Nama Acharya Srila Haridasa Thakura. The Tree had attained perfection, Siddha, and from that day on was known as the Siddha Bakula by all the local people.
People tie stones to this kalpa-taru (wish-fulfilling tree) and make their wishes.