Achyutananda Das: Author of Bhavishya Malika and Teachings

Who is Saint Achyutananda Das?

He was born on 10 January 1510 (Maagh Shukla Ekadashi as per the Hindu calendar) in a village known as Tilaknaa, Cuttack District, Odisha. His father's name was Dinbandhu Khutiya, and his mother's name was Padmavati Khutiya.

He was a great Vaishnav saint, poet, scholar, disciple of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (Incarnation of Lord Jagannath), and supreme devotee of Lord Jagannath. He was the youngest of the five Panchasakhas (the Great Five Saints), all born in Odisha.

Previous births of Saint Achyutanand

To contribute to the establishment of righteousness (dharma) carried out by the Supreme Lord Vishnu, Saint Achyutanand ji takes birth in every age (Yuga)

In the Golden Age (Satya Yuga), he was known as the sage Kripajal.
In the Silver age (Treta Yuga), he was born as Nal and lived in the company of Lord Rama.
He was Lord Krishna's friend Sudama in the Bronze Age (Dwapar Yuga).
In the present age, ie. In the Iron Age (Kali Yuga), he is known as Achyutanand Das, who became the disciple of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.

About Achyutananda Das's Father

Maharaj Rudra Dev's charioteer was Achyutananda's grandfather, so his son, that is Achyutananda's father Dinbandhu, was granted a title by the Maharaja as 'Khuntia' (a dedicated servant of the temple).

He regularly served Lord Jagannath and was his ardent devotee. For his services, Maharaj gave him consecrated food (Mahaprasad) and a monthly salary.

Trauma on Achyutananda Das's Parents

Dinbandhu and Padmavati had no children, which deeply saddened them. One day, while Padmavati was bathing in the Pushkarni lake, some women insulted her harshly and taunted her by saying that seeing the face of a woman without a child in the early morning had ruined their whole day.

Padmavati was deeply hurt by hearing such humiliating words. She came home crying and fell asleep on the floor of her room. When Dinbandhu Khutia returned home from the temple and saw his wife in distress, he asked her why she was in such a state.

Initially, she tried to avoid telling him what had happened to her, but when Dinbandhu insisted, she told him everything that had happened to her in the morning.

Parents expressing grief to Lord Jagannath

This incident shattered him, and in grief, he threw the Mahaprasad on the floor and called out Lord Jagannath, saying they served Him with a pure heart. What wrong had they done, and why were they kept childless? How could the ocean of mercy allow them to be insulted in such a manner?

The Lord of the Universe can understand their suffering, so why has He never shown any compassion towards them? People keep insulting and calling them childless, what their service to Him bring them?

Looking at the Neelchakra (the blue disk atop Jagannath's temple), he and his wife vowed that they would neither eat Mahaprasad nor drink water; by remaining hungry and thirsty, they would give up their lives, thus weeping and saying that they fell asleep.

Birth of Saint Achyutananda Das

In the dream, the Lord appeared before him and said that he was highly pleased with their services. He told him that Mangala Aarti(Worship) was going on, and he should immediately reach Arun Stambh (Sun Pillar) situated before the temple.

Dinbadhu woke up immediately and rushed to Arun Stambh. After reaching there, he saw a vision, rays equivalent to ten thousand suns were spreading out from the temple, and he was completely astonished to see this sight. A divine child was placed into his hands from the arms of Ratna Singhasan.

Blessing Dinbandhu with a child, the Lord told him that the child was divine and extraordinary, and the entire world would shine with this child's glory. Lord Jagannath also asked him to name the child 'Achyuta'. He is 'ayonij', meaning he was not born from the mother's womb but was divinely granted to Dinbandhu as a blessing from Lord Jagannath.

Life of Saint Achyutananda Das

He became a disciple of Sanatan Goswami and joined the Nityananda Vaishnava tradition. The Gurubhakti Gita describes the religious tradition of the Panchsakhas.

"Ananta shishu Yeramananda baishnaba
Yashobanta Das Madhvacharyya baishnaba
Balarama Das Bishnushyama Das hoi
Nityananda baishnaba Achyuta atai."
– Gurubhakti Gita, Prathama Khand

Once, Saint Achyutananda travelled to Nandi village in the Adhanga district to meet Yashobanta, one of the Panchasakha. His followers accompanied him and organised a seven-day Raasleela(Divine play). The king of Adhangagarh, Raghuram, came to know about this event, and when he witnessed this Raasleela, he was left spellbound by the performance.

His daughter Champavati was so profoundly moved by his devotional singing and dance (Raas Kirtan) that she expressed her desire to marry him. However, her father, King Raghuram, disapproved of Champavati's proposal.

She narrated her past life story to her father, telling him that during the Dwapar yuga (Lord Krishna's era), Achyutananda was born as Sudama, and she was born as a Gopi named Shyama. Lord Krishna had blessed them that in Kaliyuga, they would both be reborn and marry each other.

Marriage of Achyutananda Das

"Boile Gopi tuyemanta kara "Sudama Achyuta Kaliyugara
Achyuta stree tu Kaliyuga re heibu
Achyuta sevina mote labhibu."
– Varnatika Purana

Yashobanta had blessed Champavati that she would marry Achyutananda when she visited his monastery with her mother. She informed her parents about the blessings she got from Yashobanta, and after that, the king and the queen, overjoyed by the news, gave her approval for the marriage.

King Raghuram and his wife visited the monastery and requested Achyutananda to accept their daughter's marriage proposal. He was surprised by this proposal and, feeling uncomfortable, entered deep meditation to seek guidance from Lord Krishna.

He accepted the proposal after receiving divine instructions from Lord Krishna. Later, they both got married and settled in Nemala.

Sacred Writings of Saint Achyutananda

Saint Achyutananda Das writing Bhavishya Malika in temple

Saint Achyutananda was believed to be born from the waist (kati) of the Lord and is considered the incarnation of Lord Jagannath. In Nemal, Odisha, Achyutananda composed over one lakh sacred scriptures through his divine powers, following the command of Lord Jagannath during deep meditation.

These holy scriptures include 36 Samhitas, 72 Gitas, 27 Genealogies, and 100 'Bhavishya Malika' texts.

Accuracy of Predictions

Predictions of Saint Achyutananda Das are more accurate than any other Predictions on the earth. He writes in Bhavishya Malika -

“acyutīra bāṇī aṭe patharara gāra,
ānakaribāku nāhiṃ śakati kāhāra.”
- Bhavishya Malika

The words written in the Malika scriptures are like lines etched in stone. They are immutable, infallible, irrefutable, and inevitable. No one can alter them even slightly in the entire universe.

Predictions of Saint Achyutananda Das

In his sacred scripture, ' Bhavishya Malika, ' he mentions all the significant events from the Iron Age (Kali Yuga) to the upcoming Golden Age (Satya Yuga). These sacred scriptures were written for humanity so that by reading them, devotees' dormant consciousness would awaken, leading them to seek the path of truth and take refuge in the Lord.

About the End of Kaliyuga

“Māchha māṁsa je karibe bhojana,
Agatika jibe jāṇi śuṇiṇa.
Mora bhaktanku namānibe kehi,
Se māne thibetī daridra hoī.
Mora bhakta pāibe bahu kaṣaṇa,
Mora cintāre kaṭāibe dina.”
- Dashapatal Malika

The above shloka describes the end of Kaliyuga, which Achyutananda Das wrote about in his holy scripture 'Dashapatal Malika', which is the conversation between Lord Shri Krishna and Rukmini: " People will eat fish and meat, despite knowing everything, and will move towards downfall. No one will listen to my devotees, who will endure sufferings and spend their days in my thoughts."

“āge kṛṣikārī bināśa hoibe, tadante dhanīka loka
rāja sebāyata tā pare bināśa paḍaiba ati maḍaka”
- Bhavishya Malika

The above verse mentions that first the peasants will perish, then the rich people. Then the royal servants will perish, and after that, there will be widespread death.

About Pandemics

“Achinha roga byapiba sansare,
Vaidya mane padijibe bhramare.
Aushadha adiru heba rasahina,
Tahiru kebe na miliba guna.
Basanta byapiba sacharachara,
Tasange kaph, pitta bikara.
Apasmar, mruga, gluk, kamala,
Tasange thiba jwara adi sara.
Prameha, bicharchika adi roga,
Prani bahuta karuthibe bhoga.”
- Chausathi Patal

In the above verse, Saint Achyutananda Das has mentioned the conversations between Lord Shri Krishna and His devotee Arjuna.

In this, Lord Krishna tells Arjuna that at the end of Kali Yuga, mysterious diseases will spread worldwide, confusing even doctors. The medicines will fail to cure these diseases. He further explains that Smallpox, along with Kapha (phlegm) and Pitta (bile) disorders, will spread widely. Other diseases, such as Epilepsy, Glaucoma, Jaundice, Unidentified Fevers, Diabetes, and Skin Diseases, will affect countless people.

Today, various types of diseases have afflicted the entire world. The coronavirus pandemic, an entirely new and unprecedented disease, had already created fear and devastation globally.

“Satya śānti dayā kṣamāre jeuṅ prāṇī rahibe,
Roga kabalara kebē hiṅ sēmāne na paḍibe.”
- Achyutananda Das

Saint Achyutananda Das explains in the above lines that those who embody truth, peace, compassion, and forgiveness will remain free from the grip of these illnesses.

Teachings of Saint Achyutananda Das

One life is not enough to understand and learn the teachings of Saint Achyutananda. In his "Bhavishya Malika", Saint Achyutananda Das accurately predicted the events from his time until the upcoming Satyuga (Golden Age), which the Supreme Lord himself dictated to him.

Thus, the great Saint's 'Malika' scriptures are unchangeable divine truths destined to unfold. They are the guiding statements urging humanity to uplift their spiritual consciousness, seek shelter in the sacred, and receive divine protection from upcoming calamities.