Avatāra Sāra
by Śrīla Lochan dās Ṭhākur
avatāra sāra gorā avatāra keno nā bhajili tā̐re kori nīre bāsa gelo nā piyāsa āpana karama phere 1 The incarnation of Śrī Gaura is the most excellent of all incarnations. Why haven’t I worshipped Him? It is as if I was surrounded by water but denied myself a drink, returning to my own fruitive activity.
kaṇṭa-kera taru sadāi sebili (mana) amṛta pā’bāra āśe prema-kalpataru śrī gaurāṅga āmāra tāhāre bhabili biṣe 2 I chewed the thorns of the tree of worldly life and considered the blood that flowed through my mouth to be nectar. When offered the fruits of the wish-fulfilling tree of ecstatic love of Lord Gaurāṅga, I rejected them, thinking them to be poison.
saura-bhera āśe palāśa śuṅkili (mana) nāsāte paśilo kīṭa ‘ikṣu-daṇḍa’ bhāvi’ kāṭha chuṣili (mana) kemone pāibi miṭha 3 Desirous of smelling a sweet scent, I sniffed at what I thought to be a fragrant flower. Alas, that flower was odourless like the palāśa flower and instead an insect flew up my nose and bit me. Thinking material life to be sweet like sugarcane, I tried to taste its nectar. Instead, it was like chewing dry wood. In this way all my attempts at enjoyment were false.