Lord Chaitanya appeared on the full moon night in February in the year 1486, at the time of a lunar eclipse. At this time, on account of the lunar eclipse that was in progress, the people of the entire region were engaged in chanting the Holy Name and bathing in the holy Ganges River. He was born in a high class brahmin family and was the second son of Jagannath Mishra and his wife Sachi Devi who lived in the town of Navadwip in Nadia, West Bengal. His parents named him ‘Vishvambhar’. Later He was known as “Gauranga” and “Gaurahari” on account of His brilliant golden luster.

Lord Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is the Supreme Lord Krishna manifest in His most merciful form, appearing in the dress of a devotee. He is the most recent incarnation to appear in human society. Although the Supreme Lord Himself, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu showed by His perfect example what it means to be a “pure devotee of God” by propagating the primary religious practice of the age, namely the chanting of the Holy Name of the Lord. The purpose of Lord Chaitanya’s appearance was to spread the sankirtan movement of chanting the holy names of the Lord to every town and village in the world. To please the Lord in this age and connect with eternal spiritual truth, one needs to only chant, “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare.”

While other avatars of the Lord descended with various paraphernalia to deal with the demoniac and irreligious influences of the time, Lord Sri Chaitanya came equipped with the most powerful weapon against irreligion, the chanting of the maha mantra. He came not to kill the demoniac element in human society but to reform and bless them. Thus He is referred to in scripture as the most merciful incarnation of the Lord.

This chanting of the holy name of Lord Sri Krishna is the sublime and easy process in this age for the deliverance of all souls from the clutches of illusion, and irreligion.. Lord Chaitanya made no conditions to adopt this chanting process, He simply requested that one adopt it and reap the benefit. By this chanting process the heart will, in due course of time, radiate pure of love of God.