TEXT 279
tritakupe visalara kari' darasana
pancapsara-tirthe aila sacira nandana
SYNONYMS
tritakupeto Tritakupa; visalaraof the Deity named Visala; kari'-doing; darasanavisiting; panca-apsara-tirtheto Pancapsara-tirtha; ailacame; sacira nandanathe son of mother Saci.
TRANSLATION
Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, the son of mother Saci, went to Tritakupa, and after seeing the Visala Deity there, He went to the holy place known as Pancapsara-tirtha.
PURPORT
The Apsaras, denizens of the heavenly planets, are generally known as dancing girls. The girls in the heavenly planets are exquisitely beautiful, and if a woman on earth is found to be very beautiful, she is compared to the Apsaras. There were five Apsaras named Lata, Budbuda, Samici, Saurabheyi and Varna. It is said that these five beautiful dancing girls were sent by Indra to break the severe austerity of a saintly person called Acyuta Rsi. This action was typical of Indra, the King of heaven. Whenever Indra discovered someone undergoing severe austerities, he would begin to fear for his post. Indra was always anxious about his position, fearing that if someone became more powerful than him he would lose his elevated position. Thus as soon as he would see a saint undergoing severe austerities, he would send dancing girls to distract him. Even the great saint Visvamitra Muni fell victim to his plan.
When the five Apsaras went to break Acyuta Rsi's meditation, they were all chastised and cursed by the saint. As a result, the girls turned into crocodiles in a lake that came to be known as Pancapsara. Lord Ramacandra also visited this place. From Sri Narada Muni's narration, it is understood that when Arjuna went to visit the holy places, he learned about the condemnation of the five Apsaras. He delivered them from their abominable condition, and from that day the lake known as Pancapsara became a place of pilgrimage.

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