Qualities of Śrī Kṛṣṇa
Rāmānanda Rāya replied that Śrī Kṛṣṇa is dhīra-lalita, a person who is very clever, always youthful, expert in joking, free from all anxieties, and very submissive to His beloved. His characteristics are manifested always in His transcendental erotic pastimes. Thus He is constantly engaged in enjoyment with Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, making a perfection of the frolicsome age of kaiśora. This stage of Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s engagement is described by Śrīla Rūpa Goswāmī as follows:
vācā sūcita-śarvarī-rati-kalā-prāgalbhyayā rādhikāṁ
vrīḍā-kuñcita-locanāṁ viracayann agre sakhīnām asau
tad-vakṣoruha-citra-keli-makarī-pāṇḍitya-pāraṁ gataḥ
kaiśoraṁ saphalī-karoti kalayan kuñje vihāraṁ hariḥ
"Śrī Kṛṣṇa perfectly enjoys the age of His adolescence by His pastimes with Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī in the bowers of Vṛndāvana. He takes advantage of the cowherd girls by His expertise in the art of painting. He made Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī close Her eyes in shame before Her friends by speaking words of Their lovemaking on the previous night. Then, while She was almost unconscious in a swoon, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, showing the highest limit of cleverness, painted Her breasts with various types of makaras (mystical fish).”
Topmost Love Affairs
On hearing these words, Lord Caitanya said:
prabhu kahe—eho haya, āge kaha āra
rāya kahe—ihā va-i buddhi-gati nāhi āra
"Yes, this is all right, but please go still further.” Rāmānanda replied, “I think my intelligence is unable to go any further!” The stage that is yet to be described is prema-vilāsa-vivarta, the feeling of original attraction matured by the feeling of separation. “I do not know if such a description will be to Your satisfaction or not.” Saying this Rāmānanda sang his own composition, the purport of which is as follows:
pahilehi rāga nayana-bhaṅge bhela
anudina bāḍhala, avadhi nā gela
nā so ramaṇa, nā hāma ramaṇī
duṅhu-mana manobhava peṣala jāni’
e sakhi, se-saba prema-kāhinī
kānu-ṭhāme kahabi vichurala jāni’
nā khoṅjaluṅ dūtī, nā khoṅjaluṅ ān
duṅhukeri milane madhya ta pāṅca-bāṇa
ab sohi virāga, tuṅhu bheli dūtī
su-purukha-premaki aichana rīti
"O, when We first met each other, the attraction was awakened by simple sight, and such attraction knows no bounds in the course of its growth, because that attraction was due to Our personal inclination. Neither Kṛṣṇa nor Myself is the cause of such spontaneous attraction but it awakened and pierced Our minds in the form of Cupid. We are now separated from one another. O My dear friend, if you think that Śrī Kṛṣṇa has completely forgotten Me, tell Him that at the first sight We never required any negotiation, neither did We search for any messages. Cupid himself was the agent of Our meeting. But alas, at this time, O My friend, you are doing the job of a messenger when Our attraction is more desirable than before.” This sort of feeling during separation of the lover and the beloved is called prema-vilāsa-vivarta, which is the topmost sentiment in loving affairs.
Here is another heartfelt description of the same prema-vilāsa-vivarta by Śrīla Rūpa Goswāmī in his Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi:
rādhāyā bhavataś ca citta-jatunī
svedair vilāpya kramād
yuñjann adri-nikuñja-kuñjara-pate
nirdhūta-bheda-bhramam
citrāya svayam anvarañjayad iha
brahmāṇḍa-harmyodare
bhūyobhir nava-rāga-hiṅgula-bharaiḥ
śṛṅgāra-kāruḥ kṛtī
"O, the king of the pirates (Śrī Kṛṣṇa) resided in the bowers of Govardhana Hill! The Creator of the Universe, who is very much expert in the art of decoration, has melted the casing of your heart and that of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī with the perspiration of transcendental symptoms and emotions, and thereby removed the misconception of duality. By such wonderful activities, He has painted both of your hearts in order to play wonders upon the universe.”
The explanation of the sentiment of prema-vilāsa-vivarta can only be realized in a pure state of consciousness freed from all material conceptions. This transcendental subject matter is not to be realized in a state of consciousness that is either grossly or subtly influenced by the material body and mind. External consciousness in relation to material intelligence and mind is different from the pure soul. The mellowness of this transcendental subject is relished by the senses engaged in the divine service of the Personality of Godhead.
Positive Consciousness
The pure state of consciousness enjoyed in the transcendental service of Godhead is only partially manifested in the impersonalists through their negation of material engagement. The impersonal negative conception is simply an antidote for material misconception, it has no positive standing. Such a state of consciousness may be somewhat enlightening, but it cannot reach the positive consciousness of the soul in its pure state. Love of Godhead is a pure and positive transcendental subject. The attraction for matter is transient and inferior, and therefore it is best described as only passing for love. The apparent happiness of the material world is really unhappiness. However, the transcendental unhappiness experienced in the prema-vilāsa-vivarta has nothing to do with the unhappiness of the material conception.
In concluding this explanation of prema-vilāsa-vivarta, the highest stage of transcendental relationships, Lord Caitanya said,
prabhu kahe—'sādhya-vastura avadhi' ei haya tomāra
prasāde ihā jāniluṅ niścaya
'sādhya-vastu' 'sādhana' vina keha nāhi pāya
kṛpā kari' kaha, rāya, pābāra upāya
"Now I understand the topmost limit of the ultimate goal of life. This has been possible by your grace. The goal cannot be reached without the endeavor of the devotee and the mercy of a pure devotee. Please therefore let me now know the means of reaching this topmost goal.” Rāmānanda continued,
rāya kahe—yei kahāo, sei kahi vāṇī
ki kahiye bhāla-manda, kichui nā jāni
tribhuvana-madhye aiche haya kon dhīra
ye tomāra māyā-nāṭe ha-ibeka sthira
mora mukhe vaktā tumi, tumi hao śrotā
atyanta rahasya, śuna, sādhanera kathā
rādhā-kṛṣṇera lilā ei ati gūḍhatara
dāsya-vātsalyādi-bhāve nā haya gocara
sabe eka sakhī-gaṇera ihāṅ adhikāra
sakhī haite haya ei līlāra vistāra
sakhi vinā ei lilā puṣṭa nāhi haya
sakhī līlā vistāriyā, sakhī āsvādaya
sakhī vinā ei līlāya anyera nāhi gati
sakhī-bhāve ye tāṅre kare anugati
rādhā-kṛṣṇa-kuñjasevā-sādhya sei pāya
sei sādhya pāite āre nāhika upāya
"My Lord, I do not know the means of approaching the ultimate goal of life, but I speak to You whatever You desire me to speak. I do not know if I am speaking correctly or incorrectly. Nobody in the three worlds will not dance according to Your wish. In fact, You speak through my mouth, and it is wonderful that You are the audience as well. Therefore, let me say that the transcendental pastimes of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī and Śrī Kṛṣṇa are extremely mysterious and confidential. Even those who are ardently engaged in the service of dāsya, sakhya, or vātsalya rasas cannot enter into the essence of Their pastimes. Only the eternal associates of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, the cowherd girls of Vraja, have the authority to enter into this mystery because this transcendental pastime develops in their association. “The fulfillment of the sweetest of all transcendental pastimes depends on the activities of Śrī Rādhā’s female associates. It is they alone who expand these pastimes and relish their development. Therefore, if anyone wants to reach this stage of transcendental life, he has to do so in the ardent service of such female associates. Only one who follows this principle can become a servitor of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī and Śrī Kṛṣṇa in the groves of Śrī Vṛndāvana. There is no other alternative in this regard.”
Deeper Happiness
In the Govinda-līlāmṛta (10.17), the following description is given:
vibhur api sukha-rūpaḥ sva-prakāśo 'pi bhāvaḥ
kṣaṇam api na hi rādhā-kṛṣṇayor yā ṛte svāḥ
pravahati rasa-puṣṭiṁ cid-vibhūtīr iveśaḥ
śrayati na padam āsāṁ kaḥ sakhīnāṁ rasa-jñaḥ
"The transcendental pastimes of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa are as self-effulgent as the Personality of Godhead Himself. Yet as the Almighty Godhead is glorified by His manifestation of diverse energies and potencies, the pastimes of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa are glorified in the association of the sakhīs or female friends of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī.”
The activities of the sakhīs are very wonderful. They do not desire any personal enjoyment with Śrī Kṛṣṇa but become happy only by uniting the Divine Couple. By uniting Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī with Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the sakhīs enjoy a thousand times more happiness than they would derive by direct contact with Śrī Kṛṣṇa. This is another mystery of the transcendental pastimes of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa.
Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī is the desire creeper embracing the desire tree of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, and the sakhīs are the leaves, twigs, and flowers of that desire creeper. So naturally when the desire creeper is watered at the root by the nectarean water of the pastimes of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the leaves and twigs and flowers of the desire creeper are automatically nourished. The sakhīs therefore do not require any separate arrangement for their enjoyment. On the other hand, the happiness of the flowers and leaves is greater than the original creeper. This is explained in the Govinda-līlāmṛta (10.16):
sakhyaḥ śrī-rādhikāyā vraja-
kumuda-vidhor hlādinī-nāma-śakteḥ
sārāṁśa-prema-vallyāḥ kisalaya-
dala-puṣpādi-tulyāḥ sva-tulyāḥ
siktāyāṁ kṛṣṇa-līlāmṛta-rasa-
nicayair ullasantyām amuṣyāṁ
jātollāsāḥ sva-sekācchata-guṇam
adhikaṁ santi yat tan na citram
"There is no utility in watering the leaves and flowers of a tree without watering the root of the tree. The leaves and flowers are automatically nourished by watering the root of the tree. Similarly, without the unity of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī and Śrī Kṛṣṇa, there is no happiness for the sakhīs. When Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa are united, the happiness of the sakhīs is thousands and thousands of times greater than when they are personally associating with Kṛṣṇa.”
Great Mystery
There is another mystery within these transcendental pastimes, and it is that Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī arranges for the uniting of Her associates with Śrī Kṛṣṇa, although the sakhīs have no such desire. By doing this, Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī enjoys more happiness than by Her personally uniting with Śrī Kṛṣṇa and for this reason the sakhīs accept this arrangement for Her happiness. By all these mutual arrangements of Śrī Rādhā and the sakhīs, Śrī Kṛṣṇa becomes still more happy, and therefore the whole arrangement causes Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa to become even more enlivened in their transcendental pastimes.
The natural divine love of the cowherd girls for Śrī Kṛṣṇa is never to be considered as or compared to material lust. The two, love and lust, are explained in similar terms because there appears to be a similarity between them, but the Bhakti-rāsamṛta-sindhu (1.2.285) explains otherwise:
premaiva gopa-rāmāṇāṁ
kāma ity agamat prathām
ity uddhavādayo ‘py etaṁ
vāñchanti bhagavat-priyāḥ
"People customarily describe and understand the love of the cowherd girls for Śrī Kṛṣṇa in the light of mundane lust, but in fact it is different because such a standard of love for Śrī Kṛṣṇa was desired even by the highest devotees like Uddhava and others.”
Mundane lust is meant for one’s personal enjoyment; transcendental love of Godhead is meant for the happiness of the Supreme Personality Śrī Kṛṣṇa. There is therefore a very wide gulf of difference between the two.
The cowherd girls of Vraja had no desire for self-satisfaction by personally contacting Śrī Kṛṣṇa, yet they were always ready to render all varieties of services for the benefit of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Anything short of this spirit amounts to lust. As confirmed in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, mundane desire is mundane lust. In the Vedas, the three modes of nature—goodness, passion, and ignorance—are described in different terms according to one’s desire for different benefits—followers, sons, wealth, and so on. All these are but different categories of mundane lust. Such lust is presented in the flowery language of the Vedas as religiosity. Lust is called by different names: altruism, karma-kāṇḍa, fruitive work, social obligations, the desire for liberation, family tradition, affection for kinsmen, and fear of chastisement and rebuke from relatives. All these are different forms of lust passing in the name of religiosity. There is nothing in these activities except one’s own sense gratification.
Surrender
In the Bhagavad-gītā, the final instruction is to give up all varieties of religion and follow the Personality of Godhead without reservation. In the beginning of the Bhagavad-gītā, the Personality of Godhead proclaimed that He descends to the earth whenever there is a rise of irreligious activities. He does so to protect the faithful, eradicate the unbelievers, and reestablish the principles of religiosity.
The two declarations mentioned above seem contradictory. The Personality of Godhead descends on earth to protect religiosity, but advises Arjuna to give up all varieties of religion. The explanation, however, is very clear. Complete surrender unto the will of the Personality of Godhead without any reservation is the factual principle of religiosity. All other activities, such as altruism, are not in fact religious. As such, the Personality of Godhead advises Arjuna to give them up. They are all different forms of mundane lust, gorgeously presented in the dress of religiosity.
Therefore, a transcendental conviction of feeling oneself to be the eternal servitor of Godhead and following this conviction means to follow the orders of Śrī Kṛṣṇa as He has advised in the Bhagavad-gītā. Whenever there is the feeling that one is the enjoyer of one’s own activities, such actions are to be understood as different forms of mundane lust.
To surrender fully unto the desire of Śrī Kṛṣṇa does not turn one into a lifeless machine without any impetus. Rather, the feeling of being eternally engaged in the service of Śrī Kṛṣṇa gives one transcendental impetus for carrying out the will of Godhead through the divine medium of the spiritual master, who is identical in purpose with Śrī Kṛṣṇa. This is only possible when one is inspired by pure love of Godhead called vyavasāyātmikā-buddhi, supramundane intelligence that assures success in spiritual activities.
Imitators
The artificial way of decorating oneself in the dress of a sakhī, as is done by a class of mundaners called sakhībhekī or gaurāṅga-nāgarī, is not inspired by supramundane intelligence. Such artificial decoration of the body, which is meant for annihilation, certainly cannot please the transcendental senses of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. It is therefore a mundane wishful desire of the less intelligent, easy-going pseudo-devotees, and as such it cannot reach the transcendental stage of the cowherd girls of Vraja.
We have already discussed in detail that the forms of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī and Her various female associates called the sakhīs are composed of divine substance and their activities are therefore meant for the service of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Their activities are never to be compared with the superficial activities in the material world. Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the all-attractive Personality of Godhead known as the enchanter of the universe, and Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī is known as the enchanter of the enchanter of the universe. The imitative endeavors of a mundaner to become a sakhī is strictly forbidden by Śrīla Jīva Goswāmī in his commentary on the Bhakti-rāsamṛta-sindhu. The real devotee may thus be warned not to imitate the dress of a sakhī as a means of bhajana or worship. Such activity is offensive and strictly forbidden.
The transcendental feelings of the cowherd girls mentioned in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.31.19) are as follows:
yat te sujāta-caraṇāmburuhaṁ staneṣu
bhitāḥ śanaiḥ priya dadhimahi karkaśeṣu
tenāṭavīm aṭasi tad vyathate na kiṁ svit
kūrpādibhir bhramati dhīr bhavad-āyuṣāṁ naḥ
"O my dear, Your lotus feet, which are very soft and are placed on our hard breasts, are now treading over the forest of Vṛndāvana and thereby receiving pain on account of stepping on the fine particles of stone. This fact is giving us anxiety because You are our very life.” This example is the standard sentiment of the cowherd girls of Vraja and demonstrates that their very life is meant for the service of Śrī Kṛṣṇa without any tinge of an idea for sense gratification.
There are 64 different items of regulative devotional service. The devotee gradually develops the right to enter into the transcendental service of Godhead by implicit faith in the observance of the regulative principles. The intense eagerness to serve like the eternal associates of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, such as the cowherd girls, gives the devotee the right to serve Śrī Kṛṣṇa in that way. For this ardent service of Godhead, one is required to give up the practice of the mundane regulative principles of varṇāśrama-dharma.