Who is an Ācārya
Some foolish students have accepted the statements of Lord Caitanya conditionally. According to them, the spiritual master fully conversant with the science of Kṛṣṇa, yet not born in a brāhmaṇa family, can be an instructing spiritual master, but not an initiating spiritual master. They do not know that there is hardly any difference between the two classes of spiritual masters. According to them, a caste initiator or caste goswāmī, by dint of his hereditary blood lineage, becomes the real spiritual master, while a person knowing all about Śrī Kṛṣṇa can only become an instructor. They foolishly think that the position of the initiating spiritual master is greater than that of the instructing spiritual master. However, the matter is very clearly and conclusively discussed in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 1.47):
śikṣā-guruke ta' jāni kṛṣṇera svarūpa
antaryāmī, bhakta-śreṣṭha—ei dui rūpa
"One should know the instructing spiritual master to be the Personality of Kṛṣṇa. Śrī Kṛṣṇa manifests Himself as the Supersoul and as the greatest devotee of the Lord.”
In the Manu-saṁhitā, the qualification of an ācārya is described as follows: “A spiritual master is a twice-born brāhmaṇa able to train his disciple to instruct others on the Vedas.” In the Vāyu Purāṇa, the ācārya is described as follows: “One who knows the essence of the scriptures, establishes the truth of them, and conducts his activities according to the regulative principles of the scriptures is thus known as an ācārya.”
The ācārya or spiritual master is an empowered incarnation of the Personality of Godhead. He is not to be considered a plenary portion of Godhead, but at the same time the spiritual master is certainly very near and dear to Godhead. The ācārya appears before the disciple as the bona fide representative of Godhead. Such an ācārya has no duty other than to serve the Personality of Godhead and give shelter to the willing disciple on Godhead’s behalf.
If a person becomes a so-called spiritual master without being engaged wholly in the service of the Personality of Godhead, nobody should accept him as guru and his activity should not be recognized. A guru’s character must be fully representative of the Personality of Godhead, and this will be demonstrated by his full-time engagement in the service of Godhead. A real ācārya is sometimes envied by the sense-gratifying masses. However, the ācārya is a nondifferent extension of the transcendental body of the Personality of Godhead. Anyone envying such a spiritual master will certainly suffer the consequence of being bereft of the Personality of Godhead’s blessings.
The spiritual master, although the eternal servitor of Lord Caitanya, is always to be respected as much as Lord Caitanya. The spiritual master is the personality who exhibits the nature of Lord Caitanya. It should never be concluded that the spiritual master is exactly one and the same with Godhead as the māyāvādī philosophers think. The Vaiṣṇavas accept the spiritual master in terms of acintya-bhedābheda-tattva, simultaneously one with and different from the Personality of Godhead.
Śikṣā andDīkṣā
A spiritual master who gives instruction about the regulative principles of devotional service is called the śikṣā-guru or the instructing spiritual master. A person who is not engaged in the service of the Personality of Godhead and is addicted to ill habits cannot be a spiritual master. The instructing spiritual master is of two kinds. They are: (1) a self-realized soul constantly engaged in the service of the Personality of Godhead, and (2) a soul in pure consciousness who is constantly offering helpful directions favorable to the service of Godhead. Instruction in the service of the Lord is also of two kinds: (1) instruction on the object of service, and (2) instruction on the regulative principles of service.
The spiritual master who connects the living entity with the Personality of Godhead Śrī Kṛṣṇa by initiation is called the dīkṣā-guru or the initiating spiritual master. There is no difference between the initiating spiritual master and the instructing spiritual master. Both are the object of shelter for the disciple and both are āśraya vigraha or the personality under whose shelter the eternal relationship with Godhead is established and the process of approaching Godhead by service is learned. To think of one spiritual master as purer than the other is offensive. The symbolic initiating spiritual master is Śrīla Sanātana Goswāmī, who initiates the devotees into their service to Madana-mohana. Śrīla Rūpa Goswāmī is the instructing spiritual master, who instructs the devotee with his verses in the Bhakti-rāsamṛta-sindhu regarding the service of Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Govinda. Nobody should therefore think of Sanātana Goswāmī as being greater than Rūpa Goswāmī or vice versa. Both of them are our spiritual masters and engage us in the transcendental loving service of Godhead. When Lord Caitanya mentioned the word guru, spiritual master, He meant both the śikṣā-guru and the dīkṣā-guru and not just one of them.
Not a Vaiṣṇava—Not a Guru
According to Hari-bhakti-vilāsa, a pure devotee of Godhead is never a śūdra. On the other hand, one who is not engaged in the service of the Personality of Godhead is definitely a śūdra, even though such a person may be born in the family of any varṇa other than śūdra. A brāhmaṇa of the standard of varṇāśrama-dharma, although expert in all the details of the six specific functions of the scriptures, cannot be accepted as a spiritual master if he is not a Vaiṣṇava. But if an untouchable caṇḍāla (dog-eater) becomes a Vaiṣṇava, he can be accepted as a spiritual master. A pure devotee of Godhead, although born in the family of a śūdra, can be the spiritual master of all the other three varṇas.
Rāmānanda Rāya, being always conscious of his transcendental task, is never subjected to the deluding energy of Godhead. He could understand the feelings of Lord Caitanya, and by His will, Rāmānanda wanted to proceed further. He said,
rāya kahe—āmi—naṭa, tumi—sūtra-dhāra
yei mata nācāo, taiche cāhi nācibāra
mora jihvā—viṇā-yantra, tumi—vīṇā-dhārī
tomāra mane yei uṭhe, tāhāi uccāri
"My Lord, I am a dancing doll and You are the wire-puller. Let me dance as you wish. My tongue is like the vīṇā (a stringed musical instrument) and You are playing upon it. Kindly let me vibrate the sound that You desire to produce.”
Rāmānanda continued:
paramā īśvara kṛṣṇa—svayaṁ bhagavān
sarva-avatāri, sarva-kāraṇa-pradhāna
ananta vaikuṇṭha, āra ananta avatāra
ananta brahmāṇḍa ihāṅ—sabāra ādhāra
sac-cid-ānanda-tanu, vrajendra-nandana
sarvaiśvarya-sarvaśakti-sarvarasa-pūrṇa
īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ, sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ
anādir ādir govindaḥ, sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam
vṛndāvane ‘aprākṛta navīna madana’
kāma-gāyatrī kāma-bīje yāṅra upāsana
"Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the cause of all causes. He expands Himself in His innumerable plenary portions known as incarnations. He is the fountainhead of innumerable Vaikuṇṭha planets, innumerable incarnations, and innumerable universes. He is the eternal form of transcendental existence, knowledge, and bliss. He is known as the son of the King of Vraja. He is complete in Himself with all opulences, all powers, and all divine rasas. He is, as stated in the Brahma-saṁhitā, the Supreme Primeval Lord and the cause of all causes. Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the transcendental Cupid and the resident of Śrī Vṛndāvana. He is worshiped by the transcendental sounds produced by the pure utterances of kāma-gāyatrī and kāma-bīja.”
Vṛndāvana Eternal
Vṛndāvana, the residence of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, is described in the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.56):
śriyaḥ kāntāḥ kāntaḥ parama-puruṣaḥ kalpa-taravo
drumā bhūmiś cintāmaṇi-gaṇa-mayī toyam amṛtam
kathā gānaṁ nāṭyaṁ gamanam api vaṁśī priya-sakhī
cid-ānandaṁ jyotiḥ param api tad āsvādyam api ca
sa yatra kṣīrābdhiḥ sravati surabhībhyaś ca sumahān
nimeṣārdhākhyo vā vrajati na hi yatrāpi samayaḥ
bhaje śveta-dvīpaṁ tam aham iha golokam iti yaṁ
vidantas te santaḥ kṣiti-virala-cārāḥ katipaye
Everything is cognizant in the transcendental abode of Vṛndāvana. Although appearing in the material world, it exists eternally, even after the annihilation of the material world. The Bhagavad-gītā (8.20) confirms this statement. In Vṛndāvana, the cowherd girls are all enjoyed by Śrī Kṛṣṇa, and He is the only enjoyer there because He is the Supreme Person. The trees in Vṛndāvana are all desire trees and the land is made of cintāmaṇi, desire-fulfilling touchstones. The water of Vṛndāvana is nectar, the words of conversation are themselves sweet songs, walking in Vṛndāvana is a dance, and the flute is eternally the constant companion of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. The luminaries in the sky are transcendental and blissful. With this in mind, we should always try to understand Vṛndāvana. In Vṛndāvana, even a moment is never lost because no moment passes away, and, as such, there is not a limited conception of the future either.
The Vṛndāvana-dhāma that we can experience in this mortal world is therefore a subject of deep study, and the significance of Vṛndāvana is known only to the purest devotees. Let us therefore worship Śrī Vṛndāvana.
The Vṛndāvana-dhāma that manifests in the material world is not realized by our material senses, which are always prone to enjoy matter. When we are inspired by the proper attitude of transcendental service to Madana-mohana, we can know the actual Vṛndāvana. Because it is very difficult to understand, Śrīla Narottama dāsa hākura taught us by his actions to cry for the mercy of Lord Nityānanda Prabhu. By the mercy of Lord Nityānanda, we can be free from the consciousness of trying to enjoy this material world. This enjoying spirit is known as saṁsāra-vāsanā. When one is freed from the saṁsāra-vāsanā, one is freed from focusing entirely on eating, sleeping, fearing, and other sense-gratifying habits. When this is done, the mind of the devotee is purified from all infections of matter, and in such a state of mind one can see the true Vṛndāvana- dhāma situated in this mortal world.
Cupid and the Kāma-Gāyatrī
The eternal Cupid, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, is eternally distinct from the material Cupid. The material Cupid produces pleasure only temporarily, but then lulls one into material dullness in just the next moment. But the eternal Cupid is ever-awakening and the transcendental pleasure is ever-increasing in ever-renewing developments. Such pleasure is eternally-existing and is not subject to the laws of material nature. The transient pleasure derived from the material Cupid is an enjoyable object to the materialists, but the transcendental Cupid is served eternally because He is Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Personality of Godhead Himself.
Gāyatrī means that which delivers one from the clutches of material hankerings. By chanting the kāma-gāyatrī, klīṁ kāma-devāya vidmahe puṣpa-bāṇāya dhīmahī tan no ’naṅgaḥ pracodayāt, the transcendental sound composed of twenty-four and a half letters, one is connected with the service of Madana-mohana (kāma-devāya). The nature of practical service is realized in connection with Govinda (puṣpa-bāṇāya). And in the perfect stage of service, one is connected with Gopīnātha (anaṅgaḥ), the attractor of the cowherd girls.
The description of the kāma-gāyatrī in the Brahma-saṁhitā is vivid. The kāma-gāyatrī was first chanted by Lord Brahmā before he created the material universes. His pure consciousness was awakened in the matter of his relationship, action, and ultimate goal in the service of the Personality of Godhead. When he became absorbed in the chanting of the transcendental sound of the kāma-gāyatrī, he acquired the ability to create the universe, and as such he composed the Brahma-saṁhitā in praise of the glories of Lord Govinda, the Personality of Godhead.
The scientific arrangement of the kāma-gāyatrī is described in the Brahma-saṁhitā. It says that the supramundane kāma-gāyatrī combined with the kāma-bīja (the nucleus of transcendental love) is the transcendental means of worship by which the eternally youthful transcendental Cupid, Madana-mohana, is served. Śrī Viśvanātha Cakravartī hākura has explained the symbolic representation of the kāma-bīja ‘kliṁ,’ with reference to the Bṛhad Gautamīya-tantra, as follows: K is Kṛṣṇa, the supreme aggressive male, who possesses a form embodying full eternity, knowledge, and bliss; the letter I is Rādhā, the supreme receptive female, who is eternally the Vṛndāvaneśvarī, or the most majestic Princess of Śrī Vṛndāvana; the letter L is celebrated as ānandātmaka-prema- sukha, or the happiness of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa’s mutual ecstatic love in the form of pure blissful joy; and the Ṁ is the expression of cumban-ānanda-mādhurya, or the ecstatic sweetness of Their most blissful kiss. When the kāma-bīja is added to the gāyatrī, it becomes the transcendental prayer for worshiping Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa.
Rāmānanda Rāya continued to speak: “Śrī Kṛṣṇa has multi-energies, three of which are prominent. They are known as the internal energy, external energy, and marginal energy; or the potency of full knowledge of life, the potency of darkness or ignor- ance, and the potency of the living being.” In the Viṣṇu Purāṇa, these potencies are also mentioned. The internal energy and the marginal energy are referred to as the superior energies while the external energy or the potency of darkness is called the inferior energy.
Hlādinī, Sandhinī, and Samvit
Śrī Kṛṣṇa is originally a person full with transcendental existence, knowledge, and bliss. His internal energy or the potency of full knowledge is manifested in three diverse ways: hlādinī, sandhinī, and samvit, which represent transcendental bliss, existence, and knowledge respectively. In the Viṣṇu Purāṇa, the same is confirmed as follows: “O Lord, in You who are all-pervading, the hlādinī, sandhinī, and samvit energies are all cognizant. Your parts and parcels, the living entities, have obtained the powers that are the perverted forms of hlādinī, sandhinī, and samvit. They have done so under the influence of the three qualities of the external energy, because the living entities are prone to be influenced by the deluding energy known as māyā. However, in You these three energies are transcendental to the qualities of māyā.”
Who is Topmost
The hlādinī energy means the pleasure potency and by this energy, which is His own, Śrī Kṛṣṇa becomes enthused and relishes His happy moods. The hlādinī energy is the cause of transcendental happiness for the devotees engaged in the transcendental service of Godhead. The hlādinī energy in Her very concentrated form is the embodiment of love of Godhead, which produces the emotions of transcendental bliss and knowledge. This transcendental love of Godhead in its mature state is named mahābhāva and Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī is mahābhāva personified. She is thus described in the Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi (4.3) as follows:
tayor apy ubhayor madhye
rādhikā sarvathādhikā
mahābhāva-svarūpeyaṁ
guṇair ativarīyasī
"Among the cowherd girls, Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī and Śrīmatī Candrāvalī are the principal gopīs. Out of these two, Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī is the topmost because Her position is that of mahābhāva or the highest stage of transcendental love of Godhead. No other cowherd girl possesses such high qualities as Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī.”
premera 'svrūpa-deha'—prema-vibhāvita
kṛṣṇera preyasī-śreṣṭhā jagate vidita
"Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī is love of Godhead personified. She is made of pure love of Godhead. She is therefore celebrated in the universe as the most beloved of Śrī Kṛṣṇa.”
The Brahma-saṁhitā (5.37) describes this as follows:
ānanda-cinmaya-rasa-pratibhāvitābhis
tābhir ya eva nija-rūpatayā kalābhiḥ
goloka eva nivasty akhilātma-bhūto
govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi
"I worship the primeval Lord Govinda, who in His original form resides in His abode named Goloka along with the transcendental cowherd girls, who are always inspired by the feelings of transcendental bliss and knowledge. That Govinda is the all-pervading Godhead.”
Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī is further described by Śrīla Raghunātha dāsa Goswāmī in his Premāmbhoja-maranda:
The identity of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī is the personified service of Śrī Kṛṣṇa to fulfill His every desire. Her associates such as Lalitā, Viśākhā, and other friends are the symbols of Her expression of such intimate service. The manifestation of Her first youthfully blooming appearance is the result of Her using the cosmetic made out of the affection of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Her first (morning) bath is in the nectarean water of youthful energy. The gradual development of Her youthful beauty is the nectar of Her bath in the afternoon. Her evening bath is completed in the water of full-grown youth, and thus the three stages of Her youthful growth is compared with Her bath thrice daily classified under the names of kāruṇyāmṛta, tāruṇyāmṛta, and lāvaṇyāmṛta. This is the description of Her transcendental body.
Qualities of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī
As far as Her dress is concerned, it is described in two parts. One is made of Her youthful blush of modesty woven with śyāma or black colored threads turned into a bluish covering, and the second is called uttaria which is red due to extreme attachment for the company of Śrī Kṛṣṇa.
Her breasts are covered by Her sari in the form of affection and anger toward Kṛṣṇa. Her personal beauty is compared to kuṅkuma (a special kind of cosmetic) and Her friendship with Her associates is compared to sandalwood pulp. The sweetness of Her calm sobriety is compared to camphor. These three ingredients decorating the body of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī—kuṅkuma, sandalwood pulp, and camphor—are ever-increasingly glowing as Her youthful beauty.
Outwardly, She is very clever and contradictory while at heart She is submissive. She speaks with cruel words to Her lover, yet Her heart is revealed by the flow of tears from Her eyes. This emotion is called dhīrādhīrātmaka. The degrees of this particular emotion vary in intensity and are called praghoṣa, madhya, and mugdha respectively.
Her lipstick is the reddish color of Her lips due to Her deep attraction for Śrī Kṛṣṇa. The outward symptoms of Her transcendental sentiments such as cheerfulness, laughing, shivering, and crying are Her constant companions. Her different qualities may be divided into four categories, namely: (1) qualities pertaining to Her person, (2) qualities pertaining to Her words, (3) qualities pertaining to Her mind, and (4) qualities pertaining to Her relationship with others. She possesses six qualities in regard to Her person, three in regard to Her words, two in regard to Her mind, and six in regard to Her relationship with others. The description of these different qualities is very vividly given in the Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi. To avoid expansion of this literature, we will not elaborate on this subject at this time.
Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī always bears in Her heart the sentiment of prema-vaicittya, a feeling of the fear of separation even when She is in the company of Her consort. This is due to Her being very soft-hearted. She is eternally a young girl between 16 and 20 years of age. This period is called kaiśora. She is always accustomed to moving along with Her hands resting on the shoulders of Her friends, the cowherd girls. She is always being lovingly attended by Her female friends and Her mind is always full of Her transcendental pastimes with Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Her constant cheerfulness is the fragrance of Her body and She is constantly sitting on the bedstead of Her peculiar pride due to constantly remembering Śrī Kṛṣṇa.
Constant remembrance of the name, fame, and qualities of Śrī Kṛṣṇa are the earrings decorating Her body. The glories of Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s name, fame, and qualities are always inundating Her speech. She keeps Śrī Kṛṣṇa enlivened by the celestial drink of the incessant chanting of His qualities. In short, She is the reservoir of pure love of Kṛṣṇa and She is full and complete with all the necessary qualifications in this regard. She is the perfect symbolic representation of pure love of Godhead. This fact is described in the Govinda-līlāmṛta (11.122) in the form of questions and answers:
kā kṛṣṇasya praṇaya-janibhūḥ śrīmatī rādhikaikā
kāsya preyasy anupama-guṇā rādhikaikā na cānyā
jaihmyaṁ keśe dṛśi taralatā niṣṭhuratvaṁ kuce ‘syā
vāñchā-pūrtyai prabhavati hare rādhikaikā na cānyā
Q: Who is the generating source of the love of Śrī Kṛṣṇa?
A: It is Śrīmatī Rādhikā only.
Q: Who is qualitatively the dearest to Śrī Kṛṣṇa?
A: Again, it is Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī and nobody else. Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī’s hair is very curly, Her eyes are always moving to and fro, Her breasts are firm, and as such it is She alone who can fulfill all the desires of the all-attractive Hari.
yāṅra saubhāgya-guṇa vāñche satyabhāmā
yāṅra ṭhāñi kalā-vilāsa śikhe vraja-rāmā
yāṅra saundaryādi-guṇa vāñche lakṣmī-pārvatī
yāṅra pativratā-dharma vāñche arundhatī
yāṅra sadguṇa-gaṇane kṛṣṇa nā pāya pāra
tāṅra guṇa gaṇibe kemane jīva chāra
Rāmānanda Rāya concluded the descriptive qualities of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī by saying that She is envied by Satyabhāmā for Her unique fortune, and from Her alone the damsels of Vraja have learned the art of attracting a lover. Even Pārvatī and Lakṣmī, who are superexcellently beautiful, desire to possess Her qualities and beauty and rise to the level of Her chastity. Even Śrī Kṛṣṇa fails to calculate the qualities of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī. Therefore, how is it possible for any mortal being to estimate Her qualities?
On hearing these statements by Rāmānanda Rāya, Lord Caitanya said:
prabhu kahe—jāniluṅ kṛṣṇa-rādhā-prema-tattva
śunite cāhiye duṅhāra vilāsa-mahattva
"I have come to know the essence of love between Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī and Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Now I wish to hear something about Their transcendental pastimes.”