Śrī Śrī Prema-Bhakti-Candrikā 77 (comm. by Śrī Anantadāsa Bābājī Mahārāja)

হেম গৌরী-তনু রাই,        আঁখি দরশন চাই,

রোদন করিব অভিলাষ ।

জলধর ঢর ঢর,        অঙ্গ অতি মনোহর,

রূপে ভুবন পরকাশ ॥ ৭৭ ॥

hema gaurī-tanu rāi,        āṅkhi daraśana cāi,

rodana kariba abhilāṣa |

jaladhara ḍhara ḍhara,        aṅga ati manohara,

rūpe bhubana parakāśa || 77 ||

     I shall weep constantly, longing for a vision of the golden-hued Śrī Rādhā. Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s body is beautiful like a dark new raincloud. In this captivating form, he manifests himself on earth.

Longing to See the Beloved

     Sudhā-Kaṇikā-Vyākhyā: Filled with love, and longing to see his beloved Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa, in this verse Śrīla Ṭhākura Mahāśaya says, hema gaurī-tanu rāi, āṅkhi daraśana cāi, rodana kariba abhilāṣa. “I shall weep constantly, longing for a vision of the golden-hued Śrī Rādhārāṇī.” The poets have compared Śrī Rādhārāṇī’s complexion to the luster of gold. But really, how can there be any comparison between the divine complexion of mahābhāvamayī Śrī Rādhā and gold, which is just an altered form of some mundane metallic substance? In his Śrī-Rādhā-Rasa-Sudhā-Nidhi, Śrīla Prabodhānanda Sarasvatīpāda said, gātre koṭi-taḍic-chavi, meaning the luster from Śrī Rādhā’s body is like that of ten million lightning bolts. But lightning is a transformation of extremely bright light. A flash of lightning can dazzle the eyes and cause distress, whereas Śrī Rādhārāṇī bears the luster of love; the sight of her is cooling to one’s eyes. For this reason, Śrīla Prabodhānandapāda has used the word chavi (luster). Actually, all these descriptions of premamayī Śrī Rādhārāṇī’s bodily radiance being a brilliant yellow color like gold or extremely bright like lightning have only been endeavors to help the worldly people understand. The description of Śrī Rādhārāṇī’s bodily luster as being like gold or lightning is not intended to be an example. The splendor of the mahābhāva in Śrīmatī’s body is incomparable. Śrīla Prabodhānandapāda has written the following in his Saṅgīta-Mādhava 1.2:

nava-campaka-gaurī-kāntibhiḥ

kṛta-vṛndāvana-hema-rūpatām |

bhaja kām api viśva-mohinīṁ

madhura-prema-rasādhidevatām ||

     “Just worship Śrī Rādhārāṇī, the enchantress of the world and presiding deity of the indescribably sweet rasa of love. With her fair complexion, yellowish like a fresh campaka flower, she transforms green Vṛndāvana into gold Vṛndāvana.” There is no comparison anywhere to the anxiety that awakens in a premika when he cannot see the youthful Goddess of Sweet Love, the world-captivating, gold-complexioned Śrī Rādhārāṇī, at whose lotus feet he has taken exclusive shelter and devoted his life. Not to mention Śrī Rūpa, Sanātana, Raghunātha and the other nitya-pārṣadas, Śrīla Kṛṣṇadāsa Bābājī Mahārāja, a sādhana-siddha resident of Śrī Govardhana, wrote the following regarding his anxiety to see Śrī Rādhā:

hāhā prāṇeśvari tuyā biccheda anale |

nirabadhi prāṇa mora dhikidhiki jvale ||

e duḥkha-sāgara haite uddhāra kariyā |

śrī-caraṇe rākha more kiṅkarī kariyā ||

hena dina ki habe taba śrī-mukhera bāṇī |

karṇete śuniba āra nūpurera dhvanī ||

tomāra lābaṇyāmṛta nayana-caṣake |

kabe bā kariba pāna parānanda-sukhe ||

āghrāṇa kariba taba aṅga parimala |

pulake pūrṇita habe mora kalebara ||

kabe tabocchiṣṭāmṛta dibe kṛpā kari |

pāiyā kṛtārthā habe e naba kiṅkarī ||

tumi mora japa tapa tumi mora dhyāna |

janmābadhi tomā binā nāhi jāni āna ||

kāntāli sahita tumi yathāya bihara |

kṛpā kari sei-sthāne more dāsī kara ||

kāñde dīna kṛṣṇadāsa dante tṛṇa dhari |

abhilāṣa pūrṇa mora kara hema-gauri ||

     “Alas, Goddess of my life! The fire of separation from you smolders endlessly in my heart. Rescue me from this ocean of misery and keep me as a maidservant at your lotus feet. When shall I hear the words from your lotus mouth, along with the jingling of your anklets? When shall I joyfully drink the nectar of your charm through the chalices of my eyes? I will smell the sweet fragrance of your limbs and my body will be filled with delight. When will you mercifully give me the nectarous remnants of your food? Receiving them, this new kiṅkarī will consider herself blessed. You are my silent prayer, my austerity and my meditation. Since birth, I have known no one but you. Please let me serve you wherever you sport with your lover and your friends. Weeping, poor Kṛṣṇadāsa holds a straw in his teeth. Please fulfill my desire, O fair one.”

     Śrīla Ṭhākura Mahāśaya, the embodiment of prema, is vowing to weep longingly for a vision of the golden-hued Śrī Rādhā. Crying in separation from one’s cherished deity is the best way to get a vision of the deity, and such crying is also most enjoyable. Crying in separation from ordinary friends and relatives of the world is miserable; but crying for premamayī Śrī Rādhārāṇī is of the nature of joy and pleasure. The Gosvāmīs have designated this feeling of separation as a rasa. Prema has two forms: union and separation. It goes without saying that when prema is an ingredient, a type of enjoyment will be deposited even in the feeling of separation. Śrīmat Sanātana Gosvāmipāda has ascertained in Śrī-Bṛhad-Bhāgavatāmṛtam 1.7.126 that the enjoyment of viraha-rasa (separation) is greater and more plentiful than even the joy of union.

tathāpi sambhoga-sukhād api stutaḥ

sa ko’py anirvācyatamo manoramaḥ |

pramoda-rāśiḥ pariṇāmato dhruvaṁ

tatra sphuret tad-rasikaika-vedyaḥ ||

     “There is no doubt profound misery in the terrible grief and anxiety of one burning in the fire of separation from a loved one. Still, upon reflection of the matter, it seems that the misery born of separation is more praiseworthy than even the joy of union, because ultimately some indescribably delightful pleasure appears within it. This is only knowable by a rasika person who feels separation from Śrī Kṛṣṇa.” Śrīla Ṭhākura Mahāśaya is therefore revealing his desire to cry longingly for a vision of Śrī Rādhārāṇī.

     Then he says, jaladhara ḍhara ḍhara, aṅga ati manohara, rūpe bhubana parakāśa. Śrīla Ṭhākura Mahāśaya is not desiring to see Śrī Rādhārāṇī alone; he wants to cry longingly for a vision of yugala-kiśora Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa. Therefore, in the last half of this verse he describes the sweetness of Śrī Śyāmasundara’s form. Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s beautiful body, which is the color of a new raincloud, is radiant, charming and beautiful. The example is given that Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s incomparable complexion bears several similarities with a new raincloud. We see the following in the words of Śrīman Mahāprabhu in Śrī-Caitanya-Caritāmṛta, Antya-Līlā 15.64-68:

naba-ghana snigdha-barṇa,        dalitāñjana-cikkaṇa, 

indībara-nindi-sukomala |

jini’ upamāna-gaṇa,        hare sabāra netra mana,

kṛṣṇa-kānti parama prabala ||

kaha sakhi ki kari upāya |

kṛṣṇādbhuta balāhaka,        mora netra-cātaka,

nā dekhi piyāse mari yāya ||

saudāminī pītāmbara,         sthira rahe nirantara,

muktāhāra baka-pāñti bhāla |

indra-dhanu śikhi-pākhā,        upare diyāche dekhā,

āra dhanu baijayantī-māla ||

muralīra kala-dhvani,        madhura garjana śuni,

bṛndābane nāce mauracaya |

akalaṅka pūrṇa-kala,        lābaṇya jyotsnā jhalamala,

citra-candrera tāhāte udaya ||

līlāmṛta bariṣaṇe,        siñce caudda-bhubane,

hena megha yabe dekhā dila |

durdaiba-jhañjhā-pabane,        megha nila anya-sthāne,

mare cātaka pīte nā pāila ||

     The meaning is that although the poets have likened Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s complexion to a new raincloud, ground collyrium, a blue lotus and so on, in truth, his complexion is incomparable. Having defeated all analogies, he steals with his own amazing power the eyes and mind of one who sees him. In the example of a cloud, it says that Śrī Kṛṣṇa is an extraordinary cloud and his yellow clothing is lightning; but lightning of the world is inconstant. In this amazing cloud, the lightning in the form of his yellow cloth is permanent. His pearl necklace is a row of beautiful white herons on the chest of this cloud. The peacock-feather crown on his head and his garland of wildflowers are rainbows. The soft tones of his muralī flute, the enchanter of the three worlds, are the sweet rumblings of this astonishing cloud. When the peacocks of Vṛndāvana see this cloud and hear its thunder, they spread their tail feathers and dance in joy. Above this cloud, his flawless, full-moon face always remains risen, shimmering with moonlight charm. An ordinary cloud soaks the earth with showers of rainwater, but this amazing Kṛṣṇa-cloud soaks the fourteen worlds with showers of the nectar of his pastimes. The thirsty eyes of the gopīs are cātakī birds longing for a drop of the beauty of this amazing cloud. 

     Śrīla Ṭhākura Mahāśaya says, sei ḍhala ḍhala, meaning, the body of playful and charming Śrī Kṛṣṇa, which is the hue of a dark new raincloud, is very captivating. It is his nature to steal the minds of everyone in the world; for this reason, one of his names is Śyāma. śyāyate gacchati mano’sminn iti śyāmaḥ. The one in whose direction all minds go is named Śyāma. puruṣa yoṣit kibā sthābara jaṅgama; sarba-cittākarṣaka sākṣāt manmatha-madana (Śrī-Caitanya-Caritāmṛta, Madhya 8.139). The entire world is attracted by the transcendental beauty, sweetness, form and rasa of Śyāmasundara, the embodiment of joyful pastimes and enchanter of the god of love. The contemplative rasika devotees of the world are unable to remain tranquil because of that powerful attraction. When they arrive in Śrī Vṛndāvana, the līlā-dhāma of that transcendental cloud bank of sweetness, Śyāmasundara, they get to see śyāmera rūpe bhubana parakāśa, his earthly manifestation in the form of Śyāma. Those who become submerged in that ocean of beauty try to describe it, but language falls short. Still, that world-illuminating dark form awakens a great excitation in their hearts, so they must say something. Bathed in tears, that form-enchanted premika (in Śrī-Kṛṣṇa-Karṇāmṛtam 92) said,

madhuraṁ madhuraṁ vapur asya vibhor

madhuraṁ madhuraṁ vadanaṁ madhuram |

madhu-gandhi madhu-smitam etad aho 

madhuraṁ madhuraṁ madhuraṁ madhuram ||

     “Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s body is sweeter than sweet; his face is even sweeter. His fragrance is sweet; his smile is sweet. Ah! Sweet, sweet, sweet, sweet!”