Śrī-Rādhā-Rasa-Sudhā-Nidhiḥ 19 (comm. by Śrī Anantadāsa Bābājī Mahārāja)

दृष्ट्वैव चम्पकलतेव चमत्कृताङ्गी 

वेणुध्वनिं क्व च निशम्य च विह्वलाङ्गी ।

सा श्यामसुन्दर-गुणैरनुगीयमानैः 

प्रीता परिष्वजतु मां वृषभानुपुत्री ॥ १९ ॥

dṛṣṭvaiva campaka-lateva camat-kṛtāṅgī 

veṇu-dhvaniṁ kva ca niśamya ca vihvalāṅgī |

sā śyāmasundara-guṇair anugīyamānaiḥ 

prītā pariṣvajatu māṁ vṛṣabhānu-putrī || 19 ||

“When Śrī Rādhā hears the sound of the flute, her body becomes like an astonished and bewildered campaka creeper. May the daughter of Vṛṣabhānu be pleased by my singing of Śyāmasundara’s virtues. May she notice me. May she embrace me.”     

Śrī Rādhā Astonished by the Sound of Kṛṣṇa’s Flute

Rasa-Varṣiṇī-Vyākhyā: In the previous verse, Śrīpāda received a revelation of Śrī Rādhā’s sweet qualities while he was in sādhaka consciousness. Even the sādhaka state is very pleasant. One must be humble and eager to experience Śrī Bhagavān’s sweet forms, qualities and pastimes. For this reason, even his nitya-siddha companions desire to taste the nectar of sādhanā. Śrī Bhagavān also wants the bhakta to taste this sādhanā-rasa. He said to Śrī Līlāśuka, “Living as a sādhaka in Vṛndāvana is blissful. I shall cause you to experience that joy.” The virahī-sādhaka obtains the state of a proṣita-bhartṛkā, a woman whose husband has gone abroad. Such a woman does not visit others’ homes, attend community festivals or keep her hair or clothing tidy. Rather, she sits at home and cries, feeling acutely her husband’s absence. In the same way, the virahī-sādhaka experiences separation from Śrī Bhagavān. This condition deeply softens and sanctifies the sādhaka’s heart and makes him eager to experience Bhagavān’s mādhurya. The beauty and sweetness of the profound state of rādhā-dāsya, feeling oneself to be the servant of Śrī Rādhā, is incomparable. This is the highest experience of rasa-brahma (spiritual delight). Even the prayers of one in the sādhaka state are wonderfully sweet.

hari hari! āra ki emana daśā haba |

kabe bṛṣabhānu pure, āhirī gopera ghare, tanayā haiyā janamiba ||

jābaṭe āmāra kabe, e pāṇi-grahaṇa habe, basati kariba kabe tāya |

sakhīra parama-śreṣṭha, ye tāhāra haya preṣṭha, sebana kariba tāṅra pāya ||

teṅho kṛpābān haiyā, rātula-caraṇe laiyā, āmāre karibe samarpaṇa |

saphala haibe daśā, puribe manera āśā, sebi doṅhāra yugala-caraṇa ||

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doṅhā mukha-candra dekhi, juḍābe tāpita āṅkhi, nayane bahibe aśru-dhāra || ityādi

“Hari! Hari! Will I ever reach such a state? When shall I be born as the daughter of a cowherd in the village of Śrī Vṛṣabhānu? When shall my marriage take place in Yāvaṭa? When shall I make my residence there and serve Śrī Lalitā and her beloved Śrī Rūpa Mañjarī? Being merciful, they will offer me at Śrī Rādhā’s crimson feet. My life will be successful, all my hopes will be fulfilled and I will serve Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet. Seeing their moonlike faces, my burning eyes will be cooled by a stream of tears.” (Śrī-Prārthanā 31)

Overwhelmed by emotion, Śrīpāda began to cry, pleading for Śrī Rādhā, the ocean of good qualities, to appear within his heart. Suddenly a vision came. It was evening. Śrīpāda, in his kiṅkarī form, was engaged in serving Śrīmatī in Yāvaṭa. The sound of Śyāmasundara’s flute arose in a distant forest, resonating the low, sweet tone of the all-attractive kāma-bīja-mantra. se dhvani caudike dhāya, aṇḍa-bhedī baikuṇṭhe yāya, bale paiśe jagatera kāṇe. sabā mātoyāla kari, balātkāre āne dhari, biśeṣata yubatīra gaṇe. dhvani baḍa uddhata, patibratāra bhāṅge brata, patikola haite ṭāni āne. baikuṇṭhera lakṣmī-gaṇe, ye bā kare ākarṣaṇe, tāra āge kebā gopī-gaṇe. “That sound runs in all directions, pierces the universe and goes to Vaikuṇṭha. By its great power, it enters everyone’s ears, intoxicates and captures them all, especially the young women. That sound is so powerful that it breaks the vows of devoted wives and pulls them from the laps of their husbands. It attracts even the Lakṣmīs of Vaikuṇṭha, not to speak of the gopīs.” (Śrī-Caitanya-Caritāmṛta, Madhya 21.141-142) Kṛṣṇa’s flute is sounding Rādhā’s name! “Come, come” it calls. The sound of the flute is Kṛṣṇa’s unique mādhurya. Śrīmat Jīva Gosvāmipāda has said, kṛṣṇa-mādhuryasya premaika-svādyatvam. “Only through prema is Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s sweetness realized.” In a life devoid of prema, there is no experience of Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s mādhurya. Moreover, it is not that all premika-bhaktas will get the same experience of Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s sweetness. yasya yāvat premā sa tāvat śrī-kṛṣṇa-mādhuryam āsvādayati, na tu sarve samānam. (Śrīla Viśvanātha) “The amount of prema one has determines the amount of Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s mādhurya one tastes.” Prema is at its highest level in Śrī Rādhārāṇī. Therefore, she also has the greatest capacity for tasting Kṛṣṇa’s sweetness. rādhā-dhairya-dharādharendra-damane dambholir unmīlati. (Śrī Rūpapāda) “The sound of Kṛṣṇa’s flute can pulverize Śrī Rādhā’s mountain of composure like a thunderbolt.” Simply by hearing the sound of his flute, Śrī Rādhā loses her composure. She becomes motionless. Her body is like an astonished campaka creeper. The wonder of mahābhāva within her heart becomes manifest in her body. When she hears the flute, she becomes astonished as though struck by a thunderbolt. This astonishment is the result of tasting rasa. rase sāraś camatkāro yaṁ vinā na raso rasaḥ. “If, when experiencing something, there is no state of wonder, that cannot be called rasa.” Śrīmatī feels astonished and bewildered. Her body becomes numb from the stupor produced by sāttvika-vikāras (ecstatic transformations). She must be brought back to consciousness so she can meet with Śyāmasundara. Her body is like an astonished campaka creeper, but with an extraordinary quality. Though an ordinary campaka creeper brightens the forest by its beautiful golden color, it remains far from the touch of a clever bee greedy for nectar. The nectar of a campaka flower is bitter, so the bee will not be attracted to it. Nevertheless, Śrī Rādhā is a campaka creeper with an amazing quality and Śrī Kṛṣṇa is a bee who is eager to drink her nectar, so he is trying to attract her to himself through his flute-tone humming. But who will revive his benumbed Śrī Rādhā, who is his mūla-śakti, or principal power, and bring her to him? By Śrī Rādhārāṇī’s mercy, her kiṅkarī is most expert in this matter. Her songs about Śyāmasundara’s sweet and loving pastimes awaken Śrīmatī’s mind and invigorate her body. When the kiṅkarī sees Śyāmasundara’s līlā, she paints it on the canvas of her own heart with the brush of love. Then, like a skilled artist, she tries to enliven Śrī Rādhā’s consciousness by painting those same pictures on the canvas of Śrī Rādhā’s heart. What wonderful skills the blessed maidservants of Śrī Rādhā have! Descriptions of līlā cause that līlā to appear before the eyes of one who has bhāva. Śrī Rādhā could not understand whether she was hearing or seeing the līlā. As her bewilderment passed, she slowly regained consciousness. When Śrīman Mahāprabhu, in the mood of Śrī Rādhā, became overwhelmed by separation from Śrī Kṛṣṇa, songs about kṛṣṇa-līlā were the only thing that would bring him back to consciousness.

utkaṭa biyoga-duḥkha yabe bāhirāya | 

tabe ye baikalya prabhura barṇana nā yāya ||

rāmānandera kṛṣṇa-kathā svarūpera gāna | 

biraha-bedanāya prabhura rākhaye parāṇa ||

dine prabhu nānā-saṅge haya anyamanā | 

rātri-kāle bāḍe prabhura biraha-bedanā ||

tāṅra sukha-hetu saṅge rahe dui-janā | 

kṛṣṇa-rasa-śloka-gīte karena sāntvanā ||

“There are no words to describe Mahāprabhu’s agitation when his agony of separation from Kṛṣṇa appeared externally. Rāmānanda’s stories about Kṛṣṇa, along with Svarūpa Dāmodara’s songs, kept Mahāprabhu alive at such times. In the daytime, he associated with various people and was preoccupied with other thoughts, but at night his suffering increased. To comfort and console him, the two devotees stayed with him, chanting verses and singing songs filled with kṛṣṇa-rasa.” (Śrī-Caitanya-Caritāmṛta, Antya 6.5-8)

In the form of a sakhī devoted to sevā, Śrīpāda brought Śrī Rādhā out of her stupor with a sprinkling of Kṛṣṇa’s sweet līlā-rasa. Śrīmatī got the strength to complete her journey to meet with Śyāmasundara! Her kiṅkarī was the physician who cured her of the disease of separation from Śyāma. Śrīmatī had personally taught her all these skills of sevā. Jubilant, Śrī Rādhā was thinking that the sweetness of Śyāma’s flute had overwhelmed her and made her incapable of going to meet him. By assisting Śrī Rādhā in accomplishing that, the kiṅkarī had done incomparable sevā. Satisfied by such service, Śrīmatī decided to reward her, so she glanced toward the kiṅkarī and smiled. So much mercy was showered upon the kiṅkarī by those beautiful eyes! Filled with affection, Śrīmatī tenderly embraced her and held her to her bosom. The dāsī was pleased to receive such a reward. Her merciful svāminī had given herself to the kiṅkarī in the form of an embrace. Who is more merciful than this? Śrīpāda is getting visions of this līlā, one after another.

Śrī-Śrī-Gaura-Govinda-Līlāmṛta Guṭikā 26

The cooking was complete. When Yaśomatī Mā went to the kitchen to see the finished preparations, Rohiṇī Mā praised “Nectar Hands” Śrī Rādhā’s cooking and showed Yaśodā the various kinds of rice, vegetables and sweets kept in vessels on a clean table. Astonished at the sight of all those fragrant, beautiful and delightful rices, vegetables, sweets and baked foods, Yaśodā Mā asked, “How have you prepared so many beautiful and delectable dishes in such a short time?” Śrī Rohiṇīdevī replied, “This is a quality of Śrī Rādhā’s hands: whatever she touches becomes like nectar.” When Śrī Rādhā heard the description of her skill in cooking, she bowed her head in modesty. Yaśomatī Mā’s heart melted with affection after seeing Rādhā’s body wet with perspiration from her hard work. She instructed the dāsīs to fan Rādhā and then went somewhere else. The sādhaka-dāsī removed Śrīmatī’s cooking dress, wiped her body with a soft, moist cloth and began to fan her. Mātā directed Rohiṇīdevī to take a little of each of the foods for Śrī Nārāyaṇa’s offering and then sent Kamala Dāsa to invite Kṛṣṇa, Balarāma and their friends to come and eat. Meanwhile, Yaśomatī Mā directed Madhumaṅgala to offer tulasī and fragrant water to Śrī Nārāyaṇa along with the foods provided by Rohiṇīdevī.

Navadvīpa: Mahāprabhu’s State of Mind after Hearing about Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa’s Meal

In Navadvīpa, Śrīman Mahāprabhu and his companions were absorbed in vraja-bhāva as they listened to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Meanwhile, Īśāna Dāsa arrived, having been sent by Śacī Mātā. He said, “O Gauracandra, the food has been prepared for Śrī Nārāyaṇa. Mā is asking you to come for the offering.” Hearing that, Mahāprabhu roared and returned to his external state along with his companions. Paṇḍita Gosvāmī ended his recitation of the Bhāgavata. Śrīman Mahāprabhu and his companions then went to Śrī Nārāyaṇa’s assembly hall and began to sing the bhoga-ārati-kīrtana. Śrī Gadādhara Paṇḍita Gosvāmī offered the food to Śrī Nārāyaṇa along with water and tulasī, according to the rules. Understanding Mahāprabhu’s mind, Svarūpa Gosvāmī began to sing verses about Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa’s meal. Hearing this, Mahāprabhu was attacked by sāttvika-vikāras like tears and goosebumps and was overcome by vraja-bhāva. The bhaktas also became absorbed in their respective siddha-svarūpas and sank into vraja-rasa.

Vrajadhāma: Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa Take Their Meals and Rest

After Śrī Nārāyaṇa’s meal was finished in Vraja, Śrī Madhumaṅgala offered tāmbūla to him and then had him lie down. Meanwhile, Kamala Dāsa brought Śrī Rāma, Śrī Kṛṣṇa and their sakhas to take their meals. After washing their hands and faces, they all entered the dining hall, which was scented with the smoke of fine aguru incense. Kṛṣṇa and Baladeva enjoyed eating with their friends as they sat on beautiful seats at golden tables with golden pitchers of fragrant water placed here and there. Śrīdāma and Subala sat on Kṛṣṇa’s left, Baladeva on his right and Madhumaṅgala in front. Some of the other sakhas sat on his left, some on his right and some in front. First, Mā Yaśomatī gave Balarāma, Kṛṣṇa and their friends delicious drinks, made from coconut water and sugarcane juice, that were brought by Citra Sakhī. Yaśodā had invited the mothers of Kṛṣṇa’s friends, and with deep parental love they brought sweets and cooked foods for Kṛṣṇa. Mā Yaśodā brought the foods on a golden platter and distributed them with great respect. Then everyone happily began to eat. Śrī Rādhā had brought a sweet called gaṅgājala from home for Kṛṣṇa. At Rādhā’s signal, Raṅgadevī gave it to Yaśodā and she put a portion on each person’s plate. As Kṛṣṇa and his friends were eating in a jovial mood, he glanced once toward Śrī Rādhā. Her sakhīs saw this and were delighted. Then Yaśodā Mā began to speak as she pointed out the different foods with her forefinger. “O child! This preparation is very good. This one is sweet and these are delicious. Eat some of these.” Kṛṣṇa smiled as he took from his own plate the food that each friend liked the most and then gave it to him. 

Noticing that Kṛṣṇa was eating slowly and Yaśodā was intently engaged in serving food, the brāhmaṇa jokester Madhumaṅgala said to her, “Mother! Kṛṣṇa is not eating anything. Just give all those foods to me. After eating, I will embrace him and his body will be nourished too. Because of his poor appetite, Kṛṣṇa is not able to eat foods cooked in ghee, so give those to me. Give him some easily digested rice and vegetables.” After hearing Madhumaṅgala’s words, Kṛṣṇa laughed and took five or six handfuls of cooked food from his own plate and filled Madhumaṅgala’s, saying, “Eat!” In great joy, Baṭu repeatedly struck his left elbow against his side and said, “Friend! Look at this. I’m eating everything.” Stuffing his mouth with two or three mouthfuls at once, he said, “Mā! Please give me a little yogurt.” When Mātā left to get some yogurt, Baṭu said to the sakhas, “Look there; a monkey is dancing in hopes of getting some cooked food.” As soon as they heard that, the sakhas all raised their heads and looked in that direction. Baṭu quickly took the foods from his own plate and placed it on theirs. Then he bragged, “Look; I’ve eaten everything!” When he saw Yaśodā enter with the yogurt bowl in her hand, he said, “Mā, I ate all the foods even without yogurt, so now please give me a big bowl of sweet-rice.” Then Rohiṇī Mā began to serve sweet-rice, rice and vegetables, tender breads, sweets and so on that Śrī Rādhā had brought from the storeroom. Seeing that the foods were tasty and abundant, Baṭu laughed again and said, “On the one hand, we have these amazing foods cooked by Lakṣmī herself. On the other, we have all these cowherds who know nothing about the flavors of foods.” Then Śrīdāma laughed and said, “Hey Baṭu! You became a brāhmaṇa for the sake of your belly. Now quickly fill it with food.”

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