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Śrī-Rādhā-Rasa-Sudhā-Nidhiḥ 29 (comm. by Śrī Anantadāsa Bābājī Mahārāja)

 

श्रीराधिकां निजविटेन सहालपन्तीं

शोणाधर-प्रसृमरच्छविमञ्जरीकाम् ।

सिन्दूर-संवलित-मौक्तिक-पङ्क्तिशोभां

यो भावयेद्दशनकुन्दवतीं स धन्यः ॥ २९ ॥

śrī-rādhikāṁ nija-viṭena sahālapantīṁ

śoṇādhara-prasṛmara-cchavi-mañjarīkām |

sindūra-saṁvalita-mauktika-paṅkti-śobhāṁ

yo bhāvayed daśana-kundavatīṁ sa dhanyaḥ || 29 ||

“Blessed is the one who thinks of Śrī Rādhikā, whose teeth are like jasmines. She speaks to her lover with lustrous ruby lips. She is adorned with vermilion and a string of pearls in the part of her hair.”

Śrī Rādhā Has Teeth Like Jasmines

Rasa-Varṣiṇī-Vyākhyā: Śrīpāda has revealed in three verses the incomparably sweet glories of Śrī Rādhā. He spoke of her greatness while absorbed in his svarūpa; therefore, his glorification was ornamented with sweetness. If one is to taste śuddha-prema, he must become indifferent to aiśvarya and take shelter of mādhurya. Those who want something from their chosen deity glance in the direction of aiśvarya. A vraja-premika thinks, “I want you to be happy.” The premika only desires the happiness of his deity. brajera biśuddha-prema, yena jāmbunada-hema, ātma-sukhera yāṅha nāhi gandha (Śrī-Caitanya-Caritāmṛta, Antya 20.62). “The love of Vraja is pure like gold from the Jambu River. There is not even a trace of the desire for one’s own happiness.” Rādhā’s kiṅkarīs always think about how they can make Yugala-Kiśora happy. eita niṣkāma-prema āsvādana kare, yugalera sebā-rase sadāi bihare (Muralī-Vilāsa). “Experiencing this pure love, they always delight in serving Śrī Yugala.” They are at the highest level of vraja-prema, but Śrīpāda Kavi Karṇapūra has described the prema of even the clouds of Vraja: Rādhā is mad with passion. The messenger called Anurāga has brought her to meet her lover at the gate of the bower. Kṛṣṇa is already inside and her sakhīs have arrived. Seeing Śyāma in the kuñja, Rādhā says to Anurāga, “Why did you bring me here?” Having second thoughts, she starts to return home. Her lover feels anxious; it is their first meeting. No matter how much the sakhīs try, they cannot bring them together. Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s ocean of yearning billows; the sakhīs feel distressed. A Vṛndāvana cloud thinks, “Let me try!” A pleasant shower falls on the forest. Suddenly the cloud calls out in a loud, rumbling voice. Frightened, Śrīmatī puts her arms around Kṛṣṇa’s neck. The sakhīs say, “O cloud, our blessed friend! Today you are more expert in yugala-sevā than we are.” One can enjoy the sweetness of Vraja with the help of pure love. The sādhaka-bhaktas are infused with mañjarī-bhāva through their allegiance to the nitya-kiṅkarīs. braja-pura banitāra, caraṇa āśraya sāra, kara mana ekānta kariyā (Prema-Bhakti-Candrikā 68). “O mind! The feet of the girls of Vraja are the best shelter. Devote yourself exclusively to them.” The Gosvāmīs are mañjarīs in Vraja. Being very merciful, they have stored the rasa of their realizations in books. By relishing these books, the sādhaka will be blessed with a touch of yugala-mādhurī.

By Śrīmatī’s mercy, a vision of līlā has appeared to Śrīpāda in his siddha-svarūpa. He sees a charming forest bower in front of him. There, Śrī Rādhā sits in a cottage and sulks, annoyed with her lover. In a huff, she has left Śrī Kṛṣṇa in the meeting bower and come to this one. To placate Śrīmatī, Kṛṣṇa sends a viṭa named Kaḍāra to her. A viṭa is a particular type of helper of the nāyaka.(1)

veśopacāra-kuśalo dhūrto goṣṭhī-viśāradaḥ |

kāma-tantra-kalā-vedī viṭa ity abhidhīyate |

kaḍāro bhāratī-bandhur ity ādir viṭa īritaḥ ||

“Those who appreciate rasa have given the name viṭa to a male who is expert in making garments, is mischievous, skilled in conversation and who knows about mantras and herbs that can influence women. Kaḍāra, Bhāratī-bandhu and others are known as Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s viṭa helpers.” (Śrī-Ujjvala-Nīlamaṇiḥ 2.5) When Kaḍāra arrives before Śrīmatī, he reminds her of the extraordinary power of Kṛṣṇa’s muralī flute in dispelling her indignation. “O Rādhā! Do not think that Śyāma is an ordinary person. kala-krīḍad-vaṁśī-sthagita-jagatī-yauvata-dhṛtiḥ. The sweet, muted tones of his flute destroy the composure of young women.” This is something Śrī Rādhā has also felt deeply.

yebā beṇu-kala-dhvani, ekabāra tāhā śuni, jagan-nārī-citta āulāya |

nībi-bandha paḍe khasi, binā-mūlye haya dāsī, bāulī haiyā kṛṣṇa-pāśe dhāya ||

“Whenever a woman of the world hears just once the soft, sweet sounds of Kṛṣṇa’s flute, her heart and mind become disturbed. The knot on her dress loosens, she serves him without pay and runs madly after him.” (Śrī-Caitanya-Caritāmṛta, Antya 17.46)

Kaḍāra says, “O Rādhā! I pray to you with folded hands. Do not abandon Śyāmasundara. The doe-eyed Vraja-girls never disregard my words.” Rādhā’s anger is rooted in love, so it disappears when she hears the sweet speech of the viṭa. She smiles brightly. Her ruby lips are lustrous. In verse ninety-nine, Śrīpāda has said, bimboṣṭhe nava-vidruma-cchavi. Her lips are more beautiful than coral gemstones and as red as bimba fruits. By seeing her, a great longing is aroused in the heart of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, who himself is filled with boundless mādhurya. sphurad-aruṇādhara-svādu-sudhā-rasa-kṛta-hari-mānasa-lobhām (Saṅgīta-Mādhava 2.35). “The sweet nectar of her radiant ruby lips excites desire in Śrī Hari’s mind.” A gentle smile glows from her bimba-fruit lips. mṛdu-mṛdu-hāsa-lalita-mukha-maṇḍala-kṛta-śaśī-bimba-viḍambām (ibid.). “Her sweet, smiling face is more beautiful than the moon.” yāṅhā lahu hāsa sañcāra, taṅhi taṅhi amiyā bithāra (Vidyāpati). “She spreads nectar wherever she smiles.” She is smiling as she has a pleasant conversation with Kaḍāra. The kiñkarīs are enchanted when they see her beauty. The vermilion on the part of her hair is so lustrous it seems the newly risen sun has become friends with dense darkness. A beautiful string of pearls lies in the part of her hair. It seems a garland of stars, feeling chilly, has abandoned the cold moon and taken shelter of the youthful sun. Loving anger appears in Śrī Rādhā only to please Śrī Kṛṣṇa. The actions of mahābhāva alone please Kṛṣṇa in a variety of ways. Her outer expression is contrary, but her essence is most pleasant. The taste is not in the appearance; the taste is in the essence. A sugar-candy snake does not spit venom; rather, it tastes sweet like sugar. Śrīpāda’s heart and mind are absorbed in Śrīmatī’s beauty. Suddenly, his mystic vision ended. In his external state, he said, “Blessed is one who thinks about Śrī Rādhā, whose teeth are white as jasmines.”

Or, other lexical meanings of the word viṭa are cunning, lustful and lascivious. So, nija-viṭa can mean “seeing Śrī Rādhā’s sweetness as she converses with her lustful lover.” According to this interpretation, Śrīpāda, in the form of a kiṅkarī, is serving Śrī Yugala in the meeting bower and is listening to their love-talk. It is made clear in every word of this verse how Śrīmatī’s ocean of beauty swells when she sees Śyāmasundara’s moonlike face. The sādhaka relishes the rasa of her beauty through meditation. yugala-bilāsa smṛti-sāra. “The essence of meditation is Śrī Yugala’s pastimes.” How beautiful Śrī Rādhārāṇī is! So radiant and sweet! The sādhaka’s heart and mind will be illuminated by attraction to her form. Whoever gets a taste of this reality in meditation is blessed. Whoever sees this form directly or in a vision is even more blessed.

Śrīmatī is engaged in affectionate conversation with Śyāmasundara. In Śrī-Ujjvala-Nīlamaṇiḥ, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmipāda has said, cāṭu-priyoktir ālāpaḥ. Pleasant and endearing speech is called ālāpaḥ. Śrīla Caṇḍidāsa is skilled in describing Śrīmatī’s ālāpaḥ:

baṅdhu! ki āra baliba āmi |

jībane maraṇe janame janame prāṇanātha haio tumi ||

tomāra caraṇe āmāra parāṇe bāndhila premera phāṅsi |

saba samarpiyā ekamana haiyā niścaya hailāma dāsī ||

bhābiyāchilāma e-tina bhubane āra mora keha āche |

rādhā bali keha śudhāite nāi dāṇḍāba kāhāra kāche ||

e-kule o-kule dukule gokule āpanā baliba kāya |

śītala baliyā śaraṇa lainu oduṭi kamala-pāya ||

nā ṭhelaha chale abalā akhale ye haya ucita tora |

bhābiyā dekhinu prāṇanātha bine gati ye nāhika mora ||

āṅkhira nimiṣe yadi nāhi dekhi tabe se parāṇe mari |

caṇḍīdāsa kahe—paraśa-ratana galāya gāṅthiyā pari ||

“My dear Kṛṣṇa! What more shall I say? You are the lord of my heart, in life and death, birth after birth. My heart is bound to your lotus feet with the rope of love. I have dedicated everything to you alone and have become your loyal maidservant. I pondered, ‘Whom else do I have in the three worlds? No one asks about Rādhā. With whom shall I stay? In Gokula, shall I say my body belongs in this family or that family, or both? I have taken shelter of your lotus feet because they are soothing. You should not pretend to push away a delicate and innocent girl.’ Thinking thus, I see I have no refuge but the lord of my life. If, for even a moment, I cannot see you, my heart begins to wither.” Caṇḍidāsa says, “I wear this touchstone on a string around my neck.”

Śrīla Jñāna Dāsa has also clearly described Śrī Rādhā’s pleasant and endearing speech:

baṅdhu! tomāra garabe garabinī hāma rūpasī tomāra rūpe |

hena mane laya o duṭi caraṇa sadā niye thāki buke ||

ānera āchaye aneka janā āmāra kebali tumi | 

āmāra parāṇa haite śata śata guṇe priyatama kari māni ||

bandhu, śiśukāla haite māyera sohāge sohāginī baḍa āmi |

sakhī-gaṇa māne jībana-adhika parāṇa-bandhuyā tumi ||

āmāra nayanera añjana aṅgera bhūṣaṇa tumi se kāliyā cāndā |

jñāna dāsa kahe—kāliyā-piriti āmāra antare antare bāndhā ||

“My dear Kṛṣṇa! You are the object of my pride. My mind has merged with your handsome form and I always keep your lotus feet on my chest. Among many, you are my only one. You are more dear to me than hundreds of my own lives. Since childhood, I have been the recipient of your mother’s affection. My sakhīs believe you have been my sweetheart for many lifetimes. O Kṛṣṇa! You are the collyrium on my eyes and the ornaments on my limbs.” Jñāna Dāsa says, “My heart is bound by love for Kṛṣṇa.” 

One may ask why Rādhā would speak to someone who is cunning, lustful and lascivious in such a pleasant and endearing way. A mahājana has replied by saying that such debauchery based on rasa is most enjoyable. For this reason, parakīya-bhāva has been accepted.

premāmbudhir guṇa-maṇī-khanir asya śāṭhya-

cāpalya-jaihmyam akhilaṁ ramaṇīyam eva |

premānam eva kila kāmam ivāṅganāsu 

sandarśayan svam udakarṣayad eva yas tāḥ ||

Śrī Rādhā expresses her feelings to Śrī Kṛṣṇa, who is in the form of a celestial damsel: “O friend! Vrajendranandana is an ocean of prema and a jewel mine of good qualities. All of his behaviors such as craftiness, impatience, crookedness and so on are captivating. He elevates the love of women by making prema look like lust.” (Prema-Sampuṭa 60) If Śrī Kṛṣṇa did not behave like this, the women would not be able to express their rasamaya states of prema, such as khaṇḍitā (feeling betrayed), māna (indignation), kalahāntaritā (distressed from dismissing her lover after a quarrel) and so on. For this reason, the crown jewel of rasikās Śrī Rādhā is speaking to her rascal lover in such a way.

In his kiṅkarī form, Śrīpāda has been blessed with a taste of the sweetness of Śrī Yugala’s conversation. At the same time, an experience of sevā-rasa is implied. Suddenly, his vision ended. In external consciousness, he humbly considers himself entirely unsuitable to see such beauty and sweetness. He says of the rarity of his vision, yo bhāvayed daśana-kundvatīṁ sa dhanyaḥ. “I am not qualified to experience such beauty and sweetness in meditation or thought. Blessed is the one who thinks about Śrī Rādhā, whose teeth are like jasmines, as she smiles while talking with her sweetheart.” It has also been indicated here that the sādhakas devoted to smaraṇa are grateful to the nitya-parikaras (Śrī Yugala’s eternal companions).

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1. A nāyaka is a male lover or hero in dramas. The female counterpart is a nāyikā.