वृन्दाटवी-प्रकट-मन्मथकोटिमूर्तेः
कस्यापि गोकुलकिशोर-निशाकरस्य ।
सर्वस्वसम्पुटमिव स्तनशातकुम्भ-
कुम्भद्वयं स्मर मनो वृषभानुपुत्र्याः ॥ ३४ ॥
vṛndāṭavī-prakaṭa-manmatha-koṭi-mūrteḥ
kasyāpi gokula-kiśora-niśākarasya |
sarvasva-sampuṭam iva stana-śāta-kumbha-
kumbha-dvayaṁ smara mano vṛṣabhānu-putryāḥ || 34 ||
“O mind, meditate on the golden juglike breasts of Śrī Rādhā, which are like a jewel box containing all of Kṛṣṇa’s possessions. He is the indescribable young moon of Gokula who manifests in Śrī Vṛndāvana as the enchanter of countless gods of love.”
The Jewel Box Holding Kṛṣṇa’s Wealth
Rasa-Varṣiṇī-Vyākhyā: Although Śrīpāda is a nitya-siddha-parikara, in the previous verse he renounced everything and resolved to remember the dust from Śrī Rādhārāṇī’s lotus feet like a sādhaka in whom rati has not yet appeared. The sweet hum of rādhā-dāsya is present even in sādhaka-consciousness. This is the nature of rādhā-dāsya. Such a sweet mood of devotion cannot be found anywhere else. Because Śrīpāda is a recipient of Mahāprabhu’s exclusive mercy, he has become submerged in the glorious rasa of Śrī Rādhā’s foot-dust. He is deeply absorbed in his svarūpa. His mind goes nowhere but Svāminījī’s feet. If the bee of one’s mind gets a taste of the nectar of her feet, it stays submerged in it forever. Śrīmad Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmipāda has said, yan-mādhurī-divya-sudhā-rasābdheḥ smṛteḥ kaṇenāpy atilolitātmā (Vraja-Vilāsa-Stava 3). “Her sweetness is like an ocean of divine nectar, by remembering only a drop of which, I have been stricken with extreme thirst.” The ācāryas are our role models; we must shape our bhajana-life by following them. Their devotion to Śrī Rādhā is incomparable. Svāminī’s lotus feet are everything to them. How can I show my face to Svāminī if I bear various kinds of obsessions with the body and related things? One must be humble to dedicate the rest of his life to the embodiment of mahābhāva. The Gosvāmīs’ instruction is to give up everything and take exclusive shelter at Śrī Rādhā’s lotus feet. braja-pura-banitāra, caraṇa-āśraya sāra, kara mana ekānta kariyā (Prema-Bhakti-Candrikā 68). “The best thing is to fix your mind on the lotus feet of the girls of Vraja and take refuge in them.” One must take refuge wholeheartedly. It is impossible to accept exclusive shelter without being absorbed in one’s svarūpa. Śrīpāda’s citta (mind, heart) is devoted to mahābhāva. It seems that Śrī Rādhārāṇī has pervaded his citta and taken her seat there. By the power of Śrī Rādhā’s foot-dust, a stream of divine visions appeared before the devoted Śrīpāda.
It is the end of night (niśānta-kāla). How beautiful are the delightful bowers of Vṛndāvana! Śrī Yugala are sleeping in the bower house, bound in close embrace. This is not like worldly sleep; it is the languor of rasa. The kiṅkarīs have awakened and begun their respective sevās. Having been touched by yugala-rasa, a gentle, fragrant breeze brings joy to everyone’s heart. After placing the articles for Śrī Yugala’s sevā in the appropriate places, the kiṅkarīs gazed at the unparalleled beauty of the youthful couple through an opening in the bower, filling their hearts with the joy of love. At Vṛndā’s signal, the parrots and mynahs awoke the couple with their soft and sweet singing. Śrī Yugala slowly gave up their sleep and sat lazily on the bed. It seemed that the total beauty of the three worlds had been gathered in one place. All their limbs were loose and relaxed. Their clothing and ornaments had been cast off. As they yawned again and again, it seemed as though their sweetness and beauty were overflowing. They each licked the honey of the other’s beauty through the corners of their eyes. To drive Śrī Yugala’s drowsiness away, one kiṅkarī placed spongy balls of nectar in their mouths. Their heads were swaying gracefully like lotuses of the morning. After washing their faces with fragrant water and drying them with soft cloths, the kiṅkarīs offered tāmbūla to them. Jeweled lamps were glowing. Śrīmatī said to Śyāmasundara, “Dress and decorate me quickly; otherwise my sakhīs will arrive here soon and make fun of me.” Śyāmasundara was filled with joy by Śrīmatī’s order and he immediately began to dress her. Śrīmatī was being dressed by the embodiment of śṛṅgāra-rasa.(1) The kiṅkarīs provided the articles of clothing.
hari nija āṁcare rāi-mukha mochai kuṅkume tanu puna māji |
alakā tilaka dei siṁthi banāyai cikure kabarī puna sāji ||
mādhaba sindūra deola siṁthe |
katahuṁ yatana kari ura-pāra lekhai mṛgamada-citra suprīte(2) ||
“Hari wiped Rādhā’s face with the border of his cloth. He again rubbed kuṅkuma on her body and painted tilaka on her face. Mādhava braided her hair and applied vermilion to the center part. With great affection, he carefully drew pictures on her breasts with musk.” (Govinda Dāsa)
Meanwhile, the sakhīs entered the kuñja with their smiling faces veiled. Then Śyāmasundara drew pictures of dolphins on Śrīmatī’s breasts. The transcendental young god of love, the enchanter of countless other gods of love, has appeared in Śrī Vṛndāvana. He is known as Madana-Mohana when he is with Śrī Rādhā and is influenced by her rasa. rādhā-saṅge yadā bhāti tadā madana-mohanaḥ; anyathā viśva-moho’pi svayaṁ madana-mohitaḥ (Govinda-Līlāmṛtam 8.32). “When he is in the nectarous presence of Śrī Rādhā, he is Madana-Mohana (the enchanter of the god of love). Otherwise, without Śrī Rādhā, the one who enchants the whole world is himself enchanted by Madana.” Śrīpāda Līlāśuka has said,
cāturyaika-nidāna-sīma-capalāpāṅga-cchaṭā-mantharaṁ
lāvaṇyāmṛta-vīci-lolita-dṛśaṁ lakṣmī-kaṭākṣādṛtam |
kālindī-pulināṅgaṇa-praṇayinaṁ kāmāvatārāṅkuraṁ
bālaṁ nīlam amī vayaṁ madhurima-svārājyam ārādhnumaḥ ||
“We worship that blue adolescent boy who is the ultimate embodiment of boundless intelligence and skill; who slows the gait of the gopīs with the sparkle of his sidelong glance; whose restless gaze is like a wave of nectar; who is warmly welcomed by the side-glance of Śrī Rādhā; who is fond of the sandy banks of the Yamunā; who is the origin of all the avatāras of love and the sovereign of sweetness.” (Śrī-Kṛṣṇa-Karṇāmṛtam 3) Śrīla Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī says the following in his Sāraṅga-Raṅgadā commentary on the phrase kāmāvatārāṅkuram in this verse: prākṛtāprākṛta-kandarpa-nidāna-vṛndāvanābhinava-kandarpam ity arthaḥ. āgamādau kāma-gāyatryā kāma-bījena ca tasya tad-rūpenopāsyatvāt. koṭi-madana-vimohanāśeṣa-cittākarṣaka-sahaja-madhura-taralāvaṇyāmṛtāpārārṇavena mahānubhāva-cayenānubhūyamāna-tat-tan-mahābhāva-nivahena śrī-madana-gopāla-rūpenādhunāpi vṛndāvane virājamānatvāc ca. “Śyāmasundara, Vṛndāvana’s youthful god of love, is the source of all mundane and transcendent gods of love. The scriptures prescribe that he should be worshiped with the kāma-bīja and kāma-gāyatrī. He is the enchanter of countless gods of love and the attractor of all creatures. He is a boundless ocean of the sweet nectar of natural beauty and charm. The high-minded ones experience his mādhurya through mahābhāva, the topmost level of prema. He is forever present in Śrī Vṛndāvana in the form of Śrīman Madana-Gopāla.”
The transcendental young god of love is carefully painting pictures of dolphins on Śrī Rādhā’s golden juglike breasts. Those golden pots are like storage containers for his most precious possessions. It is as though all the treasures of his life are kept there. This realization awoke in the minds of the sakhīs and mañjarīs after they witnessed Kṛṣṇa’s eagerness for līlā. The sādhaka also must immerse himself in this sweet thought. Those who become agitated by masculine desires during meditation do not have the qualification for the most confidential pastimes. tatrāpi parama-śreṣṭha-śrī-rādhā-saṁvalita-līlāmaya-tad-bhajanaṁ tu paramatamam eveti svataḥ sidhyati. kintu rahasya-līlā tu pauruṣa-vikāravad-indriyaiḥ pitṛ-putra-dāsa-bhāvaiś ca nopāsyā—svīya-bhāva-virodhāt (Bhakti-Sandarbha 338 Anuḥ). “Among all types of worship, service to the charming Śrī Govinda along with the most beautiful Śrī Rādhārāṇī is the best. However, those who become agitated by masculine desires are not qualified to meditate on Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Govinda’s most intimate pastimes. Nor can one be in the mood of a father, son or servant because it would be incompatible with his mañjarī-bhāva.” Śrī Vṛndāvana’s nectarous pastimes are not to be contemplated by a person with a perverted mind, polluted by lust. I want a mind moist with bhakti-rasa. I want to forget my body and things related and identify with my svarūpa. ātmānaṁ bhāvayet tatra tāsāṁ madhye manoramām rūpa-yauvana-sampannāṁ kiśorīṁ pramadākṛtim. “The sādhaka should think of himself as a beautiful adolescent cowherd girl among Śrī Rādhā’s sakhīs and mañjarīs in a bower in Vṛndāvana.” If his svarūpa-consciousness has been awakened, he may blissfully meditate on Śrī Rādhā’s breasts. In his kiṅkarī-form, Śrīpāda is watching Kṛṣṇa paint figures on Śrīmatī’s breasts as though they were vessels holding his most precious possessions. All the senses of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the moon of Gokula, are immersed in Śrī Rādhārāṇī. Śrīmad Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmipāda has written, vraja-candrendriya-grāma-viśrāma-vidhu-śālikā (Śata-Nāma-Stotra). “Śrī Rādhā is the resting place of Gokulacandra’s senses.” While displaying his expertise in painting pictures of dolphins, Śrī Hari freely boasted to the sakhīs about his previous night’s pastimes with Śrī Rādhā, causing her to contract her eyes in embarrassment. Suddenly, Śrīpāda’s mystic vision ended and he felt distressed. In sādhaka-consciousness, he said, kumbha-dvayaṁ smara mano vṛṣabhānu-putryāḥ. “O mind, meditate on Śrī Rādhā’s golden juglike breasts!” The rāgānugīya-sādhaka’s favorite sādhana is to perform mental service during smaraṇa. Why are you hesitant to meditate on Śrī Rādhārāṇī’s breasts? One should meditate on something pleasant. yugala-vilāsa smṛti-sāra. “The pastimes of Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa are the highest meditation.” The sādhaka should immerse himself daily in contemplating his siddha-svarūpa; otherwise he will not be able to meditate on yugala-vilāsa. Hearing about one’s favorite līlās, meditating on them and mentally living in Vraja are the most important internal sādhanas. If a sādhaka wants to easily make his life peaceful through a meditation that flows like a river, then he must hear and recite books that describe the nectar of Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa’s sweetness. This will nourish his cherished practice of meditation. The charming pastimes will spontaneously appear in a mind and heart purified by śravaṇa-kīrtana. In the next verse, Śrīpāda once again obtains the good fortune of relishing the beauty of Śrī Rādhā’s breasts through līlā.
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1. Śṛṅgāra means the erotic sentiment as well as elegant dress suited to amorous activities.
2. Another reading here is citraka pāṁte.
