VedaVyasa
Praneetha
The Mad Bhagavatam
Chapter 33
The Râsa Dance
This chapter describes Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa's rāsa dance, which He enjoyed with His beloved girlfriends in the forests along the Yamunā River.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, is most expert in the knowledge of transcendental moods. In the company of the gopīs, who were tightly bound to Him by the ropes of affection and totally dedicated to His service, the Lord expanded Himself into numerous forms. The gopīs became intoxicated with their enthusiasm to enjoy the rāsa dance, and thus they began satisfying Kṛṣṇa's senses by singing, dancing and gesturing amorously. The sweet voices of the gopīs filled all the directions.
Even after Lord Kṛṣṇa manifested Himself in numerous forms, each gopī thought He was standing next to her alone. Gradually the gopīs became fatigued from the continuous dancing and singing, and each of them placed her arm on the shoulder of the Kṛṣṇa standing beside her. Some gopīs smelled and kissed Kṛṣṇa's arm, which bore the fragrance of the lotus and was anointed with sandalwood paste. Others put Kṛṣṇa's hand on their bodies, and yet others gave Kṛṣṇa pleasure by embracing Him lovingly.
Lord Kṛṣṇa, being the Supreme Absolute Truth, is the only actual enjoyer and object of enjoyment. Although He is one without a second, He expands Himself into many forms to increase His personal pastimes. Therefore great scholars say that Kṛṣṇa's rāsa-līlā is like a child's playing with His own reflection. Śrī Kṛṣṇa is self-satisfied and fully endowed with inconceivable, transcendental opulences. When He exhibits such pastimes as the rāsa-līlā, all living beings, from Brahmā down to the blades of grass, become merged in the ocean of astonishment.
When Mahārāja Parīkṣit heard the narration of Kṛṣṇa's conjugal pastimes with the gopīs, which superficially resemble the activities of lusty, wanton persons, he expressed a doubt to the great devotee Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī. Śukadeva dispelled this doubt by stating, "Since Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the absolute enjoyer, such pastimes as these can never be contaminated by any fault. But if anyone other than the Supreme Personality of Godhead tries to enjoy such pastimes, he will suffer the same fate that someone other than Lord Rudra would suffer if he attempted to drink an ocean of poison. Moreover, even one who only thinks of imitating Lord Kṛṣṇa's rāsa-līlā will certainly suffer misfortune."
The Supreme Absolute Truth, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, is present within the hearts of all living entities as their indwelling witness. When out of His mercy He exhibits His intimate pastimes to His devotees, these activities are never besmirched by mundane imperfection. Any living being who hears of the spontaneous loving attraction the gopīs felt for Lord Kṛṣṇa will have his desires for material sense gratification destroyed at the root and will develop his natural propensity for serving the Supreme Lord, the spiritual master, and the Lord's devotees.
10.33.1
tad-ańgopacitāśiṣaḥ
(1) S'rî S'uka said: 'The gopîs, thus hearing the most charming words of the Supreme Lord gave, with their eager hearts fulfilled by [their touching] His limbs, up on the [cherished] distress of their having been deserted.
10.33.2
tatrārabhata govindo
anyonyābaddha-bāhubhiḥ
(2) Right there engaged Govinda in a dance [a râsa, or sport] in which the faithful jewels among women satisfied joined in linking their arms together.
10.33.3
rāsotsavaḥ sampravṛtto
yogeśvareṇa kṛṣṇena
autsukyāpahṛtātmanām
10.33.4
tato dundubhayo nedur
(3-4) The festive play commenced with the gopîs in a circle that was decorated with, in their midst, Krishna, the Controller of the Mystic Union, who held the women, two by two present beside Him, by their necks. At that moment was the sky crowded by hundreds of celestial carriers belonging to the denizens of heaven and their wives whose minds were carried away in the eagerness of their respect.
the following verse about the rāsa dance:
ańganām ańganām antarā mādhavo
"Lord Mādhava was situated between each pair of gopīs, and a gopī was situated between each pair of His manifestations. And Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the son of Devakī also appeared in the middle of the circle, playing upon His flute and singing."
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura points out that the gopīs, maddened by love, were unable to understand that Śrī Kṛṣṇa had expanded Himself so He could personally dance with each of them. Each gopī saw one manifestation of Kṛṣṇa. The demigods and their wives, however, could see all His different manifestations as they watched the rāsa dance from their airplanes, and thus they were completely astonished.
As stated here, Lord Kṛṣṇa's glory in dancing the rāsa dance is pure spiritual bliss. The demigods in heaven, in charge of maintaining propriety in the universe, ecstatically accepted the rāsa dance as the ultimate religious affair, completely different from the perverted reflection of romance we find in this mundane world.
10.33.5
(5) Kettledrums then resounded and a rain of flowers fell down while the chief singers of heaven with their wives sang of His immaculate glories.
10.33.6
tatrātiśuśubhe tābhir
(6) In the circle of the dance there was a great rumor of the bracelets, ankle and waist bells of the women being together with their Beloved.
10.33.7
pāda-nyāsair bhuja-vidhutibhiḥ sa-smitair bhrū-vilāsair
(7) The Supreme Lord, the son of Devakî, there with them appeared as handsomely splendid as an exquisite [blue] sapphire in the midst of golden ornaments.
according to the analogy of lightning flashing in clouds, the perspiration on the lovely faces of the gopīs resembled drops of mist, and their singing resembled thunder. The word āgranthayaḥ may also be read agranthayaḥ, meaning "loosened." This would indicate that although the gopīs began the dance with their hair and belts tightly drawn, these gradually slackened and loosened.
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī points out that the gopīs were expert at exhibiting mudrās (precise hand gestures that express feelings or convey meanings associated with the theme of a performance). Thus sometimes Kṛṣṇa and the gopīs would artistically move their interlocked arms together, and sometimes they would separate arms and exhibit mudrās to act out the meaning of the songs they were singing.
The word pāda-nyāsaiḥ indicates that the gopīs artistically and gracefully placed the steps of their dancing feet in an enchanting way, and the words sa-smitair bhrū-vilāsair indicate that the romantic movements of their eyebrows, smiling with love, were most charming to behold.
10.33.8
uccair jagur nṛtyamānā
kṛṣṇābhimarśa-muditā
(8) The way they placed their feet, by the gestures of their hands, their smiles and playful eyebrows and their bending waists; by their moving breasts, their clothes, their earrings on their necks and their perspiring faces; with the braids of their hair, their belts tied tight and their singing about Him, shone they in the role of Krishna's consorts as streaks of lightening amidst the clouds.
According to an authoritative book on music called Sańgīta-sāra, tāvanta eva rāgāḥ sūryāvatyo jīva-jātayaḥ, teṣu ṣoḍaśa-sāhasrī purā gopī-kṛtā varā: "There are as many musical rāgas as there are species of life. Among these rāgas are sixteen thousand principal ones, which were manifested by the gopīs." Thus the gopīs created sixteen thousand different rāgas, or musical modes, and these have subsequently been disseminated throughout the world. The words yad-gītenedam āvṛtam also indicate that even today devotees throughout the world sing the praises of Kṛṣṇa, following the example of the gopīs.
10.33.9
svara-jātīr amiśritāḥ
(9) Loudly sang they by whose song the entire universe is pervaded with their colored throats, dancing joyfully, delighting in their dedication to the touch of Krishna.
10.33.10
kācid rāsa-pariśrāntā
(10) One gopî together with Krishna raising [her voice relative to His] in pure tones of close harmony was praised by Him who pleased exclaimed: 'excellent, excellent!' and another one who vibrated along with a special metre He gave a lot of special attention.
The previous verse states that Śrī Kṛṣṇa honored the gopīs for their dancing and singing, and in this verse we see how the gopīs responded by dealing intimately and confidently with Him. Here a tired gopī held on to Kṛṣṇa's shoulder with her arm, resting against Him.
that the word gadā in this verse indicates a baton suitable for a dancing master. Lord Kṛṣṇa brought this item of paraphernalia to enhance His enjoyment of the rāsa dance. Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī states that the gopī mentioned here is Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, whereas the two gopīs mentioned in the previous verse are, in order, Viśākhā and Lalitā.
10.33.11
kṛṣṇasyotpala-saurabham
candanāliptam āghrāya
(11) A certain gopî [Râdhâ probably], with her bracelets and flowers slipping, stood fatigued by the dance aside and grasped with her arm the shoulder of the Master of the Ceremony ['He who holds the club'].
10.33.12
(12) Somewhere else placed one Krishna's arm, that was as fragrant as a blue lotus, upon her shoulder and smelling the sandalwood kissed she it with her hairs standing on end.
10.33.13
pārśva-sthācyuta-hastābjaḿ
(13) Some other one beautiful with the glittering of her, from the dancing, shaking earrings placed her cheek next to His and was given the bethel He had chewed.
10.33.14
gopyo labdhvācyutaḿ kāntaḿ
(14) One of them who with Krishna standing at her side was dancing and singing with tinkling ankle and waistbells, feeling tired placed Acyuta's auspicious lotushand on her breasts.
10.33.15
srasta-srajo bhramara-gāyaka-rāsa-goṣṭhyām
(15) The gopîs with His arms around their necks having attained the Infallible Lord, the Exclusive Lover of the Goddess of Fortune, as their lover, delighted in singing about Him.
10.33.16
evaḿ pariṣvańga-karābhimarśa-
yathārbhakaḥ sva-pratibimba-vibhramaḥ
(16) With the lotus flowers behind their ears, the locks of their hair decorating their cheeks, the beauty of their perspiring faces and the reverberation of the harmonious sounds of their armlets and bells, danced the gopîs, with the flowers braided in their hair scattered, to the hum of the bees together with the Supreme Lord in the arena of the dance.
"Lord Kṛṣṇa alone is the Supreme Absolute Truth, and His potencies are unlimited. All these potencies, taking personal forms, engage Lord Kṛṣṇa in His pastimes. Just as the opulent manifestation of His one supreme transcendental potency manifests all the countless potencies of the Lord, so in the rāsa dance Kṛṣṇa manifests Himself as many times as there are various potencies represented by the gopīs. Everything is Kṛṣṇa, but by His desire His spiritual energy Yogamāyā manifests the gopīs. When His internal potency Yogamāyā thus produces such pastimes for the enhancement of His transcendental emotions, it is just like a young boy playing with His own reflection. But since these pastimes are created by His spiritual potency, they are eternal and self-manifesting."
10.33.17
nāñjaḥ prativyoḍhum alaḿ vraja-striyo
(17) He, the Master of the Goddess of Fortune, thus with embraces, touches of His hand, affectionate glances and broad playful smiles enjoyed the young women of Vraja just like a boy does playing with His own reflection.
10.33.18
kāmārditāḥ śaśāńkaś ca
(18) From the bodily contact with Him overflowing in their senses was it for the Vraja ladies not easy or possible to keep their hair, dresses and the cloths covering their breasts in good order so that their flower garlands and decorations were in disarray, o best of the Kurus.
10.33.19
ātmārāmo 'pi līlayā
(19) Seeing Krishna playing became the goddesses hovering in the sky entranced and restless of amorous desires and fell the moon and his followers [the stars] in amazement.
10.33.20
śantamenāńga pāṇinā
(20) Expanding Himself to as many [appearances] as there were cowherd women present enjoyed He, though being the self-satisfied Supreme Lord, His Selves playing with them.
10.33.21
mānaḿ dadhatya ṛṣabhasya jaguḥ kṛtāni
(21) Of them, fatigued of the pleasure of the romance, wiped He in loving compassion the faces, my best, with His most soothing hand.
10.33.22
(22) Greatly pleased by the touch of His fingernails sang the gopîs of the exploits of their Hero, honoring Him with the nectarean beauty of their smiles, glances, cheeks and locks of hair, shining golden in the effulgence of their earrings.
10.33.23
so 'mbhasy alaḿ yuvatibhiḥ pariṣicyamānaḥ
premṇekṣitaḥ prahasatībhir itas tato 'ńga
vaimānikaiḥ kusuma-varṣibhir īdyamāno
(23) With His garland crushed and smeared by the kunkuma of their breasts, entered He, as the leader of the Gandharvas accompanied by the swiftly following bees, being tired, in order to dispel the fatigue, the water not unlike a bull-elephant does with his wives having broken the irrigation dikes [or the normal rules of conduct].
10.33.24
yathā mada-cyud dviradaḥ kareṇubhiḥ
(24) In the water was He from all sides splashed by the girls eyeing Him with love and laughter, my best, and being worshiped from the heavenly carriers with a rain of flowers reveled He, who is personally always pleased within, there in playing like the king of the elephants [see also 8.3].
10.33.25
(25) Just like an elephant dripping rut with his wives He then passed, surrounded by the lot of His bees and women, through a grove reaching the Yamunâ that everywhere was filled with the fragrance carried by the wind from the flowers in the water and on the land.
It is difficult to translate into English the word rasa, which indicates the spiritual bliss derived from one's loving relationship with Lord Kṛṣṇa. That bliss is experienced in the midst of spiritual pastimes with the Lord and His devotees. Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī explains that great Vaiṣṇava poets like Vyāsa, Parāśara, Jayadeva, Līlāśuka (Bilvamańgala Ṭhākura), Govardhanācārya and Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī have tried in their poetry to describe the conjugal affairs of the Lord. These descriptions are never complete, however, since the Lord's pastimes are unlimited; thus the attempt to glorify such pastimes is still going on and will go on forever. Lord Kṛṣṇa arranged an extraordinary season of beautiful autumn nights to enhance His loving affairs, and those autumn nights have inspired transcendental poets since time immemorial.
10.33.26-27
praśamāyetarasya ca
vaktā kartābhirakṣitā
para-dārābhimarśanam
(26) In this manner spent He, the Truth of all Desire, with His many adoring girlfriends the night that was so bright of the moonlight. Thereby manifested He within Himself all the romantic gestures in enjoying all those autumn nights that are so very inspiring to poetic descriptions of transcendental moods [or rasas].' Parīkṣit Mahārāja said: O brāhmaṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Lord of the universe, has descended to this earth along with His plenary portion to destroy irreligion and reestablish religious principles. Indeed, He is the original speaker, follower and guardian of moral laws. How, then, could He have violated them by touching other men's wives?
King Parīkṣit noticed that some persons seated in the assembly on the bank of the Ganges were harboring doubt about the Lord's activities. These doubtful persons were karmīs, jñānīs and others who were not devotees of the Lord. To clear up their doubts, King Parīkṣit asks this question on their behalf.
10.33.28
(28) S'rî Parîkchit said: 'To establish the dharma and to subdue the ones defiant, descended indeed He, the Supreme Lord, the Controller of the Universe with His plenary portion [Balarâma]. How could He, the original speaker, executor and protector of the codes of moral conduct, behave so to the contrary o brahmin, in touching the wives of others?
It is clear to the enlightened that these doubts will arise in the minds and hearts of persons unfamiliar with the transcendental pastimes of the Lord. Therefore since time immemorial great sages and enlightened kings like Parīkṣit Mahārāja have openly raised these questions to provide the authoritative answer for all posterity.
10.33.29
(29) What did He, so self-satisfied, have in mind with this assuredly contemptible performance, o best of the vowed, please dispel our doubt about this.'
Great, potent personalities are not ruined by an apparent transgression of moral principles. Śrīdhara Svāmī mentions the examples of Brahmā Indra, Soma, Viśvāmitra and others. A fire devours all that is fed into it but the fire does not change its nature. Similarly, a great personality does not fall from his position by an irregularity in behavior. In the following verse, however, Śukadeva Gosvāmī makes it clear that if we try to imitate the great personalities ruling the universe, the result will be catastrophic.
10.33.30
naitat samācarej jātu
manasāpi hy anīśvaraḥ
vinaśyaty ācaran mauḍhyād
(30) S'rî S'uka said: 'The transgression of dharma and thoughtlessness, as can be observed with spiritual authorities, does not mean they are at fault. They are much like an all-consuming fire [which is not affected by what it consumes].
Lord Śiva, or Rudra, once drank an ocean of poison, and the result was that an attractive blue mark appeared on his neck. But if we were to drink even a drop of such poison, we would die immediately. Just as we should not imitate this pastime of Śiva's, we should not imitate Lord Kṛṣṇa's activities with the gopīs. We should clearly understand that while Lord Kṛṣṇa certainly descends to demonstrate religious principles, He also descends to demonstrate that He is God and we are not. That also must be demonstrated. The Lord enjoys with His internal potency and thus attracts us to the spiritual platform. We should not try to imitate Kṛṣṇa, for we will suffer severely.
10.33.31
tathaivācaritaḿ kvacit
(31) Someone not in control [with himself] most certainly mustn't even think of ever doing a thing like this; such a one, acting out of foolishness, would find his destruction as good as anybody else but Rudra would with [drinking] the poison from the ocean [see 8.7].
The word īśvara is usually defined in Sanskrit dictionaries as "lord, master, ruler," and also as "capable, potent to perform." Śrīla Prabhupāda often translated the word īśvara as "controller," which brilliantly synthesizes the two fundamental concepts of īśvara, namely a master or ruler and a capable or potent person. A master may be incompetent, but a controller is a master or lord who in fact makes things happen. The parameśvara, the supreme īśvara, the supreme controller, is of course God, Kṛṣṇa, the cause of all causes.
Although people in general, especially in the Western countries, are not aware of the fact, powerful personalities control our universe. The modern, impersonal concept of the universe depicts an almost totally lifeless cosmos in which the earth floats meaninglessly. Thus we are left with the dubious "ultimate purpose" of preserving and reproducing our genetic code, which has its own "ultimate purpose" of adding another link to the meaningless chain of events by again reproducing itself.
In contrast to this sterile, meaningless world concocted by ignorant materialists, the actual universe is full of life — personal life — and in fact full of God, who pervades and supports all that exists. The essence of reality is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His personal relationship with the innumerable living beings, of whom we are samples. Some of the living beings are trapped in the illusion of materialism, or identification with the material body, while others are liberated, aware of their eternal, spiritual nature. A third class comprises those progressing in self-realization from the materialistic state of ignorance to the enlightened state of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Reality is ultimately personal and divine, and therefore it is not surprising that, as the Vedic literature reveals to us, our universe and other universes are managed by great personalities, just as our city, state and country are managed by empowered personalities. When we democratically award a particular politician the right to govern, we vote for him because he has exhibited something we call "leadership" or "ability." We think, "He'll get the job done." In other words, it is only after an individual acquires the power to govern that we vote for him; our vote does not make him a leader but rather recognizes a power in him coming from some other source. Thus, as Lord Kṛṣṇa explains at the end of the Tenth Chapter of the Bhagavad-gītā, any living being exhibiting an extraordinary power, ability or authority must have been empowered by the Lord Himself or by the Lord's energy.
Those directly empowered by the Lord are devoted to Him, and thus their power and influence spread goodness throughout the world, whereas those who are empowered by the Lord's illusory potency are in an indirect relationship with Kṛṣṇa because they do not directly reflect His will. Of course, they do reflect His will indirectly, since it is by Kṛṣṇa's arrangement that the laws of nature act upon ignorant living beings, gradually persuading them, through their journey of many lifetimes, to surrender to the Supreme Lord. Thus as politicians create wars, false hopes and innumerable passionate schemes for the materialistic persons who follow them, the politicians are indirectly carrying out the Lord's program of allowing the conditioned souls to experience the bitter fruit of godlessness.
Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura has translated the word īśvarāṇām as "those who have become powerful through knowledge and austerity." As one understands the nature and will of Cod and makes the personal sacrifice required to achieve excellence in spiritual life, one becomes empowered by the Supreme Lord to represent His will, which one has intelligently recognized and accepted.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead kindly descends to earth to show a vivid example of religious behavior. As Lord Kṛṣṇa states in the Bhagavad-gītā (3.24), "If I did not execute standard duties, the whole world would be misled and in fact destroyed." Thus the Lord showed, in His different incarnations, how to act properly in this world. A good example is Lord Rāmacandra, who behaved wonderfully as the son of King Daśaratha.
But when Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself descends, He also demonstrates the ultimate religious principle, namely that the Supreme Lord is beyond all other living beings and that no one can imitate His supreme position. This foremost of all religious principles — that the Lord is unique, without equal or superior — was clearly demonstrated in Lord Kṛṣṇa's apparently immoral pastimes with the gopīs. No one can imitate these activities without incurring dire consequences, as explained here by Śukadeva Gosvāmī. One who thinks that Lord Kṛṣṇa is an ordinary living being subjected to lust, or who accepts His rāsa dance as admirable and tries to imitate it, will certainly be vanquished, as described in Text 30 of this chapter.
Finally, a distinction must be made between the Lord and His empowered servants. An empowered servant of the Lord, as in the case of Brahmā, may experience a remnant of reactions to previous activities, according to the law of karma. But the Lord is eternally free from any entanglement in the laws of karma. He is on a unique platform.
10.33.32
kuśalācaritenaiṣām
viparyayeṇa vānartho
(32) True are the words of the ones in control [with the Lord, with themselves] and what they do should by people of intelligence [only] in some cases be taken as an example to follow, namely in those cases in which that what they do is in accord with that what they said [see also B.G. e.g. 3: 6-7, 3: 42, 5: 7].
10.33.33
kim utākhila-sattvānāḿ
tiryań-martya-divaukasām
īśituś ceśitavyānāḿ
kuśalākuśalānvayaḥ
(33) As good as, my best, there for those whose acts are egoless is no advantage to be found with what they in their piety do, will they neither suffer any disadvantage when they act contrary to the expectations.
As explained in Text 32, even great personalities empowered by the Lord are free from the laws of karma. Then what to speak of the Lord Himself. After all, the law of karma is created by Him and is an expression of His omnipotent will. Therefore His activities, which He performs out of His own pure goodness, are never subject to criticism by ordinary living beings.
10.33.34
(34) Material activities never entangle the devotees of the Supreme Lord, who are fully satisfied by serving the dust of His lotus feet. Nor do material activities entangle those intelligent sages who have freed themselves from the bondage of all fruitive reactions by the power of yoga. So how could there be any question of bondage for the Lord Himself, who assumes His transcendental forms according to His own sweet will?
10.33.35
yo 'ntaś carati so 'dhyakṣaḥ
(35) The sages, whose bondage of karma by serving the dust of the lotusfeet has all been washed away, are satisfied by the power of yoga and act freely, they, on His account, never get entangled; in what sense could one speak of a state of bondage with those who according His will have accepted bodies of a transcendental nature? [see vapu].
We certainly do not assume our bodies to enjoy transcendental pastimes, as the Lord does. We eternal souls have accepted material bodies by force because of our foolish attempt to enjoy this material world. The Lord's forms are all eternal, spiritual existence and cannot be reasonably equated with our temporary flesh.
Since Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Lord dwelling within the gopīs, their so-called husbands and all other living beings, what possible sin could there be on His part if He embraces some of the beings He Himself has created? What fault could there be if the Lord goes with the gopīs to a secret place, since He already dwells within the most secret part of every living being, the core of the heart?
10.33.36
(36) He who within the gopîs and their husbands, indeed within all embodied beings, lives as the Supreme Witness, has assumed His form to sport in this world.
at when Lord Kṛṣṇa descends to this world in His original two-handed form, out of kindness He manifests that form in a way His devotees conditioned in human society can perceive and understand. Thus here it is stated, mānuṣaḿ deham āsthitaḥ: "He assumes a humanlike body." Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura glorifies the Lord's conjugal pastimes, stating that these romantic affairs have an inconceivable spiritual potency to attract the polluted heart of conditioned souls. It is an undeniable fact that any pure-or simple-hearted person who hears narrations of the loving affairs of Kṛṣṇa will be attracted to the lotus feet of the Lord and gradually become His devotee .
10.33.37
nāsūyan khalu kṛṣṇāya
(37) Assuming a humanlike body to show His mercy to His devotees, does He engage in pastimes about which one hearing becomes dedicated to Him [see also 1.7: 10].
Because the gopīs loved Kṛṣṇa exclusively, Yogamāyā protected their relationship with the Lord at all times, even though they were married. Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī quotes from the Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi as follows:
māyā-kalpita-tādṛk-strī
śīlanenānusūyubhiḥ
"The gopīs' jealous husbands consorted not with their wives but with doubles manufactured by Māyā. Thus these men never actually had any intimate contact with the divine ladies of Vraja." The gopīs are the internal energy of the Lord and can never belong to any other living being. Kṛṣṇa arranged their apparent marriage to other men simply to create the excitement of parakīya-rasa, the love between a married woman and her paramour. These activities are absolutely pure because they are the Lord's pastimes, and saintly persons since time immemorial have relished these supreme spiritual events.10.33.38
vāsudevānumoditāḥ
anicchantyo yayur gopyaḥ
(38) Even though the cowherd men of Vraja were bewildered by the power of His mâyâ were they not jealous with Krishna; they all assumed that their wives stood by their side. .
In the Bhagavad-gītā (8.17) Lord Kṛṣṇa explains, "By human calculation, a thousand ages taken together is the duration of Brahmā's one day. And such also is the duration of his night." Thus one thousand ages entered within a single twelve-hour night when Lord Kṛṣṇa performed His rāsa dance. Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī compares this inconceivable impression of time to the fact that many universes fit neatly within the forty-mile range of earthly Vṛndāvana. Or one may consider that mother Yaśodā could not encircle the small abdomen of child Kṛṣṇa with numerous ropes, and that at another time He manifested many universes within His mouth. The transcendence of spiritual reality above and beyond mundane physics is concisely explained in Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī's Laghu-bhagavatāmṛta:
evaḿ prabhoḥ priyāṇāḿ ca
avicintya-prabhāvatvād
atra kiñcin na durghaṭam
"Nothing is impossible for the Lord, His dear devotees, His transcendental abode or the time of His pastimes, for all these entities are inconceivably powerful."Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī further explains that the word vāsudevānumoditāḥ indicates that Lord Kṛṣṇa advised the gopīs, "To assure the success of these pastimes, you and I should keep them secret." The word vāsudeva, a name of Kṛṣṇa, also indicates Lord Kṛṣṇa's plenary expansion who acts as the presiding Deity of consciousness. When the word vāsudeva is understood in this context, the word vāsudevānumoditāḥ indicates that the presiding Deity of consciousness, Vāsudeva, manifested embarrassment and fear of their elders within the gopīs' hearts, and therefore it was only with great reluctance that the young girls returned home.
10.33.39
vikrīḍitaḿ vraja-vadhūbhir idaḿ ca viṣṇoḥ
(39) Even though they didn't want to went the gopîs, the sweethearts of the Supreme Lord, on Krishna's advise home after that [endless] night of Brahmâ had passed.
Anyone who faithfully listens to or gives an account of this pastime of Lord Vishnu with the cowherd girls of Vraja, will obtain the transcendental devotional service of the Supreme Lord, he will quickly become sober and manage to drive away the disease of lust in the heart.'
The extraordinary power of Lord Kṛṣṇa's conjugal pastimes is clearly revealed here. Qualitatively, the Lord's spiritual, loving pastimes are the diametric opposite of material, lusty affairs, so much so that simply by hearing about the Lord's pastimes a devotee conquers sex desire. By reading pornographic literature or hearing about material romance, we certainly do not conquer sex desire but rather increase our lust. But hearing or reading about the Lord's conjugal affairs has exactly the opposite effect because they are of the opposite nature, being purely spiritual. Therefore it is by the causeless mercy of Lord Kṛṣṇa that He exhibits His rāsa-līlā within this world. If we become attached to this narration, we will experience the bliss of spiritual love and thus reject the perverted reflection of that love, which is called lust. As nicely put by Lord Kṛṣṇa in the Bhagavad-gītā (2.59), paraḿ dṛṣṭvā nivartate: "Once having directly experienced the Supreme, one will not return to material pleasures."
Thus end of the Tenth Canto, Thirty-third Chapter, of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, entitled "The Rāsa Dance."
No comments:
Post a Comment