rAdheza-keli-prabhutA-vinoda-
vinyAsa-vijJAM vraja-vanditAGghrIm |
kRpAlutAdyAkhila-vizva-vandyAM
zrI-paurNamAsIM zirasA namAmi ||
I bow my head down to Sri Paurnamasi, who is worshipped by the entire universe for her compassion and venerated by the people of Vrindavan, for she is wise in the ways of using her powers to increase Radha and Krishna’s enjoyment of loving exchanges.
The timeless and the Ever-Blissful realm where Radha anad Krishna dwell is God’s inner world. There the Divine Couple lives in the midst of Sweeness and Beauty and in the Fullness of Love and Unending Ecstasy.
There, the god and goddess play the role of apparently ordinary human beings and, for the sake of increasing the drama of this eternal existence, submit to higher powers over which they have no apparent control. The presiding deity of this world, known as Goloka Vrindavan, is the goddess Paurnamasi, the personification of the Yogamaya energy, whose one purpose is to facilitate and enhance the loving exchanges between Krishna and its residents.
Paurnamasi appears in Vrindavan as an old asectic woman. She is a prophetess and a yoginis, displaying magic powers and possesing great wisdom. Highly respected by all, she is the mother of Krishna’s teacher, Sandipani Muni, and disciple of the celestial sage Narada. Like Yashoda, she acts as Krishna’s superior, feeling a similar motherly sentiment toward both Radha and Krishna, but one that finds fulfillment in seeing them joined in loving union.
Paurnamasi’s role may not always be apparent in these pastimes, but it is pivotal, especially in intensifying the loving mood of Krishna’s exchanges with Radha and the gopis, which she is usually orchestrating from behind the scenes. As yogamaya, her mystical power plays a part in every one of his divine activities.
At the same time, she is worshipped by devotees in this world as the energy that brings us closer to God and reveals him to us. This energy is nothing more than the Lord’s own desire. It is his greatest power, so great that the Bhagavata Purana states that he “takes shelter” of his Yogamaya potency.
(from Beauty, Power & Grace by Krishna Dharma)