Lord Balarama and gopis - Balarama and madhurya?

Yesterday we celebrated Lord Balarama’s appearance day, so I have few questions :
In Srimad Bhagavatam we can find that Lord Balarama stay in Vrindavana for two months and during that period he enjoyed in different pastimes, including His rasa-lila dance and yamuna-karsana lila. What is nature of Lord Balarama’s gopis? Are they exist in spiritual world? Is it possible for person to serve Lord Balarama with madhurya fealings? What is sidhantha of Gaudiya lineage about this topics?
Jaya Krsna-Balarama!

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Is it possible for person to serve Lord Balarama with madhurya fealings? What is sidhantha of Gaudiya lineage about this topics?

Sri Balarama plays a supporting role within the Vraja pastimes. Sr Krsna is the leading male and Sri Radhika is the leading female in the Vraja lila. The Goswamis describe the lilas and love of Sri Radha-Krsna as the hero and heroine. As far as I know, I have never heard of a raganuga bhajan to attain the feelings and vastu siddhi of a gopi companion of Sri Balarama. In order for one to attain madhurya rasa in a relationship with Sri Balarama one would then need to take shelter of a raganuga Guru who is teaching such a bhajan. One would need to study literature and discuss with like minded raganuga bhaktas the bhava, services and lilas connected with Baladeva and His gopi companions.

Sri Balarama appeared in the Gaura lila as Sri Nityananda. He assists Sri Gaura in distributing His merciful gift to humanity of Radha dasya, manjari bhava. Sri Balarama has a form in Vraja dhama serving Sri Radha-Krsna as Anangi Manjari, Sri Radha's younger sister, who serves as a yutheswari. She appeared in the Gaura lila as the wife and shakti of Sri Nityananda, Sri Jahnava Ma. Their disciplic line, the Sri Jahnava-Nityananda parivar, is a pranali line for manjari bhava. This is as far as I can tell you.

Thank you Radhapadji for your answer. It’s clear that everything in Vrindavana is supporting Radha-Krsna pastimes including trees,bees, rivers, calves, - santa rasa, servants in dasya, friends in sakhya, parents in vatsalya and gopis in madhurya rasa. There is no doubt about that. But still I am anxious to hear more.
Sri Balarama plays a supporting role within the Vraja pastimes, as you said, but he is rama, and He enjoyed His own rasa-dance. One of His name (found in Balarama sahastra nama ) is gopika- sata-yutharthi - He yearns to enjoy pastimes with hundreds of gopis and gopika-kantha-bhusana - The gopis embraces have become His necklace.
So as far as I can understand Lord Balarama enjoy in madhurya lila. Are such pastimes eternal? Are they exist in Goloka? Are there any support in scriptures?
Thank you so much for your time and answers!
Any comments?Thank's!

According to Jiva and Visvanatha, Baladeva has his own group of gopis, separate from those of Sri Krishna (as in Baladeva's rasa-lila). As far as I know, there is no mention of their being present in aprakata-lila in this connection. However, at least this particular instance of Baladeva's rasa mentioned in the Bhagavata, it is certainly not a nitya-lila, since it takes place after Dvaraka-lila, and there are no transitions from Vraja to Mathura and Dvaraka in aprakata-Vraja-lila. On the other hand, it is mentioned that Baladeva came to pacify the gopis, which implies that he'd had prior contact with them during his stay in Vraja.

I would conclude from the above that yes, he indeed does have his own group of gopis during his Vraja-pastimes in both prakata- and aprakata-lila. At any rate, as Radhapada mentioned, there is no known pranali descending from anyone from Baladeva's group of gopis (nor are any of them known by name either), or from Baladeva Himself, thus excluding the possibility from us for aspiring for either of the two kinds of madhurya-bhava in which Baladeva is the visayalambana of rasa. Rupa Gosvami has only discussed Sri Krishna as visayalambana in his thesis on rasa.

I am certain that if someone very sincerely and with great greed aspires to attain the position of Baladeva's sakhi, this will be arranged since the Lord is bound to appear to his devotee in the very form he aspires to serve Him. Thus apparently contradictory perceptions of bhava are facilitated in the unlimited realm of Vraja (and Navadvipa), the Gaura-Nagari tradition serves as an example of this.

Thank you very much for answers.
I just find very interesting text by Srila Bhakti Rakshak Sridhardev Goswami regarding Balarama and madhurya topics, Ananga Manjari and His rasa-lila, so I want to share it with you:

Sermons of the Guardian of Devotion III
by Srila Bhakti Rakshak Sridhardev Goswami

Devotee: Does Lord Balarama expand Himself into the form of the Dham? Is Vaikuntha-Dham an expansion of Lord Balarama?

Srila Guru Maharaj: It is Lord Balarama's representation in the form of Sankarsana. Lord Balarama Himself is in Goloka, and his Vaibhava, extended or delegated Self, is in Vaikuntha.

Devotee: And He Himself expands into Goloka Dham?
Srila Guru Maharaj: Yes, Goloka Vrndavana is all His expansion, but there He is alwavs active through His expansion as the 'underground' sandhini, unifying, potency; whereas His madhura-rasa is passive. In Goloka, Radharani's Vaibhava is having full play, and Balarama's potency is there passively as Yogamaya. Balarama and Yogamaya are of a similar function: both of them combined are conducting the arrangements of the stage for Krsna's Pastimes.

Devotee: Maharaj, what is the position of Subhadra?

Srila Guru Maharaj: Her position is not in Vrndavana, but in Dvaraka. The Subhadra in Jagannatha-Dham is Arjjuna-patni, the wife of Arjjuna, and sister of Krsna. She is within Dvaraka-lila and has nothing to do with Vrndavana. Besides this there is another Subhadra who is one among the many sakhis of Radharani in Vrndavana. She is called Bhadra or Subhadra.
Devotee: Is it Dvaraka-Subhadra who is also sometimes referred to as Yogamaya?

Srila Guru Maharaj: No. At the time when I was composing Sri-Sri Prapanna-jivanamrtam I was faced with the position of having to think very deeply on this point: "What is the relation between Baladeva and Yogamaya?" Then, although I did not find it anywhere in the Scriptures, I discovered within myself that Baladeva must be the Master of Yogamaya. That is, after analysing the spiritual environment of Their Pastimes, I came to the conclusion that They must have some connection. They are both making arrangements for Krsna-lila, so Their relationship must be very intimate: Yogamaya must be in the position of the wife of Balarama. This conclusion came to me, and then later on I found that Jiva Goswami had also expressed such opinion that Yogamaya and Baladeva are very close and similar, and also Vrndadevi's nature and conduct is of very similar nature to Them in this respect. Yogamaya is in the inner circle—the sakti position—and Balarama is in the outer or 'male' circle—the second layer. But in the centre is only Krsna feeling His own ecstasy: sukha-rupa krsna kare sukha asvadana (C.c. Madhya 8.158).
When extension begins, we find that Balarama and Yogamaya make arrangements for that transaction of Krsna where rasamrta-murtti, Krsna the embodiment of all rasas, tastes Himself. Rasa is tasting Himself. It is different in the case of the mundane rasa, where the soul is the subject and the 'rasa' is an object to be 'enjoyed' by him; but here, rasa is Himself the Highest Subject, and He is tasting Himself—sukha-rupa krsna kare sukha asvadana.
He then gradually extends Himself and so we find Baladeva who is a facsimile of Krsna. But because in the science of rasa, Baladev's direct approach to madhura-rasa is not admissible. He extends Himself as a special potency, Yogamaya, and goes to perform in that madhura-rasa.
Another representation or delegation of Baladeva is Ananga Manjari, the younger sister of Srimati Radharani. It is found that Baladeva as Anariga Manjari participates there in the service of Radharani, whereas the external management is in the hands of Yogamaya. Ananga Manjari is the manifestation of Baladeva through whom He is represented in madhura-rasa. The science of rasa does not allow Baladeva to enter there with His own abhimana—mood—, therefore, we are told. He has to go there as Anariga Manjari. The laws of rasa are of such fine importance.
The extensive management is the department of the Yogamaya potency, but that is in a second-hand position. The first position is that of Krsna, and in a secondary position, helping Krsna-lila from outside, is Yogamaya.

Devotee: Didn't Balarama return to Vrndavana and perform the Rasa-HIa with the Gopis?

Srila Guru Maharaj: Yes, but that was with a separate group of Gopis. The interpretation and inner understanding of the Goswamis is that Balaram performed the Rasa-lila externally, but within His heart He was making Rasa-lila of Krsna. His position and personality is such: He is faithfully dedicated wholesale to the cent-per-cent satisfaction of the Centre. His very constitutional position is such that He cannot do otherwise. That is His intrinsic nature: to put everything towards the satisfaction of Krsna.

Thank you once again for answers.

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Srila Guru Maharaj: No. At the time when I was composing Sri-Sri Prapanna-jivanamrtam I was faced with the position of having to think very deeply on this point: "What is the relation between Baladeva and Yogamaya?" Then, although I did not find it anywhere in the Scriptures, I discovered within myself that Baladeva must be the Master of Yogamaya. That is, after analysing the spiritual environment of Their Pastimes, I came to the conclusion that They must have some connection. They are both making arrangements for Krsna-lila, so Their relationship must be very intimate: Yogamaya must be in the position of the wife of Balarama.

This is not correct. The mother of Sandhipani Muni, Paurnamasi Devi, is the goddess Yogamaya.

Pandit Anantadasji relates the following in his comments on Vraja Vilasa Stava, verse 25:

“The devoted aspirant also thoroughly requires to worship Yogamaya, because she is the presiding goddess of the samvid-amsa (consciousness-particle) of the Lord's svarupa-sakti (innate energy) called bhakti, which spontaneously causes the devotees to experience and realize the truth about God within the heart. This yogamaya-potency, which reveals the aspirant's loving transcendental body through its dravya-vritti (materializing faculty) and which establishes the aspirant's self-identification with either dasya, sakhya, vatsalya or madhurya-rasa through its guna-vritti (attributing faculty), which infuses the spiritual body in the womb of a gopi at the time the aspirant attains perfection, and which blesses the aspirant by bestowing direct devotional service in Vraja's human-like pastimes on him/her, is manifest in Vraja in the personal form of Sri Paurnamasi. Hence her mercy is indispensable for the aspirant, if he wishes to reach perfection.”

I am intrigued by the connection Panditji draws between Yogamaya and samvid-sakti. Baladeva is commonly associated with manifesting sandhini instead of samvit, and thus the connection drawn between Him as the master of yogamaya appears unbefitting.

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They are both making arrangements for Krsna-lila, so Their relationship must be very intimate: Yogamaya must be in the position of the wife of Balarama.

I do not know whether Sridhar Maharaja intends this to be a literal statement or not. According to Rupa's Radha-Krishna Ganoddesa Dipika (2.90), Paurnamasi Devi is married with Prabala. Baladeva's two wives (according to Gaura Ganoddesa Dipika 65) are Revati and Varuni, both of whom are present in Dvaraka-lila, not in Vraja.

Jiva states in his Sankalpa Kalpadruma (88):

yaH sadA yoga-mAyAkhyAM zaktim AsaktitaH zritaH |
paurNamAsIm iti nAmAsId vraje yAsIt tapasvinI ||88||
"He [Krishna] always takes shelter of and relies upon the yoga-maya sakti, who is a renunciate lady known by the name Paurnamasi in Vraja."

According to Kavi Karnapura (GGD 86), Yogamaya appeared in Gaura-lila as Sita-devi, the wife of Advaita Acarya. Given that there is a degree of semblance between the relationships of participants in Gaura-lila and Vraja-lila, the theory of Yogamaya as Baladeva's wife appears incompatible in this regard.

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At any rate, as Radhapada mentioned, there is no known pranali descending from anyone from Baladeva's group of gopis (nor are any of them known by name either),

Thank you Madhava on nice answer, but In Gaura-ganodesa -dipika we can found next verse:

155. Purnananda-gopi, the dearmost girl-friend of Lord Balarama also entered the body of Gadadhara dasa. Therefore Gadadhara dasa was the incarnation of both Candrakanti-devi and Purnananda-gopi.

So, in Gaura-ganodesa-dipika it is said " the dearmost girl-friend of Lord Balarama"... is Purnananda gopi
So we can find a little trace in scriptures.

About Yogamaya – It’s really interesting topic.Thank you Radhapadji for pointing it. I agree with all what is cited above on forum and it’s seems to me that Sridhara Maharaja was talking about Dvaraka, not Vrindavana.
( disciple made question about position of Subhadra ). If it is so, it can only be Revati devi, the wife of Baladeva.
Krsna katha ki jay!
P.S.I am hoping that you can understand my english. I am trying my best.

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155. Purnananda-gopi, the dearmost girl-friend of Lord Balarama also entered the body of Gadadhara dasa. Therefore Gadadhara dasa was the incarnation of both Candrakanti-devi and Purnananda-gopi.

So, in Gaura-ganodesa-dipika it is said " the dearmost girl-friend of Lord Balarama"... is Purnananda gopi
So we can find a little trace in scriptures.

That's interesting. I should have of course written, "not known to me." The fact that the names for Baladeva's gopis are few and far between itself indicates the fact that not much emphasis is placed on this in the Gaudiya tradition.

In the meantime, I had a look at Kavi Karnapura's Ananda Vrindavan Champu, curiously looking if it'd have more details on the pastime of killing Sankhacuda, since in the course of this narration, both Baladeva and Krishna roam about in the forest with the gopis. Here's what I got (ch. 21):

Haladhara [Baladeva] looked extraordinarily elegant moving with His own group of young gopi consorts. earring enticingly danced on Balarama's cheek and His eyes rolled from drinking varuni. With His dark blue caddar half falling off His camphor white chest, Baladeva looked like the white' moon breaking through the darkness. For some time, Baladeva, who is a talented artist, danced to the beat of songs in carcass and dvipadika. Appearing like the personification of bliss, Balarama sang, laughed, and threw kunkuma powder on His beloved gopis, as if sprinkling the sindura of love on their foreheads. Backed by the vina, Baladeva loudly sang a song in dvipadika. Then in a joking mood, He threw colored powders on the restless-eyed gopis. Balarama mixed with His many gopi group leaders and their companions in the same way that Krsna enjoys with His gopis like Radhika, Lalita, Candravali, Syama, and Bhadra.

. . .

As Krishna playfully moved with heroic steps, He met with Balarama who rambled about like an intoxicated elephant along with His own group of enraptured young gopis. These gopis, who were completely attached to Balarama, gazed at Him with tender eyes, conveying their affection for their beloved consort. Lifting their bangle-laden arms, they sang according to the beat and sometimes induced Balarama to sing along. While their ankle-bells tinkled in time with the nimble movements of their feet, the gopis danced beside their beloved Balarama, and threw-kunkuma powder on His body with great delight.

Understanding the hints from Krishna's glances, the cowherd boys bombarded the gopis with red, white and yellow scented powders. Balarama's gopis ran away fearfully. Seeing their condition, Krsna smiled and mocked them by playing merrily on His flute. Krishna's vgopis laughed along in sweet tones. While clapping their hands with a strong beat and bellowing "Ho! Ho! Hee! Hee!" Krishna's friends filled the four directions with robust laughter.

Having read this passage, I think the answer should be clear.

Jaya! What a wonderful description. Thank you so much ,Madhava Prabhu! It’s really nice!
As you said after reading that passage answer should be clear. And it is!
Really, glories of the Lord are unlimited! Jaya Krsna-Balarama!

user posted image

Here is one old painting of Lord Balarama madhurya pastime from Calcuta's museum.

I found very interesting text from Srila Govinda Maharaja’s lecture posted on http://www.vnn.org/editorials/ET0003/ET10-5657.html By reading this it should be more clear what Srila Sridhara Maharaja thought when he was explaining Yogamaya – Balarama relation:

«When Krishna wants to have Pastimes, the first manifestation of His energy is Baladeva, Mula-Sankarsana. He comes out from Krishna - prabhava-vilasa. From Radharani automatically comes Yogamaya. Yogamaya and Mula-Sankarsana come out at the same time.

Yogamaya takes charge of the playing ground, like the referee. She makes the rules and regulations, etc. in a way which will please Krishna, and by her will everything immediately manifests accordingly.

When Krishna wishes to play, immediately everything is manifest and managed by Yogamaya. Baladeva takes the charge of all administration and He delegates charge to Yogamaya. From the Powerful comes Sankarsana, and from Radharani comes Yogamaya.

Devotee: Sankarsana is one of the names of Balarama?

Srila Govinda Maharaj: Yes: Mula-Sankarsana - the original Sankarsana.

Devotee: And afterwards so many other Sankarsanas are manifested?

Srila Govinda Maharaj: Yes: the Catur-vyha. There are many expansions of Krishna and many expansions of Radharani - prabhava-vilasa, vaibhava-vilasa, etc., but in the higher plane are playing Radha-Krishna, Sankarsana and Yogamaya. These four participate there.»

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When Krishna wants to have Pastimes, the first manifestation of His energy is Baladeva, Mula-Sankarsana. He comes out from Krishna - prabhava-vilasa. From Radharani automatically comes Yogamaya. Yogamaya and Mula-Sankarsana come out at the same time.

1. Baladeva is not in the category of shakti.

2. Yogamaya and Mula-sankarsana are not manifest at any particular time any more than Sri Krishna Himself. Sometimes we call them His manifestations in indicating their dependence on Him, but there is no particular time for their manifestation.

I still do not follow the idea of Yogamaya's being Baladeva's shakti. Sri Krishna is the origin of shakti and Sri Radha is the original shakti from whom further manifestations of shakti manifest. Thus the pattern of descending dependence is as follows:

Sri Krishna --> Sri Radha --> Yogamaya

--> Sri Baladeva --> Tad-ekatma-rupa --> Caturvyuha

--> Avataras

It is not clear to me why Baladeva should be interpreted as being in an essential position in relation with Yogamaya, presented as the master of Yogamaya. Such a theory would demand scriptural support.