Aug. 2003 Meditations -

Ekadasi's meditation as a prelude to the disappearance day of Srila Rupa Gosvamipada:

Prema Bhakti Candrika
by Srila Narottama Das Thakura

Introduction

1 om ajnana-timirandhasya
jnananjana-salakaya
caksur unmilitam yena
tasmai sri-gurava namah

I was born in the darkest of ignorance, and my spiritual master opened my eyes with the torch of knowledge. I offer my respectful obeisances unto him.*

2 sri-caitanya-mano bhistam
sthapitam yena bhutale
svayam rupah kada mahyam
dadati sva-padantikam

When will Srila Rupa Gosvami Prabhupada, who has established within this material world the mission to fulfil the desire of Lord Caitanya, give me shelter under his lotus feet.*

3 akhila-rasamrta-murtih
prasrmara-ruci-ruddha-taraka-palih
kalita-syama-lalito
radha-preyan vidhur jayati

Let Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, be glorified! By virtue of His expanding attractive features, He subjugated the gopis named Taraka and Pali and absorbed Syama and Lalita. He is the most attractive lover of Srimati Radharani and is the reservoir of pleasure for all devotional mellows.*

Song 5

1 ragera bhajana-patha kahi ebe abhimata
loka-beda-sara ei bani
sakhira anuga hana braje siddha-deha pana
ei bhabe judabe parani

I shall now describe the path of spontaneous love for Krsna, which is glorified by the exalted devotees and the Vedic literatures. By traversing this path of spontaneous love one becomes a follower of the gopis and attains the perfect spiritual body of a liberated soul.

2-3 sri-radhikara sakhi jata taha ba kahiba kata
mukhya sakhi kariye ganana
lalita bisakha tatha sucitra campakalata
rangadevi sudevi kathana
tungabidya indurekha ei asta-sakhi lekha
ei kahi narma -sakhi gana
ihon seba-shacari priya-prestha nama dhari
prema-seba kare anuksana

I shall now describe the most important of Srimati Radharani's gopi-friends. Lalita, Visakha, Sucitra, Campakalata, Rangadevi, Sudevi, Tungavidya, and Indulekha, are the eight most important gopi friends of Srimati Radharani. Her other gopi-friends are divided into groups: the narma-sakhis, priya-sakhis, and prestha-sakhis. All these gopis constantly render loving service to Srimati Radharani.

4 sri rupa-manjari ara sri-rati-manjari sara
labanga-manjari manjunali
sri-rasa-manjari-sange kasturika-adi range
prema-seba kare kutuhali

Sri Rupa-manjari, Sri Rati-manjari, Lavanga-manjari, Manjunali, and Sri Rasa-manjari eagerly and lovingly serve Srimati Radharani, supplying her musk and various other articles.

5 ei-sabara anuga hana prema-seba niba cana
ingite bhujiba saba kaje
rupa guna dagamagi sada haba anuragi
basati kariba sakhi majhe

I am the follower of all these gopis. I shall serve them with great love. I will completely understand their orders, even when couched in casual hints or gestures. I shall become immersed in wonder at their transcendental virtues and beauty, and I shall dearly love them. I shall always remain in their company.

6 brdabane du jana cari-dike cakhi-gana
samayera seba rasa-sukhe
sakhira ingita habe camara dhulaba tabe
tambula jogaba canda-mukhe

Immersed in the happiness of serving the Divine Couple surrounded by Their gopi-friends in Vrndavana, I will understand the gopis' hints, and, taking up the camara wish I will fan the Divine Couple, and after that I will place betel nuts in Their moonlike mouths.

7 jugala-carana sebi nirantara ei bhabi
anurage thakiba sadaya
sadhane bhabiba jaha siddha-dehe paba taha
raga pathera ei sei upaya

Someday I will constantly serve the lotus feet of the Divine Couple with great love. At present I will follow the rules of sadhana-bhakti until I attain a perfected spiritual body and am able to love the Divine Couple spontaneously.

8 sadhane je dhana cai siddha-dehe taha pai
pakwa pakwa matra sei bicara
pakile sei prema-bhakti apakwe sadhana khyati
bhakati-laksana-anusara

That treasure of pure love of God for which I hanker while I follow the regulative practices of sadhana-bhakti, I will attain when I have the spiritual body of a liberated soul. Actually sadhana-bhakti and prema-bhakti are the same devotional service. Sadhana-bhakti is the stage where love for Krsna has not fully ripened yet, and prema-bhakti is the same devotion where love for Krsna has reached the mature, ripened stage. That is the description of devotional service.

9 narottama dasa kahe ei jena mora haye
braja-pure anurage basa
sakhi-gana-gananate amare ganibe tate
tabahun puriba abhilasa

Narottama dasa says: I hope that I may attain the stage of spontaneous love for the Divine Couple in the town of Vraja. I hope that I will be counted among the gopi-friends of the Divine Couple. O Divine Couple,, in this way I will be able to serve You and satisfy all Your desires.

10 tatha hi--
sakhinam sangini-rupam
atmanam vasana-mayim
ajna-seva-param tat-tat-
krpalankara-bhusitam

The stage of prema-bhakti is described in the following statements of Vaisnava literature:
"One should meditate on oneself as being the maidservant of the gopis, and in this way one will attain their mercy."

11 krsnam smaran janam casya
prestham nija-samhitam
tat-tat-katha-ratas casau
kuryad vasam vraje sada

"The devotee should always think of Krsna within himself, and one should choose a very dear devotee who is a servitor of Krsna in Vrndavana. One should constantly engage in topics about that servitor and his loving relationship to Krsna, and one should live in Vrndavana. However, if one is physically unable to go to Vrndavana, he should mentally live there."

JHULAN LILA (RADHA KRISHNA'S SWING FESTIVAL)

raga mallara

JHULATA RANGE, RANGINI SANGE
NAGARA VARA RANGIYA
CAUDIGE GOPINI, RUPA TARANGINI
RANGINI SAB SANGIYA

“The most playful lover Krsna enjoys swinging with Rangini, playful Radhika.
On all four sides gopis, who are like rivers of beauty, are keeping Them company.”

LALA HINDOLA, KUSUMA UJORA
MANI MATIMA RANGIYA
SYAMARU SANGE BAITHALO RANGE
RADHA ULASA ANGIYA

“The red swing is decorated with flowers, gems and pearls.
Radha joyfully sits on it next to Syama.”

NIKUNJA BHAONA, KUSUMA SHONANA
BHRAMARA BHORA BHANGIYA
GAOTA SUSVARA, SHUKA PIKA VARA,
NACATA MAURA RANGIYA

“The nikunja abode is beautified with flowers that attract buzzing bees.
Parrots and cuckoos sing with nice voices and peacocks blissfully dance.”

JHULATA GHANA, MANDA PAVANA,
DOLATA RASIKA RANGIYA
MOHANA LALA, NANDA DULALA,
HERATO NAVINA SANGIYA

The soft breeze causes the swing to oscillate in rasika joy.
Mohan Lal (the poet) sees Nanda Dulal (Krsna) with His new ladylove.”

In 1517, Sri Rupa Gosvami and Sri Sanatana Gosvami, his elder brother, came to Vrndavana to fulfill four orders of Lord Caitanya's: (1) Uncover Sri Krishna's lost pastime places. (2) Install Deities. (3) Write bhakti-sastras, (4) Propagate the rules of bhakti-yoga.

Wearing only kaupina (loincloth) and kantha (patchwork quilt), Sri Rupa Gosvami lived a mendicant's life absorbed in hearing, chanting, writing about Radha-Govinda's sweet loving pastimes in Sri Vrndavana-dhama.

The glories of Sri Rupa Gosvami

vrndavaniyam rasa-keli-vartam
kalenaluptam nija-saktim utkah sancarya
rupe vyatanot punah sa prabhur
vidhau prag iva loka-srstim

"Before the creation of this cosmic manifestation, the Lord enlightened the heart of Lord Brahma with the details of the creation and manifested the Vedic knowledge. In exactly the same way, the Lord, being anxious to revive the Vrndavana pastimes of Lord Krsna, impregnated the heart of Rupa Gosvami with spiritual potency. By this potency, Srila Rupa Gosvami could revive the activities of Krsna in Vrndavana, activities almost lost to memory. In this way, He spread Krsna consciousness throughout the world."

kalena vrndavana-keli-varta lupteti tam
khyapayitum visisya krpamrtenabhisiseca
devas tatraiva rupam ca sanatanam ca

"In the course of time, the transcendental news of Krsna's pastimes in Vrndavana was almost lost. To enunciate explicitly those transcendental pastimes, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, at Prayaga, empowered Srila Rupa Gosvami and Sanatana Gosvami with the nectar of His mercy to carry out this work in Vrndavana."

yah prag eva priya-guna-ganair gadha-baddho
'pi mukto gehadhyasad rasa iva paro murta evapy
amurtah premalapair drdhatara-parisvanga-rangaih
prayage tam sri-rupam samam anupamenanujagraha devah

"From the very beginning, Srila Rupa Gosvami was deeply attracted by the transcendental qualities of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Thus he was permanently relieved from family life. Srila Rupa Gosvami and his younger brother, Vallabha, were blessed by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Although the Lord was transcendentally situated in His transcendental eternal form, at Prayaga He told Rupa Gosvami about transcendental ecstatic love of Krsna. The Lord then embraced him very fondly and bestowed all His mercy upon him."

priya-svarupe dayita-svarupe
prema-svarupe sahajabhirupe
nijanurupe prabhur eka-rupe
tatana rupe svavilasa-rupe

"Indeed, Srila Rupa Gosvami, whose dear friend was Svarupa Damodara, was the exact replica of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, and he was very, very dear to the Lord. Being the embodiment of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's ecstatic love, Rupa Gosvami was naturally very beautiful. He very carefully followed the principles enunciated by the Lord, and he was a competent person to explain properly the pastimes of Lord Krsna. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu expanded His mercy to Srila Rupa Gosvami just so he could render service by writing transcendental literatures."

(Sri Caitanya Caritamrta, Madhya 19.1/- 118-121)

Sri Stava-mala

RAKHI PURNIMA LILA
FROM
VILAPA KUSUMANJALI VERSE 88:

BHRATRA GO'YUTAM ATRA MANJU-VADANE SNEHENA DATTVALAYAM
SRIDAMNA KRPANAM PRATOSYA JATILAM RAKSAKHYA RAKA-KSANE
NITAYAH SUKHA SOKA RODANA BHARAIS TE SAMDRAVANTYAH PARAM
VATSALYAJ JANAKAU VIDHASYATA ITAH KIM LALANAM ME'GRATAH

bhratra - by Your brother; go - cows; ayutam - ten thousand; atra - there; manju - beautiful; vadane - face (fem.); snehena - with affection; dattva - having given; alayam - the abode; sridamna - by Sridama; krpanam - to the miser; pratosya - for satisfying; jatilam - to Jatila; raksa akhya - known as Raksa; raka - full moon; ksane - moment; nitayah - taken; sukha - happiness; soka - sorrow; rodana - crying; bharaih - with abundance; te - Your; samdravantyah - melting; param - greatest; vatsalyat - out of love; janakau - parents; vidhasyata - will do; itah - here; kim - whether; lalanam - fondling; me - of me; agratah - before.

O Manju-vadane (fair-faced girl)! On the full moon day of Sravana (August) named Raksa Purnima Your brother Sridama comes to Yavata with ten thousand cows to satisfy the greedy Jatila before affectionately taking You along to Varsana, where Your parents lovingly fondle You in front of me as You melt with weeping from happiness and sorrow.

Commentary by Srila Ananda Gopal Gosvami- One day before this auspicious event Sridama mounts his horse and goes to Yavata, the abode of Sri Radhika's mother-in-law Jatila. Eager to satisfy Jatila, who does not want to let Sri Radhika go, Sridama asks her: "What do you want as a present?" Jatila, as he expected, wants cows, so he gives her ten-thousand cows just to appease her. All this is arranged to facilitate Radha and Krsna’s pastimes - in Sri Radhika's parental home there is less control over Her than in Yavata. There it is easier for Sri Radhika to go out to meet Krsna. Radha’s father and mother are staring down the pathway for their daughter to come. When Svamini arrives mother and father so affectionately bless Her! Svamini cries of happiness and sorrow. Happiness because of coming back home and sorrow because of Her long stay at Her in-laws' abode. Svamini melts at the bosom of Her mother, as if She merges with her and sheds hot tears, saying with choked voice: "Just forget about Me, ma! Don't search for Me!" Sri Radhika is named Manju-vadane, or fair-faced girl in the text. Kirtida Ma sobs with a voice choked by tears: "Can I ever forget You, my beautiful girl?" Mother Kirtida’s chest is inundated by Lali’s tears. She is vraja go gopa gopali jiva matraika jivanam: (Srila Raghunatha dasa Gosvami's '108 names of Radhika) the very life of the cows, cowherds, cowherd women - nay, of all creatures of Vraja! How much then isn't She the life of the life of Her mother, who is the very form of parental love?! Who will say it? Mother and father float in oceans of bliss as they take their girl into their abode.