Comedy and Tragedy
As usual, these days, I memorize and meditate on verses by the acharyas as I bicycle into work or engage in other tasks that require only a minimal supply of mental energy. One verse today was the following from Padyavali (205), which is also quoted in Ujjvala-nilamani (1.18). sanketi-krita-kokilädi-ninadam kamsa-dvishah kurvato dväronmocana-lola-shankha-valaya-kvänam muhuh shrinvatah keyam keyam iti pragalbha-jarati-väkyena dünätmano rädhä-prängana-kona-koli-vitapi-krode gatä sharvari In three steps, we get a progressive picture of Krishna: He is imitating cuckoo sounds to signal his presence. To whom? To Radha, who gets out of bed and tiptoes to the door, but as soon as she starts to unlatch the bolt, her conch-ivory bracelets tinkle. Krishna hears this sound in great expectation, but then he hears another: Jatila, Radha's wizened mother-in-law, guarding the chastity of her bouma, wakes up and calls out, "Who's there? Who's there?" And Krishna's heart immedi...