Jagat

Radha and Krishna playing Holi. India, Kangra, circa 1800. Opaque pigments and gold on paper śrī-śaṅkara-druhiṇa-mukhya-surendra-vṛnda-durjñeyaṁ rādhā-mānasa-divya-mīna-nilayaṁ tad-vaktra-candrocchritam| tat-kandarpa-sumandareṇa mathitaṁ sakhy-akṣi-pīyūṣadaṁ kañcic chyāma-rasāmbudhiṁ bhaja sakhe vṛndāṭavī-sīmani || Within the boundary of Vrindavan forest, O friend, there is a dark ocean of ambrosia, the abode of the divine fish of Radha's heart, unknowable to the gods headed by Shiva and Brahma. That ocean's tide surges with the rising of her moon face; Cupid is the churning stick, the beautiful Mandara Mountain, all to create amrita for the eyes of her sakhis. Worship that black ocean of rasa. The churning of the ocean is a theme that is loved by Sanskrit poets for its many metaphorical possibilities. The idea that by churning one thing, its essential elements are extracted, and that there are various roles in the process that can be assigned is...

The meaning of seeing God in the direction of love means that the presence of love confirms the presence of God. What is interesting here is that physical love is not excluded, but is accepted as being at the very basis of love itself, since the expression of romantic love in Radha and Krishna is seen as the ultimate truth. Just as Ashley Montague discovered in the 60's how important the skin and the sense of touch were to the healthy psychological development of the infant, and to the further spiritual sense of well-being in the adult, the sense of touch is also an integral part of love and bhakti . Therefore it is said,  tviṣaḥ phalaṁ tvādṛśa-gātra-sparśaḥ, sudurlabho bhāgavato hi loke. "The fruit of the skin is to touch your body, for great devotees like you are so rare in this world." Radha and Krishna are Love; they are the core of love. Love is formless, anaṅga , but it takes form. The form it takes must be dual, because the very basis of love is interaction...