VMA 1.96: : When will I see the Krishna bumblebee?


kadācit śrī-rādhā-caraṇa-kamala-dvandva-patitaṁ
kadācit śrī-rādhā-mukha-kamala-mādhvī-rasa-pibam |
kadācit śrī-rādhā-kuca-kamala-koṣa-dvaya-rataṁ
viloke taṁ kṛṣṇa-bhramaram adhi vṛndāvanam aham ||1.96||
Sometimes buzzing around Sri Radha's lotus feet,
sometimes drinking the nectar honey of Radha's lotus mouth,
sometimes trapped in the lotus flower cup of Radha's breasts,
when will I see this black bumblebee cavort in Vrindavan?

Commentary

Yesterday I felt a bit of fear as I posted such an intimate pastime of Radha and Krishna. At the same time I had recently been heavily criticized for speaking to unqualified persons about the fragrance of Radha's body, as in the first verse of Rādhā-rasa-sudhā-nidhi.

yasyāḥ kadāpi vasanāñcala-khelanottha-
dhanyātidhanya-pavanena kṛtārtha-mānī |
yogīndra-durgama-gatir madhusūdano'pi
tasyā namo'stu vṛṣabhānu-bhuvo diśe'pi ||
I bow down to even the direction in which Vrishabhanu Nandini is present, for even Madhusudana, whose characteristics are incomprehensible to the greatest yogis (yogīndra-durgama-gatir madhusūdano'pi), thinks himself to be most fortunate and fulfilled when the glorious, most glorious breezes arising from the playful movement of the hem of her sari come his way. (RRSN 2)
Madhusūdana is a name that has several meanings, including "drinker of honey," which is what a bee is. That is why he is likened to a bee, besides being black, of course. There is plenty of scope for scouring the literature for more comparisons of Krishna to a bee, especially in the Bhāgavatam 10.47, where Radharani's soliloquy to a bee arises on her hearing the gopis lament that just as a bee leaves a flower when it has sucked it dry of honey and goes to another, so does Krishna abandon the gopis after tasting their love.

anyeṣv artha-kṛtā maitrī yāvad-artha-viḍambanam |

pumbhiḥ strīṣu kṛtā yadvat sumanaḥsv iva ṣaṭpadaiḥ ||

Motivated friendship toward others is an imitation that lasts only until its purpose has been fulfilled, such as with men who seduce women, or a bee taking honey from the flower. (10.47.6)
The bee metaphors befits the dhīra-lalita leading man, who is our worshipable hero, Krishna. [More reading on the dhīra-lalita : Radha the Empress of Love, O Mind! Meditate on Radha's breasts, More about the two circles.]

vṛndāvane aprākṛta navīna madana
kāma-gāyatrī kāma-bīje jāṅra upāsana
puruṣa yoṣit kibā sthāvara jaṅgama
sarva cittākarṣaka sākṣāt manmatha madana
In Vrindavan resides an ever-youthful, divine Cupid. His worship is conducted with the kāma-bīja and kāma-gāyatrī mantras. This form of Krishna attracts all creatures whether male or females, moving or non-moving; he even attracts the mundane god of love himself. (CC 2.8.137-138)
śṛṅgāra-rasa-rāja-maya-mūrti dhara | 
ata eva ātmā paryanta sarva-citta hara || 
rāya kahena kṛṣṇa hayena dhīra-lalita | 
nirantara kāma-krīḍā yāhāra carita ||
Krishna attracts the hearts of all living entities, including himself because he has taken form as the embodiment of the romantic sentiment. Krishna has the character of a dhīra-lalita, the charming lover, whose only business is to engage in amorous sports. (CC 2.8.143, 187)
The dhīra-lalita, the male lead in a romantic comedy, is described by Rupa Goswami as follows:

vidagdho nava-tāruṇyaḥ parihāsa-viśāradaḥ |
niścinto dhīra-lalitaḥ syāt prāyaḥ preyasī-vaśaḥ ||
The charmer is suave, ever youthful, clever in the arts of flirtatious humor, always carefree and usually under his mistress’s thumb. (BRS 2.1.230)
And the example Rupa Goswami gives reveals the same traits as yesterday's verse, and that today: śrī-rādhā-kuca-kamala-koṣa-dvaya-rataṁ. The bee, though it flies from flower to flower, sometimes becomes so enamored of the inexhaustible supplies of honey in the lotus that it becomes entrapped by the petals when they fold closed at night.

vācā sūcita-śarvarī-rati-kalā-prāgalbhyayā rādhikāṁ
vrīḍā-kuñcita-locanāṁ viracayann agre sakhīnām asau |
tad-vakṣo-ruha-citra-keli-makarī-pāṇḍitya-pāraṁ gataḥ
kaiśoraṁ saphalī-karoti kalayan kuñje vihāraṁ hariḥ ||
With his brazen words referring to the bold erotic arts experienced the night before, Krishna makes Radharani squint in embarrassment in front of her sakhis. As he does so, he continues to show his expertise in painting various dolphin figures on her breasts [with musk and sandalwood]. By these playful pastimes in the kunjas of Vrindavan, Krishna fulfills the purpose of his youth. (BRS 2.1.231)
Not everyone has the adhikāra for this madhura-rasa, but it is important to recognize that this is the mood at the center of Vrindavan. It is the worshipable mood of all the rasika sampradāyas, and this is what Vrindavan will reveal to the surrendered bhakta who is fortunate to have found the association of rasikas in the Holy Dham.

A note about the style. Prabodhananda's style is easily recognizable, which seems to be the best evidence that he is the author of the Rādhā-rasa-sudhā-nidhi.

rādhā-karāvacita-pallava-vallarīke
rādhā-padāṅka-vilasan-madhura-sthalīke |
rādhā-yaśo-mukhara-matta-khagāvalīke
rādhā-vihāra-vipine ramatāṁ mano me ||
May my mind take pleasure in Sri Radha's forest playground,
which is filled with flower vines
whose twigs have been touched by Radha's hands,
whose sweet sites have been trod and marked by Radha's feet
and where the birds become intoxicated singing Radha's glories. (RRSN 13)
More examples will no doubt follow.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

O Mind! Meditate on Radha's Breasts

Image
Flickr As I go through the dāna-līlā episode of Chandi Das's Śrī Kṛṣṇa Kīrtana , there are many songs in which Krishna describes Radha's beauty, and a regular feature of that includes descriptions of her breasts. In fact, breasts are a subject that is prominent in all Sanskrit poetry, and is even standard in prayers to goddesses. There does not seem to have been any inhibition in talking about breasts in the ancient Indian culture, even though I dare say, there is more of one in the modern society, in spite of Bollywood. There is, however, an apparent restriction in talking about genitals, male or female, in the so-called erotic poetry of India--Sanskrit or vernacular--even when lovemaking etc., is described. Such descriptions would automatically fall into some other genre. In Radha and Krishna descriptions, I cannot recall ever seeing or hearing a passage that mentioned genitals or overt sexual activity. It is nearly always spoken of somewhat euphemistically. I remember ...
Read more

Swami Vishwananda's Bhakti Marga and Parampara

Image
It has been a little strange here at Jiva these past few days. Swami Vishwananda is here with his troupe of disciples, of whom there are a goodly number, perhaps 80 or so. When I arrived in Vrindavan already a couple of weeks back, almost the first thing I noticed at the corner of Mathura Road and the Parikrama Marg was a big billboard with Swami Vishwananda’s charming smile and glowing tilak staring charismatically out at the world and announcing that he would be giving darshan on March 8 at the Jiva Institute. Below him, in a smaller frame was Satyanarayana Dasa Babaji, who besides being his host will be speaking on the Bhāgavatam at the darshan event. This is not the first time that Vishwananda and his group have been at Jiva. Satyanarayana Dasaji calls Vishwananda a friend, and indeed the relations between the two are very cordial. Vishwananda's group is mostly young and enthusiastic, predominantly European (German and points east), who are very enthusiastic about...
Read more

Erotic sculptures on Jagannath temple

Image
This was written on the basis of Sundarananda Vidyavinode's Sri Kshetra and intended for a devotee audience, as it was done on a commission by disciples of Bhakti Promode Puri Maharaj. It has never been published. I decided to put this on line since there was a discussion on Facebook on the subject and I thought I would revisit what I wrote here nearly twenty years ago. This is from chapter ten on temple renovations. Please note that I have removed the images that I had found of some of the sculptures. I have been blocked from posting links to this blog on Facebook for some infringement of its "community standards". The only thing I can think of on this blog that might have offended some prudish person in cyberspace is this. I do not have much hope for redemption as it has been over six months since my ban is "under review" and there has been no sign of action. Needless to say, I find this heavy-handed action on the part of Facebook dangerously authoritar...
Read more