Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta: Madhya-līlā
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda

Chapter 8

Madhya8.84

TEXT 84

yathottaram asau svāda-

viśeṣollāsa-mayy api

ratir vāsanayā svādvī

bhāsate kāpi kasyacit

SYNONYMS

yathā uttaram—one after another; asau—that; svāda-viśeṣa—of particular tastes; ullāsa—pleasing; mayī—empowered with; api—although; ratiḥ—love; vāsanayā—by desire; svādvī—sweet; bhāsate—appears; kā api—someone; kasyacit—one of them.

TRANSLATION

" ’Increasing love is experienced in various tastes, one above another. But that love which has the highest taste in the gradual succession of desires manifests itself in the form of conjugal love.’

PURPORT

This verse is from Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī’s Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu (2.5.38), and it also appears in the Ādi-līlā, Chapter Four, verse 45.

Madhya8.85

TEXT 85

pūrva-pūrva-rasera guṇa--pare pare haya

dui-tina gaṇane pañca paryanta bāḍaya

SYNONYMS

pūrva-pūrva—of each previous; rasera—of the mellow; guṇa—the qualities; pare pare—in each subsequent; haya—there are; dui-tina—two and then three; gaṇane—in counting; pañca—five; paryanta—up to; bāḍaya—increases.

TRANSLATION

"There is a gradual order of improvement in transcendental mellows from the initial ones to the later ones. In each subsequent mellow the qualities of the previous mellows are manifest, counting from two, then three, and up to the point of five complete qualities.

Madhya8.86

TEXT 86

guṇādhikye svādādhikya bāḍe prati-rase

śānta-dāsya-sakhya-vātsalyera guṇa madhurete vaise

SYNONYMS

guṇa-ādhikye—by the increase of transcendental qualities; svāda-ādhikya—increase of taste; bāḍe—increases; prati-rase—in each mellow; śānta—of neutrality; dāsya—of servitude; sakhya—of fraternity; vātsalyera—and of paternal affection; guṇa—the qualities; madhurete—in the conjugal mellow; vaise—appear.

TRANSLATION

"As the qualities increase, so the taste also increases in each and every mellow. Therefore the qualities found in śānta-rasa, dāsya-rasa, sakhya-rasa and vātsalya-rasa are all manifest in conjugal love [mādhurya-rasa].

Madhya8.87

TEXT 87

ākāśādira guṇa yena para-para bhūte

dui-tina krame bāḍe pañca pṛthivīte

SYNONYMS

ākāśa-ādira—of the sky, air and so on; guṇa—the qualities; yena—just as; para-para—one after another; bhūte—in the material elements; dui-tina—two and then three; krame—by gradations; bāḍe—increase; pañca—all five; pṛthivīte—in earth.

TRANSLATION

"The qualities in the material elements-sky, air, fire, water and earth-increase one after another by a gradual process of one, two and three, and at the last stage, in the element earth, all five qualities are completely visible.

Madhya8.88

TEXT 88

paripūrṇa-kṛṣṇa-prāpti ei ’premā’ haite

ei premāra vaśa kṛṣṇa--kahe bhāgavate

SYNONYMS

paripūrṇa—completely full; kṛṣṇa-prāpti—achievement of the lotus feet of Lord Kṛṣṇa; ei—this; premā—love of Godhead; haite—from; ei premāra—of this type of love of Godhead; vaśa—under the control; kṛṣṇa—Lord Kṛṣṇa; kahe—it is said; bhāgavate—in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

TRANSLATION

"Complete attainment of the lotus feet of Lord Kṛṣṇa is made possible by love of Godhead, specifically mādhurya-rasa, or conjugal love. Lord Kṛṣṇa is indeed captivated by this standard of love. This is stated in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

PURPORT

To explain the topmost quality of conjugal love, Śrīla Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī gives the example of the material elements-sky, air, fire, water and earth. In the sky (space) there is the quality of sound. Similarly, in air there are the qualities of sound and touch. In fire, there are three qualities-sound, touch and form. In water there are four qualities-sound, touch, form and taste. Finally, in earth there are all five qualities-sound, touch, form, taste and also smell. Now, one can see that the quality of the sky is in all-namely in air, fire, water and earth. In earth we can find all the qualities of material nature. The same can be applied to the rasa known as mādhurya-rasa, or conjugal love. In conjugal love there are the qualities of neutrality, servitorship, fraternity and paternal affection, as well as conjugal love itself. The conclusion is that through conjugal love the Lord is completely satisfied.

Conjugal love (mādhurya-rasa) is also known as śṛṅgāra-rasa. It is the conclusion of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam that in the complete combination of loving service to the Lord-namely in conjugal love-the Supreme Lord fully agrees to be under the control of the devotee. The highest form of conjugal love is represented by Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī; therefore in the pastimes of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa we can see that Kṛṣṇa is always subjugated by Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī’s influence.

Madhya8.89

TEXT 89

mayi bhaktir hi bhūtānām

amṛtatvāya kalpate

diṣṭyā yad āsīn mat-sneho

bhavatīnāṁ mad-āpanaḥ

SYNONYMS

mayi—unto Me; bhaktiḥ—devotional service; hi—certainly; bhūtānām—of all living entities; amṛtatvāya—for becoming eternal; kalpate—is meant; diṣṭyā—fortunately; yat—what; āsīt—there is; mat-snehaḥ—affection for Me; bhavatīnām—of all of you; mat-āpanaḥ—the means of getting My favor.

TRANSLATION

"Lord Kṛṣṇa told the gopīs, ’The means of attaining My favor is loving service unto Me, and fortunately you are all thus engaged. Those living beings who render service unto Me are eligible to be transferred to the spiritual world and attain eternal life with knowledge and bliss.’

PURPORT

The fulfillment of human life is summarized in this verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.82.44). There are two important words in this verse: bhakti (devotional service) and amṛtatva (eternal life). The aim of human life is to attain the natural position of eternal life. This eternal life can be achieved only by devotional service.

Madhya8.90

TEXT 90

kṛṣṇera pratijñā dṛḍha sarva-kāle āche

ye yaiche bhaje, kṛṣṇa tāre bhaje taiche

SYNONYMS

kṛṣṇera—of Lord Kṛṣṇa; pratijñā—the promise; dṛḍha—firm; sarva-kāle—in all times; āche—there is; ye—anyone; yaiche—just as; bhaje—renders service; kṛṣṇa—Lord Kṛṣṇa; tāre—him; bhaje—reciprocates with; taiche—so for all time.

TRANSLATION

"Lord Kṛṣṇa has made a firm promise for all time. If one renders service unto Him, Kṛṣṇa correspondingly gives him an equal amount of success in devotional service to the Lord.

PURPORT

It is a completely mistaken idea that one can worship Kṛṣṇa in any form or in any way and still attain the ultimate result of receiving the favor of the Lord. This is a decision made by gross materialists. Generally such men say that you can manufacture your own way of worshiping the Supreme Lord and that any type of worship is sufficient to approach the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Certainly there are different means for attaining different results in fruitive activity, speculative knowledge, mystic yoga and austerity. Crude men therefore say that if one adopts any of these methods one achieves the Supreme Personality of Godhead’s favor. They claim that it doesn’t matter what kind of method one adopts. A general example is given: If one wishes to arrive at a certain place, there are many roads leading there, and one can go to that place by any one of these roads. Similarly, these gross materialists say, there are different ways to attain the favor of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. They claim that one can conceive of the Supreme Personality of Godhead as Goddess Durgā, Goddess Kālī, Lord Śiva, Demigod Gaṇeśa, Lord Rāmacandra, Kṛṣṇa, the impersonal Brahman or whatever, and one can chant the Lord’s name in any way and in any form. Such materialists claim that since ultimately all these names and forms are one, the result is the same. They also give the example that a man who has different names will answer if called by any one of them. Therefore, they claim, there is no need to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. If one chants the name of Kālī, Durgā, Śiva, Gaṇeśa or anyone else, the result will be the same.

Such claims made by mental speculators are no doubt very pleasing to mental speculators, but those who are actually in knowledge do not admit such conclusions, which are against the authority of the śāstras. A bona fide ācārya will certainly not accept such a conclusion. As Kṛṣṇa clearly states in the Bhagavad-gītā (9.25):

yānti deva-vratā devān
pitṝn yānti pitṛ-vratāḥ
bhūtāni yānti bhūtejyā
yānti mad-yājino ’pi mām

“Those who worship the demigods will take birth among the demigods, those who worship the ancestors go to the ancestors, those who worship ghosts and spirits will take birth among such beings, and those who worship Me will live with Me.” (Bg. 9.25)

Only the devotees of the Lord can be admitted to His kingdom-not the demigod worshipers, karmīs, yogīs or anyone else. A person who desires elevation to the heavenly planets worships various demigods, and material nature may be pleased to offer such devotees their desired positions. The material nature gives a person his own nature, by which he increases affection for different types of demigods. However, the Bhagavad-gītā (7.20) says that demigod worship is meant for men who have lost all their intelligence:

kāmais tais tair hṛta-jñānāḥ
prapadyante ’nya-devatāḥ
taṁ taṁ niyamam āsthāya
prakṛtyā niyatāḥ svayā

“Those whose intelligence has been stolen by material desires surrender unto demigods and follow the particular rules and regulations of worship according to their own natures.”

Although one may be elevated to the heavenly planets, the results of such a benediction are limited:

anta-vat tu phalaṁ teṣāṁ
tad bhavaty alpa-medhasām
devān deva-yajo yānti
mad-bhaktā yānti mām api

“Men of small intelligence worship the demigods, and their fruits are limited and temporary. Those who worship the demigods go to the planets of the demigods, but My devotees ultimately reach My supreme planet.” (Bg. 7.23)

Being elevated to the heavenly planets or other material planets does not mean attaining an eternal life of knowledge and bliss. At the end of the material world, all attainments of material elevation will also end. Again, according to Kṛṣṇa in the Bhagavad-gītā (18.55), only those who engage in His loving devotional service will be admitted to the spiritual world and return to Godhead, not others:

bhaktyā mām abhijānāti
yāvān yaś cāsmi tattvataḥ
tato māṁ tattvato jñātvā
viśate tad-anantaram

“One can understand Me as I am, as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, only by devotional service. And when one is in full consciousness of Me by such devotion, he can enter into the kingdom of God.”

Impersonalists cannot understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead; therefore it is not possible for them to enter into the spiritual kingdom of God and return home, back to Godhead. Actually one attains different results by different means. It is not that all achievements are one and the same. Those interested in the four principles of dharma, artha, kāma and mokṣa cannot be compared to those interested in the unalloyed devotional service of the Lord. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.1.2) therefore says:

dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavo ’tra paramo nirmatsarāṇāṁ satāṁ
vedyaṁ vāstavam atra vastu śiva-daṁ tāpa-trayonmūlanam
śrīmad-bhāgavate mahā-muni-kṛte kiṁ vā parair īśvaraḥ
sadyo hṛdy avarudhyate ’tra kṛtibhiḥ śuśrūṣubhis tat-kṣaṇāt

“Completely rejecting all religious activities which are materially motivated, this Bhāgavata Purāṇa propounds the highest truth, which is understandable by those devotees who are pure in heart. The highest truth is reality distinguished from illusion for the welfare of all. Such truth uproots the threefold miseries. This beautiful Bhāgavatam, compiled by the great sage Śrī Vyāsadeva, is sufficient in itself for God realization. As soon as one attentively and submissively hears the message of Bhāgavatam, he becomes attached to the Supreme Lord.”

Those who aspire after liberation attempt to merge into the impersonal Brahman. To this end they execute ritualistic religious ceremonies, but Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam considers this a cheating process. Indeed, such people can never dream of returning home, back to Godhead. There is a gulf of difference between the goal of dharma, artha, kāma and mokṣa and the goal of devotional service.

The goddess Durgā is the superintending deity of this material world, which is made of material elements. The demigods are simply different directors engaged in operating the departments of material activities, and they are under the influence of the same material energy. Kṛṣṇa’s internal potencies, however, have nothing to do with the creation of this cosmic material world. The spiritual world and all spiritual activities are under the direction of the internal, spiritual energy, and such activities are performed by Yogamāyā, the spiritual energy. Yogamāyā is the spiritual or internal energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Those who are interested in being promoted to the spiritual world and engaging in the service of the Lord attain spiritual perfection under the control of Yogamāyā. Those who are interested in material promotion engage in ritualistic religious ceremonies and economic development to develop sense gratification. They ultimately attempt to merge into the impersonal existence of the Lord. Such people generally become impersonalists. They are interested in worshiping Lord Śiva or Goddess Durgā, but their return is one hundred percent materialistic.

Following the example of the gopīs, the devotees sometimes worship the goddess Kātyāyanī, but they understand that Kātyāyanī is an incarnation of Yogamāyā. The gopīs worshiped Kātyāyanī, Yogamāyā, to attain Kṛṣṇa as their husband. On the other hand, it is stated in the Sapta-śatī scripture that a kṣatriya king named Suratha and a rich vaiśya named Samādhi worshiped material nature in the form of Goddess Durgā to attain material perfection. If one tries to mingle the worship of Yogamāyā with Mahāmāyā, considering them one and the same, he does not really show very high intelligence. The idea that everything is one is a kind of foolishness indulged in by those with less brain substance. Fools and rascals say that the worship of Yogamāyā and Mahāmāyā is the same. This conclusion is simply the result of mental speculation, and it has no practical effect. In the material world, sometimes one gives an exalted title to an utterly worthless thing; in Bengal this is known as giving a blind child a name like Padmalocana, which means “lotus-eyed.” One may foolishly call a blind child Padmalocana, but such an appellation does not bear any meaning.

In the spiritual world the Absolute Lord is always identical with His name, fame, form, qualities and pastimes. Such identity is impossible in the material world, where the name of a person is different from the person himself. The Supreme Lord has many holy names like Paramātmā, Brahman and “the creator,” but one who worships the Lord as the creator cannot understand the relationship between a devotee and the Lord in the five types of transcendental mellow, nor can he understand the conception of Kṛṣṇa. One cannot understand the six transcendental opulences of the Lord simply by understanding the Supreme Personality of Godhead as impersonal Brahman.

Impersonal realization of the Absolute Truth is certainly transcendental, but this does not mean that one who has attained this realization can understand the sac-cid-ānanda form of the Lord. Similarly, Paramātmā realization-realization of the plenary expansion of the Absolute Truth within everyone’s heart-is also an incomplete understanding of the Absolute Truth. Even a devotee of the Personality of Godhead Nārāyaṇa cannot actually understand the transcendental attractive features of Kṛṣṇa. Indeed, a devotee of Kṛṣṇa who is attached to the sublime attractive features of the Lord does not consider Nārāyaṇa very important. When the gopīs sometimes saw Kṛṣṇa in the form of Nārāyaṇa, they were not very attracted to Him. The gopīs never addressed Kṛṣṇa as Rukmiṇī-ramaṇa. Kṛṣṇa’s devotees in Vṛndāvana address Him as Rādhāramaṇa, Nandanandana and Yaśodānandana, but not as Vasudeva-nandana or Devakī-nandana. Although according to the material conception Nārāyaṇa, Rukmiṇī-ramaṇa and Kṛṣṇa are one and the same, in the spiritual world one cannot use the name Rukmiṇī-ramaṇa or Nārāyaṇa in place of the name Kṛṣṇa. If one does so out of a poor fund of knowledge, his mellow with the Lord becomes spiritually faulty and is called rasābhāsa, an overlapping of transcendental mellows. The advanced devotee who has actually realized the transcendental features of the Lord will not commit the mistake of creating a rasābhāsa situation by using one name for another. Because of the influence of Kali-yuga, there is much rasābhāsa in the name of extravagance and liberal-mindedness. Such fanaticism is not very much appreciated by pure devotees.

Madhya8.91

TEXT 91

ye yathā māṁ prapadyante

tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham

mama vartmānuvartante

manuṣyāḥ pārtha sarvaśaḥ

SYNONYMS

ye—they; yathā—as; mām—unto Me; prapadyante—surrender; tān—unto them; tathā eva—in the same proportion; bhajāmi—bestow My favor; aham—I; mama—My; vartma—way; anuvartante—follow; manuṣyāḥ—men; pārtha—My dear Arjuna; sarvaśaḥ—in all respects.

TRANSLATION

"According to Lord Kṛṣṇa in the Bhagavad-gītā [4.11],’As all surrender unto Me, I reward them accordingly. Everyone follows My path in all respects, O son of Pṛthā.’

Madhya8.92

TEXT 92

ei ’preme’ra anurūpa nā pāre bhajite

ataeva ’ṛṇī’ haya--kahe bhāgavate

SYNONYMS

ei—this; premera—of love of God; anurūpa—exactly to the proportion; —not; pāre—is able; bhajite—to reciprocate; ataeva—therefore; ṛṇī—debtor; haya—becomes; kahe—is stated; bhāgavate—in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

TRANSLATION

"In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam [10.32.22] it is said that Lord Kṛṣṇa cannot proportionately reciprocate devotional service in the mādhurya-rasa; therefore He always remains a debtor to such devotees.

Madhya8.93

TEXT 93

na pāraye ’haṁ niravadya-saṁyujāṁ

sva-sādhu-kṛtyaṁ vibudhāyuṣāpi vaḥ

yā mābhajan durjara-geha-śṛṅkhalāḥ

saṁvṛścya tad vaḥ pratiyātu sādhunā

SYNONYMS

na—not; pāraye—am able; aham—I; niravadya—without duplicity; saṁyujām—meeting; sva-sādhu-kṛtyam—your own honest activities; vibudha-āyuṣā api—even with a duration of life like that of the demigods; vaḥ—you; —who; —Me; abhajan—have worshiped; durjara—difficult to surmount; geha—of household life; śṛṅkhalāḥ—the chains; saṁvṛścya—cutting off; tat—that; vaḥ—your; pratiyātu—let there be a return; sādhunā—by pious activities.

TRANSLATION

"When the gopīs were overwhelmed with dissatisfaction due to Lord Kṛṣṇa’s absence from the rāsa-līlā, Kṛṣṇa returned to them and told them, ’My dear gopīs, our meeting is certainly free from all material contamination. I must admit that in many lives it would be impossible for Me to repay My debt to you because you have cut off the bondage of family life just to search for Me. Consequently I am unable to repay you. Therefore please be satisfied with your honest activities in this regard.’

Madhya8.94

TEXT 94

yadyapi kṛṣṇa-saundarya--mādhuryera dhurya

vraja-devīra saṅge tāṅra bāḍaye mādhurya

SYNONYMS

yadyapi—although; kṛṣṇa-saundarya—the beauty of Lord Kṛṣṇa; mādhuryera—of sweetness; dhurya—the supermost; vraja-devīra—the gopīs; saṅge—in company with; tāṅra—His; bāḍaye—increases; mādhurya—the sweetness.

TRANSLATION

"Although Kṛṣṇa’s unparalleled beauty is the topmost sweetness of love of Godhead, His sweetness increases unlimitedly when He is in the company of the gopīs. Consequently Kṛṣṇa’s exchange of love with the gopīs is the topmost perfection of love of Godhead.

PURPORT

Kṛṣṇa and His devotees become perfectly intimate in conjugal love of Godhead. In other mellows, the Lord and the devotees do not enjoy transcendental bliss as perfectly. The next verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.33.6) will illustrate this verse.

Madhya8.95

TEXT 95

tatrātiśuśubhe tābhir

bhagavān devakī-sutaḥ

madhye maṇīnāṁ haimānāṁ

mahā-marakato yathā

SYNONYMS

tatra—there; ati-śuśubhe—was very beautiful; tābhiḥ—by them; bhagavān—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; devakī-sutaḥ—son of Devakī; madhye—in the midst; maṇīnām—of valuable jewels; haimānām—lined with gold; mahā-marakataḥ—the jewel of the name marakata; yathā—as.

TRANSLATION

“ ’Although the son of Devakī, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is also the reservoir of all kinds of beauty, when He is among the gopīs He nonetheless becomes more beautiful, for He resembles a mārakata jewel surrounded by gold and other jewels.’ ”

Madhya8.96

TEXT 96

prabhu kahe,--ei ’sādhyāvadhi’ suniścaya

kṛpā kari’ kaha, yadi āge kichu haya

SYNONYMS

prabhu kahe—Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu replied; ei—this; sādhya-avadhi—the highest limit of perfection; su-niścaya—certainly; kṛpā kari’-being merciful to Me; kaha—please speak; yadi—if; āge—further; kichu haya—there is something.

TRANSLATION

Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu replied, “This is certainly the limit of perfection, but please be merciful to Me and speak more if there is more.”

Madhya8.97

TEXT 97

rāya kahe,--īhāra āge puche hena jane

eta-dina nāhi jāni, āchaye bhuvane

SYNONYMS

rāya kahe—Rāmānanda Rāya replied; ihāra āge—beyond this point; puche—inquires; hena—such; jane—a person; eta-dina—until this day; nāhi jāni—I did not know; āchaye—there is; bhuvane—within this material world.

TRANSLATION

Rāya Rāmānanda replied, "Until this day I did not know anyone within this material world who could inquire beyond this perfectional stage of devotional service.

Madhya8.98

TEXT 98

iṅhāra madhye rādhāra prema--’sādhya-śiromaṇi’

yāṅhāra mahimā sarva-śāstrete vākhāni

SYNONYMS

iṅhāra madhye—among the loving affairs of the gopīs; rādhāra prema—the love of Godhead of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī; sādhya-śiromaṇi—the topmost perfection; yāṅhāra—of which; mahimā—the glorification; sarva-śāstrete—in every scripture; vākhāni—description.

TRANSLATION

“Among the loving affairs of the gopīs,” Rāmānanda Rāya continued, "Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī’s love for Śrī Kṛṣṇa is topmost. Indeed, the glories of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī are highly esteemed in all revealed scriptures.

Madhya8.99

TEXT 99

yathā rādhā priyā viṣṇos

tasyāḥ kuṇḍaṁ priyaṁ tathā

sarva-gopīṣu saivaikā

viṣṇor atyanta-vallabhā

SYNONYMS

yathā—just as; rādhā—Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī; priyā—very dear; viṣṇoḥ—to Lord Kṛṣṇa; tasyāḥ—Her; kuṇḍam—bathing place; priyam—very dear; tathā—so also; sarva-gopīṣu—among all the gopīs; sā—She; eva—certainly; ekā—alone; viṣṇoḥ—of Lord Kṛṣṇa; atyanta-vallabhā—very dear.

TRANSLATION

" ’Just as Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī is most dear to Śrī Kṛṣṇa, Her bathing place known [Rādhā-kuṇḍa] is also dear to Him. Among all the gopīs, Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī is supermost and very dear to Lord Kṛṣṇa.’

PURPORT

This verse is from the Padma Purāṇa and is included in the Laghu-bhāgavatāmṛta (2.1.45), by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī. It also appears in Ādi-līlā, Chapter Four, verse 215, and again in Madhya-līlā, Chapter Eighteen, verse 8.

Madhya8.100

TEXT 100

anayārādhito nūnaṁ

bhagavān harir īśvaraḥ

yan no vihāya govindaḥ

prīto yām anayad rahaḥ

SYNONYMS

anayā—by Her; ārādhitaḥ—worshiped; nūnam—indeed; bhagavān—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; hariḥ—Kṛṣṇa; īśvaraḥ—the Lord; yat—from which; naḥ—us; vihāya—rejecting; govindaḥ—Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa; prītaḥ—satisfied; yām—whom; anayat—brought; rahaḥ—a secluded place.

TRANSLATION

“When the gopīs began to talk among themselves, they said, ’Dear friends, the gopī who has been taken away by Kṛṣṇa to a secluded place must have worshiped the Lord more than anyone else.’ ”

PURPORT

The name Rādhā is derived from this verse (Bhāg. 10.30.28), from the words anayārādhitaḥ, meaning “by Her the Lord is worshiped.” Sometimes the critics of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam find it difficult to find Rādhārāṇī’s holy name, but the secret is disclosed here in the word ārādhitaḥ, from which the name Rādhā has come. Of course, the name of Rādhārāṇī is directly mentioned in other Purāṇas. This gopī’s worship of Kṛṣṇa is topmost, and therefore Her name is Rādhā, or the topmost worshiper.

Madhya8.101

TEXT 101

prabhu kahe--āge kaha, śunite pāi sukhe

apūrvāmṛta-nadī vahe tomāra mukhe

SYNONYMS

prabhu kahe—the Lord said; āge—ahead; kaha—please speak; śunite—to hear; pāi—I get; sukhe—happiness; apūrva-amṛta—of unprecedented nectar; nadī—a river; vahe—flows; tomāra mukhe—from your mouth.

TRANSLATION

Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, "Please speak on. I am very happy to hear you because a river of unprecedented nectar is flowing from your mouth.

Madhya8.102

TEXT 102

curi kari’ rādhāke nila gopī-gaṇera ḍare

anyāpekṣā haile premera gāḍhatā nā sphure

SYNONYMS

curi kari’-stealing; rādhāke—Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī; nila—took away; gopī-gaṇera—of the gopīs; ḍare—out of fear; anya-apekṣā—dependence on others; haile—if there is; premera—of love; gāḍhatā—the intensity; —not; sphure—manifests.

TRANSLATION

"During the rāsa dance Śrī Kṛṣṇa did not exchange loving affairs with Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī due to the presence of the other gopīs. Because of the dependence of the others, the intensity of love between Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa was not manifest. Therefore He stole Her away.

PURPORT

Out of fear of the other gopīs, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa took Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī to a secluded place. In this regard, the verse kaṁsārir api (verse 106 in this chapter) will be quoted from the Gīta-govinda of Jayadeva Gosvāmī.

Madhya8.103

TEXT 103

rādhā lāgi’ gopīre yadi sākṣāt kare tyāga

tabe jāni,--rādhāya kṛṣṇera gāḍha-anurāga

SYNONYMS

rādhā lāgi’-for the sake of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī; gopīre—the gopīs; yadi—if; sākṣāt—directly; kare—does; tyāga—rejection; tabe—then; jāni—we can understand; rādhāya—in Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī; kṛṣṇera—of Lord Kṛṣṇa; gāḍha—intense; anurāga—affection.

TRANSLATION

“If Lord Kṛṣṇa rejected the company of the other gopīs for Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, we can understand that Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa has intense affection for Her.”

Madhya8.104

TEXT 104

rāya kahe,--tabe śuna premera mahimā

tri-jagate rādhā-premera nāhika upamā

SYNONYMS

rāya kahe—Rāmānanda Rāya replied; tabe—then; śuna—please hear; premera—of that love; mahimā—the glories; tri-jagate—within the three worlds; rādhā-premera—of the loving affairs of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī; nāhika—there is not; upamā—comparison.

TRANSLATION

Rāmānanda Rāya continued, "Please therefore hear from me about the glories of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī’s loving affairs. They are beyond compare within these three worlds.

Madhya8.105

TEXT 105

gopī-gaṇera rāsa-nṛtya-maṇḍalī chāḍiyā

rādhā cāhi’ vane phire vilāpa kariyā

SYNONYMS

gopī-gaṇera—of the gopīs; rāsa-nṛtya—of rāsa dancing; maṇḍalī—the circle; chāḍiyā—rejecting; rādhā—Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī; cāhi’-desiring; vane—in the forest; phire—wanders; vilāpa—lamentation; kariyā—doing.

TRANSLATION

"Finding Herself treated equally with all the other gopīs, Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī displayed Her tricky behavior and left the circle of the rāsa dance. Missing Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī’s presence, Kṛṣṇa became very unhappy and began to lament and wander throughout the forest to search Her out.

Madhya8.106

TEXT 106

kaṁsārir api saṁsāra-

vāsanā-baddha-śṛṅkhalām

rādhām ādhāya hṛdaye

tatyāja vraja-sundarīḥ

SYNONYMS

kaṁsa-āriḥ—the enemy of Kaṁsa; api—moreover; saṁsāra-vāsanā—desirous of the essence of enjoyment (rāsa-līlā); baddha-śṛṅkhalām—being perfectly attracted to such activities; rādhām—Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī; ādhāya—taking; hṛdaye—within the heart; tatyāja—left aside; vraja-sundarīḥ—the other beautiful gopīs.

TRANSLATION

" ’Lord Kṛṣṇa, the enemy of Kaṁsa, took Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī within His heart, for He desired to dance with Her. Thus He left the arena of the rāsa dance and the company of all the other beautiful damsels of Vraja.’

Madhya8.107

TEXT 107

itas tatas tām anusṛtya rādhikām

anaṅga-bāṇa-vraṇa-khinna-mānasaḥ

kṛtānutāpaḥ sa kalinda-nandinī

taṭānta-kuñje viṣasāda mādhavaḥ

SYNONYMS

itaḥ tataḥ—hither and thither; tām—Her; anusṛtya—searching out; rādhikām—Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī; anaṅga—of Cupid; bāṇa-vraṇa—by a wound from the arrow; khinna-mānasaḥ—whose heart is injured; kṛta-anutāpaḥ—repentant for misbehavior; saḥ—He (Lord Kṛṣṇa); kalinda-nandinī—of the river Yamunā; taṭa-anta—on the edge of the bank; kuñje—in the bushes; viṣasāda—lamented; mādhavaḥ—Lord Kṛṣṇa.

TRANSLATION

" ’Being afflicted by the arrow of Cupid and unhappily regretting His mistreating Rādhārāṇī, Mādhava, Lord Kṛṣṇa, began to search for Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī along the banks of the Yamunā River. When He failed to find Her, He entered the bushes of Vṛndāvana and began to lament.’

PURPORT

These two verses are from the Gīta-govinda (3.1, 2), written by Jayadeva Gosvāmī.

Madhya8.108

TEXT 108

ei dui-ślokera artha vicārile jāni

vicārite uṭhe yena amṛtera khani

SYNONYMS

ei—these; dui—two; ślokera—of the verses; artha—the meanings; vicārile—if considering; jāni—I can understand; vicārite—while considering; uṭhe—arises; yena—like; amṛtera—of nectar; khani—a mine.

TRANSLATION

"Simply by considering these two verses one can understand what nectar there is in such dealings. It is exactly like freeing a mine of nectar.

Next verse (Madhya8.109)

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