SRI BRAHMA-SAMHITA

Verse 37

ananda-chinmaya-rasa-pratibhavitabhis-
tabhir ya eva nija-rupatya kalabhih
goloka eva nivasaty akhilatma-bhuto
govindam adi purusam tam aham bhajami [37]

Translation: He eternally resides in His holy abode of Goloka with His transcendental second nature, the own self of His ecstasy potency replete with the sixty-four sublime arts—Sri Radha and Her various personal plenary expansions, Her lady companions, whose hearts are filled with the supreme rasa, the joy of divine love; that Primeval Lord Govinda—the life and soul of His beloved—do I adore.

Purport: The Absolute, despite being one as Potency and Potent, eternally presides by His ecstasy potency in two separate forms—Radha and Krishna. Inconceivable amorous consorthood is ever-present in both that ecstasy (hladini) and divinity (Krishna). Vibhava, or the cause of the experience of that rasa, or ecstatic principle, is divided into two: alambana (the basis) and uddipana (the stimulation). Of the two, alambana is further divided into two: asraya, or the repository of love, and visaya, or the object to whom that love is directed. The asraya is Sri Radhika Herself, along with Her various personal plenary expansions; and the visaya is Sri Krishna Himself. Krishna is Govinda, the Lord of Goloka. The repository of deep love in that rasa is embodied in the gopis. It is with them that Krishna enjoys His eternal pastimes in Goloka.

The expression nija-rupataya indicates ‘along with all the plenary expansions, charms, or arts manifest by the current of the ecstasy potency’; those arts are sixty-four in number: nrtyam, gitam, vadyam, natyam, alekhyam, visesaka-chchhedyam, tandula-kusuma-vani-vikarah, puspastaranam, dasana-vasananga-ragah, mani-bhumika-karman, saya-rachanam, udaka-vadyam, udaka-ghatah, chitrayogah, malya-granthana-vikalpah, sekharapida-yojanam, nepathya-yogah, karna-patra-bhangah, gandha-yuktih, bhusana-yojanam, aindra-jalam, kauchumara-yogah, hasta-laghavam, chitra-sakapupa-bhaksya-vikara-kriyah, panaka-rasa-ragasava-yojanam, suchi-vapa-karman, sutra-krida, prahelika, prati-mala, durvachaka-yogah, pustaka-vachanam, natikakhayika-darsanam, kavya-samasya-puranam, pattika-vetra-bana-vikalpah, tarku-karman, taksanam, vastu-vidya, raupya-ratna-pariksa, dhatuvadah, mani-raga-jnanam, akara-jnanam, vrksayurveda-yogah, mesa-kukkuta-savaka-yuddha-vidhi, suka-sarika-pralapanam, utsadanam, kesa-marjjana-kausalam, aksara-mustika-kathanam, mlechchhita-kutarka-vikalpah, desa-bhasa-jnanam, puspa-sakatika-nimitta-jnanam, yantra-matrka, dharana-matrka, sam-patyam, manasi-kavya-kriyah, kriya-vikalpah, chhalitaka-yogah, abhidhana-kosa-chchhanda-jnanam, vastra-gopanam, dyuta-visesam, akarsa-krida, balaka-kridanakam, vai-nayiki-vidya, vaijayiki-vidya and vaitaliki-vidya.

All these teachings are divinely personified and eternally manifest as the ingredients of rasa in Goloka; and in the world, by the divine potency Yogamaya, they have been auspiciously manifest in the pastimes of Vraja. For this reason, Sri Rupa has stated, sadanantaih prakasaih svair lilabhis cha sa divyati, tatraikena prakasena kadachij jagad antare, sahaiva svaparivarair janmadi kurute harih; krsna-bhavanusarena lilakhya saktir eva sa, tesam parikaranan cha tam tam bhavam vibhavayet; prapancha-gocharatvena sa lila prakata smrta, anyas tv aprakata bhanti tadrsyas tad agocharah; tatra prakata-lilayam eva syatam gamagamau, gokule mathurayan cha dvarakayan cha sarnginah; yas tatra tatraprakatas tatra tatraiva santi tah. This means that in Goloka, Krishna is ever-beautifully resplendent with His infinite pastimes; sometimes there are variations in the manifestation of those pastimes in the mundane world. The Supreme Lord Sri Hari reveals the pastimes of His advent, etc., in His family. According to His sweet will, the lila potency also infuses the hearts of His personal associates with the devotional dispositions appropriate to their service. All the pastimes that are visible to the world are manifest pastimes, while those pastimes that are invisible to the world are unmanifest by remaining in Goloka. In His manifest pastimes, Krishna frequents Gokula, Mathura and Dvaraka. All the pastimes that are not manifest in those three places remain manifest in the divine abode, the original location of Vrindavan.

All these conclusions inform us that intrinsically there is no distinction between the manifest and unmanifest pastimes. In his commentary of this sloka and in his commentary of Ujjvala-nilamani and in Krishna-sandarbha and other exalted works our most revered acharya Sri Jiva Goswami has stated that Krishna’s manifest pastimes are conducted by Yogamaya; because those pastimes are associated with material nature, some mayik or worldly traits are apparent in them, which can in no way be present in the intrinsic transcendental pastimes. For example, the slaying of demons, paramour relationships, birth, and so on. The gopis are of Sri Krishna’s personal potency, so they are His own without exception; how can they be considered to be the wives of others? So the paramour affairs of the pastimes manifest on Earth, in which they are considered to be others’ wives, are only a mundane inflection of the transcendental reality.

When we can have some insight into the deep purport of the line of thought in these explanations of Sri Jiva Goswamipada, no room for any doubt about the truth can remain in our hearts. Sri Jiva Goswamipada is our tattva-acharya, divine guide in transcendental truth—his representation is always strictly in conformity with the line of Sri Rupa-Sanatana; besides, in his internal divine identity, he is a particular manjari. So all transcendental truths are fully known to him. Without understanding the gist of his line of thought, some persons have speculated and concocted their own interpretation of his words, ushering in a tirade of fruitless controversy.

According to Sri Rupa and Sri Sanatana, unmanifest and manifest pastimes are identical, with the only exception that the former is revealed beyond the material world while the latter is revealed within it. In the revelation beyond this world, there is absolute purity in regard to the seer and the seen. When by great fortune one receives the grace of Krishna, and is thus able to completely sever his relationship with the mundane and enter into the transcendental world—and further, if he attains to the perfection of tasting the variegatedness of spiritual rasa during his practising spiritual life—such a person will be able to see and taste the complete divine pastimes of Goloka. Such a blessed recipient is rare; and one who despite being present in the material world has through his perfection in devotion gained the grace of Krishna and thus attained to experience of the spiritual rasa will be able to see those Goloka pastimes in the Gokula pastimes manifest in this earthly plane.

There is a definite comparative distinction between these two classes of devotees; until the attainment of vastu-siddhi, the ability to have the darsan (vision) of Goloka pastimes is always deterred by some mundane obstruction. Again, it must be admitted that there are different gradations of the darsan of Goloka in proportion to one’s comparative progress in svarupa-siddhi, which determines one’s stage of svarupa-darsan, or vision of the reality.

Those who are very tightly bound by the chains of illusion have no eyes of devotion; of such persons, some see everything in the variegatedness of the illusory world, and others, taking shelter of non-theistic knowledge, are aspirants of suicidal ultimate dissolution. Even if they are able to see the manifest pastimes of the Lord, nothing more than mundane connotations devoid of any relationship with the unmanifest pastimes appear in their minds. So in this way, the darsan of Goloka is attainable according to one’s eligibility.

The fine point here is that as Goloka is pure truth, Gokula is similarly pure and completely devoid of impurity; however, by the divine chit potency Yogamaya, Gokula is manifest in the mundane world. In either the manifest or unmanifest affairs of that plane there is not the slightest trace of contamination, unwholesomeness or imperfection as found in the limited world; only according to the varying eligibility of the jivas viewing them do they appear with certain variations. Contamination, unwholesomeness, superfluity, misunderstanding, ignorance, impurity, falsity, lowliness, grossness—all these are present in the mundane vision of the viewing jivas’ eyes, intellect, mind and ego. They are not inherent in the observable object. The more one is free from those particular stigmas, the more he will be capable of having the vision of the transcendental truth.

The truth that is revealed in the sastra, or holy scriptures, is completely devoid of contamination; the purity or impurity of the realizations of the different viewers are dependent on their individual qualifications. All the above-mentioned sixty-four arts exist in Goloka in their original pure form, devoid of any trace of mundanity. The qualification of purity of the deliberator on these matters will determine whether he sees any connotation of unwholesomeness, lowliness or grossness in them.

According to Sri Rupa and Sri Sanatana, whatever types of pastimes are manifest in Gokula, all are in Goloka intrinsically and devoid of any scent of mundanity. So by that consideration, parakiya-bhava, or the mode of paramour relationship, must certainly also be in Goloka, in a kind of inconceivably pure posing. Everything that is manifest by Yogamaya is pure; when paramourship is arranged by Yogamaya, its roots in pure absolute reality are indicated. Let us consider the constitution of that pure absolute reality.

Sri Rupa has written, purvokta-dhirodattadi-chaturbhedasya tasya tu, patis chopapatis cheti prabhedav iha visrutau; tatra patih sa kanyayah yah panigrahako bhavet, ragenol-langhayan dharmam parakiyabalarthina, tadiya-prema-sarvasvam budhair upapatih smrtah; laghutvam atra yat proktam tat tu prakrta-nayake, na krsne rasa-niryasa-svadartham avatarini. Tatra nayika-bheda-vicharah,—nasau natye-rase mukhye yat parodha nigadyate, tat tu syat prakrta-ksudra-nayikady anusaratah. Sri Jiva has deeply considered all these slokas and substantiated that as the pastimes of birth, etc., are pastimes of divine delusion (vibhrama-vilasa) attributed to Yogamaya, the same is applicable in the case of the paramour conception. Tathapi patih pura-vanitanam dvitiyo vraja-vanitanam—by this statement he has revealed his deep purport. In the conclusions established by Sri Rupa and Sri Sanatana, the pastimes of divine delusion arranged by Yogamaya have also been admitted. Yet when Sri Jiva Goswami has determined Goloka and Gokula to be identical, it cannot but be admitted that the basis of the Gokula pastimes is the fundamental transcendental reality.

One who accepts the hand of a maiden according to the injunction of marriage is a husband, while one who, thinking his love to be all-in-all, crosses the injunctions of religious duty in order to gain another’s wife, is a paramour. In Goloka there is no religious obligation binding anyone to the injunction of marriage, so no husbandhood of that order is to be found there either; on the other hand, since there can be no marriage with others for the gopis, who are in that way constitutionally Krishna’s own, there is no question of them becoming lady paramours. There, the concepts of wedded and paramour (svakiya–parakiya) cannot exist independently of one another. In Krishna’s pastimes manifest in the material world, the binding religious code of marriage is present; Krishna is transcendental to that religious duty. So the circle of divine amorous affairs is thus an arrangement of Yogamaya. Crossing that religious obligation, Krishna enjoyed the taste of paramourship. These pastimes of ‘overstepping morality’ manifest by Yogamaya are seen in the world by eyes enveloped in mundanity; in actuality there is no trace of such pettiness or superficiality in the pastimes of Krishna at all.

Parakiya-rasa is the essence of all rasas; to deny its existence in Goloka would be tantamount to sacrilege. The superexcellent, transcendental ecstatic experience cannot be absent in the superexcellent Goloka. Krishna, the origin of all avataras, tastes that in a certain way in Goloka, and He tastes that in a certain way in Gokula. So despite the immoral connotation seen in paramourship by the mundane eye, paramourship nonetheless has its peculiar wholesome existence in Goloka also. From the scriptural statements “atmaramo ‘py ariramat,” “atmany avaruddha-sauratah,” “reme vrajasundaribhir yatharbhakah svapratibimba-vibhramah” etc., it is evident that self-satisfaction is Krishna’s personal nature.

In the majestic area of the transcendental world, He manifests His personal potency as Laksmi and consorts with Her in the mood of wedlock. Since this mood of ownership in wedlock (svakiya-buddhi) predominates there, the scope of rasa naturally and charmingly goes up to servitude, or dasya-rasa. But in Goloka, Krishna expands His personal potency into millions of gopis and He consorts with them, forgetting all ownership. The extreme rarity of the paramour relationship is absent in the sentiment of marriage, so naturally the gopis since time immemorial are endowed with the innate sentiment of being ‘others’ wives,’ or female paramours; and Krishna Himself also reciprocates by accepting the sentiment of paramourship, and with the help of His beloved companion the flute, He enjoys lila, or pastimes, such as the rasa dance.

Goloka is eternally perfect—the seat of transcendental ecstasy, or rasa—transcendental to any mundane inflection; so in that realm, the divine current of the sentiment of paramourship flows in its perfection. Further, the way of majesty (aisvarya) is such that the parental sentiment (vatsalya-rasa) directed to the origin of all incarnations is also absent in Vaikuntha. Yet in the paramount plane of divine consorthood—the parama-madhurya-maya Goloka—there is only the original mood of that sentiment. There, Nanda and Yasoda are personally present, but there is no direct occurrence of Krishna’s birth; without the function of giving birth to a son, the egos of fatherhood and motherhood of Nanda and Yasoda are their hearts’ sentiments only. Jayati jana-nivaso devaki-janmavadah. For the perfection of the rasa that sentiment is eternal. Similarly in srngara-rasa also, since only the sentiment of male and female paramourship is eternal, absolutely no stigma or any type of scriptural violation can be present there. When the Goloka principle is manifest in Vraja, the only difference is that these two sentiments appear to possess some grossness in the mundane vision. The parental sentiment of Nanda and Yasoda appears in a more ‘earthly’ way, in the form of the pastimes of Krishna’s birth, etc. The consorthood sentiment of the gopis as ‘others’ wives’ appears in a more ‘earthly’ way in the form of their marriages to Abhimanyu and Govardhan, etc.

In reality, in neither Goloka nor Gokula is there any separate existence of lordship or husbandhood over the gopis. Therefore the scriptures said: na jatu vraja-devinam patibhih saha sangamah: there is never sexual union of the gopis with their husbands. So the rasa-tattva-acharya, the divine guide in the science of transcendental rasa, Sri Rupa, has written that the Hero of ujjvala-rasa (consorthood) is of two types—patis chopapatis cheti prabhedav iha visrutau, iti—husband and paramour.

In his commentary Sri Jiva has admitted the husbandhood of Krishna in Dvaraka and Vaikuntha, etc., and the eternal paramourship of Krishna in Goloka and Gokula, in the statement patih pura-vanitanam dvitiyo vraja-vanitanam. In the Lord of Goloka, Golokanath, and in the Lord of Gokula, Gokulanath, the expression of paramourship is found in its complete form. Krishna’s overstepping (langhana) of His own nature (dharma) of self-satisfaction (atma-ramatva) is the only cause of His apparently overstepping religious duty (dharma-langhana) through His passion for paramourship. That paramourship is the root cause of the gopis’ corresponding eternal sentiment of their being ‘wives of others.’

Although in reality there are no husbands of separate interest for the gopis at all, their sentiment causes them to have the nature of others’ wives. Thus ragenol-langhayan dharmam—‘love above law,’ and all such symptoms are eternally present in the divine plane of love. In Vraja, a general outline of this can be appreciated to some degree by the worldly eye.

Thus in Goloka the rasas of wedlock and paramourship are inconceivably one and distinct—neither their distinction nor their similarity can be admitted. The essence of paramourship sentiment denies ownership and the essence of ownership denies paramourship in the Lord’s consorthood with His personal divine potency, yet the denial of paramourship sentiment in His consorthood with His personal divine potency means consorthood beyond the religious injunction of marriage. Accommodating the variegatedness of both concepts, Their consummation in the ultimate singular rasa, or divine ecstatic relationship, is ever gloriously refulgent there in Goloka. Indeed, the same is true for Gokula; some other inference is fostered by the mundane observers only. In Govinda, the Hero of the pastimes of Goloka, husbandhood and paramourship beyond both religiosity or irreligiosity preside in their pristine glory; and although the same is true for the Hero of Gokula, a varied connotation appears by the agency of Yogamaya.

If it is suggested that whatever Yogamaya manifests is divine truth created by divine potency so even the idea of adultery is to be taken as an actual reality, it must be replied that in the experience of the spiritual rasa, the idea of such a sentiment can exist, and that too without any flaw since it is not without foundation; it is based on the presence of a correspondingly perfect sentiment in its origin of fundamental truth; but the ugly connotation of the mundane is a contaminated conception that can never stand in the plane of pure existence.

Actually, Sri Jiva Goswami has presented the correct conclusion, while the opposing conclusion also carries the truth in an inconceivable way; to engage in fruitless empirical wrangling for the case of wedlock or paramourship is a baseless endeavour of so much verbiage. One who, with an unprejudiced view, thoroughly examines the commentaries of Sri Jiva Goswami and all the opposing commentaries cannot but come to the end of all arguments born of doubts.

Whatever is spoken by the pure Vaishnav is truth, utterly free from any form of prejudice, yet there is the element of mystery in their controversies. Those whose intellects are possessed by illusion and mundanity, in their paucity of pure Vaishnav qualification are unable to grasp the significance of the mysterious affectionate controversies among the pure Vaishnavs, and they thus ascribe to them the defect of wrangling and party spirit.

Gopinam tat-patinan cha. The conclusion given by Sri Sanatana Goswami in his commentary Vaisnava-tosani on this sloka from the five chapters of Srimad Bhagavatam dealing with the rasa-lila has been unhesitatingly embraced with the utmost reverence by the pure devotee Sri Visvanatha Chakravarti Thakur.

When we attempt to deliberate on the matters of transcendental pastimes of places such as Goloka, we would be best advised to bear in mind a point that has been graciously taught by Sriman Mahaprabhu and the gosvamis: the reality of the Supreme Absolute Truth is always variegated with divine attributes; that is, it is always transcendental to mundane attributes, and never unvariegated or nondifferentiative. The beauty of rasa in relationship with the Supreme Lord is manifest by its variegatedness, with four basic attributes known as vibhava (subject and object), anubhava (illuminating symptoms), sattvika (particular emotional symptoms) and vyabhichari (particular secondary transitory symptoms); such rasa full of variegatedness is ever-present in Goloka and Vaikuntha.

By the power of Yogamaya the rasa of Goloka is manifest in this world for the benefit of the devotees, appearing as the rasa of Vraja; whatever is seen in that Gokula-rasa must also appear graphically in Goloka-rasa. So different varieties in the nature of the male and female paramour, variegatedness in rasa of those identities, the soil, water, rivers, mountains, gateways, groves and cows, etc.—all these ingredients of Gokula are correspondingly and intrinsically present in Goloka; only the mundane connotation ascribed to this realm by persons of mundane conception is absent. According to the eligibility of the devotee, there are distinctly varied revelations in the variegated pastimes of Vraja. To form a single criterion to determine which portions of those revelations may be illusory and which may be pure is difficult. The more the eyes of devotion are anointed or adorned with the salve of love, the more the pure will gradually reveal itself. So there is no necessity of argument; argument does not enhance anyone’s eligibility—the depth of the plane of Goloka is of inconceivable subtleness. To try to conceive the inconceivable, like the futile pounding of empty grain-husk, can only come to nought. Therefore one must desist from the attempt of knowledge and attain realization by the devotional pursuit. Any pursuit that ultimately leads one to a nondifferentiative impression must be shunned in all respects.

The pure rasa of paramourship free from all mundane conception is extremely rarely attained. It is described in the pastimes of Gokula, and it must be embraced and served by the devotees following the line of divine love, the raganuga-bhaktas, and upon perfection they will attain to the higher fundamental truth of reality the beautiful. That devotional service which aims at paramourship, but is performed by persons of mundane attitude, is repeatedly condemned as illicit, perverse anti-religion. Pained at seeing such hypocrisy rampant, our tattva-acharya, Sri Jiva, was most eager to deliver his exposition. To embrace the essence of his delivery is in itself the quality of pure Vaishnavism. It is an offence, aparadha, to disrespect the acharya by attempting to establish an opposing doctrine.

• For Reader's Appreciation
• Feelings of Appreciation
• Prologue
• Translator's Note
• Illumination
• Verse 1
• Verse 2
• Verse 3
• Verse 4
• Verse 5
• Verse 6
• Verse 7
• Verse 8
• Verse 9

• Verse 11
• Verse 12
• Verse 13
• Verse 14
• Verse 15
• Verse 16
• Verse 17
• Verse 18
• Verse 19

• Verse 20
• Verse 21
• Verse 22
• Verse 23
• Verse 24
• Verse 25
• Verse 26
• Verse 27
• Verse 28
• Verse 29

• Verse 30
• Verse 31
• Verse 32
• Verse 33
• Verse 34
• Verse 35
• Verse 36
• Verse 37
• Verse 38
• Verse 39

• Verse 40
• Verse 41
• Verse 42
• Verse 43
• Verse 44
• Verse 45
• Verse 46
• Verse 47
• Verse 48
• Verse 49

• Verse 50
• Verse 51
• Verse 52
• Verse 53
• Verse 54
• Verse 55
• Verse 56
• Verse 57
• Verse 58
• Verse 59

• Verse 60
• Verse 61
• Verse 62

• Verse Contents

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