The following is an excerpt from a lecture given by Śrīla Gaura Govinda Svāmī Mahārāja in Bhubaneswar, India on 19 March, 1992, published in Śrī Rādhā – Our Supreme Shelter, First Edition 2016 (Originally published in the booklet Rādhā-prema Makes Kṛṣṇa Mad published by Tattva Vicara Publications)
For the last two days, and this will be the third day, we have been discussing the causes for the advent of prema-puruṣottama Śacīnandana Gaurāṅga. There are two types of causes: one is external, and another is internal. I have already discussed what the external causes are: yuga-dharma pravartana (to establish the religion of the age) and prema-dāna (to distribute love of God). These external causes are meant for the living entities of Kali-yuga. The internal cause is for Himself. The external cause is the need of others, whereas the internal cause is Kṛṣṇa’s own need, and there are three.
śrī-rādhāyāḥ praṇaya-mahimā kīdṛśo vānayaivā-
svādyo yenādbhuta-madhurimā kīdṛśo vā madīyaḥ
saukhyaṁ cāsyā mad-anubhavataḥ kīdṛśaṁ veti lobhāt
tad-bhāvāḍhyaḥ samajani śacī-garbha-sindhau harīnduḥ
Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 1.6)
[Desiring to understand the glory of Rādhārāṇī’s love, the wonderful qualities in Him that She alone relishes through Her love, and the happiness She feels when She realizes the sweetness of His love, the Supreme Lord Hari, richly endowed with Her emotions, appeared from the womb of Śrīmatī Śacī-devī, as the moon appeared from the ocean.]
I was speaking on the evening of the 17th about lobha, greed. There are three types of greed, three types of desire in Kṛṣṇa. First is śrī-rādhāyāḥ praṇaya-mahimā kīdṛśam – What is Rādhārāṇī’s praṇaya, love? Second is svādyo yenādbhuta-madhurimā kīdṛśo vā madīyaḥ – What is My excellent beauty that Rādhārāṇī relishes? Third, saukhyaṁ cāsyā mad-anubhavataḥ – What pleasure and happiness does Rādhārāṇī derive while relishing My beauty? Kṛṣṇa developed greed for these three desires, trividha-vāñchā. Therefore He became Gaura. This is the internal cause.
These three desires are all related to Rādhārāṇī, so we must discuss rādhā-tattva, otherwise we cannot understand it. It is a very difficult tattva. Therefore Kṛṣṇa has become greedy for it. He has developed three types of greed, or three types of desires. He tried His best to fulfil His greed in kṛṣṇa-līlā, but He could not. Therefore that greed is there in His heart and it is a very, very intense greed, which cannot be suppressed. It must be fulfilled. “What shall I do? How can I fulfil these three desires, or three types of greed?” Having thought about this very deeply, Kṛṣṇa finally decided, “I must assume the mood and complexion of Rādhārāṇī, otherwise I cannot fulfil these three desires.” These desires are not fulfilled in kṛṣṇa-līlā. These three desires are fulfilled in gaura-līlā. Therefore Kṛṣṇa has appeared as Gaura.
What that love of Rādhā is and how Rādhā’s love, rādhā-prema, is very great, greater than Kṛṣṇa, we have to discuss. Kṛṣṇa has said in Bhagavad-gītā, mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti, “There is no one superior to Me.” He is Supreme, but here Kṛṣṇa is not Supreme. So you will find that there are two opposites: on the one hand He is Supreme, and on the other hand He is not Supreme. He is requesting the lotus feet of Rādhārāṇī, dehi pada-pallavam udāram. These are the two opposites. This is very wonderful.
You will find three topics in rādhā-prema. The first is rādhā-prema makes Kṛṣṇa mad. Rādhā-prema is so powerful that it makes Kṛṣṇa, who is almighty and all-powerful, mad. Kṛṣṇa is all-powerful, almighty and omnipotent, yet He becomes mad for rādhā-prema. So rādhā-prema is greater than He is.
Number two is that the pleasure and happiness derived from relishing the mellow of that love, rādhā-prema, is unknown to Kṛṣṇa. It is unknown to Him who is all-knowing. Therefore rādhā-prema is greater.
The third and last point is that there is a combination of two opposites in rādhā-prema. One after another we will discuss these three topics.
The first topic is how rādhā-prema makes Kṛṣṇa mad. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is all-powerful, omnipotent, self-sufficient, pūrṇa-brahma, completely full, and who has no deficiency, becomes mad. Wonderful! Rādhā-prema makes Him mad!
When the question about what causes madness arises, we first analyse the possible reasons a person becomes mad. We will then analyse whether they are applicable to Kṛṣṇa or not.
What are the reasons a person becomes mad? There are three reasons. Do you know them? Are you not mad? A madman does not know that he is mad.
Number one is when someone thinks about one topic or subject matter very deeply and excessively, he becomes mad. This is the first reason.
Number two is that each individual has the capacity to contain a certain amount. A container has a fixed capacity. For example, the capacity of a sixty-watt bulb is only sixty watts. If it exceeds sixty watts, if it is one hundred watts, then it will burst, it will become mad. This is the second reason.
The third reason is if a person does not have sufficient knowledge about a subject matter, or topic, or if his knowledge is covered with ignorance, he becomes mad. These are the three reasons one becomes mad.
We will analyse, one after another, whether these reasons are applicable to Kṛṣṇa or not. But when we analyse them, you will find that these three reasons are not at all applicable to Him. Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is completely full, pūrṇa-brahma. Everyone meditates on Him and glorifies Him. All analyse kṛṣṇa-tattva. All inquire increasingly about Him, to understand Him completely. Still it is very difficult. All are absorbed in the thought of Kṛṣṇa, Jagannātha, because He is the Absolute Truth, advaya-jñāna tattva; pūrṇa-brahma, completely full, āptakāma, self-satisfied; and ātmārāma, He who enjoys in His self. He is the source and reservoir of all mellows. He is paramānanda-svarūpa, supremely ānanda-maya (full of bliss). So how can He become mad upon thinking of some subject matter or topic very deeply? It is impossible.
Kavirāja Gosvāmī has described the thoughts of Kṛṣṇa in Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 4.238–240):
kṛṣṇera vicara eka āchaye antare
pūrṇānanda-pūrṇa-rasa-rūpa kahe more
[Once Lord Kṛṣṇa considered within His heart, “Everyone says that I am complete bliss, full of all rasas.]
āmā haite ānandita haya tribhuvana
āmāke ānanda dibe — aiche kon jana
[“All the world derives pleasure from Me. Is there anyone who can give Me pleasure?]
āmā haite yāra haya śata śata guṇa
sei-jana āhlādite pāre mora mana
[“One who has a hundred times more qualities than Me could give pleasure to My mind.”]
These are Kṛṣṇa’s thoughts. Kṛṣṇa thinks, “pūrṇānanda-pūrṇa-rasa-rūpa kahe more…”
“All say that I am supremely complete and a reservoir of all mellows. There is no incompleteness, or deficiency, in Me. I am supremely ānanda, paramānanda, supremely ānanda-maya, full of bliss. The tribhuvana, three planetary systems, become ānanda-maya, blissful, on account of Me. Is there anyone who can give Me pleasure? I give pleasure to one and all throughout the three planetary systems. I am paramānanda, supreme ānanda. Is there anyone who can give Me pleasure, ānanda?”
Kṛṣṇa is the complete reservoir of all rasas, mellows. Not partially. The whole devotee society relishes that mellow. They are always eager to relish more and more that mellow of which Kṛṣṇa is the unlimited reservoir. All the mukhya and gauṇa, chief and secondary, mellows exist within Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is the only object of meditation and love. There is no other object. Therefore, to relish that mellow, the devotees become mad after Kṛṣṇa. He is Rasarāja, the king of all transcendental mellows. So how will it be possible for Rasarāja to think very deeply on some topic or subject matter other than Himself? All are thinking of Kṛṣṇa and becoming mad, because He is Rasarāja. He is completely full and has no deficiency at all. If there were some deficiency, then He would be thinking about that. So what will He think of? What subject matter? What topic? Thus the first reason a person becomes mad is not applicable to Him.
The second reason is in regard to capacity. If a person’s capacity is exceeded, then he becomes mad. Since Kṛṣṇa is supreme and unlimited, ananta, how can something possibly be greater than He is? So how can the second reason be applicable to Him? It is not possible at all.
The third reason is ignorance. [In regard to Kṛṣṇa,] there is no question of ignorance at all. Māyā creates ignorance. He is māyādhīśa, the master of māyā. He cannot be affected by māyā. How will He be put into ignorance? He is the source of all knowledge, sat-cit-ānanda-maya. Cit means jñāna-maya [full of knowledge] unlimitedly, supremely. How will He be covered with so much ignorance that He becomes mad? It is not possible. He is māyādhīśa, not māyā-vaśa, covered by illusion. The jīva is māyā-vaśa, because the jīva is anu, minute. Kṛṣṇa is vibhu, great. It is possible for a jīva to be covered over with ignorance and come under the grip of māyā, but Kṛṣṇa will never come under the grip of the illusory energy. So how will He become covered over with ignorance? It is not possible at all.
Thus the three reasons for becoming mad are not applicable to Kṛṣṇa. Still He becomes mad. This is very wonderful. So what is it that makes Kṛṣṇa mad? It is rādhā-prema that makes Kṛṣṇa mad. That rādhā-prema is incomparable. It cannot be compared to any prema.
Śrīla Kavirāja Gosvāmī has written Kṛṣṇa’s own statement in Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 4.121–124):
kṛṣṇa kahe, — ‘āmi hai rasera nidāna
[Kṛṣṇa says, “I am the primary cause of all rasas.]
pūrṇānanda-maya āmi cinmaya pūrṇa-tattva
rādhikāra preme āmā karāya unmatta
[“I am the full Spiritual Truth and am made of full joy, but the love of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī drives Me mad.]
nā jāni rādhāra preme āche kata bala
ye bale āmāre kare sarvadā vihvala
[“I do not know the strength of Rādhā’s love, with which She always overwhelms Me.]
rādhikāra prema — guru, āmi — śiṣya naṭa
sadā āmā nānā nṛtye nācāya udbhaṭa
[“The love of Rādhikā is My teacher, and I am Her dancing pupil. Her prema makes Me dance various novel dances.”]
“I am pūrṇānanda-maya (full of bliss), supremely ānanda-maya, pūrṇa-tattva, the Supreme Truth, and cinmaya, transcendental. I am the reservoir of all mellows, rasera, but rādhā-prema makes Me mad. I do not know what strength there is in rādhā-prema. Although I am all-knowing, this I do not know.” Kṛṣṇa says, “I do not know” because He is mad! A mad fellow does not know what he is doing. He is all-knowing but He says, “I do not know what power there is in rādhā-prema that it makes Me mad. Je bale āmāre kare sarvadā vihvala, rādhikāra prema guru, āmi śiṣya naṭa, so rādhā-prema is My guru. I am its disciple.” The one who is Supreme is the disciple. He is the subordinate, surrendered to the guru. All surrender unto Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa has said, “Surrender unto Me.” He is śaraṇa-vatsala (affectionate to those who take shelter of Him). All take shelter at His lotus feet. That Kṛṣṇa begs at the lotus feet of Rādhārāṇī, dehi-pāda-pallavam udāram, “Rādhārāṇī, please give Me Your lotus feet.” Rādhā-prema becomes the guru and Kṛṣṇa becomes the disciple. Sadā āmā nānā nṛtye nācāya udbhaṭa. “As guru can make his disciple go up and down, and up and down, in the same way rādhā-prema makes Me go up and down, up and down. I am dancing.”
So, is it true that Kṛṣṇa becomes mad? Is it a fact or is it an allegory or some concoction? It is true. It is true that He is mad.
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura, an ācārya in our line, has written:
sarva-śakti sarva-sukha paripūrṇaṁ
satya-svarūpa nitya jñānādī-māyo ’py aham
kadācit jarati vayā rādhā prāṅgana dvitiya
tiṣṭhāmi kadācit rādhā-saṅga-sukhāśayā
sadā gamana panthānupaśyāmi
kadācit tad arthaṁ satyāveśī bhavāmi
kadācit latāyāṁ tad bhrānte bhavāmi
ityādikaṁ tat premeva kārav iti hi
These are Kṛṣṇa’s statements. Kṛṣṇa thinks, and Kṛṣṇa says, “I am omnipotent.” He is sarva-śaktimān (the source of all potencies). He is completely full of all pleasure and happiness. There is nothing lacking, there is no deficiency. He is completely jñāna-maya, full of knowledge. Still, “I become mad after rādhā-prema. Becoming mad after rādhā-prema, I do not know what I do.” Because a madman does not know what he is doing.
Sometimes Kṛṣṇa spends the whole night behind a berry tree in the courtyard of Rādhārāṇī’s mother-in-law and father-in-law’s residence. Kṛṣṇa is always afraid of Jaṭilā, Rādhārāṇī’s mother-in-law, and therefore, He spends the whole night behind that berry tree. He does not come out in fear of Jaṭilā. So is this not madness?
Sometimes He sits on the path where Rādhārāṇī comes and goes, waiting for a long time and hoping, “Rādhārāṇī will come, Rādhārāṇī will come.” So is that not madness?
Sometimes, to get a touch of Rādhārāṇī’s body, He disguises Himself as the wife of a barber, nāpitiṇī. Yogeśvara, Kṛṣṇa disguises Himself, puts on a sārī, and pretends to be the wife of a barber. He goes there and says, “Rādhārāṇī, I have brought very nice altā (the red colour that women put on the soles of their feet). I have brought first-class altā specially for You, Rādhārāṇī. Please come, give Me Your feet. I will put it on them and it will look so nice.” So is it not madness?
Then sometimes He also goes to Rādhārāṇī’s doorstep disguised as a beggar woman, begging alms. “Please Rādhārāṇī, come out and give Me some alms.” Is it not madness?
Sometimes He disguises Himself as the wife of a gardener who makes garlands. “Rādhārāṇī, I have brought very nice garlands with varieties of scented flowers for You. Please come. I will put some garlands around Your neck.” Is it not madness?
Sometimes He disguises Himself as the wife of a washer-man, goes to Rādhārāṇī’s doorstep and says, “Rādhārāṇī, please give Me Your garments. I will wash them so nicely that they will be more blazing than sunlight. Please give Me Your garments. I will wash them very nicely.” Is it not madness?
Sometimes He disguises Himself as the wife of someone who makes sandalwood paste, gandhiṇī. Taking some very nicely scented sandalwood paste He says, “Rādhārāṇī, I have brought this nice scented sandalwood. Please come. I will decorate You by putting some nice scented sandalwood paste on Your forehead. Please come.” So is it not madness?
Because Rādhārāṇī’s bodily hue is like molten gold, He sometimes embraces a golden creeper thinking that it is Rādhārāṇī, and cries. Is it not madness?
These are all the symptoms of madness. It is rādhā-prema that has made Him mad.
Sometimes He takes some dust from the path that Rādhārāṇī has trodden upon, and smears it all over His body. Is it not madness?
Sometimes, when Rādhārāṇī is taking bath upstream in the Yamunā, at the same time He takes bath downstream because the kuṁkum and flowers from Rādhārāṇī’s braid float downstream and touch Kṛṣṇa’s body. Is it not madness?
A madman is always fickle, running hither and thither. Sometimes, becoming so mad, Kṛṣṇa runs hither and thither crying for Rādhā.
kothāy go prema-mayī rādhe rādhe
rādhe rādhe go, jaya rādhe rādhe
dekhā diye prāṇa rākho, rādhe rādhe
tomār kāṅgāl tomāy ḍāke, rādhe rādhe
Running hither and thither and calling, “O Rādhe! O Rādhe! O Rādhe! Please give Me darśana, otherwise My life will get out of Me. I will die. Dekhā diye prāṇa rākho rādhe rādhe, tomār kāṅgāl tomāy ḍāke rādhe rādhe, I am kāṅgāla, a beggar begging for You, Rādhe, Rādhe, My life will leave Me. Please come, give Me Your darśana, Rādhe, Rādhe!”
ek-bār ḍāke keśī-ghāte, ābār ḍāke vaṁśī-vaṭe
rādhe rādhe go, jaya rādhe rādhe
kothāy go prema-mayī rādhe rādhe
Sometimes He calls Her at Keśī-ghāta, “Rādhe! Rādhe! Where are You?” Then immediately He runs to Vaṁśī-vaṭa and calls, “Rādhe! Rādhe! Are You here?”
ek-bār ḍāke nidhuvane, ābār ḍāke kuñjavane
rādhe rādhe go, jaya rādhe rādhe
kothāy go prema-mayī rādhe rādhe
rādhe rādhe go, jaya rādhe rādhe
Then that mad Kṛṣṇa runs to Nidhuvana and calls, “Rādhe! Rādhe! Where are You? Are You here?” No. Then He swiftly runs to Kuñjavana and there calls, “Rādhe! Rādhe! Kothāy, where are You, O Rādhārāṇī? Please give Me darśana, otherwise My life will leave Me.” Is He not a madman?
ek-bār ḍāke rādhā-kuṇḍe, ābār ḍāke śyāma-kuṇḍe
rādhe rādhe go, jaya rādhe rādhe
kothāy go prema-mayī rādhe rādhe
rādhe rādhe go, jaya rādhe rādhe
Then He runs to Rādhā-kuṇḍa and there calls, “Raaadhhhe! Raaadhhhe! Where are You?” No Rādhā is there. Then He quickly runs to Śyāma-kuṇḍa and calls, “Raaadhhhe! Raaadhhhe! Kothāy, where are You?” No Rādhā.
ek-bār ḍāke kusuma-vane, ābār ḍāke govardhane
rādhe rādhe go, jaya rādhe rādhe
kothāy go prema-mayī, rādhe rādhe
tomār kāṅgāl tomāy ḍāke, rādhe rādhe
dekhā diye prāṇa rākho, rādhe rādhe
rādhe rādhe go, jaya rādhe rādhe
Then swiftly He runs to Kusumavana and calls, “Raaadhhhe! Raaadhhhe! Where are You?” Then He runs to Govardhana and calls, “Raaadhhhe! Raaadhhhe! Where are You?” No Rādhā.
eka-bāra ḍāke tālavane, ābāra ḍāke tamālavane
rādhe rādhe go, jaya rādhe rādhe
kothāy go prema-mayī rādhe rādhe
Then He runs to Tālavana and calls, “Raaadhhhe! Raaadhhhe! Kothāy, where are You?” No Rādhā. Then He runs to Tamālavana and calls there, “Raaadhhhe! Raaadhhhe! Kothāy, where are You? Tomār kāṅgāl tomāy ḍāke, Your beggar calls You, please give Me darśana and let Me live or My life will leave Me.” Is He not a madman?
malin vasan diye gāy, vrajer dhulāy gaḓāgaḓi jāy
rādhe rādhe go, jaya rādhe rādhe
Calling “Rādhe, Rādhe” and becoming mad, He rolls in the dust of Vrajabhūmi. For Rādhārāṇī He rolls; His whole body is dusty, all His garments are dusty. Is He not a madman?
mukhe rādhā rādhā bole, bhāse nayanera jale
rādhe rādhe go, jaya rādhe rādhe
Uttering the name of Rādhā, He sheds tears like torrential rain. Is He not a madman?
vrndavane kuli kuli, kẽde beḍāy rādhā boli’
rādhe rādhe go, jaya rādhe rādhe
Wandering throughout the jungle of Vṛndāvana, crying and crying and uttering the names “Rādhe, Rādhe, Rādhe”.
‘dekhā diyā rādhe! rākhaho prāṇa!’
boliyā kā̃daye kānane kāna
Śata-koṭī Gopī (4)
“O Rādhārāṇī, please give Me Your darśana and make Me alive, otherwise I will die. My life will leave Me.” In this way, Kṛṣṇa wanders throughout the whole jungle of Vṛndāvana crying “Rādhe, Rādhe, Rādhe!”
bole, ‘tuhũ binā kāhāra rāsa?
tuhũ lāgi’ mora varajavāsa’
Śata-koṭī Gopī (6)
“O Rādhārāṇī, only for You I am residing here in Vrajabhūmi. Otherwise why shall I reside here? Tuhũ binā kāhāra rāsa, without You, how can I dance the rāsa dance? It is only for You, Rādhārāṇī. All this will be useless if You do not give Me Your darśana.” So, He is a madman. Rādhā-prema is such prema; it makes Kṛṣṇa mad.
Thus rādhā-prema is guru. Kṛṣṇa is the disciple, and rādhā-prema makes Kṛṣṇa dance. According to the tune of Rādhārāṇī, Kṛṣṇa dances.
The second topic is that by relishing rādhā-prema, He who is paramānanda, supreme bliss, gets more ānanda, a hundred times, a thousand times more ānanda. So rādhā-prema is so ānanda-prada, pleasure-giving.
nija-premāsvāde mora haya je āhlāda
tāhā ha’te koṭi-guṇa rādhā-premāsvāda
Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 4.126)
Because Kṛṣṇa is Rasarāja, the reservoir of all mellows, all are relishing a particular mellow and getting pleasure and happiness, but now Kṛṣṇa wants to relish rādhā-prema. He, who is paramānanda, supreme bliss, is saying, “The relish of rādhā-prema is crores (millions) of times greater than the relish of My mellow”.
viṣaya-jātīya sukha āmāra āsvāda
āmā haite koṭi-guṇa āśrayera āhlāda
Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 4.133)
[I taste the bliss to which the object of love is entitled. But the pleasure of Rādhā, the abode of that love, is ten million times greater.]
Kṛṣṇa is [the object of love] viṣaya-jātīya, viṣaya-vigraha, rasera-viṣaya [the object of rasa] and Rādhā is [the abode of rasa] rasera-āśraya. So as viṣaya-jātīya, Kṛṣṇa only relishes viṣaya-rasa. He cannot relish āśraya-rasa. How can He get relish from āśraya-rasa? He is not āśraya. Therefore this greed is there: “How will I become āśraya?” Viṣaya becomes āśraya. That means bhakta. He is Gaura; bhakta-bhāva aṅgīkārī (He accepts the concept of being a devotee).
āpani karimu bhakta-bhāva aṅgīkāre
āpani ācari’ bhakti śikhāimu sabāre
Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 3.20)
He thought, “I Myself will go as a bhakta; act like a bhakta and teach bhakti.” Therefore He came as Gaurāṅga, and His mood is the mood of a bhakta.
All devotees are āśraya-jātīya, in the category of āśraya [abodes of affection for the object of affection]. Only Kṛṣṇa is in the category of viṣaya [the object of affection]. So that greed develops in Kṛṣṇa. “I am viṣaya. How can I become āśraya-jātīya, how can I relish it? Impossible.” That greed is there; therefore, He accepted the mood and complexion of Rādhārāṇī, because Rādhārāṇī is the crest-jewel of the āśraya category.
āśraya-jātīya sukha pāite mana dhāya
jatne āsvādite nāri, ki kori upāya
kabhu jadi ei premāra haiye āśraya
tabe ei premānandera anubhava haya
eta cinti’ rahe kṛṣṇa parama-kautukī
hṛdaye bāḓaye prema-lobha dhakdhaki
Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 4.134–136)
[“My mind races to taste the pleasure experienced by the abode, but I cannot taste it, even by My best efforts. How may I taste it?
If sometime I can be the abode of that love, only then may I
taste its joy.”
Thinking in this way, Lord Kṛṣṇa was curious to taste that love. His eager desire for that love increasingly blazed in His heart.]
The use of these words is very, very appropriate. I do not know if you can relish it unless you know this language. My guru mahārāja said, “In order to understand this and relish this amṛta, Caitanya-caritāmṛta, this nectar of caitanya-carita, all should learn Bengali.”
tabe ei premānandera anubhava haya
kabhu jadi ei premāra haiye āśraya
Kṛṣṇa thinks, “If I become the āśraya of this rādhā-prema, then I can relish it, otherwise there is no possibility.” Eta cinti’ rahe kṛṣṇa parama-kautukī, with such a very deep, intensity, Kṛṣṇa was thinking. Hṛdaye bāḓaye prema-lobha dhakdhaki, the word lobha here, is greed for rādhā-prema; very intense greed, which cannot be suppressed. In the heart there is a throbbing, dhak-dhak-dhak-dhak-dhak-dhak. While preparing sweet rice, you will notice that when it becomes very thick, it makes the sound, “dhak-dhak-dhak-dhak-dhak-dhak”, prema-lobha dhakdhaki. Very intense greed, dhak-dhak-dhak-dhak. Such a word is used here. You cannot relish it if you do not learn Bengali. Śrīla Kavirāja Gosvāmī has written it like that. Then Kṛṣṇa becomes Gaura to relish that āśraya-jātīya sukha, ānanda.
Then the third topic is the simultaneous combination of two opposites in rādhā-prema. How is that? You will have to read Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi, where Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī has mentioned this. In Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi it is stated that Kṛṣṇa is ananta, asīmā, unlimited. Kṛṣṇa says, “Rādhā-prema is guru”. Kṛṣṇa is the disciple. Guru means being greater than the disciple. So when rādhā-prema becomes guru, then it is also ananta, unlimited. Is there any limit to it? No. It is ananta, asīmā, unlimited. That which is unlimited, can it expand? Can it increase? If it has no limit, how will it increase? If there is some limit, then it will increase to that limit. But if something is unlimited, where is the question of it increasing? However, rādhā-prema increases at every moment. So does it not simultaneously have two opposites? Nitya-vardhana-śīla, at every moment it increases; newer, newer, newer, newer. Śrī Rūpa-pāda has mentioned this in Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi.
When there is a flow of pastimes, līlā-pravāha, it is like the flow of a river. The river has two embankments: a right embankment and a left embankment. Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa’s conjugal transcendental pastimes are like the flow of a river, līlā-pravāha, with two embankments. One embankment is milana, union, and the other embankment is viraha, separation. The viraha, separation, nourishes the pleasure of combination. It is a question of nourishment. Therefore, both these two are required, otherwise there is no relish, or nourishment. One gets pleasure in union, and at the same time, intense pain in separation. So pleasure and pain are simultaneously present; two opposites. It is going on from time immemorial.
Śrī Rūpa-Gosvāmīpāda mentions in Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi:
vibhur api kalayan sadābhivṛddhiṁ
gurur api gaurava-caryayā vihīnaḥ
muhur upacita-vakrimāpi śuddho
jayati mura-dviṣi rādhikānurāgaḥ
Dāna-keli-kaumudī (2) quoted in Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 4.131)
[All glories to Rādhā’s love for Kṛṣṇa, the enemy of the demon Mura! Although it is all-pervading, it tends to increase at every moment. Although it is important, it is devoid of pride. And although it is pure, it is always beset with duplicity.]
Vibhur api kalayan sadābhivṛddhiṁ. Rādhā-prema is vibhu. Vibhu means great, Lord, because it is guru (important). At every moment it is increasing, vardhana-śīla. Guru. Although it is guru (important), still it is without gaurava (pride), without gurutvā (a feeling of importance). You should read the language. Sweet, sweetness. Adjective then noun. I will teach you grammar and language. Guru – gurutvā. Guru is the adjective, and gurutvā is a noun. In the English language it is ‘guruship’. Although guru (important), it is without guruship (pride); so it has two opposites. It is unlimited, but it is still increasing. Two opposites. Do you follow? Rādhā-prema is pure, completely pure, viśuddha sunirmala, but it is never straight. It is always crooked. It is very, very crystal clear, pure, and straight. There is no duplicity, no crookedness. Rādhā-prema is very clear, viśuddha, completely clear, without contamination. Still its movement is crooked. Vakra-gati, not straight. It is two opposites. We say kṛṣṇaṁ vande jagad-guru, Kṛṣṇa is the spiritual master of the whole universe. We all worship His lotus feet because He is the guru of the whole universe, but that jagad-guru Kṛṣṇa worships rādhā-pāda, the lotus feet of Rādhārāṇī. So there are two opposites, rādhikāra prema guru, āmi śiṣya naṭa.
So if you go up in this line of guruship then the topmost is rādhā-prema, not Kṛṣṇa. It is said, jāhā va-i guru vastu nāhi suniścita, that rādhā-prema makes Kṛṣṇa a disciple and makes Him dance; makes Him mad. Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Ādi-līlā 4.129). This is rādhā-prema.
Rādhā has such prema, but still, what does Rādhārāṇī say? Rādhārāṇī thinks Herself hata bhagiṇī dina.
dūre śuddha-prema-gandha, kapaṭa premera bandha,
seha mora nāhi kṛṣṇa-pāya
Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya-līlā 2.46)
Rādhārāṇī says, “I have no love for Kṛṣṇa. I am far, far away from it.”
nāhi kṛṣṇa-prema-dhana,—daridra mora jīvana,
dehendriya vṛthā mora saba
Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya-līlā 2.40)
Rādhārāṇī says, “I do not have that kṛṣṇa-prema-dhana, the invaluable asset of kṛṣṇa-prema. I am devoid of that asset; therefore, I am poor. It is useless for My body to survive, because I have no kṛṣṇa-prema.” She talks like that. Is it not two opposites?
Then in rādhā-prema, you will find the mixture of poison and nectar, viṣāmṛte ekatra milana, poison and nectar are present at the same time. This is wonderful. How can it be at the same time that nectar and poison are mixed together? We cannot conceive of it, because nectar is very sweet, the sweetest, and poison is most bitter. So at the same time two things are there, both sweet and bitter. In union it is sweet, and in separation it is bitter. So two opposites are there in rādhā-prema. Try to understand me. It is very deep philosophy, not an easy affair. That separation is very painful, tīvra bhedana. Therefore, we say that there is a mixture of two things, nectar and poison, in rādhā-prema.
bāhye viṣa-jvālā haya, bhitare ānanda-maya,
kṛṣṇa-premāra adbhuta carita
Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya-līlā 2.50)
[Externally there appeared severe tribulation, as if He were suffering from poisonous effects, but internally He was experiencing bliss. This is characteristic of transcendental love of Kṛṣṇa.]
Externally, when there is separation, the whole body burns. When a poisonous snake bites you, you will notice how your body will burn. [In transcendental relationships] a similar burning is externally present because of separation, but inside there is extreme pleasure. The two are opposites.
mukha jvale, nā yāya tyajana
sei premā yāṅra mane, tāra vikrama sei jāne,
viṣāmṛte ekatra milana
Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya-līlā 2.51)
Relishing this prema is like chewing very hot sugarcane. It is very sweet, yet the mouth is burning. You are chewing but do not want to take it out. These are the two opposites. Tapta-ikṣu-carvaṇa, chewing hot sugarcane. This is rādhā-prema, kṛṣṇa-prema-rādhā-prema.
One who knows this, understands what it is; he knows. Otherwise you cannot know what it is. One who has tasted sugar candy, he knows how sweet it is. If you have not tasted it, then how can you know it? If I say, “Oh, sugar candy is very sweet,” you will say, “How sweet?” What shall I say? You have to taste it, and then you can realize how sweet it is. Similarly, one who has tasted, relished, this prema, only he knows what it is. Otherwise how can you know? Can you? No. Vikrama sei jāne.
Then in Vidagdha-mādhava (2.18) Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī mentions in paurṇamāsī vākya, the statement of Paurṇamāsī:
pīḍābhir nava-kāla-kūṭa-kaṭutā-garvasya nirvāsano
nisyandena mudāṁ sudhā-madhurimāhaṅkāra-saṅkocanaḥ
premā sundari nanda-nandana-paro jāgarti yasyāntare
jñāyante sphuṭam asya vakra-madhurās tenaiva vikrāntayaḥ
Paurṇamāsī says to Rādhārāṇī, “He Sundarī, O lotus-faced one, extremely beautiful Rādhārāṇī, that prema, love, You have developed for that Nanda-nandana Kṛṣṇa, is not straight. Kṛṣṇa is crooked in three places. He is not a straight person. He is a very crooked person. Why have You developed love for Him, Rādhārāṇī?” That prema works in two ways. Have You seen a saw? It cuts both ways. Paurṇamāsī says, “It works in two ways.” What are those two ways? Those two ways are vipralambha and sambhoga, union and separation; two types of activity. When it is vipralambha, separation, then its poison is more dreadful than the most dreadful poison of a poisonous snake. How is there a union of nectar and poison? In Vidagdha-mādhava, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī states that if you take poison, you cannot taste it because it is so bitter, but this prema is even bitterer than that. It gives so much pain in the heart, the most acute, intolerable pain. In vipralambha-bhāva, virāha-daśā, in separation, it acts like poison, but in sambhoga-daśā (union) it is much sweeter than nectar. So it is a combination of nectar and poison.
Then Paurṇamāsī says, “O Rādhārāṇī, why have You developed love for that crooked person, Kṛṣṇa, who is crooked in three places?” This prema is much bitterer than dreadful liquid poison, but at the same time it is much sweeter than nectar. Two opposites.
The mystery is here: it is not an intoxicant but it makes one become intoxicated. When someone becomes intoxicated, he becomes mad. Marijuana or LSD is a very dreadful poison that made the hippies go mad; they were rolling around naked. Mad.
How there are two opposites is described in Vidagdha-mādhava: This prema You have developed is not fire, but it burns. Is it not an opposite? It is not a weapon, but it pierces the heart. It is not water, but it inundates everything. When there is heavy downpour, a high flood has come and the whole land has been inundated; then you will not be able to find your way. So when there is such prema, which is not water, still it inundates everything. The gopīs and Rādhārāṇī become mad and kick all Vedic etiquette. It is like an inundation; it washes away everything. It is not poison, but it acts like poison. This is prema.
Image/Art made possible by Pixabay.com & Krishnapath.org