Gitagovindam by Jayadeva
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V.Krishnaraj
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Krishna with Gopis. Krishna clones, a believable illusion, dance with the Gopis. Notice the gods and goddesses send a downpour of flowers and eulogies from their aerial cars.
In another depiction of Krishna and the Gopis:
The third and the most divine sport of Krishna is his moonlight dance on the sand-banks of the Jumna in the company of the damsels of Brindavana. The inspired poet Lllasuka, describing this dance, says that " there, in the circle of dancers (filled with love for Krishna) was seen between damsel and damsel a Madhava (Krishna) and between Madhava and Madhava a damsel; and in the centre of the group again, was the son of Devaki playing upon his flute," thereby indicating in poetic language the mystic significance of the dance.
All this pervasive, infectious and endemic passion is raging all around Krishna with fire and heat of passion reaching the sun and yet He is far from the literal portrait.
The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda Volume 6 [ Page : 116 ] NOTES TAKEN DOWN IN MADRAS, 1892-93 Kama (lust) is blind and leads to hell. Prema is love, it leads to heaven. There is no idea of lust or sympathy in the love of Krishna and Radha. Radha says to Krishna, "If you place your feet on my heart, all lust will vanish." When abstraction is reached lust dies and there is only love. Shiva is the sublime aspect of God, Krishna the beautiful aspect of God. Love crystallises into blueness. Blue colour is expressive of intense love. Solomon saw "Krishna". Here Krishna came to be seen by all. Even now, when you get love, you see Radha. Become Radha and be saved. There is no other way, Christians do not understand Solomon's song. They call it prophecy symbolising Christ's love for the Church. They think it nonsense and father some story upon it.--- Swami Vivekananda 1892-93 |
Krishna with Radha and Gopi (Gita Govinda Series) HJ04 exoticindia.com
View from the West:
Sir John Woodroffe says in Tantra part II, page 306, "He appears separately to each of the innumerable groups of innumerable herdswomen, though He is Himself one without a second; proficient in the amorous acts of women and yet free of all sensuality; a youth victorious in war with passion, and yet immersed in the midst of waves of passion; restless and mad in His play as Brahman, though incarnated by way of play as a man; making Himself out to be adulterous to His own wives in order to delude unhappy Jivas devoid of Sadhana....
Gitagovindam consists of a series of lyrics intended to be sung and resembles in some ways the poetry of European troubadours. Here is another view: In India, the most intense of these periods is the overpowering heat that occurs just before the rainy season. Then, as countless poets and painters showed (including Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, and Sufis), the woman is overwhelmed by raw passion as she feels the loss of her absent lover, who may be God. This theme turns out to be quite appropriate for portraying the mood of the Song of Songs of King Solomon in the Bible. The focus of the Indian poems, and their accompanying paintings, is on the emotions of the woman, and the interpretive tradition for the most part has channeled this imagery into spiritual love. In the artistic realization of this book, the seasonal cycle of twelve months and the Indian environment have no further relevance. Instead, the setting is timeless....
The poem is in twelve parts, each a complex interweaving of hymn, narrative and song. The songs express the feelings of the characters, and are closely choreographed. Some idea of the structure can be gained by looking at Part One, which first sets the scene and follows with a three-verse invocation setting out the claims of Jayadeva and his fellow poets. Then appears the first of the 24 prabandhas (songs): an eleven-verse hymn to the ten incarnations of Vishnu, which ends with a summary of Vishnu's accomplishments. Then appears the second prabandha: again a hymn honouring Vishnu's incarnations. A following stanza asks for Krishna's blessing. The third song tells how Rádhá's friend spoke to her in the spring, and continues with eight stanzas describing Krishna dancing with the cowherdesses (cow-girls according to the west). The next stanza again mentions what Rádha's friend heard. The fourth song describes the women flocking to Krishna. Two stanzas of recitation follow, and the canto ends with Rádhá submitting to Krishna.
Lines end with syllable repetitions (yamakas) and repeated words in a continually varying pattern. The texture is equally varied, both simple constructions and long compounds. Despite its singing quality, the metre is complicated by classical Sanskrit measures being interwoven with measures allowing substitution of a long syllable by two short, and vice versa. {1}
In an earlier number of Westwind it was explained that Jayadeva, in putting into
song the old Hindu story of Govinda and Radha, gave the tale a double meaning.
On the one hand, it is pretty idyl of love, temptation, repentance and final
forgiveness; on the other it is a "parable of human passion," showing
the struggles of the soul in the guise of Krishna,
the god who is at once human and divine, in its efforts to
get past the nearer though imperfect beauties of earth and attain to the divine
beauty of Heaven impersonated in the heroine, Radha.
In this the final installment of the poem, or operetta, the penitent Krishna
comes seeking forgiveness and is finally successful.
End view from West.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Introduction
Jayadeva, the Sanskrit poet, wrote Gitagovindam and was born of Bhojadeva and Ramadevi in Kendubilva/Kenduvilva by river Ajaya in Orissa, India in the 12th century. He was married to Padmavati and served as the court poet of the king of Utkal. Before his marriage, he was a wandering Sadhu who in the true spirit of Avadhuta (Avadhuta) would not stay in one place more than a night or two so that he would not develop an attachment to place, people or objects. Padmavati's father somehow made him accept married life and gave her in marriage to Jayadeva. A dancer in her own right even before her marriage Padmavati interpreted the composition by her dance.
Bengal's claim of Jayadeva as its native son is questioned by learned pundits. Gitagovindam is erotic religious poetry written in Sanskrit about Radha and Krishna and their love affair, which is an allegory for loving and pining of the human soul for the Great Soul. It is poetry cum drama sung (and acted) by Krishna, Radha and Radha's maid with interspersing of narrative. The poem spread far and wide in India and quickly became part of the devotional repertoire in the temples. The Rajputs and others painted the poem on canvas, which captured ambience, dalliance, and spirit in living color in such ways that interpretation was colored by the devotional or prurient bent of the mind of the beholder. Many of the paintings are small enough to be held in the hands, which establishes intimacy between the painter, the painting and the viewer.
Radha and Krishna
The temple of Jagannath is an old Buddhistic temple. We took this and others over and re-Hinduised them. We shall have to do many things like that yet. That is Jagannath, and there was not one Brahmin there then.- The Complete Works of Swami Vivekananda Volume 3 [ Page : 264 ]
THE SAGES OF INDIA
Ramanuja visited Jagannatha temple in Puri and established Vaishnava ritual (Pancharatra system) against protests from Saiva priests. The worship ritual at the temple before Ramanuja was a hodgepodge and free for all with participants such as Buddhists, Saktas, Saivites... Ramanuja let the old rituals stay in place and introduced the proper rituals for Jagannatha. The ruler at that time was a third (?) generation Chodagangadeva, an ardent devotee of Siva and whose grandfather started the building of the temple of Jagannātha. Raamaanuja was able to convert him from Parama Mahesvara to Parama Vishnava, Supreme Siva devotee to supreme Vishnu devotee. Gitagovindam became a permanent institution in the worship of Lord Jagannatha (Jagan Naatha).
Some of the paintings depict a series of actions which when viewed in quick succession appear like motion picture. One such depiction is role reversal frame by frame of Krishna and Radha; the erstwhile Krishna now playing Radha remains dark blue with female accouterment and vice versa for Radha.
The sect, Radha Krishna cult, is known for worship of the pair in conjugal mode. It is one among the many other devotional modes and relationships with god: parent-child, master-servant, master-slave, son, child, friend, spouse and the rest. Historians observe, Gitagovindam sprouted and grew in the midst of oppressive undergrowth of Buddhism supported by the ruling kings in 12th century.
Krishna Lilas are open for interpretations which reflect the prurience of the reader or the pure spiritual development of the aspirant. Cowherd Ayanaghosha's married daughter Radha's consortium with Krishna is a case in point. His Rasalilas with Gopis ends in dance and sexual union with them all at the same time, when he makes many clones of himself as necessary for such acts. The explanation given is that all the submitting females represent the human race collectively and individually seeking to merge with Krishna, the Soul of the universe. Such merger is spiritual bliss: becoming one with the Supreme Soul. What bliss is anybody's guess; one has to be in bliss to know it; it needs a human reference point, which is the bliss of sexual intercourse. It is the physical bliss that gives an idea of the immensity of spiritual bliss, which is probably a zillion times more intense.
Rasalila
Krishna Lila praises Krishna's many acts, plays, miracles. He is the Supreme Actor; the universe is his stage. He presents himself in three bends of his body (Tribhanga) with the head to one side, the hips to the opposite and the limbs in line with the head. He is as beautiful as the dark nimbus clouds, though his Sattvic Guna is colorless. He incarnated on the earth as the son of Nanda to destroy its burden. (Vasudeva and Devaki are His birth parents; Nanda and Yasodha are His adoptive parents.) He is Brahman and SatChitAnanda. He wears a Māla of Gunja seeds (garland made of abrus precatorius seeds). Krishna (Nârâyana) has six attributes: Jnaana, Sakti, Bala, Tejas, Virya, and Aisvarya - Supreme knowledge, Supreme (creative) power, Supreme strength, Supreme luster / luminescence / splendor, Supreme valor, Sovereignty (and opulence). Krishna is all those and more: 1: Supreme 2: Material and efficient cause of the universe 3: He is present both inside and outside in the sentient and the insentient 4: The supreme controller of all 5: He offers refuge 6: He is omnipotent 7: He is all compassion 8: He is the Friend in need; 9: He never lets down His devotees 10: He is endowed with kalyana gunas - auspicious attributes 11: He is the Ultimate who can meet the devotee's ardent desire to attain liberation.
Krishna milking the cow: credit www.kamat.com
Krishna drinking milk from the udder. Click to enlarge the thumbnail image on the vase
He is smeared with the dust of Brindavana; yet He is the consort of Lakshmi of Vaikuntha (Srivaishnava heaven), the cowherd who supports the three worlds; a beggar though he provides for the world; beauteous One adorned with peacock feathers though His infinite beauty does not need any external adornment; a wearer of PitAmbara ( pIta = color of butter, yellow; clothing), though He is beyond the veil of Maya; brother of Balarama from whom he takes help and yet helps support the Universe; a wanderer in the green pastures, though he took residence in the hearts of Yogis; the lifter of Govardhana, though He is the upholder of the entire Universe; the killer of Kamsa and Kaliya, though he charmed Madana; Damodara, the holder of the worlds in his abdomen, though he is a boy cowherd; a charmer of Brahma, though He is Brahma and Hari Himself; tremulous son of Yasoda, though Fear fears him; resident of Brndavana, though he pervades every atom in the universe; the stealer of clothes of cowherd girls observing Katyayani Vrata* in River Yamuna, (Insert: exoticindia.com) though he was the provider of endless length of Sari to Draupadi to protect her honor, when she was stripped of her Sari by Dusasana in the court of Dhrtarastra; the enjoyer of flute, while he is the source of Nada, Bindu, Dhvani and Murchana (Sabda or Sound); the enjoyer of the Rasa (essence) of Rasa festival, though he is the Greatest Rasa (Bliss); Seeker of the company of Radhika, though Radhika seeks His company; a paramour of cowherd maidens bound by cords of love, though He is free from dualities and qualities, and remains unattached; expert in the art of love, though he is free from sickness of lust (KAmadosa); a conqueror of passion, though he wallows in passion all around Him; Dancer, Player and personal Paramour to each one of the herdswomen, though he is One without a second; an apparent adulterer to his wives, Rukmini and Satyabhama, though he deluded the miserable Jivas without Sadhana; dispenser of Dharma and Adharma, while he breaks them for the preservation of the world; the Friend of the Pandavas and their family, though he cares for all; the caretaker of Bhaktas, though He is the object of adoration to the Jnanis, Yogis and Karmis; a seeker of refuge with Bhaktas, though he offers refuge to those without refuge.
Katyayani
Katyayani Vrata*: It is a custom and vow among the unmarried cowherd girls to worship goddess Katyayani (Durga) on the banks of Yamuna after bathing in the river. Each one beseeches Durga that she gets Krishna as her husband. While they are bathing in the River, Krishna steals their garments and stays perched on the Kadamba tree with beautiful yellow blossoms on the bank. When they find out that their clothes were stolen, they ask him to give them back their clothes. Krishna points to them that they committed an infraction against the Devatas (gods) by bathing in the river naked. To atone their sins, they have to come out and get their clothes from him, which they do. He promises them that he would be the husband for each one of them. Thus He is One and many are his forms.
One of the most aesthetic paintings of Kangra shows Krishna with twelve Gopis; Radhika (Raa dhi ka) and her female attendant Sakhi, stand apart by the river in the foreground. The Gopis wrap themselves like a vine around the frame of Krishna who wears his yellow Pitambaram and jewels including Kaustubha and tiara topped by fan-like peacock feathers. Sakhi talks to Radhika with her animated left hand, her right forefinger pointing towards Krishna. (That is finger-pointing clue that something is wrong.) Radhika appears with her head lowered, left hand almost touching her chin, and right hand stretched diagonally across to her left upper thigh: all signs of controlled anger and jealousy within the ambit of decorum. Krishna's (apparent) abandonment is telling in that she is not in the thick of action but standing in a lonely world of rejection and helplessness far apart from Krishna and Gopis. Krishna is not even looking in her direction, preoccupied with the Gopis winding themselves on him like vine. The tree to Radha's right has the empathetic drooping branches as in weeping willow. The birds appear unconcerned and chirping, perched on tree branches and bush and yet are the witnesses of the goings-on. The birds are the Bhaktas always chirping about Krishna and His exploits. The scene has a richness of flora. Slowly Krishna takes one Gopi under his right upper arm in akimbo stance while he grabs the second Gopi's left forearm. He wraps his left thigh around the waist of the third Gopi, who sinuously and reciprocally bends and looks up locking her eyes with Krishna's. With his left hand, he holds the fourth Gopi by the waist. In all four Gopis are in his amorous clutch. His dark blue body, hands and feet, yellow Pitambara, Kaustubha jewel, mid calf long floral and Tulasi (sacred Basil leaves) garland hanging from his jeweled neck and hand jewels complement his perfectly steady stance on his right foot with his left leg wrapped around the waist of the fourth Gopi. Nothing about his body and accouterment appears unbalanced or out of place in the context of such burning passion. The fourth Gopi and Krishna lock their eyes and there is a palpable flow of Grace from him to her. It is virtually impossible from Krishna's physiognomy to say that he has dishonorable intent. Such is Krishna's Maya that creates an amorous ambience with a platonic face. The fourth Gopi held by her waist by Krishna is pulled by the fifth Gopi with the sixth standing by resting her out stretched hand on the tree trunk. Three (7th, 8th, and 9th) Gopis stand behind the tree trunk, one pointing the finger at the pair of Gopis (5th and the 6th) standing between the threesome and the foursome. The seventh Gopi wraps herself around the tree trunk looking languorous. On the other side three Gopis (10th, 11th and 12th) wonder and wait. The opulence of flora suggests spring and Vasant Raga (spring musical mode). This poetry in passion and motion is captured by Purkhu in vivid colors and the trees and bushes lend an aroma of reality and palpable nearness. The Gopis are the human souls longing to merge with Krishna, the Supreme Soul. Krishna's pastimes and amorous adventures have the capacity to transmute, sublimate, and elevate the sexual desires of men and women to a spiritual height, when sexual bliss morphs into psychical bliss. It is like injecting the horse with the cobra venom and stimulating immunity to the poison so that the poison has no effect on the horse. Here the love potion is the poison; the horse is Krishna. In similar manner the pastimes induce immunity to sexual urges and takes the person to transcendental state.
Krishna's birth takes place in Mathura ruled by Yadava clan. King Vasudeva and Devaki are his parents. Vasudeva, the son of Surasena marries Devaki, daughter of Devaka. Following the wedding, Kamsa, the brother of Devaki, as the custom dictates, serves as the charioteer and takes Vasudeva and Devaki to their palace by a chariot. The chariot leads a dowry procession of hundreds of elephants, thousands of horses, many chariots, many attendants and girl friends of Devaki, a melee of well wishers, a throng of musicians, and a medley of musical sounds. Out of the clear blue sky comes a thundering voice addressing Kamsa, "O fool of fools, you don't even know that the eighth child of your sister will kill you." Upon hearing the prophetic voice from the sky, demonic Kamsa turns his head around and grabs Devaki's hair. Vasudeva comes to Devaki's rescue immediately and tells Kamsa, "O Brother in law, there is no need to kill her now; no one knows that she will bear sons. You are safe from your sister and I will give you all the sons, if any are born in the future." Kamsa, knowing the honesty and integrity of Vasudeva, drives them to their palace. In course of time Devaki gives birth to eight male infants and one girl. Vasudeva, keeping his promise, brings the first born son to Kamsa. Knowing that the first born is not going to be his killer, he asks Vasudeva to take the child back. But Narada Muni informs Kamsa that there is an imminent birth of gods in the family of Vasudeva and Nanda and that he should not trust any one. Kamsa assuming that the gods must have already been born in the Yadava families, puts his sister and Vasudeva in jail. Devaki gives birth to sons, one every year; Kamsa kills them all including the first son whom he let go earlier. He is afraid that any one of them could be an incarnation of Vishnu. Narada gives Kamsa a history of his past life. Kamsa comes to know that in his previous birth he was demon Kalanemi, killed by Vishnu. He, thus becomes the enemy of Yadu family and worries about Krishna killing him in this life. Kamsa usurps the kingdoms of Yadu, Bhjoja and Andhaka dynasties and makes pact of friendship with other demonic kings.
When Devaki is pregnant with her seventh child, it is Vyuha, emanation or expansion of Krishna, Ananta or Sesa in her womb. Got to BG Chapter 12 Devotion to learn more about Vyuhas. Devaki and Vasudeva worry about the fate of the 7th child in the deathly hands of Kamsa. Krishna commands his Yogamaya to transfer the embryo from Devaki's womb to that of Rohini (another wife of Vasudeva), who is visiting Nanda and Yasoda. This transfer is performed by Yogamaya while Devaki and Rohini are in Yoganidra (Yogic sleep). Krishna says that he is personally going to appear in the womb of Devaki.
Yogamaya (Yoga maaya) the power of God in the creation of the world personified as deity.
Yoganidra. Vishnu's sleep personified as goddess and said to be a form of Durga.
Krishna also commands Yogamaya to enter the womb of Nanda and Yasoda in Vrindavana as their daughter, who will be worshipped as Durga, Bhadrakali, Vaishnavi, Narayani... Thus Krishna and Yogamaya appear as brother and sister in different wombs. The power of the Lord is always female and the wielder of power is male.
The transfer of the embryo is by extraction (Sankarshana) from Devaki and implantation in Rohini. Because of extraction, the male child (7th) was called Sankarshana, who is so strong both spiritually and physically that he is called Balarama. Sankarshana = Balarama. This is the first and most likely the last case of embryo transfer from one womb to another.
Krishna enters the womb of Devaki with his full power without the necessity of vital fluid for impregnation. (Consider the immaculate conception of Mary.) Kamsa sees the radiant beauty of his pregnant sister staying in jail cell. He worries about his fate and ponders on the question of killing his sister before she gives birth to his killer. He does not kill his pregnant sister because it would bring shame on him. His mind is fully occupied by the image of the killer baby, the incarnation of Vishnu. Devaki goes into labor and delivers a dark blue baby with auspicious features. Vasudeva and Devaki see the newborn baby having four hands with conch shell, discus, club and a lotus flower; wearing the necklace of Kaustubha stone, a diadem with Vaidurya stone, earrings and bracelets; and bearing the mark of Srivatsa on his chest. He looks like a dark cloud with a profusion of hair on his head. The parents wonder how a child could be born with weapons, other accouterments, and four hands. When they realize they are in presence of Vishnu himself, they offer their obeisance and prayers.
(The Guruvayur Temple in Kerala depicts Krishna [Krishnavathara] as he appeared to Vasudeva and Devaki at the time of His birth on this earth with four arms carrying the conch, the discus, the mace, and the lotus, Tulsi garland and pearl necklace. This is the effulgent and majestic form of MahaVishnu.) Krishna the infant speaks to the parents and tells them they were previously his parents twice.
1. The age of Swayambhuva Manu. Parents Sutapa and Prisni; son Prisnigarbha.
2. The next millennium. Parents Kasyapa and Aditi; son Upendra, a dwarf also known as Vamana.
3. The present birth. Parents Vasudeva and Devaki; son Krishna.
Baby Krishna (verbal unlike other infants) continues to talk:
I am born with unusual presentation so that you will believe me as the God who chose you as my parents. You are afraid of Kamsa. I ask you to take me out of here, leave me with Yasoda and bring her newborn female infant back to the prison cell, so that Kamsa will think that you gave birth to a girl. After he gives directions, the Lord turns into an ordinary two handed infant without the weapons but with some other accouterments. Yasoda's baby girl is a manifestation of Yogamaya of the Lord. The power of Yogamaya puts all the prison guards to sleep, opens all the chained doors, and lights up a path in the darkness. The night is dark, the clouds are black, the thunder and lightening are frightening, the rain is coming down in buckets; Ananta Sesa spreads his hood and covers Vasudeva and the newborn Krishna.
Krishna's Escape (credit: exoticindia.com)
Vasudeva comes to the banks of Yamuna in roaring floods; Vasdeva bearing Krishna crosses it with ease. According to legend, River Yamuna drains itself to the waist level of Vasudeva for his easy passage across the river. For this act, River Yamuna earns merit. (Consider this: When Moses and Hebrew slaves in flight, pursued by Egyptian soldiers, came across the impassable Sea of Reeds, God made the waters part and laid out in front of them a dry seabed passable; Moses and Hebrews escaped followed by the Egyptian soldiers treading the path in the seabed. When the last Hebrew put his feet on dry land, the sea closed on the soldiers and drowned them. The difference between God of Moses and Krishna is that Krishna's Yogamaya put all the soldiers to sleep. They didn't even know what was going on.)
He enters into the kingdom of Nanda; all are asleep; under the power of Yogamaya, he switches the infants and comes back to the prison. All things are back to their usual mode upon his return and he puts the girl on the laps of Devaki. He puts the clamps back on his wrist and feet and no one ever knew what happened. One version says, that Yasodha in the dark of night could not see the infant, when she gave birth; she could not tell whether it was a boy or girl; she only knew that she gave birth to a baby.
Kamsa receives information on the birth of the baby to Devaki. Bristling with fear, anger and horripilation, he proceeds to the prison cell. His sister Devaki prayerfully begs him to spare the life of the girl who means no harm to him. He grabs the girl and swings her with an intent to smash her on a stone. The girl slips from his hands, ascends to the sky sporting eight arms as the younger sister of Vishnu. She looks beautiful and splendidly dressed, though she carries fierce weapons in her hands: a sheaf of arrows, bow, bell, club, conch, lance and shield. The girl is actually Durga; the deities pay their homage. The girl addresses Kamsa, "You, Great Fool, tried to kill me. How could you even think of it? Your killer is already born somewhere else. Don't harm your sister." Kamsa relents, shows remorse and releases his sister and brother in law and goes to his palace. The erstwhile inmates return to their palace. Kamsa goes to his counselors and tells them all that happened. They advise him to taunt , torture and harass the sages and Brahmanas to get even with Vishnu, who is the designated killer of Kamsa. Taunting and torturing of Vishnu's devotees are equivalent to like treatment of Vishnu. Krishna grows up in the household of Nanda and Yasoda.
Kamsa tries to kill Krishna many times. Krishna kills all his enemies, demons and Kamsa as a child.
Radha = (Ra + Ā) + (Dha + Ā.)
Ra means that which expunges the sins of million (Koti = 10 million) births and prevents experiencing weal and woe (Subha Asubham) of Karma.
Ā means that which rescues (the soul) from the cycle of birth and death and disease.
Dha means ensuring long life.
Ā again means that which breaks the fetters.
Bhagavan is Bhahudhaanaath Purusha (great giver), Puraanatvaat Purusha (ancient Being), Puurnatvaat Purusha (wholesome Being.)
Bhagavan's relationship with us is of many types: Pati-Patni (husband-wife)...
Thus, Radha is a feminine deity with qualities as described above. Radha in relation to Krishna is devotee extraordinaire. The devotion is of such perfection, it is called Aradhana (Ārādhana: homage, worship, adoration). Radha's origin is very sketchy. Devi Bhagavata gives a description of her origin in one of the following paragraphs. What we know is that she is Krishnapriya (Radha dearer than Krishna himself to Krishna; Krishna loves her more than he loves himself). Her love and devotion for Krishna are such that the qualities are deified in the form of Radha. RadhaKrishna cult believes Radha ever in embrace of Krishna is the origin of the entire universe including Brahma, Vishnu and Siva. The divine couple live in Vrindavana in the company of a bevy of Gopis. Krishna has two hands unlike the four handed Vishnu. Krishna's form is not made of matter, though it appears so in the eyes of the mortals. There is no man equal to Krishna and no woman equal to Radha. Krishna is Purusa and Radha is Prakriti. Krishna (and Radha) never leaves Vrinda vana (Radha's forest). The forms that appear as Krishna elsewhere are surrogate (His Divine Clones). He remains fifteen years of age at all times. When other people see him as of different age, it is the fault of perception. He is Nirguna and Nirākāra. Nir + Guna = No qualities; Nirakara = formless, shapeless, incorporeal. He could be seen only with divine eyes as Arjuna saw him in his Universal Form. GoLoka is the abode of Krishna and Radha and is higher than Vaikuntha. Goloka is spherical and a crore Yojana in diameter. (Crore = 10 million; Yojana = 9 miles.) That is the heavenly abode of RadhaKrishna, where there is an eternal banyan tree. There are several wading pools. A wish tree provides shade for the palace of jewels (Ratna Mandir). In the center is the jeweled throne with an eight petal lotus as the seat. The palace grounds abound in wish-giving cows (Surabhi) and flowers which suffuse the place with fragrance. Krishna sits on the petalled jewel throne. All invited visitors by convention receive Mantra of Krishna from Radha and morph into females by taking a dip into a gender-changing and memory-erasing pool, Amrta. Arjuni, the erstwhile Arjuna, could not tell who the ladies of Goloka were or who he was. Arjuna became Arjuni on dipping into the pool, before he saw Krishna in his palace. Before he left Goloka, he took another dip in western pool, which restored all his previous faculties and body parts. Narada, the son of Brahma, had an inordinate desire to see Goloka. He had to undergo the same treatment in Goloka and received a hug from Krishna. The doctrine behind these acts is that the individual soul is Para Prakriti of Krishna; the elements, mind, ego, and intellect are apara prakrti. Krishna alone is Purusa, while all individual souls of either gender are Streya (women). Dipping into the pool is transformational and purifying before a soul can come into contact with Krishna for receiving bliss. The souls shed their maleness (of the males) ego, memory and I ness in the pool. He is the positive force while all others are negatively charged. All souls have to be rendered into anions before they can move towards the Cation. Siva underwent the same process of becoming a Gopi before he could participate in the Rasa dance in Vrindavana. If Arjuna, Narada and Siva themselves had to dip in the gender bender pool before they could see Krishna, we better get in line for the dip in the pool.
Note on Goloka, Paramapadam, Vaikuntam.
There are skeptics galore among the intellectuals that such abodes like Goloka, Paramapadam, Vaikuntam, do not exist on the physical plane as they know it. A few hundred years ago no one knew about the existence of Dark Matter. It is an accepted reality though no one has put a finger on it and characterized it. I am not here to prove or disprove either the existence of Dark Matter or Paramapadam; it is beyond by ability. Goloka, Paramapadam, and Vaikuntam exists for those who believe in them. Take for instance Ramakrishna Paramahamsa (RKP). He wanted to see a living breathing Kali in whom he had devotional belief. She appeared before him in the temple in living flesh and blood and to be doubly sure, RKP put his finger under her nostrils and felt the steaming breath. How come others did not see a breathing Kali in living color? Because they are no RKP. These places exist for the believers; for others they don't. Devotion is the faculty with which one can experience or enter a realm. You stare at a thing all day long; you don't see. The expert walks in and says he saw it a mile away.
NYTimes reports on 10/24/2006 in Science Times the following:
"Moreover, they now say, ordinary atomic matter of the kind that makes up you, me and the stars is 4 percent of the cosmos; dark matter that floats as gravitational glue between the stars and galaxies is 20 percent; and dark energy, which is apparently accelerating the cosmic expansion, pushing the galaxies faster and faster apart, is 76 percent, plus or minus 2 percent.
You might wonder just exactly what kind of triumph “precision cosmology”
represents when 96 percent of the universe is unknown dark stuff. Stars and
people we know about. But the best guess for dark matter is that it is some kind
of subatomic particle that will be discovered someday.
These abodes could exist in a subtle plane like happiness and other feelings, which are not quantifiable but are real to the enjoyer or sufferer. All these outer worlds are the abodes of the incorporeal pure soul. As the scientists explore the physical world, the Yogis explore the subtle worlds. We believe in science that there is a black hole siphoning off all that comes near its rim and yet we haven't seen it. When realized yogis tells the existence of such outer celestial worlds, we believe in them.
Krishna according Devi Bhagavata was male on the right side and female on the left side like Adhanarisvara Siva. The halves indulged in Rasa dance and after prolonged embrace and gestation, the goddess gave birth to a golden child. The child was cast in the cosmic waters. Sarasvati emerged from the tip of the tongue of the goddess, as Sarasvati is the goddess of words. Radha emerged from the right side of the goddess and kamala from the left. Krishna became two parts, his right side Krishna of two arms and his left side Vishnu of four arms. Krishna took Radha as his consort, while Lakshmi and Saraswati became consorts of Vishnu. Durga and Brahma came into being later, the latter sprouting from Vishnu's navel. Krishna split into two for the second time, the right side Krishna and the left side Siva.
Sarasvati emerged from the tip of the tongue of goddess. Does it make sense? Take today's science. Dolly a female sheep was cloned from the breast tissue. Why breast? It is the femaleness. Why tongue? Because it participates in speech.
Dolly (July 5, 1996 – February 14, 2003), a female sheep or ewe, was the first mammal to be cloned from an adult somatic cell. The cell used was a mammary cell, which is why she was named Dolly, after the curvaceous country western singer Dolly Parton with bounteous assets. She was cloned at the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh, Scotland, and lived there until her death at age six.[2] Her birth was announced in February 1997.--Wikipedia
Adhanarisvara is half female and half male in one body. Take man; he is XY, heterozygous for X and Y, half female and half male. A woman is XX, homozygous for X. Originally going back 300 million years, there was no sex chromosome. They were all autosomes. A chromosome became the X and a copy of X chromosome became the future Y chromosome. As you see, man's Y is a (mutant) copy of X and came from woman not the other way round. Adam came from Eve and not the other way. There developed the SRY gene which hijacked the X and became the Y. Thus XX was female and XY is male, a genetic asymmetry, an Adhanarisvara in a sense. For more details go to KALI
The golden child cast into the cosmic ocean became Mahavirat, the Great manifestation, creating many universes. Each universe is created, maintained, destroyed by Virat Purusa, Brahma, Vishnu, and Siva. There are billions and billions of such universes with its own presiding deities. Krishna is the Supreme Sovereign controller of all universes (and all their deities) which/who come and go, but Krishna, Radha and Goloka remain above them. Krishna is Brahman; Radha is eternal Prakriti. Each universe is Brahmanda, Brahma's egg.
The Rasa dance is comparable to the Cosmic Dance of Siva. In ultimate analysis, when religions, sects and names dissolve, the gods become generic; there is one vision and one version; there is no difference: Siva and Parvati, Krishna and Radha, Durga, and Kali are generic in their essence with no name, form, or religion.
The Rasa dance is not one of passion or mundane carnal love for the following reasons.
Krishna at the time of Rasa dance was eight years of age.
(He appears of different age to the Gopis)
Krishna sported many forms for the dance;
Only a Yogi of impeccable perfection can do such feat.
The story tellers, Yogis, Munis and Gopis attest to the fact that he is
Yogeswara, the master of Yoga and the Ultimate Reality.
Some refute that Radha is the legal consort of Krishna; Puranas say that Brahma was the witness and priest consecrated the marriage. Jyadeva himself asserts that Radha-Krishna love is a wedded love. The very fact that Radha sits on the left side of Krishna, means by convention that left side of the husband is the place for a wedded wife.
Radha is associated with Krishna, Lakshmi with Vishnu; Radha and Lakshmi represent two attributes, Radha devotional love and Lakshmi opulence.
Radha and Krishna come down to earth under the spell of curses.
Things were downright routine in Goloka until Krishna cast an eye on Vrajā, one of the Gopis in Goloka. Radha's attendants dutifully informed her of Krishna's dalliance. Radha cursed Krishna to be born on the earth as a human being, since only humans engage in acts of such nature. Such things never happen in Goloka. All Goloka souls float, walk without legs, see without eyes... Krishna arranged this precipitating event to take place and the curse to come to fruition because earlier the deities came to him seeking his help to defeat the demons on earth. In the meantime, Krishna's friend Sridama became angry with Radha and cursed her to be born a Vaisya daughter on earth of Vrsa Bhanu and Kalavati. Vaisya is two notches or layers below Brahmanas and one notch below Ksatriyas and one notch above Sudras. Lord Krishna Himself has arranged to be born of a Ksatriya prince Vasudeva, and an Indo-Aryan princess Devaki. As you see, Radha and Krishna are neither pure Bramanas, nor pure Indo-Aryans, nor pure Ksatriyas; Radha is of lower caste and Krishna of mixed caste and race. One note on the Gopis of Goloka. They were the devotees of Krishna on earth taken to Goloka for their devotion; they also appear on earth to sport with Krishna. What all this means is that Krishna the Supreme Soul or the Universal soul is Purusa (man) and all men and women are Striya (woman). Don't get carried astray by this thought. That Purusa-Striya image portrays pining of the individual soul to merge with the Universal soul. That individual soul before merger becomes pure and is divested of its gender, sect, race and all other external markers. Those Gopis (the West likes to call them cow-girls) according to SriVaishnavism are the humanity, which strives to merge with the Universal soul.
Gopis come in four flavors of disparate lineages.
1. Gopis who emanated from Krishna, Purna Rasa.
2. Gopis who are incarnates of Vedic Verses, Udgita, Sugita, Kalagita, and the rest.
3. Gopis who were sages in previous lives.
4. Gopis who are the daughters of cowherds.
Gitagovindam
मेघैः मेदुरम् अंबरम् वन भुवः श्यामाः तमाल द्रुमैः नक्तम् भीरुः अयम् त्वम् एव तत् इमम् राधे गृहम् प्रापय | इत्थम् नन्द निदेशितः चलितयोः प्रति अध्व कुंज द्रुमम् राधा माधवयोः जयन्ति यमुना कूले रहः केलयः ||1.01 meghaiḥ1 meduram2 ambaram3 vana4 bhuvaḥ5 śyāmāḥ6 tamāla7 drumaiḥ8 naktam9 bhīruḥ10 ayam11 tvam12 eva13 tat14 imam15 rādhe16 gṛham17 prāpaya18 | ittham19 nanda20 nideśitaḥ21 calitayoḥ22 prati23 adhva24 kuñja25 drumam26 rādhā27 mādhavayoḥ28 jayanti29 yamunā30 kūle31 rahaḥ32 kelayaḥ33 ||
meghaiḥ1 = with clouds; meduram = dense with; ambaram = sky; vana = wood; bhuvaḥ = lands; śyāmāḥ = are black; tamāla = Tamala; drumaiḥ = with trees (with Tamala trees); naktam = night; bhīruḥ = timorous; ayam = this (Krishna) tvam = you; eva = alone; tat = that/thereby; imam = this (his); rādhe = Radha; gṛham = home; prāpaya = (make sure) to get; ittham = this way; nanda = Nanda; nideśitaḥ = she who was directed; calitayoḥ = when both were leaving; praprati = toward; adhva = the path; kuñja = bush; drumam = tree; rādhā = Radha; mādhavayoḥ = and Mahava; jayanti = they conquer; yamunā kūle on the banks of Yamuna; rahaḥ = in secrecy; kelayaḥ = to sport || 1. "Clouds hide the sky; Tamala trees deepen the darkness in the woods. Night brings out the fear in him. Radha, you take him home." That very moment Nanda said it, they depart homebound. Passing along the thicket by the banks of Yamuna, Radha and Madhava triumph in their rapturous sport in a secluded spot. |
1. "Clouds hide the sky; Tamala trees deepen the darkness in the woods. Night brings out the fear in him. Radha, you take him home." That very moment Nanda said it, they depart homebound. Passing along the thicket by the banks of Yamuna, Radha and Madhava triumph in their rapturous sport in a secluded spot.
Free style rendition of the poem
1.1 Nanda said, ' Hey, Radha, thickening clouds cover the sky;
Black Tamala trees darken the grove;
Night swallows day; fear reigns night;
That one (Krishna) is in the clutch of fear.'
Told this way, Radha and Madhava were homebound
They went hand in hand
By the thicket, by the trees
By the bank (of Yamuna), by the cove
Their eyes flashed; their hearts touched;
Their love triumphed
They were in the clutch of Love
Highlighted phrases are my interpolation.
Krishna plays several roles in this scene. He is the foster son of Nanda and consort of Lakshmi or Rukmini. He also plays the role of lover of Radha. He is Paramatma and Radha is prototypical Jivatma; his relationship with Lakshmi is different from that with Radha; it is the Love of Krishna for his devotee whose roll is played by Radha. A devotee by convention assumes female gender in relation to god. Sri according to Vaishnavas is equal to Vishnu and is the intermediary between Vishnu's devotees and Vishnu for his blessings and grace. Krishna is actively seeking to merge with his devotees. This psychical (spiritual) phenomenon is expressed in physical terms with the necessary ambience: clouds, river, coves, thicket, trees, birds. The physical part is enhanced by stimulating ambience, mutual support, experience, and colliding and stable moods. In like manner the psychical element have facilitators for the union of Jivatma with Paramatma.
Canto 1: The Joyful Lord 1.2 Jayadeva, the king of poets, puts the pen (stylus) to the palm leaves. Goddess of speech moves, infuses, and paints his soul-house With picturesque legends (of Krishna) He becomes the king of poets serving at the feet of Sri Padmavati dances to his poetic composition Jayadeva, the poet, composes the poems encompassing Vasudeva's erotic plays and stories
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1.3 Umapatidhara is known for verbose prolixity Sarana is praiseworthy for difficult long words Govardhana is the unassailable master of erotic expression Poet Shrutidhara is renowned for his way with words Dhoyi is the king of poets Jayadeva alone knows the purity of opportune words and phrases
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1.4 O good people If remembering and meditating on Hari fills your soul with nectar If eroticism kindles your curiosity Listen to Jayadeva's sweet tender glowing divine hymns |
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Ten incarnations of Vishnu 1.5 O Kesava The deluvial sea rages and roils Taking the form of a fish Arranging yourself into a legendary ship You held the Vedas up without any mote of weariness Without any trace of moisture Triumph to thee, O Hari, the Lord of the Universe |
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1.6 O Kesava Assuming the form of a Tortoise Bearing the weight of the earth on your wide back Keloid appears on the convexity Of the circular shell of the tortoise The earth is resting on your back still today Triumph to thee, O Hari, the Lord of the Universe |
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1.7 O Kesava On your assuming the form of boar The globe clung to the tip of your tusk Like a mote on the moon Triumph to thee, O Hari, the Lord of the Universe |
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1.8 O Kesava Your hands are like the best lotuses The finger nails are wondrous On assuming man-lion form And tearing him down with your nails Hiranyakasipu looked like a lacerated honeybee Triumph to thee, O Hari, the Lord of the Universe |
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Hiranya kasipu. Hiranya means golden. Kasyapa is his ancestor. Once upon a time, Rishi Kasyapa lived with his thirteen wives, born of Daksa. Each consort represented one month of lunar year. Two of his wives were Diti and Aditi. Aditi’s twelve sons were called Adityas who were in charge of solar years. Diti had sons who were called Daityas. Rivalry, war, death, and destruction were the staple of their uneasy coexistence. Another wife Danu gave birth to Danavas (Daanavas). Diti = Limited being. A-Diti = Unlimited Being. Diti is the mother of demons; Aditi is the mother of gods.
The western students advance the following. Daityas and Danavas are considered as aboriginal and tribal non-Aryan people of India , while Adityas are the Indo-Aryans (and gods). The races and genes mixed, the demarcation between Indo-Aryans and non-Aryans blurred; the derogatory epithets attached to non-Aryans (Daasa = slaves; Anasa = no nose) went into oblivion; the physiognomy, color, and culture stewed in a polyvalent soup; a new race evolved with different shades, hues, colors and culture; it had a little bit of each ingredient. Kasyapa's other wives were not mothers of men and gods, but of demons, birds, reptiles and the rest. Every fish, every reptile, every worm, every bird, every cow, every simian, every defunct Neanderthal, every human being wears his genes. What an honor. Take a back seat, Adam! It proves that all living things have a common origin.
Vishnu claims a connection to both: Of the Adityas, I am Vishnu. Of the lights, I am the radiant sun. Of the Maruts, I am the Marici. Of the stars, I am the moon. Bhagavad Gita 10.21.
It is depicted that Hiranya was opposed to Lord Vishnu, while his son, Prahlaada was a devotee. Prahalaada was persecuted by his father for his devotion to, beliefs and love of Vishnu. Later Hiranya repented and all was forgiven. But when Prahalaada met his father later, the latter derided his son and Vishnu and demanded to know whether Lord Vishnu was in the pillars in his palace. (Remember Vishnu is all pervasive and omnipresent). Abracadabra, the nearest pillar split open and out emerged a man-lion, Narasimha who smashed his mouth and ripped him apart. Narasimha is one of the Avatars or incarnations of Lord Vishnu. Previously Hiranya had a boon from Brahma, that he would not be killed by a man, an animal or any created being. So the Lord had to take the form of Man-lion to kill Him. Such a Lord who can kill a demon is tender and merciful to his devotees.
1.9 O Kesava Taking the dwarf form You were wondrous Vamana From your (foot's) toenail waters poured forth and purified people By striding the three worlds, you cheated Bali Triumph to thee, O Hari, the Lord of the Universe |
Vamana was one of the Avatars of Lord Vishnu. In the days of yore, King Bali, an Asura (Daitya), antithetical to Sura (Aditya) or god conquered the three worlds. The gods complained to Lord Vishnu. He took the form of a Dwarf. Vamana, the dwarfish Brahmana went to king Bali and begged him for a piece of land equal to the length and breadth of his three strides. King Bali, very much against the advice of the priest in chief, Sukracharya, agreed to part with paltry piece of land to the dwarfish Brahmana. Bali never thought that three steps would cover the heavens and earth. The Lord at once stood up and expanded Himself to an immense size. He covered the heaven and earth in two strides and asked the king where he could place His third step. The king offered his head as the place for the third step, upon which the Lord pushed him down to the nether land; No, it is not the Netherlands of today, though the meaning is the same. For the king’s generosity, the Lord made him the ruler of the nether lands.
When the long stepping foot reached heavens, the big toenail appeared in front of Brahma who being the son of Vishnu worshipped it with ritual pouring of sacred water. When Vamana brought the foot down to the earth, the water from his toenail poured forth as River Ganga.
1.10 O Kesava This world was full of sin and oppression By taking the form of Parasu Rama You cleansed the world with the blood of Ksatriyas By making people take bath in blood-waters Triumph to thee, O Hari, the Lord of the Universe |
Parasurama, Rama with Parasu (battle axe), is different from the next
and seventh Avatara Ramachandra, who defeated Parasurama who is really an Aavesa
avataara (Avesa avatara = State of being possessed by Vishnu temporarily).
Parsurama appeared in the priestly family which claimed descent from
Bhrgu Muni. He cursed Vishnu to be born a human
being because Vishnu killed Bhrgu's wife. The story goes like this.
Once the Asuras (demons) took shelter in hermitage
of Bhrgu Muni. Vishnu, Indra and other lesser gods seized the hermitage and
Bhrgu’s wife pleaded with gods and asked them to leave her hermitage forthwith.
She threatened to burn them down with the fire of her Tapas. At the suggestion
of Indra, Vishnu killed Bhrgu’s wife. (Bhrgu once kicked Vishnu on his chest.
The story on that incident is in the Supplement
section titled “The Cagey Sages.”) Bhrgu Muni cast a curse on Vishnu saying that
he would be born a human seven times. Bhrgu, being a Muni and sage, brought his
wife back to life immediately for them to witness his power.
Krtavirya was the king of western India, donated land and wealth to the Bhargava priestly family, and made them the royal priests. After a while, Krtavirya demanded return of the wealth and land. Under duress, Bhargavas fled to another kingdom and established marital relationship with Ksatriyas. A Bhargava by name, Rcika, married the daughter of king of Kanyakubja, Satyavati. Soon Satyavati and Rcika had a son, Jamadagni, who bore a son Parasurama. Krtavirya killed Jamadagni. Parasurama, upset over oppression, usurpation, and killing of his father by the Kritavaryas, killed all the Kritavaryas. Another variation in this war between Ksatriyas and Brahmanas involves the wish giving cow, Kamadhenu given for safe keeping to the Rishi Brahmanas by Indra. Ksatriyas wanted to take possession of the cow and fought a war with the Rishi Brahmanas. Parasurama in order to establish Dharma and social order kills all Ksatriyas after twenty-one attempts. The fight over the cow resulted in so many deaths that Parasurama could not even walk without tripping on a dead body. Parsurama's Tejas (power) was still on fire; it was in need of more conquests.
Then came Varuna the Cosmic Enforcer of Law and Order and Rta. Varuna was afraid that Parasurama was going to take over the whole world and sought the help of god of death (Yama), who morphed into an ant and chewed on the bowstring to weaken it. Varuna told Parasurama that he could have all the land between him and his arrow's reach. Parasurama shot the arrow southward and its reach, weakened by frazzled cord of the bow, extended only down to Malabar in South India. The axe wielding Parasurama received the battle axe from Siva after a long penance. Another version of the story is that he threw the axe southward and it reached Malabar. Once Parasurama went to receive an audience with Siva and his entry into Siva's abode was blocked by his son, the elephant-faced god, Ganesa. In anger, Parasurama threw the axe at Ganesa, who adroitly avoided being beheaded (this would have been the second time, if he were not alert), took the impact on his tusk, which broke. That is why Ganesa is called ekadanta (eka danta = one tusk). Notice cognateness between the Latin "DENT" for tooth and the Sanskrit "Danta" for tooth or tusk. Every time you clean your teeth or flash a toothy smile, remember that Latin didn't have a name for tooth until Sanskrit left it under the pillow with a label on it for the tooth fairy to deliver it to Latin in exchange for a smile.
1.11
vita rasi dikshu rane dik pati kamanīyam |
dasa mukha mauli balim ramanīyam ||
kesava dhrta rama sarira jaya jagadīsa hare ||
(1 11)
On taking Rama's body
According to the desires of the deities of ten directions
You of pleasing disposition and generous giving
Sacrificed the ten heads of Ravana in war
Triumph to thee, O Hari, the Lord of the Universe
This is Ramayana in one verse. Ten headed Ravana, the demon king of Sri Lanka, abducted Rama's wife by devious impersonation. Ravana was crossing the River Godavari; Sita pleaded with River Godavari to rescue her from the clutches of Ravana by entreating Godavari that she (Godavri) being a woman herself should come to the aid of Sita and save her from Ravana. Godavari did not respond and thus earned bad merit (sin). River Godavari was so afraid of Ravana that she did not tell Rama of the abduction of Sita across the river when Rama came looking for her and asking the trees, barks, stones and rivers for Sita. They all witnessed Sita's abduction but none revealed the incident to Rama. Godavari's demerit and sin in Treta Yuga were absolved when Perialvar (Periazvar--one of the Vaishnavite saints) named baby girl Goda (Godai) found near a flowerbed in Sri Villiputtur, Tamil Nadu. She also became one of the Vaishnavite saints. She is regarded as the incarnation of Lakshmi or Bhudevi.
Andal (Goda) found near the flowerbed
On the other hand, River Yamuna helped Vasudeva carrying Baby Krishna to cross Yamuna by draining itself to the waist level and thus earned merit. Rama brought Sita back after defeating and killing Ravana.
(Ten directions are N; NE; E; SE; S; SW; W; NW; Above and Below.)
The Lord assigns deities to take charge of directions, ten in all: East, Southeast, South, Southwest, West, Northwest, North, Northeast, Upward and Downward. The deities are called Dikpalas (guardians of directions). Starting from the East, the Dikpalas are Indra for East, Agni for Southeast, Yama for South, Nirrti for Southwest, Varuna for West, Vāyu for Northwest, Kubera for North, Isa for Northeast, Brahmā for up direction and Ananta, down direction.
Ravana, the demon king, was terrorizing these gods, who appealed to Rama to destroy him when they found out about abduction of Sita. Having suffered long, they seized the opportunity to make the recommendation and array against him. Ravana imposed impassable obstructions on their movement, freedom and lifestyle. The elemental gods (Varuna of Air, Agni of Fire, Varuna of Waters) were afraid of Ravana, the baddest dude of the demons. When Ravana was out in the open, the Air (Varuna) was afraid to gather up dust, gust and gale. The Fire (Agni) against its very nature languished and became cool; Rain god (Varuna) was afraid to drench him; Indra stopped thunder and lightning; Yama, the god of death, could not cast his noose of death on him; Ravana stole Kubera's wealth and hijacked Pushpaka Vimana (flower plane). (Agni is Fire and is cognate with Ignis and Ignition; if it is not for Sanskrit, you would not be driving your car with internal-combustion engine, turned on by your ignition keys!) The beauty about Pushpaka Vimanam is that you did not need any fuel. It ran on thought. Eat your heart out, Boeing. Look here, we in India are no slouch. We had planes in ancient times, ha, ha, ha, ho, ho, ho. (You need proof; our very word is proof! Sadam would not have invaded Kuwait if the cars ran on thought; we would not be in this predicament.) Of course the Pundits and aeronautical engineers from west are skeptical until they see the carcass of that plane. Consider this: this plane had ponds that you could swim in. It was an epitome of its kind and the ultimate in luxury. It had carved artifacts like lions, tigers with inlaid precious stones. Of course, they could not risk a live circus with live lions, tigers, elephants and monkeys. Obviously they had safety concerns. It had live music though. It had artificial trees and silk flowers. Why artificial trees and cheap silk flowers; don't ask me. It is very much like today to have artificial flowers and cellphone towers that look like trees. They were probably living in the future. You were greeted with a lei as you entered the plane.; No, the Hawaiians did not invent lei first. Ravana hijacked the plane. This was the first hijacking known in the world. To add insult to injury, Ravana stole Kubera's throne too. No wonder, Kubera wanted Ravana dead. Nadir Shah stole our Peacock throne. Where is that Diamond that was taken from India?
1.12
vahasi vapushi vishade vasanam jala da abham
hala hati bhiiti milita yamuna aabham
kesava dhata hala dhara rūpa jaya jagadiisa hare (1-12)
On taking the form of Balarama, the plowholder
You don a dark nimbus raiment on your white body
Yamuna waters tremble in fear of your channeling plough
Triumph to thee, O Hari, the Lord of the Universe
Balarama, Rama the Strong, Haladhara, the plough holder, Krishna's older brother, according to students from west was a real historical personage identified with viticulture, agriculture, and irrigation. Naturally he carried the iconic plow. Ganga and Yamuna Rivers were afraid of him because by his plow he dug underground tunnels and aboveground channels that deflected the flow of the waters for irrigation purposes. He was the seventh child of Devaki. Six previous siblings were killed at birth by demonic Kamsa, his maternal uncle, for fear that one of Devaki's children would kill him.
(Think of Pharaoh's refusal to let 'My People Go' , the Plagues of Egypt, the Angel of Death visiting Egypt killing all firstborn but passing over (hence 'Passover') Israelite houses with doorpost soaked with lamb's blood on the command of God through Moses.)
Krishna commands his Yogamaya to transfer the embryo (the product of seventh pregnancy) from Devaki's womb to that of Rohini (another wife of Vasudeva), who is visiting Nanda and Yasoda. This transfer is performed by Yogamaya while Devaki and Rohini are in Yoganidra (Yogic sleep). Krishna says that he is personally going to appear in the womb of Devaki. Balarama is a manifestation of Sesa-snake or Ananata, on whose coils Vishnu rests. (Don't laugh, next time you try sleeping on the coils of Anaconda or Boa Constrictor. You will find yourself sleeping inside it.) Since his origin is Sesa, he is depicted as half snake and half man. Cult of Balarama waned, the experts say, as Krishna cult ascended. If you marvel at medical science today, you must accept the fact that the modern science does not have the wherewithal to transfer the embryo from one to another womb. Yes, I know your question, "Where is the need for it?" Just consider the pure science. Well, if the pregnant woman becomes too sick to carry the pregnancy to term, an embryo transfer would be a welcome alternative and boon. Some woman may even rent a womb for this purpose and enjoy life without burden of carrying the embryo and fetus to term, delivery, and complications. Venture capitalists may even start a Womb Rental Agency (WORA)--catchy word.. The wonder of pregnancy is that the woman does not reject the living incompatible graft of a fetus made of half of the mother and half of father. Modern science still does not have the answer to this simple ubiquitous phenomenon. When it knows the answer, transplantation is like changing auto parts.
Balarama, the wielder of plow, was visiting with the god of waters, Varuna, who asked his wife Varuni, the goddess of wine to serve some wine for Balarama. Varuni soon went to work, climbed up Kadamba tree (anthocephalus cadamba, anthocephalus indica), and collected the nectar from its flowers. Balarama was dawdling in the general area; drawn by the fragrance of the nectar, he approached the tree. Some drops fell into his mouth and made him tipsy; such was the potency of the stuff. He drowned all his decorum, yelled, shouted and demanded River-goddess Yamuna, to come to him so that he could take a dip and recover from inebriation. The River-goddess did not pay any heed to his needs. Balarama launched his plow in the direction of Yamuna and went about wandering all over with the result, Yamuna followed him wherever he went. Yamuna's self-respect was dragged in the mud in tunnels and channels; she didn't like it one bit; her pleading for mercy went unheeded until the whole land was well irrigated; and then Balarama let her go. Yamuna is still very afraid him, because she is suspicious that Balarama has dug secret tunnels to direct her down a garden path.
1.13
nindati yajna
vidheh - a ha ha - sruti jaatam sadaya
hridaya darshita pasu ghaatam kesava dhrita buddha sariira jaya jagadiisa hare
On taking The Buddha's body with compassion in his heart
He found fault against animal sacrifices in Vedic rituals
as laid down in the words of scriptures
what a turnaround in ritual modes, ha, ha, ha!
Triumph to thee, O Hari, the Lord of the Universe
I want to address the question of ahimsa (non-violence) in Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism. Jain is derived from Sanskrit word Jina, meaning victor: victory over desires and passions, and liberation from Samsara. Ahimsa is nonviolence in thought, word, and deed to any living being, including plants. Princely Vardhamana rejuvenated Jainism concept of ahimsa; the name Mahavira came about following enlightenment in 600 B.C. Mahavira = Great hero. Latin Vir (virtue) and Sanskrit Vira connote virtue and heroism. It was a protest movement against animal sacrifice of Vedic religion: Ahimsa (noninjury) is the central tenet of Jainism. True ahimsa is impracticable. There are certain measures that one can employ to minimize violence. A Jain ascetic sweeps the path couple of steps ahead, when he walks, in order not to injure or kill minute insects. He wears a mask over his mouth not only to prevent minute insects from getting into the mouth and dying, but also to soften the impact of the air molecules against the throat and its turbulence. (Somebody asked me: How does a Jain protect the intra-oral microflora. My answer: He does not kill them; that is why the micrflora are called oral commensals - Jain and they dine together.) When the monk falls overboard, he does not swim with violent flailing of arms for that causes turbulence and violence to water. He just lets the water currents take him to the shore. This is Ahimsa extreme. A Jain feels that his jiva (soul) is a translucent crystal, which becomes progressively opaque from inflow (deposit) of multi-colored soot of karma. Killing makes the crystal black with no passage of light. He feels that his jiva is contaminated if he eats meat even accidentally. A Buddhist has a more lenient view of ahimsa. If he eats meat accidentally without his knowledge, he is not contaminated. Buddhist may even eat meat obtained from slaughter houses as long as the animal was not killed in his name or for him. Buddha died from eating poisoned meat unknowingly.
In Puranic literature
certain rules have been laid down with regards to eating of meat.
An ascetic eats only roots, leaves and fallen fruits. Yajnavalkya states
in Garuda Purana (1.97.1-10) that the animal products such as wool and silk are
purified by sprinkling them with a mixture of fresh cow’s urine and hot water.
Some one observed that wearing a Silk Sari means mass murder of silk
worms. Consecrated meat on special occasions is fit for consumption without any
fear of accumulating demeritorious karma. Killing animals and eating their meat
at other times guarantee that the eater goes to hell and stays there for as many
days as there are hairs on that animal.
Plants, animals, and
human beings have souls, the difference being the degree of sentience and more
correctly the expression of sentience in these entities. All living entities
have sentience but the degree to which it is expressed is
different, man having the highest and the plants the lowest.
All living entities have one pervading Supreme Soul. Killing a living
entity is violating that Soul in that living entity and by extension the Soul
(the Universal Soul-God) of the meat eater, which is Atman or Brahman. Discreet
violence to plants to the extent to sustain life without killing of animals is
the object of Ahimsa.
Students of Hinduism from both East and West say that there was cow slaughter in ancient times in India. The kings made horse sacrifices (Asvamedha) for various reasons. Asoka, Buddhism and Jainism succeeded only to a certain extent to lessen the horse sacrifices, until it fell into disuse in the ninth century C.E.
There is still ritual killing of animals in Dakshineswar Kali Temple in India. The Brahmin priests bathe the goat in River Ganges for purification. Before the actual sacrifice, the priests cover the image of Gopala because Gopala Krishna is a vegetarian and cannot stand and stomach animal sacrifice. The animal is cooked and served to Kali; after this ritual serving of food to Kali, the cooked meat is taken out and served to important people. Sacrifice of animal is symbolic of severing lust, greed, anger, jealousy, selfishness and ego from one's personality. Why should an animal pay for them with its life?
1.14
mleccha nivaha nidhane kalayasi
karavaalam dhuuma ketum iva
kim api karaalam kesava dhrita kalki sariira jaya jagadiisa hare
(
On taking the body of Kalki
You brandished your smoking comet-like sword
To destroy the mlecchas
It is so formidable for words
Triumph to thee, O Hari, the Lord of the Universe
Mlecchas are
barbarians, Non-Aryans, people whose native tongue is not Sanskrit,
1.15 shrii jayadeva kaveh idam uditam
udaaram shrinu sukha
dam shubha dam
bhava saaram kesava dhrita dasa vidha ruupa jaya jagadiisa hare
He offers the excellent essence of life and living
T
1.16 vedaan uddharate jagat
nivahate bhuu golam ud bibhrate daityam daarayate
balim cchalayate kshatra kshayam kurvate paulastyam jayate halam kalayate
kaarunyam aatanvate mlecchaan muurcchayate dasha akriti krite krishnaaya tubhyam
namah
Upholding the Vedas (Matsya Avatara)
Supporting this world (Varaha Avatara)
Raising this globe of earth
Killing the Daitya, Hiranyakasipu (Narasimha avatara)
Cheating Bali (Vamana Avatara)
Bringing about the destruction of Ksatriyas (Parasu Rama Avatara)
Conquering Ravana (Rama Avatara)
Wielding the plow (Balarama Avatara)
Spreading compassion (The Buddha Avatara)
Causing swooning (routing) of mlecchas (Kalki Avatara
Homage to you Krishna in your ten forms
2.1 Sh
Decked with ear rings and beautiful forest flower
You rest on Kamala's circle of breasts
Triumph, Triumph to thee, Lord Hari
2.2 dina mani mandala mandana bhava khandana
muni jana maanasa hansa jaya jaya deva hare
The daily jewel (sunlight, sun Mandala) envelopes you in its circle
Causing happiness; the Karmic bonds are sundered
You are Manasa lake's swan (hamsa or Brahman) in Muni's mind
Hamsa. The wild goose (Anser indicus) is known for
its discipline, grace and beauty. Hamsa is also regarded as a swan or a
flamingo. The west's association of goose with a silly or foolish person or
simpleton does not apply here. Yes, there it is, the cultural gap. In Vedic
times, Hamsa, the bar-headed white goose was
associated with the sun, Spirit, Atman, knowledge, prana, Brahman and life
itself. Hamsa's lofty flights are compared to
transcendence of the spirit. Hamsa = ham + sa. Ham is exhaled breath and
sa is inhaled breath; thus, hamsa is life. Hamsa is a high flyer and thus is a
metaphor for spiritual endeavor to attain Brahman. The Indian goose is also
associated with Brahma and Sarasvati
Muni = the Yogi who maintains silence, maunam.
This verse is very dense with meaning. It touches on Kundalini Yoga, Adhara yogam and Niradhara Yogam, when the Yogi goes beyond the Sahasrara Chakra to Sun Mandala and beyond. Kundalini Power. When a devotee achieves Niradhara Yogam, his karmic bonds are broken; he merges with the Spirit and is never born again in this world.
Nataraja dances in all the Chakras, Mandalas and beyond: Muladhara, Svadhistahana, Manipura, Anahata, Ajna, and Sahasrara, Fire, Sun and Moon Mandalas or spheres. He dances in Veda, on the top of the Fire of Kundalini, in Bodha (Pure Consciousness), with celestials, in sacred temples, and with the three Gods and Minis.
The Six Chakras (credit Swami Sivananda Radha)
Click on thumbnail for enlargement.
Going to the sphere of Fire, Sun, and moon.
Sakhamarga. Path of friend. The five senses should be kept under control; The Ida and Pingala Nadi should be controlled; meditation on a single object and channeling Prana and Kundalini goddess to Susumna Nadi, merging of the yogi with Siva in Sahasrara Chakra, imbibing the ambrosia and going to the sphere of fire, sun and moon are the steps towards Sakhamarga. This is the path of friend (intelligence) to the Lord. This path assures that the devotee attains likeness to Siva (Sarupya).
Dvādasāntham / Tvādasāntham (Tamil)
1. (Yoga.) A mystic centre
which is believed to be 12 inches above the crown;
2. (Yoga.) The 12th and last stage of experience of the soul in yoga practice;
The ninth center is Moon's sphere (Chandra Mandala) above all Chakras and Fire and Sun Mandalas. Bindu, Nada, and Bija (Tribindu) are centered around there. The Yogi's heart and Nada beat in unison. Nada is Mithuna (union) of Siva and Sakti. The Jiva also attains closeness to Siva.
2.3
yadu kula nalina dina iisha jaya
jaya deva hare
You vanquished the contemptible venomous serpent Kaliya
You are the pleaser of people
Like the sun blooms the lotus, you caused the florescence
of Yadu lineage
Kaaliya, a centi-headed monstrous snake, was living
in Yamuna river, exuding so much of poisonous fume in the air all trees and
vegetations died on the bank except a Kadamba tree. Krishna climbed on the tree
and jumped into the river, waiting for the snake to find him. The snake showed
up, wrapped him up in its coils and constricted him. The news spread so fast
Nanda and Yasoda, his parents, proceeded to the bank along with other villagers,
cows, calves and bulls. They followed Krishna's footprints on the mud
which had special unmistakable dermatoglyphics of the sole: bow, conch-shell,
and flag. Balarama, his older brother, was casting and dispensing his smiles all
around to the utter dismay of the search team. Cowherds and cows and others were
in deep despair, when they saw Krishna wrapped in the coils of Kaaliya.
Yasodha's attempts at entering the river and rescuing Krishna was prevented by
others. She fell in a faint (Yoganidra) concentrating on the face of Krishna and
remained that way for sometime. Nanda tried to enter the river and was prevented
doing so by Balarama. Krishna remained in the coils of Kaaliya for a few hours.
Seeing that all assembled living beings were on the point of death from
exhaustion, he expanded himself and the coils unable to bear the strain, gave up
constricting him. The snake spread his hood, hissed and exhaled venomous
fumes from the mouth; the eyes were shooting flames.
2.4
madhu mura naraka viaashana garuda aasana
sura kula keli nidaana jaya jaya deva hare (1.20)
O killer of Madhu, Mura and Naraka demons
O rider of Garuda, You are the cause of the sporting of family of gods
O Krishna, You are the destroyer of demons Madhu, Mura and Naraka. Garuda is your seat. You are the primary cause of the amorous sporting of the race of gods.
There once was a demon Naraka, the son of Mother Earth, who was no other than the incarnated Satyabhama, the consort of Krishna. Naraka out of arrogance stole the royal umbrella of Varuna, the brother of Indra (chief of gods). He stole the earrings of Aditi, Indra's mother. To add insult to injury, he evicted all of them from the Summit of Mount Mandara. Since the demon is the son of Earth who incarnated as the consort of Krishna, He took his consort along to the capital city of Naraka's kingdom (now Assam). Demon Mura the minion of Naraka laid out an impregnable array of fortifications around the capital city in the form of mountains, weapons, moats of water, wind and fire and snares. Krishna used his mace to knock off the mountains and rendered useless the fiery ring of fire, moat of water and swirling winds with his Sudarsana (discus). The sound of the conch broke the will of the defenders on the ramparts of the fort and his mace shattered the fort. The sound of the Conch woke the demon Mura from the deep waters of the moat. The demon shining like a million suns and fire at the end of the world brandished, roared with five mouths and threw his trident at Garuda, the mount of Krishna and the son of Kasyapa. The roar filled and reverberated the entire cosmos. Krishna shot arrows splitting the trident and filling his mouth. The demon wielded a mace to strike Krishna who easily broke it into a million pieces. Krishna launched his discus which sliced off the five heads of the demon Mura. He fell like a mountain in the moat. The seven sons of Mura, their paternal uncle Naraka and Pitha (the General) threw all they had at Krishna: swords, shafts, maces, javelins, spears, and pikes. Krishna broke and pulverized them so well that the fragments looked like sesamum seeds. He dispatched them quickly to the abode of death. Then came soldiers and raging elephants which traced their lineage to Airavata, the king of elephants. Krishna broke them all into pieces. Garuda downed the elephants with its wings; struck by the bill, wings and claws, they ran towards the safety of their city. Naraka used on Garuda the javelin that shattered the thunderbolt of Indra in the past. Garuda took the hit of the javelin as if an elephant was given a garland. He was getting ready to strike Krishna with a pike and before he could launch it Krishna sliced off his head with his discus. The head rolled, his earrings shone, his diadem was blindingly splendorous. A galaxy of gods showered flowers on Krishna. Mother Earth brought the loot back to Krishna: the earrings of Aditi, Varuna's umbrella, the crest of Mount Mandra chock full of gems, a garland of wild flowers, and Vaijayanti, a garland of flowers and gems. Mother Earth with obsequious humility bent her crest, joined her palms and eulogized Bhagavan Krishna.
2.5
amala
kamala dala locana bhava mocana e |
tribhuvana bhavana nidhaana jaya jaya deva hare ||
1.21
You have eyes like the petals of an unblemished lotus
you release the souls from samsara
You are the preserver of the three worlds
2.6
janaka sutaa krita bhuushana jita duushana
samara shamita dasha khantha jaya jaya deva hare (1.22)
Janaka's daughter Sita adorns you, O Rama
You conquered Demon Dushana
You killed ten-throated (ten-headed) Ravana
2.7
abhinava
jala dhara sundara dhrita mandara e |
Srii mukha candra cakora jaya jaya deva hare ||
1.23
You are as fresh as (the rain-bearing dark) nimbus
You are the beautiful holder of Mandara for churning the milk ocean
You are like the chakora bird which wants to swill the moon
When you drink from the moon-face of Sri
2.8
Srii jayadeva
kaveh idam kurute mudam e |
mangalam ujjvala giitam jaya jaya deva hare ||
(1.24)
Sri Jayadeva, the poet, sings this beautiful song
Auspicious and joyous
2.9
padmaa payodhara tatii
parirambha lagna
kaasmiira mudritam uro madhusuudanasya |
vyakta anuraagam iva khelat ananga kheda
sveda ambu puuram anupuurayatu priyam vah || 1.25
Om Namo Narayana
Veeraswamy Krishnaraj.
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