We approach Krishna through Radharani, through the mercy of Radharani.
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© 2004 - Hansadutta das
Radha Govinda Gopal

Radharani, Pleasure Potency of Krishna

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Founder-Acharya of the world-wide Hare Krishna Movement, Brahma Sampradaya Acharya

Srila Prabhupada

Festival Lectures, London, 29 August, 1971.


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So today, this evening, we are talking about Radhastami. We are trying to understand the chief potency of Krishna. Radharani is the pleasure potency of Krishna. As we understand from Vedic literature, Krishna has many varieties of potencies. Parasya shaktir vividhaiva shruyate [Chaitanya-charitamrita Madhya-lila 13.65, purport]. Just like the same example, as a big man has got many assistants and secretaries so that he hasn't got to do anything personally, simply by his will everything is done, similarly, the Supreme Personality of Godhead has got varieties of energies, and everything is being done so nicely. Just like this material energy. This material world, where we are now living… This is called material energy. Bahir-anga-shakti. The Sanskrit name is bahir-anga, external energy of Krishna. So how nicely it is being done, everything in the material energy. That is also explained in the Bhagavad-gita, mayadhyakshena prakritih suyate sa-characharam: [Bhagavad-gita 9.10] "Under My superintendence the material energy is working." The material energy is not blind. It is… On the background there is Krishna. Mayadhyakshena prakritih [Bhagavad-gita 9.10]. Prakriti means this material energy. Similarly… This is external energy. Similarly, there is another energy, which is internal energy. By the internal energy the spiritual world is being manifested. Paras tasmat tu bhavah anyah [Bhagavad-gita 8.20]. Another energy, para, superior, transcendental, the spiritual world. As this material world is being manipulated under the external energy, similarly, the spiritual world is also conducted by the internal potency. That internal potency is Radharani.

Radharani…, today is Radharani's appearance day. So we should try to understand Radharani's feature. Radharani is the pleasure potency, hladini-shakti. Anandamayo 'bhyasat (Vedanta-sutra 1.1.12). In the Vedanta-sutra the Absolute Truth is described as anandamaya, always in pleasure potency. That anandamaya potency… Just like ananda. When you want ananda, pleasure, you cannot have it alone. Alone, you cannot enjoy. When you are in the circles of friend or family or other associates, you feel pleasure. Just like I am speaking. The speaking is very pleasing when there are many persons here. I cannot speak alone here. That is not ananda. I can speak here at night, dead of night, nobody here. That is not ananda. Ananda means there must be others. So because Krishna, the Absolute Truth, is anandamaya, therefore eko bahu syam, He has become many. We are also Krishna's part and parcel, to give pleasure to Krishna. And the chief pleasure potency is Radharani.

radha-krishna-pranaya-vikritir hladini-shaktir asmad
ekatmanav api bhuvo (pura) deha-bhedo-gatau tau
chaitanyakhyam prakatam adhuna tad-dvayam chaikyam aptam
radha-bhava-(dyuti)-suvalitam naumi krishna-svarupam
[Chaitanya-charitamrita Adi-lila 1.5]

So Krishna is Param Brahman, as you know from the Bhagavad-gita. When Arjuna understood Bhagavad-gita, he affirmed Krishna, param brahma param dhama pavitram paramam bhavan [Bhagavad-gita 10.12]. So Krishna is Param Brahman. So in this material world we see that a great, saintly person, simply to enjoy brahmananda, he gives up everything of material enjoyment. He becomes sannyasi. Aham brahmasmi. Just to understand that he is in Brahman realization. So if one has to give up everything material for Brahman realization, do you think that Param Brahman, the Supreme Brahman, can enjoy anything material? No. Krishna's enjoyment is nothing material. This point should be understood. For Brahman realization we are giving up everything material. And how Param Brahman can enjoy anything material? This question has been very much nicely discussed by Jiva Gosvami.

So when the Param Brahman… First of all, the Param Brahman information is not there in this material world. Little Brahman information is there. Or little Paramatma information is there. But not Param Brahman, or Bhagavan, information. Therefore it is said, manushyanam sahasreshu kashchid yatati siddhaye [Bhagavad-gita 7.3]. Siddhaye means to understand Brahman or Paramatma. But out of many such persons who have realized Brahman and Paramatma, hardly a person can know Krishna. And that… First of all… [break] …what we can understand about Krishna's pleasure potency? If I want to know some big man. That is one process. And without knowing that big man, how I can understand about his internal affairs? Similarly, if we do not understand Krishna, how we can understand how Krishna is enjoying? That is not possible. But the Gosvamis, they're giving us information what is the pleasure potency of Krishna. That is Srimati Radharani.

So we have described about the Radha-Krishna loving affairs in our Teachings of Lord Chaitanya in page 264. If you have got this book, you can read it, how the reciprocation of loving affairs of Radha-Krishna is there, transcendental. So our today prayer to Radharani… We pray to Radharani because She is the pleasure potency of Krishna. Krishna means "all-attractive." But Radharani is so great that She attracts Krishna. Krishna is all-attractive, and She is attractive (attractor) of Krishna. So what is the position of Srimati Radharani? We should try to understand this day and offer our obeisances to Radharani. Radhe vrindavaneshvari.

tapta-kanchana-gaurangi radhe vrindavaneshvari
vrishabhanu-sute devi pranamami hari-priye
Our business is "Radharani, You are so dear to Krishna. So we offer our respectful obeisances unto You."
tapta-kanchana-gaurangi radhe vrindavaneshvari
vrishabhanu-sute devi pranamami hari-priye
[I offer my respects to Radharani, whose bodily complexion is like molten gold and who is the Queen of Vrindavana. You are the daughter of King Vrishabhanu, and You are very dear to Lord Krishna.]
Radharani is hari-priya, very dear to Krishna. So if we approach Krishna through Radharani, through the mercy of Radharani, then it becomes very easy. If Radharani recommends that "This devotee is very nice," then Krishna immediately accepts, however fool I may be. Because it is recommended by Radharani, Krishna accepts. Therefore in Vrindavana you'll find all the devotees, they're chanting more Radharani's name than Krishna's. Wherever you'll go, you'll find the devotees are addressing, "Jaya Radhe." You'll find still in Vrindavana. They are glorifying Radharani. They're more interested, worshiping Radharani. Because however fallen I may be, if some way or other I can please Radharani, then it is very easy for me to understand Krishna. Otherwise,
manushyanam sahasreshu
kashchid yatati siddhaye
yatatam api siddhanam
kashchid vetti mam tattvatah
[ Bhagavad-gita 7.3]

If you go by the speculative process to understand Krishna, it will take many, many lives. But if you take devotional service, just try to please Radharani, and Krishna will be gotten very easily. Because Radharani can deliver Krishna. She is so great devotee, the emblem of maha-bhagavata. Even Krishna cannot understand what is Radharani's quality. Even Krishna, although He says vedaham samatitani [Bhagavad-gita 7.26], "I know everything," still, He fails to understand Radharani. Radharani is so great. He says that… Actually, Krishna knows everything. In order to understand Radharani, Krishna accepted the position of Radharani. Krishna wanted to understand the potency of Radharani. Krishna thought that "I am full. I am complete in every respect, but still, I want to understand Radharani. Why?" This propensity made Krishna obliged to accept the propensities of Radharani, to understand Krishna, Himself.

These are, of course, very transcendental… great science. One who is advanced in Krishna consciousness and well conversant with the shastras, they can understand. But still, we can discuss from the shastra. When Krishna wanted to understand Himself, He took the tendency of Srimati Radharani. And that is Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Radha-bhava-dyuti-suvalitam. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu is Krishna, but He has accepted the propensities of Radharani. As Radharani is always in feelings of separation of Krishna, similarly, in the position of Radharani, Lord Chaitanya was feeling separation of Krishna. That is the teachings of Lord Chaitanya, feelings of separation, not meeting. The process of devotional service taught by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and His disciplic succession is how to feel separation from Krishna. That is Radharani's position, always feeling the separation.

The Gosvamis, they also, when they were in Vrindavana, they never said that "I have seen Krishna." Although they were the most perfect, they never said that "I have seen Krishna." Their prayers were like this: he radhe! vraja-devike! he nanda-suno! kutah. He radhe, Radharani, he radhe! vraja-devike! cha. Radharani does not remain alone. He (She) remains always with His (Her) friends, vraja-devi, Lalita or Vishakha and other damsels of Vrindavana. So the Gosvamis are praying, in their mature stage, when they were living at Vrindavana, they were praying in this way, he radhe! vraja-devike! cha lalite! he nanda-suno! kutah: "Where, Radharani, where You are? Where are Your associates? Where You are, Nanda-suno, the son of Nanda Maharaja, Krishna? Where you are, all?" They were searching after. They never said, "I have seen Krishna dancing with the gopis. Last night I saw." (laughter) This is sahajiya. This is not mature devotee. This is called… They are called sahajiya. They take everything very cheap—Krishna very cheap, Radharani very cheap—as if they can see every night. No. The Gosvamis do not teach us like that. They're searching after. He radhe! vraja-devike! cha lalite! he nanda-suno! kutah, sri-govardhana-padapa-tale kalindi-vanye kutah: "Are you there under the Govardhana Hill or on the banks of the Yamuna?" Kalindi-vanye kutah. Ghoshantav iti sarvato vraja-pure khedair maha-vihvalau. Their business was crying like this, "Where You are? Where You are, Radharani? Where you are, Lalita, Vishkha, the associates of Radharani? Where You are, Krishna? Are You near Govardhana Hill or on the bank of the Yamuna?" Ghoshantav iti sarvato vraja-pure. So throughout the whole tract of Vrindavana they were crying and searching after Them, khedair maha-vihvalau, as if madman. Khedair maha-vihvalau. Vande rupa-sanatanau raghu-yugau sri-jiva-gopalakau.

So we have to follow the footprints of the Gosvamis, how to search out Krishna and Radharani, Vrindavana, or within your heart. That is the process of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's bhajana: feeling of separation, vipralambha, vipralambha-seva. Just like Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, feeling the separation of Krishna, He was falling down on the sea. He was coming out of His rest room or His bedroom and going out at dead of night. Nobody knew where He has gone. So that was His searching. This process of devotional service is taught by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu. Not that very easily, "We have seen Krishna or seen Radharani in rasa-lila." No, not like that. Feel the separation. The more you feel separation from Krishna, you should understand that you are advancing. Don't try to see Krishna artificially. Be advanced in separation feeling, and then it will be perfect. That is the teachings of Lord Chaitanya. Because with our material eyes we cannot see Krishna. Atah sri-krishna-namadi na bhaved grahyam indriyaih [Chaitanya-charitamrita Madhya-lila 17.136]. With our material senses we cannot see Krishna, we cannot hear about Krishna's name. But sevonmukhe hi jihvadau. When you engage yourself in the service of the Lord… Where the service begins? Jihvadau. The service begins from the tongue. Not from the legs, eyes, or ears. It begins from the tongue. Sevonmukhe hi jihvadau. If you begin service through your tongue… How? Chant Hare Krishna. Use your tongue. Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. And take Krishna prasadam [food offered to Krishna]. The tongue has got two business: to articulate sound, Hare Krishna; and take prasadam. By this process you'll realize Krishna.

Devotee: Haribol!

Prabhupada: Don't try to see Krishna. You cannot see Krishna with your material eyes. Neither you can hear about Him with your material ears. Neither you can touch. But if you engage your tongue in the service of the Lord, then He'll reveal Himself to you: "Here I am." That is wanted. So feel separation of Krishna just like Radharani, as Lord Chaitanya teaches us, and engage your tongue in the service of the Lord; then, one day, when you are mature, you'll see Krishna eye to eye.


Radharani, Pleasure Potency of Krishna/ WORLD SANKIRTAN PARTY
©2004 - Hansadutta das
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