Srimati Radharani appeared on the eighth day of the waxing moon of Hrsikesha (Bhadra) mase, at noon.
Who is Srimati Radharani
Sri Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It is stated in the Svetasvatara Upanishad (6.8) "The Supreme Lord has multipotencies, which act so perfectly that all consciousness, strength and activity are being directed solely by His will". The material world, where we are now living, is called bahir-anga-sakti, the external energy of Krishna. Krishna explains in the Bhagavad-Gita (9.10): "Under My superintendence the material energy is working". Apart from the material, external energy, there is another energy - the internal energy. By the internal energy the spiritual world is being manifested. As the material world is manipulated under the external energy, the spiritual world is conducted by the internal potency. That internal potency, called the Hladini Sakti, is Srimati Radharani.
In CC Adi 1.5 it is said "The loving affairs of Sri Radha and Krishna are transcendental manifestations of the Lord's internal pleasure-giving
potency. Although Radha and Krishna are one in Their identity, They separated Themselves eternally". Srimati Radharani, as the highest
devotee of Sri Krishna, derives the greatest pleasure in serving Him. She is the origin of all the Gopis and of all the Goddesses of Fortune (Lakshmi devi) who are engaged in the service of the Lord. She is the mainstay, the ideal and the ultimate refuge of all devotees embarking on the path of devotional service. Without first getting the mercy of Srimati Radharani it is impossible to even approach Sri Krishna.
The Hare Krishna maha-mantra is in fact a prayer to Srimati Radharani. The word 'Hare' is derived from 'Hara' which denotes the internal energy or Hladini Sakti of Krishna. This is none other that Srimati Radharani. When one is chanting the maha-mantra, one is saying: "O Krishna ! O Radha !! Please engage me in your devotional service". Krishna is difficult to approach directly, but He is bhakta-vatsala, always eager to please His devotees. Thus the mood of a devotee is to invoke the compassion of Srimati Radharani Who then recommends the devotee to Sri Krishna.
Since Krishna is easily pleased by Srimati Radharani, He then readily accepts the devotee in His service.
Vrindavan Lila
When the Lord descends, He is invariably accompanied by His loving associates. Five thousand years when Sri Krishna descended in His
original form, as a cowherd boy in Vrindavan, Srimati Radharani accompanied Him in Her original form. She appeared exactly two weeks after the appearance of Sri Krishna on the eighth day of the waning moon (ashtami). Srimati Radharani was found on a lotus flower by Vrashabhanu and his wife Kirtida near the village of Barsana, a few miles away from Nandagrama. It is said that Srimati Radharani first opened Her eyes only when Sri Krishna appeared before Her. Until that time Her eyes were closed.
Understanding the mellows of the relationship between Krishna and Radha is impossible from the mundane perspective. Understanding madhurya-rasa (devotion at the platform of intimacy), which is the highest level of relationship of a devotee with Krishna, is only possible in the most elevated stages of bhakti where there is not even a tinge of material contamination. Therefore Svarupa Damodara Gosvami has written:
"The loving affairs of Radha and Krishna are not ordinary, material loving affairs, although they appear like that. Rascals and fools misunderstand Krishna to be an ordinary man. They do not know Krishna's transcendental nature. They try to imitate Krishna's rasa-lila, His dancing with the Gopis". There is no offense greater than this. Devotees starting on the path of bhakti must carefully avoid such offenses. They must simply pray to Srimati Radharani, as their most compassionate Mother, for mercy, for bhakti and for an opportunity to serve Sri Krishna.
Qualities of Srimati Radharani
As explained in Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu (Nectar of Devotion), Krishna possesses sixty-four transcendental qualities. Srimati Radharani has
twenty-five transcendental qualities, but She can control even Krishna by them. Her transcendental qualities are as follows:
(1) She is sweetness personified
(2) She is a fresh young girl
(3) Her eyes are always moving
(4) She is always brightly smiling
(5) She possesses all auspicious marks on Her body
(6) She can agitate Krishna by the flavor of Her person
(7) She is expert in the art of singing
(8) She can speak very nicely and sweetly
(9) She is expert in presenting feminine attractions
(10) She is modest and gentle
(11) She is always very merciful
(12) She is transcendentally cunning
(13) She knows how to dress nicely
(14) She is always shy
(15) She is always respectful
(16) She is always patient
(17) She is very grave
(18) She is enjoyed by Krishna
(19) She is always situated on the highest devotional platform
(20) She is the abode of love of the residents of Gokula
(21) She can give shelter to all kinds of devotees
(22) She is always affectionate to superiors and inferiors
(23) She is always obliged by the dealings of Her associates
(24) She is the greatest amongst Krishna's girl friends
(25) She always keeps Krishna under Her control.
Krishna means 'all attractive', since He attracts every one to Him. But Srimati Radharani attracts even Krishna. Although Krishna says vedaham
samatitani - "I know everything" - He fails to understand Radharani. Krishna is acyuta (inconceivable), but for Him Radharani is inconceivable.
Radharani is so great. Krishna thought, "I am full. I am complete in every respect, but still I want to understand Radharani." This question obliged
Krishna to accept the propensities of Radharani to understand Himself. So five hundred years ago Krishna appeared as Caitanya Mahaprabhu, in the mood of Srimati Radharani and with Her golden complexion, as His own greatest devotee. Krishna did this to understand the depth of devotion of Srimati Radharani.
Mercy of Srimati Radharani
Srimati Radharani is the ideal maha-bhagvat. As the greatest devotee, She is also the most compassionate. She is unable to bear the suffering of the souls trapped in the material world. The word "aradhaya" (prayers) is derived from "Radha" and means "worshippable". Similarly the word
"aparadha" (offenses) means "against Radha". When one performs devotional service, one is pleasing Srimati Radharani and when commits Vaishnava aparadha against Krishna or His devotees, one is offending Radharani. Srimati Radharani is the guardian, the mentor and the benefactor of all aspiring devotees.
When a soul starts to inquire about Krishna, Srimati Radharani is most pleased and takes charge of his devotional advancements. As one makes progress, one continues to invoke the mercy of Srimati Radharani and when She is pleased, Krishna is automatically pleased.
Sri Radha's Lotus Hands
A summary of the 8 auspicious signs and symbols
I meditate on the right lotus hand of Srimati Radharani which is beatifully decorated with the following auspicious imprints: life line, fortune
line and enjoyment line, bow, elephant goad, kettle drums, two carts, javelin, palace, water pot,chamara or whisk, a sword and conchshells at the tips of the fingers.
I meditate on the left lotus hand of Srimati Radharani which is beatifully decorated with the following auspicious imprints: life line, fortune line and enjoyment line, garland, spear, tree, elephant goad, elephant, horse, bull, pillar of glory, a fan, an arrow and chakras at the tips of the fingers.
Like Krishna's hand, there are three lines on the left hand of Srimati Radharani; lifeline, fortune line and enjoyment line. On the tips of the fingers are chakras. Below the index finger is an elephant goad and below that a fan. Below the fan is a tree, below that a pillar of fame, below that is an arrow and below a beautiful javelin. Below the javelin is a garland. Below the ring finger is an elephant, below that is the lifeline and below that a horse. Below the fortune line is a bull.
Oh mind! Please meditate on the right lotus hand of Srimati Radharani that is decorated with the following auspicious imprints: lifeline, fortune
line and enjoyment line. Five conchshells on the tips of the fingers. Below the thumb is a golden drinking vessel and below the index finger is a
whisk. Below the little finger is an elephant goad and below that a palace. Below the palace is a thunderbolt. above the wrist are two sacred carts
above these are a bow and a sword.
Krishna is known as Madan-Mohan, the attracter of Cupid, but Srimate Radharani is Madan-Mohan-Mohani, the attracter of the attracter of
Cupid. Srimate Radhika attracts Krishna by Her devotion.
In "Nectar of Devotion" pg 175, under the qualities of Krishna, "compassionate" Srila Prabhupada writes, "A person who is unable to bear another's distress is called compassionate...Actually, because Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, it is very difficult to approach Him. But the devotees, taking advantage of His compassionate nature, which is represented by Radharani, always pray to Radharani for Krishna's compassion."
NOD pg 259, "When Srimate Radharani first saw Krishna, She suddenly became conscious of all transcendental happiness, and the functions of Her different limbs were stunned. when Lalita, Her constant companion, whispered into Her ear, the holy name of krsna, Radharani immediately
opened Her eyes wide.
"One day, in a joking mood, Krishna informed Radharani, 'My dear Radharani, I am going to give up Your company.' Upon saying this, He immediately disappeared, and because of this, Radharani immediately fell down upon the ground of Vrndavana. she had practically stopped breathing, but when She smelled the flavor of the flowers on the ground, She awoke in ecstasy and got up.
"One night, Srimate Radharani was talking in a dream. 'My dear Krishna, ' She said, 'plese do not play any more jokes on Me! Please stop! And
please don't touch my garments either. Otherwise I shall inform the elderpersons, and I shall disclose all of Your naughty behavior.' She was talking like this in a dream. She suddenly awoke and saw some of Her superiors standing before Her. Thus Radharani became ashamed and bowed Her head."
Srimati Radharani on Love
Srimati Radharani said: "If you want to understand My love for Krishna then listen... Prema is so great that even the knowers of the Vedas cannot know it, nor others who claim to know it. Sakhi! One who teaches prema to an inquisitive person cannot know it, nor can their hearer know it. It's all just imitation! Prema disappears before both the discriminate and indiscriminate person, but that pure-hearted soul who is free from
discrimination and who is full of sacred greed, is able to approach the throne of natural love. That is shown through the lover's activities, which
are only dedicated to the happiness of the beloved."
"Just as a lion feeds himself on elephants, prema feeds itself, defeating all miseries that are as heavy as mountains and are caused by things of this world, the next world, one's own family, one's enemies or one's most beloved one. That lion of prema is proud of its bodily lustre and is fearless. He can go to sleep without worrying. What worries will the lion have when the dogs of unfavourable attachments bark? Prema shines like a lamp in the darkness."
"Because of this deceitfulness, prema appears to be fresh and intoxicating at every moment, giving joy to the three worlds like the cool moon (during union) and heat like the burning sun at the time of universal destruction during separation."
"O dear sakhi! In whom else in all the three worlds or beyond them but in Krishna, the prince of the cowherds, is this prema to be found? Only
the doe-eyed gopis of Vrndavana can relish this, according to their qualifications."
"Sometimes this prema, which gives Krishna unlimited bliss, appears to be lust, but sometimes lust also looks like prema to some people. Krishna, the crown jewel of clever artists, knows this, but that lust does not make Him happy. And when one gopi says: 'O my friend, I'm very much afflicted by feeling of separation. Quickly bring me to Krishna' then You should not think that is lust, because she is only interested in Krishna's happiness then."
"Krishna is an ocean of love, a mine of jewel-like qualities, and He is most attractive to the girls. For this He shows symptoms of lust like deceitfulness, naughtiness and crookedness, but this is actually prema. Can a hundred thousand girls, even with great endeavor, satisfy Krishna's desires? None of them can. So it must be their causeless love for Him that makes Him interested in them."
"Of all these gopis, Lord Krishna is most attracted to Me. That is well known in the world. That can never be false. He considers My love to be
as great as Mount Meru, and the love of the other gopis to be like three or four mustard seeds."
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