BALADEVA-TATTVA
Śrī Baladeva Prabhu has been glorified by our Guru-Vargas. Śrīla Kṛṣṇadāsa
Kavirāja Gosvāmīpada wrote:
rādhā-kṛṣṇa aiche sadā eka-i
svarūpa
līlā-rasa āsvādite dhare
dui-rūpa
(Caitanya Caritāmṛta Ādi
4.98)
By svarūpa Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa
are one, yet to relish the taste, the mellows, of pastimes, They have assumed
two forms. Similarly, as Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa are non-different from each other, Śrī
Baladeva Prabhu is non-different from Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa Himself has become Baladeva
Prabhu to relish so many ecstatic loving moods. “Keśava! dhṛta-haladhara-rūpa!
Jaya jagadīśa! Hare.” Keśava—Kṛṣṇa Himself, Śrī Brajendra-nandana Śyāmasundara,
Gopīnātha, Rādhā-Ramaṇa, Rādhā-Kanta—has become Śrī Baladeva Prabhu.
In Vṛndāvana Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s
original form is called svayaṁ-rūpa, and it has its svayaṁ-prakāśa
manifestations. These svayaṁ-prakāśa manifestations are of two types:
prābhava-prakāśa and vaibhava-prakāśa. When Kṛṣṇa is performing rāsa-līlā,
standing next to Śrīmatī Rādhikā, He is svayaṁ-rūpa. And the Kṛṣṇa who dances
with so many other gopīs is svayaṁ-prakāśa. When Kṛṣṇa manifests Himself in so
many forms which are all identical to Him in mood and in appearance, that is
called the prābhava-prakāśa aspect of svayaṁ-prakāśa. But when Kṛṣṇa manifests
His own form with a slight variation in complexion or in mood, that
manifestation is called vaibhava-prakāśa aspect of svayaṁ-prakāśa. This is the
identity of Śrī Baladeva Prabhu. The vaibhava-prakāśa of Kṛṣṇa is not different
from Kṛṣṇa, but has some speciality in complexion and mood.
What is the speciality in
complexion?
Kṛṣṇa is Śyāma colour and Baladeva Prabhu has a fair complexion. Śrī Kṛṣṇa
has sevya abhimāna —He is viṣayā vigraha—and Baladeva Prabhu has sevaka
abhimāna in relation to Śrī Kṛṣṇa. He wants to serve Kṛṣṇa in all ways.
When we examine the mood of Baladeva Prabhu, we see that He has saṅkulā-rati.
There are many different types of
rati, or stāyī-bhāva. They are Śrī-kṛṣṇa-viṣaini-rati—Kṛṣṇa is the object of
that rati: śānta-rati, dāsya-rati, sakhya-rati, vātsalya-rati and
mādhurya-rati. This rati has many types, such as mukhya-rati, gauṇa -rati,
parārtha -rati, svārtha -rati. One kind is called saṅkulā -rati. Saṅkulā -rati
is congested rati, meaning that more than one type of mukhya-rati is manifested
at the same time. So the stāyī-bhāva of Śrī Baladeva Prabhu is saṅkulā-rati,
because in His heart His prominent mood toward Kṛṣṇa has a combination of
dāsya, sakhya and also vātsalya mood because He is the older brother of Kṛṣṇa.
So Baladeva Prabhu has
manifested in many ways in order to serve Kṛṣṇa. In Braja He is Rohiṇī-nandana
Baladeva, but in Mathurā and Dvārakā He is Saṅkarṣaṇa, that is,
Vasudeva-nandana or Devakī-nandana Baladeva. There He is called Mūla Saṅkarṣaṇa,
and from this Mūla Saṅkarṣaṇa comes Mahā Saṅkarṣaṇa, and from Mahā Saṅkarṣaṇa
comes Mahā Viṣṇu, and from Mahā Viṣṇu comes Śeṣa.
So in all of these ways
Baladeva is serving. He is so eager to serve that He will serve in śānta-rasa
in the form of the dhāma and the paraphernalia of all of Śeṣayī -tattva in the
various realms of Braja, Mathurā, Dvārakā and Vaikuṇṭha. He is serving
in dāsya-rasa, sakhya-rasa and vātsalya-rasa, and even in mādhurya-rasa He
serves as Anaṅga Mañjarī. Baladeva Prabhu is so eager to serve Kṛṣṇa in all
ways that He even becomes His paraphernalia and ornaments. In the form of the
earrings on Kṛṣṇa’s ears He is always affectionately kissing the cheeks of Kṛṣṇa.
There is no end to Baladeva Prabhu’s desire to render service to Kṛṣṇa.
Baladeva Prabhu has performed many pastimes, but one pastime is
extremely difficult to understand.
What is that?
When Kṛṣṇa left Vṛndāvana and was staying in Dvārakā, Baladeva
Prabhu came from Dvārakā to Braja-mandala on a mission to pacify the separation
feelings of the residents of Vṛndāvana. At that time Baladeva Prabhu went to
Rāma Ghāṭa where He performed rāsa-līlā. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura
has written a very extensive commentary on this subject in his tika on Śrī
Caitanya Bhagavat.
In Gita Govinda Jayadeva Gosvāmī-pada has glorified Baladeva Prabhu:
vahasi vapuṣi viśade vasanaṁ jaladābhaṁ
hala-hati-bhīti-milita-yamunābham
keśava! dhṛta-haladhara-rūpa! jaya jagadīśa! Hare
When Baladeva Prabhu performed rasa-līlā in Braja, He took His plough
and summoned Yamuna, but she would not come. Baladeva Prabhu became angry and,
taking His plough, began to drag Yamuna. You can see a big curve in the flow of
Kālindī at that place called Rāma Ghāṭa. Śrīla Gurudeva, in his tika on Gita
Govinda, has explained that in this pastime Baladeva Prabhu is in the mood of
dhīra-lalita nāyaka.
Why?
Dhīra-lalita nāyaka has some qualities:
vidagdho nava-tāruṇyaḥ
parihāsa-viśāradaḥ
niścinto dhīra-lalitaḥ
syāt prāyaḥ preyasī-vaśaḥ
(Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 2.1.230)
Especially syāt prāyah preyasī-vaśah—He is controlled by the love of
His beloveds. In the incarnation of Lord Rāmacandra He has tolerated great
separation and many problems for Himself and His beloved Sītā, because He is in
the mood of dhīrodātta-nāyaka. But
here Baladeva Prabhu is in the mood of dhīra-lalita nāyaka. He is controlled by
the mood of His beloveds; therefore He cannot tolerate even the slightest
fatigue that they feel. In glorifying Baladeva Prabhu, Jayadeva Gosvāmī has
expressed that Baladeva Prabhu wants to bring the whole Yamuna so that they
will be refreshed and their fatigue will go away, because He cannot tolerate
even the appearance of perspiration on the brow of His beloveds.
So why has Baladeva Prabhu performed this rāsa-līlā?
Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura has explained the identity of
the gopīs with whom Baladeva Prabhu was dancing. This is a point of great
controversy. I will try to explain the vicāras, the deliberations on the
subject, one after another, and in the end present the viśeṣa vicāras, the
special conclusion, of Śrīla Gurudeva. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura
mentioned that at the time of Śaṅkacūḍa-bādhā, holi līlā was going on at
Govardhana. During that pastime some
gopīs were standing very far away and were looking at Baladeva Prabhu. Kṛṣṇa
Himself glanced at Baladeva Prabhu to indicate to Him that those gopīs had some
special attachment for Baladeva. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura
commented that Baladeva Prabhu performed rāsa-līlā with those gopīs who were
looking at Him. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura has given another
explanation. When Kṛṣṇa left Vṛndāvana for Mathurā, there were many gopīs in
Braja who were not old enough to meet with Kṛṣṇa in rāsa-līlā. Later, when
Baladeva Prabhu returned to Vṛndāvana, He did rāsa-līlā with them, fulfilling
their desire now that they were old enough to take part in such a līlā.
These explanations have been
given for loka-saṅgraha, for the general people who are in ignorance of
rasa-tattva. They cannot understand what rāsa-līlā is and how Baladeva Prabhu
can also perform rāsa-līlā with Kṛṣṇa’s gopīs.
Why does Baladeva Prabhu
perform rāsa-līlā with Kṛṣṇa’s gopīs?
This is His service.
Ordinarily in this world when the prakṛti nāyaka and nāyikā—the mundane hero
and heroine—meet together, they do so for their own happiness and their own
pleasure.
But who is Baladeva Prabhu?
He is Kṛṣṇa Himself. He is
abhinna-prakasa, non-different from Kṛṣṇa, but with sevaka abhimāna. He is
composed entirely of sevaka abhimāna, the identification that He is Kṛṣṇa’s
servant. Therefore everything that He does is for the service of Kṛṣṇa. So if
Baladeva Prabhu has performed rāsa-līlā with Kṛṣṇa’s gopīs, the idea should
never enter into the mind that Baladeva Prabhu has any bhoga-vṛtti, any
enjoying tendency. He has done this for the sake of Kṛṣṇa’s service in order to
pacify the gopīs’ separation.
There is another viśeṣa
vicāra, special deliberation. In this world if male and female will meet
together and enjoy lusty activities, which are actually the cause of unlimited
suffering, then this will be a great sin and they will have to go to hell. But
we see that in the heavenly planets, the residents of Svarga—male and
female—freely meet together to enjoy amorous pastimes, but they do not incur
any sin.
Why not?
Because they do not
have a gross body. Those who have a gross body will become entangled in sin by
engaging in amorous affairs with many partners. But in Svarga-loka there is no
restriction because the people have a different constitution. So in Svarga
there is no sin in this. Then what to speak of the higher planets—Mahā-loka,
Jana-loka, Tapa-loka and Satya-loka. And what to speak of beyond that—Ayodhyā,
Dvārakā, Mathurā. And what to speak of Vraja! There cannot be any inebriety,
any impurity, in Baladeva Prabhu’s meeting with Kṛṣṇa’s gopīs.
Furthermore, Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī has given a very special deliberation
on this subject. He explained that there are three types of prema: viveka-śūnya
prema, viśrambha prema and utkaṇṭhā-mayi prema. Viveka-śūnya prema means that love which is devoid of discrimination. This
is seen in the trees and the cows of Vṛndāvana. When Kṛṣṇa left to go to
Mathurā and Dvārakā, the cows and trees have no conception how long He had been
gone. They do not know what day of the week it is, or whether Kṛṣṇa has been
gone for one month, two months, three months, five years. They cannot
discriminate. Furthermore, even when Kṛṣṇa was in Vṛndāvana, the trees did not
see Him every day. One day He would go to Tālavana, another day to Kāmyavana,
then to Vṛndāvana or Bhāṇḍīravana. They would only see Kṛṣṇa from time to time.
Those who have no discrimination cannot understand where Kṛṣṇa is going or when
they will see Him again. So they may
feel some separation but not so high.
The next type is called
viśrambha prema. This is found in the hearts of those who have sakhya rasa. The
sakhās feel great separation from Kṛṣṇa, and in that separation they even have
sphūrti, vipralambha visphūrti, and they see Kṛṣṇa. Yet those in sakhya rasa
will be satisfied by this sphūrti and will think, “Oh, Kṛṣṇa is here today. I
have gone cow-grazing with Him.” And they become so much satisfied with this
sphūrti. In Śrī Gopāla campū Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmīpada explained that Kṛṣṇa sent a
message from Dvārakā to the residents of Vṛndāvana saying, “I am going to Kurukṣetra.
Those of you who are not satisfied with My sphūrti should come and meet Me
there. The others should stay behind.” So the husbands of the gopīs stayed
behind and took care of Vraja along with the cowherd boys who had śraddhā in Kṛṣṇa’s
sphūrti-māyā milana, that is, confidence in meeting with Kṛṣṇa in a vision.
The cowherd boys can be
consoled somewhat, but those who have utkaṇṭhā-mayi prema—those situated in
vātsalya-rasa and especially mādhurya-rasa—are full of eagerness. They cannot
be pacified by anything at all. So when Baladeva Prabhu came to Vṛndāvana, He
did rāsa-līlā with Kṛṣṇa’s gopīs in order to pacify their separation.
What is this rāsa-līlā?
It is not anything bad or
immoral. Rāsa-līlā includes singing, dancing, playing musical instruments, van
vihāra (wandering in the forest), jala krīḍā (playing in the water),
hindolā-lila (swing pastimes), and other such activities. These are the
pastimes that Baladeva Prabhu performed with Kṛṣṇa’s gopis, thus trying to
pacify their separation. For a moment their separation was pacified, but then
immediately afterwards their separation increased more and more. The flames of
separation went higher than ever before, and all gopis were weeping in
separation:
hā nātha ramaṇa preṣṭha
kvāsi kvāsi mahā-bhuja.
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.30.39)
“O Kṛṣṇa, where are You?”
When Baladeva saw that He
was completely unable to appease the gopis’ sorrow, He Himself became
overwhelmed in separation. He began to weep bitter tears and called out:
“O Kṛṣṇa! O Kṛṣṇa! Why did You leave Vṛndāvana?”
When Baladeva Prabhu was completely absorbed in separation from Kṛṣṇa,
His complexion turned blackish. This is why here in Vraja Mandala there are
famous deities of Baladeva Prabhu—in Dāūjī, Mahāvana, Madhuvana—that are
black—to remind us of this very pastime.
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura had explained that Baladeva
manifested millions of forms upon seeing the very high separation of the gopis.
In each form He took one gopī to a kuñja, and then He cried out for Kṛṣṇa:
“O Kṛṣṇa, please come to Vṛndāvana.”
Then immediately, Kṛṣṇa manifested millions of forms and took the hand
of each gopī and entered each kuñja where He fulfilled their hearts’ desires to
serve Him.
In this way we see that when the gopis’ separation was so high,
Baladeva Prabhu called Kṛṣṇa, who appeared there at once. Therefore this is an
example of how Baladeva Prabhu is akhaṇḍa guru-tattva.
Why?
Because when the disciple is doing sādhana-bhajana and serving His
Gurudeva for a long time, his heart becomes purified and sambandha-jñāna is
awakening. Then he becomes full of eagerness and in a desperate mood of
separation he prays:
vaiṣṇavera āvedane kṛṣṇa doyāmoya
e heno pāmara prati ha’bena sadoya
Seeing the intense desire of his disciple, Śrī Gurudeva prays to Rādhā
and Kṛṣṇa. Then he invites the very sweet Śrī vigraha of Rādhā Kṛṣṇa Yugala to
manifest in the heart of the disciple. Yasya prasāda bhagavat prasāda
yasyāprasādān na gatiḥ kuto 'pi. There is no other method for success in
spiritual life.
In this way we offer our śraddhā puṣpāñjalii at the lotus feet of Śrī
Baladeva Prabhu and pray to Him to sprinkle His mercy. Without the strength
coming from Śrī Baladeva Prabhu in the form of His manifestation, Śrī Gurudeva,
one can never become strong enough to get free from the clutches of māyā and
become fully determined in the service of the lotus feet of Śrī Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa.
Heno nitāi vine bhāi, rādhā-kṛṣṇa pāite nāi.
Gaura premānande!
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