Hare Kṛṣṇa,

For many years I remained under the impression that the sacred narration of the rāsa-līlā was a subject to be approached only with great hesitation and restraint. Among devotees it was commonly advised that one should set aside the five chapters describing this divine pastime and instead read the remaining portions of the Tenth Canto. It was often said—citing Śrīla Prabhupāda—that he had prohibited us from entering into these topics. Thus, not having carefully studied his books with sufficient attention and discrimination, the true import of his instructions remained concealed from my understanding.

Only when I began to hear and study these five chapters under the guidance, shelter, and association of advanced Vaiṣṇavas did the genuine purport of the ācārya’s words gradually become revealed. In such proper association, what once appeared forbidding became illuminated with spiritual meaning, and the Lord’s most confidential pastimes were understood as transcendental and purifying, rather than mundane.

Let us see what Srila Prabhupada actually instructed us about reading the rāsa-līlā chapters.

“How they should hear and from whom is also explained by Sukadeva Gosvami. The difficulty is that the whole world is full of Mayavadis, and when they become professional reciters of Srimad-Bhagavatam, and when people, without knowing the effect of the Mayavada philosophy, hear from such persons, they become confused. Discussion of rasa-lila among people in general is not recommended because they are affected by the Mayavada philosophy, but if one who is advanced explains, and people hear from him, certainly the hearers will be gradually elevated to the position of Krsna consciousness and liberated from materially contaminated life.” (Kṛṣṇa Book)

Srila Prabhupada further says, “One who has developed his faith in Krsna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Supreme Spirit Soul, can both describe and hear. Sukadeva also uses the word anusrnuyat. One must hear from disciplic succession. Anu means following, and anu means always. So one must always follow the disciplic succession and not hear from any stray professional reciter, Mayavadi or ordinary man. Anusrnuyat means that one must hear from an authorized person who is in the disciplic succession and is always engaged in Krsna consciousness. When a person wants to hear in this way, then the effect will be sure. By hearing rasa-lila, one will be elevated to the highest position of spiritual life.” (Kṛṣṇa Book)

Srila Prabhupada’s teachings are exactly in line with the instruction of our predecessor acaryas.

“Anyone who faithfully hears or describes the Lord’s playful affairs with the young gopīs of Vṛndāvana will attain the Lord’s pure devotional service. Thus he will quickly become sober and conquer lust, the disease of the heart.” (SB 10.33.29 – Sārārtha-darśini)

Thus, it is to be understood that Śrīla Prabhupāda indeed desired that his disciples hear and study the chapters describing the rāsa-līlā, provided such hearing is received through bona fide sources and in proper devotional association.

This concluding section of the rasa-lila chapters is profound and instructive in many ways. For the sake of my own clarity and remembrance, I shall now present a summary of its principal teachings in a question-and-answer form.

If Krsna is self-sufficient, why should He at all manifest pastimes with the gopis, which are disturbing to the so-called moralists of the world?

Answer: “The answer is that such activities show special mercy to the fallen, conditioned souls. The gopis are also expansions of His internal energy, but because Krsna wanted to exhibit the rasa-lila, they also appeared as ordinary human beings. In the material world, pleasure is ultimately manifested in the sex attraction between man and woman. The man lives simply to be attracted by women, and the woman lives simply to be attracted by men. That is the basic principle of material life. As soon as these attractions are combined, people become more and more implicated in material existence. In order to show them special favor, Krsna exhibited this rasa-lila dance. It is just to captivate the conditioned soul. Since they are very much attracted by sexology, they can enjoy the same life with Krsna and thus become liberated from the material condition. In the Second Canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam, Maharaja Pariksit also explains that the pastimes and activities of Lord Krsna are medicine for the conditioned souls. If they simply hear about Krsna they become relieved from the material disease. They are addicted to material enjoyment and are accustomed to reading sex literature, but by hearing these transcendental pastimes of Krsna with the gopis, they will be relieved from material contamination.” (Kṛṣṇa Book)

How can one get rid of the material disease of lust from one’s heart?

Answer: “Sukadeva Gosvami concludes this episode of rāsa-līlā by pointing out that if a person hears from the right source of the pastimes of Krsna, who is Visnu Himself, and the gopis, who are expansions of His energy, then he will be relieved from the most dangerous type of disease, namely lust. If one actually hears rasa-lila, he will become completely freed from the lusty desire of sex life and elevated to the highest level of spiritual understanding. Generally, because they hear from Mayavadis and they themselves are Mayavadis, people become more and more implicated in sex life. The conditioned soul should hear the rasa-lila dance from an authorized spiritual master and be trained by him so that he can understand the whole situation; thus one can be elevated to the highest standard of spiritual life, otherwise one will be implicated. Material lust is a kind of heart disease, and to cure the material heart disease of the conditioned soul, it is recommended that one should hear, but not from the impersonalist rascals. If one hears from the right sources with right understanding, then his situation will be different…The most dangerous aspect of contamination is lust or sex life. Bhaktim param devotional service is so potent that the more one advances in this line, the more he loses his attraction for material life. One who is actually deriving benefit from hearing rasa-lila dance surely achieves the transcendental position. He surely loses all traces of lust in his heart.” (Kṛṣṇa Book)

How was it possible that the rasa dance was performed during the long period of Brahma’s night?

Answer: “The answer is that He can do anything for the pleasure of His devotees. Similarly, because the gopis wanted to enjoy Krsna, they were given the opportunity to associate with Him for a long period. This was done according to His promise. When Krsna stole the garments of the gopis while they were taking bath at Cirghat on Yamuna, Krsna promised to fulfill their desire in some future night. In one night, therefore, they enjoyed the company of Krsna as their beloved husband, but that night was not an ordinary night. It was a night of Brahma, and lasted millions and millions of years. Everything is possible for Krsna, for He is the supreme controller.” (Kṛṣṇa Book)

“The transcendental power of spiritual reality is concisely explained in Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī’s Laghu-bhagavatāmṛta: “Nothing is impossible for the Lord, His dear devotees, His transcendental abode or the time of His pastimes; for all these entities are inconceivably powerful.”  (SB 10.33.38 – Sārārtha-darśini)

What is the phala-sruti of hearing the rāsa-līlā?

Answer: “One who hears and chants about Kṛṣṇa’s rasa-lila, which is the crest-jewel of all pastimes, gets the crest-jewel of all results, namely kṛṣṇa-prema (bhaktiṁ parāṁ). One who continuously hears, glorifies or writes poetry about this autumnal rasa-lila and similar pastimes of Kṛṣṇa described by other poets, first of all, even if he has the heart disease of material lust, becomes imbued with prema; then, by its effect the disease of the heart is destroyed. Thus it is understood here that this prema is independent; it is not weak or dependent like jñāna-yoga…Kṛṣṇa-prema will definitely appear in that person who is devoid of foolishness and who accepts the statements of scripture with full faith. However, kṛṣṇa-prema will not appear within those who have no faith in Kṛṣṇa or who offend Kṛṣṇa’s holy name. The divine rāsa-līlā is like the loving smile of the intimate devotee of Kṛṣṇa, who is victorious and glorified for his ability to conquer Kṛṣṇa by his pure love.” (SB 10.33.39 – Sārārtha-darśini)

I offer my heartfelt gratitude to our revered teachers and to the like-minded Vaiṣṇavas, in whose sacred association I received the precious opportunity to hear, contemplate, and write about this most confidential of Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s divine pastimes. May the lusty desires in my heart be extinguished by their mercy.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Kṛṣṇa,

This lesson on the conversation between Maharaja Pariksit and Sukadeva Goswami is deeply profound. Mahārāja Parīkṣit’s question to Śukadeva Gosvāmī reveals a crucial theological tension:

Parīkṣit Mahārāja said: O brāhmaṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Lord of the universe, has descended to this earth along with His plenary portion to destroy irreligion and reestablish religious principles. Indeed, He is the original speaker, follower and guardian of moral laws. How, then, could He have violated them by touching other men’s wives? (SB 10.33.26-27)

To phrase it in another way, he asks, “In order to establish dharma and destroy adharma (irreligion), svayam bhagavān Kṛṣṇa, whose expansion is Visnu has appeared. Or svayam bhagavan Kṛṣṇa has appeared with His aṁśena, Balarama. How then can Kṛṣṇa perform acts contrary to dharma? If you say that Kṛṣṇa can act contrary to dharma because He is the independent Lord (īśvaraḥ), then He should also accept the sinful reaction, just as He sometimes gets cursed and accepts the result.”

His concern is not born of doubt but of reverence. As Pariksit Maharaja observes, Vedic morality strictly forbids association with others’ wives, and thus Kṛṣṇa’s rāsa-līlā appears, on the surface, jugupsitam—abominable. Yet Parīkṣit simultaneously affirms Kṛṣṇa as aptakāma, fully self-satisfied, and yadu-pati, the crest jewel of a supremely pious dynasty.

Pariksit Maharaja: “Then how could Kṛṣṇa be the head of the Yadus who follow the highest dharma? This is not only our doubt but the doubt of many people. Sri Kṛṣṇa is āpta-kāmaḥ and ātmā-rāma, yet He enjoyed enthusiastically with the gopis, who were the very form of prema and bliss. This is a very deep concept, so naturally people will have doubts. You yourself are totally committed to proper conduct, still you have become fully absorbed in Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes portraying such condemned behavior. This too creates another doubt.”

This apparent contradiction forces a deeper conclusion: Kṛṣṇa’s actions cannot be judged by the moral framework meant for conditioned souls.

Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: The status of powerful controllers is not harmed by any apparently audacious transgression of morality we may see in them, for they are just like fire, which devours everything fed into it and remains unpolluted. (SB 10.33.29)

Morality governs those bound by desire, karma, and the modes of nature; Kṛṣṇa, however, stands as their source and controller. As Śukadeva Gosvāmī explains, when the Supreme Controller appears to transgress moral law, it does not indicate moral failure but supreme autonomy. Just as fire remains pure while consuming impure substances, and the sun purifies even contaminated places, Kṛṣṇa remains untouched by actions that would bind any other being. His līlās reveal not moral weakness but transcendental supremacy.

Śukadeva Gosvāmī further clarifies that what is permissible for the controller is never permissible for the controlled.

One who is not a great controller should never imitate the behavior of ruling personalities, even mentally. If out of foolishness an ordinary person does imitate such behavior, he will simply destroy himself, just as a person who is not Rudra would destroy himself if he tried to drink an ocean of poison. (SB 10.33.30)

The Lord may act beyond His own injunctions, but such acts are non-imitable and deeply dangerous if misunderstood. Hence the strong warnings against sahajiyā tendencies and Māyāvāda imitation, where conditioned souls falsely place themselves in Kṛṣṇa’s position. Kṛṣṇa’s rāsa-līlā was not driven by personal desire—na māṁ karmāṇi limpanti—nor by subjugation to the gopīs’ emotions. Rather, it was an act of divine reciprocation, fulfilling vows made across lifetimes to eternally perfected devotees. His extraordinary deeds—lifting Govardhana, killing Pūtanā, and dancing with the gopīs—belong to the same category of absolute freedom. Because Kṛṣṇa is the supreme controller of karma, morality, and material nature itself, He is not subordinate to religious or irreligious principles. Instead, those principles derive their authority from Him. Thus, Kṛṣṇa is above morality because He is its very source, eternally pure, eternally free, and eternally acting only for the welfare and delight of His devotees.

Some of Srila Prabhupada’s statements defending Krsna’s transcendental morality are worth pondering.

“There are many other circumstances also which testify to the supreme authority of Krsna and show that He is not bound to the rules and regulations of the material world. In special cases, He acts as He likes to favor His devotees. This is only possible for Him, because He is the supreme controller. People in general should follow the instructions of Lord Krsna as given in the Bhagavad-gita and should not even imagine imitating Lord Krsna in the rasa dance… Duties are required for ordinary persons. They should not jump up and try to imitate Krsna and indulge in rasa-lila and thus bring about their ruin. One should know with certainty that Krsna had no personal interest in whatever He did for the benediction of the gopis… As stated in the Bhagavad-gita, na mam karmani limpanti: Krsna never enjoys or suffers the result of His activities. Therefore, it is not possible for Him to act irreligiously. He is transcendental to all activities and religious principles. He is untouched by the modes of material nature. He is the supreme controller of all living entities, either in human society, in the demigod society in heavenly planets, or in lower forms of life. He is the supreme controller of all living entities and of material nature; therefore, He has nothing to do with religious or irreligious principles.”

Therefore, what should be the attitude of sadhakas like us who hear these intimate pastimes of the Lord?

For one, Sukadeva Goswami advises that it is more important to follow the instructions of the Lord, the demigods or great personalities than imitating them.

“Sukadeva Gosvami replied, “The instructions of the demigods or great personalities are always auspicious for the devotees to follow. When the Lord performs pastimes as Rāma, one should follow His instructions. One should perform only those acts which do not contradict the orders given by the demigods or great persons. But even those instructions must be approved by scriptures. Then one can act, otherwise not. An intelligent person should conduct himself in this way.” (SB 10.33.31, Sārārtha-darśini)

Sukadeva Gosvami said, “Even the devotees of the Lord are not bound by religion or irreligion. Satisfied with their exclusive service to the dust of Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet, the devotees become liberated from the bondage of karma by the power of bhakti-yoga. What is the question of bondage for the Lord of those devotees, who accepted the transcendental bodies of others’ wives by His unrestricted free will? (SB 10.33.34, Sārārtha-darśini)

In conclusion, Kṛṣṇa is above all morality and immorality, not vice-versa. When He appears to violate morality, He is not being immoral but is demonstrating His supremacy over morality. Unlike us, who are tempted to break moral principles by the force of alluring temptations, Kṛṣṇais never motivated by selfish desire. He is always motivated by love, and everyone gets the supreme benefit whenever He breaks any moral principle. In all the Vraja-lila pastimes (including the rasa), it is love that reigns supreme. The gopis thus demonstrated the supreme level of renunciation, and that is the reason they are known as the greatest devotees of Kṛṣṇa. They transcended all moral obligations, including their chastity, and surrendered their lives completely to Him. And as a result He feels free to exchange the most loving relations in the sweetest possible manner.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Kṛṣṇa,

Lord Caitanya’s remembrance of the rāsa dance lovingly instructs us sādhakas on how to remember and meditate upon Lord Kṛṣṇa’s rāsa-līlā pastimes. The act of reading or meditating on the rāsa-līlā is not forbidden; what is forbidden is to hear these sacred pastimes from non-devotees, devoid of proper realization and devotion.

In a letter, Srila Prabhupada wrote, “It is forbidden that a mundane person should not indulge in hearing Rasaleela or one should not hear Rasaleela from a mundane person. In your organization both the audience and the lecturer are mundane persons and their indulgence in the matter of Rasaleela out of sheer foolishness will result in imitating Rudra who swallowed up an ocean of poison. There is nothing immorality in the transcendental activities of the lord neither it requires to be defended by any immoral man because simply by remembering the holy name of Krishna or by serving His lotus feet one can at once become a liberated person. Besides that the result of reading or hearing the Rasaleela in the devotional mood is stated to become culminated in complete disappearance of the devotee’s lust disease in the heart. Persons who are not pure devotees and must have therefore an impure heart full with dirty things of mundane affairs will not only try to defend Rasaleela[handwritten] by interpretations or decry the dealings but also shall be ruined as by drinking poison a man goes to hell.” (Letter to Ratanshi Morarji Khatau written from Bombay; 1958)

In another place, Srila Prabhupada writes, “The Lord is so merciful that He Himself descends to take the fallen souls back home to the kingdom of Godhead, where the erotic principles of Godhead are eternally relished in their real form, distinct from the perverted sexual love so much adored and indulged in by the fallen souls in their diseased condition. The reason the Lord displays the rāsa-līlā is essentially to induce all the fallen souls to give up their diseased morality and religiosity, and to attract them to the kingdom of God to enjoy the reality. A person who actually understands what the rāsa-līlā is will certainly hate to indulge in mundane sex life. For the realized soul, hearing the Lord’s rāsa-līlā through the proper channel will result in complete abstinence from material sexual pleasure.” (CC Adi 4.30 Purport)

Finally, I would like to quote another beautiful passage from the introduction to Kṛṣṇa Book, in which Śrīla Prabhupāda offers an elaborate explanation.

“The pastimes of the Lord are generally heard and relished by liberated souls. And yet the descriptions of the pastimes of Lord Kṛṣṇa are so attractive that they are relishable for all classes of men. There are three classes of men in this world. One class consists of liberated souls, another consists of those who are trying to be liberated, and the third consists of materialistic men. Whether one is liberated or is trying to be liberated, or is even grossly materialistic, the pastimes of Lord Kṛṣṇa are worth studying. This kṛṣṇa-kathā will also be very much appealing to the most materialistic persons because Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes with the gopīs (cowherd girls) are exactly like the loving affairs between young girls and boys within this material world. Actually, the sex feeling found in human society is not unnatural because this same sex feeling is there in the original Personality of Godhead. The pleasure potency is called Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī. The attraction of loving affairs on the basis of sex feeling is the original feature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and we, the conditioned souls, being part and parcel of the Supreme, have such feelings also, but they are experienced within a perverted, minute condition. Therefore, when those who are after sex life in this material world hear about Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes with the gopīs, they will relish transcendental pleasure, although it appears to be materialistic. The advantage will be that they will gradually be elevated to the spiritual platform.
In the Bhāgavatam it is stated that if one hears the pastimes of Lord Kṛṣṇa with the gopīs, from authorities with submission, then he will be promoted to the platform of transcendental loving service to the Lord, and the material disease of lust within his heart will be completely vanquished. In other words, such hearing will counteract material sex life.”

(From Śrīla Prabhupāda’s introduction to Kṛṣṇa, The Supreme Personality of Godhead.)

Hence, the conclusion is that studying, hearing, and meditating on the Lord’s rāsa-līlā is certainly permissible—but only when done with reverence, correct understanding, and in the association of spiritually advanced devotees

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Kṛṣṇa,

For one who aspires to study and appreciate the rāsa dance of Śrī Kṛṣṇa and the gopīs, it is absolutely essential to be firmly situated in proper philosophical understanding—namely, that these divine pastimes are completely devoid of even a trace of material sexual desire. On this point, all our ācāryas speak with one voice.

SB 10.33.25: Although the gopīs were firmly attached to Lord Kṛṣṇa, whose desires are always fulfilled, the Lord was not internally affected by any mundane sex desire. Still, to perform His pastimes the Lord took advantage of all those moonlit autumn nights, which inspire poetic descriptions of transcendental affairs.

In Kṛṣṇa book, Srila Prabhupada writes, “Sex desire is especially excited in the autumn season, but the wonderful thing about Krsna’s association with the gopis is that there was no question of sex desire. It was, as clearly stated in the Bhagavata description by Sukadeva Gosvami, avaruddha-sauratah, namely the sex impulse was completely controlled. There is a distinction between Lord Krsna’s dancing with the gopis and the ordinary dancing of living entities within the material world.” (Kṛṣṇa book)

Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura further clarifies this deep and often misunderstood topic. The following summary reflects my understanding of his commentary on SB 10.33.25, with special attention to key Sanskrit terms that require careful understanding.

The rāsa-līlā and Kṛṣṇa’s conjugal interactions with the gopīs do not arise from material lust or conditioned desire. Because these pastimes are fully spiritual, they belong to the plane of Absolute Truth (satya) rather than material kāma.  Kṛṣṇa is called satya-kāmaḥ (one whose desires are always fulfilled). Satya means the form of the Absolute Truth and kāma means pastimes of love. In other words, Kṛṣṇa engaged in pastimes of love which are the Absolute Truth, and the source of all pure selfless love. In other words, satya-kāmaḥ means that Kṛṣṇa’s desires are identical with truth itself—His loving pastimes are the very source of all pure, selfless love. Unlike conditioned desire (which seeks personal gratification), Kṛṣṇa’s kāma is fully spiritual and liberating. Although Kṛṣṇa is the original source of all pleasure and enjoyment, He voluntarily places Himself in a position where the gopīs become the cause of His enjoyment. This reversal highlights the supremacy of bhakti over God’s own independence.

Kṛṣṇa is described as anurata-abalā-gaṇaḥ, one who followed after the pleasure of the gopis. Though He gives pleasure to all beings, here He is shown as attracted and subordinate to the gopīs’ love, demonstrating bhakti’s power to bind the Supreme.

The word Abalā does not imply weakness; rather, it paradoxically indicates that the gopīs were unmatched in their strength to express pure love. Their apparent helplessness intensifies the force of their prema, which overwhelms even Kṛṣṇa.

The term ātmany avaruddha-saurataḥ conveys that Kṛṣṇa’s mind was completely absorbed in conjugal exchange during the rāsa dance. This absorption includes the full spectrum of rasa-tattva:

• Emotional states (bhāvas)
• Vyabhicārī-bhāvas (transitory emotions like eagerness, joy, perverseness)
• Sāttvika-bhāvas (ecstatic symptoms such as being stunned, trembling, sweating, color change)
• Anubhāvas (external expressions like seeing, touching, speaking, embracing)

Thus, Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura’s description shows that conjugal love in Kṛṣṇa-līlā is not chaotic emotion, but a perfectly orchestrated spiritual rasa involving mind, body, and emotion—fully under yogamāyā’s control. This aligns with other scriptural descriptions (e.g., Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes with Rukmiṇī), confirming the consistency of this theological principle.

“Thus the self-satisfied Supreme Lord of the universe enjoyed with Rukmini, engaging her in erotic love talks (saurata-saṁlāpa) and thus imitated the ways of human society.” (SB 10.60.58)

Thus, Kṛṣṇa’s rāsa-līlā reveals the supreme victory of selfless love over divine self-sufficiency. The Absolute Truth becomes “controlled” not by force or obligation, but by pure prema, establishing the gopīs’ love as the highest theological ideal.

“Rasa indicates the spiritual bliss one derives from his loving relationship with Sri Kṛṣṇa. This ecstatic bliss is relished between Kṛṣṇa and His devotees during various transcendental pastimes.“ (SB 10.33.25, Sārārtha-darśini)

The rāsa-līlā is displayed in its fullest depth only when the devotee, exemplified by the Vraja-gopīs, is established in the highest realm of prema. As devotional life matures—from śraddhā and sādhu-saṅga to bhāva and prema—material desires naturally wither away, giving rise to fully awakened transcendental qualities. In light of this progression, how can one mistake the loving exchanges between Kṛṣṇa and the gopīs for anything material?

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Kṛṣṇa,

The description of the Rāsa dance becomes progressively more esoteric, confidential, and intimate—so much so that it feels technically beyond my present ability to fully grasp its essence. Nevertheless, the following are some key aspects of this lesson that especially stood out to me:

The gopis had only one desire – to please Kṛṣṇa, the best of the dancers. Srila Prabhupada, in Kṛṣṇa book, says that “One has to dance to please Kṛṣṇa, not to imitate or to become equal to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The gopis wanted to please Krsna, and therefore as Kṛṣṇa sang, they responded and encouraged Him by saying, “Well done, well done.” Unfortunately those in the material world try to imitate Krsna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. They they end up dancing under the direction of Krsna’s maya and are thinking that they are equal to Krsna. (Kṛṣṇa, Chapter 33)

There is a description about the word ‘ vadhū. Conventional meaning of  vadhūis wife, sister-in-law or else a woman in general. But Sri Sanatana Gosvami says “the golden-limbed gopis are the vadhūs “wives” of beautiful dark-blue Kṛṣṇa in the sense that, just like wives, the gopis are embraced only by Kṛṣṇa, sheltered only by Kṛṣṇa and enjoyed only by Kṛṣṇa.” (SB 10.33.7, Sārārtha-darśini) This is very profound and showcases the constitutional position of the living entity. We are expected to be embraced, sheltered and enjoyed by Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is the supreme enjoyer and we are the enjoyed.

jīvera ‘svarūpa’ haya — kṛṣṇera ‘nitya-dāsa’
kṛṣṇera ‘taṭasthā-śakti’ ‘bhedābheda-prakāśa’

sūryāṁśa-kiraṇa, yaiche agni-jvālā-caya
svābhāvika kṛṣṇera tina-prakāra ‘śakti’ haya

“It is the living entity’s constitutional position to be an eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa because he is the marginal energy of Kṛṣṇa and a manifestation simultaneously one with and different from the Lord, like a molecular particle of sunshine or fire. Kṛṣṇa has three varieties of energy.” (CC Madhya 20.108-109)

The last thing that stands out is that these gopis are not ordinary personalities. To refute the argument that Kṛṣṇa’s enjoyed with young girls, Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura conclusively proves that all these gopis are expansion of Kṛṣṇa’s own form.

“The gopis were the hladini-sakti, pleasure potencies, expanded from Kṛṣṇa’s personal form (svarupa). Similarly Srimad Bhagavatam (3.2.11) states that sva-bimbaṁ refers to Kṛṣṇa’s own form. Therefore the meaning of the verse is: “Kṛṣṇa, expanding Himself in unlimited, fully potent forms, enjoyed with each of the gopis who were manifested from His own internal potency.” (SB 10.33.16, Sārārtha-darśini)

The final takeaway for me is that the rāsa dance reveals the zenith of the jīva’s surrender and prema to Śrī Kṛṣṇa—a level of love so pure that nothing remains except the desire to serve His happiness. Reflecting on this leaves me acutely aware of my own distance from such love, yet deeply inspired to walk, however imperfectly, in the footsteps of those exalted devotees.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Kṛṣṇa,

It is good to have a proper definition of the rāsa dance as given by Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura.

“When the actions of singing, dancing, kissing and embracing combine together they produce rāsa. Amusement composed of rāsa is called rāsa-krīḍām or the rāsa dance. Joyfully entwining their arms together, Kṛṣṇa played with those gopis, the jewels among women, who were now favorably disposed (anuvrataiḥ).” (SB 10.33.2: Sārārtha-darśini)

Sanātana Gosvāmī, in his Bṛhad Vaiṣṇava Toṣaṇī, also provides similar definition.

“Rāsa dance is defined as women holding the neck of the male dancer on either side and forming a circle. They thought “He should remain in this circle and not leave.” Thus they held their hands tightly.”

Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura further glorifies the rāsa dance a festival.

“The rāsa dance is called a festival (rāsa-utsavaḥ) because it was full of music, singing and dancing, merry-making and wonderful food in the form of blissful nectar for the cataka birds of the devotee’s eyes and minds. The festival began in a perfectly arranged way with Kṛṣṇa entering between each pair of gopis who were standing in a circle.” (SB 10.33.3: Sārārtha-darśini)

However, I find the concept of rāsa-krīḍā difficult to understand. Although I searched for other references discussing this technical term, I was unable to locate any substantial explanations. It could be

What stood out for me are the statements:

“One should not think that this verse means that Kṛṣṇa initiated the rāsa-krīḍa. Kṛṣṇa was not the doer; the rāsa-līlā was the doer. Kṛṣṇa gave the rāsa-līlā the independence to initiate the action.” (SB 10.33.3: Sārārtha-darśini)

This naturally raises the question: Who is the rāsa-līlā? Since everything in the spiritual realm is conscious and endowed with personality, it is conceivable that rāsa-līlā itself may be a personality. Alternatively, it may be an expression of Yogamāyā, who orchestrates and facilitates the unfolding of the rāsa-līlā.

Setting aside the technical aspects, what is striking is that the rāsa-līlā requires several actors and essential elements to fully manifest the dance. From this lesson, I can identify the following participants.

• Sri Kṛṣṇa – The most excellent of the Supreme male
• Srimati Radharani – the most excellent of the gopis and the very cause of the rāsa-līlā
• The gopis – the best of all women
• Intense Prema in its highest zenith
• Harmony between Krsna’s and gopis’ minds
• Banks of the Yamuna
• Music, singing, dancing, merry-making, wonderful food
• Sri Kṛṣṇa as the perfect master of all methods of artistic skills and the means of acting thus

Finally, a question that has long remained in my mind is how the denizens of heaven, headed by Brahmā, were able to witness such a supremely confidential, intimate, and private festival. How were they qualified to do so? Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura once again comes to the rescue by clarifying that—

“At that moment the sky became crowded with hundreds of airplanes belonging to the denizens of heaven, headed by Brahma. They eagerly watched Kṛṣṇa’s rāsa dancing, but they were not qualified to witness Kṛṣṇa’s confidential pastimes with the gopis because they are dasya-bhaktas, worshiping Him in the mood of servitude. Yogamaya thus arranged everything so expertly that the men of heaven could see the dancing of Kṛṣṇa but not His beloved gopis.” (SB 10.33.3: Sārārtha-darśini)

In closing, it is important to highlight Śrīla Prabhupāda’s guidance regarding the proper hearing of the topics of the rāsa dance.

“So we should not take Kṛṣṇa’s dancing like our ball dance. No, that is mistake. If we understand Kṛṣṇa’s dancing, then we become liberated. It is said in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam that instead of reading some books of this ball dance, if you read about Kṛṣṇa’s dancing, then what will be the result? The result will be hṛd-rogam-kāmam apahinoty āśv acireṇa dhīraḥ [SB 10.33.39]. Everyone, we have got these lusty desires, but if actually one is advanced and he hears from a realized person what is the meaning of Kṛṣṇa’s rāsa dance, then the result will be hṛd-roga-kāmam. We have got a heart disease. Heart disease means lusty desire. Hṛd-roga-kāmam apahinoti: “It becomes vanquished.” If one actually hears Kṛṣṇa’s rāsa-līlā, then no more material lusty desires. This is the result.” (Srila Prabhupada Lecture — Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.28.18 – Oct. 27, 1975, Oct. 27, 1975)

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Kṛṣṇa,

I find the gopīs’ question and Kṛṣṇa’s response especially meaningful and worthy of summarizing.

The gopis asked Krsna, “Some people reciprocate the affection only of those who are affectionate toward them, while others show affection even to those who are indifferent or inimical. And yet others will not show affection toward anyone. Dear Kṛṣṇa, please properly explain this matter to us.” (SB 10.32.16)

• Motivated: Those who reciprocate only to those who show them affection.
• Unmotivated: Those who reciprocate even with those who are hostile.
• Indifferent: Those who don’t show affection toward anyone.

By this apparently polite question, the gopis want to expose Lord Krsna’s failure to properly reciprocate their love. They wanted to ask Him, “O Krsna, do you have affection for us, indifferent to us, or hostility towards us?”

Krsna then explains the three categories of reciprocators. (Paraphrased from SB 10.32.18-19)

• First category – selfish, without true friendship, or dharma.
• Second category – genuinely merciful, naturally affectionate like parents, true well-wishers and followers of dharma.
• Third category – has four subcategories
  • Spiritually self-satisfied (ātmārāmā)
  • Materially fulfilled (āpta-kāmā)
  • Ungrateful (akṛta-jnā)
  • Envious of superiors (guru-druhaḥ)

We frequently observe this phenomenon in the material world. Those who show respect to others with expectations of personal gain are, in reality, concerned only with their own present and future benefits. Such respect is ultimately self-centered rather than genuinely directed toward others. True friendship, however, is free from selfish motives and rests solely on love for one’s friend.

This pure quality of friendship is evident in Kṛṣṇa’s dealings with the Pāṇḍavas and Sudāmā Vipra. Kṛṣṇa’s relationship with the jīvas, who are His parts and parcels, is never transactional. In fact, due to His supremely independent nature, Kṛṣṇa does not belong to any of the three aforementioned categories.

Although Kṛṣṇa appears to act in human-like ways through His pastimes, everything He does is completely transcendental. He cannot be fully grasped by our material senses, mind, or intelligence. Reflecting on this, it becomes easier to understand why Kṛṣṇa does not fit into our limited categories, and why the reasons behind His actions are often beyond our comprehension. With this understanding, we can now look more carefully at how Kṛṣṇa explains to the gopīs why He did not immediately reciprocate with them.

Krsna says:

“But the reason I do not immediately reciprocate the affection of living beings even when they worship Me, O gopīs, is that I want to intensify their loving devotion. They then become like a poor man who has gained some wealth and then lost it, and who thus becomes so anxious about it that he can think of nothing else.” (SB 10.32.20)

My dear girls, understanding that simply for My sake you had rejected the authority of worldly opinion, of the Vedas and of your relatives, I acted as I did only to increase your attachment to Me. Even when I removed Myself from your sight by suddenly disappearing, I never stopped loving you. Therefore, My beloved gopīs, please do not harbor any bad feelings toward Me, your beloved. (SB 10.32.21)

I am not able to repay My debt for your spotless service, even within a lifetime of Brahmā. Your connection with Me is beyond reproach. You have worshiped Me, cutting off all domestic ties, which are difficult to break. Therefore please let your own glorious deeds be your compensation. (SB 10.32.22)

Although the gopis were already perfect in their love for Krsna, still, to inconceivably increase their perfections and show an example for the world, Krsna acted as He did.

This is an important lesson for us. At times, I find myself tempted to wonder why Kṛṣṇa does not seem to reciprocate with my sādhana and prayers. The reality, however, is that my attachment to Kṛṣṇa is still very weak—certainly not comparable to that of the gopīs. Furthermore, as we can understand from Kṛṣṇa’s reasoning above, He does not always reciprocate immediately because He desires our attachment to Him to deepen and mature. In this way, He nurtures our longing, almost to the point that we develop an intense greed to attain Him alone.

Kṛṣṇa: “In this way I am actually merciful. It is desirable for My worshipers to have this complete attachment to Me. Thus to increase that attachment more and more, I, even though externally failing to reciprocate with them, invisibly reciprocate very much with them.

“Although you gopis are the ideal examples of those who worship even those who do not worship them, I too am actually very merciful, as much as you are, since I have given you the gift of My darsana. One should not think that only if I am present that I respond, and if I am absent I do not respond. For then My promise, ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham, ‘I will respond accordingly as they worship Me’ (Bg. 4.11) would be broken.” (Sārārtha-darśini, SB 10.32.20)

The final highlighted section offers great relief and hope. It affirms that Kṛṣṇa indeed hears our chanting and prayers, even though His response may not always align with our expectations.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Kṛṣṇa,

In this lesson, a particular section stood out for me.

“The śrutis attained the highest platform of desire fulfillment. Upon seeing Kṛṣṇa enjoying with the gopis, the śrutis thought, “When will we become Vraja-gopis and offer the kunkuma-tinged shawls from our breasts as seats for Kṛṣṇa?” The Brhad-Vamana Purana says the śrutis, following in the footsteps of the gopis, executed severe austerities in order to attain bodies of gopis. Therefore the śrutis, or personified Vedas, prayed in the Srimad Bhagavatam (10.87.23) as follows: “The women of Vraja attained the nectar of Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet after having their intelligence vanquished by the sharp poison of His beautiful serpentine arms. By following in their footsteps, we too will become gopis and serve Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet.” (SB 10.32.13: Sārārtha-darśini)

I looked up SB 10.87.23 for further explanation of this verse. Fortunately, there is an extensive purport to this verse. I would like to quote a few excerpts from the purport.

“Speaking for themselves, however, the personified Vedas here state that they would prefer to develop love of Godhead by learning to emulate the favorable surrender of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s confidential devotees, especially the young gopīs of Vraja. Though they appeared to be simple women attracted conjugally to the Lord’s physical beauty and strength, the goddesses of Vraja exhibited the highest perfection of meditation. The śrutis wish to become just like them.

In this regard, Lord Brahmā relates the following historical account in the supplement to the Bṛhad-vāmana Purāṇa:

“The infinite world of spiritual bliss is called Vaikuṇṭha. There the Supreme Truth lives, being glorified by the personified Vedas, who are also present there.”

“Once, after the Vedas had elaborately praised Him, the Lord felt especially satisfied and spoke to them in a voice whose source remained invisible: ‘My dear sages, I am very satisfied with you. Please ask of Me some benediction that you secretly desire.’”

“The śrutis replied, ‘We have developed the desire to become like the cowherd women of the mortal world who, inspired by lust, worship You in the mood of a lover.’”

“The Lord then said, ‘This desire of Yours is difficult to fulfill. Indeed, it is almost impossible. But since I am sanctioning it, your wish must inevitably come true.’”

“‘When the next Brahmā takes birth to faithfully execute his duties of creation, and when the day of his life called the Sārasvata-kalpa arrives, you will all appear in Vraja as gopīs.’”

“‘On the earth, in the land of Bhārata, in My own district of Mathurā, in the forest of Vṛndāvana, I will become your beloved in the circle of the rāsa dance.’”

“‘Thus obtaining Me as your paramour, you will all gain the most exalted and steadfast pure love for Me, and in this way you will fulfill all your ambitions.’”

“Lord Brahmā said: After hearing these words, the śrutis meditated on the Personality of Godhead’s beauty for a long time. When the designated time ultimately arrived, they became gopīs and obtained the association of Kṛṣṇa.”

Regarding the development of bhakti, Lord Kṛṣṇa further states in the Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad (Uttara 4) “By remembering Me, one who is impure becomes pure. By remembering Me, one who follows no vows becomes a strict follower of vows. By remembering Me, one who is desireless develops desires [to serve Me]. By remembering Me, one who has studied no Vedic mantras becomes an expert knower of the Vedas.”

And here is the key takeaway:

“All honest Vaiṣṇavas, however, join in adhering to the devotional service of the Supreme Lord, always meditating with pleasure on His infinitely wonderful, variegated spiritual qualities. In the words of the śruti-mantras, yam evaiṣa vṛṇute tena labhyas/ tasyaiṣa ātmā vivṛṇute tanūṁ svām: “To that person whom the Supreme Soul chooses, He becomes attainable. To that person the Supreme Soul reveals His personal form.” (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 1.2.23 and Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad 3.2.3)

Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī concludes with the prayer, “O Lord, loving remembrance of Your lotus feet is very rarely achieved. Please, O Nṛhari, somehow arrange for me to have that remembrance day and night.”

So the key takeaway point is man proposes; God disposes. All our desires can be fulfilled by the Supreme Lord. True intelligence is what best to desire. Here the personifies srutis were not carried away by the desires of mystic yoga or attaining Brahman. They rather preferred to associate with Krsna as the gopis. This is precisely the mood that Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu appeared to give us,

“I identify Myself only as the servant of the servant of the servant of the lotus feet of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the maintainer of the gopīs.” (CC Madhya 13.80)

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Kṛṣṇa,

The word “reunion” itself is deeply enchanting. It dissolves the long-accumulated pain of separation and pours soothing relief into the eyes that finally behold the beloved once more. It softens and melts the hearts that have cried in longing, transforming bitterness into sweetness and sorrow into joy. In reunion, love does not merely return—it deepens and becomes ever more precious. Just as a weary traveler finds peace upon returning home after a long and difficult journey, reunion with the beloved Lord drives away all exhaustion, fills the heart with solace, and restores the soul to its true resting place.

Text 9 beautifully sums up the mood of reunion.

“All the gopīs enjoyed the greatest festivity when they saw their beloved Keśava again. They gave up the distress of separation, just as people in general forget their misery when they gain the association of a spiritually enlightened person.”

Similarly, the gopis had their air of life reenter their bodies after Sri Kṛṣṇa returned. Each gopi welcomed the reunion in her own loving way.

“One gopī joyfully took Kṛṣṇa’s hand between her folded palms, and another placed His arm, anointed with sandalwood paste, on her shoulder. A slender gopī respectfully took in her joined hands the betel nut He had chewed, and another gopī, burning with desire, put His lotus feet on her breasts. One gopī, beside herself with loving anger, bit her lips and stared at Him with frowning eyebrows, as if to wound Him with her harsh glances. Another gopī looked with unblinking eyes upon His lotus face, but even after deeply relishing its sweetness She did not feel satiated, just as mystic saints are never satiated when meditating upon the Lord’s feet. One gopī took the Lord through the aperture of her eyes and placed Him within her heart. Then, with her eyes closed and her bodily hairs standing on end, she continuously embraced Him within. Thus immersed in transcendental ecstasy, she resembled a yogī meditating upon the Lord.” (SB 10.32.4-8)

This teaches us that each soul shares a unique and personal loving relationship with our Lord, Śrī Kṛṣṇa. According to the nature and depth of one’s love and devotion, Kṛṣṇa reciprocates perfectly in return. Thus, regardless of the particular rasa one shares with Him, every devotee feels fully complete and perfectly satisfied within their own sthāyī-bhāva. There is no sense of lack or longing for another rasa—no thought of “I wish my relationship were different.” The cowherd boys delight entirely in their sakhya-rasa with Kṛṣṇa and harbor no desire for any other mood. Similarly, Mother Yaśodā, immersed in her vātsalya-bhāva, feels wholly fulfilled in her affectionate service to Kṛṣṇa. This harmonious completeness, born of Kṛṣṇa’s perfect reciprocation with each devotee, is the exquisite beauty of our eternal relationship with Him.

Another profound realization from this lesson is that Kṛṣṇa, too, experiences the pain of separation from the gopīs. In the earlier chapters, we witness the gopīs’ intense anguish as they are torn apart from Him, and a reader might be forgiven for momentarily thinking that Kṛṣṇa appears hard-hearted in allowing them to suffer so deeply. Yet here we are shown that Kṛṣṇa Himself also suffers in separation. His apparent detachment is not indifference, but a deeper expression of love—one that shares fully in the pain it seems to cause.

“Although Kṛṣṇa’s lotus face blossomed with a smile, the suffering of the gopis pained His lotus heart. Kṛṣṇa appeared before the gopis with a yellow shawl draped across His shoulders and hanging down on both sides of His chest. Folding His hands, Kṛṣṇa begged them for forgiveness. “ (SB 10.32.2 Sārārtha-darśini)

Lastly, I had the pleasure of reading how Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura establishes the supreme position of Śrī Rādhā. devī kṛṣṇa-mayī proktā, rādhikā para-devatā, sarva-lakṣmī-mayī sarva, kāntiḥ sammohinī parā “Sri Radha is the most beautiful, supremely worshipable goddess. Radha is always totally absorbed in Kṛṣṇa. Radha is the central figure for all the goddesses of fortune. Radha fulfills all of Kṛṣṇa’s desires, and completely enchants His mind. Radha is the inseparable internal potency of Kṛṣṇa.” (SB 10.32.8 Sārārtha-darśini)

The following section is even more remarkable, as it can be directly correlated with the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra.

“The Åg-pariśiṣṭa (a supplement to the Åg Veda) says: “Madhava together with Radha, and Radhika together with Madhava are the most radiantly attractive persons in the whole universe.” (SB 10.32.8 Sārārtha-darśini)

“According to the mood of aisvarya, ‘Rama’ refers to Ramacandra, the son of Dasaratha. According to the mood of madhurya, ‘Rama’ refers to Krsna, the relisher of Sri Radha’s association. Whenever the Name ‘Rama’ indicates service to Radha-ramana Krsna, then the word ‘Hare’ which is the vocative form of Hara, refers to Sri Radharani, who is the origin of all spiritual potencies. Sri Radha is known as Hara because She attracts the mind of Krsna. Hari means ‘attracter’. Hare is the vocative form of the word ‘Hara’. There are three Ramas – Rama, the husband of Sita-devi, Rama the husband of Revati and Rama, the lover of Radha.” (Sri Srila Prabhupader Upadesamrta)

Thus ‘Rama’ in the Hare-Krsna maha-mantra indicates Radha-Ramana (or Radha-Madhava – another form of Radha-Ramana).

It is amazing how everything in the rāsa-līlā and Kṛṣṇa’s intimate pastimes with the gopīs ultimately converge in the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra.

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!

Hare Kṛṣṇa,

SB 10.31.19: O dearly beloved! Your lotus feet are so soft that we place them gently on our breasts, fearing that Your feet will be hurt. Our life rests only in You. Our minds, therefore, are filled with anxiety that Your tender feet might be wounded by pebbles as You roam about on the forest path.

The gopīs’ love for Kṛṣṇa is as deep as a bottomless ocean and as vast as an endless expanse of sky. Such love is inconceivable and wholly unimaginable to the material mind.

Who other than the most exalted gopīs’ can say “Those extremely tender lotus feet, which we hesitate to place upon our breasts for fear of injuring them, are wandering about in the forest.” (SB 10.31.19 Sārārtha-darśini)

Or “O dear one! We hold them because we see that You gain satisfaction when Your feet are held on our breasts. Seeing that You derive pleasure from pressing Your feet on our breasts, we accept that, but we experience grief imagining that Your tender feet are feeling pain. Therefore, we will hold them very carefully.” (SB 10.31.19 Sārārtha-darśini)

Or “Our lives are only in You, for our life is You. As long as You are comfortable, then even if we have to suffer this much tribulation, we will remain alive. “ (SB 10.31.19 Sārārtha-darśini)

These statements are possible to be made by one who has intense prema for Kṛṣṇa. This is a state of maha-bhava. The gopis’ feeling of grief in fearful anticipation of the beloved’s distress, even in the midst of a mood of intimacy, is a symptom of mahā-bhāva. 

The gopis are the most exalted devotees of Kṛṣṇa because they have given up social customs, scriptural injunctions, bodily demands, fruitive action, shyness, patience, bodily pleasures, self-gratification, the path of varṇāśrama-dharma, as well as their own relatives and their punishment and scolding, for the sake of serving Lord Kṛṣṇa. (CC Adi 4.167-169)

“Their relationship with Kṛṣṇa is only for the sake of His enjoyment. There is not the slightest taint of lust in the gopīs’ love. The gopīs do not care for their own pleasures or pains. All their physical and mental activities are directed toward offering enjoyment to Lord Kṛṣṇa. Among the gopīs, there is not a pinch of desire for sense gratification. Their only desire is to give pleasure to Kṛṣṇa, and this is why they mingle with Him and enjoy with Him.” (CC Adi 4.172, 174, 218)

The speciality of gopīs’s bhava is that it is pure, uncontaminated emotion. They have no knowledge or consciousness of the Lord’s opulence (aiśvarya-jñāna-yukta). Obsessed with pure love, without knowledge of opulences, the gopīs sometimes chastise Kṛṣṇa. That is a symptom of pure ecstatic love. (CC Antya 7.41)

This is why Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu concluded that ramya kacid-upasana vrajavadhu-vargena ya Kalpita – The highest and most pleasing type of worship of Krishna is done by the Vraja gopis.

We, in the Gaudiya parampara, are expected to follow in the footsteps of the Vraja gopis. Even Uddhava desires to take on his head the dust of the gopīs’ lotus feet.

“The gopīs of Vṛndāvana have given up the association of their husbands, sons and other family members, who are very difficult to give up, and they have forsaken the path of chastity to take shelter of the lotus feet of Mukunda, Kṛṣṇa, which one should search for by Vedic knowledge. Oh, let me be fortunate enough to become one of the bushes, creepers or herbs in Vṛndāvana, for the gopīs trample them and bless them with the dust of their lotus feet.” (SB 10.47.61)

“One who is attracted by that ecstatic love of the gopīs does not care about popular opinion or the regulative principles of Vedic life. Rather, he completely surrenders unto Kṛṣṇa and renders service unto Him. If one worships the Lord on the path of spontaneous love and goes to Vṛndāvana, he receives the shelter of Vrajendra-nandana, the son of Nanda Mahārāja.” (CC Madhya 8.221-222)

The heart of this lesson is that one should aspire solely for Kṛṣṇa’s happiness, regardless of the sacrifices required—just as the gopīs so perfectly demonstrated. Though it is a lofty ideal, it becomes possible when we sincerely follow the footsteps of the devoted servants of the Vraja gopīs.

“I am not a brāhmaṇa, I am not a kṣatriya, I am not a vaiśya or a śūdra. Nor am I a brahmacārī, a householder, a vānaprastha or a sannyāsī. I identify Myself only as the servant of the servant of the servant of the lotus feet of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the maintainer of the gopīs. He is like an ocean of nectar, and He is the cause of universal transcendental bliss. He is always existing with brilliance. ” (Padyavali 74)

All glories to Srila Prabhupada!