Today - Sri Radha-kunda’s Appearance Day

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Devakinandan Das

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Oct 21, 2019, 10:03:36 AM10/21/19

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We’re not really qualified to discuss Radha-kunda, but because today is Radha-kunda’s appearance day, we may say something about the appearance of Sri Radha-kunda, which we can respect and appreciate from a distance—not too close.

As I mentioned earlier, Krishna killed the bull demon, Aristasura, and after killing him He approached the gopis for pastimes, but they refused. “You have killed a bull,” they said. “So you are contaminated. We do not want to associate with You.” Krishna asked, “What do I have to do to become purified from the sin?” The gopis replied, “You must take bath in all the sacred rivers in all the sacred places in all the three worlds.” Then Krishna thought, “Better I call all the holy places here.” He pushed His heel in the ground and immediately all the personified holy places came before Him and started offering prayers and obeisances. Srimati Radharani said, “I don’t see any holy places.” So Lord Krishna told the holy places to identify themselves, and the holy places personified did so: “I am Yamuna,” “I am Ganga,” “I am Sarasvati,” “I am Sindhu,” “I am Prayag,” “I am Puskhara,” and so on. Then, on Krishna’s indication, they became liquid and flowed into the kunda created by the impression of Krishna’s foot and filled it up with water. Thus Krishna-kunda, or Syama-kunda, came into existence. Krishna took His bath and then announced to the gopis, “Now I am completely pure. I have taken bath in all the sacred places in all the three worlds. But you are not pure. You are contaminated, because although Aristasura was in the form of a bull, still he was a demon. You took the side of a demon, so you are contaminated. So you also have to take bath and become purified. Take bath in My kunda, and you will be free.”

Srimati Radharani said, “No, no. Your kunda is contaminated by the terrible sin of killing the bull. I am not going to take bath in Your kunda. I am going to make My own kunda.” Aristasura’s hooves had made a shallow ditch just west of Sri Krishna’s pond. So the gopis began digging up lumps of soft mud with their hands, and very quickly they manifested a beautiful kunda. Srimati Radharani had said from the beginning, “I will make My kunda more beautiful than Krishna’s.” Now Krishna said, “Well, Your kunda is very beautiful, but it has one defect: it has no water in it. So why don’t You take some water from My kunda?” “No, no, no, no. Your water is contaminated by your sin. We will bring our own water.”

There were thousands and millions of gopis. On Srimati Radharani’s indication, they made a long chain from Manasi-ganga to Radha-kunda, filled pots with water, and passed the pots from one gopi to the next to the next, all the way from Manasi-ganga to Radha-kunda. But Lord Krishna, seeing the labor of the gopis, was not happy, because He cannot bear to see even one drop of perspiration on the face of Srimati Radharani. So He appealed to Her, “Please take water from My kunda.” But She refused—“No!” Then Lord Krishna called the representative of all the holy places, who began to offer prayers to Srimati Radharani: “Even Krishna likes to serve Your lotus feet, and He rejoices and feels most fortunate simply by satisfying the tips of the toes of Your lotus feet. So we also want to serve Your lotus feet. If You fulfill our desire, our lives will be successful.”

Srimati Radharani was pleased, and, glancing at Krishna from the corners of Her eyes, She smiled and replied, “Please come.” So, the holy waters in Syama-kunda broke through its boundary walls and quickly filled Radha-kunda. Then Sri Radha and the gopis took bath, and in the end Krishna was so pleased that He told Her, “Your kunda will become even more famous than Mine. I will always come here to bathe and enjoy My water pastimes. Your kunda is as dear to Me as You are.” Srimati Radharani was pleased, and She said to Lord Krishna, “I will also come and take bath in Your pond, even if You kill hundreds and thousands of Aristasuras. Anyone who has devotion for Your lake and bathes or resides there will become very dear to Me.” Both Sri Radha and Krishna became so pleased after the formation of Syama-kunda and Radha-kunda that They inaugurated a great festival of rasa dance.

I’ll mention just one more point from the verse. The Sanskrit in the verse concludes, prestha tadvad iyam tadiya-sarasi tam nasrayet kah krti: “What fortunate person will not take shelter of Radha-kunda?” This is what the Sanskrit says. But what does Srila Prabhupada say? “Who, then, will not reside at Radha-kunda and, in a spiritual body surcharged with ecstatic devotional feelings, render service to the divine couple who perform Their eternal eight-fold daily pastimes?” In other words, this is what it really means to take shelter of Radha-kunda—not to go there and live like a monkey. Once, when a disciple told Srila Prabhupada that he wanted to go and stay in Radha-kunda, Srila Prabhupada replied that there were already enough monkeys at Radha-kunda; they didn’t need another one.

So, taking shelter of Radha-kunda doesn’t mean going there and living like a monkey, thinking of the demands of the body. Monkeys appear to be very renounced because they don’t wear clothes, eat only fruits and berries, and live in the jungle in trees. But Srila Prabhupada says that each monkey has two dozen girlfriends. So they actually are not renounced. Now, if someone goes to Radha-kunda without being able to take shelter of the holy name as described by Srila Prabhupada in the translation, he may become just like a monkey—outwardly appearing renounced but internally full of desires for sense gratification. Therefore, we go step by step. Srila Rupa Gosvami describes the exalted position of Srimati Radharani and Radha-kunda and asks, “What fortunate person will not take shelter of Radha-kunda?” But here we are at the end of Rupa Gosvami’s instructions. There are so many instructions earlier in the book, and to take shelter of Radha-kunda properly, we have to follow all the other instructions, from text one to text nine—not jump like monkeys to texts nine, ten, and eleven.

What is the first instruction? Vaco vegam manasah krodha-vegam/ jihva-vegam udaropastha-vegam—we have to control the urges. First is the urge to speak. We speak so much nonsense. Whenever we get the chance, we discuss politics, we discuss boy-girl affairs, or still worse, we criticize devotees. So, vaco vegam, and then manasa krodha-vegam: we have to control the mind. Anyway, I need not elaborate. We all can assess our present positions. And we should proceed step by step from the first verse up to the last ones—nine, ten, and eleven.

By the mercy of Srimati Radharani, Srila Rupa Gosvami, and Srila Prabhupada, we have had the opportunity to remember Sri Radha-kunda and discuss the conclusions of Srila Rupa Gosvami given here in Sri Upadesamrta, so kindly explained by His Divine Grace Srila Prabhupada.