॥ ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय ॥
24 June 2023
Everyone who is reading the Srimad Bhagavatam with me must have asked within, "And what about Radha! The Radha!???"
Let me write what I know.
In the entire Bhagavatam, there is no mention of any Sakhi, Gopi, lover or wife of Sri Krishna by the name Radha.
Radha is mentioned in some other Puranas (Brahma Vaivarta Purana and Devi Bhagavata).
Radha is a powerful idea. She is the foremost Gopi lover of Sri Krishna. At a minimum, we should take her as the combination of ALL the Gopis who were in love with Sri Krishna.
ISKCON and other traditions have elevated Radha to the same level as Shakti vs. Shiva. Just as there can be no Shiva without Shakti, for them there can be no Krishna without Radha.
There is a legend and tradition saying Radha was a princess, daughter of Vrishabhanu of Barsana. People from Barsana do not even sip water in Mathura and Vrindavan saying that in our tradition, the bahu's family does not take or accept any service or hospitality from her husband's home.
Radha was embellished into a consummate lover by Jayadeva in Gita Govinda in the 12th century CE. Indeed, Jayadeva was a GREAT poet. His contribution to Indian culture and music and dance cannot be overestimated.
Radha, as Osho says, is an idea. DHA-RA meaning a stream or torrent reversed becomes RA-DHA. ALL our senses and thoughts stream outward and downward toward this world. If we reverse the flow, we reach divinity. In that process, our DHA-RA becomes RA-DHA, the ultimate lover of Bhagavan Sri Krishna. That bridal mysticism is special to our Sanatana Dharma.
As Meera says, there is only ONE man, Sri Krishna. The best we can all become, whatever our gender, is his beloved lover woman. A womanly mysticism is the most effective way to experience divinity. That is why every Christian nun is taught to become the lover/bride of Christ. That is the spirit behind Chaitanya Maha Prabhu being called the incarnation of Sri Radha. He was the ultimate lover of Sri Krishna.
That is why we have Radha Kalyanam celebrated with much pomp in the south.
Let me conclude with a couple of lines from Gita Govinda.
कंसारिरपि संसारवासनाबन्धशृङ्खलाम् ।
राधामाधाय हृदये तत्याज व्रजसुन्दरीः ॥३.१८॥
राधामाधाय हृदये तत्याज व्रजसुन्दरीः ॥३.१८॥
T: The slayer of Kamsa, Sri Krishna, just as an enlightened man breaks free from all worldly bonds on getting realisation, upon uniting with Sri Radha, renounced all the other beauties of Vraja.
॥ ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय ॥
