चाटुपुष्पाञ्जलिः
Cāṭu-puṣpāñjaliḥ
A flower-offering of pleasing words
By Śrīmad Rūpa Gosvāmīpāda
श्रीराधिकायै नमः ।
śrī-rādhikāyai namaḥ |
Obeisance unto Śrī Rādhikā.
Introduction
Śrī Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda composes the following verse as a preface to this composition of the author Śrī Rūpapāda:
I praise her,
Superb Rādhikā,
Svāminī,
Who immediately becomes pleased
With a person before her
Just by means of pleasing words (cāṭu).1
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda then introduces this composition as follows: “Now, Śrī Rūpa propitiates Śrī Rādhā with statements composed of pleasing words (cāṭu): nava … [i.e., he presents this composition entitled Cāṭu-puṣpāñjali].”
नवगोरोचनागौरीं प्रवरेन्दीवराम्बराम् ।
मणिस्तवकविद्योतिवेणीव्यालाङ्गनाफणाम् ॥१॥
nava-gorocanā-gaurīṁ pravarendīvarāmbarām |
maṇi-stavaka-vidyoti-veṇī-vyālāṅganā-phaṇām ||1||
You of a complexion fair like fresh gorocanā,
You with a garment like a most excellent blue lotus,
You the expanded hood
Of the female serpent of whose braid,
Shines with an array of jewels, …
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda explains in his commentary that in this composition one sentence starts in verse one and continues into verse twelve, and that in essence, the author says, “I offer obeisance to you, O Īśvara of Vṛndāvana, who are of such nature …,” and then describes various features of Śrī Rādhikā’s beauty over the course of the twelve verses,2 proceeding gradually downwards from the beauty of her complexion, primary garment, and hair to her face, brows, eyes, nose, earrings, teeth, lips, chin, arms, fingers, midsection, hips, thighs, knees, feet, and toe-nails. In regard to this verse first, he adds that “you with a garment like a most excellent blue lotus” (Pravarendīvarāmbarām) means “you whose saree is like a blue lotus that is very charming by virtue of being freshly blossomed,”3 and that in the description, “You the raised hood of the female serpent of whose braid shines with an array of jewels” (Maṇi-stavaka-vidyoti-veṇī-vyālāṅganā-phaṇām), Śrī Rādhikā’s braid is compared to a feminine serpent, her part is compared to the raised hood of the serpent, and the array of jewels atop her hair to the jewel traditionally said to be held by a serpent on its hood.4
Śrī Narahari Cakravartī records in Bhakti-ratnākara a series of events related to this first verse of Cāṭu-puṣpāñjali that were recounted by Rāghava Paṇḍita to Śrīnivāsa Ācārya at the base of a tree at Śrī Govinda Ghāṭa beside Śrī Rādhā Kuṇḍa during their circumambulation of Śrī Vraja Dhāma:
O Śrīnivāsa, I will tell you about the merriment that occurred at the base of this tree. One day, Sanātana came here from Govardhana to see Rūpa and Raghunātha. [At that time] Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī had composed a poem and presented [in it] a comparison of a braid to the hood of a female serpent. Seeing this, Sanātana Gosvāmī said something, “You presented this comparison. Is it apt or not apt?” After saying this, he came over and descended into the water of the lake [viz., Rādhā Kuṇḍa]. [As he did so] He saw a group of girls playing at the base of a tree. The braid on the head of a girl swayed on her back. Sanātana saw this and mistook it for a serpent. He became very worried and said to the girl, “A serpent is climbing up your back onto your head! O inattentive girls! Be careful!” Saying this, he went forward to remove it. Seeing Sanātana very apprehensive, they all smiled slightly and disappeared. At this place, Sanātana became overwhelmed [as he then reflected on this turn of events]. He [eventually] became steady and went [back] to the place of Rūpa Gosvāmī. He said to Rūpa, “That which you wrote is true.” After remaining [there] for some time with bliss in his heart, Śrī Sanātana Gosvāmī went to Govardhana. (Bhakti-ratnākara 5.754–765)5
उपमानघटामानप्रहारिमुखमण्डलाम् ।
नवेन्दुनिन्दिभालोद्यत्कस्तुरीतिलकश्रियम् ॥२॥
upamāna-ghaṭā-māna-prahāri-mukha-maṇḍalām |
navendu-nindi-bhālodyat-kasturī-tilaka-śriyam ||2||
You the orb of whose face
Strikes down the pride
Of multitudes of objects of comparison,
You possessed of the beauty
Of rising musk tilaka
Atop your forehead defaming of the crescent moon, …
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda comments that the objects of comparison (upamānas) that have their pride crushed by the orb of Śrī Rādhikā’s face are those beginning with the moon and the lotus, and that the sense of this description of Śrī Rādhikā is that her face is incomparable.6 That Śrī Rādhikā’s musk tilaka as “rising” (udyat) conveys that it bears the shape of Hari’s feet,7 meaning, it is composed of two parallel vertical lines that are joined at the bottom and taper apart slightly as they rise up the forehead.
भ्रूजितानङ्गकोदण्डां लोलनीलालकावलिम् ।
कज्वलोज्ज्वलताराजच्चकोरीचारुलोचनाम् ॥३॥
bhrū-jitānaṅga-kodaṇḍāṁ lola-nīlālakāvalim |
kajvalojjvalatā8-rājac-cakorī-cāru-locanām ||3||
You by whose brows
Anaṅga’s bow is defeated,
You of vibrant, dark locks,
You whose eyes,
Gleaming with kajal and splendor,
Are more charming than [even] cakorīs, …
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda comments that Śrī Rādhikā’s eyes are described as more charming than even cakorīs because of her desirousness of her Beloved,9 the implication being that she deeply desires her Beloved, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, even more profoundly than cakorīs long for the nectarean rays of the moon upon which they are understood to subside and her thus gleam with splendor in a manner that is even more charming than the appearance of cakorīs’ eyes.
तिलपुष्पाभनासाग्रविराजद्वरमौक्तिकाम् ।
अधरोद्धूतबन्धूकां कुन्दालीबन्धुरद्विजाम् ॥४॥
tila-puṣpābha-nāsāgra-virājad-vara-mauktikām |
adharoddhūta-bandhūkāṁ kundālī-bandhura-dvijām ||4||
You who have two excellent, brightly gleaming pearls
On the tip of your sesame-flowerlike nose,
You of lips like blossomed noon (bandhūka) flowers,
You of teeth like rows of charming jasmine flowers, …
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda explains that the pair of pearls on Śrī Rādhikā’s sesame-flowerlike nose are said to be “excellent” (vara) because they are set amid small rubies and “brightly gleaming” (virājat) because of their roundness and brightness,10 or, that she wears a string of small pearls beneath the tip of her nose [on a chain from her nose to her ear] beneath a pair of large pearls on her nose and that all these pearls gleam brightly because of their proximity to one another.11
सरत्नस्वर्णराजीवकर्णिकाकृतकर्णिकाम् ।
कस्तूरीबिन्दुचिबुकां रत्नग्रैवेयकोज्ज्वलाम् ॥५॥
saratna-svarṇa-rājīva-karṇikā-kṛta-karṇikām |
kastūrī-bindu-cibukāṁ ratna-graiveyakojjvalām ||5||
You by whom earrings are fashioned
With jeweled, golden lotus pericarps,
You whose chin bears a dot of musk,
You of splendorous jeweled necklace, …
दिव्याङ्गदपरिष्वङ्गलसद्भुजमृणालिकाम् ।
बलारिरत्नवलयकलालम्बिकलाविकाम् ॥६॥
divyāṅgada-pariṣvaṅga-lasad-bhuja-mṛṇālikām |
balāri-ratna-valaya-kalālambi-kalāvikām ||6||
You of lustrous lotus-fibre arms
Embraced by dazzling armlets,
You on whose wrists
The [sweet] jingling of blue sapphire bracelets rings, …
रत्नाङ्गुरीयकोल्लासिवराङ्गुलिकराम्बुजाम् ।
मनोहरमहाहारविहारिकुचकुट्मलाम् ॥७॥
ratnāṅgurīyakollāsi-varāṅguli-karāmbujām |
manohara-mahāhāra-vihāri-kuca-kuṭmalām ||7||
You the excellent fingers on whose lotus hands
Shine with jeweled rings,
You the fresh buds of whose breasts
Appear beautiful
With superb necklaces captivating to the mind, …
रोमालिभुजगीमूर्धरत्नाभतरलाञ्चिताम् ।
वलित्रयीलताबद्धक्षीणभङ्गुरमध्यमाम् ॥८॥
romāli-bhujagī-mūrdha-ratnābha-taralāñcitām |
vali-trayī-latā-baddha-kṣīṇa-bhaṅgura-madhyamām ||8||
You who are adorned by a central jewel [on your necklace]
Resembling a jewel atop the head
Of the feminine serpent of the vertical line of hair on your abdomen,
You whose thin, charming midsection
Is as though bound with the vine of the triad of folds, …
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda explains that in this verse the vertical line of hair situated above the navel is compared to a feminine serpent and the central jewel in Śrī Rādhikā’s necklace, namely, the Syamantaka, is likened to the figurative jewel held atop the hood of this feminine serpent.12 “The triad of folds” (vali-trayī) refers to three folds of skin on the abdomen that are regarded as a hallmark of feminine beauty. Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda comments that the comparison of the presence of these three folds of skin to the midsection being as though bound by a vine thereof is on account of midsection’s thinness and curvature because of the weight of the breasts.13
मणिसारसनाधारविस्फारश्रोणिरोधसम् ।
हेमरम्भामदारम्भस्तम्भनोरुयुगाकृतिम् ॥९॥
maṇi-sārasanādhāra-visphāra-śroṇi-rodhasam |
hema-rambhā-madārambha-stambhanoru-yugākṛtim ||9||
You the bank of whose wide hips
Is the support for a jeweled bell-girdle,
You the fine shapes of whose pair of thighs
Is stunning to the onset of pride in golden plantains, …
जानुद्युतिजितक्षुल्लपीतरत्नसमुद्रकाम् ।
शरन्नीरजनीराज्यमञ्जीरविरणत्पदाम् ॥१०॥
jānu-dyuti-jita-kṣulla-pīta-ratna-samudrakām |
śaran-nīraja-nīrājya-mañjīra-viraṇat-padām ||10||
You by whom a small casket made of yellow (topaz) jewels is defeated
With the radiance of your knees,
You whose feet,
Anklets tinkling,
Are fit to be worshiped
By autumnal lotuses, …
राकेन्दुकोटिसौन्दर्यजैत्रपादनखद्युतिम् ।
अष्टाभिः सात्त्विकैर्भावैराकुलीकृतविग्रहाम् ॥११॥
rākendu-koṭi-saundarya-jaitra-pāda-nakha-dyutim |
aṣṭābhiḥ sāttvikair bhāvair ākulī-kṛta-vigrahām ||11||
You the radiance of the nails on whose feet
Is triumphant over the beauty of crores of full moons,
You whose figure is filled [alt., overcome]
With the eight sāttvika-bhāvas, …
मुकुन्दाङ्गकृतापाङ्गामनङ्गोर्मितरङ्गिताम् ।
त्वामारब्धप्रियानन्दां वन्दे वृन्दावनेश्वरि ॥१२॥
mukundāṅga-kṛtāpāṅgām anaṅgormi-taraṅgitām |
tvām ārabdha-priyānandāṁ14 vande vṛndāvaneśvari ||12||
You by whom side-long glances are cast
At the limbs of Mukunda,
You who become tossed about
By waves of Anaṅga,
You for whom the bliss of [meeting] the Beloved has begun—
I offer obeisance unto you,
Īśvarī of Vṛndāvana!
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda comments here that Śrī Rādhikā is “tossed about by waves of Anaṅga” (Anaṅgormi-taraṅgitām), that is, she becomes “she for whom being tossed about by waves of Anaṅga is occasioned” as a result of beholding Mukunda’s limbs.15 The description of Śrī Rādhikā here as “you for whom the bliss of [meeting] the Beloved has begun” (Ārabdha-Priyānandāṁ) conveys that the author is offering these pleasing words (cāṭu) of praise to Śrī Rādhikā that describe her beauty from head to foodt at a time when she is in the company of her Beloved, Śrī Mādhava.
In the case of the variant reading śriyānandāṁ in place of priyānandāṁ, the meaning can be construed as follows, “You for whom good fortune and bliss have begun.” In the case of this variant reading, the same sense can be taken that that the author is offering these descriptions of Śrī Rādhikā with respect to how she appears upon meeting with her Beloved, Śrī Mādhava.
अयि प्रोद्यन्महाभावमाधुरीविह्वलान्तरे ।
अशेषनायिकावस्थाप्राकट्याद्भुतचेष्टिते ॥१३॥
ayi prodyan-mahābhāva-mādhurī-vihvalāntare |
aśeṣa-nāyikāvasthā-prākaṭyādbhuta-ceṣṭite ||13||
Ayi!
O you whose interior is overwhelmed
By the brimming sweetness of mahābhāva!
O you of astonishing actions
By virtue of the manifestation of the states
Of all [types of] nāyikas!
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda explains that the particle ayi is expressed in the sense of humble inquiry.16 In this verse and continuing into verse seventeen, the author calls out to Śrī Rādhikā with various addresses, and then in verses eighteen to twenty-one, he raises a series of questions to convey a number of prayers to Śrī Rādhikā. The particle ayi in this verse indicates the start of this humble appeal to Śrī Rādhikā.
The mention of “all [types of] nāyikās” (aśeṣa-nāyikā) in the second address in this verse refers to three general types of nāyikās surveyed by the author in Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi, namely, the “mild” (mugdhā), “moderate” (madhyā), and “bold” (pragalbhā), along with each of their sub-types.17 Their “states” (avasthā), all of which are said here to manifest in Śrī Rādhikā, are said by the author in according with earlier literature on rasa to be of eight types:
Now, eight states of all nāyikās are enumerated. Therein, there is (1) a tryster (abhisārikā), (2) she of readied garments and abode (vāsa-sajjā), (3) she how is longing (utkaṇṭhitā), (4) she who has been betrayed (khaṇḍitā), (5) she who is disappointed (vipralabdhā), (6) she who is separated [from her Beloved] because of a quarrel (kalahāntaritā), (7) she whose Lover is abroad (proṣita-preyasī), and (8) she whose Beloved is under her control (svādhīna-bhartṛkā).18
See chapter five of Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi for further discussion of the various types of nāyikās and their eight varying states.
सर्वमाधुर्यविञ्जोलीनिर्मञ्छितपदाम्बुजे ।
इन्दिरामृग्यसौन्दर्यस्फुरदङ्घ्रिनखाञ्चले ॥१४॥
sarva-mādhurya-viñjolī19-nirmañchita20-padāmbuje |
indirā-mṛgya-saundarya-sphurad-aṅghri-nakhāñcale ||14||
O you whose lotus feet are worshiped
By the gamut of the sweetness of all!
O you the tips of the nails on whose feet
Shine with beauties that are fit to be sought after by Indirās!
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda explains that in the address, “O you whose lotus feet are worshiped by the gamut of the sweetness of all” (Sarva-mādhurya-viñjolī-nirmañchita-padāmbuje), “all” (sarva) refers to all other nāyikās, and the “gamut of [their] sweetness” (mādhurya-viñjolī) refers to the entire range of the loveliness found in all these nāyikās throughout all eight of the aforementioned states experienced by them.21 In regard to the second address of Śrī Rādhikā in this verse, Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda comments as follows:
Rādhā is indeed Mahālakṣmī as per aforementioned statements [from various śāstras cited earlier in the commentary on the Ānanda-candrikā-stotram]. Thus, the beauties of the tips of the nails of her feet are verily fit to be sought after by Lakṣmīs, that is, by her [viz., Śrī Rādhā’s] manifestations for sport (vilāsas), partial manifestations (aṁśas), and sub-partial manifestations (kalās), like Vāsudeva’s beauty is by Saṅkarṣaṇa, like the Lord of Śvetadvīpa’s is by the two Lords of Badarī [viz., Nara and Nārāyaṇa Ṛṣis], and like Kṛṣṇa’s is by Balarāma, Pradyumna, and others. Thus, there is no non-occurrence [i.e., inconclusive argumentation] at all [in this regard, i.e., since it is observed that manifestations of Bhagavān admire and desire to behold the beauty of other forms of Bhagavān who are endowed with greater manifestations of qualities than themselves, and that all forms of Bhagavān admire and desire to behold Śrī Bhagavān’s superlative form of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, so the superlative beauty of Śrī Rādhā, the superlative counter-part of Svayaṁ Bhagavān Śrī Kṛṣṇa, is admired by all lesser manifestations of Śrī Rādhā, namely, the forms of Lakṣmī in Vaikuṇṭha and elsewhere]. Others, however, say that Rādhā’s beauty is sought to be attained by the Goddess of Vaikuṇṭha [viz., Lakṣmī] for the sake of her own acceptance by Kṛṣṇa, but is not, rather, attained [by her]. Thus, there occurred her [viz., Lakṣmī’s] non-acceptance by him [viz., Śrī Kṛṣṇa], he who is a relisher of the rasa of that alone [i.e., of the rasa of Śrī Rādhā’s beauty], as per the Smṛti [i.e., SB 10.16.36], “Out of desire for which Śrī [i.e., Lakṣmī], a wife [of Nārāyaṇa], performed austerities, giving up all enjoyments and remaining avowed for a very long time.”22
गोकुलेन्दुमुखीवृन्दसीमन्तोत्तंसमञ्जरि ।
ललितादिसखीयूथजीवातुस्मितकोरके ॥१५॥
gokulendu-mukhī-vṛnda-sīmantottaṁsa-mañjari |
lalitādi-sakhī-yūtha-jīvātu-smita-korake ||15||
O you who are the sprig in the wreaths
[Worn] Atop the parts of the moon-faced girls of Gokula!
O the bud of whose mild smile
Is the vitality of parties of sakhīs
Beginning with Lalitā’s!
Commentary
“O you who are the sprig in the wreaths [worn] atop the parts of the moon-faced girls of Gokula” (Gokulendu-mukhī-vṛnda-sīmantottaṁsa-mañjari) conveys that Śrī Rādhikā is the foremost of all the gopīs in Vraja.
चटुलापाङ्गमाधुर्यबिन्दून्मादितमाधवे ।
तातपादयशःस्तोमकैरवानन्दचन्द्रिके ॥१६॥
caṭulāpāṅga-mādhurya-bindūnmādita-mādhave |
tāta-pāda-yaśaḥ-stoma-kairavānanda-candrike ||16||
O you by whom Mādhava is impassioned
By a drop of sweetness from corners of your flickering eyes!
O you who are the moonlight
That is the delight
Of the white lotuses
Of your honored father’s accolades!
Commentary
“A drop of sweetness from corners of your flickering eyes” (caṭulāpāṅga-mādhurya-bindu) refers to an enticing side-long glance.
अपारकरुणापूरपूरितान्तर्मनोह्रदे ।
प्रसीदास्मिञ्जने देवि निजदास्यस्पृहाजुषि ॥१७॥
apāra-karuṇā-pūra-pūritāntar-mano-hrade |
prasīdāsmiñ jane devi nija-dāsya-spṛhā-juṣi ||17||
O you the deep lake of whose inner heart
Is filled with a boundless stream of compassion!
O Devī!
Please bestow grace upon this person
Cherishing the desire for your own servitude.
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda explains that the address, “O you the deep lake of whose inner heart is filled with boundless stream of compassion” (Apāra-karuṇā-pūra-pūritāntar-mano-hrade) means “O you who are possessed of immense kindness.”23 The author speaks of himself in this verse as “this person” (asmiñ jane) to convey humility and further describing himself as “cherishing the desire for your own servitude” (nija-dāsya-spṛhā-juṣi) to indicate the grace he wishes to receive, “Please bestow the grace of granting servitude [to yourself upon me].”24
In the next four verses, the author earnestly requests Śrī Rādhikā for specifics in regard to this grace of granting service to herself upon the author,25 that is, he earnestly requests various specific service opportunities. Also, although not stated it explicitly, the prayers made in the following four verses are all for service privileges that can be had only by Śrī Rādhikā’s mañjarīs, that is, her nitya- and prāṇa-sakhīs. Thus, the general unspoken implication of these prayers is that the author wishes to be accepted by Śrī Rādhikā as one of her mañjarīs, that is, personal maidservants, and render all varieties of intimate service to her in the course of her līlās with Śrī Kṛṣṇa.
कच्चित्त्वं चाटुपटुना तेन गोष्ठेन्द्रसूनुना ।
प्रार्थ्यमानचलापाङ्गप्रसादा द्रक्ष्यसे मया ॥१८॥
kaccit tvaṁ cāṭu-paṭunā tena goṣṭhendra-sūnunā |
prārthyamāna-calāpāṅga-prasādā drakṣyase mayā ||18||
I wonder,
Will you the grace of whose flickering side-long
Has to be prayed for
By him—
The Prince of Vraja
Proficient in pleasing speech (cāṭu)—
Be seen by me?
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda explains that the sense of the particle kaccit, rendered above as, “I wonder,” is that of inquiry, “May I ask you?”26 When Śrī Rādhikā replies to this, “Ask,” then the author says, “When will you, replete with the characteristic of being she the grace of whose flickering side-long has to be prayed for by him, the Prince of Vraja “proficient in pleasing speech” (cāṭu-paṭunā), that is, expert in composing pleasing statements, be seen by me?”27 Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda also elaborates that the implied sense is that the author desires that Śrī Rādhikā will instruct him, “After [I show] jealous anger (māna) [towards Kṛṣṇa], you, my unique servant, should remain secretly [near me],”28 and that the author then prays for the privilege that can be attained by thus being able to secretly remain in Śrī Rādhikā’s presence at that time, “You, she the grace of whose flickering side-long glance has to be prayed for by Kṛṣṇa, who is proficient in pleasing speech and has entered [your bower] with the sakhīs—you who are gazing straight at him—will become seen by me then.”29 The implication is that Śrī Rādhikā, out of jealous anger (māna), does not shoot enticing side-long glances at Śrī Kṛṣṇa, as she does when she is not angry with him, when he approaches her at this time, but rather stares straight at him in anger, and the author longs to hear how Śrī Kṛṣṇa uses pleasing words (cāṭu) to pacify Śrī Rādhikā and induce her to again engage eagerly in līlā-vilāsa with him.
It is noteworthy here that as the author addresses Śrī Rādhikā throughout this composition with cāṭu, that is, pleasing words of praise and prayer, he also prays in this verse to hear Śrī Kṛṣṇa address Śrī Rādhikā with cāṭu as well.
त्वां साधु माधवीपुष्पैर्माधवेन कलाविदा ।
प्रसाध्यमानां स्विद्यन्तीं वीजयिष्याम्यहं कदा ॥१९॥
tvāṁ sādhu mādhavī-puṣpair mādhavena kalā-vidā |
prasādhyamānāṁ svidyantīṁ vījayiṣyāmy ahaṁ kadā ||19||
When will I fan you
As you are being decorated
By Mādhava,
Adept in the art,
With excellent mādhavī flowers,
And perspiring?
Commentary
This prayer relates to a service privilege that comes later in the unfolding of the same līlā. After Śrī Kṛṣṇa addresses Śrī Rādhikā with pleasing words (cāṭu), as was described in the previous verse, she enters the state of being a svādhīna-bhartṛkā, that is, a nāyikā who has her Beloved under her control,30 and then directs him to render service to her in the form of decorating her with mādhavī flowers. Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda explains that Mādhava is described as “adept in the art” (kalā-vidā) in reference to his expertise in the art of decoration31 and that Śrī Rādhikā is described as “perspiring” (svidyantīṁ) after she is described as being decorated by Mādhava because she begins to perspire to the touch of his hand,32 meaning, once he begins to decorate her. The desire conveyed by the author in this verse is that he have the privilege of observing Mādhava submit himself to Śrī Rādhikā’s control and render service to Śrī Rādhikā in an attempt to regain her favor in manner akin to the manner in which Śrī Rādhikā’s mañjarīs serve her by decorating her and so also be on hand to attentively notice when Śrī Rādhikā’s begins to perspire at Mādhava’s touch and thus be able to timely render the service of cooling her down with a fan.
केलिविस्रंसिनो वक्रकेशवृन्दस्य सुन्दरि ।
संस्काराय कदा देवि जनमेतं निदेक्ष्यसि ॥२०॥
keli-visraṁsino vakra-keśa-vṛndasya sundari |
saṁskārāya kadā devi janam etaṁ nidekṣyasi ||20||
O Beauty!
O Devī!
When will you order this person
To arrange
Your mane of wavy hair
Fallen asunder because of play?
Commentary
Like the previous prayer, this prayer also relates to a service privilege that comes later in the unfolding of the same līlā. The implied sequence, as Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda explains, is that Śrī Rādhikā’s play with Mādhava ensues after she is decorated by him,33 meaning, after Mādhava succeeds in pacifying her jealous anger (māna) by serving and honoring her. Upon being propitiated, Śrī Rādhikā pleases Mādhava with the four types of “enjoyment together” (sambhoga), namely, observing one another, talking with one another, touching one another, and uniting,34 and as a result of such play with Mādhava, Śrī Rādhikā’s hair as it was decorated by him falls loose. The author speaks of himself as “this person” (etaṁ janam) in this verse to imply that his wish is have remained nearby35 during Śrī Rādhikā’s aforementioned līlā with Mādhava, meaning, he wishes that Śrī Rādhikā would intend that the author in his mañjarī form remain nearby her during and just after her aforementioned play with Mādhava so that she can call the author to re-arrange her hair, that is, braid and twist it as is apt,36 after it has fallen loose.
कदा बिम्बोष्ठि ताम्बूलं मया तव मुखाम्बुजे ।
अर्प्यमाणं व्रजाधीशसूनुराच्छिद्य भोक्ष्यते ॥२१॥
kadā bimboṣṭhi tāmbūlaṁ mayā tava mukhāmbuje |
arpyamāṇaṁ vrajādhīśa-sūnur ācchidya bhokṣyate ||21||
O you of bimba lips!
When will the Son of Vraja’s king snatch away and enjoy
The tāmbūla being offered
Into the lotus of your mouth by me?
Commentary
Like the previous prayers, this prayer also relates to a service privilege that comes later in the unfolding of the same līlā. The implied sequence is that after the author re-dresses Śrī Rādhikā’s hair he has the chance to offer her tāmbūla as she relaxes with Mādhava. Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda paraphrases the author’s prayer here as follows, “When will you bestow upon me the fortune the form of which is observing this amusement [i.e., the amusement of Mādhava stealing Rādhikā’s tāmbūla, perhaps with his hand, perhaps with his mouth]?”37
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda also explains that after making this series of prayers for the most intimate of services to Śrī Rādhikā and Mādhava, the author humbly reflects as follows, “How can I ever have this immense fortune?”38 and thus makes the prayer in the following verse with the thought, “Please, rather, beget just this much.”39
व्रजराजकुमारवल्लभाकुलसीमन्तमणि प्रसीद मे ।
परिवारगणस्य ते यथा पदवी मे न दवीयसी भवेत् ॥२२॥
vraja-rāja-kumāra-vallabhā-kula-sīmanta-maṇi prasīda me |
parivāra-gaṇasya te yathā padavī me na davīyasī bhavet ||22||
O you who are the jewel in the part
Of the beloveds of the Prince of Vraja!
Please be gracious to me
Such that the path of your companions
Shall not become farther away from me.
Commentary
Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda explains that by praying, “Please be gracious to me,” (prasīda me), the author conveys, “Please bestow just this much grace [upon me]” and humbly prays for the grace “whereby the path of your companions shall not become farther away from me, but rather, shall become near.”40 The sense here is that the author feels himself to be unworthy of attaining the highly intimate service he prayed for in the previous verses and thus prays in this verse to at least be purified of offenses, attachments, and other unfavorabilities such that at least he won’t digress from the ultimate spiritual fortune he prayed for in the previous verses and rather may at least remain as close to it as he is at present.
The word padavī, rendered above as “path,” can also be construed to mean “position” in this context, and thus the prayer made by the author in this verse can also be understood as follows, “Please be gracious to me such that the position of your companions, meaning, the status of being one among your intimate companions, shall not become father, and rather shall become nearer, to me.”
करुणां मुहुरर्थये परं तव वृन्दावनचक्रवर्तिनि ।
अपि केशिरिपोर्यथा भवेत्स चाटुप्रार्थनभाजनं जनः ॥२३॥
karuṇāṁ muhur arthaye paraṁ tava vṛndāvana-cakravartini |
api keśi-ripor yathā bhavet sa cāṭu-prārthana-bhājanaṁ janaḥ ||23||
I pray repeatedly
Only for your compassion,
O Empress of Vṛndāvana,
Whereby that person can become a recipient
Even of the Enemy of Keśī’s prayer
Full of pleasing words (cāṭu).
Commentary
The author speaks of himself as “that person” (sa … janaḥ) in this verse to retain something of the spirit of the humility with which he made the prayer in the previous verse while also simultaneously returning in this verse to expression of the spirit of eager longing that inspired the prayers he made earlier in verses eighteen to twenty-one. Śrī Vidyābhūṣaṇapāda rephrases and elaborates on the prayer made in this verse as follows:
O Empress of Vṛndāvana! O you who have been installed [as queen] for the entire realm of Vṛndāvana! O Rādhā! I pray repeatedly only (param) for your compassion—your compassion whereby that person shall become a recipient (bhājanam) even of the Enemy of Keśi’s [i.e., Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s] prayer full of pleasing words (cāṭu), that is, his earnest request accompanied by pleasing statements, when he has been expelled [by you from your bower] because of [your] jealous anger (māna). Having not attained entrance [into your bower] in the midst of the sakhīs and maidservants [present there], the Enemy of Keśi shall entreat me, “O kind girl, O beautiful one, please convey my pain to Vārṣabhānavī.”41
The author thus concludes this hymn entitled Cāṭu-puṣpāñjali [i.e., “A Flower Offering of Pleasing Words”], in which he has both offered cāṭu, that is, pleasing words, to Śrī Rādhikā throughout his praises and prayers to her in this hymn, and prayed to hear Śrī Rādhikā that he can hear Śrī Kṛṣṇa pray to Śrī Rādhikā with cāṭu, by lastly praying to Śrī Rādhikā that he can be also the recipient of cāṭu from Śrī Kṛṣṇa because he is a trusted, intimate maidservant (mañjarī) of Śrī Rādhikā.
In the final verse of the hymn, the author describes the phala-śruti, that is, the result of aptly reciting this poem.
इमं वृन्दावनेश्वर्या जनो यः पठति स्तवम् ।
चाटुपुष्पाञ्जलिं नाम स स्यादस्याः कृपास्पदम् ॥२४॥
imaṁ vṛndāvaneśvaryā jano yaḥ paṭhati stavam |
cāṭu-puṣpāñjaliṁ nāma sa syād asyāḥ kṛpāspadam ||24||
A person who recites this hymn for the Īśvara of Vṛndāvana
Entitled Cāṭu-puṣpāñjali
Shall become an object of her grace.
Meter
Anuṣṭup
Sources
Stava-mālā editions by Śrī Purī Dāsa Mahāśaya, Śrī Rāma Nārāyaṇa Vidyāratna, and Nirṇaya Sāgara Press, and the Stava-puṣpāñjali published by Nitya Svarūpa Brahmacārī.
Footnotes
1cāṭu-mātreṇa yā maṅkṣu svāminī nija-sammukhe |
prasīdati jane staumi tām ahaṁ rādhikāṁ parām ||
2he vṛndāvaneśvari, tvām ahaṁ vanda iti dvādaśa-śloka-gatenānvayaḥ | tvāṁ kathaṁbhūtām ity apekṣyāha—nava … |
3pravaraṁ sadyo-vikasitatvenātiramyaṁ yad indīvaraṁ nīlāmbujaṁ tad ivāmbaraṁ śāṭī yasyās tām |
4atra veṇī bhujaṅgatvenotprekṣyate | sīmantas tat-phaṇatvena stavakas tu tat-phaṇa-maṇitveneti rūpakeṇotprekṣā |
5ahe śrīnivāsa, ei vṛkṣera talāya |
ha-ila ye raṅga tāhā kahiye tomāya ||754||
eka-dina sanātana govardhana haite |
ethā āilā rūpa-raghunāthere dekhite ||755||
śrī-rūpa-gosvāmī padya karaye racanā |
veṇīra upamā dila vyālāṅganā-phaṇā ||756||
sanātana gosvāmī dekhiyā kichu kaya |
dilā e upamā—ihā haya vā nā haya ||757||
eta kahi āsiyā nāmilā kuṇḍa-jale |
dekhaye bālikā-gaṇa khele vṛkṣa-tale ||758||
bālikā-mastake veṇī piṭhete loṭāya |
sanātana dekhe sarpa-bhrama haila tāya ||759||
bālikāra prāti kahe ati vyagra haiyā |
māthāya caḍhaye sarpa pṛṣṭha-deśa diyā ||760||
abodha bālikā-gaṇa hao sāvadhāna |
eta kahi nivārite karilā payāna ||761||
sanātāne atiśaya vyākula dekhiyā |
antardhāna hailā sabe īṣat hāsiyā ||762||
sanātana vihvala ha-ilā ei khāne |
sthira ha-iyā gelā rūpa-gosvāmīra sthāne ||763||
rūpe kahe ye likhilā sei satya haya |
śrī-rūpa janila sanātanera hṛdaya ||764||
manera ānande śrī-gosvāmī sanātana |
kata-kṣaṇa rahiyā gelena govardhana ||765||
6upamāna-ghaṭāyāś candrāravindādi-saṁhater mānaṁ garvaṁ praharati tādṛśaṁ mukha-maṇḍalaṁ yasyās tām | nirupamāsyām ity arthaḥ |
7udyatā hari-pādākṛtinā … |
8kajvalojjvalatā: kajjalojjvalatā | (NSP)
9priya-satṛṣṇatayā cakorībhyo’pi cāruṇī locane yasyās tām |
10virājatī vartulojjvalatayā vare laghu-māṇikya-madhye mauktike … |
11sthūla-mauktikayos tādṛśayor adhastāl laghu-mauktika-yogān mauktikāni virājanti yasyās tām ity apare |
12nābher ūrdhvagatā yā romālī saiva bhujagī tasyā mūrdha-ratnābho yas taralaḥ syamantakaḥ … |
13kṛśatvāt kuca-bhāreṇa bhajyamānatvāc ca latayā nibaddham ity utprekṣyate |
14priyānandāṁ: śriyānandāṁ | (NSP, PD-V)
15mukundāṅga-vīkṣaṇād evānaṅgormi-taraṅgo jāto yasyās tām |
16ayīti savinaya-praśne |
17aśeṣāṇāṁ mugdhādīnāṁ nāyikānāṁ … |
18athāvasthāṣṭakaṁ sarva-nāyikānāṁ nigadyate |
tatrābhisārikā vāsa-sajjā cotkaṇṭhitā tathā ||
khaṇḍitā vipralabdhā ca kalahāntaritāpi ca |
proṣita-preyasī caiva tathā svādhīna-bhartṛkā ||
19The reading viñjolī is an emendation of that variants viñcholī and viccholī.
20This reading, nirmañchita, is preferred in comparison to another, nirmanthita, found in some sources.
21sarveti sarvāsāṁ nāyikānāṁ yā mādhurya-viñjolī tat-tad-avasthā-gata-cārutā-śreṇī … |
22rādhā khalu mahālakṣmīḥ pūrvokta-śruty-ādibhyaḥ | tatas tad-vilāsāṁśa-kalābhir lakṣmībhis tad-aṅghri-nakhāñcala-saundaryāṇi mṛgyāṇy eva saṅkarṣaṇeneva vāsudevasya saundaryaṁ, badarī-patibhyām iva śvetadvīpa-pater, bala-pradyumnādibhir iva kṛṣṇasyeti na kācid anupapattiḥ | anye tv āhuḥ—vaikuṇṭhādhipayā rādhā-saundaryaṁ labdhuṁ mṛgyate yataḥ kṛṣṇena svāṅgīkāraḥ, na tu labhyate | atas tad-eka-rasikena tena tad-asvīkāraḥ ‘yad vāñchayā śrīr lalanācarat tapo vihāya kāmān suciraṁ dhṛta-vratā’ iti smṛteḥ |
23apāreṇa karuṇā-pūreṇa pūrito’ntarmano-hrado yasyā he mahādayāvati |
24prasādaṁ vyañjayan viśinaṣṭi—nijeti | dāsya-dāna-prasādaṁ vidhehīty arthaḥ |
25tad-dāna-prasāde viśeṣam arthayati—kaccid iti |
26kaccid iti praśne | … tvāṁ pṛcchāmīty arthaḥ |
27pṛccheti cet tatrāha—cāṭu-paṭunā priya-vacana-racana-nipuṇena tena goṣṭhendra-sūnunā prārthyamānety ādi-lakṣaṇā tvaṁ mayā kadā drakṣyase |
28mānānte mad-eka-sevikā tvaṁ rahas tiṣṭheḥ … |
29tadā sakhībhiḥ praveśitena cāṭu-paṭunā kṛṣṇena tam ṛju-paśyantyā yasyāś calāpāṅga-prasādaḥ prārthyaḥ syāt sā tvaṁ mayā dṛṣṭā bhāvinīty arthaḥ |
30See UN 5.91–93.
31kalā-vidā maṇḍana-kalā-paṇḍitena … |
32tadā svidyantīṁ tat-kara-sparśād utpadyamāna-svedāṁ …|
33tataḥ kṛta-tvat-prasādhanena mādhavena saha jātayā kelyā … |
34sambhogasya sāmānyākāreṇa sandarśana-saṁjalpa-saṁsparaśa-saṁprayoga-lakṣaṇa-bheda-catuṣṭaya-bhinnatvaṁ dṛśyate | (PRS 375)
35tatra sannihitam etaṁ mal-lakṣaṇaṁ janaṁ …|
36saṁskārāya veṇī-jaṭa-bhāvāya … |
37etad-vinoda-vīkṣaṇa-rūpaṁ saubhāgyaṁ me kadā dāsyasi |
38etad atibhāgyaṁ me kutaḥ syāt |
39etāvat tu sampādayety āha—vrajeti |
40te tava parivāra-gaṇasya padavī yathā me mama davīyasī dūratarā na syāt, kintu sannihitā syād iti |
41he vṛndāvana-cakravartini nikhila-vṛndāvana-rājyābhiṣikte rādhe, tava karuṇāṁ muhur aham arthaye paraṁ kevalam | yathā tava karuṇayā mānān nirākṛtasya keśi-ripor api sa cāṭu-prārthana-bhājanaṁ priya-vacana-sahitasyābhyarthanasya pātramayaṁ jano bhavet | sakhīṣu kiṅkarīṣu cālabdha-praveśaḥ keśi-ripur he dayāvati sundari, mad-vedanāṁ tvaṁ vārṣabhānavyāṁ prāpayeti māṁ yācetety arthaḥ |