Bhakti

mama pratyakṣam evedaṁ yadā kṛṣṇo vraje’vrajat

mama pratyakṣam evedaṁ yadā kṛṣṇo vraje’vrajat |
tato hi pūtanādibhyaḥ keśy-antebhyo muhur muhuḥ ||
daityebhyo varuṇendrādi-devebhyo’jagarāditaḥ |
tathā cirantana-svīya-śakaṭārjuna-bhaṅgataḥ |
ko vā nopadravas tatra jāto vraja-vināśakaḥ ||
tatratyās tu janāḥ kiñcit te’nusandadhate na tat ||
mohitā iva kṛṣṇasya maṅgalaṁ tatra tatra hi |
icchanti sarvadā svīyaṁ nāpekṣante ca karhicit ||
svabhāva-sauhṛdenaiva yat kiñcit sarvam ātmanaḥ |
asyopakalpayante sma nanda-sūnoḥ sukhāya tat ||
(Bṛhad Bhāgavatāmṛta: 1.6.39–40)

“[Rohiṇī Devī to Devarṣi Nārada:] This is verily my experience: when Kṛṣṇa went to Vraja, from right then on, and again and again, what calamity devastating to Vraja—starting from Pūtanā and ending with Keśī—[coming] from asuras, from devas like Varuṇa and Indra, from pythons and so on [i.e., and other fearsome creatures], and from [even] the breaking of a cart and arjuna trees that had long been our own—did not arise? Still, the people situated there [viz., the Vraja-vāsīs] did not consider any of that [i.e., still, their love for Kṛṣṇa did not wane, and rather, only increased (Vraja-janānāṁ Kṛṣṇe prītir na jātu kṣīṇā, api tu vivṛddhaiva, DDT)]. As if beguiled, in all those cases [i.e., calamities], they [viz., the Vraja-vāsīs] always desired Kṛṣṇa’s well-being, and they never considered their own [well-being]. Purely out of natural cordiality, they offered everything that was their own for his—the Son of Nanda’s—pleasure.”

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astācalaṁ cumbati bhānu-bimbe

astācalaṁ cumbati bhānu-bimbe
gṛhe gṛhe gokula-sundarīṇām |
divyānulepābharaṇāmbarāṇi
kṛṣṇāhriyante paritaḥ sakhībhiḥ ||
(Alaṅkāra-kaustubha: 8.101)

“O Kṛṣṇa,
When the orb of the sun
Kisses the western horizon,
In house after house
The splendid unguents, ornaments, and garments
Of the beauties of Gokula
Are brought from all sides by [their] friends
[So that these beauties can be well-dressed when they meet Kṛṣṇa as he re-enters the village in the early evening from his day of cow-herding out in the forest].”

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sthānaṁ gopī-gaṇa-kuca-taṭī-kuṅkuma-śrī-bharārdra

sthānaṁ gopī-gaṇa-kuca-taṭī-kuṅkuma-śrī-bharārdra-
śrīmat-padāmbuja-yuga-sadā-prīti-saṅga-prādāyi |
jijñāsos te janani kathito’śeṣa-sandeha-ghāṭī
goloko’yaṁ madhura-gahana-praśna-bhāvānusārāt ||
vaikuṇṭhasyāpy upari nitarāṁ rājate yo nitānta-
śrīmad-gopī-ramaṇa-caraṇa-prema-pūraika-labhyaḥ |
vāñchā-vāñchopari-guru-phala-prāpti-bhūmir yadīyā
lokā dhyātā dadhati paramāṁ prema-sampatti-niṣṭhām ||
(Bṛhad Bhāgavatāmṛta: 2.7.77–78)

“O Mother,
In accord with the sweet and deep mood (bhāva)
Of the inquiry of you who are desirous to know
The place which is a bestower
Of eternal loving connection
With the two blessed lotus feet [of Śrī Kṛṣṇa]
Moistened by a beautiful mass of kumkum
From the slopes of the gopīs’ breasts,
And which is a destroyer of all doubts,
This [place, known as] Goloka—
Which shines profoundly beyond even Vaikuṇṭha,
Which is attainable
Only by means of an extraordinary abundance of prema
For the feet of blessed gopīs’ Beloved,
Which is the land of the attainment
Of the great aim
Of our desires and [that is] beyond our desires,
And the people belonging to which,
As they are meditated upon,
Grant paramount fixity in the wealth of prema—
Has been described [by me to you].”

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kim upāyanam ānītaṁ brahman me bhavatā gṛhāt

kim upāyanam ānītaṁ brahman me bhavatā gṛhāt |
aṇv apy upāhṛtaṁ bhaktaiḥ premṇā bhūry eva me bhavet |
bhūry apy abhaktopahṛtaṁ na me toṣāya kalpate ||
patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati |
tad ahaṁ bhakty-upahṛtam aśnāmi prayatātmanaḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 10.81.3–4)

“O brāhmaṇa, what gift has been brought by you from your home for me? Even something small offered by bhaktas with prema shall certainly be great to me. Even a great [i.e., lavish] offering by a non-bhakta [however] does not lead to satisfaction for me. One who with bhakti offers a leaf, flower, fruit, or water to me—I partake of that offered out of bhakti from one of pure heart.”

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patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati

patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati |
tad ahaṁ bhakty-upahṛtam aśnāmi prayatātmanaḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhagavad-gītā: 9.26)

[Bhagavān Śrī Kṛṣṇa:] “One who with bhakti offers a leaf, flower, fruit, or water to me—I partake of that offered out of bhakti from one of pure heart.”

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eṣa ca sthāyī sākṣād-upabhogātmakas tad-anumodanātmakaś ceti dvividhaḥ

eṣa ca sthāyī sākṣād-upabhogātmakas tad-anumodanātmakaś ceti dvividhaḥ | pūrvaḥ sākṣān nāyikānām, uttaraḥ sakhīnām | ubhaya-vyapadeśānām ubhāv api | tatropabhogātmakaḥ sa sāmānyato yathā—‘kṛṣṇaṁ nirīkṣya vanitotsava-rūpa-śīlam’ iti | spaṣṭam | sa eva punaḥ sambhogecchā-nidānaḥ sairindhry-ādau, yathā ‘sahoṣyatām iha preṣṭha’ ity ādi | spaṣṭam | kvacid bhedita-sambhogecchaḥ paṭṭa-mahiṣīṣu, yathā—‘smāyāvaloka-lava-darśita’ ity ādiṣu | svarūpābhinna-sambhogecchaḥ śrī-vraja-devīṣu, yathā—‘yat te sujāta-caraṇāmbu-ruhaṁ’ ity ādiṣu | āsāṁ caiṣa svābhāvika eva | ata eva sva-parityāga-jāterṣayā doṣaṁ kalpayitvāpi tat-parityāgāsāmarthyoktiḥ yathā ‘mṛgayur iva kapīndram’ ity ādau, ‘dustyajas tat-kathārthaḥ’ iti | eṣa cāsu bahu-bhedo vartate | ekatra bhāve khalu mithunasya mitha ādara-viśeṣaḥ | tatra preyasīnāṁ tvadīyatvābhimānātiśayena kāntaṁ prati pāratantrya-vinaya-stuti-dākṣiṇya-prācuryam | anyatra madīyatvātiśayaḥ, yatra paratantra-kāntatayāntar-marmajñatā-narma-kauṭilyābhāsa-prācuryam | etad yugalasya ca bhedasya bahv-aṁśa-svalpāṁśa-tat-sāṅkarya-bhedenāparāsu ca bahu-vidham iti |
(Prīti Sandarbha: 365–367)
“This sthāyī [-bhāva], furthermore, is of two types: that of the nature of direct enjoyment [with the Beloved] (sākṣad-upabhogātmaka) and that of the nature of sympathetic delight therewith [i.e., that which delights in the direct enjoyment of another with the Beloved] (tad-anumodātmaka). The former [type of kāntā-bhāva] is that of the direct nāyikās [i.e., those who engage in enjoyment directly with the Beloved], and the latter [type of kāntā-bhāva] is that of sakhīs [i.e., the friends of a particular nāyikā]. Those of both designations also have both [i.e., those who are possessed of kānta-bhāva of both types are recognized to be both direct nāyikās and sakhīs]. In this regard, that [type] which is of the nature of [direct] enjoyment (upabhogātmaka) is in general as [described] in [SB 10.21.12], ‘Beholding Kṛṣṇa, he whose figure and character are a festival for women, and hearing the wondrous flute songs played by him, the devīs [i.e., the wives of the devas] traveling [above] in airplanes became dispossessed of composure by Smara [i.e., Kāma] and bewildered as the flowers fell from their braids and their waistbands came loose.’ [The meaning is] Clear. ||365||
“In the case of Sairindhrī [i.e., Kubjā] and others, that itself [i.e., the type of kānta-bhāva that is of the nature of direct enjoyment (sākṣād-upabhogātmaka)], furthermore, is that the prime cause of which is desire for union (sambhoga), as [described in SB 10.48.9], ‘O Beloved, please stay here for some days with me and enjoy. I cannot bear to give up your company, O Lotus-eyed One!’ [The meaning is] Clear. ||366||
“In the case of the city queens [in Dvārakā], [kānta-bhāva that is of the nature of direct enjoyment (sākṣād-upabhogātmaka) is] sometimes that within which desire for union (sambhoga) is separated, as [described] in [SB 10.61.4], ‘These sixteen thousand wives, however, were unable to agitate whose sense [i.e., Kṛṣṇa’s mind] by means of Anaṅga’s [i.e., Kāma’s] arrows highly proficient in romance mantras shot from the captivating arches of the eyebrows with their intent (bhāva) shown by momentary, mildly smiling glances.’
“In the case of the blessed devīs of Vraja, [kānta-bhāva that is of the nature of direct enjoyment (sākṣād-upabhogātmaka) is] that within which the desire for union is non-different from its essential nature, as [is described] in [SB 10.31.19], ‘O Beloved! Fearful, we gently hold your tender lotus feet on our hard breasts. You roam with them throughout the forest. Have they not been cut by pebbles and so forth? Our hearts tremble. You are our very life.’ For them [i.e., the Vraja-devīs], furthermore, this [type of kānta-bhāva] is verily natural. Thus, there is an expression [by them to Uddhava in SB 10.47.17 of their] of inability in regard to leaving him [viz., Kṛṣṇa] even after ascribing fault [to him] out of spite arising from [his] leaving themselves [when he went to Mathurā]: ‘Therefore, enough with the the friendly relations of this black fellow who [as Rāma], being covetous, like a hunter shot the king of the monkeys [viz., Vālī], [who also as Rāma], being influenced by a woman [viz., Sītā], disfigured a woman whose drive was lust [viz., Śūrpaṇakhā], and [who as Vāmana], after taking an offering (balim) [from Bali], like a crow cast down even Bali [himself]. The wealth of discussion of him [however] is difficult to give up.’
“This [i.e., kānta-bhāva that is of the nature of direct enjoyment (sākṣād-upabhogātmaka)], furthermore, is of many varieties in them [i.e., in the Vraja-devīs]. In one [such] bhāva, the couple [i.e., Śrī Kṛṣṇa and the nāyikā endowed with such bhāva] has a special form of mutual adoration. Therein, the lovers have an abundance of obedience, demureness, laudation, and courtesy in regard to the beloved on account of a predominance of a sense of self (abhimāna) of ‘being yours’ (tvadīyatva) [in regard to the beloved]. Elsewhere [i.e., in another type of kānta-bhāva that is of the nature of direct enjoyment (sākṣād-upabhogātmaka)], there is a predominance [in the lover] of [a sense of self (abhimāna) of] ‘being mine’ (madīyatva) [in regard to the beloved, i.e., the nāyika has the sense that Śrī Kṛṣṇa belongs to her] wherein there is an abundance of awareness of [the] inner intent [of the beloved], joking, and the semblance of crookedness on account of the beloved’s being obedient [to the lover]. There are also many [sub-] types of this pair of varieties [of bhāvas, viz., those of ‘being yours’ (tvadīyatva) and ‘being mine’ (madīyatva)] in others in accord with variation in the mixture of these [two types of kānta-bhāva, viz., again those of ‘being yours’ (tvadīyatva) and ‘being mine’ (madīyatva)] in [respective] greater proportion or lesser proportion.”

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dhig janma nas trivṛd vidyāṁ dhig vrataṁ dhig bahujñatām

dhig janma nas trivṛd vidyāṁ dhig vrataṁ dhig bahujñatām |
dhik kulaṁ dhik kriyā-dākṣyaṁ vimukhā ye tv adhokṣaje ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 10.23.39)
“Fie on the threefold birth, fie on the education, fie on the vow, fie on the great learnedness, fie on the family, and fie on the rites and expertise of we who are utterly averse to Adhokṣaja!”

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yan-nāmadheya-śravaṇānukīrtanād

yan-nāmadheya-śravaṇānukīrtanād
yat-prahvaṇād yat-smaraṇād api kvacit |
śvādo’pi sadyaḥ savanāya kalpate
kutaḥ punas te bhagavan nu darśanāt ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 3.33.6)

“O Bhagavān by hearing and repeating whose name, by bowing down to whom, and by even occasionally remembering whom, even a dog-eater immediately becomes eligible for savana, what more occurs by [having] the sight of you?”

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kirāta-hūṇāndhra-pulinda-pulkaśā

kirāta-hūṇāndhra-pulinda-pulkaśā
ābhīra-śumbhā yavanāḥ khasādayaḥ |
ye’nye ca pāpā yad-apāśrayāśrayāḥ
śudhyanti tasmai prabhaviṣṇave namaḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 2.4.18; cited in Hari-bhakti-vilāsa: 11.667)

“Kirātas, Hūṇas, Andhras, Pulindas, Pulkaśas, Ābhīras, Śumbhas, Yavanas, Khasas, and so forth, as well as other sinners, become purified upon taking shelter in those who have taken shelter in whom—obeisance unto him, the Almighty.”

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taj janma tāni karmāṇi tad āyus tan mano vacaḥ

taj janma tāni karmāṇi tad āyus tan mano vacaḥ |
nṝṇāṁ yena hi viśvātmā sevyate harir īśvaraḥ ||
kiṁ janmabhis tribhir veha śaukra-sāvitra-yājñikaiḥ |
karmabhir vā trayī-proktaiḥ puṁso’pi vibudhāyuṣā ||
śrutena tapasā vā kiṁ vacobhiś citta-vṛttibhiḥ |
buddhyā vā kiṁ nipuṇayā balenendriya-rādhasā ||
kiṁ vā yogena sāṅkhyena nyāsa-svādhyāyayor api |
kiṁ vā śreyobhir anyaiś ca na yatrātma-prado hariḥ ||
śreyasām api sarveṣām ātmā hy avadhir arthataḥ |
sarveṣām api bhūtānāṁ harir ātmātmadaḥ priyaḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 4.31.9–13; cited in Bhakti Sandarbha: 51, 101)

“That is a birth, those are actions, that is a life, that is mind and [that is] is speech on the part of human beings whereby Hari, Īśvara, the Self of the universe, is worshiped. Here [in this world], what [is the use] of the three births—the seminal (śaukra), the sāvitra [i.e., the second birth brought about by dīkṣā into the sāvitra-mantra and investiture with the sacred thread, viz., the upanayana-saṁskāra], and the sacrificial (yājñika) [i.e., the third birth brought about by dīkṣā into the performance of a particular Vedic sacrifice (yajña)], what [is the use] of the rites prescribed in the three [Vedas], what [is the use] of even the lifespan of a deva for a human being, what [is the use] of hearing, austerity, words, and states of mind, what [is the use] of sharp intellect, [physical] strength, and acuity of the senses, what [is the use] of yoga [i.e., aṣṭāṅga-yoga], sāṅkhya [i.e., discrimination between the body and self], sannyāsa, and even study, and what [is the use] of any other means of benefit (śreyas) [e.g., vows (vratas), non-attachment (vairāgya), etc.] whereby Hari does not become a bestower of the Self [alt., himself]? In reality, the Self specifically is the culmination even of all means of benefit, and Hari is the Self, the Bestower of the Self, and the Beloved even of all beings.”

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