Gita Govinda
By Sri Jayadeva Goswami
Published Year : 12th century AD
Page Count : 230 pages
Medium Used : Kindle PW
Genre : Spirituality, Divine Love, Lord Sri Krishna, Radha Krishna, sexuality.
Rating : 5/5
This book transported me into another world. A world filled with joy and brimming with unbridled happiness. A world that is devoid of stress and tension. Where God of Creation himself, in the form of Sri Krishna, dances and enjoys dalliances with a bunch of Vrindavan milk maids, prime among them being Radha.
Prior to this book,which came out in 12th century, Radha was pretty unknown because she wasn't mentioned in Bhagavata purana or Bhagavad Gita. This book not only introduced her to the public imagination but set fire to the bhakti movement in an unprecedented way that people started believing more in Radha's form of bhakti/love/devotion than any other kind. Every other God had a consort for worship alongside them except Krishna despite having 16,108 wives. Radha filled this vacancy and people still worship them as Radha - Krishna or Radhe Radhe.
Several versions of the couple came out. Some saying that Radha is an elderly woman who was already married to Ayan, some say she is betrothed to him but not married,some saying that she didn't open her eyes till Krishna came to her etc etc. She is now widely regarded as the other half of Krishna's soul. She is considered his equal and by his own treatment as even superior to him.
In this book, we see the deep yearning, longing and a final physical alliance of Krishna with Radha in the groves of Vrindavan forest. The song verses are divided across 12 Acts. Radha and Krishna are in different groves of the Vrindavan forest,waiting for the other to come. Radha becomes restless and impatient waiting for him. She sends her Sakhi to summon him to her. The sakhi goes to Krishna and explains in many verses the pain and suffering of Radha at being alone and bereft of Krishna's company. She sets a rendezvous in the forest and asks Krishna to reach there. Radha waits in the grove the entire night but Krishna doesn't come. She assumes the worst and imagines him dallying in the company of another gopi(milk maid). She imagines him decorating the gopi with flowers and ornaments, making love to her and in the process, forgetting Radha. When Krishna shows up the next morning, covered in marks all over his bluish body, lips swollen and eyes red due to lack of sleep, she is indignant. She lambasts him for spending the night with another woman. He pleads her that he was searching for her all through the night and only then found her, she doesn't readily believe it. Krishna spends the day pleading and begging for her to understand and that night they set out to enjoy carnal bliss in each other's company, with no distraction and doubts. The next morning, after their night of love play, Radha orders Krishna to set her ear rings on her ears, her anklets to her ankles and bangles to her hands and so on and he willingly complies - Without any form of false pride or ego that he is the Lord of the Creation. Such is the nature of Krishna - he becomes a willing and pleasing servant to his ardent devotees .. of whom Radha is foremost.
I felt the usage of certain metaphors like nectar filled moon, bumblebees,red and blue lotus flowers, five arrows of kama deva, mallika flowers, madhavi vines in the kunja of Vrindavan for comparing the state of Krishna and Radha evoked a very visceral sense of bliss in me. I just kept reading without putting down the book even for a little while.
There is a verse where Krishna,in the process of pleasing with Radha, asks her to put her feet on his head. Some say this verse is written by Krishna himself who comes in the guise of Jayadeva while he is out in the river bathing. It means that this love poem is sanctioned and approved by lord Krishna himself.
Do read it but with an open mind. I was shocked at some verses being too openly bawdy but that is the nature of this poem. How to read physical sexuality as spiritual coupling? It's hard but not impossible. Krishna and Radha take it to real heights of elevation ..morphing their physical love into spiritual union.
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