20240911 Rādhāṣṭamī Address

mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim
yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande śrī-guruṁ dīna-tāraṇam
paramānanda-mādhavam śrī caitanya īśvaram
Harihi oṁ tat sat

Jayapatākā Swami: So today is the auspicious day of Rādhāstami. Today that Rādhārāṇī appeared. It is a very special day because Rādhārāṇī is the pleasure potency of the Lord. All the queens in Dvārakā, all the gopīs, all the Lakṣmīs, they all come from Rādhārāṇī. So, Rādhārāṇī has the very special potency and Kṛṣṇa expands into Rādhārāṇī. And Rādhārāṇī, as you heard is completely intending to give pleasure to Lord Kṛṣṇa. Nārada Muni knew that when Lord Kṛṣṇa appeared, His internal potency would also appear. So, he was going around trying to find out where that pleasure potency was. He went to the house of Vṛṣabhānu and Kīrtidā. But they did not show Rādhārāṇī to him, because She kept Her eyes closed, so they thought well, She is a blind baby, what is the use?!

But Nārada Muni asked, “Do you not have any baby girl?”

They said, “Yes we have one but She is blind!”

Nārada Muni said, “Let me see!”

They came and gave Rādhārāṇī in the hands of Nārada Muni. He had never seen any baby so beautiful! As soon as Rādhārāṇī touched him, he because stunned and speechless. So, they were looking on, Nārada Muni was like frozen and tears were rolling down his eyes.

So, after sometime he gave back Rādhārāṇī and he said, “You take care of Her very nicely because She is very important.”

The same thing that was said to Nanda and Yaśodā about taking care of the Lord. So the same thing he told Vṛṣabhānu and Kīrtidā about Rādhārāṇī.

So you heard from His Holiness Vighna-vināśa Narasiṁha Mahārāja how when Kṛṣṇa was in the same crib as Rādhārāṇī, He crawled over and looked at Rādhārāṇī, She opened Her eyes. She wanted to see Kṛṣṇa first! So, Nārada Muni, he went in the forest and he was praying that he could see Rādhārāṇī in Her kiśorī form and She appeared to him along with Lalitā sakhi. Normally, those who do austerities for days of Brahmā, they get to see Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī. So this was a special mercy of Rādhārāṇī to Nārada Muni.

In the Śikṣāṣṭaka, the last prayer it says, Kṛṣṇa, You may bring me close, or You may step on me, but You are always my only Lord! So this prayer was spoken by Rādhārāṇī. And Lord Caitanya, put it in His Śikṣāṣṭaka. So Lord Caitanya taught that we should serve Kṛṣṇa in separation. This is the mood of Rādhārāṇī. We can do that because we are actually separated. So, we should be fully conscious of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa.

One time, Rādhārāṇī, She was in Navadvīpa and She had created the Navadvīpa dhāma. She blew on the flute, she played the flute very enchantingly. So, Kṛṣṇa was wondering who was playing on the flute! I never heard anyone else play the flute so beautifully, He thought. So Kṛṣṇa came and then He saw it was Rādhārāṇī playing the flute!

And He said, “You have made this beautiful dhāma for Me! So, this dhāma will have all the holy places, they will appear here.”

Like Vṛndāvana, it would have the same potency. So, in Navadvīpa dhāma, any devotional service done brings a thousand times the benefit. But in Vṛndāvana also any offence done is a thousand times serious! But in Navadvīpa dhāma the offences are not multiplied like that. So, Rādhārāṇī is the creator of Navadvīpa dhāma. Navadvīpa dhāma has Antardvīpa and eight other islands, these nine are corresponding to the nine processes of devotional service. Sīmantadvīpa, Godrumadvīpa, Madhyadvīpa, Koladvīpa, Ṛtudvīpa, Jahnudvīpa, Modadrumadvīpa, and Rudradvīpa (and Antardvīpa). So the Jagannātha temple is in Sīmantadvīpa. And Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura’s house and Surabhi-kuñja, they are in Godrumadvīpa.

So Rādhārāṇī designed this Navadvīpa dhāma for the pleasure of Lord Kṛṣṇa! So, in Varṣāṇā, there is the artist who drew Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa dancing in the mood of peacock and peahen. But this artist, he was blind! But his painting is very beautiful. Apparently, Rādhārāṇī and the gopīs, they were looking at a peacock dancing.

So Kṛṣṇa came up and said, “Usually You look at Me, but why are You looking at the peacock?”

Rādhārāṇī said, “The peacock is dancing!”

So then Kṛṣṇa went by the side of the peacock and started to dance!

Then He asked Rādhārāṇī, “How is this?”

She said, “Alright, but the peacock is better!”

Then He started dancing more intensely.

So then He was asking Rādhārāṇī, “How is this?”

She would say, “Better, almost like the peacock.”

So then Kṛṣṇa He would really dance and that attracted Rādhārāṇī, She got up and She danced with Kṛṣṇa! There is also a place I don’t know, what they call the place, but it is on top of a hill near Varṣāṇā, and there Rādhārāṇī, She was on a scale, a balance. So Kṛṣṇa told the gopīs that if want Rādhārāṇī you have to give gold. So the gopīs were taking out their bangles and putting them on the other side of the balance. So they put so much gold that the gold outweighed Rādhārāṇī. So like this Kṛṣṇa and Rādhā, They have unlimited pastimes.

Apparently, I was told today that Śrīla Prabhupāda was staying with some congregational members and both husband and wife, they told Śrīla Prabhupāda please tell us some stories of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa.

He said, “You are not advanced enough!”

So then they said, “No, no, we are advanced, you can tell us some pastime of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa.”

He said, “You may be advanced but I am not!”

These pastimes are very confidential and so, in 1970 in Calcutta, Śrīla Prabhupāda gave me sannyāsa. So today Rādhārāṇī it is my 54^th anniversary of sannyāsa! And I normally would stay in Māyāpur but I was requested to stay in Malaysia. Apparently, this class is simultaneously being translated in Māyāpur and here.

So I will speak a few words in Bengali. Do you all know Bengali?

Today is the special day of Rādhāṣṭamī because on Rādhāṣṭamī Rādhārāṇī appeared with the sole purpose of expanding kṛṣṇa-bhakti. Malaysia is pretty close to Māyāpur and we have cheap tickets from here to go to Kolkata! From Kolkata we can go to Māyāpur. So, if you have the opportunity do come to Māyāpur. Now Rādhārāṇī created this Māyāpur dhāma, this dhāma is especially for doing devotional service. Māyāpur residents, I send you my blessings: Kṛṣṇe matir astu!

So like that, we are simultaneously having class in Māyāpur and here in Kuala Lumpur. So today also Viśākhā devī appeared on the same day as Rādhārāṇī. So, Lalitā and Viśākhā, Viśākhā is one of the confidential associates of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī. Many temples, they have Rādhā Kṛṣṇa, Lalitā and Viśākhā. So, Viśākhā appeared today.

After our convention in Johor Bahru, Kṛpāsindhu’s mother had an accident and she is in the ICU,. So if you can pray for her, her name is Acchammā.

Śrīla Prabhupāda was telling us if we go in front of Rādhā and Mādhava and Rādhārāṇī tells Kṛṣṇa, this is a good devotee, please accept him, then all success is guaranteed!

So, we asked Śrīla Prabhupāda, “Why Kṛṣṇa has His fast till midnight? And Rādhārāṇī we only fast till noon! Why is that?”

Śrīla Prabhupāda said, “Rādhārāṇī is more merciful!”

So, today they had noon time abhiṣeka in Māyāpur and then they had different programs for the rest of the day. Here it is a working day in Kuala Lumpur, so all the festivities and abhiṣeka were held in the evening. Oṁ Tat Sat!