Bhakti and Embodiment

by Barbara A Holdrege

  The great abode (mahat pada) known as Gokula [Vṛndāvana] is a thousand-petaled lotus. The pericarp (karṇikā) of that lotus is the great dhāman, the supreme abode (sthāna) of Govinda, which is adorned with a gemladen pavilion (maṇḍapa) in which he is stationed on a golden pīṭha. From the pericarp the petals sequentially unfold in the cardinal directions and the intermediate directions.… Vṛndāvana is the pericarp (varāṭaka) of that thousand-petaled lotus by whose touch the earth is rendered blessed among the three worlds.113

  In its portrayal of the geographic maṇḍala, the Vṛndāvana Māhātmya does not describe in detail all of the concentric rings that constitute the thousand-petaled lotus but focuses instead on the two inner rings of petals that unfold from the pericarp: the innermost ring of eight petals that encircles the pericarp and the second ring of sixteen petals that encircles the first ring. On the eight petals of the innermost ring, which are enumerated in order of the eight directions (four cardinal directions and four intermediate directions), are located particular līlā-sthalas and other sites in the immediate vicinity of Vṛndāvana, such as Kāliya-hrada, the pool where Kṛṣṇa subdued the serpent Kāliya; Dvādaśāditya, the site where, after subduing Kāliya, Kṛṣṇa warmed himself with the rays of the twelve Ādityas; and Cīra Ghat, the site where Kṛṣṇa stole the gopīs’ garments as they bathed in the Yamunā River.114 On the sixteen petals of the second ring are located sites in outlying areas, such as Mount Govardhana and Nandīśvara, the village of Nanda, as well as nine of the forests in the twelve-forest network that is included in the broader pastoral region of Vṛndāvana. The description culminates in a celebration of the forest of Mahāvana on the sixteenth petal, which contains the līlā-sthalas associated with Kṛṣṇa’s early childhood adventures, such as the site where the baby Kṛṣṇa sucked the life-breath out of the demoness Pūtanā and the site where the playful butter thief dragged a mortar between a pair of arjuna trees (yamalārjuna) and uprooted them.115

  While the Vṛndāvana Māhātmya thus correlates many of the petals of its lotus-maṇḍala with important tīrthas that are also found in the pilgrimage networks delineated by the Mathurā Māhātmya of the Varāha Purāṇa, the Vṛndāvana Māhātmya’s geographic maṇḍala is not a pilgrimage maṇḍala. It is not a pilgrimage map designed to guide pilgrims in their circumambulation of the tīrthas, but rather, I would argue, it is a cognitive map designed to aid bhaktas in their meditative visualization of Kṛṣṇa’s earthly abode. Immediately following its description of the geographic maṇḍala, the Vṛndāvana Māhātmya declares that the greatest of sages are always one-pointedly devoted to meditation (dhyāna) on this most recondite (gopita) of places in the three worlds.116

  Vṛndāvana as the Abode and Body of Govinda

  The Vṛndāvana Māhātmya of the Padma Purāṇa, like the Bhāgavata Purāṇa, provides lavish descriptions of Vṛndāvana as a pastoral paradise that engages the entire sensorium with its lush, vine-laden forests and groves; undulating streams flowing with sweet waters; fragrant, multicolored flowers; iridescent displays of dancing peacocks; and melodious sounds of intoxicated cuckoos and bees. Like the Bhāgavata, the Vṛndāvana Māhātmya celebrates not only the multisensory delights of the environment but also the existential qualities of the place, whose residents are portrayed as Vaiṣṇavas of pure nature (śuddha-sattva) who are immersed in the bliss of preman for Kṛṣṇa and free from vices such as egoism, anger, and jealousy.117 However, in contrast to the Bhāgavata, which distinguishes Kṛṣṇa’s earthly abode in Vraja from the transcendent abode to which he returns at the end of his earthly sojourn, the Vṛndāvana Māhātmya insists that Kṛṣṇa’s earthly abode and his transcendent abode are simply two aspects of his singular dhāman known as Vṛndāvana. Vṛndāvana is celebrated as that eternal (nitya), nonchanging (avyaya), transcendent (parama or para) domain that exists beyond the material realm of the Brahmā-universes (brahmāṇḍopari-saṃsthita) and at the same time exists on earth in its full glory (svayaṃ bhuvi).118 The Vṛndāvana Māhātmya portrays the terrestrial Vṛndāvana as endowed with the qualities of the transcendent Vṛndāvana and as the most hidden (guhya) and recondite (gopita) place on earth. Although located in the material realm of prakṛti, it does not partake of the guṇas and is eternal (nitya), imperishable (akṣara), nonchanging (avyaya), and free from suffering, old age, and death.

  Glorious Vṛndāvana is delightful, the abiding-place of the fullness of blissful rasa (pūrṇānanda-rasāśraya). There are abundant wish-fulfilling gems, and the water is full of the taste of ambrosial nectar (amṛta).… It is free from sorrow and suffering, free from old age and death, and free from anger, jealousy, divisiveness, and egoism. It abounds with the fullness of the blissful ambrosial nectar of rasa (pūrṇānandāmṛta-rasa), an ocean filled with preman and joy (pūrṇa-prema-sukhārṇava). The great dhāman is beyond the guṇas (guṇātīta), its essential nature full of preman (pūrṇa-prema-svarūpaka).… Vṛndāvana on earth is eternal (nitya) due to contact (sparśa) with the dust of his [Kṛṣṇa’s] feet.… The most hidden of the hidden (guhyād guhyatara) places on earth, Vṛndāvana is the delightful, imperishable (akṣara), nonchanging (avyaya) abode (sthāna) of Govinda that consists of transcendent bliss (paramānanda).119

  The special nature of Vṛndāvana in both its transcendent and immanent aspects, according to the Vṛndāvana Māhātmya, derives from its status as the abode (dhāman or sthāna) of Govinda—as the transcendent domain where Kṛṣṇa abides eternally in his divine body as a cowherd youth (kaiśora-vigraha) and as the geographic place where he walked the earth in Dvāpara Yuga. The above passage asserts that the eternality of the terrestrial Vṛndāvana is “due to contact (sparśa) with the dust of his feet”: Kṛṣṇa’s feet touched the earth and marked it with his bodily traces, and the landscape thereby became infused with his bodily presence. The Vṛndāvana Māhātmya ultimately maintains that Vṛndāvana is nondifferent (abhinna) from the body (deha) of Kṛṣṇa, and therefore the very touch (sparśa) of its dust is liberating:

  It [Vṛndāvana] is nondifferent (abhinna) from the body (deha) of Govinda and the abode of the joy of pūrṇa Brahman. Liberation (mukti) is attained there by the touch (sparśa) of the dust.120

  Invoking the trope of the thousand-petaled lotus, the Vṛndāvana Māhātmya declares that Vṛndāvana, as the pericarp (karṇikā) of the lotus, and the Yamunā River, which flows with blissful ambrosial nectar (ānandāmṛta) around the pericarp, are in the final analysis nondifferent (abhinna) from Kṛṣṇa and constitute a single body (vigraha): “The Kālindī [Yamunā], pericarp [Vṛndāvana], and Kṛṣṇa are nondifferent (abhinna). They are one body (vigraha).”121

  The Vṛndāvana Māhātmya continually extols Vṛndāvana’s incomparable status as the most recondite of all places (sarva-sthaneṣu gopita), which is the most hidden of the hidden (guhyād guhyatara), the most secret of the secret (rahasyānāṃ rahasya), and the most difficult of the difficult to access (durlabhānāṃ durlabha).122 Through such expressions it seeks to signal that although the earthly Vṛndāvana is endowed with transcendent qualities, its transcendent nature is hidden and is not visible (adṛśya) to the material eye (carma-cakṣus); it cannot be perceived by the material senses (agocara).123 This point is emphasized in the following passage from chapter 75 of the Vṛndāvana Māhātmya, in which Kṛṣṇa reveals Vṛndāvana-rahasya, the secret of Vṛndāvana, to the celestial ṛṣi Nārada:

  This delightful Vṛndāvana is my [Kṛṣṇa’s] only dhāman. Those who reside here in my presence (sākṣāt)—whether cows, trees, insects, humans, or gods—at death attain their ultimate end in me. Those cowherd wives who reside here in my abode (ālaya) are connected with me. The gods are devoted to me. This forest [Vṛndāvana], measuring five yojanas, is my divine body (deva-rūpaka). This Kālindī [Yamunā], which flows with transcendent nectar (paramāmṛta), is called the suṣumṇā, the central channel [of my body]. The gods and othe
r beings exist here in subtle forms (sūkṣma-rūpatā). And I, who pervade it completely, will never leave this forest, although my appearance (āvirbhāva) in and disappearance (tirobhāva) from this place occur yuga after yuga. This abode (sthāna) consisting of blazing splendor (tejo-maya) cannot be seen (adṛśya) with the material eye (carma-cakṣus).124

  This passage represents Vṛndāvana, Kṛṣṇa’s “only dhāman,” as having both earthly and transcendent dimensions. The animals, trees, human beings, and other beings who reside with Kṛṣṇa in his earthly abode in Vṛndāvana are promised a place with him in his transcendent abode when they leave their mortal bodies. The forest itself, which is a delimited geographic area of five yojanas (approximately forty miles), is ascribed a transmundane status as the divine body (deva-rūpaka) of Kṛṣṇa, which he abides in eternally and never leaves. The Yamunā River whose waters flow through the terrestrial forest is also allotted a transmundane status as the central channel that flows with transcendent nectar (paramāmṛta) through the divine body. While the earthly Vṛndāvana can be perceived by the material senses, its transcendent aspect is described as made of tejas, blazing splendor, and thus “cannot be seen (adṛśya) with the material eye (carma-cakṣus).” The implication of this passage, which the Vṛndāvana Māhātmya elaborates on elsewhere, is that ordinary human beings do not have the capacity to access the hidden dimensions of Vṛndāvana, for the material senses cannot penetrate beyond the surface manifestations to its transcendent reality. While the terrestrial features of the Vṛndāvana forest and the Yamunā River can be perceived by the material senses, their transcendent dimension, in which they are nondifferent (abhinna) from the divine body of Kṛṣṇa, can only be “seen” (root dṛś) with the nonmaterial eye of knowledge by those who attain through meditation direct experiential realization of Kṛṣṇa’s transcendent abode.

  As we shall see, both Rūpa Gosvāmin and Jīva Gosvāmin cite variants of this passage that are critical to the Gauḍīya ontology of Vṛndāvana, although they identify the source as the Bṛhadgautamīya Tantra, not the Padma Purāṇa.125 This fact supports my conclusion that the Gosvāmins had in their possession a version of the Padma Purāṇa that did not contain the Vṛndāvana Māhātmya chapters (with the exception of some of the material found in chapter 73). If the Gosvāmins did have access to these chapters, they certainly would have quoted the Padma Purāṇa’s version of this passage rather than the Bṛhadgautamīya Tantra’s version, because, as I discussed in Chapter 3, the Gauḍīyas ascribe transcendent authority to the Purāṇas as part of an expanded Vedic canon, whereas they do not allot comparable śāstric authority to Pāñcarātra texts such as the Bṛhadgautamīya Tantra.

  Vṛndāvana as a Cosmographic Lotus-Maṇḍala

  Having provided in the opening section of chapter 69 a cognitive map of the terrestrial landscape of Vṛndāvana in the form of a geographic lotus-maṇḍala and having established that the geographic place is endowed with transcendent qualities, the Vṛndāvana Māhātmya turns to an extended exposition of Vṛndāvana as a cosmographic lotus-maṇḍala in the closing section of chapter 69 and in chapter 70.

  The Vṛndāvana Māhātmya’s account of the cosmographic lotus-maṇḍala begins with a description of the luminous octagonal yoga-pīṭha that is located in a palace in the center of Vṛndāvana, in the pericarp (karṇikā) of the thousand-petaled lotus. The yoga-pīṭha is extolled as the “supreme abode (sthāna) of Govinda” where he sits on a gem-laden throne in the midst of an eight-petaled lotus whose petals coincide with the eight corners of the octagonal yoga-pīṭha.

  In the center of Vṛndāvana… in the center of a beautiful palace (bhavana) there is a luminous yoga-pīṭha. Fashioned with eight corners, it is captivating in its manifold splendor. On it is a magnificent throne laden with rubies and other gems. An eight-petaled lotus, the seat of joy, is in the pericarp (karṇikā). That is the supreme abode (sthāna) of Govinda. How can its glory be described?126

  The Vṛndāvana Māhātmya recommends meditating (root dhyā) on Kṛṣṇa, the Lord of Vṛndāvana, who is served on the yoga-pīṭha by a group of cowmaidens. It then provides the basis for the process of visualization by describing in lavish detail every part of the wondrous divine body (adbhuta-vigraha) of the cowherd Kṛṣṇa, from his dark, glossy curls adorned with peacock feathers to the lustrous jewel-like nails of his lotus-feet, which are extolled as the source of pūrṇa Brahman.127

  The account continues with a description of the seven concentric rings that constitute the thousand-petaled lotus-maṇḍala and that radiate outward from the pericarp of the lotus where Kṛṣṇa is seated on his throne along with his consort Rādhā. Kṛṣṇa and Rādhā are encircled by the eight most beloved gopīs, who surround the throne in the innermost ring of eight petals. These eight gopīs, who are seated on the eight petals in the eight corners of the octagonal yoga-pīṭha, are identified with the eight prakṛtis, the eight aspects of primordial matter, for they are considered partial manifestations (aṃśas) of Rādhā, who is celebrated as mūla-prakṛti, the primordial source of all matter.128

  [One should meditate on] Govinda seated together with Rādhā on a golden throne.… In the yoga-pīṭha in the area surrounding the golden throne are the foremost among Kṛṣṇa’s beloved cowmaidens, every part of their bodies (aṅgas) filled with passion.… They are the eight auspicious prakṛtis and are foremost among Kṛṣṇa’s beloved cowmaidens.129

  The innermost ring of eight gopīs is surrounded by a second group of eight gopīs, who together with the original eight are identified with the sixteen prakṛtis and correspond to the second ring of sixteen petals.130 These two circles of gopīs are in turn encircled by a third ring comprising myriads of Kṛṣṇa’s female devotees, including cowherd maidens (gopa-kanyās), maidens who embody the Vedic mantras (śruti-kanyās), and divine damsels (deva-kanyās).131

  According to the Vṛndāvana Māhātmya’s cosmographic hierarchy, the three inner rings of the lotus-maṇḍala, in which a retinue of gopīs and other female devotees surround Kṛṣṇa and Rādhā on their throne, are located inside the palace, while the fourth ring is “outside the palace” (mandirasya bāhye).132 In the fourth ring are stationed four gopas who are Kṛṣṇa’s close friends among the cowherd boys and who are represented as the guardians of the four doors of the palace corresponding to the four directions.133 They are surrounded in turn by a fifth ring comprising myriads of gopas and their cows.134

  The Vṛndāvana Māhātmya’s sectarian interests are most evident in its representations of the two outermost rings of the lotus-maṇḍala, which it relegates to the periphery of the cosmographic hierarchy by correlating them with domains that are outside of—and hence lower than—the domain of Vṛndāvana proper where Kṛṣṇa presides in his essential form (svarūpa) as the cowherd Govinda. In the sixth ring are stationed the four vyūhas—Vāsudeva, Saṃkarṣaṇa, Pradyumna, and Aniruddha—who are represented as the guardians of the four directions and are portrayed elsewhere in the Māhātmya as manifestations of Kṛṣṇa associated with Mathurā and Dvārakā.135 Finally, in the seventh ring is stationed Viṣṇu, who as a “one-tenth portion” (daśāṃśa) of Kṛṣṇa136 is assigned to a subordinate position in the periphery of the lotus-maṇḍala where he manifests as four Viṣṇus—white, red, golden, and black—who assume the role of the outermost doorkeepers guarding the four directions.137

  As mentioned earlier, I would contend that the Vṛndāvana Māhātmya’s account of the thousand-petaled lotus-maṇḍala is directly modeled after the corresponding account found in the second chapter of the third pāda of the Bṛhadbrahma Saṃhitā, although it re-visions certain portions to give primacy in its cosmographic hierarchy to Kṛṣṇa’s abode over that of Viṣṇu, who is generally referred to as Nārāyaṇa in the Bṛhadbrahma Saṃhitā account. In order to support my contention, I would like to briefly review the Bṛhadbrahma Saṃhitā’s account and highlight the paralle
ls and differences between the two texts’ representations. The Bṛhadbrahma Saṃhitā, like the Vṛndāvana Māhātmya, represents Mathurā-maṇḍala as a thousand-petaled lotus with seven concentric rings (āvaraṇas), with Kṛṣṇa enthroned on an octagonal yoga-pīṭha in the pericarp (karṇikā or varāṭaka) of the lotus. Using nearly identical language and imagery to that found in a Vṛndāvana Māhātmya passage quoted earlier, the Bṛhadbrahma Saṃhitā describes Vṛndāvana as the most hidden of the hidden (guhyād guhyatama) places, which exists simultaneously in the transcendent domain of Goloka and on earth and maintains its eternal (nitya), imperishable (akṣara) status even on the terrestrial plane.

  Glorious Vṛndāvana is delightful, the abiding-place of the fullness of blissful rasa (pūrṇānanda-rasāśraya). The ground yields wish-fulfilling gems, and the water is full of the taste of ambrosial nectar (amṛta).… It is free from sorrow and suffering, free from old age and death, and free from anger, jealousy, divisiveness, and egoism. The great dhāman is beyond the guṇas (guṇātīta), its essential nature consisting of prema-bhakti (prema-bhakti-svarūpaka).… It is hidden (gūḍha), the most hidden of the hidden (guhyād guhyatama) places, by virtue of its being both inside and outside, situated in Goloka and also on earth.… It is the imperishable (akṣara), eternal (nitya), supreme (uttama) abode (sthāna) whose essential nature is bliss (ānanda-svarūpa).138