krishnakarnamrtham-slokas 18 and 19

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18.tharuNaaruNa karuNaamaya vipulaayatha nayanam

kamalaakucha kalaSeebhara vipuleekrthapulakam

muraleerava tharaleekrtha munimaanasanalinam

mamakhelathu madhachethasi maDhuraaDharam amrtham

 

May the form of Krishna , with nectar-like sweet lips, his eyes beautiful and red at the corners like a lotus and filled with mercy and wide, his body with horripilation due to the contact with that of Lakshmi,(who is in his chest), the sound of music from his flute transforming the firm hearts of the sages into tenderness, play in my heart which is intoxicated with love.

 

His eyes are aruna, red at the edges like a lotus, and wide, vipula, with mercy, karuNaamaya, towards his devotees and aayatha, long. His whole body shows the horipilation, vipuleekrthapulakam, resulting from the embrace of Lakshmi , The music that arises from his flute, muraleerava, makes the heart of the sages, munimaanasa, solidified with penance , become tender, nalineekrtha.

 

Amrtham means immortal and the nectar is called amrtha as it was supposed to create immortality to those who take it. Here the amrtha is the nithya paripoorNa paraanandaikarasasaaram, the eternal rasaanubhava of the presence of the Lord, who is rasa itself. `raso vai sah.' The heart of Leelasuka is intoxicated, madha chethas, with love, premarasa. When the lovely form of the Lord is visualized in the mind the rasanubhava or joy experienced by it rises as a series of waves never ending.

 

The form of Krishna is a vision of beauty, sweetness and tenderness. He is filled with joy not only by the embrace of Lakshmi but also due to the love of his devotees, like the gopis . His eyes ,long and charming like red lotuses, express the mercy he feels towards the devotees and hence wide open as Andal said , `chengaNN siruchiridhE emmEl vizhiyaavo---angaN irandum kondu engaL mEl nOkkudhiyEl.'

 

Visualising Krishna is not possible without his flute on his lips from which flows sweet music that melts even the hardest heart. Leelasuka says that even the hearts of sages who have become hardened by years of penance become tender on hearing the music and they are distracted from their Samadhi. The idea is when the brahmananda, the bliss absolute is available so easily who would waste his time on stringent measures like penance etc.

 

Leelasuka says elsewhere that those who try to understand the meaning of the Upanishads tiring themselves by roaming around inthe forest of the Vedas can find the essence of the Upanishads in the house of Nanda tied to the mortar.(KK.2.28)

 

The words maDhurADharam and kamala are explained by some commentators thus:

 

maDhuraaNi aDhararaythi ithi maDhraaDharam , that which makes the well-known sweet objects inferior. Thus it means the form of Krishna which is described and not the lips. Otherwise maDhuram Dhaarayathi (sarvaangeshu) ithi madhuraaDharam, the form which has sweetness all over.

 

Kamala normally means Lakshmi, while the followers of Chaithanya cult take it to mean Radha. But it is explained as anyone who is filled with love of Krishna , kam, Krishna sukham, thena alam , athiparyaaptham bhavathi ithi kamala. Meaning the one who is filled with the joy of Krishna.

 

 

19.aamugDham arDhanayanaambujachumbyamaana

harshaakula vrajavaDhoomaDhuraananendhoh

aarabDhaveNuravam aatthakiSoramoortheh

aavirbhavanthi mama chethasi ke api bhaavaah

 

My mind experiences certain inexplicable emotions visualizing the form of Krishna manifest as a young boy, who just begins to play the flute and his moon like face create joy to the gopis , who look at him with half closed eyes as though kissing him with their eyes.

 

The contact of eyes with the face is compared to kissing.

AmugDham , lovely in all respects.

The eyes half closed resemble lotuses, arDhanayanaambujam. The gopis look at the moon-like face of Krishna, maDhuraananendhu, with their eyes half closed as in kissing, But at the same time they are filled with joy, harshaakula as he starts playing the flute, aarabDhaveNuravam.

 

The joy expressed by the gopis and their eyes looking at the face of Krishna as if they are kissing his face with their eyes, and Krishna beginning to play the flute and his young form, aatthakiSoramoorthi , all thse create inexpressible emotion, kea pi bhaavaah in the mind of Leelasuka.