Krishnanandalahari- Yadhavabhyudhya of vedantadesika-chapter8 Venugaanam and Ras

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VenugAnam

In Bhagavatham we have the following sloka which shows that the rasaleela took place in autumn and not in spring.

bhagavanapi thA rAthreeh SaradhOtpulla mallikAh

veekshya ranthum manaschakrE yogamAyam upASrithah (Bh.10-29-1)

The Lord seeing the nights of autumn with jasmine blossoms wished to perform His leela making use of His yogamaya.

But Desika describes the season as spring, perhaps thinking that spring season is more appropriate than autumn for rAsa, which is permissible as poetic freedom.

The music that flowed from the flute of Krishna was like a second veda.

mukundha vakthrAnila vAdhyamAnaH

vEnuh babhou veda iva dhvitheeyah

rAgAvadheenAm rahasA yadhEkam

geethAthmanAm thasya nidhAnam Aseeth

The sound of the flute was the secret call of the gopis in the form of music to denote the utmost love.This was compared to the veda through pun on the words, geetha, raga and rahasa. Raga denotes the attachment and Bhagavatgita is the cause of removing it and contains the secret of the upanishads.

The venugana enslaved all beings from Brahma down to animals and birds. 'ayathnanishpanna manassamAdheen AbrahmakAn AthanuthEva janthoon.' All beings resembled the yogins by their concentrated listening to the music as though in samadhi. All beings stood still as in a painting,'AlEkhya nishpandha mrgadhvijAni.' Periazvar who has allotted ten pasurams to describe the venugana says 'ezudhu chitthirangal pOla ninranavE.' Not only the animate but also the plants and trees were attracted by the music, says Perizvar, describibg how the trees bent down towards the direction of music and showered flowers etc.

Then krishna blew his horn which was like Panchajanya and sang songs, the standard of which was beyond the comprehension of even the gAndharvaveda.

AdhyApayAmAsa sa srngamagryam

shankham thathAbhootham iva AthmayOgAth

jagou cha gEyAni bahooni yEshAm

gAndharva vedo api na paradhrSvA

Desika describes the music thus:

thrisTHAnayukthasvarabhooshitham thath

thriDHA sTHitham grAmaviSEsha yogAth

aranjayath sapthajaganthyayathnAth

geetham harErAhrtha kinnarougham

The music of Krishna attracted even the kinnaras, who are supposed to be skilled in music, and delighted all the worlds with its reach in three octaves, mandhra,madhya and thAra sThAyees,based on the three svaras,shadja, madhyama and gandhara, that arise from the three sources of sound, heart, throat and the head.

The music that came from the flute of Krishna was like manthra which pulled the gopis. (Perhaps like the sarpa manthra chanted to draw the snakes out of their residence!) It was like a dialogue between him and the gopis declaring his intention to enjoy their company.Hence the gopis started from their homes towards him. They proceeded to the place where Krishna was as though drawn by a rope, guNAvakrshtAh, being drawn by his gunas, the word guna meaning both rope and attributes.

AdhiSyamAnAm priyavamSanAdhaih

ASAm nijASAm iva nirvighAthAm

thaTHAsTHithAm prAsTHishatha ASu DHanyAm

Asanna sanDHyADhika rAgabhAjah

The gopis hurried towards the direction where Krishna stood playing the flute and their love, raga, was even more than the raga (colour) of the sandhya, the sunset.Desika refers to the direction, ASA, where Krishna was, by the epithets nijASAm nirvighAtham aAdhiSyamAnAm, that which indicated the unobstructed fulfilment of their desires and dhanyAm, blessed because of the association with Krishna.

They rushed towards Krishna, not heeding the words of elders, because they were like rivers,overflowing with raga,(melody of the music as well as their love) rushing towards the sea of nectar, Krishna, who is the destroyer of all misery.

aninyirE rAgamayaiH mahOghaih

klESApaham krishna suDHA payODHim

As the rivers gather momentum by the great floods and rush towards the sea, the gopis, filled with raga , love for Krishna, were drawn by the raga from his flute and sped towards the sea of nectar, Krishna, who is klESapaha,the remover of all troubles.Bhakthi is like a river rushing towards the Lord, unmindful of all worldly obstacles, drawn by His gunas, and knowing Him to be the only source of joy unmixed by klESA, ills of the samsara.

The quick breathing of the gopis went before them, says Desika,as though wishing to bring Krishna,who is with sadhAgathiprArThana.

Let us see what this means:

sadhAgathi has three meanings, namely devas, Vayu, the windgod and the etymological meaning, of sath+Agathi, welcome.Krishna is referred to as sadhAgathiprArThanA samEtha because,

1. He was prayed to (prArThithah) by the devas (sadhAgathins) and Vayu wanted to bring him near them.

2.Vayu thought that Krishna was praying to him and hurried to unite him with the gopis.

3. Krishna desired the sadhAgathi of the gopis, that is to welcome them and hence Vayu wanted to bring him to them.

When the gopis went in a hurry the pearls from their neck ornaments fell on the floor and it looked as though they were the flowers strewn on a stage by the suthradhara before the beginning of a dance, thus foretold the beginning of the rAsa.

They saw Krishna standing under a kadamba tree in a delightful pose playing the flute which Desika describes thus:

avasThitham kvapi kadhamba moolE

valgusmitham vadhitha manjuvENum

sAcheekrthAksham dhadhrSuh tharuNyah

svAdhyam sathAm svasthika chArujangham

He was standing under a kadamba tree with a beautiful smile,playing the flute.He was looking at the holes of the flute with half closed eyes and having one knee bent and crossed. Desika describes his pose as 'svAdhyam sathAm' delightful to the sages

Periazvar describes this beautifully as "idavanarai idatthOLodu saitthu, irukaikooda puruvam nerindhEra" and "siruviralgal thadavu ipparimara, chengan kOda seyyavAi koppaLippa"

'Krishna bent his left hip and left shoulder with both hands together, with arched eyebrows,his fingers moving along the flute and his eyes like red lotus slanted and his red lips puckered'

Among the gopis who came and surrounded him, Krishna shone like a king elephant among his herd of female elephants with his garland of peacock feathers flowing like the rut and the flute resembling the trumpeting sound of the elephant.