Krishnakarnamrtham-slokas54 to60

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54. aanamraam asithabhruvoH upachithaam aksheenapakshmaankureshu

aalolaam anuraagiNoH nayanayoH aardhraam mrdhou jalpithe

aathaamraam aDharaamrthe madhakalaam amlaanavamSeeraveshu

aaSaasthe mamalochanam vrajaSiSoH moorthim jaganmohineem

 

When am I going to see the beautiful form of the child Krishna, which enchants the whole world, with dark eyebrows slightly bent with thick and heavy eyelashes, his eyes full of mercy and moving, his speech gentle and comforting, his lips red oozing nectar through his sweet playing of the flute ?

 

The form of Krishna, whom Leelasuka calls vrajaSiSu, the child of Gokula, is enchanting the whole world, jaganmohinee moorthy. His eyebrows bhruvaH are dark,asitha and slightly arched, aanamraou and his eyes, which are full of mercy,anuraagiNah, have thick and dense lashes, aksheeNapakshmaankura, his speech, jalpitha, is gentle, mrdhu, and full of compassion, aardhram. His lips are red, aathaamram, and oozing nectar, aDharaamrtha, especially when he plays the flute, the music of which is sweet, madhakalaa, amlaanavamSeerava.

 

55.thathkaiSoram thath cha vakthraaravindham

thatahkaaruNyam the cha leelaakataakshaaH

thath soundharyam saa cha mandhasmithaSreeH

sathyam sathyam dhurlabham dhevatheshu

 

It is truly hard to find, the childhood, the lotus-like face, the mercy, the playful eyes, the beauty, the brilliant smile, in other divine forms.

 

 

Leelasuka says that no other form of deity has all these qualities, like Krishna. His childhood, kaisoram, gives joy to the beholder, His face is like lotus, vakthraaravindham and the eyes show his playfulness, leelaakataakshaaH. Beauty, soundharyam, is combined with mercy, displayed in his sweet smile, mandhasmithaSreeh. All these are rare to find in any other divine personality, durlabham dhevatheshu.

 

56.viSvopaplavaSamanaika badDhadheeksham

viSvaasasthakithachethasaam janaanaam

paSyaamaH prathinavakaanthikandhalaardhram

paSyaamah paThi paThi saisavam muraareh

 

We perceive the firm resolve only to remove all the obstacles in the world for those whose hearts are blossomed with devotion and melt, seeing his glorious form appearing fresh every moment, in the youthful for m of Krishna at every step wherever we proceed.

 

Krishna has taken a vow, badDha eka dheeksha, to remove the obstacles in the world of his devotees, visvaupaplavasamana, who have their hearts filled with devotion, viSvaasasthakithachethassam seeing his lustrous form inside which melts their heart because it gives them joy every moment as though they are seeing him afresh., prathinavakaanthikandhalaardhram. Leelasuka says let us see the young form, Saisavam, of Krishna at every step, paThipaThi, in our path towards salvation.

 

57. mouliH chandhrakabhooshanNaa marakatha sthambhaabhiraamam vapuH

vakthram chithravimugDhahaasa maDhuram baalee vilole dhrSou

vaachaH SaisavaSeethalaa madhagajaSlaaghyaa vilaasassThithiH

mandham mandham aye ka esha maDhuraaveeTheem ithaH gaahathe

 

Who is this who enters the street of Madhura slowly? His crown is decorated by peacock feather. His body is beautiful like a pillar of emerald. His face is sweet-looking with wonderful joyous smile. His eyes are moving here and there. His speech is of cool youthfulness. His gait resembles that of an elephant in rut.

 

In this sloka a girl is asking another about Krishna whom they see entering, gaahathe, the streets of Madhura, maDhuraaveeTheem. He is walking slowly, mandham mandham, with a gait like an elephant in rut, madha gaja vilaasa. When they hear him speak with Balarama and others who were with him his words, vaachaH, sound very cool and youthful, SaiSavaSeethalaa. He is looking around and his eyes are constantly moving, viloladhrSou. His face, vakthram, wears a wonderful smile full of joy, chithravimugDhahaasa, (perhaps expecting to see his parents and to destroy Kamsa for which he has incarnated.). His strong body has the hue of emerald and he looks like a pillar made of emerald. His crown, mouliH, is decorated with peacock feather,chandharkabhooshaNa.

 

58.padhou paadhavinirjithaambujavanou padhmaalayaalankrthou

paaNee veNu vinodhanapranayinou paryaapthaSilpasriyou

baahoo dhohadha bhaajanam mrgadhrSaam maaDhuryaDhaaragiro

vakthram vaagvibhavaathilanGhitham aho baalam kimethath mahaaH

 

Is this lustrous form really a child? His feet, attended by Lakshmi, have conquered the crowd of lotuses by their fractional glory. His hands fond of playing the flute, appear to demonstrate the natyamudras. His arms create desire to the deer-eyed damsels. His words shower nectar. His face excels his speech in expression. It is a wonder indeed.

The form of light which is the boy Krishna looks as though it is the brilliance of puresatthva or of Brahman, the supreme reality. But the former has no limbs while this one has arms feet etc. It is a wonder since such self-illumined brilliance can exist only in Brahman. His feet have won over the beauty of a crowd or forest of lotuses. But the lotus is the abode of Lakshmi and hence how could this be conquered by the feet of Krishna? The answer is given in the next line. It is because the feet of Krishna are padmaalayaalambithou, resorted by Lakshmi who has left her former abode, the lotus. Thus the feet have vanquished the glory of the lotuses. His fingers love to play on the flute and seem to display the mudras of natya. His arms are the seat of desire to the young damsels of Gokula. When he speaks his words seem to shower nectar. But his face is even sweeter and more powerful than his words in being expressive. Hence it creates wonder in seeing the young form of Krishna. Like Narayana bhatdri has done in Narayaneeyam in ten slokas, Leelasuka enjoys the beauty of Krishna from head to foot in just one sloka.

 

59.barham naama vibhooshaNam bahumatham veshaaya SeshaiH alam

vakthram dhvi thri viSeshakaanthilaharee vinyaasa DhanyaaDharam

SeelaiH alpaDhiyaam agamyavibhavaiH Srngaarabhangeemayam

Chithram chithram aho vichithritham aho chithram vichithram mahaH

 

It is a wonder that the peacock feather alone is his favourite ornament and all the other decorations to him are superfluous. It is a wonder that his face sending out the waves of splendour by two or three special aspects along with his charming lips. Thus his form , a personification of love that cannot be perceived by those with mean mentality is a wonder indeed. Thus his form shines amazingly with various wonderful attributes.

 

Leelasuka could not contain his amazement is seeing the form of Krishna which makes him exclaim `chithram chithram aho vichithritham aho chithram vichithram' expressing the wonder so many times. The peacock feather alone is enough to serve as his ornament and what is the purpose served by others, veshaaya SeshaiH alam, and isn't it wonderful, says Leelasuka, even though the gopavesha , the costume of a gopala, the Lord has put on, is decorated wit a lot of ornaments, none is dearer to him, barham naama vibhooshaNam bahumatham, than the peacock feather?

 

Here the mind recalls the sloka of Desika in Yadhavabhyaudhaya, where he says that when the Lord appeared in front of the devas who prayed Him to relieve the earth from the burden of the wicked, his own limbs were so beautiful that the ornaments on His body seemed to be decorated by Him and not vice versa.'angaiH amithasoundharyaiH anukampithabhaashanam.'

 

The face of Krishna sends out luminant waves by two or three, dhvithriviseshakaanthilaharee, special features. His eyes ,cheeks and nose and above all, his smile on his charming lips, all this creating wonder in the mind of the beholder. His whole form is rasamaya, as the Upanishadic declaration goes,'raso vai SaH,' the personification of srngaara,srngaarabhangeemayam, which could be understood only by those who have the intellect to see the real nature of his leelas and not by the people who lack the perception, alpaDhiyaam agamya vishayaiH SeelaaiH, and hence judge his acts from the worldly point of view.To the one who comprehends the real meaning in his actions it is really a great wonder.

 

60.agre samagrayathi kaamapi kelilakshmeem

anyaasu dhikshvapi vilochanameva saakshee

haa hantha hasthapaThadhooram aho kimethath

aaseeth kiSoramayam amba jagathrayam me

 

The indescribabale leela of Krishna is manifest in front in its full glory and also pervades in all directions. As witnessed by my eyes.hence in all the threeworlds I find only Krishna. Yet he eludes my grasp. How lamenatable is this state!

 

Leelasuka sees Krishna everywhere through his devotion .visualising all his sportive actions and his beautiful form so that whreever he looks he sees Krishna alone. But when he extends his hand Krishna eludes his grasp. Leelasuka says what a sorrow it is to see him near yet to find him not when trying to grasp him! This is the experience of all devotees.The Lord plays like this in order to increase the yearning of the devotee to attain Him.

 

The Lord appeared in the heart of Narada in his previous birth when he was meditating but when he started njoying the peresence the form disappeared. When he became desolate, he heard the divine voice of the Lord saying, `sakrth yath dharSitham roopam ethath kaamaaya the anagha;mathkaamaH SanakaiH saaDhuh sarvaan muncChathi hrthChayaan.'(srimad.Bhagavatham-1-6-23)

 

The above sloka means that the Lord showed His form in order to make the desire grow towards Him and a devotee who thus yerns for the darsan of the Lord, gives up all his worldly desires and becaomes pure and then he can enjoy the presence of the Lord forever when the Lord, bound by the shakles of bhakthi could not escape the clasp of the devotee as Nammazvar says, `unnai naan piditthEn chikkenavE' and asks the Lord `inienguppoginradhE,' and tells Him `unnai naan adaindhen viduvEnO.' These lines means that Azvar has clasped the Lord through his devotion and He cannot escape .