The Shrimad Bhagwat has a whole chapter, of twenty verses, upon the Venu Geet. Such beauty of poetic literature is rare, even in Sanskrit. Shri Shukadevji Maharaj commences, by saying:
"Parikshit, with the coming of the Sharad ritu, Shri Krishna entered the forest with the cowherd boys. Padmas bloomed in the lakes, and a fragrant breeze blew gently."
'Padmaakarasugandhinna' means that padma would come, herself, to Vraja, and decorate each flower to ensure that the Lord did not forget her. She also desired to give Him pleasure, through the fragrance of her hands.
Look- what is the essence of Vrindavan? One is the mountain, Giriraj. Another is the following river and the third is the lucid lake. The lucid lake is the heart of the Lord's devotees. The river is the thought process, which flows ceaselessly towards the Lord, and the Giriraj is the unshakable faith in the Lord. That means that in the seat of love, Vrindavan, the pure hearts of devotees, and their godly thoughts, help each other and their faith is rock steady.
Spring is called Madhu. Shri Krishna is the Madhupati- the Lord of Spring. So, His coming is heralded by the blooming of beautiful flower, the buzzing of bees in the fresh green of trees, and the chirping of flocks of birds. The Lord of Spring, Shri Krishna, enters this beautiful forest, along with Balaramji and the cowherd boys, to graze the cows. When the Lord went into the forest, He played His flute. The sound was so sweet that hearing it, the Gopis were filled with ecstatic love.
There are many kinds of rasas. Those who consider the Lord their son, feel Vatsalya. Some call Vatsalya a rasa, and some call it a bhava. In the same way, Sakhya is considered a rasa by some, and a bhava by others. In Bhavabhuti's opinion, only karuna is a rasa- 'e' ko rasah karuna e'va. Other rasas are only variations of 'Karun' rasa. The Sadhu-Mahatmas have said that the only rasa is the Shanta rasa- 'shaantopi navamorasah'.
Prem and Madhur are acknowledged romantic rasas. Shringar rasa is not just a rasa- it is the king of rasas. That is why Bhojraj has said, "I do not acknowledge any other emotion, except Shrinagar-:shringaar e'va rasah."
Now consider what the Gopis and Gopas are. Those who imbue the sweetness of Shri Krishna through their sense organs, are called Gopas and Gopis. They do not meditate, they do not apply minds, they do not take up the position of being a sakshi, and nor do they decide that they are one with the Brahman. On the contrary, they imbue the sweetness of the Lord with open eyes, and other sense organs. That is why they are called Gopas and Gopis.
The Shruti, and the Vrittis are called Gopis. So are the subtle nerve channels like the Ida and the Pingla. The ancient texts have defined them, but those who try to study the texts without the guidance of a knowledgeable teacher, are not able to grasp the full purport.
All worldly desires of the Gopis were dispelled, when they heard the sound of the Lord's flute. Their hearts were filled only with a desire for Shri Krishna- 'venugeetam smarodayam.' As soon as they thought of Shri Krishna, they craved to obtain Him. It was as though He came and stood before them, and they were saying, in their heart:
Shri Krishna is entering Vrindavan, with His companions. He wears a peacock feather on His head, and yellow flowers on His ears. A golden garment covers His body, and He wears the Vaijayanti Mala, which is a long, fragrant, multicolored garland. He has dressed up as beautifully as a Hero in a play. He fills the holes of His flute with the nectar of His lips. The gwaal baals follow Him, singing His glories. Our land, called Vrindavan, is superior even to Vaikunth and the Lord's footprints make it even more beautiful.
Now, how did Shri Krushna become 'varhaapeeedam'-the one with the peacock feathers on his head? It is said that while dancing with the pet peacock of Sri Radharani, a feather fell off from the peacock. Shri Krishna picked it up, and more it on His head. Since then, He always wore peacock feathers on His head. This is how He was given the name of Varhapeeda.
Shri Krishna is like the Hero of a play, like the bridegroom. The 'varenya' of the Gayatri Mantra has become the 'vara' here. That is what makes Him 'natavaravapu'.
The word 'Ishwara' contains the root 'Isha', and the 'vara' is a suffix. The 'var' in Ishwara, means authority, so Ishwara is the Lord of the whole world, the husband of all. This form of Shri Krishna is a role, chosen by Him, but He is, without doubt, the undisputed Master.
The blue tinge of Shri Krishna is enhanced by the ornaments and garments, which intersperse His body. The golden yellow garment He wears, is the color of Shri Radharani's complexion. He wears a vana mala, bracelets, armlets and other ornaments. As a result, the blueness of the exposed parts of His body, appears even lovelier. The nectar of Shri Krishna's lips-which pours into the holes of His flute- is not ordinary nectar. It is a divine elixir. That is why His flute sounds divine, too. His divinity is the reason for His footprints decorating Vrindavan. It is this, which makes Vrindavan superior (and more beautiful) than Vaikunth, which is the Lord's normal abode.
One Acharya (scholar) has written that when Shri Krishna goes to the forest and sees the footprints of Shri Radharani, He covers them with His pitambar, to protect them from the heat of the sun.
What is Shri Radharani? A worshipper- 'aaraadhikaa'- is called Radhika- 'saa radhika araadhikaa.'
Vrindavan is a place of such love, that all the objects here-the vines and creepers, the trees and shrubs, animals and birds, even the grains of dust- are all worth contemplating upon. Contemplative objects cannot be inanimate. They are chinmay.
The music in the hearts of the Gopis becomes vocal. The passionate love which fills their hearts rises up to be expressed. The love may have been born by love-making or by the pangs of separation, or by pathos-because the pangs of separation make a person pitiful. The Gopis, therefore, began to tell each other-
"My dear friend, the purpose of having eyes is not to witness. It is not meditation. Then- why have we been given eyes? Have we been given eyes so that we can see Shyamsunder Shri Krishna. The purpose of having eyes is fulfilled only when we see him."
After this, the Gopis began to see Shri Krishna everywhere. They saw that the vines were oozing honey, when they heard the sound of Shri Krishna's flute. The Devis forgot themselves, the does stated unblinkingly, the cows forgot to graze, and the calves forgot to suckle. Their bodies tingled with ecstasy, and they had tears in their eyes, and Govind in their hearts.
"Look - even the peacocks are dancing at the sound of the flute. Peace envelopes the entire atmosphere. The birds on the trees watch Shri Krishna with their eyes wide open. The water of the Yamuna is stilled - it has ceased to flow. She is presenting the lotus flowers to Shri Krishna, and the earth is ecstatic.
Oh, my friend! Is there any division of caste, and status for Bhakti? No, of course not! Even the semi wild tribals are Bhaktas. Peacocks are Bhaktas, cows are Bhaktas, the earth is a Bhakta and even the trees and creepers are Bhaktas. Bhakti abides where the Lord is, where His touch is, because is the nature of every creature to love.
My friend, when Shri Krishna wears the cows' nohana like a garland and the rope to catch the cows with on His head like a cap, He looks so attractive that everybody stops moving. They stop and stare, as though the spirit which enables us to see and hear is temporarily stupefied."
The Gopis would thus spend their time talking and singing about the nature of Shri Krishna, while he was away in the forest. The devotees of the Lord always spend their time, when separated from Him, by singing His glories. This fills their hears with a surge of love for the Lord.
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