QUESTION:

“What interests me in your post “Please take me by the hand” is why does Srila Ananta das Babaji describe Srimati Radhika as not being nicely dressed while cooking for Krsna in the late afternoon?

Because in the Govinda-lilamrita, it is stated: 

CHAPTER 19 – “Afternoon-pastimes” 

“I remember Shri Radha in the afternoon, cooking different dishes for Her lover after She returns home. She bathes and dresses nicely and is filled with joy from seeing Her lover’s lotuslike face. I also remember Shri Krishna in the afternoon, returning home, followed by His cows and His friends. He is satisfied when He sees Shri Radha and is fondled by His mother when He meets His parents.”

ANSWER:

The blog-entry in question is taken from the commentary of Srila Ananta das Babaji and Srila Ananda Gopal Goswami to verse 46 of Sri Sri Vilapa Kusumanjali.

Srila Ananta das Babaji does not describe Srimati Radhika as “not being nicely dressed while cooking for Krsna in the later afternoon”.

He writes: “The preparations Radhika singlehandedly cooks for Her Prāṇanātha in the evening, on the order of mother Yaśodā, are excellent. She does not wear many ornaments and She cooks alone.”

Of course Srimati Radhika is VERY NICELY dressed…as She always is…my Gurudeva only writes that She does not wear many ornaments. One single ornament on Radhika’s body alone makes Her dressed ” very nicely”.

But let us examine the quoted passage from the GOVINDA-LILAMRITA:

“I remember Shri Radha in the afternoon, cooking different dishes for Her lover after She returns home. She bathes and dresses nicely and is filled with joy from seeing Her lover’s lotuslike face. I also remember Shri Krishna in the afternoon, returning home, followed by His cows and His friends. He is satisfied when He sees Shri Radha and is fondled by His mother when He meets His parents.”

In the AFTERNOON, Srimati Radhika is cooking different dishes for Her Lover AFTER She returns HOME. Actually, Srimati Radhika is cooking for Krishna in different locations (different kitchens).

In the morning, Srimati Radhika cooks in Mother Yashoda´s kitchen and in the evening (late afternoon), She cooks in the kitchen at Her own place in Yavat, AFTER She returns HOME.

In the morning, Srimati Radhikacan can directly watch how Her Beloved enjoys Her preparations and in the evening She experiences it through the narrations of the maidservant(s) who brought the preparations to Krishna. This we can read in Srila Raghunatha das Goswami´s “Vilapa Kusumanjali” through verses 46 to 49 where Tulasi Manjari is with Srimati Radhika and where we can see how she brings Radhika´s dishes to Krishna.

“She bathes and dresses nicely and is filled with joy from seeing Her lover’s lotuslike face” (GL) – this actually happens AFTER the cooking.

When we read on in the Govinda Lilamrita, we find:

Aparāhna-līlā – “Rādhā’s activities at Yāvaṭa”

19/49) Meanwhile, Śyāma priyā, Śrī Rādhikā, arrives home, and the mañjarīs serve to relieve Her fatigue and put Her to rest. Then She and the sakhīs prepare sweets and pān for Kṛṣṇa’s evening late night bhojana.

We can clearly see that the cooking takes place AFTER Radhika takes rest in Her own home. Then:

19/50) Rasavatī Rāi mixes ripe bananas, urad dāl powder, ground coconut, condensed milk, black pepper, cardamom, cloves, nutmeg and cinnamom and fries them in ghī, adding a pinch of camphor. Then She dips them in boiling sugar-water to make the tart called amṛta keli which delights Kṛṣṇa’s senses.

19/51) Then Rādhikā prepares Kṛṣṇa’s favorite karpūra keli. First yoghurt is added to boiling milk to make curd. The curd is placed in a large bowl along with śāli rice powder, yoghurt, sugar, ground coconut, nutmeg, cardamom, cloves and sweet ripe bananas. The mixture is kneaded with the fingers until bubbles form, then it is rolled into a ball that is covered by ground mungh-dāl-powder and fried in ghī. Afterwards, the balls are dropped into a sweet sauce made from condensed milk and honey with a pinch of karpūra (camphor).

19/52) Using the same ingredients, Rādhikā makes pīyūṣa-granthi pālikā. But this time they are made in the shape of a jalepī, fried in ghī and dumped in pañcāmṛta.

19/53) Rādhikā makes anaṅga guṭikā by mixing sugar with cream, adding rice, coconut, nutmeg, cloves, pepper and a pinch of camphor. Then the ingredients are ground together with bananas and cardamom and deep-fried in ghī.

19/54) Rādhikā prepares tarts called sīdhu vilāsa. They are made with bananas, black pepper, milk, sugar, white flour, lots of nutmeg and a pinch of camphor.

19/55) Rasavatī Rāi prepares these five types of sweets which defy the taste of nectar. Hence Kṛṣṇa eagerly enjoys them with loving affection.

19/56) Amongst the five, amṛta keli, karpūra keli and pīyūṣa pālikā are well known in Vraja-maṇḍala. But Rādhikā saves the last two preparations, namely anaṅga guṭikā and sīdhu vilāsa, for Kṛṣṇa’s night time bhojana. They will be relished as the appetisers during madhu-pāna.

19/57) Rādhikā also makes gaṅgā-jala laḍḍus (and other assorted laḍḍus) with cloves, cardamom, camphor, black pepper and sugar.

19/58) Other types of laḍḍus (nārū) are also prepared. They are made with cloves, cardamom, camphor, condensed cream, ground coconut and sugar. Then they are fried in ghī, cloves are added and they are dumped in sugar-water. With the use of cream, a type of pancake called sāra pūpikā (sāra pūrī) is made.

Now comes the bathing, dressing and ornamenting.

19/59) After the cooking, Rādhārāṇī takes Her bath. Then the sakhīs anoint Her body with kasturī and other fragrances and dress Her in a bright red outfit. Rādhā’s hair is tied in a veṇī, colorful designs are painted on Her body, and a red pūrṇa candra kuṅkuma tilaka bindu graces Her forehead. A dot of kastūrī is placed on Rādhā’s chin (resembling a baby-bee), a flower-mālā garlands Her chest and She twirls an Indīvara (blue lotus) in Her hand. A large pearl bobs beneath Rāi’s nose, black añjana is painted around Her eyes, a crown adorns Her head and nīvī bandhana (silken ropes) are tied around Her waist. Rādhā’s lips are red due to chewing pān, flowers decorate Her hair and red āltā is painted on the bottoms of Her caraṇa kamala.

19/60) Next Rādhā Ṭhākurāṇī is decorated with Her renowned dvādaśābharaṇa (twelve ornaments) as follows: Two cūḍāmaṇis (hair-jewels) are placed over both sides of Her forehead with a lalāṭikā (forehead ornament) fastened in the center. Rādhā wears numerous bracelets and bangles on Her wrists (especially nīlamaṇi bangles). Above Her ears are cakra-śalākā ornaments, and kuṇḍalas (earrings) hang from Her ears’ bases. Rādhā’s waist is adorned with a kāñchī (jewelled bell-chain), a number of necklaces grace Her chest and numerous rings are placed on Her fingers. The sakhīs place aṅgadas (armlets) on both Her arms, and nūpuras (ankle-bells) on Her feet, including rings on Her toes. A graiveya (neck-ornament) and a padaka (locket) adorn Her neck.

Then Srimati Radhika goes out to see Her Beloved.

19/61) Thereafter, being anxious to see Kṛṣṇa’s arrival, Rāi Kiśorī and the sakhīs ascend to the room above the roof known as the candra-śālā (moon-tower).

So, first Srimati Radhika rests, then She cooks and then She gets dressed and ornamented. What for? So that Krishna can see Her FULL beauty when She goes up to Her moon-tower to watch Krishna return home. Clearly we can see that in the evening, the setting of the cooking process is quite different from the morning pastime of cooking.