I constantly remember the foot dust of Śrī Rādhikā, whose unlimited power instantly subdues even the Supreme Person (Śrī Kṛṣṇa), Who Himself cannot be easily seen even by the greatest devotees like Lord Brahmā, Lord Śiva, Śukadeva Muni, Nārada Muni and Bhīṣma.

Commentary:

In this verse Śrīpāda is in his sādhakāveśa (external consciousness as a male devotee of Śrīman Mahāprabhu), glorifying the greatness of Śrī Rādhā’s foot-dust.
One may ask whether the word puruṣa in the verse does not refer to Kṛṣṇa’s puruṣāvatāra Mahā Viṣṇu, but the answer to this is that pure love of Govinda in the mood of Vraja is only attainable on the strength of Śrī Rādhā’s foot-dust.

In the Brahma Saṁhitā Kṛṣṇa is also called ādi puruṣa or parama puruṣa (śriyaḥ kāntāḥ kāntaḥ parama puruṣaḥ) in connection with His love alliances with the gopīs. Kṛṣṇa’s childhood-pastimes were still slightly perceived by Brahmā, Śiva and Nārada, but His romantic pastimes in adolescence were not seen by them nor by anyone else who identifies himself with his male body.

Caitanya Caritāmṛta states:

sabe ek sakhīgaṇera iha adhikāra;
sakhī vinā ei līlāra anyera nāhi gati

“Only Kṛṣṇa’s girlfriends can enter into this, no one else.”

The worship in Vraja is one of pure sweetness and those who worship Kṛṣṇa in awe and reverence cannot attain Him in Vraja, for there He is the God of divine sweetness:

aiśvarya jñāne nāhi pāy vraje vrajendra nandana
rāga bhaktye vraje svayaṁ bhagavān pāy
vidhi bhaktye pārṣada dehe vaikuṇṭhe yāy

“One who worships Kṛṣṇa spontaneously will attain Vraja and one who worships Him according to rules and regulations will become the Lord’s associate in majestic Vaikuṇṭha.”

Brahmā, Śiva, Śuka, Nārada and Bhīṣma are devotees of the latter kind, and by them the sweetness of Govinda is barely perceived. The great power of Śrī Rādhā’s foot-dust easily controls that Supreme Person, Śrī Kṛṣṇa.

Śrīla Ṭhākura Mahāśaya (Narottama Dāsa Ṭhākura) sings:

rādhikā caraṇa reṇu, bhūṣaṇa koriyā tanu,
anāyāse pābe giridhārī
rādhikā caraṇāśraya, ye kore se mahāśaya,
tāre mui yāu bolihāri

“If you decorate your body with Rādhikā’s foot-dust, you will easily attain Giridhārī. I praise that great soul who takes shelter of Rādhikā’s lotus-feet!”

The only means to subdue Śrī Kṛṣṇa is love and devotion.

The Upaniṣads say: bhaktivaśaḥ puruṣaḥ – The limit of love is called mahābhāva.

Caitanya Caritāmṛta says:

prema krame bāḍi hoy sneha māna praṇaya;
rāga anurāga bhāva mahābhāva hoy
premera parama sāra mahābhāva jāni
sei mahā-bhāva rūpā rādhā ṭhākurāṇī

“Prema gradually grows into sneha, māna, praṇaya, rāga, bhāva and mahābhāva. The highest stage of prema is mahābhāva and goddess Rādhā is the very form of that mahā-bhāva.”

Innumerable streams of the honey of mahā-bhāva flow from Śrī Rādhikā’s lotus-feet, therefore it is understandable that Kṛṣṇa is wholly controlled by the dust of Her lotus-feet.

Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī has written in his Bhakti Sandarbha (187): prema tāratamyenaiva bhakta mahattāratamyaṁ mukhyam – “The more prema you have the greater you are.”

In his ‘Ānanda Candrikā’-commentary on Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī’s ‘Ujjvala Nīlamaṇi (Sakhī-prakaraṇa, text 6)’, Śrī Viśvanātha Cakravartīpāda writes:

sa ca premā jātyā ananto’pi kvāpi paramāṇu mātraḥ kvāpi parama mahān kvāpi mahān kvāpyapekṣika nyūnādhikyamaya iti catuḥ parimāṇakaḥ
tatrādyo’jāta ratikeṣu bhakteṣu teṣu premṇo durlakṣyatvat bhagavato’dhīnatvam api durlakṣyam eva
dvitīyo vṛndāvaneśvaryām eva tatra premṇaḥ saṁpūrṇatamatvena adhīnatvam api saṁpūrṇatamatvam eva
atha tṛtīyo vrajaloka eva tatra premṇo mahattvena adhīnatvam api saṁpūrṇam eva na tu saṁpūrṇatamam
atha caturtho nāradādiṣu teṣu teṣu premānurūpam adhīnatvam

“Although there are unlimited varieties of love, they can be classified fourfold according to their amount. The ordinary practitioners have an atomic amount of love, devotees like Nārada Muni and others have love in greater or lesser amounts, the people of Vraja have great love of Kṛṣṇa, and Śrī Rādhikā, the queen of Vṛndāvana, has the greatest love. Naturally, therefore, She also controls Him to the greatest extent.”

When Śrīpāda says: tāṁ rādhikā caraṇa reṇum anusmarāmi – “I constantly remember Rādhikā’s foot-dust”, he aims at aṣṭa-kālīṇa-līlā-smaraṇa, 24-hour meditation on Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa’s daily pastimes. This is the main item of rāgānugā bhakti, or spontaneous devotion. Without remembering God, the mind is lifeless and the dogs and jackals of lust and anger can freely play in it.

The sweetest meditation is that of Śrī-Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes. One should not try to remember these pastimes according to a regular schedule. This is a dead and stale practise. The experience must be spontaneous.

An example is given hereby:

One of the most famous Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava saints in recent history was Śrī Kṛṣṇa Dāsa Bābājī. He was also called siddha baba (a saint who had attained perfection) and he lived in the town of Govardhana in the 19th Century. One day a devotee came to him, crying. When Bābā asked this devotee why he was crying, the devotee said: “Today I could not do any bhajana (devotional practise)! In the morningtime I (mentally) put a ring on Śrīmatī Rādhikā’s right hand, but I became so absorbed in the sweetness of Her hand that I could not take my mind away from it anymore for the rest of the day (although he was supposed to proceed in his service according to the schedule of aṣṭa-kalīna-līlā-smaraṇa)!” Bābā was very pleased and he told the devotee: “Today you have really done bhajana!”

This is called anusmaraṇa or ‘constant remembrance’. A devotee who constantly practises smaraṇa can gradually attain such a condition. The Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇavas practise devotion internally by remembering the transcendental pastimes of Śrī-Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa and/or Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and externally by hearing and chanting about these pastimes. Thus, at the time of death, they may be able to enter into the Lord’s eternal pastimes. This is the highest perfection of life.

vedavaktā padmāsana, tantra-vaktā pascānana,
śuka, śrī nārada, bhīṣma kori.
deva nara munigaṇa, ye harira daraśana,
sahasā nā pāya dhyāna kori

kintu ki āścarya śuno, sei to puruṣottama,
nava ghana nandera nandana
rādhikā caraṇa nidhi, parāga ye siddhauṣadhi
yāra śire kore daraśana

“Nor Lord Brahmā, the speaker of the Vedas who sits on a lotus-flower, nor the five-headed Lord Śiva, who speaks the occult Tantra scriptures, nor Śukadeva, the speaker of Śrīmad Bhāgavata, nor Śrī Nārada, Bhīṣma, the demigods, human beings or the wise men can easily attain the Supreme Person, Lord Hari, within their meditations. But listen, how amazing! On the head of that son of Nanda, who shines like a fresh raincloud, one can find the foot-dust of Śrī Rādhikā, which is like a magic herb.”

tāhāra premete hari, āpana vikroy kori,
avicāre vaśībhūta hon
ananta śakati pūrṇa, rādhā pādapadma cūrṇa,
parāmṛta parama ratana

“Hari sells Himself to Her love and totally submits Himself to Her. The dust from Rādhā’s lotus-feet is full of unlimited power and is the highest nectar and the highest jewel.”

bhane śrī prabodhananda, rādhā pada makaranda,
daraśe paraśe bhāgya hīna
kuñjeśvarī kṛpā koro, padareṇu nirantara,
smaraṇa koribo anudina

“Śrī Prabodhānanda sings: I am so unfortunate because I cannot see or touch the honeylike feet of Rādhā! O Queen of the bowers! I constantly remember the dust of Your feet! Be merciful to me!”

from “Śrī-Śrī Rādhā Rasa Sudhānidhi”
(English commentary based on the Bengali commentary made by Śrī Madhusūdana Dāsa Adhikārī, Prabhupāda Śrīla Ananda Gopāla Gosvāmī and Rādhākuṇḍa Mahānta Paṇḍita Śrīmat Ananta Dāsa Bābājī Mahārāja)

Translated by Sri Advaita das