ANĀRĀDHYA RĀDHĀ PADĀMBHOJA REṆUM
ANĀŚRITYA VṚNDĀṬAVĪṀ TAT PADĀṄKĀM
ASAMBHĀÑYA TAD BHĀVA GAMBHĪRA CITTĀN
KUTAḤ ŚYĀMA-SINDHO RASASYĀVAGĀHAḤ

How can anyone enter the Śyāma-ocean of rasa without having worshipped the dust of Śrī Rādhā’s lotus feet, without having taken shelter of Vṛndāvana, where Her footprints lie, and without conversing with those persons whose hearts are deep with loving feelings for Her?

Stavāmṛta Kaṇā Vyākhyā:

Śrīla Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī has named this stava ‘Sva Saṅkalpa Prakāśa Stotram, and in it he reveals all his matchless and rasika desires to learn suitable expertise in devotional service to Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī as a maidservant. The fragrant Pārijāta-flowers that bloom in the heavenly garden of Śrī Raghunātha dāsa’s heart in the form of these prayers for the sweet and rasika sevā of Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Mādhava and Their girlfriends will make the hearts and minds of practising devotees that are greedy for mañjarī bhāva also inebriated and cause the desires in their hearts for similar service to awaken.

In the first verse of this stotra Śrīpāda is stating in a negative way that the way to enter into the deep ocean of Śyāmasundara’s sweetness is by worshipping the lotus feet of Śrī Rādhārāṇī, by taking shelter of Śrī Vraja-dhāma, which is marked by Her footprints and by associating with Śrī Rādhārāṇī’s dear devotees. How can anyone who does not worship the dust from Śrī Rādhā’s lotus feet enter into the secret ocean of Śyāma? Although Śrī Śyāmasundara is sweet erotic mellows personified, the only way to relish that sweetness is to worship the dust of Śrī Rādhā’s lotus feet. Śrī Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī has written in Rādhā Rasa Sudhānidhi (80):

rādhā dāsyam apāsya yaḥ prayatate govinda sangāśayā
so’yaṁ pūrṇa sudhā-ruceḥ paricayaṁ rākāṁ vinā kāṅkṣati
kiṁ ca śyāma rati pravāha laharī bījaṁ na ye tāṁ vidus
te prāpyāpi mahāmṛtāmbudhim aho binduṁ paraṁ prāpnuyuḥ

“Anyone who gives up the service of Śrī Rādhā, desiring Govinda’s personal company, is like someone who wants to enjoy the full moon without the fullmoon night, and anyone who does not know (that Rādhā is) the seed of Śyāma’s pleasure is like someone who only gets a drop of the great ocean of nectar that is available to him!”

Śrīpāda Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī has written: “Worshipping Govinda without honouring Śrī Rādhārāṇī is nothing else but conceit and false pride.”  Śrī Rādhā is the source of Kṛṣṇa’s love and pleasure. kā Kṛṣṇasya praṇaya janibhūḥ śrīmatī rādhikaikā (Govinda Līlāmrta 11,112) “Who is the birthplace of Kṛṣṇa’s love? It is Śrīmatī Rādhikā only!” Therefore, what endeavor could be more ridiculous than trying to enter into the Śyāma-ocean of rasa without worshipping the dust of Śrī Rādhikā’s lotus feet?

Secondly, who can ever enter into the Śyāma-ocean of rasa without taking shelter of Śrī Vṛndāvana-dhāma, which is marked by Śrī Rādhā’s footprints? This Śrī Vṛndāvana is the place where Srī Rādhā’s foot dust is being worshipped. Without taking shelter of Vraja-dhāma the dust from Śrī Rādhā’s lotus feet can never be worshipped. Although Kṛṣṇa’s friend Uddhava from Dvārakā is the samvit mūrti, the very form of transcendental knowledge and wisdom, he prayed that he could take his next birth as a blade of grass in Vṛndāvana, so that he could get the dust of the gopīs lotus feet on his head. Uddhava’s prayers in Śrīmad Bhāgavata prove this – āsām aho caraṇa reṇu juṣām ahaṁ syām vṛndāvane kim api gulma latauṣadhīnām. Who can enter the Śyāma-ocean without taking shelter of Vrajadhāma, the greatest holy place of ecstatic, passionate love of God, where the embodiments of transcendental passionate love, the mahābhāvavatī gopīs, headed by mahābhāva svarūpinī Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, rush towards the Śyāma-ocean like the strong currents of the Gaṅgā and the Yamunā? Hence Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī has said: kuryad vāsaṁ vraje sadā: “One should always live in Vraja…(B.R.S)” Those who are unable to live in this Vraja, which is marked by Śrī Rādhā’s footprints, physically, can attain the same result, viz. the mercy of Śrī Rādhā’s footdust, by living there mentally.

Śrīla Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī has said:

rādhā padāṅka vilasan madhura sthalīke…rādhā vihāra vipine ramatāṁ mano me:

“My dear mind! Always find pleasure in Rādhā’s play forest Vṛndāvana, the sweet place which is marked by Her footprints!”.

Finally, Śrīla Dāsa Gosvāmī says: asambhāṣya tad bhāva gambhīra cittān kutaḥ śyāma-sindho rasa syāvagāhaḥ “Without humbly and submissively conversing with those advanced rasika devotees whose hearts are ‘deep with feelings for Śrī Rādhārāṇī, how can one enter into the sweet Śyāma-ocean?” As a result of attaining the association and the mercy of such great souls, knowledge about Śrī-Śrī Rādhā-Mādhava’s intimate pastimes can be attained – there is no other way. Rasa is svānubhava-gamya, only attainable through one’s own experience, and is only attained by the grace of the rasikas. Thus we hear so many orders from the Mahājanas, such as saṅgena sādhu bhaktānām, rasikā saṅga raṅginām: “rasa can be relished when one takes pleasure in the company of rasika devotees.” Those whose hearts find attachment to and pleasure in the attainment of the company of rasika bhaktas are easily able to relish prema rasa. Hence Śrīla Ṭhākura Mahāśaya has written: rasika bhakta saṅge, rahibo piriti raṅge, vraja pure vasati koriyā (Prema Bhakti Candrikā): “I will always lovingly and blissfully stay with the rasika bhaktas, living in Vraja.”

Because the rasika bhaktas experience these flavors they are also able to bestow this relish to others, by their grace. Those who do not experience this transcendental matter can never transfer this relish onto others.

Śrīla Ṭhākura Mahāśaya echoes this verse by saying in Prema Bhakti Candrikā:

jaya jaya rādhā nāma,      vṛndāvana yāra dhāma,
Kṛṣṇa sukha vilāsera nidhi
heno rādhā guṇa gāna,       nā śunilo mora kāna,
vañcita korilo more vidhi

“All glories to Śrī Rādhā’s holy name, whose abode is Vṛndāvana and who is the jewel of Kṛṣṇa’s blissful pastimes! Fate has deprived me, because my ears did not hear the songs glorifying Śrī Rādhā!”

tāra bhakta saṅga sadā,      rasa līlā prema kathā,
ye kore se pāy ghana-śyāma
ihāte vimukha yei,      tāra kabhu siddhi nāi,
nāhi śuni yeno tāra nāma

“Anyone who associates with Her devotees and always discusses Her rasika loving pastimes with them, will surely attain Ghanaśyāma (Kṛṣṇa), but whoever is against this will never attain perfection; let me not hear his name!”

The target of bhakti sādhanā is to relish the sweetness of the beloved deity. Anyone who wants to be blessed with the savior of the great ocean of sweetness Śrī-Śrī Śyāmasundara should worship Śrī Rādhārāṇī, take shelter of Vraja-dhāma and associate with the great rasika devotees. These three things are compulsory.

This is the path of spontaneous devotion, the great gift of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, which was practiced and preached by the Six Gosvāmīs, headed by Śrī Rūpa and Sanātana.

śrī rādhā padāmbhoja reṇu sevā vine; rādhā padāṅkita vraje āśraya vihane
śrī rādhāra bhāve magna sadā yāra cita; tāra saṅge yei jana hoyeche vañcita
śṛṅgāra rasarāja agādha sindhute; se kemone pāre bolo tāhāte ḍubite