Rasa Saṅketa

Now I will begin to briefly explain the process of rasa. All of you please listen attentively. Those who have the ability to understand this principle will be attracted to songs concerning sambhoga-rasa etc.

The sentiments of undivided mellows are called rāsa (that which leads to pastimes of rasa) which is considered by the Vedānta to be the ultimate attainment for a jīva.* That rasa is the most perfect thing, the very life of Vaikuṇṭha, and a diligent jīva is very attentive to its cultivation. * Bhoga-mātra-sāmya-liṅgāccha – “There is only a similarity (between the jīva and Īśvara) in regards to enjoyment.” (Vedānta-sūtra 4.4.21)

Vibhāva, anubhāva, and sañcārī – these three kinds of bhāva are primarily manifested by the Supreme Enjoyer. When they become relishable as sthāyī-bhāva (permanent emotions), they become rasa. This conclusion is certainly established in the alaṅkāra-śāstra (literature on poetics and aesthetics). *

* sthāyī-bhāvo vibhāvānubhāvaiḥ sañcāribhis tathā / svādyatvaṁ nīyamāno’sau rasa ity abhidhīyate — Sthāyī-bhāva, when enhanced with vibhāva, anubhāva and sañcari becomes relishable and is known as rasa. (Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī – Vaiṣṇava Toṣaṇī 10.43.17)

Cit-tattva (the principle of spiritual consciousness) is the very existence of the ātmā, and rati (attraction) is its inherent quality, hence rati is sthāyī-bhāva, and you should understand its significance. You should know that the primary characteristic of rati is the awareness of those favourable circumstances which are full of increased hankering.

That bhāva which is the specific shelter of rasa is termed vibhāva because it is the cause of relishing rati. Vibhāva is of two kinds – ālambana (that which supports) and uddīpana (that which stimulates), without which, rati cannot be awakened.

Ālambana is of two types – viṣaya (the object of love) and āśraya (the subject in love). Rati is situated in the āśraya, and it is distributed to the viṣaya. Both the devotee and Kṛṣṇa are the āśraya and viṣaya respectively. Know for certain that they are mutually engaged in acts of love.

Kṛṣṇa and the qualities and endeavours of His devotees are called uddīpana (stimuli). O devotees, you should know these to be the activities of rati. Those that are wise declare that in the absence of ālambana and uddīpana, rati does not express itself.

Anubhāva is of two types – āṅgika (physical expressions) and sāttvika (emotional expressions). Dancing, singing, rolling on the ground etc, are transformations of āṅgika. Paralysis, perspiration, faltering of the voice, horripilation, fainting, trembling, tears, and discolouration – these are the eight sāttvika-bhāvas.

The wise say that vibhāva is the cause of the awakening of rati, and the activities of that are anubhāva (that which reveals spiritual emotions). The thirty-three types of emotions, such as detachment, are called sañcārī. In relation to rati, they sometimes act as auxiliary emotions. *

* kāraṇāny atha kāryāṇi sahakārīṇi yāni ca / tānyeva vyapadiśyante vibhāvādyākhyā rase — Causes, effects, and assisting factors, which bring about the experience of rasa, are referred to as vibhāvas and the like in the context of rasa. (Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī – Vaiṣṇava Toṣaṇī 10.43.17) In this context, it is to be understood that the sthāyī-bhāva known as rati, itself transforms into rasa. Vibhāva is the cause, Anubhāva is its effect, and Sañcārī or vyabhicārī-bhāva are the assisting emotions. Once the essence of rasa-tattva is understood, one can then comprehend vraja-tattva.

With the appearance of vibhāva in terms of the āśraya and the viṣaya, the emotion known as sambandha (relationship) arises in the heart. The bhāva found within the five relationships of śānta (neutrality), dāsya (servitude), sakhya (friendship), vātsalya (parental love), and śṛṅgāra (conjugal love) is the playground of rati.*

* śāntiḥ prītis tathā sakhyaṁ vātsalyaṁ priyatā ca saḥ / jñānādarasva-tulyatva-kṛpā-vallabha-bhāvataḥ — Peace, affection, friendship, parental love, and conjugal love arise from knowledge, respect, equality, compassion, and the state of being beloved. (Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī – Vaiṣṇava Toṣaṇī 10.43.17)

Under the shelter of the ingredients of anubhāva, vibhāva etc, rati, which is the embodiment of all relationships, increases within the heart. Rati thus takes the form of prema (divine love), sneha (affection), praṇaya (deep affection), mana (pride), raga (attachment), as well as anurāga (deep attachment) and mahābhāva (supreme ecstasy).*

* ratiḥ-prema-tathā-snehaḥ praṇayo māna-rāgakau / anurāga-mahā-bhāvāvete bhāvakramā matāḥ — Rati, prema, sneha, praṇaya, māna, rāga, anurāga, and mahābhāva – these are considered the successive stages of bhāva. (Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī – Vaiṣṇava Toṣaṇī 10.43.17)

When one attains fully nourished rati, which is the rasa known as śṛṅgāra, one naturally experiences the rāsa-līlā in Vṛndāvana. The blissful rasa of Kṛṣṇa, who is the embodiment of supreme joy, arises in the jīva’s heart, and he becomes absorbed in bhakti.

The joys of karma, yoga, and Brahman are like glow-worms in comparison to the sun of the bliss of Kṛṣṇa.* They all dissolve and fade away into the waves of divine rasa. Then, only the bliss of rasa playfully dances.

* brahmānando bhaved eṣa cet parārdha-guṇī-kṛtaḥ / naiti bhakti-sukhāmbhodheḥ paramāṇu-tulām api — Even if the bliss of Brahman were multiplied by billions of times, it could not compare to even a single particle of the ocean of happiness found in bhakti. (Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 1.1.38)

I have analysed the direction of that rati which is meant for Kṛṣṇa. In the bound jīvas it becomes materially perverted, and when that mutated rati is cultivated, the ātmā becomes far away from Kṛṣṇa, displaying great endeavour in trying to enjoy the objects of the senses.

The āśraya for material rati is the wicked mind. Physical forms etc. become the objects of one’s sādhana. Fascination with the mundane becomes one’s uddīpana, and through material sambandha, one’s emotions become perverted.

At the moment, scriptures on mundane attachment under the name of alaṅkāra are in vogue amongst the common people.* As time goes on, the explanations concerning spiritual attachment are becoming lost – for this reason, sādhus recognise the avatāra of Śrī Caitanya.

* laghutvam atra yat prokta? tat tu prākṛta-nāyake / na kṛṣṇe rasa-niryāsa-svādārtham avatārini — (Ujjvala-Nīlamaṇi 1.21) From this statement in Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi, it can be understood that the attachment related to a worldly hero is insignificant, and the descriptions in alaṅkāra-śāstra (mundane texts of poetic ornamentation) reflecting this type of attachment are nothing but despicable distortions. I have the intention to later publish a separate collection of alaṅkāra that reflect the independent and unique nature of spiritual rasa.

Elevated attachment is the jīva’s true nature, and inferior attachment leads to actions that result in his decline. In both states, some similar appearance is always seen – know for certain that it is merely a shadow or a reflection of the ideal.

Nevertheless, one is prākṛta (mundane) and the other is aprākṛta (transcendental). For a mundane jīva, the former is insignificant, detestable, and as worthless as ash. The transcendental principle of divine attachment (rati-tattva), which is auspicious for the jīva, is the wealth of devotees such as Śiva, Śuka, Nārada etc.

If you wish to enter into eternal rasa, do not harbour attachment or aversion towards māyika objects. Observing the attachment that is produced from illusory things, seek out spiritual attachment and abandon dry intellectual knowledge.*

* anugrahāya bhaktānāṁ mānuṣaṁ deham āsthitaḥ / bhajate tādṛśīḥ krīḍaḥ yāḥ śrutvā tat-paro bhavet — In order to show mercy to His devotees, the Lord assumes a human-like form and performs pastimes that attract those who hear about them to become dedicated unto Him. (Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.33.36) From this statement made by Śukadeva in the Rāsa-pañcādhyāya of the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam, it is to be understood that, by observing the mundane dealings of love influenced by māyā and knowing the truth of the highest love (parama-rati) in relation to both the finite consciousness (aṇu-caitanya) and the supreme consciousness (vibhu-caitanya), all jīvas should accept themselves to be in a state of bhāva as the maidservants of the gopīs. In doing so, they will embrace their eternal femininity and acknowledge Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Male, as their one and only eternal husband.

O brother! I know for certain that this reality is true! Without kṛṣṇa-bhakti, there is nothing else for you. Without kṛṣṇa-bhakti, everything else is insignificant and worthless. They all bestow inauspiciousness and are temporary and insubstantial.

I will call you a man of wholesome conduct when you live your life in this world free from duality, taking shelter at the feet of Gurudeva, who is non-different from Śrī Caitanya, and worshiping that treasure which is the Divine Couple in the abode of Vaikuṇṭha.

When you become indifferent to both life and death, you will become like a fish swimming in the ocean of mellows and divine attachment for Kṛṣṇa. Possessing a mood free from all distressing activities, and showing compassion to all jīvas, kṛṣṇa-bhakti will manifest within your heart along with these qualities.

Abandoning all useless arguments concerning form or formlessness, you will drink bhakti-rasa and see Kṛṣṇa everywhere. When you consider all jīvas to be equal, I will call you a man of wholesome conduct.

That Bhakti, who specifically reveals the cit potency, the principle of vraja-bhāva, and embodies mādhurya-rasa, is known only by the grace of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. She pierces through the expansive net of māyā and purifies the desire for merging into Brahman. May she who fully relishes the pastimes of Vaikuṇṭha awaken within my heart.