The Glories Of Srimati Radharani By Srila Krishnadas Kaviraja Goswami

Sri Radha Thakurani is the embodiment of mahābhāva. She is the repository of all good qualities and the crest jewel among all the lovely consorts of
Lord Krishna.

Of these two gopis (Radharani and Candravali), Srimati Radharani is superior in all respects. She is the embodiment of mahābhāva, and She surpasses all in good qualities. Her mind, senses and body are steeped in love for Krishna. She is Krishna’s own energy, and She helps Him in His pastimes.

ānanda-cinmaya-rasa-pratibhāvitābhis
tābhir ya eva nija-rūpatayā kalābhiḥ
goloka eva nivasaty akhilātma-bhūto
govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi

“I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, who resides in His own realm, Goloka, with Radha, who resembles His own spiritual figure and who embodies
the extensions of Her bodily form and who are imbued and permeated with ever- ecstatic potency (hlādinī). Their companions are Her confidantes, who embody – blissful spiritual rasa.”

The beloved consorts of Lord Krishna are of three kinds: the goddesses of fortune, the queens, and the milkmaids of Vraja, who are the foremost of all. These consorts all proceed from Radhika.
Just as the fountainhead, Lord Krishna, is the cause of all incarnations, so Sri Radha is the cause of all these consorts. The goddesses of fortune are partial manifestations of Srimati Radhika, and the queens are reflections of Her image. The goddesses of fortune are Her plenary portions, and they display the forms of vaibhava- vilāsa. The queens are of the nature of Her vaibhava- prakāśa. The Vraja-devīs have diverse bodily features. They are Her expansions and are the instruments for expanding rasa. Without many consorts, there is not such exultation in rasa. Therefore, there are many manifestations of Srimati Radharani to assist in the Lord’s pastimes.
Among them are various groups of consorts in Vraja who have varieties of sentiments and mellows. They help Lord Krishna taste all the sweetness of the rāsa dance and other pastimes.

govindānandinī rādhā, govinda-mohinī
govinda-sarvasva, sarva-kāntā-śiromaṇi

Radha is the one who gives pleasure to Govinda, and She is also the enchantress of Govinda. She is the beall and end- all of Govinda, and the crest jewel of all His consorts.

devī kṛṣṇa-mayī proktā
rādhikā para-devatā
sarva-lakṣmī-mayī sarvakāntiḥ
sammohinī parā

The transcendental goddess Srimati Radharani is the direct counterpart of Lord Sri Krishna. She is the central figure for all the goddesses of fortune. She possesses all the attractiveness to attract the all- attractive Personality of Godhead. She is the primeval internal potency of the Lord.”

‘devī’ kahi dyotamānā, paramā sundarī
kimvā, Krishna-pūjā-krīḍāra vasati nagarī

‘Devī’ means resplendent and most beautiful. Or else it means the lovely abode of the worship and love sports of Lord Krishna.

kṛṣṇa-mayī – kṛṣṇa yāra bhitare bāhire
yāṅhā yāṅhā netra paḍe tāṅhā kṛṣṇa sphure

kṛṣṇa-mayī means one whose within and without are Lord Krishna. She sees Lord Krishna wherever She casts Her glance.
kṛṣṇa-mayī means that She is identical with Lord Krishna, for She embodies the mellows of love. The energy of Lord Krishna is identical with Him. Her worship (ārādhana) consists of fulfilling the desires of Lord Krishna. Therefore, the Purāṇas call Her Radhika.
“Truly the Personality of Godhead has been worshiped by Her. Therefore, Lord Govinda, being pleased, has brought Her to a lonely spot, leaving us
all behind.”
Therefore, Radha is parama-devatā, the supreme goddess, and She is worshipable for everyone. She is the protectress of all, and She is the mother of the entire universe.
Radha is the original source of all the goddesses of fortune. She fully represents the six opulences of Krishna. Therefore, She is the supreme energy of Lord Krishna.

sarva-saundarya-kānti vaisaye yāṅhāte
sarva-lakṣmī-gaṇera śobhā haya yāṅhā haite

The word ‘sarva- kānti’ indicates that all beauty and luster rest in Her body. All the laksmis derive their beauty from Her.
Kānti may also mean all the desires of Lord Krishna. All the desires of Lord Krishna rest in Srimati Radharani. Srimati Radhika fulfills all the desires of Lord Krishna. This is the meaning of sarva-kānti. Lord Krishna enchants the world, but Sri Radha enchants even Him. Therefore, She is the supreme goddess of all.
Sri Radha is the full power, and Lord Krishna is the possessor of full power. The two are not different, as evidenced by the revealed scriptures. They are indeed the same, just as musk and its scent are inseparable, or as fire and its heat are non-diferent.

Thus Radha and Lord Krishna are one, yet They have taken two forms to enjoy the mellows of pastimes. To promulgate prema-bhakti (devotional service in love of Godhead), Krishna appeared as Sri Krishna Caitanya with the mood and complexion of Sri Radha.