So we are continuing our series on the five types of relationships (rasa’s) with the Lord. Today we are exploring the Paternal Devotional stage of Love of God (Vatsalya-rasa) as explained in chapter 43 of “The Nectar of Devotion”.
When ecstatic love develops into the relationship of parenthood and becomes steadily established, the relationship is called vatsalya-rasa. The exhibition of this vatsalya-rasa standard of devotional service can be found in the dealings of Krishna with His devotees who represent themselves as superior personalities like father, mother, teacher, etc.
Learned scholars have described the impetuses of parental love for Krishna, existing in the elderly personalities who are in relation with Him, as follows: “The Supreme Personality of Godhead, whose bodily complexion is just like a bluish, new-grown lotus flower, whose body is very delicate and whose lotus eyes are surrounded by scattered hair as black as bees, was walking on the streets of Vrindavan when Mother Yasoda, the beloved wife of Nanda Mahārāj, saw Him. Immediately the milk began to flow from her breasts, soaking her body.” Some specific provocations for parental love of Krishna are listed as His blackish bodily hue, which is very attractive and pleasing to see, His all-auspicious bodily features, His mildness, His sweet words, His simplicity, His shyness, His humility, His constant readiness to offer respect to the elderly, and His charity. All of these qualities are considered ecstatic provocations for parental love.
Following is a list of respectful personalities who enjoy parental affection toward Following is a list of respectful personalities who enjoy parental affection toward Following is a list of respectful personalities who enjoy parental affection toward Krishna: 1) Mother Yasoda, the Queen of Braja, 2) Mahārāj Nanda, the King of Braja, 3) Mother Rohini, the mother of Balarama, 4) all the elderly gopīs whose sons were taken away by Lord Brahma, 5) Devaki, the wife of Vasudeva, 6) the other fifteen wives of Vasudeva, 7) Kunti, the mother of Arjuna, 8) Vasudeva, the real father of Krishna, and 9) Sāndīpani Muni, Kṛṣṇa’s teacher. All these are considered respectable elderly personalities with parental love for Krishna. This list is in order of superior importance, and thus we can see that Mother Yasoda and Mahārāj Nanda are considered to be the supermost of all elderly personalities.
In Śrīmad-Bhagavatam, Tenth Canto, 9th Chapter, 2nd verse, Śukadeva Gosvāmī gives Mahārāj Pariksit a description of the form and beauty of Mother Yasoda. He says, “My dear King, the wide hips of Mother Yasoda were surrounded by silk and linen clothes, and her breasts were flowing with milk because of her affection. When she was churning butter and tightly holding the rope, the bangles on her hands and the earrings on her ears were moving, and from the nice decoration in her hair the flowers were slackening and falling down. Due to her excessive labor, there were drops of perspiration on her face.“
There is another description of Mother Yasoda in a devotee’s prayer: “Let me be given protection by Mother Yasoda, whose curly hairs are bound with thread, whose hair is very brightly beautified by the vermilion placed in the part and whose bodily frame derides all her ornaments. Her eyes are always engaged in seeing the face of Krishna, and thus they are always filled with tears. She has a complexion like the bluish lotus flower, which is enhanced in beauty by her dressing herself with many colorful garments. Let her merciful glance fall on all of us so that we may be protected from the clutches of maya and smoothly progress in our devotional service!”
There is the following description of Mother Yaśodā’s affection for Krishna: After rising early in the morning, Mother Yasoda first of all offered her breast milk to Krishna, and then she began to chant various mantras for His protection. Then she would decorate His forehead very nicely and bind His arms with protective talismans. By all of these activities, it is definitely understood that she is the emblem of all maternal affection for Krishna.
The description of Nanda Mahārāj’s bodily features is as follows. The hairs on his head are generally black, but some of them are gray. His garments are of greenish color, like the new-grown leaves of a banyan tree. His belly is fatty, his complexion is exactly like the full moon, and he has a beautiful moustache. When Krishna was a baby, one day He was walking in the courtyard, capturing the finger of His father, and because He could not walk steadily He appeared to be almost falling down. While Nanda Mahārāj was giving protection to His transcendental son in this way, all of a sudden there were drops of tears in his eyes, and he became overwhelmed with joy. Let us all offer our respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of King Nanda!
Childhood age, childish dress, movements by the child, sweet words spoken by the child, nice smiling and various forms of childish play are considered provocations for increasing the parental love for Krishna. The childhood ages of Krishna are divided into three periods: the beginning of kaumara age, the middle of kaumara age and the end of kaumara age. During the beginning and middle of the kaumara age, Kṛṣṇa’s thighs are fatty, and the inner part of His eyes are whitish. There are signs of teeth coming out, and He is very mild and gentle. He is described as follows: “When Krishna had only three or four teeth coming out of His gums, His thighs were fatty, His body was very, very short, and He began to enhance the parental love of Nanda Mahārāj and Mother Yasoda with the activities of His childish body. He was sometimes stepping with His legs again and again, sometimes crying, sometimes smiling, sometimes sucking His thumb and sometimes lying down flat. These are some of the different activities of the child Krishna. When Krishna was lying down flat, sometimes sucking the toes of His feet, sometimes throwing His legs upwards, sometimes crying and sometimes smiling, Mother Yasoda, seeing her son in such pastimes, did not show any sign of restricting Him, but rather began to watch her child with eagerness, enjoying these childhood pastimes.”
These are some of the signs of parental love for Krishna by His mother, father and elderly persons. Symptoms of ecstatic love in parental affection are expressed when Krishna is accepted as the son. These constant transcendental emotions for Krishna are called steady ecstasy in parental love.
Śrīla Rupa gosvāmī states herein that according to some learned scholars, the three kinds of transcendental mellow so far described-namely, servitude, fraternity and parental affection-are sometimes mixed up. For example, the fraternal feelings of Balarama are mixed with servitude and parental affection. Similarly, King Yudhiṣṭhira’s attraction for Krishna is also mixed with parental affection and servitude. Similarly, the transcendental mellow of Ugrasena, Kṛṣṇa’s grandfather, is mixed with servitude and parental affection. The affection of all the elderly gopīs in Vrindavan is a mixture of parental love, servitude and fraternity. The affection of the sons of Mādrī, Nakula and Sahadeva, as well as the affection of sage Narada, is a mixture of friendship and servitude. The affection of Lord Śiva, Garuda and Uddhava is a mixture of servitude and fraternity.
Text excerpted from: “The Nectar of Devotion” chapter 43
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