Premendu Sagara Stotra, Love's Ocean's Moon, by Sri Rupa Gosvami

Full of remorse for having her Lord spurned,

A cowherd dame in separation burned;

Emaciate, in pain, disquieted,

And to her friend in anxious tones she said. 1

“Alas, O Gauri fair, and can you say,

Why did he from my visual pathway stray?

Sri Krishna is a sea of compassion,

Krishna is Gokula's beloved one. 2

Govinda is the supreme happiness,

In Nanda's house the great auspiciousness;

The shining gem born of Yashoda's womb,

From Nanda's oceanic grace the moon. 3

The lustre of his person doth deride,

The fresh rain-cloud that rumbles in its pride;

By yellow garments that his limbs adorn,

The haughtiness of gold is put to scorn. 4

The conscious pride of Cupid himself pales,

In the brightness of Hari's gem-toenails;

A flag, lotus, thunderbolt, barleycorn,

And goad for elephants his feet adorn. 5

His feet are as a cage with songbirds bound,

As with his tinkling anklets' warbling sound;

His knees are fraught with rare beauty and grace,

Each shining like a sapphire gem-case. 6

His thighs are attractive and elegant,

As the trunk of a lordly elephant;

Upon his ample hips, bound at his waist,

A belt of gems and tinkling bells is placed. 7

His slender charming midriff puts to shame

The heavenly lion, proud of his fame;

His ample and imposing chest doth shine

Like a slab from a mount of lazuline. 8

The king of all the shining gems doth deck

The lovely contours of his conch-like neck;

His long and mighty arms the strength deride

Of firm columns of sapphire in their pride. 9

The full moon is deprived of all its grace

By the sweet beauty of his charming face;

He is a sea with waves of pearly sheen,

His soft lips like vermilion powder gleam. 10

He glances round with big wide-open eyes,

As the full blossomed lotus doth arise;

His cheeks glow reflective of shimmering light

From swaying makara ear pendants bright. 11

The beauty of his form and elegance

Shines with perpetual adolescence;

The side-long glances darted from his eyes,

Keen darts of millions of Cupids defies. 12

His noble discourse is with nectar filled,

With sweetness and ambrosia distilled;

And in Vrindavan’s bowers, fraught with scent,

He plays like a wild crazy elephant. 13

He like a fresh cloud shimmering doth shine

Upon the peak of Govardhan divine;

And he is like a playful swan that strays,

And on the waters of Kalindi plays. 14

He dwells at Nandishvara pleasantly,

And dances under the Bhandira tree;

He did the wicked Shankhachuda slay,

And held the mountain like a ball in play. 15

More deep than millions of oceans profound,

Than millions of lions that leap and bound;

He grants joy to the son of Rohini,

And holds Sridama in fraternity. 16

Fond friendship on Subala he imparts,

And always dwells in his devotees’ hearts;

He does on Vraja’s people joy bestow,

Such is indeed his great and solemn vow. 17

The herds of straying hornéd cows he calls

With his flute song, back to the pens and stalls;

The bulls he provokes to display their might,

Whereon begins a lively playful fight. 18

Fresh flower wreaths augment his fine attire,

He is the God of amorous desire;

His divine form a beauteous lustre bears

With the bright peacock plumage that he wears. 19

With wreaths of flowers of five colours bright,

By roving bees frequented, he is dight;

Red rangan flowers and jasmine of gold,

Wound in a belt, his ample hips enfold. 20

He is adorned with rock-pigment designs,

And with the waves of pearl-like beauty shines;

Clusters of goonja beads adorn his head,

And rests he on a flower-strewn play-bed. 21

The jasmine odour his body emits,

Deprives the wanton damsels of their wits;

Vrindavan’s dames, of lotus-petal-eyes,

Are perturbed as Cupid’s power doth rise. 22

Red kumkum powder is smeared on his chest,

When he a cowherd dame’s bosom compressed;

The streams of sweetness from his moon-face bright,

Obstructs of pious damosels the sight. 23

He steals the maiden’s garments and provokes

Their shame with merry mockery and jokes;

His artless play and cunning cleverness,

Fills Radha with the sweetest happiness. 24

He is the Sharat moonbeams of beauty

In the mind of the fair Chandravali;

The lovesome hero of Lakshmi possessed,

The bliss of playful Cupid manifest. 25

For Chandravali the chakora king;

For Radhika sweet nectar of the spring;

He sports with Lalita most charmingly;

To the Vishakha star the moon is he. 26

At Padma’s lotus-face he is a bee,

His feet are served by Saibya constantly;

On Bhadra’s heart he takes is wonted rest,

For him Shyamala is by Love oppressed. 27

He is a blooming garden of love-play;

A wondrous and astonishing display;

As iron is drawn toward the loadstone,

He is attracted by pure love alone. 28

Fair dames who stole his flute he swift arrests,

And tears the silken garments from their breasts;

To meet Radha he prizes all above;

And he is the great preceptor of love. 29

In a covert and with attentive ear,

He longs Radha’s joking prattle to hear;

With pride he forbids Radha in the bowers

Where she went to collect kadamba flowers. 30

He longs to meet within a secret grove

With Radha, and relish the sweets of love;

And struck with flowers, he is overjoyed,

When Radhika with him is quite annoyed. 31

When battles of Cupid he undertakes,

The armour of kumkum powder he breaks;

He stands with triple posture of his hips,

And his bamboo flute applies to his lips. 32

The spreading music of his flute imparts,

The essence of Gandharva-vidya arts;

Of thousands of gopis the king is he;

And relishes Rasa dancing with glee. 33

His glances are more perturbing by far

Than millions of arrows of Cupid are;

Upon the Sun-daughter’s bank wandering,

He dances elegantly in a ring. 34

He is a lotus-pond of bounty rare

For Vrshabhanu’s bee-like daughter fair;

He relishes the jokes and covert wiles

Of Radhika, which she conceals with smiles. 35

Sometimes he dresses in a female guise;

He makes the mind to dilate with surprise;

His lotus-flower mouth is red and full

With camphor seasoned leaf-wraps of tambul. 36

Chandravali’s proud envoy doth entreat,

And makes arrangements for the twain to meet;

He makes Radha contract her irate brow,

When she to pass the toll will not allow. 37

When Radha’s friend with clever laughter came,

He was taunted and mocked and put to shame;

For gopis he is love’s embodiment;

Instinct with joys’ amorous sentiment. 38

When Bhadra ventures on her love-journey,

He listens for her anklets carefully;

Padma his coming doth anticipate,

And gazes down the pathway from the gate. 39

Lalita becomes restless and dismayed,

And pensive, wonders why he is delayed;

Vishakha, disappointed of her wish,

Laments the burden of her deep anguish. 40

He longs to behold Shyama’s face again,

Who suffered in long severance and pain;

He relishes the taste of Saibya’s pride,

When she, for his unfaithfulness, doth chide. 41

He joys to peruse the love-letters sent,

By Chandravali in her sad lament;

With blandishment he seeks Radha to please,

Adorns her, in her pride, with loving expertise. 42

The stakes are set as the flute or a kiss;

When Radha wins she grabs his cloth in bliss;

A flowing stream is Radha’s loving art,

Which floods with wonder of rapture his heart.” 43

By love distracted thus she did maintain,

The praise of him by whom Kamsa was slain;

Then sudden he appeared before her sight,

Which filled her with immense festive delight. 44

May these eight and one hundred names be sung.

Like churning sweetest nectar with the tongue;

O learned ones, relish and loud proclaim

This hymn Premendu Sagara by name! 45

Thus ends Premendu Sagara Stotra

or Love’s Ocean’s Moon,

of Sri Rupa Gosvami.