Sri Vilapa Kusumanjali 3/4

Sri Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami

karpūra-pūra-paripūrita-nāga-vallī-

parṇādi-pūga-parikalpita-vīṭikāṁ te |

vaktrāmbuje madhura-gātri mudā kadāhaṁ

protphulla-roma-nikaraiḥ param arpayāmi ||52|| (vasanta)

O lovely damosel, sweet-limbed and fair,

Will I a tasty betel-wrap prepare,

Stuffed with camphor and spices and then place

Into the mouth of your bright lotus-face

The leaf-wrap? Then with joy beyond compare

I will be fraught with bliss and bristling hair! 52

ārātrikeṇa bhavatīṁ kim u devi devīṁ

nirmañchayiṣyatitarāṁ lalitā pramodāt |

anyālayaś ca nava-maṅgala-gāna-puṣpaiḥ

prāṇārbudair api kacair api dāsikeyam ||53||

My Goddess, Goddess of Krishna’s delights!

When you are worshipped with bright waving lights,

By Lalita, in ritual offering,

Some offer flowers, some new verses sing;

And as a million times than life more dear,

When will I also wave my locks of hair? 53 *

* Hail Radhe, hail! I take refuge in thee,

All hail to such a wondrous aroti!

In radiant blue silken sari dight,

Your hair-parting daubed with sindura bright;

Your dear companions ornament complete,

Then on a lion-throne you take your seat;

Adorned with costly gems and pearls divine,

Each of your limbs with fair adornments shine,

Some damsels offer fragrant sandal scent,

To Vrishabhanu’s daughter radiant,

And dear companions on all sides surround,

With clapping hands reverberating round,

While most beloved lalita the fair,

Conducts the ceremony with great care,

Young brides of Vraja raise their voices high,

And dear attendant maids chamaras ply.

This Dasa manohara doth entreat,

For devotion to Radha’s lotus-feet.

(Vaisnava Padavali)

ālī-kulena lalitā-pramukhena sārdham

ātanvatī tvam iha nirbhara-marma-goṣṭhīm |

mat-pāṇi-kalpita-manohara-keli-talpam

ābhūṣayiṣyasi kadā svapanena devi ||54||

O Goddess, as you with your friends converse,

And topics of high merriment rehearse,

And Lalita and others repeat tales,

Whence eager curiosity prevails;

Will you upon the bed that I have made,

With flower petals and a silk brocade,

By resting there and laying down your head,

And dreaming there, embellish the play-bed? 54

saṁvāhayiṣyati padau tava kiṅkarīyaṁ

hā rūpa-mañjarir asau ca karāmbuje dve |

yasmin manojña-hṛdaye sadaye’nayoḥ kiṁ

śrīmān bhaviṣyatitarāṁ śubha-vāsaraḥ saḥ ||55||

O damsel with the tender heart sublime,

When will that fine and blessed day be mine?

When as Rupa manjari doth engage

To rub your hands, I shall your feet massage. 55

tavodgīrṇaṁ bhojyaṁ sumukhi kila kallola-salilaṁ

tathā pādāmbhojāmṛtam iha mayā bhakti-latayā |

ayi premṇā sārdhaṁ praṇayi-jana-vargair bahuvidhair

aho labdhavyaṁ kiṁ pracuratara-bhogyodaya-balaiḥ ||56||

O damsel with the fair and lovely face,

When shall I, on the strength of rising grace,

Receive your chewed remnant and mouth-wash pure,

And water from your foot bathing procure,

Which nourish and invigorate the vine,

Of rare and loving ecstasy divine;

O when shall I relish these rarities,

With dearest friends in all varieties? 56

bhojanāvasare devi

snehena sva-mukhāmbujāt |

mahyaṁ tvad-gata-cittāyai

kiṁ sudhās tvaṁ pradāsyasi ||57|| (anuṣṭubh)

While takest thou thy meal, Goddess divine,

From thy lotus-mouth, with love, into mine,

Whose heart is dedicated unto thee,

Wilt thou transfer thy chewed remnant to me? 57

api bata rasavatyāḥ siddhaye mādhavasya

vraja-pati-puram udyad-roma-romā vrajantī |

skhalita-gatir udañcat-svānta-saukhyena kiṁ me

kvacid api nayanābhyāṁ lapsyase svāmini tvam ||58|| (mālinī)

Ah me! When to Nanda’s house you repair,

My Goddess, Madhava’s meal to prepare,

With inward joy while on the path you wend,

Your gait falters, your hair all stands on end,

In fond anticipation and delight;

O when shall I behold this wondrous sight? 58

pārśva-dvaye lalitayātha viśākhayā ca

tvāṁ sarvataḥ parijanaiś ca paraiḥ parītām |

paścān mayā vibhṛta-bhaṅgura-madhya-bhāgāṁ

kiṁ rūpa-mañjarir iyaṁ pathi neṣyatīha ||59||

While Rupa manjari the way doth lead,

And all around your companions proceed,

With Lalita and Vishakha to guide,

Who thus proceed with you on either side;

Then from behind will I with cautious haste,

Support your slim and fragile dainty waist? 59

hambā-ravair iha gavām api ballavānāṁ

kolāhalair vividha-vandi-kalāvatāṁ taiḥ |

sambhrājate priyatayā vraja-rāja-sūnor

govardhanād api gurur vraja-vanditād yaḥ ||60

prāptāṁ nija-praṇayinī-prakaraiḥ parītāṁ

nandīśvaraṁ vraja-mahendra-mahālayaṁ tam |

dūre nirīkṣya muditā tvaritaṁ dhaniṣṭhā

tvām ānayiṣyati kadā praṇayair mamāgre ||61||

(yugmakam)

The grand palace of Vraja’s lord doth shine,

Resounding with ‘hambha’ of lowing kine,

And loud with Vedic chants and hymns of joy,

Where dancers and singers their skill employ;

Thus Nandishvara is highly adored,

E’en more than Govardhan, by Vraja’s Lord.

Arriving there with all your loving friends,

Dhanishtha, marking you, toward you wends;

When shall I see you as she takes you in,

With joy and haste, the cooking to begin? 60/61

prakṣālya pāda-kamale kuśale praviṣṭā

natvā vrajeśa-mahiṣī-prabhṛtīr gurūs tāḥ |

hā kurvatī rasavatīṁ rasa-bhāk kadā tvaṁ

saṁmajjayiṣyasitarāṁ sukha-sāgare mām ||62||

O most expert and tasteful damsel fair!

When having washed your feet, you then repair

To Vraja’s queen and all the matrons greet,

Who welcome you as you bow at their feet;

When you the task of cooking then assay,

Will I in joy’s ocean be swept away? 62

mādhavāya nata-vaktram ādṛtā

bhojya-peya-rasa-sañcayaṁ kramāt |

tanvatī tvam iha rohiṇī-kare

devi phulla-vadanaṁ kadekṣyase ||63||

O Goddes, when you place into the hands

Of Rohini, in order, the viands,

In modesty you keep lowered your head,

In reverence, endued with pious dread.

When shall I see your face as you conceal

The looks askance at madhava you steal? 63

bhojane guru-sabhāsu kathañcin

mādhavena nata-dṛṣṭi mudotkam |

vīkṣyamāṇam iha te mukha-padmaṁ

modayiṣyasi kadā madhure mām ||64||

O sweet damsel, when will you gladded me,

As I Madhava looking at you see?

With lowered face his glance toward you bends,

Surrounded by the elders and his friends. 64

ayi vipinam aṭantaṁ saurabheyī-kulānāṁ

vraja-nṛpati-kumāraṁ rakṣaṇe dīkṣitaṁ tam |

vikala-mati-jananyā lālyamānaṁ kadā tvaṁ

smita-madhura-kapolaṁ vīkṣyase vīkṣyamāṇā ||65||

When the tender son of Vraja’s chief goes,

And leads the herds of kine to the meadows;

Since he initiated was with vows,

In tending, as pious duty, the cows;

And while he would into the forest fare,

His mother cuddles him with anxious care;

Will you be seen by him with smiles of grace,

With the cheeks spreading wide upon his face? 65*

* The eighth day of Karttika’s light fortnight,

The crescent moon begins to shine more bright;

From that same day Vasudeva became

A cowherder, called by the cowherd’s name;

Whereas he only tended calves before,

And erst the name of small calf tender bore.

(Padma Purana)

goṣṭheśayātha kutukāc chapathādi-pūrvaṁ

susnigdhayā sumukhi mātṛ-parārdhato’pi |

hā hrīmati priya-gaṇaiḥ saha bhojyamānāṁ

kiṁ tvāṁ nirīkṣya hṛdaye mudam adya lapsye ||66||

O fair-faced damsel, exceedingly shy!

Endued with bashfulness and modesty;

When will my heart be filled with joy to view

The cowherd queen’s fond affection for you?

Whose tender love is beyond the compare

With all the love a million mothers bear;

Who urges you with oaths and vows for weal,

To sit with your dear friends and take your meal. 66

āliṅganena śirasaḥ paricumbanena

snehāvalokana-bhareṇa ca khañjanākṣi |

goṣṭheśayā nava-vadhūm iva lālyamānāṁ

tvāṁ prekṣya kiṁ hṛdi mahotsavam ātaniṣye ||67||

When will I, O restless-eyed damsel fair,

Whose eyes like khanjan birds flit here and there,

See how the cowherd queen doth love express,

While on your head she does fond kisses press;

And strains you in her warm loving embrace,

And gazes with affection at your face;

With such tender care as I never saw,

As if you were her own daughter-in-law.

When will I of this wonder gain the sight,

And fill my heartr with exquisite delight? 67

hā rūpa-mañjari sakhi praṇayena devīṁ

tvad-bāhu-datta-bhuja-vallarim āyatākṣīm |

paścād ahaṁ kalita-kāma-taraṅga-raṅgāṁ

neṣyāmi kiṁ hari-vibhūṣita-keli-kuñjam ||68||

O Rupa manjari, my dearest friend,

While you with our wide-eyed fair Goddess wend,

Her tendril-arms resembling soft vines,

While venturing forth, with your arm entwines;

Urged on by playful billows of her love,

She proceeds to the pendant shady grove,

Adorned and decorated by Hari,

Will I, following behind all this see? 68

sākaṁ tvayā sakhi nikuñja-gṛhe sarasyāḥ

svasyās taṭe kusuma-bhāvita-bhūṣaṇena |

śṛṅgāritaṁ vidadhatī priyam īśvarī sā

hā hā bhaviṣyati mad-īkṣaṇa-gocaraḥ kim ||69||

Ah me! My friend, Sri Rupa manjari!

When shall I our dear Goddess with you see,

Within a cottage canopied with bowers,

By her lake-side, adorn her Lord with flowers? 69

śrutvā vicakṣaṇa-mukhād vraja-rāja-sūnoḥ

śastābhisāra-samayaṁ subhage’tra hṛṣṭā |

sūkṣmāmbaraiḥ kusuma-saṁskṛta-karṇa-pūra-

hārādibhiś ca bhavatīṁ kim alaṁkariṣye ||70||

O most accomplished and fortunate dame!

When Vichakshan, the clever parrot came

From Nanda’s son, a message spoke to you,

To indicate the midday rendezvous;

Which fills you with much joy, and so elate,

Will I your lovely person decorate

With a fine flimsy garment flowing down,

And o’er your ears a fragrant flower-crown;

And with a varied necklace may I deck,

With gems and gauds* descending, your fine neck. 70

*Bright ornaments.

nānā-puṣpaiḥ kvaṇita-madhupair devi sambhāvitābhir

mālābhis tad-ghusṛṇa-vilasat-kāma-citrālibhiś ca |

rājad-dvāre sapadi madanānandadābhikhya-gehe

mallī-jālaiḥ śaśimukhi kadā talpam ākalpayiṣye ||71||

O damsel with the face as the moon bright!

Within a grove as Cupid’s pleasure hight,*

With bee-resounding flowers may I spread

A fragrant covering on the play-bed,

And will I then the splendid bower gate

With pendant wreaths of flowers decorate,

And eke adorn the grove with jessamine,

And paint amorous designs, Goddess mine? 71

*Hight; known as, called.

śrī-rūpa-mañjari-karārcita-pāda-padma-

goṣṭhendra-nandana-bhujārpita-mastakāyāḥ |

hā modataḥ kanaka-gauri padāravinda-

saṁvāhanāni śanakais tava kiṁ kariṣye ||72||

As Sri Rupa manjari doth engage

With soft hands, the lotus-feet to massage

Of Nanda’s son, who rests on the play-bed,

And you, O golden beauty, rest your head

Upon his arm; will I joyfully too,

In due order, your lotus-feet shampoo? 72

govardhanādri-nikaṭe mukuṭena narma-

līlā-vidagdha-śirasāṁ madhusūdanena |

dāna-cchalena bhavatīm avarudhyamānāṁ

drakṣyāmi kiṁ bhrū-kuṭi-darpita-netra-yugmām ||73||

When humorous Madhusudana came

To Govardhan for playing the toll-game,

And falsely demanding of you to pay,

The artful hero bars your onward way;

Will I behold your proud angry eyes glow

And the crooked contraction of your brow? 73

tava tanu-vara-gandhāsaṅgi-vātena candrā-

vali-kara-kṛta-mallī-keli-talpāc chalena |

madhura-mukhi mukundaṁ kuṇḍatīre milantaṁ

madhupam iva kadāhaṁ vīkṣya darpaṁ kariṣye ||74||

When Mukunda perceives the fragrance rare

Of your person, conveyed upon the air,

He finds some pretence, by his cunning art,

From Chandravali’s play-bed to depart.

O sweet-faced dame, when will I proud survey

That greedy bee, to your lake find his way? 74

samantād unmatta-bhramara-kula-jhaṅkāra-nikarair

lasat-padma-stomair api vihaga-rāvair api param |

sakhī-vṛndaiḥ svīyaiḥ sarasi madhure prāṇa-patinā

kadā drakṣyāmas te śaśimukhi navaṁ keli-nivaham ||75||

O moon-faced dame, your lake with bees resounds,

And with clusters of white lotus abounds;

The birds, delighted, warble from their throats,

Varieties of mellifluous notes;

When shall I see you fondly sporting there,

With your heart’s Lord and your companions fair? 75

sarovara-lasat-taṭe madhupa-guñji-kuñjāntare

sphuṭat-kusuma-saṅkule vividha-puṣpa-saṅghair mudā |

ariṣṭa-jayinā kadā tava varoru bhūṣā-vidhir

vidhāsyata iha priyaṁ mama sukhābdhim ātanvatā ||76||

On your lakeside, o’ercanopied with bowers,

Where greedy humming bees frequent the flowers,

O you of sturdy thighs, when will I view

The handsome Lord who fierce Arishtha slew,

Adorn your limbs with varied blossoms bright,

Which swells the vast ocean of my delight? 76

sphīta-svāntaṁ kayācit sarabhasam acireṇārpyamāṇair darodyan-

nānā-puṣporu-guñjā-phala-nikara-lasat-keki-piñcha-prapañcaiḥ |

sotkampaṁ racyamānaḥ kṛta-ruci-hariṇotphullam aṅgaṁ vahantyāḥ

svāminyāḥ keśa-pāśaḥ kim u mama nayanānandam uccair vidhātā ||77||

And when, with increase of joy to my eyes,

As some maid quickly brings varieties

Of flowers, peacock plumes and goonja beads,

Will I behold Hari, as he proceeds

To deck and twine into a lovely braid,

My Goddess’s long tresses, disarrayed;

As his hands tremble in loving excess,

Her hair all bristles up from happiness? 77

mādhavaṁ madana-keli-vibhrame

mattayā sarasijena bhavatyā |

tāḍitaṁ sumukhi vīkṣya kintv iyaṁ

gūḍha-hāsya-vadanā bhaviṣyati ||78||

When Madhava some error doth commit,

In Cupid-sports, O fair-faced one, you hit

To roundly chastise and reprimand,

Striking him with the lotus in your hand;

O beautiful-faced damsel, when shall I

To hide my proud and secret laughter try? 78

sulalita-nija-bāhvāśliṣṭa-goṣṭhendra-sūnoḥ

suvalitatara-bāhvāśleṣa-dīvyan-natāṁsā |

madhura-madana-gānaṁ tanvatī tena sārdhaṁ

subhaga-mukhi mudaṁ me hā kadā dāsyasi tvam ||79||

With your delicate arm around him placed,

The cowherd chief’s son is by you embraced;

While he with his arm, powerful and bold,

Your lovely lowered shoulder doth enfold.

And while sweet duets of love songs you sing,

Will you, O fair-faced dame, joy to me bring? 79

jitvā pāśaka-khelāyām

ācchidya muralīṁ hareḥ |

kṣiptāṁ mayi tvayā devi

gopayiṣyāmi tāṁ kadā ||80||

When you defeat Hari in the dice game,

And snatch his flute, your rightful prize to claim,

Will you, O Goddess, then to me confide,

That I the bamboo flute may somewhere hide? 80