Chapter Four
Śrī Śrī Rūpānuga-bhajana-darpaṇa – Song Twenty Nine
(A Mirror Reflecting the Worship Which Follows Śrīla Rūpa Goswāmī)

(1)
kṛṣṇera jateka khelā tāra madhye nara-līlā
sarbottama rasera āloya
e rasa goloke nāi tabe bolo kothā pāi
braja-dhāma tāhāra niloya

1) Among all of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes, His līlā as an ordinary human being is certainly the best of all, for these pastimes are like an unlimited reservoir of ecstatic transcendental mellows. These mellows are not even available on other planets in the spiritual sky. So then tell me where are they available? Such things can only be had in the topmost abode of Vraja-dhāma.

(2)
nitya-līlā dwi-prakāra sāntara o nirantara
jāhe mājhe rasikera mana
janma-bṛddhi daitya-nāśa mathurā dwārakā-bāsa
nitya-līlā sāntare gaṇana

2) Kṛṣṇa’s eternal pastimes are of two types, which are always meditated on by those who know how to relish the mellows — 1) sāntara (pastimes performed in the material world at intervals, with a beginning and an end, but which repeat eternally), and 2) nirantara (pastimes performed in the spiritual world as perpetual aṣṭa-kālīya or eight-fold daily sports). Pastimes called sāntara include Kṛṣṇa’s birth, His growth through childhood and youth, the killing of many different kinds of demons, and His journey to and residence at Mathurā and Dvārakā.

(3)
dibā rātra aṣṭa-bhāge braja-jana anurāge
kore kṛṣṇa-līlā nirantara
tāhāra birāma nāi sei nitya-līlā bhāi
brahma-rudra-śeṣa agocara

3) Those pastimes which are called nirantara are performed incessantly, in eight time divisions the entire day and night. These sports are motivated by His pure loving affection for the residents of Vraja. These pastimes do not stop even for a second – therefore it’s called nitya-līlā, oh brothers! These eight-fold daily pastimes are imperceptible even for Lord Brahma, Lord Śiva and Lord Ananta-śeṣa.

(4)
jñāna joga koro jata hoya tāhā dūra-gata
śuddha rāga nayane kebala
sei līlā rākhita hoya parānanda bitaroya
hoya bhakta-jībana sambala

4) Just toss out all of your speculative knowledge and yoga practice, for all of these ecstatic līlās of Vraja are just waiting for you to behold them with your eyes of unalloyed affection opened wide. These transcendental pastimes are capable of giving you only one thing – topmost spiritual bliss far beyond anything you can even imagine. This only is the sole sustenance in the lives of pure devotees who follow in the footsteps of Śrīla Rūpa Goswāmī.

Thus Ends the Fourth Chapter of Gītā-mālā by Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura
entitled Śrī Śrī Rūpānuga Bhajana Darpaṇa
(A Mirror Which Reflects the Worship which Follows in the Footsteps of Śrīla Rupa Gosvami)