Śrīman Mahāprabhura ŚikṣāŚrīman Mahāprabhura Śikṣā Chapter 4
Śrīman Mahāprabhura ŚikṣāŚrīman Mahāprabhura Śikṣā Chapter 6

Śri Kṛṣṇa-i Akhila-rasāmṛta-samudra
(Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the Ocean of All Rasas)

With the Rasika-Rañjana Commentary by Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura

The Supreme Truth, the form of non-dual knowledge (advaya-jñāna-svarūpa para-tattva) is rasa. Those that cannot realise rasa definitely cannot realise advaya-jñāna para-tattva. Therefore in the Taittirīya (2.7.1) it has been said:

raso vai saḥ
rasaṁ hy evāyaṁ labdhvānandī bhavati
ko hy evānyāt kaḥ prāṇyāt
yad eṣa ākāśa anando na syāt eṣa hy evānandayati

“The parama-tattva is rasa. The jīva attains bliss by obtaining this rasa. Who would make endeavours with their physical body and prāṇa, if this undivided principle of personified bliss did not exist? He gives that bliss to all.”

This is the nature of rasa-tattva –  when the tendency towards cultivating a relationship with Bhagavān progresses through śraddhā (faith), niṣṭhā (determination), ruci (taste), and asakti (affection), then it becomes rati, which is known as sthāyī-bhāva. This sthāyī-bhāva becomes mixed with the bhāvas of vibhāva (voluntary symptoms of bhāva), anubhāva (involuntary symptoms of bhāva), sāttvika (ecstatic symptoms), and vyabhicārī (transitory bhāva) and when these four elements combine, sthāyī-bhāva leads rati to a state of wonder, then it becomes bhakti-rasa. The process of material rasa and the superior spiritual rasa are the same. When there is sthāyī-bhāva in relation to an inclination towards Bhagavān, it becomes bhakti-rasa. When the sthāyī-bhāva is in relation to an inclination to enjoy insignificant objects, it becomes trivial mundane rasa. When the sthāyī-bhāva is in relation to an inclination towards impersonal jñāna, then it becomes nirviśeṣa-brahma-rasa (the rasa of attributeless Brahman). When the sthāyī-bhāva is in relation to an inclination to yoga, it becomes paramātmya-rasa.  When a person with śraddhā tries to experience rasa before attaining genuine rati, without vibhāva, anubhāva, sāttvika and vyabhicārī, then it will appear as incomplete khaṇḍa-rasa (fragmented rasa).   Mundane rasa is trivial; mundane poets describe it, and those that find pleasure in mundanity relish it. We have nothing to do with that rasa. We will only discuss spiritual rasa. We will show later the difference between brahma-rasa and pāramātmika-rasa as shown earlier. Now let us to clarify what is rasa-tattva by discussing the ingredients of rasa.

In the workings of rasa, rati, in the form of sthāyī-bhāva, is the basis. When these ingredients are combined, rasa is produced. There are four types of ingredients – vibhāva, anubhāva, sāttvika and vyabhicārī. There are two types of vibhāvaālambana (supportive) and uddīpana (stimulative). There are two kinds of ālambana – āśraya and viṣaya. Whoever possesses sthāyī-bhāva is the āśraya (shelter) of rasa. One whom the sthāyī-bhāva is directed towards is the viṣaya (object) of rasa. In spiritual rasa, the worshipable object is the viṣaya, and the worshipper is the āśraya. The qualities of the worshipable object are the uddīpana. Dancing, rolling on the ground, singing, crying out aloud, stretching one’s limbs, roaring, yawning, sighing, neglecting others, drooling, laughing, agitation, and hiccuping – such visible awakenings of bhāva are called anubhāva (voluntary symptoms of bhāva). Paralysis, perspiring, horripulation, faltering of voice, shivering, change of bodily colour, weeping and swooning – these eight bodily changes due to agitation of the heart and life-airs are known as sāttvika-bhāva (involuntary symptoms of of bhāva). Those symptoms that especially lead towards sthāyī-bhāva are disappointment, misery, humility, guilt, fatigue, intoxication, pride, doubt, anxiety, excitement, insanity, forgetfulness, disease, bewilderment, death, lethargy, inertness, shame, concealment, remembrance, quarrelsome, thoughtfulness, understanding, forbearing, joyful, eagerness, violence, intolerance, jealousy, restlessness, sleepy, dreamful and alertness – these thirty-three bhāvas that increase the ocean of sthāyī-bhāva are called vyabhicārī-bhāva (transitory emotional symptoms). All these bhāvas rise like waves and plunge one into an ocean of bhāva to nourish one’s sthāyī-bhāva.

Rasa is of two types – mukhya (primary) and gauṇa (secondary). There are five kinds of mukhya-rasa – śānta, dāsya, sakhya, vātsalya and madhura. There are seven kinds of gauṇa-rasas – hāsya (comedy), adbhūta (astonishment), vīra (chivalry), karuṇa (mercy), raudra (anger), bhayānaka (fear) and bībhatsa (ghastliness). The five types of mukhya-rasa appear separately in qualified persons according to their rati. With śānta-rati, in the state of equilibrium, Brahman and Paramātmā are seen to be the viṣaya. In a more intense state, the Paravyoma-nātha (Nārāyaṇa) as the viṣaya is the goal. When reverence is prominent in dāsya-rati, Paravyoma-nātha is accepted as the viṣaya; when that rati is purer, the viṣaya is Śrī Kṛṣṇa. In sakhya-rati, vātsalya-rati and madhura-rati, they know no other than Kṛṣṇa as the viṣaya. This is found in the Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta:

sādhana-bhakti haite haya ‘rati’ra udaya
rati gāḍha haile tāra ‘prema’ nāma kaya

prema vṛddhi-krame nāma sneha, māna, praṇaya
rāga, anurāga, bhāva, mahābhāva haya

yaiche bīja, ikṣu, rasa, guḍa, khaṇḍa-sāra
śarkarā, sitā, michari, uttama-michari āra

ei saba kṛṣṇa-bhakti-rasera sthāyibhāva
sthāyi-bhāve mile yadi vibhāva, anubhāva

sāttvika-vyabhicāri-bhāvera milane
kṛṣṇa-bhakti-rasa haya amṛta āsvādane

(“From sādhana-bhakti, rati appears. When rati intensifies, that is said to be prema. When prema increases, it is called sneha, māna, praṇaya, rāga, anurāga, bhāva and mahābhāva. It is like how the seed develops into sugar cane, the juice is extracted which becomes molasses, then the molasses is dried and becomes sugar, which is turned into candy, then rock candy and finally sweets. All these are sthāyi-bhāvas of kṛṣṇa-bhakti-rasa. If one attains sthāyi-bhāva, one becomes acquainted with vibhāva and anubhāva. When one encounters sāttvika and vyabhicāri-bhāva, kṛṣṇa-bhakti-rasa becomes relishable like nectar.” – Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 177-181)

bhakta-bhede rati-bheda pañca parakāra
śānta-rati, dāsya-rati, sakhya-rati āra
vātsalya-rati, madhura-rati, ei pañca vibheda
rati-bhede kṛṣṇa-bhakti-rase pañca bheda

(“According to different devotees, there are five kinds of various rati. Śānta-rati, dāsya-rati, sakhya-rati vātsalya-rati, and madhura-rati – these are the five categories. These different kinds of rati are based upon the difrerent divisions of kṛṣṇa-bhakti-rasa.” – Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 183-184)

Whoever desires to properly understand this rasa-tattva should read the South, West and North divisions of Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu and its supplement Śrī Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi from a guru who is conversant with this tattva. All these topics are summarised in the teachings to Śrī Rūpa and Sanātana in Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta.

Here, Śrī Kṛṣṇa will be recognised as the akhila-rasāmṛta-samudra (the ocean of all nectarean rasa). Śrī Kṛṣṇa has already been shown in various ways as the advaya-jñāna-rūpa para-tattva (the embodiment of non-dual knowledge). Śrī Kṛṣṇa has also been shown to be sarva-śaktimān (the possessor of all potencies). Now if we deliberate upon the following śloka written by Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī, everything about Kṛṣṇa will be known.

siddhāntatas tv abhede’pi śrīśa-kṛṣṇa-svarūpayoḥ
rasenotkṛṣyate kṛṣṇa-rūpam eṣā rasa-sthitiḥ

(“Although according to siddhānta, both the forms of Nārāyaṇa and Kṛṣṇa are non-different, considering śṛṅgāra-rasa, Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s form must be considered as superior due to His rasas. In this way rasa-tattva is established.” Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 2.1.222-223)

Though Brahman and Paramātmā are specific realisations of the parama-advaya-tattva, they are completely devoid of personal form. Realisation of His form is the perfection of bhagavat-tattva. Bhagavān appears in two forms – aiśvarya-pradhāna-prakāsa (His manifestation possessing opulence) and mādhurya-pradhāna-prakāsa (His manifestation possessing sweetness). Realisation in regards to Brahman and Paramātmā are in śānta-rasa, which is extremely insignificant. When Bhagavān manifests in relation to aiśvarya-pradhāna, only dāsya-rasa appears in the worshipper. The majesty of Bhagavān is so great, and the minuteness of the jīva is so great, that there is alternative for the jīva than to have a mood of awe. Due to the presence of this mood of awe, the jīva has no eligibility to attain higher rasa. Therefore by His mercy, Bhagavān manifests His original form as Śrī Kṛṣṇa so that the jīva can relate with Him. In this way, Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta says:

aiśvarya-jñānete saba jagat miśrita
aiśvarya-śithila-preme nāhi mora prīta

(“The entire world is fully aware of my majesty, but prema is weakened by majesty, and that does not please Me.” – Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 3.16)

āmāre īśvara māne, āpanāke hīna
tāra preme vaśa āmi nā ha-i adhīna

āmāke ta’ ye ye bhakta bhaje yei bhāve
tāre se se bhāve bhaji, — e mora svabhāve

(“If one considers Me to be Supreme and himself to be finite, I cannot be controlled by his prema,  and I do not become submissive to him. In whatever bhāva My devotee worships Me, I reciprocate in the same way, for that is My nature.” – Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 4.18-19)

mora putra, mora sakhā, mora prāṇa-pati
ei-bhāve yei more kare śuddha-bhakti
āpanāke baḍa māne, āmāre sama-hīna
sei bhāve ha-i āmi tāhāra adhīna

(“‘My son, my friend, my Lord of my very life!’ Those who have his bhāva are engaged in śuddha-bhakti. With the bhāva of regarding himself as My elder, and considering Me as his equal or junior, I become submissive to him.” – Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 4.21-22)

mātā more putra-bhāve karena bandhana
atihīna-jñāne kare lālana pālana

sakhā śuddha-sakhye kare, skandhe ārohaṇa
tumi kon baḍa loka, — tumi āmi sama

priyā yadi māna kari’ karaye bhartsana
veda-stuti haite hare sei mora mana

ei śuddha-bhakta lañā karimu avatāra
kariba vividha-vidha adbhuta vihāra

(“When I am in the bhāva of a son, My mother binds Me. Considering me to be helpless, she nourishes Me and protects Me. A companion, in pure friendship, climbs upon My shoulders saying, ‘What kind of big man are you? We are equals!’ If a beloved sulks and chastises Me, that takes My mind away from the prayers of the Vedas. I shall descend with these pure devotees and perform various amazing pastimes. – Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 4.23-27)

Honourable reader! If Śrī Kṛṣṇa had not appeared in His original form, then the jīva would not have access to the topics concerning the higher rasas of sakhya, vātsalya and madhura. The primary thing in this world is bhāva. The jīva’s knowledge in relation to the para-tattva is inherently restricted. On the path of jñāna, the jīva does not achieve any idea about the Supreme. That is why, when engaged in a prominent pursuit for jñāna, when one does not realise the form of the Supreme, he rejects Him as formless and without attributes. When the Supreme is not available on the path of jñāna, there is no other way to attain Him except on the path of bhāva. The more advanced a jīva is, proportionately his bhāva for the Supreme gives him happiness. The advancement of knowledge and intellect is not a spiritual advancement. Spiritual advancement only achieved by the gradual attainment of pure bhāva.

Any illiterate fool can attain a great amount of the Lord’s grace. An all-knowing paṇḍita, being atheistic, who develops the mentality of an animal, can be totally without the Lord’s mercy. Birth, knowledge, wealth, strength, beauty or expertise in mundane activities can do nothing to achieve the grace of the Supreme. A great paṇḍita and a great warrior, with their immense pride, are gradually running towards hell. On the other hand, a man who is utterly foolish, who has no strength and no intelligence, may attain absolute peace by worshiping the Supreme Lord. Therefore, the root of all spirituality attainment is bhāva. In many cases, this bhāva matures into śānta or dāsya, according to one’s qualification. Some rare devotees achieve the supreme attainment of sakhya, vātsalya and madhura-bhāva. Such a pure devotee is the best amongst rasika-bhaktas (those devotees who relish rasa). In the Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta:

śāntera guṇa, dāsyera sevana sakhye dui haya
dāsyera ‘sambhrama-gaurava’-sevā, sakhye ‘viśvāsa’-maya

(“The qualities of śānta-rasa and the service of dāsya-rasa are both present on in sakhya-rasa. Service in dāsya-rasa is with awe, and in sakhya-rasa it is full of intimacy.” – Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 19.222)

āpanāre ‘pālaka’ jñāna, kṛṣṇe ‘pālya’-jñāna
‘cāri’ guṇe vātsalya rasa amṛta-samāna

(“The devotee considers himself to be Kṛṣṇa’s maintainer, and the Lord is to be protected by him. Thus, vātsalya-rasa has the qualities of four rasas [śānta, dāsya, sakhya and vātsalya] and is the same as nectar.” – Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 19.228)

kānta-bhāve nijāṅga diyā karena sevana
ataeva madhura-rasera haya ‘pañca’ guṇa

ākāśādi guṇa yena para para bhūte
eka-dui-tina-cāri krame pañca pṛthivīte

(“In madhura-bhāva, one offers one’s own body in service. Thus, in madhura-bhāva, the qualities of all five rasas are present. The material qualities, beginning with the ethereal element, gradually develop. First one, then two, then three and four, until five qualities are found within earth.”- Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 19.232-233)

When devotees with very little rasa hear about madhura-rasa, they cannot easily believe it, rather, they fear that they will make offences. Other conventional religions take shelter of dāsya-rasa. Therefore, when scholars of these religions hear about worship of the Supreme in madhura-rasa, they are somewhat apprehensive and they fear that they may fall down, so they reject it. Indeed, they can even believe that the topic of madhura-rasa-bhajana is a distorted concoction. In all matters, those of a lower qualification consider the activities of a person of a higher qualification to be faulty, but when by good fortune he attains a higher qualification, then he thinks – “Oh! I was a fool! I offended those of a higher status!” Therefore, we humbly submit to the followers of other religions that this subject is very deep. They should not draw some preconceived idea without proper consideration. Once one perceives the Lord of the heart, he should present a seat within his heart to Him, and worship Him in that rasa. If one relishes that, then he should take shelter of a rasa-guru (one who is familiar with rasa-tattva) and try to taste this rasa. If one does not relish it, then he may give it up as being contrary to his qualification, but he should not neglect it.

Here, there is not much room for discussion on this subject. Suffice to say that those who are qualified for madhura-rasa do not attain Nārāyaṇa and other such forms as their worshippable viṣaya. The form of Śrī Kṛṣna is the only viṣaya of the highest rasa. If we look at this impartially and without any ideological prejudice or superstition, it can be concluded that the form of Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the purest and most superior of all forms due to rasa-tattva. Because Śrī Kṛṣna displays the same qualities as His devotee, one cannot think that His form is inferior. Far from being inferior, it is greater than all other forms. Just as the other forms are transcendental, beyond matter, possessing all good qualities and superior to māyā, Kṛṣṇa’s form is endowed with similar divine attributes. Through His cit-śakti He can be perceived by the mundane senses. When He descends to this mundane world, although he seems to behave in an ordinary worldly way, He is replete with all opulence. He is like a boy with His beloved friends, He is like a child under the shelter of His parents and elders, in madhura-rasa He is the Lord of the life of those devotees in that rasa, yet still exhibits His supreme divinity. Even while performing His nara-līlā (human-like pastimes) among humans, he astonishes the scholars by acting as the Supreme Controller of all the governing Devatās. If Krsna had not mercifully performed His pastimes in the mood of a cowherd which intoxicates the entire world, then who could have realised the Supreme Lord to be the viṣaya of madhura-rasa? Kṛṣṇa-līlā is not a figment of human imagination, nor the worthless, blind faith of naive people – only those persons who are knowledgable about spirituality can understand them. Amongst all of kṛṣṇa-līlā, the vraja-līlā is topmost, because the highest attainment in rasa is seen for the jīva. Logical argument and mundane moral intelligence cannot touch the glories of kṛṣṇa-līlā. Only those devotees that can relish the rasa of the Kṛṣṇa’s vraja-līlā can understand their sweetness. It is a matter of immense good fortune to deeply understand vraja-līlā. Logic, morality, knowledge, yoga and deliberations on dharma and adharma become most insignificant and the great lamp of vraja-tattva, illumines the hearts of those persons who are spiritually intelligent. There is a kārikā on this topic:

vibhāvādyair jaḍodbhūtair raso’yaṁ vyavahārikaḥ
aprākṛtair vibhāvādyair raso’yaṁ pāramārthikaḥ
paramārtha-rasaḥ kṛṣṇas tanmāyā chāyayā pṛthak
jaḍoditaṁ rasaṁ viśve vitanoti bahir-mukhe
bhāgyavāṁs taṁ parityajya brahmānandādikaṁ svakam
cid-viśeṣaṁ samāśritya kṛṣṇa-rasābdhim āpnuyāt
tam tvopaniṣadaṁ sākṣāt puruṣaṁ kṛṣṇam eva hi
ātmā-śabdena vedāntā vadanti prīti-pūrvakam

(Wherever rati is nourished with mundane vibhāva, anubhāva, sāttvika and vyabhicāra – that rasa is material. Wherever spiritual vibhāva etc. are nourished, that rasa is spiritual. Kṛṣṇa is the sole viṣaya of spiritual rasa. The degraded shadow produced by māyā is but a reflection of that rasa. Therefore it is separate from spiritual rasa. Mundane rasa pervades the material world of adversity. A fortunate person abandons the bliss of Brahman and takes shelter of spiritual diversity, and achieves the ocean of Kṛṣṇa’s prema-rasa. The Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad states, tam tvaupaniṣadaṁ puruṣaṁ pṛcchāmi [‘I inquire about that personality spoken of in the Upaniṣads.’] That personality addressed in these words is directly Kṛṣṇa. When the Vedānta mentions the word ‘ātmā.’ it is describing Kṛṣṇa with love).

There are two kinds of rasa – material and spiritual. When the material ingredients of anubhāva, vibhāva, sāttvika and vyabhicārī propel mundane rati (attachment) to the state of rasa, that rasa is between material male and female bodies. This is very trivial, temporary and perverse. This only a perverted reflection of spiritual rasa-tattva. A pure spiritual jīva is completely liberated in relation to his gross and subtle bodies. His rati is naturally spiritual. When this rati becomes sthāyī-bhāva, and combines with the ingredients of spiritual anubhāva, spiritual vibhāva, spiritual sāttvika, and spiritual vyabhicārī-bhāva, and when it takes on a relishable nature, then spiritual rasa emerges. Especially when the spiritual ālambana (support) of Kṛṣṇa’s form becomes the viṣaya of rasa, then kṛṣṇa-bhakti-rasa arises. Kṛṣṇa is supreme rasa. His māyā-śakti extends material rasa, which is a shadow of that, to those jīvas who are averse to Kṛṣṇa in the material world. A fortunate person rejects this inferior rasa and even goes beyond the trivial rasa of the bliss of Brahman, and taking support of the cit-tattva which is pure, diverse rasa, he reaches the form of Kṛṣṇa, the ocean of rasa. In case one dismisses kṛṣṇa-rasa as something mundane, the Nāyaka-bheda chapter of Śrī Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi, 16th śloka says:

laghutvam atra yat proktaṁ tat tu prākṛta nāyake
na kṛṣṇe rasa-niryāsa svādārtham avatāriṇi

When śṛṅgāra-rasa becomes mundane, it becomes most inferior and degraded; but when it is spiritual, it is most superior and the most adorable in the spiritual world. This rasa is not a material at all. It’s vibhāvas have nothing to do with the gross or subtle bodies; the anubhāva, sāttvika and vyabhicārī bhāvas appear in them to a certain extent. In order to relish the essence of rasa, Kṛṣṇa appeared in the material world. He is not an avatāra, but the avatārī (the source of all avatāras). For the avatārī and Hero of all jīvas, the variety He displays in His pastimes in the divine śṛṅgāra-rasa as a paramour, can never be degraded. The more impartial one is in deliberating on this subject matter, the more wonderful siddhānta will appear. If the hatred of moralists towards material rasa is carried over to spiritual rasa, then the response will be prejudiced. Due to such prejudice, all these unfortunate persons hate the spiritual rasa-līlā between the divine Kṛṣṇa and the divine jīvas with spiritual bodies. By doing so, what do they achieve besides self-deception? Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the only personality mentioned in the Upaniṣads. Throughout the Vedānta, it speaks of him with extreme love by addressing him with the word ‘ātmā.’ Thus we find in the Chāndogya Upaniṣad (7.25.2):

ātmaivedaṁ sarvam
iti sa va eṣa evaṁ paṣyann evaṁ manvān evaṁ vijānann ātmā-ratir-ātmā-krīḍa ātmā-mithuna ātmānandaḥ sa svarāṭ bhavati

“That self, Kṛṣṇa, is everything; Perceiving this form, contemplating it, knowing it, the jīva develops attachment for Him, performs pastimes with Him, attains union with Him, and finds bliss with Him.”

The Māṇḍukya (1.2 mantra) states:

sarvam hy etad brahmāyam ātmā brahmā so’yam ātmā catuṣpāt

“Everything here is the inferior Brahman, in other words, an expansion of the śakti of Brahman, the Supreme Truth. He is catuṣpāt (fourfold), meaning that although He is one, by the actions of His acintya-śakti, He appears in four eternal forms that are possessed of mahā-rasa.’

 These four forms are mentioned by Śrī Śrī Jīva in Bhagavat-sandarbha (16th saṁkhyā) as follows:

ekam eva tat paramaṁ tattvam svābhāvikācintya-śaktyā sarvadaiva svarūpa-tad-rūpa-vaibhāva-jīva-pradhāna-rūpeṇa caturdhāvatiṣṭhate sūryāntara-maṇḍala-sthita-tejo iva maṇḍala-tad-bahir-gata-tad raśmi-tat-praticchavi-rūpeṇa

(“The para-tattva is one. He is naturally endowed with His acintya-śakti. Through this śakti He eternally exists in four forms – His original form, His expansions, the jīva and pradhāna (matter). A similar example to this is the sun, its internal effulgence, its external effulgence and its reflection.”)

Kṛṣṇa’s form, His expansions, and the jīva absorbed in pastimes of spiritual rasa are all superior. Thus, there is a verse:

vedārtha bṛṁhaṇaṁ yatra tatra sarve mahājanāḥ
anveṣayanti śāstreṣu śuddhaṁ kṛṣṇāśritaṁ rasam
sanākādi-śiva-vyāsa-nāradādi-mahattamāḥ
śāstreṣu varṇayanti sma kṛṣṇa līlātmākaṁ rasam
labdhaṁ samadhinā sākṣāt kṛṣṇa-kṛpoditaṁ śubham
aprākṛtaṁ ca jīve hi jaḍa-bhāva-vivarjite

According to the Śrīmad Bhāgavata and other śāstra that explain the meaning of the Vedas, all the mahājanas are inquiring into the pure rasa connected to Kṛṣṇa. Ṛṣis such as Sanaka and his brothers, Śiva, Vyāsa and Nārada have shown in their various śāstra, the divine rasa of Kṛṣṇa’s own līlā. These pastimes can be achieved by the mercy of Kṛṣṇa through direct samādhi, by the pure jīvas who are devoid of material bhāva.

We will quote a śloka by Śrīla Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī which shows that Śrī Caitanyadeva brought this nectarean śrī-kṛṣna-rasa into the world, which no one had ever brought before.

premā-nāmādbhutārthaḥ śravaṇa-patha-gataḥ kasya nāmnāṁ mahimnaḥ
ko vettā kasya vṛndāvana-vipina-mahā-mādhurīṣu praveśaḥ
ko va jānāti rādhāṁ parama-rasa-camatkāra-mādhurya-sīmām
ekaś-caitanya-candraḥ parama-karuṇayā sarvam āviścakāra

“O brother! Who had heard of the ultimate goal of human life known as prema? Who knew the glories of hari-nāma? Who was able to enter into the sweetness of Vṛndāvana? Who knew about the parā-śakti, Śrīmatī Rādhikā, who is the pinnacle of the most wonderful mādhurya-rasa? Only the most compassionate Caitanya-candra has mercifully manifested all these tattvas for the jīvas.” (Śrī Caitanya-candrāmṛta 130)

Śrīman Mahāprabhura ŚikṣāŚrīman Mahāprabhura Śikṣā Chapter 4
Śrīman Mahāprabhura ŚikṣāŚrīman Mahāprabhura Śikṣā Chapter 6

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