Thinking of Krishna - The Padyavali by Sri Rupa

[malati]

The Padyavali by Sri Rupa Goswami
translated into english by Gaurav Raina of the Gadhadar Gaurahari Press

An anthology of devotional verses in Sanskrit.


1. The Padyavali

- comprises verses composed by great devotees absorbed in the relish of bhakti.

- is endowed with delightful words springing forth from the inspiration of Sri Mukunda

- is but an ocean, the waves of which are running riot in intoxication with divine love

- and is as charming as it is a dispeller of all ignorance

- in sequence of topics do I compile this multitude of devotional expressions for the pleasure of all


. Sri Rupa Goswami



2. I offer my obeisances unto the lotus-eyed Lord
Who pleases his devotees with the melodious sound of His flute
Who is adorned with a chaplet of flowers
And is blessed with the relish of the nectar of Sri Radha's lips


. Anonymous


3. Lord Hari, whose eyes rival the beauty of blue lotuses, casts affectionate glances on those lovingly devoted to Him
He is the object of meditation for yogis absorbed in the trance of samadhi, who seek recourse to Him for their salvation
He is the One plentitude of beauty, charm and grace, at whose sight Radha's eyes blossom with profusion of loving emotion
May that Lord Hari, his eyes and his very form, relieve the wordly suffering of all of you


. Sri Saranga

[malati]

4. The arms of the slayers of the demon Kamsa--

are adorned with armlets, of peacock-feathers, smeared with moist mud from the base of Govardhan Hill.

are in the bowers of Vrindavan, like blue* pillows for (the comfort of) the maidens of Vraja.

are anointed with fragrance of the exudation from the temples of the elephant Kuvalyapida*.

May those arms of the Lord grant you everlasting felicity.


. Sri Subhanka


*Lord Krishna's dark complexion is often described as nila, which means dark blue

* Kuvalyapida was the name of Kamsa's elephant which was killed by krishna

[malati]

5. The melodious sound of the flute of the slayer of the demons, Madhu--

beckons the cows of his herd by their assigned names when they return home in the evening.

articulates the letters of the magical incantation that captivates the hearts of the group of gopis .

and enchants the flocks of devotionally sentimental deer in Vrindavan.

May that sound of the flute of the Lord, who assumes the form of a sportive cowherd, grant you good fortune from all sides.


. Sri Hara

[malati]

6. By the desire of Krishna

the ocean turns into land and land into ocean.

A particle of dust assumes the form of a mountain and a mountain is reduced to a grain of sand.

A piece of grass becomes a powerful thunderbolt and a flash of lightning diminishes into an insignificant blade of grass.

Fire turns cold and snow is able to burn.

To that Lord Krishna,

who has a fancy for playing naughty pranks and creating marvelous wonders in his sportive pastimes

Do I offer my salutations



. Anonymous

[Nitaidas]

Thanks for posting these, malatidi.

[malati]

7. The Lord, the consort of Sri Laksmi, is the only one worthy of worship by the whole world, because

He has parental affection for his devotees

He pledges to grant fearlessness

He relieves the suffering of devotees in distress

He is magnanimous

He destroys all sins

And he bestows immeasurably exalted positions to his devotees

Prahlada, Vibhisana, Karirat (Gajendra), Pancali (Draupadi), Ahilya and Dhruva, have stood witness to these qualities of the Lord (in the respective order stated).

. Anonymous

[madanmohandas]

Hi Malati. Excellent verses. I have been working on some from Padyavali as well.
I was wondering why in the first verse you have put ' do I compile', in bold type?
Here is one that I have tried;

mA gA ityapamangalaM vraja sakhe snehena zunyaM vacah
tiSTheti prabhutA yathAbhilaSitaM kurvityudAsInatA/
brumo hanta sudAma mitra vacanaM naivopacArAdidaM
smartavyA vayamAdareNa bhavatA yAvadbhavaddarzanam// 377zArdUlavikrIDitam/

( Sri Krsna to Sudama on the latters departure from Dvaraka. )

If I say, 'go not my friend', that would not auspicsious be,
Should I say, 'go', my words would lack fraternity.
And if I say, 'stay', 'twould seem as stern commandment,
And to say, 'do as you like', would show I were indifferent;
Ah dear friend Sudama, I speak not from common courtesy,
But untill we meet again you should with love remember me. 377

Sri Hari

[malati]

Haribol! MadanMohandasji

I'm very happy that you are back. Good work, do you want to take over? I dont mind, if you like to do some service to the sangha then you can continue for me with your translation.

I put them in bold print to emphasize that the whole of The Padayavali was not written by Sri Rupa but his collection of verses of other Vaishnavas plus his. It was my mistaken perception before that he wrote all of it.



Glory of Worship

8. Lord Madhava, who cherishes the devotion of his devotees
is pleased by devotion alone rather than by virtuous qualities.

What was so noble about the conduct of the hunter Dharmavyadha?

What maturity of age did Dhruva have and how learned was Gajendra?

How beautiful could Kubja possibly have been and how wealthy was Sudama?

Was Vidura of noble descent or did Ugrasena, king of the Yadavas, have martial prowess?


. A devotee from South India

[madanmohandas]

Hi Malati, no I don't want to take over! just join in a bit. You've already seen what I posted on another thread from Padyavali. The one posted above was a reworking of an earlier attempt.

Anyway please continue posting more ( with commentary and cross referencing ). I don't know about service to the sanga, but the main thing is pointed out in the Navayogi Sermons;
smarantah smArayantazca mitho'ghaughaharaM harim/ Bhag 11,3,31
They recall and cause each other to recall the sin-destroying Hari.

[malati]

9. I do not care if my actions are sinful or if they are virtuous.

All I desire is supreme and steadfast devotion to the Lord.

While the dreaded serpent spews venom, the Moon bestows its ambrosial moonlight in abundance.

But Lord Mahesa (Siva), indifference as He is to both poison and nectar, is adorned with both serpent and Moon.



. Sri Vishnu Puri


* Lord Siva is adored as the supreme devotee of Lord Krishna. While the moon adorns his forehead he has a serpent around his neck. The author of the verse regards sin and virtue as of no consequence to himself. He is saying this in emulation of the supreme devotee Siva who is indifferent to both the poison of the snake and to the nectar of the moon.

[malati]

10. Oh Slayer of Madhu!

If a person cherishes, in his heart, service to your feet, then even if he were to commit all the sins in the three worlds, they become undone.

And as for a righteous person who forsakes your service, all the sins committed in the three worlds accrue to him (as if committed by him).



. Sri Vishnu Puri

[madanmohandas]

That's a wonderfully bold declaration. There is a verse from Mukunda Mala that makes a similarly bold assertion;

zrIgovindapadAmbhojamadhuno mahadadbhutam/
yatpAyino na muhyanti muhyanti yadapAyinah//

How wonderful is the honey-wine distilled
from Sri Govinda's lotus feet;
for those who drink it are not stupified,
while those who don't remain confused!

Mukunda Mala of Kulasekhara

[madanmohandas]

Malati I hope my random postings don't anoy. But leaping on to verse 26 which is a famous one known to all beginning with madhuramadhurametan...........

madhuramadhurametanmangalaM mangalAnAM
sakalanigamvallIsatphalaM citsvarUpam/
sakrdapi parigItaM zraddhayA helayA vA
bhrguvara naramAtraM tArayet kRSNanAma//

Of all sweets the sweetest this, most sacred of auspiscious things,
Of all scripture's branching vine the holy fruit, pure consciousness;
Any man that sings in faith or in disdain lord Krsna's hallowed name,
At once, that name, O Bhrgu's chief, from birth and death delivers him! 26

Veda Vyasa

Of course 'naramAtram' or 'any man', implies any human being or one needs only to be a human being to qualify
And 'zraddhA' primarily translated as faith which is often then followed by the idea of 'belief', but rather than that I would say that 'zraddha' here implies a keen regard or deep interest and 'helayA' would be the opposite.
And 'tArayet' is given here as 'delivers him from birth and death' although it just means ' takes him accross', the former is implied.

[malati]

11. Not by wearing the ochre dress of a sannyasin

Nor by restrictions on diet and activities

Nor by solitary residence in a forest

Nor by hearing sermons on philosophy

Nor by undertaking ascetical vows

Can the vagaries of the mind be overcome

Serenity of mind can only be attained by undertaking, even in the slightest measure, the worship of the lotus feet of Lord Govinda

Lord Govinda who delights himself (and his devotees) on the banks of the bountiful river Yamuna, the daughter of Kalinda



. Anonymous


* The river Yamuna flows from the Kalinda mountain and is hence referred to as the daughter of Kalinda.




Mohanmohandasji


No problem, do as you like, it's all about Krishna.

[malati]

12. The mere verbal utterances of "O krishna O Krishna" is more than sufficient to destroy all lthe sins of living beings.

Upon the advent of devotion to Mukunda, in (the heart of) a devotee, devotion that is teh source of infinite divine bliss

Does goddess Laksmi, the soveriegn bestower of salvation, toss and roll about at the lotus-feet of such devotee (craving his acceptance).



. Sri Sarvajna


* Goddess Laksmi is the consort of teh Lord and is regarded as the supreme agent of divine grace and as an indispensable intermediary to the Lord.