atha bhävaù
çuddha-satva-viçeñätmä prema-süryäàçu-sämyabhäk |
rucibhiç-citta-mäsåëya-kåd-asau bhäva ucyate || 1 ||
– 1 –
“Bhäva” is like a ray from the dawning sun of Prema. Composed of pure cognition and exhilaration, it shines into the soul and makes the softened consciousness resplendent with lustrous inspirations.
Prema-Sürya-Aàçu-Sämyabhäk
Rupa Goswami defines Bhäva Bhakti as being “like the first ray of light from the dawning sun of Prema Bhakti.” This indicates that Prema and Bhäva are essentially the same entity. They are both aspects of Bhäva-rüpa bhakti. Bhäva is the first dawning appearance of that entity, and Prema is it full manifestation.
Uttama-Bhakti – Pure love
Ceñöa-Rüpa – The active
aspect of love
Sädhana-ceñöa-rüpa: Activities to arouse love
Anubhäva-ceñöa-rüpa: Activities that express love
Bhäva Rüpa – The emotive
aspect of love
Saïcäré-bhäva-rüpa: Transient emotions
Sthayi-bhäva-rüpa: Permanent emotions
Prema-sthayi-bhäva-rüpa: Prema
Bhakti
Prema-aìkura-sthayi-bhäva-rüpa:
Bhäva Bhakti
Çuddha-sattva
Sattva means consciousness, the faculty of cognition. Çuddha-sattva – pure cognition – is the essential nature of Bhäva Bhakti. The spiritual energy known as saàvit-çakti generates this çuddha-sattva or “pure cognition.”
Cognition is the ability to perceive and understand reality. Cognition is “impure” when darkened by lethargy (tama-guëa), or when colored by illusory attachments (raja-guëa). Pure cognition occurs only when the mind and senses are clearly illumined (sattva-guëa), untainted by coloration or darkness. The taint of darkness and coloration is inevitable in a temporary and illusory world, because temporality causes frustration and illusion causes attachment to temporary things. Therefore, as long as one is under the influence of temporal and illusory existence, one’s cognition (sattva) cannot be entirely pure (çuddha). Only when the ray of pure cognition (çuddha-sattva) shines into one’s soul from the spiritual “sun” can one attain pure cognition and thus perceive true reality, culminating in direct perception of God himself.
The rays of Bhäva-bhakti illuminate one’s heart with pure cognition, and thus allow one to directly perceive the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Viçeña
There is also another element composing the ray of Bhäva Bhakti, indicated here by the word “viçeña.” Literally, this word simply means “distinct and special.” Çuddha-sattva-viçeña, the most special thing one can be cognizant of, is exhilaration and joy. The most special type of exhilaration arises from love. Both exhilaration and love are products of the spiritual energy known as hlädiné-çakti.
One cannot truly and fully realize the exhilaration of love for a person until one can directly perceive and interact with that person. Thus Bhäva Bhakti first bestows cognition of God via saàvit-çakti, and next bestows full love for him, via hlädiné-çakti. Thus, the ray of Bhäva Bhakti illuminates the soul with cognition of the Supreme Personality, and exhilarates the soul with love for him.
Ätmä
The function of Sädhana Bhakti is to make one’s heart receptive to the mercy of Krishna and his devotee by removing unwanted desires and creating a longing for Bhäva Bhakti. Until Sädhana Bhakti succeeds in this function, the rays of çuddha-sattva-viçeña simply reflect off one’s heart and do not enter the soul. However, when Sädhana Bhakti succeeds in making the heart receptive to those rays, they enter into the soul and cause the soul to radiate and shine.
The goal of Sädhana Bhakti is to manifest eternally perfect love of Godhead within the heart (see Brs. 1.2.1). Sädhana Bhakti attains this goal by making the heart receptive to the sunlight of çuddha-sattva-viçeña. When this “sunlight” enters and illuminates the soul with the light of saàvit-çakti and the heat of hlädini-çakti, the seed of one’s inherent nature and inclination (svärasiki) sprouts into the first shoots of the tree of affection for the Supreme Person.
Rucibhiù-Citta-Mäsåëya-Kåt
When the rays of çuddha-sattva-viçeña warmly and brightly shine into the soul they begin to soften and melt the consciousness, which then begins to shine itself, like molten gold.
What does it mean that the consciousness “softens?” It awakes from a frozen, dormant state and begins to move and become active, thus producing a luster.
What is the luster that the softened consciousness produces? Rupa Goswami describes that luster as “rucibhiù,” a plurality of radiant inspirations, tastes, and desires. The softened heart shines with three categories of lustrous inspirations:
Asau
This word means “these two.” In the sentence rucibhiù-citta-mäsåëya-kåt-asau, it means “these two soften then consciousness and cause it to radiate with inspiration." Which two entities are Rupa Goswami referring to? He refers both to the two energies of saàvit and hlädiné-çakti, and to the two aforementioned permanent forms of Bhäva-rüpa Bhakti, Bhäva and Prema.
The next four çlokas will further explain the points made here.
tathä hi tantre
premëas tu prathamävasthä bhäva ity abhidhéyate |
sätvikäù svalpamäträù syur aträçru-pulakädayaù || 2 ||
– 2 –
Tantra: “‘Bhäva’ is said to be the first stage of Prema. In Bhäva, there may be slight signs of involuntary symptoms of emotion like tears and goose bumps.”
With this quote from Tantra, Rupa Goswami verifies his statement that Bhäva is the first dawning ray from the sun of Prema. To illustrate how Bhäva is Prema in it’s dawning state, this verse mentions that involuntary emotions (sättvika-bhäva) – a hallmark condition of Prema Bhakti Rasa – begin to slightly appear at the stage of Bhäva.
sa yathä padma-puräëe
dhyäyaà dhyäyaà bhagavataù pädämbüja yugaà tadä |
éñad-vikriyamäëätmä sädrar-dåñti-rabhudasau || 3 ||
– 3 –
Padma Puräëa: “Contemplating and contemplating Bhagavan’s two lotus feet, he became almost paralyzed and tears took hold of his two eyes.”
In this quote from Padma Puräëa, Rüpa Goswami verifies a
point made in the previous quote from Tantra, that involuntary emotional
symptoms begin to slightly appear in Bhäva. This quote describes King Ambarish
as he attained Bhäva Bhakti.
ävirbhüya-manovåttau vrajanti tat-svarüpatäà |
svayaà-prakäçarüpäpi bhäsamänä präkäçya-vat || 4 ||
vastutaù svayamäsväda-svarüpaiva ratis tv asau |
kåñëädi-karmakäsväda-hetutvaà pratipadyate || 5 ||
– 4, 5 –
[The ray of Bhäva] manifests within, and becomes identical to, the inherent nature of one’s will. Like a ray of light, it is self-illuminating though it appears to be brought to light.
The substance of Rati is inherently delicious and relishable, but it is also the cause of attaining the relishable activities of Krishna and his associates.
Here, in the fourth çloka, Rupa Goswami clarifies what happens when the ray of çuddha-sattva-viçeña enters the ätmä. At that time, pure cognition (çuddha-sattva) and the exhilaration of pure love (viçeña) manifest within and saturate the inherent nature of the mano-våtti, the volition or will (ätmä). Thus the soul becomes endowed with the potencies of saàvit and hlädiné-çakti (pure cognition and pure loving exhilaration).
A ray of light illuminates itself with it’s own light, and it illuminates all other things as well. Similarly, the ray of çuddha-sattva-viçeña enlightens the soul, and enables the soul to see and love Krishna.
When the soul thus “lights up,” it may appear that the soul itself generates the light of pure cognition and pure love. However, it is çuddha-sattva-viçeña that enables the soul to shine with these potencies.
Rupa Goswami states that çuddha-sattva-viçeña becomes identical to the inherent nature of the soul (ävirbhüya-manovåttau vrajanti tat-svarüpatäà). The soul has an inherent nature, which Rupa Goswami previously (1.2.272) mentioned as svärasiki. The svärasiki is the seed of Rägätmikä Prema – the eternal passionate affection of the soul for Krishna. A seed cannot grow without light and heat. The light and heat of çuddha-sattva-viçeña permeate the seed of svärasiki and thus cause it to “grow” or manifest. The combination of the soul’s svärasiki and the çuddha-sattva-viçeña produce one’s eternal affection for Krishna, which Rupa Goswami calls Rati.
The word “rati” means “reposing lovingly in an object; taking pleasure and delight in an object; being enamored by an object.” In Bhäva Bhakti, the soul produces Krishna-Rati, which means that one’s heart reposes in Krishna, one becomes enamored by Krishna and takes pleasure and delight in him. Rupa Goswami describes Rati as a delicious entity that brings unsurpassed bliss to one who tastes it, and which, though delicious in itself, is the cause of attaining something even more delicious: the pastimes of Krishna and his associates. When Rati thus matures into Prema, the seed of svärasiki has matured into Prema Bhakti Rasa.