22nd Ashtapathi

Courtesy: Sri.KV.Anantanarayanan

राधावदनविलोकनविकसित विविधविलास विभङ्गं
जलनिधिमिवविधुमण्डलदर्शन तरळिततुङ्गतरङ्गं
हरिमेकरसं चिरमभिलषित विलासं
सा ददर्श गुरुहर्षवशंवदहृदयमनङ्गविलासं॥१॥
हारममलतरमुरसि दधतं परिलम्ब्य विदूरं।
स्फुटतरफेनकदम्बकरम्बितमिव यमुनाजलपूरं॥२॥
श्यामळमृदुलकळेभरमण्डल परिहितगौरदुकूलम्
नीलनळिनमिव पीतपरागपटलभरपरिगतमूलं॥३॥
तरलद्ऱ्इगञ्चलचलनमनोहरवदनजनितरतिरागं
स्फुटकमलोदरखेलितखञ्जनयुगमिव शरदि तटाकं॥४
वदनकमलपरिशीलनमिळितमिहिरसमकुण्डल शोभं
स्मितरुचिरुचिरसमुज्ज्वलिताधरपल्लवकृतरतिलोभं॥५॥
शशिकिरणच्छुरितोदरसुन्दरसकुसुमकेशं
तिमिरोदितविधुमण्डलनिर्म्मलमलयजतिलकनिवेशं॥६॥
विपुलपुळकभरदन्तुरितं रतिकेलिकल्ल्भिधीरं
मणिगणकिरणसमूहसमुज्ज्वलभूषण्सुभगशरीरं॥७॥
श्रीजयदेवभणितविभवद्विगुणीकृतभूषणभारं
प्रणमत हृदि विनिधाय हरिं सुचिरं सुकृतोदयसारं॥८॥
श्रीजयदेवकृते गीतगोविन्दे अष्टपदी २२
rādhāvadanavilokanavikasita vividhavilāsa vibhaṅgaṁ
jalanidhimivavidhumaṇḍaladarśana taraḻitatuṅgataraṅgaṁ
harimekarasaṁ ciramabhilaṣita vilāsaṁ
sā dadarśa guruharṣavaśaṁvadahṛdayamanaṅgavilāsaṁ||1||
hāramamalataramurasi dadhataṁ parilambya vidūraṁ|
sphuṭataraphenakadambakarambitamiva yamunājalapūraṁ||2||
śyāmaḻamṛdulakaḻebharamaṇḍala parihitagauradukūlam
nīlanaḻinamiva pītaparāgapaṭalabharaparigatamūlaṁ||3||
taraladigañcalacalanamanoharavadanajanitaratirāgaṁ
sphuṭakamalodarakhelitakhañjanayugamiva śaradi taṭākaṁ||4
vadanakamalapariśīlanamiḻitamihirasamakuṇḍala śobhaṁ
smitarucirucirasamujjvalitādharapallavakṛtaratilobhaṁ||5||
śaśikiraṇacchuritodarasundarasakusumakeśaṁ
timiroditavidhumaṇḍalanirmmalamalayajatilakaniveśaṁ||6||
vipulapuḻakabharadanturitaṁ ratikelikallbhidhīraṁ
maṇigaṇakiraṇasamūhasamujjvalabhūṣaṇsubhagaśarīraṁ||7||
śrījayadevabhaṇitavibhavadviguṇīkṛtabhūṣaṇabhāraṁ
praṇamata hṛdi vinidhāya hariṁ suciraṁ sukṛtodayasāraṁ||8||
śrījayadevakṛte gītagovinde aṣṭapadī 22*

* *

*Geetagovindam of Jayadeva is the description of the strange and sweet
relationship of Radha and Krishna, full of yearning for each other and at
the same time a saga of self-mortification through separation from one one
another for frivolous causes with all eagerness to get united.. they are
very far from each other when they are near and they are so close to each
other when they are separate. It is also the yearning of the seeker for
the ultimate being sought, the search of prakriti and purusha to unite and
make the universe perfect.... *

*The twentysecond Ashtapadi is where after a lot of lovelorn reprimands and
eager separation Hari the lover and Radha his dearest, meet one another.
How that Radha saw Hari in that state of near fulfilment is the content of
this Kalyana Ashtapadi. *

* *

*That Radha saw Hari whose only desire at that moment was to get united
with her.. the moment he was awaiting with eagerness for a long time
now..His only object of love at that moment was Radha.. on seeing her face,
He is alternately sujected to myriad of emotions like disability to move,
sweating, raising goose pimples and so on..it like the ocean raising all
its waves towards the full moon at the moment of tide.*

*
*

*He wore a long garland full of perals and with his pitch-dark body
resembled the river Kalindi who is very black but shines with pure white
foam on her surface. *

*He shone like a black lily flower with dark and soft petals which was
partially covered by a yeallow silken clothe resembling yellow hued spores
of that dark flower. *

*His dark pair of eyes were just wandering fast left to right having
glimpse at the attractive face of Radha.. and he looked like a lake with a
pair of Khanjanika birds swimming blissfully over its waters.*

*His face was like a red lotus ( for a dark face like His to become red
like a lotus should definitely mean the intensity of his yearning for
Radha), flanked by two earrings which shone like two suns and his lovesome
lips were tremulous with the insatiable desire for union with his
love...Radha*

*He was adoring his hair with pure white flowers and it gave an impression
of the rays of moon peeping out of the covers of dark cloud. His face
shone like the moon which had just come out fresh from out of a cover of
dark clouds. *

*And to top it all, the lord of the whole universe in his excited state of
mind in full expectation of an ideal communion with Radha, was totally
bereft of any boldness... completely given to sweet anxiety of
expectation.. Radha saw him adorned in all the valuable gems and other
embllishments, eager to take possession of the real gem he yearned for ..
Radha*

*This tribute of Jayadeva to the eager expectation of Krishna in His union
with Radha is an additional ornament offered to Hari. *

*Let us prostrate before that Hari whose beauty is enhanced by the nearness
of Radha and is further enhanced by the tribut of this Jaydeva.
*