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ARTICLE : Sri Krishna Jayanthi: Sep 4-5, 1996
Sri Krishna Jayanthi, the birthday of Sri Krishna,
falls on September 4th and 5th of this year.
The 4th is rOhiNI, the constellation (nakshatra)
under which he was born, and the 5th is ashTami,
the 8th day after the new moon, another method of
reckoning his birthdate.
In loving praise and service of the Lord, I would
like to offer some verses by Sri Vedanta Desika
(13th century C.E.), who was not only a Vedantin
and scholar of remarkable depth but also one of
the most versatile poets India has ever seen.
The following are from the gOpAla vimSati, a poem
of twenty stanzas composed by Desika at the shrine
of Lord Krishna in tiru ahIndrapuram, Tamil Nadu.
Among all of Desika's stotras, this one is perhaps
the sweetest and most absorbing, as he very lovingly
describes his vision of the boy Krishna enjoying
himself in the woods of Brindavana.
[Translation adapted from ``Sri Vedanta Desika's Stotras,''
by Sriman S.S. Raghavan, Dr. M.S. Lakshmi Kumari, and
Dr. M. Narasimhachary.]
vande bRndAvana caram vallavI jana vallabham |
jayantI sambhavam dhAma vaijayantI vibhUshaNam || 1 ||
I salute that effulgence which moves about in
Brindavana, the beloved of the cowherdesses,
who appeared on the Sri Jayanti day and who is
adorned by the Vaijayanti garland.
AmnAya-gandha-rudita-sphuritAdharoshTham
AsrAvilekshaNam-anukshaNa-mandahAsam |
gopAlaDimbavapusham kuhanAjananyA:
prAnastanandhyam avaimi paaram pumAmsam || 3 ||
The one appearing with the body of a cowherd boy,
whose lips are throbbing with cries, bearing the
fragrance of the Vedas, whose eyes now are misty
with tears and now smiling gently, and who drank
the life of the deceitful mother along with her milk --
him I understand as the Supreme Being.
nikaTeshu niSAmayAmi nityam
nigamAantair adhunApi mRgyamANam |
yamalArjuna-dRshTa-bAlakelim
yamunA-sAkshika-yauvanam yuvAnam || 8 ||
Always do I see in my vicinity, the boy whose
youthful play was witnessed by the Yamuna,
whose boyish sports were seen by the twin Arjuna
trees and who is still being searched for by the
Upanishads!
padavI madavI yasIm vimukte:
aTavI sampaadam ambuvAhayantIm |
aruNAdharaa sAbhilAshavamshAm
karuNAm kAraNa-mAnushIm bhajAmi || 9 ||
I adore Compassion which took human form for
some reason, who carries a bamboo which relishes
the taste of his ruddy lower lip, who is like
a cloud moving in the dense forest and who is
the path not very far to liberation.
akhilAn-avalokayAmi kAlAn
mahilAdhIna-bhujAntarasya yUna: |
abhilAshapadam vrajAnganAnAm
abhilApakrama-dUram-AbhirUpyam || 13 ||
At all times, I see the indescribable beauty
of the youth whose chest is occupied by young
girls and whose beauty, coveted by the women
of Vraja, is beyond the scope of words.
hRdi mughda-SikhaNDa-maNDano
likhita: kena mamaisha SilpinA |
madanAtura-vallavAnganA-
vadanAmbhoja-divAkaro yuvA || 14 ||
Who is that sculptor who carved this Youth,
with his beautiful peacock feather adorning
his head, who is like the sun to the lotus-like
faces of the lovesick gopikas, in my heart?
vAso hRtvA dinakarasutA-sannidhau vallavInAm
lIlAsmero jayati lalitAm Asthita: kundaSakhAm |
savrIlAbhis tad anuvasane tAbhir abhyarthyamAne
kAmI kaScit karakamalayor anjalim yAcamAna: || 20 ||
Hail to that passionate one, who, having stolen
the clothes of the gopikas on the banks of the Yamunaa,
sat on the bough of the beautiful Kunda tree,
sported a smile, and on being asked for their clothes
by the bashful girls, asked them to fold their lotus-
like palms in salutation.
ity ananyamanasA vinirmitAm
venkateSa-kavinA stutim paThan |
divyaveNu-rasikAm samIkshate
daivatam kimapi yauvatapriyam || 21 ||
He who with a devoted mind reads this hymn composed
by the poet Venkatesa (Vedanta Desika) will
visualize the indesribable God, the beloved of
the young girls and who is very fond of his divine
flute.
srimate vedanta gurave namah
aazhvaar emberumaanaar dhesikan jeeyar thiruvadigale saraNam
sri krishnaarpaNam astu
