Aromatic flowers

 

An unlimited variety of aromatic flowers blossoms in the trees of Vṛndāvana, each a reflection of Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s inconceivable artistic skill. Although trees generally blossom in the spring, in the land of wonder which is Vṛndāvana the seasonal laws act only for the pleasure of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. There are divine kadamba, campaka, śirīṣa, ketakī, and kiṁśuka trees, along with beautiful lavaṅga, jātī, yūthī, and mādhavī vines. They bear flowers of many heavenly colors, and their combined fragrance is carried by a slow, singular breeze.

This breeze, pregnant with the weight of an intoxicating fragrance, now moves in lazy patterns, winding among the many trees like an ethereal python, sometimes stopping, sometimes continuing its love-induced course. Those living entities who gain the fortune of receiving its touch are released from the cycle of birth and death. Aromatic, cooling, and pleasant in every way, it sends an invitation to Śrī Kṛṣṇa; Vṛndāvana forest is now prepared to receive Him!

If one asks how such divine fragrances came to be, the answer is that mother Earth has adopted the scent of Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s body at the time of His bath. When Mother Yaśodā removes His cloth, allowing it to fall to the ground, the assimilated scent of His limbs, which resembles a mixture of sandalwood pulp, camphor, musk, and aguru, is immediately plundered by Pṛthvī-devī. She then distributes it to all her associates, like the trees, bushes, and flowers, who forward it to their offspring, the flowers. Each flower, according to its qualification, receives some portion of this aroma, which is then known as its own bouquet.

H.H.Sivarama Swami, Veṇu-gītā, Chapter 1, Vṛndāvana in Autumn

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11

Pastime Places

The Twelve Forests (Vanas )

1. Madhuvana

2. Tālavana

3. Kumudavana

4. Bahulāvana

5. Kāmyavana

6. Khadiravana

7. Vṛndāvana

8. Bhadravana

9. Bhāṇḍīravana

10. Bilvavana

11. Lohavana

12. Mahāvana

The Sub-Forests (Upavanas )

1. Brahmavana (Brahma-kuṇḍa)

2. Apsarāvana (Govardhana)

3. Vihvalavana (Vihvala-kuṇḍa)

4. Kadambavana (Sonehara)

5. Svarṇavana (Sonehara)

6. Surabhivana (Govardhana)

7. Premavana (Prema-sarovara)

8. Mayūravana (Varṣāṇā)

9. Māneṅgitavana (Varṣāṇā)

10. Śeṣaśāyanavana (Śeṣaśāyī)

11. Nāradavana (Govardhana)

12. Paramānandavana (Paramādra)

The Ancillary Forests (Prativanas )

1. Raṅkavana (Raṅkolī)

2. Vārttāvana

3. Karahāvana (Karhela)

4. Kāmavana (Kāmāi)

5. Añjanavana (Ajñokh)

6. Karṇavana (Kunvārā)

7. Kṛṣṇākṣipanavana (Varṣāṇā)

8. Nandavana (Nanda-grāma)

9. Indravana (Indrolī)

10. Śikṣāvana (Varṣāṇā)

11. Candrāvalīvana (Rīṭhorā)

12. Lohavana

The Great Forests (Adhivanas )

1. Mathurā

2. Śrīkuṇḍavana (Rādhā-kuṇḍa)

3. Nanda-grāma (Nanda-grāma)

4. Gaḍavana (Kāmyavana)

5. Lalitā-grāma (Ūñchagaon)

6. Vṛṣabhānu-pura (Varṣāṇā)

7. Gokula (Gokula)

8. Balabhadravana (Baladeva)

9. Govardhana (Govardhana)

10. Yāvaṭā (Yāvaṭā)

11. Vṛndāvana (Vṛndāvana)

12. Saṅketavana (Saṅketa)

In addition to these forty-eight forests there are another eighty-nine, com-prising a number of forests of service (sevyavana ), forests of penance (tapo-vana ), forests of liberation (mokṣavana ), forests of desire (kāmavana ), for-ests or reward (arthavana ), forests of rest (viśrāmavana ), forests of religion (dharmavana ), forests of perfection (siddhavana ), forests of meeting (saṅga-vana ), and forests that demark the boundaries of the dhāma.

The Sixteen Banyan Trees

1. Saṅketavaṭa

2. Bhāṇḍīravaṭa

3. Yāvavaṭa

4. Śṛṅgāravaṭa

5. Vaṁśīvaṭa

6. Śrīvaṭa

7. Jaṭajūṭavaṭa

8. Kāmavaṭa

9. Manorathavaṭa

10. Āśāvaṭa

11. Aśokavaṭa

12. Kelivaṭa

13. Brahmavaṭa

14. Rudravaṭa

15. Śrīdharavaṭa

16. Sāvitrīvaṭa

Seven Footprints of Kṛṣṇa

1. Kāmyavana

2. Baiṭhāṇa

3. Toṣa

4. Foot of Govardhana

5. Nanda-grāma

6. On Govardhana

7. Surabhi-kuṇḍa

8. Caraṇa-kuṇḍa (Baladeva)

Eleven Main Hills

1. Girirāja (Govardhana)

2. Setu-kandarā (Ādi-badri)

3. Kedāranātha (Kedāranātha)

4. Caraṇa-pahāṛī (Kāmyavana)

5. Indrasena-parvata (Kāmyavana)

6. Āṭora-parvata (Ūñchagaon)

7. Sakhīgiri-parvata (Ūñchagaon)

8. Brahma-parvata (Varṣāṇā)

9. Nandīśvara (Nanda-grāma)

10. Viṣṇu-parvata (Varṣāṇā)

11. Caraṇa-pahāṛī (Baiṭhāna)

Six Places of Toll Pastimes (Dāna-līlās )

1. Karhela (Varṣāṇā)

2. Dāna-gaṛh (Varṣāṇā)

3. Sāṅkari-khor (Varṣāṇā)

4. Dāna-ghāṭī (Govardhana)

5. Gahvaravana (Varṣāṇā)

6. Kadamba-khaṇḍī

Eleven Main Lakes

1. Pāvana-sarovara (Nanda-grāma)

2. Māna-sarovara (Bilvavana)

3. Ajano-khara (Ajñokh)

4. Prema-sarovara (Varṣāṇā)

5. Rāma-tāla (Rāma-ghāṭa)

6. Mukharā-tāla (Mukharāi)

7. Kusuma-sarovara (Govardhana)

8. Harajī-pokhara (Yatipura)

9. Pīlī-pokhara (Varṣāṇā)

10. Bhānokhara (Varṣāṇā)

11. Īśvara-pokhara (Nanda-grāma)

In addition to these eleven main lakes, there is a secondary list of one hundred and forty-eight lakes (kuṇḍas ), which include eighty-four in Kāmyavana alone. In addition, there are countless other lakes around Vraja.

Ten Wells (Kūpas )

1. Saptasamudra (Gopīśvara / Vṛndāvana)

2. Nanda-kūpa (Mahāvana)

3. Indra-kūpa (Indrolī)

4. Candra-kūpa (Candra-sarovara)

5. Bhāṇḍīra-kūpa (Bhāṇḍīravana)

6. Karaṇavedha-kūpa (Gokula)

7. Kṛṣṇa-kūpa (Janmasthāna / Mathurā)

8. Veṇu-kūpa (Vṛndāvana)

9. Kubjā-kūpa (Mathurā)

10. Gopa-kūpa (Ramaṇa-retī)

Six Swings

1. Karhela

2. Saṅketa

3. Govardhana

4. Ajñokh

5. Vṛndāvana

6. Rādhā-kuṇḍa

Twenty-four Bathing Places (Ghāṭas )

1. Brahmāṇḍa (Mahāvana)

2. Gaū (Gokula)

3. Govinda (Gokula)

4. Ṭhākurāṇī (Gokula)

5. Yaśodā (Gokula)

6. Uttareśvara (Gokula)

7. Vaikuṇṭha (Mathurā)

8. Viśrānti (Mathurā)

9. Prayāga (Mathurā)

10. Beṅgali (Mathurā)

11. Rāma-ghāṭa (Shergarh)

12. Kāliya-dāha (Vṛndāvana)

13. Gopāla (Vṛndāvana)

14. Praskandana (Vṛndāvana)

15. Yugala (Vṛndāvana)

16. Imlī-tāla (Vṛndāvana)

17. Dhīra-samīra (Vṛndāvana)

18. Keśī (Vṛndāvana)

19. Bihārī (Vṛndāvana)

20. Pāṇi (Vṛndāvana)

21. Rāja (Vṛndāvana)

22. Cīra (Tapovana)

23. Gopī (Tapovana)

24. Nanda

Thirty Dancing Places (Rāsa-maṇḍalas )

1. Vṛndāvana (5)

2. Kāmyavana (2)

3. Nanda-grāma

4. Karhela (2)

5. Dāna-gaṛh (2)

6. Sāṅkari-khor

7. Māna-gaṛh

8. Vilāsa-gaṛh (2)

9. Gahvaravana

10. Saṅketa (3)

11. Piyāso

12. Yāvaṭā (2)

13. Kokilavana

14. Ūñchagaon (3)

15. Picchalinī-śilā

16. Sonehara (2)

Twelve Special Stones (Śilās )

1. Sindūrī (Ḍhūkā Daujī / Govardhana)

2. Kajalī (Ḍhūkā Daujī / Govardhana)

3. Bhājana (Mukharāi)

4. Sundara (Ḍhūkā Daujī / Govardhana)

5. Śṛṅgāra (Govinda-kuṇḍa / Govardhana)

6. Sugandhi (Śyāma-ḍhāk, Govardhana; Setu, Ādi-badri)

7. Mānika (Māna-sarovara)

8. Picchalinī (Kāmyavana)

9. Citravicitra (Ūñchagaon)

10. Snāna (Yatipura / Govardhana)

11. Daṇḍautī (Yatipura / Govardhana)

12. Añjanī (Ajñokh)

Five Special Thrones (Siṁhāsanas )

1. Caraṇa-pahāṛī (Kāmyavana)

2. Bhojana-thālī (Kāmyavana)

3. Lukluki-kuṇḍa (Cave above kuṇḍa, Kāmyavana)

4. Kadamba-khaṇḍī (Sonehara)

5. Ratna-siṁhāsana (Govardhana)

The Famous Deities of Vraja

Four Devas:

1. Harideva (Govardhana)

2. Keśavadeva (Mathurā)

3. Baladeva (Baladeva)

4. Govindadeva (Vṛndāvana, Jaipur)

Two Nāthas:

1. Śrī Nāthajī (Govardhana)

2. Gopīnātha (Vṛndāvana, Jaipur)

Two Gopālas:

1. Madana-mohana (Vṛndāvana, Karoli)

2. Sākṣi-gopāla (Vṛndāvana, Purī)

Six Baladevas at:

1. Ūñchagaon

2. Ariṅg

3. Rāma-ghāṭa

4. Baladeva

5. Nārī

6. Rāl

Two (Rādhā) Ṭhākurāṇīs at:

1. Rāval

2. Varṣāṇā

Seven Goddesses (Devīs):

1. Vṛndā (Kāmyavana)

2. Saṅketa (Saṅketa)

3. Kātyāyanī (Vṛndāvana)

4. Mathurā-devī (Mathurā)

5. Novarī, Covarī (Ḍabhalā)

6. Mahāvidyā (Mathurā)

Seven Mahādevas:

1. Bhūteśvara (Mathurā)

2. Gokarṇa (Mathurā)

3. Kāmeśvara (Kāmyavana)

4. Gopeśvara (Vṛndāvana)

5. Nandīśvara (Nanda-grāma)

6. Uttareśvara (Gokula)

7. Cakreśvara (Govardhana)

Summary

This catalogue of the features of Vṛndāvana is an indication of the variegatedness of Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes when He appears on earth and the innumerable opulences of His abode. The many features of the dhāma help to remind us of the Lord, His associates, and His pastimes, knowledge of which should be-come the equivalent of history and geography lessons for pilgrims to Vṛndāvana.

Beauty in the eyes of observer

 

As Gopa-kumāra travelled ever higher through the universe, wherever he went, the residents, abodes, and presiding deities were ever more beautiful. The same gradation of beauty was observed when he entered the spiritual sky and travelled from Mahakala-pura to Vaikuntha, and finally to Vraja. Lord Nārāyaṇa had lotus feet, and Kṛṣṇa had lotus feet, but based on Gopa-kumara's experience, the two sets of feet were not equally beautiful. Those of the latter were much more beautiful than those of the former. This exemplifies how there are degrees of beauty. 

And then there is the understanding that beauty is in the eye of the behold-er, or in Kṛṣṇa's words, ye yathā māṁ prapadyante, which can be paraphrased as,

        According to the observer's devotion, I reward them with a corresponding vision of my beauty. (Bg. 4.11)

In the Brahma-saṁhitā verse beginning with premāñjana-cchurita, Lord Brahmā also confirms that only a devotee with prema can see Kṛṣṇa's incon-ceivable beauty, while lesser devotees see only according to their devotion. (Brahma-samhitā 5.38.)

Astute sādhakas thus bear in mind the limitations their undeveloped devo-tion places upon appreciating the Lord's beauty. What they see is a part of the reality-a small part. A comparable limitation exists for siddhas. In their case, perception of beauty is governed by relationship, rāsa.

The relative superiority of mellows indicates that Śrīdāmā, Yaśodā, and Lalitā see increasing grades of beauty in Kṛṣṇa. Similarly, the hierarchy of the gopīs' love means that among Ratī, Lalitā, and Rādhā, only the daughter of Vṛṣabhānu tastes Kṛṣṇa's beauty in its full splendour.

H.H. Śivarāma Swami, Vilāpa-kusumāñjali, page 248.