Morning Love

 "Another gazing in his face,

sits wistfully apart,

searching it with those  

looks of love that leap from   

heart to heart;"

Her eyes afire with shy desire, 

 veiled by their lashes black, 

speak so that Krishna cannot choose 

but send the message back, ..."

                                                 from the Gita Govinda

    This poem narrates the playful exchanges of glances between Radha and Krishna during the morning pastimes. The daily pastimes of Radha and Krishna are occurring in eight sections (asta-kaliya-nitya lila) during the day and the Acharyas have sung repeatedly about them as a confidential meditation. Breakfast is part of the morning pastimes where the situation finds Radha and Krishna exchanging glances to send hidden messages.                    

 Morning Love

The bright morning rays

shone on golden plates and trays,

reflecting the hue of her face,

which he searched for and embraced

with the limbs of his gaze.

As he bit into the sweet

with gusto,

at once the mellows of their last tryst

inundated his heart

and his taste buds.

He threw his head back,  ⁽¹⁾

laughing with his friends,

but swiftly, the bumblebee

of his eye

flew to the side

and was captured by the petal

of her eye.

The cardamom, the cloves,

also the camphor

on his tongue

were like flashes of remembrance ~

of moon light,

and loving words,

susurrus  in the night,

in the velvety darkness,

on a bed of petals in the bower.

He paused,

to taste the milk, the dense cream,

and also warm rice with ghee,

and as a message

darted from his eyebrows,

she shot back an arrow afire

with the crescent bow of her eyes

laden with desire,

quickly clasped by

an elusive leap

of his eye to the side,

and He smiled

at the love delights,

the fruit cakes, the candied fruits,

and also the pulp of a fruit,

touching it with his lips,

and amusedly sucking the juice,

as a silent promise

to meet in Radha Kund.

As she stood behind the window  ⁽²⁾

looking out upon the courtyard,

she glimpsed him one more time

as he passed by,

but stepped back, feeling shy

pulled her veil up over her eyes.

She took a morsel left from His plate,  ⁽³⁾

and an inebriating taste

of aguru from His hand,

of musk from His sweat,

and camphor from His breath,

stormed her limbs, her heart,

her senses, her whole being.

She closed her eyes

to hide the swoon of her mind,

while on her tongue,

the ambrosia from his lips

increased,

the flavour of that mouthful of love

intensified, and unlimitedly multiplied,

so pleasure took the form of eternal time,

and in this way, eternity

is the sole unit of time

for love.

1) Govinda Lilamrta pg 39 "While enjoying the rice cooked in ghee, Krishna joked with His friends and looked at Radha's face from the corner of His eye."

2) SKBM pg 52 "Sri Radhika drank the beautiful nectarean view of Krishna's through the window with Her eyes, seeing that Krishna was satisfied and had finished His meal."

3) SKBM pg53 "Sri Radhika closed Her eyes slightly out of shyness and took Her meal ...."

Blessings from this lila to the readers: "Remember this pastime in the morning, and overwhelmed with love, chant the holy name in the association of devotees.  Then within a short time, bhava (transcendental emotions) will be awakened." Bhaktivinoda Thakur - Sri Bhajana-rahasya