How can hearing Krishna’s rasa-lila with the gopis free us from lust?
Answer Podcast
Question:
How can reading about the gopis’ pastimes with Krishna purify us of lust, as mentioned in the Bhagavatam?
In fact, we are often cautioned not to read those pastimes prematurely, as they might trigger lower desires within us. So how do we understand this apparent contradiction?
Answer:
It depends on the level of appreciation and realization we have for those pastimes.
Let’s begin with the metaphor of the upside-down tree from the Bhagavad-gita (15.1). The bhakti tradition explains this using the image of a tree reflected in water. If we see a mango in that reflected tree and don’t know about the real tree, we might jump into the water trying to grab the mango — only to get wet, frustrated, or even hurt. But once we lift our vision and see the real tree and the real mango, we naturally understand that what’s seen below is just a reflection. We become drawn to the real mango and gradually lose our attraction to the reflected one.
Worldly pleasures — especially the male-female attraction and the associated sensual pleasures — are like the reflected mango. They appear attractive, but are illusory and temporary. The real mango is the original, pure relationship between the transcendental male and female — Krishna and the gopis, especially Radharani. Their divine relationship is described in the Bhagavatam, particularly in the Tenth Canto and in the Rasa-panchadhyayi.
Now, if we cultivate proper philosophical understanding and simultaneously develop some attraction to Krishna through the practice of bhakti, then two things happen:
- Philosophical clarity helps us recognize the worldly attraction as the reflection.
- Devotional attraction draws us toward the original divine reality — Krishna and his pastimes.
When these two are present, then hearing about Krishna’s pastimes with the gopis doesn’t awaken lust — it purifies it. It redirects the heart’s attraction from the temporary to the eternal, from the reflected to the real.
That’s why the Bhagavatam emphasizes how we should hear these pastimes properly:
śraddhānvito ’nuśṛṇuyād atha varnayed yah
(SB 10.33.39)“One who hears and describes these pastimes with faith (śraddhā) and devotion (anuśṛṇuyād)…”
Here, śraddhā (faith) means the conviction that these pastimes are spiritually purifying. That faith gradually leads to rati, devotional attraction. And anuśṛṇuyād implies hearing under proper guidance and with a devotional mindset.
However, if we don’t yet have that faith or devotional grounding, and our consciousness is still heavily influenced by rajas and tamas, then prematurely hearing these pastimes may create confusion. We may project our material desires onto the divine pastimes — mistaking the real mango for just a more refined version of the reflected one.
In that case, it’s recommended that we first hear and reflect on other pastimes of Krishna — his childhood, his protection of devotees, his philosophical teachings — which cultivate purity (sattva), philosophical conviction, and devotional longing. Gradually, we become qualified to hear rasa-lila properly.
So ultimately, when lobha-bhakti (eagerness for divine love) is awakened in the heart and we hear about Krishna’s pastimes with the gopis through the lens of faith and service, the Bhagavatam assures us:
vikrīḍitaṁ vraja-vadhūbhir idam ca viṣṇoḥ
śraddhānvito ’nuśṛṇuyād atha varnayed yah
bhaktim parām bhagavati pratilabhya kāmam
hrid-rogam āśv apahinoty acireṇa dhīrah“When a sober person hears the pastimes of the Lord with the gopis with faith and devotion, the disease of lust in the heart (kāma, hṛd-roga) is quickly destroyed, and one attains supreme devotion.” (SB 10.33.39)
Thus, attraction to the real mango — Krishna — displaces the craving for the reflected one — worldly pleasure.
Thank you.