Radha-Krishna Worship - an essential subject

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Worship is how devotees from any faith express their gratitude and devotion to God. The rituals involved in worshiping dieties of Radha and Krishna are an intricate part of bhakti-tradition to help the devotee to establish their relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead through personal service.

Worship of Radha and Krishna, in both general and ritualistic sense, is a very elevated topic but in a same time it is a basic concept of bhakti-yoga. Radha is the beloved consort of Krishna. She knows how to please Krishna and very happily engages others in service to her Lord and Master.

Radha-Krishna worship includes Laksmi-Narayana worship; therefore when one worships the Lord according to the regulative principles, the Lord accepts the service in the role of Laksmi-Narayana. Through regulated worship, Radha and Krishna will gradually cease to be just theoretical figures from some ancient holy scriptures. They will become living persons inseparably connected to us in a deep relationship of love and devotion.

Srila Prabhupada's books, lectures, conversations and letters offer a comprehensive presentation of this essential subject as seen in the Vaniquotes Radha - Krishna Worship category. An introduction from his books is given below in the following 12 quotes.

Quotes from Srila Prabhupada's books


vanipedia.org 		The opportunity for this purification is the special feature of human life; in other lives, this is not possible. Such purification can be achieved very easily by rādhā-kṛṣṇa-bhajana, devotional service rendered to Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa, and therefore Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura sings, hari hari viphale janama goṅāinu, indicating that unless one worships Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa, one's human form of life is wasted. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.13.53)



vanipedia.org 		When one is attracted by the transcendental beauty of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa, he is no longer attracted by material feminine beauty. That is the special significance of Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa worship. That is testified to by Yāmunācārya. He says, "Since I have become attracted by the beauty of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa, when there is attraction for a woman or a memory of sex life with a woman, I at once spit on it, and my face turns in disgust." (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.31.38)



vanipedia.org 		Many realized souls, such as Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī and King Kulaśekhara, have recommended with great emphasis that one develop this spontaneous love of Godhead, even at the risk of transgressing all the traditional codes of morality and religiosity. Śrī Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī, one of the Six Gosvāmīs of Vṛndāvana, has written in his prayers called the Manaḥ-śikṣā that one should simply worship Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa with all attention. (Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 4.33)



vanipedia.org 		Development of conjugal love can be possible only with those who are already engaged in following the regulative principles of devotional service, specifically in the worship of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa in the temple. Such devotees gradually develop a spontaneous love for the Deity, and by hearing of the Lord's exchange of loving affairs with the gopīs, they gradually become attracted to these pastimes. (Nectar of Devotion, Chapter 16)



vanipedia.org 		There are two kinds of devotional service: the way of pāñcarātrika regulative principles and the way of bhāgavata transcendental loving service. The love of Godhead of those engaged in pāñcarātrika regulative principles depends more or less on the opulent and reverential platform, but the worship of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa is purely on the platform of transcendental love. (Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 6.53)



vanipedia.org 		The process of vidhi-mārga, following the regulative principles, is utilized in the worship of Lakṣmī-Nārāyaṇa, whereas the process of spontaneous service—following in the footsteps of the gopīs, who are the denizens of Vṛndāvana—is transcendentally more advanced and is the process whereby Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa are worshiped. One cannot attain this elevated position while worshiping the Lord in His opulence. (Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Madhya-līlā 8.230)



vanipedia.org 		One should strictly follow the vidhi-mārga regulative principles in the worship of Lakṣmī-Nārāyaṇa, although the Lord is present in the temple as Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa. Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa includes Lakṣmī-Nārāyaṇa; therefore when one worships the Lord according to the regulative principles, the Lord accepts the service in the role of Lakṣmī-Nārāyaṇa. In The Nectar of Devotion full instructions are given about the vidhi-mārga worship of Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa, or Lakṣmī-Nārāyaṇa. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 4.24.45-46)



vanipedia.org 		Generally the worship of the Lord begins with the worship of Nārāyaṇa, or Viṣṇu, whereas the worship of Lord Kṛṣṇa and Rādhā is most confidential. Lord Nārāyaṇa is worshipable by the pāñcarātrika-vidhi, or regulative principles, whereas Lord Kṛṣṇa is worshipable by the bhāgavata-vidhi. No one can worship the Lord in the bhāgavata-vidhi without going through the regulations of the pāñcarātrika-vidhi. (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 4.24.45-46)



vanipedia.org 		Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmī, the author of Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta, predicts in verses 225 and 226 that in the future those who manufacture imaginary methods of worship will gradually give up the worship of Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa, and although they will call themselves devotees of Lord Caitanya, they will also give up the worship of Caitanya Mahāprabhu and fall down into material activities. For the real worshipers of Lord Caitanya, the ultimate goal of life is to worship Śrī Śrī Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa. (Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 5.232)



vanipedia.org 		Śrī Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura here remarks that one should not give up the worship of Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa to worship Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. By worshiping either Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa or Lord Caitanya alone, one cannot become advanced. (Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 8.32)



vanipedia.org 		In our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, our students are first advised to worship Guru-Gaurāṅga, and then, when they are somewhat advanced, the Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa Deity is installed, and they are engaged in the worship of the Lord. One should first take shelter of Gaura-Nityānanda in order to reach, ultimately, Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa. (Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Ādi-līlā 8.31)



vanipedia.org 		The sages recommended the worship of the eternal dual forms of Śrī Śrī Lakṣmī-Nārāyaṇa, Śrī Śrī Sītā-Rāma, and Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa. Therefore, it is desired most earnestly that the proprietors and managers of big mills, factories, hospitals, universities, hotels, and various other institutions install a temple for worshiping any of these transcendental forms of Viṣṇu. This will transform all the workers in these institutions into karma-yogīs. (Message of Godhead, Chapter 2)



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Vanipedia has now over 903 introductory articles compiled from Srila Prabhupada's books under the series titled Essential Subjects. All these articles can be seen in the Table of Content on the right side of this article and also here in this Umbrella Category. Browse through them to relish the breadth and depth of Srila Prabhupada's teachings - There is a subject for everyone.


   
 

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