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When Lord Chaitanya said that that was accepted, and that he might advance further, Ramananda Roy said that fraternal relationship with Lord Krishna is a still higher transcendental position. Ramananda Roy's purport in saying this is that, when the relationship with Krishna is increased by a more affectionate tendency, then the mood of fearfulness, the consciousness of the extra-superiority of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, becomes diminished; and there is the development of a mood of faithfulness. And this faithfulness is called friendship. In this friendly relationship, there is a sense of equality between Lord Krishna and His friends.
#$p#In this connection, Ramananda Roy quoted a nice verse from Srimad Bhagwatam, Tenth Canto, 12th Chapter, where Sukdeva Goswami describes Lord Krishna's lunch with His friends in the forest where they went to play with the cows. It is said there that the cowherds boys who went to play in the forest with Krishna enjoyed transcendental friendship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Who is considered the Impersonal Brahman by great sages, considered the Supreme Personality of Godhead by the devotees; and, for the ordinary man, He is considered an ordinary human being.
#$p#Lord Chaitanya appreciated this statement by Ramananda Roy very much, but still He said, "You can advance further." At the request of Lord Chaitanya, Ramanada Roy stated that the relationship with Krishna as son and father, the relationship of parenthood, is a still higher transcendental position.
#$p#Ramananda Roy's meaning was that the friendly attitude toward Krishna, increased by still more affection becomes the relationship between parents and their children. In this connection Ramananda Roy quoted a nice verse from Srimad Bhagwatam, Tenth canto, 8th chapter, where it is stated that the King inquired from Sukdeva Goswami as to the magnitude of righteous activities which had been performed by Yasoda, the mother of Krishna, for which the Supreme Personality of Godhead called her "mother," and sucked at her breast. And he quoted still another verse from Srimad Bhagwatam (Tenth Canto, 9th Chapter), in which it is stated that Yasoda, the wife of Nanda, a cowherd man, received mercy from the Supreme Personality of Godhead which is incomparable, even by the mercy which is received by Brahma, the first created living being, or Lord Shiva, or even the Goddess of Fortune, Lakshmi, who is always situated on the chest of Lord Vishnu.
#$p#Lord Chaitanya asked Ramananda Roy to proceed further, to come to the point of conjugal love. Ramananda Roy, understanding the mind of Lord Chaitanya, immediately answered that the relationship of conjugal love with Krishna is the highest position. In other words, intimate relationship with Krishna develops from an ordinary conception of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, to the conception of Master and servant. And when it has become confidential, it develops into a friendly relationship, and when it is further developed, it is the relationship between parents and the children; and when it is developed to the highest point of complete love and affection, it is known as conjugal love with the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
#$p#In this connection, Ramananda Roy quoted a nice stanza from the Srimad Bhagwatam, Tenth Canto, 47th Chapter, in which it is stated that the transcendental mode of ecstasy which was exhibited during the Rasa Dance of the Gopis with Krishna was never relishable even by the Goddess of Fortune, who is always situated on the chest of the Lord in the spiritual kingdom. What to speak of the experience of ordinary women?
#$p#Ramananda Roy then explained the gradual process of the development of pure love with Krishna. He stated that a person who is related to the Supreme Personality of Godhead in any one of the different modes of affection is in the relationship just suitable for him. But actually a relationship with the Supreme Lord begins with the relationship of Master and servant, and further develops into friendship, and further develops into paternal love, and further develops into conjugal love. Anyone who is situated in his particular relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead is in the best relationship for him, but when we study all these different flavors of transcendental taste in relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, we can see that the first stage is Brahmabuta, or the neutral stage of realization of the Supreme Lord. The state accompanying the conception of accepting the Lord as Master and oneself as His servant is better; and the more developed conception of that relationship is as a friend; and still further as a father; this is the superior quality of development. From friendship to paternal love, the relationship is advanced and of superior quality, and the further advance to conjugal love is the supreme relationship with the Supreme Lord.
#$p#Self-realization with the sense of servitude is certainly a transcendental development. And the mode of Master and servant, with fraternity added, is a further development. And with progressive affection, it develops into parenthood. But the highest development is conjugal love in relationship with the Supreme Lord. In this connection, Ramananda Roy quoted a verse from Bhakti Rasamrita Sindhu. It is stated there that the development of spiritual affection for the Supreme Lord is in all categories transcendental, but that the specific aptitude of a devotee to a particular state is more relishable by him than others.
#$p#Such a transcendental relationship with the Supreme Lord cannot, however, be manufactured by the mental concoction of a pseudo devotee. In this connection, Rupa Goswami in his Bhakti Rasamrita Sindhu, has stated that devotional service without reference to the Vedic Scriptures as well as to Vedic literature, following the principles of Vedic Scripture, can never be approved. Sri Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Goswami Maharaj remarks that those who are professional spiritual masters, professional Bhagwatam reciters, professional performers of Kirtan, or persons who are engaged in so-called devotional service of their own mental concoction, cannot be accepted. There are different kinds of professional communities known as Aul, Vaul, Kartabhaza, Nada Darbesa, Snai, Atibibadi, Chudadhari, Gaurnaganagari. A member of the Ventor Goswami society, or the caste called Goswami, cannot be accepted as the descendent of the six original Goswamis. Similarly, so-called devotees who manufacture different kinds of songs in connection with Lord Chaitanya, or those who are professional priests or paid reciters, cannot be accepted in this connection. One who does not follow the principle of Pancharatra, and one who is an impersonalist, and one who is addicted to sex life, cannot be compared with persons who have dedicated their lives to the service of Krishna.
#$p#A pure devotee who is always engaged in Krishna Consciousness can sacrifice everything for the service of the Lord. A person who has dedicated his life to the service of Lord Chaitanya and Krishna and the Spiritual Master, or a person who is following the principles of householder life, and similarly those who are following the principles of the renounced life in the order of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, are devotees and cannot be compared to the professional men.
#$p#When one is freed from all material contamination, any one of the relationships with Krishna is relishable transcendentally. Unfortunately, those who are inexperienced in the transcendental science cannot appreciate these different stages of relationship with the Supreme Lord, and they think that all such different stages of relationship with the Supreme Lord, and all these explanations, are due to Maya. But in Chaitanya Charitamrita, the author has given a very nice practical example of this matter. He states that earth, water, fire, air, and ether are the five elements, and these five elements develop from the subtle form to the grosser form. For example, in the ether there is a characteristic which is called sound. But in the air, there is the characteristic of ether, sound, plus a sensation of touch. When one comes to the fire, there is the characteristic of ether plus the characteristic of air, plus the characteristic which is called form. So, in fire there are three characteristics; similarly, when we come to water, there are four characteristics—namely sound, touch, form and taste. When you go to earth, there are five characteristics, namely sound, touch, form, taste, and smell. As there is a development of different characteristics, beginning from ether down to earth, so, if we analyze the different relationships with Lord Krishna and the devotee, we find that all the five characteristics of the devotional attitude are present in the relationship of conjugal love. Therefore, the relationship with Krishna in conjugal love can only be accepted as the highest perfectional stage of love of God.
#$p#There is a nice verse from the Tenth Canto, 82nd Chapter of Srimad Bhagwatam, which can be cited here: "Devotional service for the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the life of every living entity." And the Lord, addressing the damsels of Vraja, informed them that their love for the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the only cause of their achieving the association of the Lord. It is said that Lord Krishna, in relationship with His devotees, accepts all kinds of devotional service according to the aptitude of each particular devotee, and Krishna also responds to such a devotee in a reciprocal way. For anyone who wants the relationship with Krishna of Master and servant, He plays the part of the perfect Master. For anyone who wants Krishna as his Son, in the parental relationship, Krishna plays the part of the perfect Son. Similarly, if a devotee wants to worship Krishna in conjugal love, Krishna plays the part of husband or paramour in perfection. But He has admitted that His loving relationship with the damsels of Vraja in conjugal love is the highest perfectional stage.
#$p#In Srimad Bhagwatam, Tenth Canto, 32nd Chapter, Krishna addressed the Gopis and said, "My dear Gopis, your relationship with Me is completely transcendental, and in exchange for your love, it is not possible for Me to offer anything, even after many births. You have been able to give up all attachment for material enjoyment, and you have searched after Me. I am unable to repay your love; and therefore, be pleased with your own activities."
#$p#Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Goswami Maharaj has remarked that there is a class of common men who say as follows: Anyone and everyone can worship the Supreme Lord according to his particular invention of some mode of worship, and he will still achieve the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One may try to approach the Supreme Personality of Godhead, either by fruitive activities or by speculative knowledge or by meditation or by austerity—any one of the methods accepted will help one to reach the perfectional stage. They generally give the example that if anyone wants to reach a certain destination he can accept one of many different paths, and still reach the same place. Similarly, they say the Supreme Absolute Truth may be worshipped either as the Goddess Kali, or the Goddess Durga, or Lord Shiva, or Ganesha, or Rama, or Hari, or Brahma—any way that the Absolute Truth is addressed, it is all one and the same. They give an example in this connection that a man might have different names, but if he is called by any of those names he will answer.
#$p#Such explanations by mental concoction might be very pleasing to the ordinary person, but they are full of misconceptions of transcendental life. One who worships different demigods conducted by material lust cannot achieve the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The external energy of the Supreme Lord can award them some result for worshipping the particular demigods, as is stated in the Bhagavad Gita: "One who does not worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead directly cannot achieve His association by worshipping the demigods." The Supreme Personality of Godhead awards the benediction of His association only to persons who worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and not via the demigods. It is not a fact, therefore, that everyone and anyone can reach the Supreme Personality of Godhead by worshipping material demigods. It is surprising, therefore, how a man can imagine he will become perfect by worshipping the demigods. The result of devotional service in full Krishna Consciousness cannot be compared with the result of worshipping different demigods or by functioning in fruitive activities or by mental speculation. The results of fruitive activities are that, either one can go to the heavenly planets, or one can go to hell.
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Encouraged by Lord Caitanya to proceed further, Rāmānanda Rāya said that the fraternal relationship with Lord Kṛṣṇa is on an even higher transcendental plane. In this way Rāmānanda Rāya points out that when the relationship with Kṛṣṇa increases in affection, the mood of fear and the consciousness of the superiority of the Supreme Lord diminish. At this point, the mood of faith increases, and this faith is called friendship. In the fraternal relationship, there is a sense of equality between Kṛṣṇa and His friends.
#$p#In this regard, Rāmānanda Rāya quoted a verse from #i#Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam#/i# (SB 10.12.11) in which Śukadeva Gosvāmī describes Lord Kṛṣṇa's lunch with His friends in the forest. Lord Kṛṣṇa and His friends went to the forest to play with the cows, and it is said that the boys who accompanied Kṛṣṇa enjoyed transcendental friendship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Supreme Lord is considered to be the impersonal Brahman by great sages, the Supreme Personality of Godhead by the devotees, and an ordinary human being by common men.
#$p#Lord Caitanya appreciated this statement very much, yet He said, "You can go even further." Being so requested, Rāmānanda Rāya then stated that the paternal relationship with Kṛṣṇa is a still higher transcendental position. When the affection of the fraternal relationship increases, it develops into the paternal relationship that is found between father and son. Regarding this, Rāmānanda Rāya quoted a verse from #i#Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam#/i# (SB 10.8.46) wherein Mahārāja Parīkṣit inquired from Śukadeva Gosvāmī about the magnitude of righteous activity performed by Yaśodā, the mother of Kṛṣṇa, enabling her to be called "mother" and her breasts be sucked by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He also quoted another verse from #i#Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam#/i# (SB 10.9.20) in which it is stated that Yaśodā received such incomparable mercy from the Supreme Personality of Godhead that it cannot even be compared to the mercy received by Brahmā, the first created living being, or by Lord Śiva, or even by the goddess of fortune, Lakṣmī, who is always situated on the chest of Lord Viṣṇu.
#$p#Lord Caitanya then asked Rāmānanda Rāya to proceed further in order to come to the point of conjugal love. Understanding the mind of Lord Caitanya, Rāmānanda Rāya immediately answered that it was indeed conjugal love with Kṛṣṇa that constituted the highest relationship. In other words, intimate relationships with Kṛṣṇa develop from an ordinary conception of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, to the conception of master and servant, and, when this becomes confidential, it develops into a friendly relationship, and when this relationship further develops, it becomes paternal, and when this develops to the highest point of love and affection, it is known as conjugal love with the Supreme Lord. Rāmānanda Rāya quoted another verse from #i#Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam#/i# (SB 10.47.60) stating that the transcendental mode of ecstasy exhibited during the #i#rāsa#/i# dance between the #i#gopīs#/i# and Kṛṣṇa was never relished even by the goddess of fortune, who is always situated on the chest of the Lord in the spiritual kingdom. And what to speak of the experience of ordinary women?
#$p#Rāmānanda Rāya then explained the gradual process by which pure love for Kṛṣṇa is developed. He pointed out that the living entity is related to the Supreme Personality of Godhead in one of the relationships just suitable for him. Actually, relationships with the Supreme Lord begin with the master and servant relationship and further develop into friendship, paternal love and conjugal love. One who attains his particular relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead should be known to be in the best relationship for him, but when these transcendental relationships are studied, it can be seen that the neutral stage of realization (#i#brahma-bhūta#/i# SB 4.30.20) is the first. When one accepts the Lord as master and himself as servant, the relationship develops, and it develops further when one becomes a friend of the Supreme Lord, and yet still further when one becomes a father. Thus the relationship advances from friendship to paternal love and finally to conjugal love, which is the supreme relationship with the Lord.
#$p#Self-realization in the relation as servitor is certainly transcendental, and when a sense of fraternity is added, the relationship develops. As affection increases, this relationship develops into paternity and conjugal love. Rāmānanda Rāya quoted a verse from #i#Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu#/i# (2.5.38) stating that spiritual affection for the Supreme Lord is transcendental in all cases, but the individual devotee has a specific aptitude for a particular relationship, and that relationship is more relishable for him than the others.
#$p#Such transcendental relationships with the Supreme Lord cannot be manufactured by the mental concoctions of pseudo-devotees. In #i#Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu#/i# (1.2.101) Rūpa Gosvāmī has stated that devotional service that makes no reference to Vedic scriptures or Vedic literatures and that does not follow the principles set forth therein can never be approved. Śrī Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Mahārāja has also remarked that professional spiritual masters, professional #i#Bhāgavatam#/i# reciters, professional #i#kīrtana#/i# performers and those engaged in self-concocted devotional service cannot be accepted. In India there are various professional communities known as Aula, Vāula, Kartābhajā, Neḍā Daraveśa, Snāi, Atibāḍi, Cūḍādhārī, and Gaurāṅganāgarī. A member of the Ventor Gosvāmī Society, or the caste called #i#gosvāmī#/i#, cannot be accepted as a descendant of the six original #i#Gosvāmīs#/i#. Nor can so-called devotees who manufacture songs about Lord Caitanya, nor those who are professional priests or paid reciters, be accepted. One who does not follow the principles of #i#pañcarātra#/i#, or one who is an impersonalist or addicted to sex life, cannot be compared with those who have dedicated their lives to the service of Kṛṣṇa. A pure devotee who is always engaged in Kṛṣṇa consciousness can sacrifice everything for the service of the Lord. One who has dedicated his life to the service of Lord Caitanya, Kṛṣṇa and the spiritual master, or a person who is following the principles of householder life, as well as one following the principles of the renounced life in the order of Caitanya Mahāprabhu, is a devotee and cannot be compared to professional men.
#$p#When one is freed from all material contaminations, any one of the relationships with Kṛṣṇa is transcendentally relishable. Unfortunately, those who are inexperienced in the transcendental science cannot appreciate the different relationships with the Supreme Lord. They think that all such relationships arise from #i#māyā. Caitanya-caritāmṛta#/i# states that earth, water, fire, air and ether (the five gross elements) are developed from subtle forms to grosser forms. For example, sound is found in ether, but in air there is sound and touch. When fire is added, there is sound, touch and form as well. When water is added, there is sound, touch, form and taste, and when earth is added, there is sound, touch, form, taste and smell. Just as various characteristics develop in the progression from ether down to earth, so the five characteristics of devotion develop and are all found in the relationship of conjugal love. Thus the relationship with Kṛṣṇa in conjugal love is accepted as the highest perfectional stage of love of God.
#$p#As stated in #i#Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam#/i# (SB 10.82.44): "Devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the life of every living entity." Indeed, the Lord informed the damsels of Vraja that their love for Him was the only cause of their achieving His association. It is said that Lord Kṛṣṇa, in relation with His devotees, accepts all kinds of devotional service according to the aptitude of the devotee. In this way, Kṛṣṇa reciprocates to a devotee's needs. If one wants a relationship with Kṛṣṇa as master and servant, Kṛṣṇa plays the part of the perfect master. For one who wants Kṛṣṇa as a son in the parental relationship, Kṛṣṇa plays the part of a perfect son. Similarly, if a devotee wants to worship Kṛṣṇa in conjugal love, Kṛṣṇa plays the part of a husband or paramour perfectly. However, Kṛṣṇa Himself has admitted that His loving relationship with the damsels of Vraja in conjugal love is the highest perfectional stage. In #i#Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam#/i# (SB 10.32.22) Kṛṣṇa told the #i#gopīs:#/i#
#dl##dd#na pāraye 'haṁ niravadya-samyujāṁ#/dd#
#dd#sva-sādhu-kṛtyaṁ vibudhāyuṣāpi vaḥ#/dd#
#dd#yā mābhajan durjaya-geha-śṛṅkhalāḥ#/dd#
#dd#saṁvṛścya tad vaḥ pratiyātu sādhunā#/dd##/dl#
"Your relationship with Me is completely transcendental, and it is not possible for Me to offer anything in exchange for your love, even after many births. You have been able to give up all attachment for material enjoyment, and you have searched after Me. Since I am unable to repay your love, you have to be pleased with your own activities."
#$p#Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Mahārāja has remarked that there is a class of common men who claim that anyone and everyone can worship the Supreme Lord according to his own invented mode of worship and still attain the Supreme Personality of Godhead. They claim that one can approach the Supreme Lord either through fruitive activities, speculative knowledge, meditation or austerity and that any one of the methods will succeed. They claim that one can accept many different paths and still reach the same place, and they maintain that the Supreme Absolute Truth may be worshiped either as the Goddess Kālī, or Goddess Durgā, or Lord Śiva, Gaṇeśa, Rāma, Hari, or Brahmā. In short, they maintain that it does not matter how the Absolute Truth is addressed, for all names are one and the same. They give the example of a man with many names; if he is called by any of those names, he will answer.
#$p#Such views may be very pleasing to an ordinary person, but they are full of misconceptions. One who worships the demigods, motivated by material lust, cannot attain the Supreme Personality of Godhead. If one worships the demigods, the external energy of the Lord can award some results, but this is not to say that one can attain the Supreme Lord by such worship. Indeed, their worship is discouraged in #i#Bhagavad-gītā#/i#:
#dl##dd#antavat tu phalaṁ teṣāṁ#/dd#
#dd#tad bhavaty alpa-medhasām#/dd#
#dd#devān deva-yajo yānti#/dd#
#dd#mad-bhaktā yānti mām api#/dd##/dl#
"Men of small intelligence worship the demigods, and their fruits are limited and temporary. Those who worship the demigods go to the planets of the demigods, but My devotees ultimately reach My supreme planet." (BG 7.23) Thus the Supreme Lord awards the benediction of His association only to those who worship Him, and not to those who worship the demigods. It is not a fact that everyone and anyone can reach the Supreme Personality of Godhead by worshiping material demigods. It is therefore surprising that a man can imagine that he will become perfect by worshiping the demigods. The results of devotional service rendered in full Kṛṣṇa consciousness cannot be compared to the results of demigod worship, fruitive activity or mental speculation. By the results of fruitive activities, one can either go to the heavenly planets or the hellish ones.
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