Question: Are gopis celibates?
Answer: There are 2 types of srinagar rasa that culminate into transcendental sex. First is sambhogeccha mayi bhakti and another is tad tad bhava icchatmika bhakti. Although it may appear that sex here does not let gopis remain celibate, they in reality still are celibates. Why? Because there is no desire for personal sex gratification. The desire is to please Krishna, not their own senses. Celibacy for vaisnavas translates into Yukta Vairagya or doing everything only to please Krsna.
This is what gopis do. All kinds of oxymorons exist in the spiritual world. Perhaps, that is why it is a spiritual world.
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Bhaktivinode also advises that these matters are not for public discussion as do other Acaryas. So among devotees who are established in such Rasa these subjects are found to be discussed, but not otherwise as shown by the example of Lord Caitanya Who discussed only among a few devotees who were established in Madhurya Rasa.
To me what ever Krishna is or does, He is just wonderful.
All His Lilas are transcendental.
I am still at a very early stage of practicing Sankirtana (1st Prayer of Caitanya Mahaprbhu)
Dont know much of Gopi Bhava, which is explained in 8th prayer of Caitanya Mahaprbhu's
The Whole process of reaching Gopi Bhava is given in just eight 4 liners.
This is all Caitanya Mahaprabhu ever wrote!!!
Shikshastak Prayers. - Source Vedabase
Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu instructed His disciples to write books on the Science of Krishna, a task which those who follow Him have continued to carry out down to the present day. The elaborations and expositions on the philosophy taught by Lord Caitanya are in fact most voluminous, exacting and consistent due to the system of disciplic succession. Although Lord Caitanya was widely renowned as a scholar in His youth, He left only eight verses, called Sikshashtaka. These eight verses clearly reveal His mission and precepts. These supremely valuable prayers are translated herein.
1. Glory to the Sri Krishna sankirtana, which cleanses the heart of all the dust accumulated for years and extinguishes the fire of conditional life, of repeated birth and death. This sankirtana movement is the prime benediction for humanity at large because it spreads the rays of the benediction moon. It is the life of all transcendental knowledge. It increases the ocean of transcendental bliss, and it enables us to fully taste the nectar for which we are always anxious.
2. O my Lord, Your holy name alone can render all benediction to living beings, and thus You have hundreds and millions of names like Krishna and Govinda. In these transcendental names You have invested all Your transcendental energies. There are not even hard and fast rules for chanting these names. O my Lord, out of kindness You enable us to easily approach You by Your holy names, but I am so unfortunate that I have no attraction for them.
3. One should chant the holy name of the Lord in a humble state of mind, thinking oneself lower than the straw in the street; one should be more tolerant than a tree, devoid of all sense of false prestige and should be ready to offer all respect to others. In such a state of mind one can chant the holy name of the Lord constantly.
4. O almighty Lord, I have no desire to accumulate wealth, nor do I desire beautiful women, nor do I want any number of followers. I only want Your causeless devotional service birth after birth.
5. O son of Maharaja Nanda [Krishna], I am Your eternal servitor, yet somehow or other I have fallen into the ocean of birth and death. Please pick me up from this ocean of death and place me as one of the atoms at Your lotus feet.
6. O my Lord, when will my eyes be decorated with tears of love flowing constantly when I chant Your holy name? When will my voice choke up, and when will the hairs of my body stand on end at the recitation of Your name?
7. O Govinda! Feeling Your separation, I am considering a moment to be like twelve years or more. Tears are flowing from my eyes like torrents of rain, and I am feeling all vacant in the world in Your absence.
8. I know no one but Krishna as my Lord, and He shall remain so even if He handles me roughly by His embrace or makes me brokenhearted by not being present before me. He is completely free to do anything and everything, for He is always my worshipful Lord unconditionally.
Śrīla Prabhupāda Says - [Regarding how one must be extremely careful when discussing or writing about the intimate līlā's between Kṛṣṇa and the Gopīs... Even Lord Caitanya rarely discussed these topics and only with every intimate and qualified associates]
Prabhupāda: And so far the article Hayagrīva written, it is very nice. It should be published. Yes. I have seen it.
Satsvarūpa: That means that we can make reference to the gopīs.
Prabhupāda: Oh, it is done. Gopīs are boycotted.
Satsvarūpa: No, gopīs are not boycotted.
Prabhupāda: The policy should be that the people may not understand gopīs like ordinary girls or like that. You should be careful to present the gopīs. It does not mean that "We shall not utter even the name of gopīs. We have taken vow to boycott the gopīs." No. They are our worshipable devotees. How we can avoid them?
Satsvarūpa: What about writing down "kissing the lips of Kṛṣṇa"?
Prabhupāda: No. That we should avoid. That we should avoid. But that is not abominable. According to time and circumstances... That thing I have described. The fact is fact. Just like when I am describing Kṛṣṇa's līlā—I writing Kṛṣṇa's life—so I cannot give up that portion of His life, when Kṛṣṇa is actually kissing the gopīs in rasa dance.
Satsvarūpa: But that's in the books. Not in the public...
Prabhupāda: Yes. So in such circumstances, of course, we can give. But as far as possible, very cautiously and very rarely we shall present. Caitanya Mahāprabhu's life we see that in public He never discussed about Kṛṣṇa's līlā with the gopīs. That was very confidential discussion amongst His own circle, Rāya Rāmānanda, Svarūpa Dāmodara, like that. And He inquired... Even a learned scholar, He discussed about the philosophy, that Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya. But when there was a great devotee like Rāmānanda Rāya, He relished gopīs', I mean to say, intimate behavior with Kṛṣṇa. So we should remember this, that public may misunderstand this. Therefore we have to present these things very cautiously, not very openly. They may misunderstand. But so far
Hayagrīva: There is nothing specificially objectionable?
Prabhupāda: No, no. There is nothing.
[Discussion with BTG Staff: Boston 24 Dec 1969]
Hare Krsna Mataji,
Dandavat Pranams,
Can you please verify if you read this in a bonafide scripture? I am asking because Srila Prabhupada quoted multiple times that in the Spiritual world there is no sex. For instance, refer to the link below:
http://www.iskcondesiretree.com/group/krishnaconsciousness/forum/to...
"Prabhupāda: Yes, in the spiritual life there is no sex life. In the spiritual world there is no sex intercourse. There is no sex life. Although there is man and woman, there is no sex intercourse."
HariBol!
https://www.facebook.com/shishir.katote?fref=nf
harekrishna,
lord krishna is a bhramachari i heard all transcedental... please correct or edit senior devotees haribol...plzzzz.
Nice post mataji. Beautiful.
One day Durvasa was stationed on the other side of Yamuana and Gopis wanted to see him and feed him by offerings some food stuff they prepared. There were no boats available to take them. They approach Krishna for help. Krishna tells Gopis, to go to the bank of Yamuna and tell Yamuna, if Krishna is an eternal brahmachari, give us way.
Gopis do exactly that and Yamuna gives way.
Now their is more to this passtime.
Can someone shed light on whether this is an authentic passtime? I heard it from someone who follows Brahma, but not Gaudiya sampradaya.