The name "Radhey" is such that whoever hears it even once becomes captivated and yearns to listen to it repeatedly.
Shri Maharaj Ji has composed numerous couplets describing the nectar of the name Radhey in various ways - "Rādhe nāma rasa aisā..." (The nectar of Radha's name is such...)
But why are we not able to experience this? After all, "Radhey" has only two syllables - "Ra" and "dhey" - what is so special about it? If Radha's name indeed contains such divine nectar, why can we not taste its sweetness when we say it? We do not even experience as much pleasure saying "Radhey" as we do when uttering the names of our worldly relationships (to whom we are attached). Why is this so?
The reason is this:
A small ant is considered an expert at finding sugar. If you mix sugar with soil, the ant can extract the sugar and eat it, leaving the soil behind - it has such an ability. But place a grain of salt in the ant's mouth and tape it shut, then put the ant on a mountain of sugar. If you ask it when it returns, "How did the substance you were walking on taste?" It will say, "It was full of salt." This is because its tongue is coated with salt. Similarly, our senses, mind, and intellect are under the influence of Maya, composed of the three material modes:
go gocara jaham̐ lagi mana jāī। so saba māyā jānehu bhāī॥
Whatever we see, hear, smell, taste, touch, or think about is all māyik belonging to the impure material world. So that is how it appears to us. If you explain the love between Radha-Krishna, the Gopis-Krishna, or Meera-Krishna to a lustful person, they will say, "Yes, yes, they were very loving people" - interpreting it according to their own ideas. They do not know who 'God' is. They'll say, "Just as a man and a woman love each other in this world, Krishna was a young man and Meera was a lady, and they fell in love."
First, understand this –
The name "Radha" is equal to Radha herself.
nāma cintāmaṇi kr̥ṣṇaścaitanya rasa vigraha:। pūrṇa: śuddho nitya mukto abhinna tvānnāma nāmino:॥
God always resides in His name. The worldly people do not reside in their names - this is the difference between God's name and ours.
"Samujhat saris naam aru naami" -
God's name, form, pastimes, qualities, abode, and His saints are all equal and one - none of them is greater or lesser. Even thinking of them as greater or lesser is a namaparadh, which is the greatest sin.
It is not that we have not heard this philosophy before - we have listened to it, but we have not accepted it practically. That is why we get bored with singing "Radhey" naam sankirtan after a short while.
We do not develop detachment from impure worldly relationships. The mother becomes ecstatic, putting her face against her dirty child with a runny nose and eating beside him - she finds it all endearing. She feels no detachment. Only when that child grows up and shows disrespect does she develop a little detachment.
So, the name and the naami, the name (God) are one - the more we believe in this, the more nectar we'll experience in chanting "Radhey."
This is the only thing we lack – we don’t have faith. We either have 10% faith or 20% faith. Or sometimes we have a little faith for a short while, and then it disappears. Then our mind starts wandering here and there, looking at other people or the things happening in the world. The mind is fickle - it doesn't remain steady. Whatever little feeling we do have for God's name doesn't stay constant - it keeps changing. Sometimes a sattvic tendency arises, sometimes rajasic, sometimes tamasic. Based on that tendency, we develop feelings for the Name and receive results accordingly.
When God descended to earth, the gopis, gopas, and sakhās saw Him and were instantly enchanted. Even the demons were captivated - Tāḍakā, Sūrpaṇakhā, Kumbhakarṇa, Mārīcha - such great demons were overwhelmed upon seeing Ram. This was because they were pure within - these were residents of Golok who had come to the material world - so their mind was like that of Golok, pure, that of a saint. Therefore, they were naturally attracted and drawn to Him. But the condition of those bound by maya at that time was quite strange. When we see people in this world, there are only three possible reactions: 1) Either one appears attractive, 2) Or one appears ugly, or 3) One appears ordinary.
But this is not how it is with God’s form - everyone has a different perception -
jākī rahī bhāvanā jaisī, prabhu mūrata dekhī tina taisī।
mallānāmaśanirnr̥ṇāṁ naravaraḥ strīṇāṁ smaro mūrtimān।
biduṣanha prabhu birāṭamaya dīsā। bahu mukha kara paga locana sīsā॥
When the demons saw Ram breaking the bow in Janakpur, one demon said, "Ram has eight heads," another said, "You fool! Can't you count? He has fifty heads." And a third said, "You both are fools - He has five hundred and seventy heads."
In the material world, when we see someone, we don't see them with two or four heads - we see only one head, one nose, two ears, just as all humans have. They may appear beautiful or ugly, and seeing them may give us pleasure or pain, but that's a different matter.
So why is there this uniqueness in Ram's and Shyam's forms that demons saw many heads, feet, and hands, and such terrifying forms that they became dizzy?
This is the uniqueness of God’s divine body - it’s the miracle of Yogmaya. The extent of one's spiritual power determines at what level one will see and experience God. Similarly, the degree of spiritual power we have while chanting His name, meaning how pure our mind is, will determine how much divine nectar we experience.
In the same way, the purer our mind becomes, the more naturally we will develop love for our Guru. And if the mind is entirely impure, then the same Shri Krishna received a hundred abuses from Shishupal in a grand assembly where all the kings of India were present.
God's name, form, pastimes, qualities, abode, and His saints are like magnets - the purer one's heart, the quicker one will be attracted and surrender. Such a person will offer everything they have. And the more impure one is, the further they will move away. "Papavant kar sahaj subhau" - A sinful person will not go there at all.
Recommended books by Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj related to this topic:
Radha Govind Geet - Shri Radha Naam Mahima - English
The Power of the Divine Name - English
The Power of the Divine Name - English Ebook
The name "Radhey" is such that whoever hears it even once becomes captivated and yearns to listen to it repeatedly.
Shri Maharaj Ji has composed numerous couplets describing the nectar of the name Radhey in various ways - "Rādhe nāma rasa aisā..." (The nectar of Radha's name is such...)
But why are we not able to experience this? After all, "Radhey" has only two syllables - "Ra" and "dhey" - what is so special about it? If Radha's name indeed contains such divine nectar, why can we not taste its sweetness when we say it? We do not even experience as much pleasure saying "Radhey" as we do when uttering the names of our worldly relationships (to whom we are attached). Why is this so?
The reason is this:
A small ant is considered an expert at finding sugar. If you mix sugar with soil, the ant can extract the sugar and eat it, leaving the soil behind - it has such an ability. But place a grain of salt in the ant's mouth and tape it shut, then put the ant on a mountain of sugar. If you ask it when it returns, "How did the substance you were walking on taste?" It will say, "It was full of salt." This is because its tongue is coated with salt. Similarly, our senses, mind, and intellect are under the influence of Maya, composed of the three material modes:
go gocara jaham̐ lagi mana jāī। so saba māyā jānehu bhāī॥
Whatever we see, hear, smell, taste, touch, or think about is all māyik belonging to the impure material world. So that is how it appears to us. If you explain the love between Radha-Krishna, the Gopis-Krishna, or Meera-Krishna to a lustful person, they will say, "Yes, yes, they were very loving people" - interpreting it according to their own ideas. They do not know who 'God' is. They'll say, "Just as a man and a woman love each other in this world, Krishna was a young man and Meera was a lady, and they fell in love."
First, understand this –
The name "Radha" is equal to Radha herself.
nāma cintāmaṇi kr̥ṣṇaścaitanya rasa vigraha:। pūrṇa: śuddho nitya mukto abhinna tvānnāma nāmino:॥
God always resides in His name. The worldly people do not reside in their names - this is the difference between God's name and ours.
"Samujhat saris naam aru naami" -
God's name, form, pastimes, qualities, abode, and His saints are all equal and one - none of them is greater or lesser. Even thinking of them as greater or lesser is a namaparadh, which is the greatest sin.
It is not that we have not heard this philosophy before - we have listened to it, but we have not accepted it practically. That is why we get bored with singing "Radhey" naam sankirtan after a short while.
We do not develop detachment from impure worldly relationships. The mother becomes ecstatic, putting her face against her dirty child with a runny nose and eating beside him - she finds it all endearing. She feels no detachment. Only when that child grows up and shows disrespect does she develop a little detachment.
So, the name and the naami, the name (God) are one - the more we believe in this, the more nectar we'll experience in chanting "Radhey."
This is the only thing we lack – we don’t have faith. We either have 10% faith or 20% faith. Or sometimes we have a little faith for a short while, and then it disappears. Then our mind starts wandering here and there, looking at other people or the things happening in the world. The mind is fickle - it doesn't remain steady. Whatever little feeling we do have for God's name doesn't stay constant - it keeps changing. Sometimes a sattvic tendency arises, sometimes rajasic, sometimes tamasic. Based on that tendency, we develop feelings for the Name and receive results accordingly.
When God descended to earth, the gopis, gopas, and sakhās saw Him and were instantly enchanted. Even the demons were captivated - Tāḍakā, Sūrpaṇakhā, Kumbhakarṇa, Mārīcha - such great demons were overwhelmed upon seeing Ram. This was because they were pure within - these were residents of Golok who had come to the material world - so their mind was like that of Golok, pure, that of a saint. Therefore, they were naturally attracted and drawn to Him. But the condition of those bound by maya at that time was quite strange. When we see people in this world, there are only three possible reactions: 1) Either one appears attractive, 2) Or one appears ugly, or 3) One appears ordinary.
But this is not how it is with God’s form - everyone has a different perception -
jākī rahī bhāvanā jaisī, prabhu mūrata dekhī tina taisī।
mallānāmaśanirnr̥ṇāṁ naravaraḥ strīṇāṁ smaro mūrtimān।
biduṣanha prabhu birāṭamaya dīsā। bahu mukha kara paga locana sīsā॥
When the demons saw Ram breaking the bow in Janakpur, one demon said, "Ram has eight heads," another said, "You fool! Can't you count? He has fifty heads." And a third said, "You both are fools - He has five hundred and seventy heads."
In the material world, when we see someone, we don't see them with two or four heads - we see only one head, one nose, two ears, just as all humans have. They may appear beautiful or ugly, and seeing them may give us pleasure or pain, but that's a different matter.
So why is there this uniqueness in Ram's and Shyam's forms that demons saw many heads, feet, and hands, and such terrifying forms that they became dizzy?
This is the uniqueness of God’s divine body - it’s the miracle of Yogmaya. The extent of one's spiritual power determines at what level one will see and experience God. Similarly, the degree of spiritual power we have while chanting His name, meaning how pure our mind is, will determine how much divine nectar we experience.
In the same way, the purer our mind becomes, the more naturally we will develop love for our Guru. And if the mind is entirely impure, then the same Shri Krishna received a hundred abuses from Shishupal in a grand assembly where all the kings of India were present.
God's name, form, pastimes, qualities, abode, and His saints are like magnets - the purer one's heart, the quicker one will be attracted and surrender. Such a person will offer everything they have. And the more impure one is, the further they will move away. "Papavant kar sahaj subhau" - A sinful person will not go there at all.
Recommended books by Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj related to this topic:
Radha Govind Geet - Shri Radha Naam Mahima - English
The Power of the Divine Name - English
The Power of the Divine Name - English Ebook
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