Srila Sanatana Gosvami’s Sri Brihad-bhagavatamrita occupies a special place in the realm of Gaudia Vaisnava literature. It is unparalleled in its delineation of siddhanta, rasa, bhava and lila. It is one of the most beneficial books for the progressive sadhaka. It is divided into two parts.
In the first part, the story is about Sri Narada Rishi who travels to various places in search of the foremost recipient of Sri Krishna's mercy. He approaches various exalted devotees and shows the gradation in their bhakti.
In the second part, the story is about Gopa-kumara. His spiritual search is described from the beginning stages of bhajana all the way up to his attainment of perfection. Especially noteworthy for sadhakas is how Gopa-kumara remains without any type of material desire throughout his entire journey. In the course of visiting numerous holy places, he is made a king and offered heavenly opulences and even liberation. But his determination to attain the eternal company of Sri Krishna in Vraja inspires him to continue chanting his gopala-mantra until he is fully successful. His longing is exemplary. The life of Gopa-kumara is a guide to a sincere sadhaka.
In this svadhyaya we will study the second part of the book and discuss its relevance to our spiritual practice.
The Gopi’s happiness and suffering is not independent of Krishna. If Krishna is not suffering, then the Gopi’s are not suffering. If Krishna is happy, even in separation from them, the Gopis feel happy because Krishna is happy. Our problem is that our happiness and suffering is independent of Krishna and Guru. Therefore, we approach Guru with the unconscious desire that he can make us feel happy, not the other way around.
