गूढ-गोपी-जागरणम्

Then, in the secret bower of his own devotion,
his gaze grew still — as if lulled by honeyed silence,
like a lamp-flame dimmed to tenderness,
resting upon beds of silk-cotton down,
sprinkled with pollen-kissed saffron from clustered blossoms.
Not toward any mortal maiden of gold did he turn,
but inward — worshipping, in spirit alone,
the serene goddess seated upon sandalwood,
ever-still, self-contained, divine.

Her beauty was no tide swept by passion’s ocean,
but clear as the high Himalayan lake —
sanctified by Vedic chants,
a stream of grace from some purer realm.
In her kingdom of loveliness, he reigned like an emperor,
where love walked not wild, but bowed in reverence,
obedient to sacred law.

Yet this deep sea of peace was but illusion —
a net of waves woven by false imagining.
For suddenly, from caverns of his soul,
from shadow-thickened depths, rose a counter-pulse —
not heard by ears, but felt in marrow and bone:
the resonant echo of a flute-note,
the haunting song of a certain Beloved…
Yes — it was the remembered music of Gopala,
wandering along Yamuna’s shore,
His murli’s call trembling through time.

Drawn by that very melody,
he felt — at once — a warmth unknown before,
rising softly from his hips,
as if love itself had kindled fire beneath skin.
And then, in air perfumed with camphor incense,
chilled by stone floors breathing coolness —
his devotion, though fixed upon that tranquil idol,
became like a veil spun of purest rasa:
covering — yet revealing —
the hidden longing in his heart:
a natural, innocent gopi-bhava,
aching for union with Shyamsundar,
wrapped now in sacred mystery,
and standing, breathless, unveiled within.

नमो नमः।
एषा रचना न केवलं प्रेम-वर्णनम्, अपि तु भक्तेः अन्तरङ्गे गोपी-भावस्य दार्शनिकं रहस्यं सूचयति।
यत्र प्रेम एव ध्यानरूपेण दार्शनिक-गम्भीरतां प्राप्नोति।