What a great principle indeed! Just as a dedicated wife is present with her husband all the time, we too must dedicate our self to Sri Radha and be with Her every moment. She only is our means and our end too!
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Nanna once said, "It is not enough if you attain sakhi bhava and become her sakhi. You must get up when She gets up, sit when She sits, move along with Her when She moves ; you must be like Her shadow. You must be Her constant companion , not leaving Her even for a single moment. I am Radhaji's nityasahacharini (constant companion) and Rasabhagaswamini (partner in Rasa)."
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| Yadyadacharathi sreshtah tattadevetaro janah |
| Sa yat prayanam kuruthe lokastadanuvarthate |
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Men follow the path of the Mahatma. The world abides by his words.
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-Gita: 3-21
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Krishna, the Guru of the world is not bound to do anything; he has nothing that he did not obtain or has to obtain; yet he lived by karma (3-22). All human beings follow him.
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Sri Krishna constantly does rasa dhyana. He constantly chants the two lettered word 'Radha' which belongs to para. Vedas say 'Raso vaisah' . Radha is rasa. Krishna worships Her in Brindavan, the dham of the Divine Duo. The devotees who practice rasa should follow him ; pray to Her and live in the bhava of being Her constant companion. One who in the state of nitya sahachari bhava cannot live even for a moment without Her. Nanna said "If Radhaji must be with you, your life must be led as Her sahacharini. I am Her nitya sahacharini. She responds whenever I speak to Her. "
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Radhasakhi told us about sahacharini bhava. We must teach sahacharini bhava to our mind also. Ramayana elucidated about sahacharini bhava. After Sita and Rama's wedding took place, when she was about to leave for her husband's house, her mother advising her thus: 'Dear Sita. A true wife must serve her husband like a maid. This is what I learnt from Janaka. You are going to your husband's house; be like a maid to Rama.' When Rama heard these words from Sita , he did not agree with the word 'maid'. He said, 'Sita. You are my wife, my sahadharmacharini, not a maid.' Sita said,' I shall live according to your wish'. Then Rama said, 'my wife should be my constant companion. She must go along with me wherever I go.' Sita firmly stated that she would live accordingly. From that moment, she never left her husband even for a moment. She accompanied him even to the forest. When Rama tried to prevent her from accompanying him, she reminded him of his own words. 'Lord, you said that I must be with you every moment. I am bound by your words. I will live along with you only.' Thus she accompanied him to the forests during his exile.
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That is sahacharini! A wife goes along with her husband wherever he goes as his nityasahacharini . In this context, Nanna also mentioned about Gandhari. When she knew that her husband is blind, she too decided to lead a life of darkness. She always covered her eyes with a cloth. From that day, she never opened her eyes to see anyone. She is truly dedicated to her husband; a real sahacharini.
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Radharani said, 'The mind that worships me should be like a sahadharmacharini. Otherwise I cannot be attained.' We must follow Her with the bhava that She desires. Not in the physical sense, we must attain the quality which Mother wants. That is companionship.
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Sriradhasudhanidhi gives a wonderful description of sakhi's nityasahachari bhava:
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| Dukulam vibhranamadha kuchatate kanchukapatam |
| Prasadam Swaminyah svakarataladattam pranayatah |
| Sthitham nityam parsve pariccharyaika chaturam |
| Kisorimatmanam kimahi sukumareem nu kalaye |
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The sakhi thinks 'Wearing the clothes that our Swamini has lovingly given us; serving Her in various ways like a delicate Kishori; can I ever see myself like this, in a state of constantly being near Her?'
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-Sri Radha Sudha Nidhi Verse 52
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Sri Hitacharya described the constant nearness between Radha and Her sakhi. As she is in incessant Radha bhava, the sakhi sometimes attains the state of oneness with Sri Radha. In that state she thinks 'I am Radha' . She wears the clothes given by her Swamini and considers herself to be Kishori. Thus she becomes Kishori and wishes 'I must be always near Sri Kishori.' Wearing the clothes offered by Mother means attaining Radha bhava. Once sakhi attains incessant Radha bhava, it means she has become Her sahacharini.
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Nanna said, "Man becomes sakhi by incessant Radha bhava dhyana. Since sakhi is always in a state of oneness eith Radhaji, she is Her nitya sahacharini. This is the highest state. There is no step above this state."
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Lord Shiva is 'arthanareeswara' (half man and half woman). Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati cannot live without each other even for a moment. So they came together in one body- half body, Shiva and the other half body, Parvati. This is their constant companionship. They form two halves of the same body. The oneness of Radha and Krishna is more unique, beyond everything. It is beyond the reach of bhava. In the 48th verse of Hitachaurasi, SriHitacharya described the natural fusion of Sri Radha and Krishna
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'In the shrine of navanikunj in Brindavan, Sri Radha showed Her adeptness in creating Rasa along with Krishna, thus indicating their natural fusion.'
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Nanna gave an excellent commentary on this verse and explained what nitya sahacharini vratam means. "What is natural fusion? Krishna is a part of Sri Radha's embodiment. You must realize this spiritual secret. The state of their natural fusion means that while Krishna forms one aspect of Sri Radha, She forms another aspect. What aspect of Mother did Krishna transform into? Pink colour is an inseparable aspect of Her. So he must have definitely transformed into the pink colour of Her body and is thus in a state of natural fusion with Her. The Vedas also mention that 'Bhasa yasyah Krishna dehopi gauro jayate' - Krishna's body transformed into golden colour. In this way, Sri Radha and Krishna as the inseparable pink colour of Her body - this is their state of natural fusion!"
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Can there be any other state of nitya sahacharya (constant companionship) than this one?
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