visnujana

That was another twist that has been made to the meaning of those words by Srila Prabhupada. By saying 'Islam is Vaisnavism' he did not mean to say that the two religious groups globally were practicing the same things. That would be an obvious gross misconception. Instead he meant that the original teaching of Islam is serving the same purpose. There is no difference between the two teachings in regards to their final objectives. For the prove of his words he referred to that historical fact (Chand Kazi) that we have agreed upon. Kulapavana had provided a link to the place in CC where this particular incident was described. There Kazi admitted that there were many faults in the Muslim scriptures, yet he said that he was a part of the Muslim community so he would still follow his religion for the benefit of others... and so he did. Doesn't it prove that the 'Muslim religion' was actually not much different from vaisnavism in Bengal at that time? (to say the least, if even vaisnava acaryas were worshiping and still are.. the 'Muslim leaders') Srila Prabhupada did not speak of the Islam all over the world, neither he spoke about Islam for 'all times'. He spoke about what you have named 'some isolated events'.. He did it for a particular reason, and he proved his points perfectly. Now there is no need to twist his words and try to accuse him for what he did not say. I am sure it would all become more clear if we're actually present in that conversation. Otherwise all we have is 2 or 3 sentences ripped out of the context.

Yet, Chand Kazi himself and many generations of his descendants and subordinates were following vaisnava dharma perfectly while still wearing Muslim dress and adopting all other external paraphernalia and practices pertaining to the Muslim religion. This is simply a historical fact. Vaisnavas to this day are worshiping Chand Kazi's samadhi (grave) in Navadvipa, WB, which they would never do to someone who is not a pure vaisnava. Now my question is would you not call it that Caitanya has proved that their real internal religion was vaisnavism? We are not talking about religion in the social sense here but in the personal. Would you personally follow something that you didn't believe yourself? ...and that is all Prabhupada is saying here. He is not saying that all Muslims are Vaisnavas as some twisted the meaning of his words later in this thread. For more information on this - Jaiva-Dharma, chapter 6.

In my understanding, ego defines a scope for the activity of both the mind and the intelligence. A conditioned soul has to think of itself in certain well defined terms. For example, if a human thinks of himself to be an animal, this is considered to be anomaly, and is treated as a mental illness. Off course, not only a condition soul has to have ego. Ego is always there, either 'true' or 'false', and this depends on how the jiva uses his partial independence. If a jiva wants to serve Krishna, he gets the 'true' ego. Otherwise the jiva will need to have a false ego, receive a material body (gross and subtle) and go to the material world.

Scientists are little jivas.. A lot of them are actually engaged in some glorious things even if they themselves don't know... The Internet was invented, computers, airplanes, etc. and each time those things are used in the Lord's service those little jivas get some sukriti, some pious merits. Aren't they quite fortunate? Off course, some other scientists can be quite envious to the Lord and they can use their 'knowledge' against devotion, but I hope those are much fewer in number.

I am sure a lot of people have become devotees because EJTOP has been going out for years. So, it worked, didn't it? Scientists always prove and disprove something.. If devotees have decided not to distribute this book any longer, there are so many other books to distribute. I have heard that devotees even printed this book in Russian language in India and would distribute it in Delhi airport to the Russian tourists in the early 80-s when the movement in then USSR was still illegal and heavily oppressed by KGB; and there were no other books translated or/and printed there yet.

How about the title 'Easy Journey to other Planets'?.. One of the first books written by Srila Prabhupada in the mid 60-s just about the time when the first spaceships went to cosmos, etc. Although the book does talk about 'different' planets, it nevertheless looks to me as a little transcendental trickery.

Kulapavana, Yes, I was aware of that.. and thank you. That was important to note. I pretty much covered all known to me instances or rather principles of how the 'dishonesty for Krishna's sake' may be used. That is in regard to madhyama-vaisnava's behaivor. All other rare instances, in my understanding, will have to be directly connected to Krishna. For example, Krishna pretty much wanted Yudhisthira to say a lie (about Drona's death).. a lot of tricks are going on in Vrindavan in Krishna's pastimes, off course, etc. Off course, not too many would mind that kind of trickery anyway.. Yes, people always have the liberty to try to substantiate or rationalize their activities, and they are often inclined to do so.. This is very true. In the examples I mentioned above the dignity of devotees is always protected by Krishna. Plus they do act for other people's benefit, and thus their genuine concern ultimately will always be appreciated, which, off course won't happen if the cheaters are hypocritical devotees seeking to gain some material benefit from people. I was specifically talking about madhyama-vaisnavas. They practically know what's pleasing to Krishna and what's not. They don't need to rationalize. They already know the sastra in a very deep practical way. They are always ready to substantiate their activities with sastric evidences as well. But the hypocritical devotees can only create a big dispute if they try to substantiate their improper activities, which contradict not only vaisnava sastra but also worldly moral principles.

In social dealings vaisnavas follow their varna and in terms of vaisnava-sadhana truthfulness means anyabhilasita-sunyam, full dedication, having no desires other than the desire to serve Krishna. Whatever activities please & benefit Krishna and his devotees is accepted as truthful actions. This kind of truthfulness is the heart of process of bhakti. It is similar to spiritual loyalty.. and is possible to the degree one's heart is pure (free from material desires). On the other hand externally it may manifest differently in the behavior of the vaisnavas. For example, a vaisnava will cheat off insincere people who approach them with ulterior motives. Srila Gaurakisore dasa babaji fearing many materialistic people coming to him would hide himself in a toilet. They would say, Oh, babaji please come out, we want to ask you some questions; and he would answer, I can't, I am having a terrible stomach problem. A madhyama-adhikari vaisnava will always apply negligence to those who 'seek' their association but are not actually qualified to receive their instructions, due to lack of sincerity (having ulterior motives). In many cases the negligence might be executed as what from material perspective could be seen as cheating. Just as in the example above. In other cases vaisnavas may even scare people way by some harsh words, which would also be a kind of 'cheating', because in the eyes of those people it would look like 'not a saintly behavior'. This is a duty of a madhyama-adhikari or a devotee acting on the level of a madhyama-adhikari in relation to a particular group of people. But this is all done only for the spiritual benefit of the people. That's why it fits into the above mentioned 'definition of vaisnava truthfulness'. An ignore is also a kind of instructions and can 'work' even better than words in certain situations. Besides it helps to save valuable time and energy for serving Krishna. More on this in Jaiva-Dharma, chapter 8. I think some other applications of the same principle have been explained above by the words of Srila Prabhupada quoted by Sonic Yogi.

Who is God for who? God (the Absolute Truth) has many aspects. Everyone realizes God according to one's own ability (adhikara). Learned transcendentalists who know the Absolute Truth call this nondual substance Brahman, Paramatma or Bhagavan. S.B. 1.2.11 Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura.

There is general understanding of the Vedas which is off course vastly superior to any other type of knowledge. However, Bhakti is still transcendental even to that understanding of the Vedas. Bhakti practice is of 2 types: vaidhi-marg (regulative practice) and raga-marg (spontaneous one), which are also quite different. (Raga Vartma Candrika, 4, Srila Visvanath Cakravarti Thakura)

The 12th Chapter of Jaiva Dharma (by the same sapta-goswami Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura) gives us a nice story that illustrates how the Gaura naam works and what's the result of chanting the naam.

This is true that in Gaudiya-vaisnava line devotees emphasize and hope for the mercy of Nitai-Gauranga. If one sincerely aspires for Their mercy, then Sri Nityananda Prabhu comes to such person as Sri Guru, and then Sri Guru opens all kinds of tattva to his disciple. yasya prasadad bhagavat-prasado yasyaprasadan na gatih kuto ’pi Only by the mercy of Sri Gurudeva can one receive the mercy of Krishna; without his grace the living entities cannot make any advancement nor be delivered.

Usually giving something is quite a conscious act, isn't it? If I have something and there is a person that I am willing to give the thing to then I will find a way or two to do that. I can hand the thing over, send it as an email attachment, as a package in the mail, whatever the method is, this seems to be a matter second to the other two: actually having the thing and willing to give it out. In this case with the spiritual energy glance also seems to be a medium just like also good wish (mental blessing), touching the body (like the sadhus usually touch people's foreheads with their right palm), kind words, etc. There seems to be plenty of ways to give blessings (transmit spiritual energy).. So, I think you should know better if you are giving a blessing or not when you glance at someone and chant Hare Krishna. I hope so.

I think the title of the book is rather "Astrology of the seers" although I am sure a search by either terms would return the desirable results anyway. Thank you.

Srila Narayana Maharaja once told a story.. Krishna was thinking, 'I have already sent to that material world all the best things such as My Dhama, My holy name, My Deity form, My prasadam, etc. But yet most of the jivas don't seem to be able to take full advantage of my gifts. Those things seem to be as tangible as the moon bin - you can appreciate its beauty somewhat but you can not grasp it and completely study it and experience it... So, Krishna was thinking further, 'Alright, I will do one more thing, I will send there a very special thing now. It will have to be tangible, so people can have a direct contact with it. I will send there my special transcendental representative, Guru. People will be able to speak to him, touch his body, develop love for him and experience his genuine love to them, etc. In this way they will be able to develop a deep relationship with a very special property of my beautiful transcendental world. Then having set a connection with Me in this way, they will be able to follow Me in the form of my special dear devotee and representative, the guru... and thus they will soon be able to come to Me.

Each soul is like a tiny Krishna. All Krishna does is enjoying and so we also want pleasures. Even though being conditioned in this world we might get quite confused at times, yet most everyone of us does continuously manifest this intrinsic inborn propensity of the soul in a way of continuous seeking for happiness through different activities in this world. I think the Vedas describe 4 different directions people take in their search for happiness: dharma, kama, artha and moksa. Everyone is situated in one of the 4 or somewhere in between. That includes a particular faith, inspiration, intelligence, energy and everything else needed to follow on the path that one is qualified for. There is also a special 5th dimension that is not dependent on or directly related to the other 4. This one is totally spiritual. It's bhakti and this is the path to the ultimate pleasure that a soul can experience and the pleasure that will completely satisfy the soul's hankering for pleasures. Anyway, I think whatever one's personal qualification is at the moment there will always be a point in living in this world and that is in looking for happiness to the best of ones knowledge and abilities. While it's true that this world is a very confusing place, most of us keep going. On any of the paths the qualified aspirant gets the inspiration, knowledge and practical results that keep him or her moving. Also if considering the 4 above mentioned paths they are sequential - one comes out of the other. Having achieved pleasures available on the path of dharma one looks further and steps in on the path of artha, etc. up to moksa.. But bhakti is independent. No material pre-qualification is needed to begin on the path of bhakti, and this grants far superior results.

Why can't we have more tolerance in regard to opinions expressed by others? Why do we have to take offense if someone simply honestly expresses his or her view on a subject even if that does not go along with my personal opinion or my group's ideas? I briefly scrolled through this topic but unfortunately this 'tinge' stood out to me. Why would I think someone who disagrees with me have to be a disbeliever, almost a God-offender, etc.? I think this is sad, it needs to be changed. This is glorious that devotees try their best to glorify Guru & Krishna. But I think if I have strong faith in what I am doing and in the principles I follow I won't need to blame or coin others who might have a different view on things. In fact I would probably be able to even have some mercy on them IF they are really mistaken. IF someone (who has an opinion different to mine) IS envious of me or my group (as it has been suggested somewhere in this thread, although I disagree with that) then the sastras recommend to apply a neglect to this person. - No need to 'retaliate'. Again, I probably would not even want to, if my faith was strong, as it would not be in the least effected anyway. I do think vaisnavas societies should develop more tolerance, and I am sure this is what's happening.

I think Sonic Yogi made an excellent point that can help us here understand this case with Brahma. Brahma asked Krishna for the blessing to never forget Him. However, I am sure if Krishna wanted to enjoy a pastime where that blessing needed to be 'violated', Brahma would not be upset in the least with Krishna giving him a blessing that 'doesn't work'. What could be a better fortune for a devotee than to be directly engaged in Krishna's pastime? After all how many times we know that Brahma forgot Krishna? Not too many, I'd say... and all those are all in Srimad Bhagavatam (otherwise how would we know).. that means they are parts of Krishna-lila.

Just a thought or two.. This Earthly planet is the place where we build our good karma. Dharma: 'good' and 'bad' conceptions are important here to consider and they are deep in our consciousness. Whatever we do we automatically weight it using our intelligence as to what will be the consequences. So, pertaining to a religious practice we also have this tendency of being obidient to God and all this.. As opposed to this, Havens are meant for 'wasting' the good karma, not building it. Sense enjoyment is pretty much all they are rightfully do there. So, they should have less restrictions of 'good' and 'bad', they should be more like kids: I can do whatever I want to. Of course, being pious they should naturally avoid doing too much craziness. But what I mean to say, they might have less rational approach in their actions. Even on this planet people in different parts of the world act differently: some nationalities are more rational, some other are more like let's just try it and see what will come out. I guess what I am trying to say is.. it might not be possible for us to completely understand how Indra or any other resident of Haven think and act.. Too much difference in consciousness. Off course, 'we' wouldn't do a thing like this.. But this might be so just because our concept of 'good' and 'bad' would not allow us, not because we love Krishna more.. Just trying to save Indra's reputation.. I like him.

I wasn't 'teaching' anyone here. It wasn't a direct answer to your question either (sorry, I don't have it). I just thought it would be nice to read again about what some or many of us aspire for. I also wanted to mention that although CC might not have used the word 'manjari', the manjari-seva is definitely glorified there in a very special way. Sorry, if I did it wrong though.

This was all about the Manjaries, not any gopi. But they were referred to as gopis.

TEXT 201 TEXT radha-krsnera lila ei ati gudhatara dasya-vatsalyadi-bhave na haya gocara SYNONYMS radha-krsnera lila--the pastimes of Radha and Krsna; ei--this is; ati--very much; gudhatara--more confidential; dasya--of servitude; vatsalya-adi--and of paternal love, etc.; bhave--in the moods; na haya--is not; gocara--appreciated. TRANSLATION "The pastimes of Radha and Krsna are very confidential. They cannot be understood through the mellows of servitude, fraternity or paternal affection. TEXT 202 TEXT sabe eka sakhi-ganera ihan adhikara sakhi haite haya ei lilara vistara SYNONYMS sabe--only; eka--one; sakhi-ganera--of the gopis; ihan--in this; adhikara-- qualification; sakhi--the gopis; haite--from; haya--is; ei lilara--of these pastimes; vistara--the expansion. TRANSLATION "Actually, only the gopis have the right to appreciate these transcendental pastimes, and only from them can these pastimes be expanded. TEXT 203 TEXT sakhi vina ei lila pusta nahi haya sakhi lila vistariya, sakhi asvadaya SYNONYMS sakhi vina--without the gopis; ei lila--these pastimes; pusta--nourished; nahi haya--are never; sakhi--the gopis; lila--the pastimes; vistariya-- expanding; sakhi--the gopis; asvadaya--taste this mellow. TRANSLATION "Without the gopis, these pastimes between Radha and Krsna cannot be nourished. Only by their cooperation are such pastimes broadcast. It is their business to taste the mellows. TEXTS 204-205 TEXT sakhi vina ei lilaya anyera nahi gati sakhi-bhave ye tanre kare anugati radha-krsna-kunjaseva-sadhya sei paya sei sadhya paite ara nahika upaya SYNONYMS sakhi vina--without the gopis; ei lilaya--in these pastimes; anyera--of others; nahi--there is not; gati--entrance; sakhi-bhave--in the mood of the gopis; ye--anyone who; tanre--Lord Krsna; kare--does; anugati--following; radhakrsna-- of Radha and Krsna; kunja-seva--of service in the kunjas, or gardens, of Vrndavana; sadhya--the goal; sei paya--he gets; sei--that; sadhya--achievement; paite--to receive; ara--other; nahika--there is not; upaya--means. TRANSLATION "Without the help of the gopis, one cannot enter into these pastimes. Only he who worships the Lord in the ecstasy of the gopis, following in their footsteps, can engage in the service of Sri Sri Radha-Krsna in the bushes of Vrndavana. Only then can one understand the conjugal love between Radha and Krsna. There is no other procedure for understanding. PURPORT The means for returning home, for going back to Godhead, is devotional service, but everyone has a different taste in the Lord's service. One may be inclined to serve the Lord in servitude (dasya-rasa), fraternity (sakhya-rasa), or paternal love (vatsalya-rasa), but none of these can enable one to enter into the service of the Lord in conjugal love. To attain such service, one has to follow in the footsteps of the gopis in the ecstasy of sakhi-bhava. Then only can one understand the transcendental mellow of conjugal love. In the Ujjvala-nilamani, Srila Rupa Gosvami advises: prema-lila-viharanam samyag vistarika sakhi visrambha-ratna-peti ca One who expands the conjugal love of Krsna and His enjoyment among the gopis is called a sakhi. Such a person is a confidential gopi in the conjugal affairs. Such assistants are like jewels in the form of Krsna's confidantes. The actual business of the sakhis is described thus in Ujjvala-nilamani: mithah prema-gunotkirtis tayor asakti-karita abhisaro dvayor eva sakhyah krsne samarpanam narmasvasana-nepathyam hrdayodghata-patavam chidra-samvrtir etasyah paty-adeh parivancana siksa sangamanam kale sevanam vyajanadibhih tayor dvayor upalambhah sandesa-presanam tatha nayika-prana-samraksa prayatnadyah sakhi-kriyah In the conjugal pastimes of Krsna, Krsna is the hero (nayaka), and Radhika is the heroine (nayika). The first business of the gopis is to chant the glories of both the hero and the heroine. Their second business is to gradually create a situation in which the hero may be attracted to the heroine and vice versa. Their third business is to induce both of Them to approach each another. Their fourth business is to surrender unto Krsna, the fifth is to create a jovial atmosphere, the sixth to give Them assurance to enjoy Their pastimes, the seventh to dress and decorate both hero and heroine, the eighth to show expertise in expressing Their desires, the ninth to conceal the faults of the heroine, the tenth to cheat their respective husbands and relatives, the eleventh to educate, the twelfth to enable both hero and heroine to meet at the proper time, the thirteenth to fan both hero and heroine, the fourteenth to sometimes reproach the hero and heroine, the fifteenth to set conversations in motion, and the sixteenth to protect the heroine by various means. Some material sahajiyas who cannot actually understand the pastimes of Radha and Krsna manufacture their own life-styles without referring to authority. Such sahajiyas are called sakhi-bheki, and sometimes they are called gaura-nagari. They believe that the material body, which is fit to be eaten by jackals and dogs, is enjoyable for Krsna. Consequently they artificially decorate the material body to attract Krsna, thinking themselves sakhis. But Krsna is never attracted by the artificial grooming of the material body. As far as Srimati Radharani and Her gopis are concerned, their bodies, homes, dresses, ornaments, endeavors and activities are all spiritual. All of these are meant to satisfy the spiritual senses of Krsna. Indeed, they are so pleasing and endearing to Krsna that He is subjugated by the influence of Srimati Radharani and Her friends. They have nothing to do with anything mundane within the fourteen planetary systems of the universe. Although Krsna is attractive to everyone, He is nonetheless attracted by the gopis and Srimati Radharani. One should not be misled by mental concoctions, supposing his material body to be perfect and deeming oneself a sakhi. This is something like ahangrahopasana, that is, a Mayavadi's worship of his own body as the Supreme. Srila Jiva Gosvami has cautioned mundaners to abstain from such conceptions. He also warns that thinking oneself one of the associates of the Supreme without following in the footsteps of the gopis is as offensive as thinking oneself the Supreme. Such thinking is an aparadha. One has to practice living in Vrndavana by hearing about the talks of the gopis with Krsna. However, one should not consider himself a gopi, for this is offensive. TEXT 206 TEXT vibhur api sukha-rupah sva-prakaso 'pi bhavah ksanam api na hi radha-krsnayor ya rte svah pravahati rasa-pustim cid-vibhutir ivesah srayati na padam asam kah sakhinam rasa-jnah SYNONYMS vibhuh--all-powerful; api--although; sukha-rupah--happiness personified; svaprakasah-- self-effulgent; api--although; bhavah--the completely spiritual activities; ksanam api--even for a moment; na--never; hi--certainly; radhakrsnayoh-- of Sri Radha and Krsna; yah--whom; rte--without; svah--His own entourage (the gopis); pravahati--leads to; rasa-pustim--completion of the highest humor; cit-vibhutih--spiritual potencies; iva--like; isah--the Supreme Personality of Godhead; srayati--takes shelter of; na--not; padam--the position; asam--of them; kah--who; sakhinam--of the personal associates; rasa-jnah--one who is conversant with the science of mellows. TRANSLATION " 'The pastimes of Sri Radha and Krsna are self-effulgent. They are happiness personified, unlimited and all-powerful. Even so, the spiritual humors of such pastimes are never complete without the gopis, the Lord's personal friends. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is never complete without His spiritual potencies; therefore unless one takes shelter of the gopis, one cannot enter into the company of Radha and Krsna. Who can be interested in Their spiritual pastimes without taking their shelter?' PURPORT This is a quotation from the Govinda-lilamrta (10.17).

Srila Narayana Maharaja further explains those verses from Sri Caitanya Caritamrita.. He says that only Manjaris can observe all of the most intimate pastimes of Sri Sri Radha Krishna. Not only that; they can also experience exactly whatever emotions and feelings Their Lordship are experiencing, both Sri Radha and Krishna. They have to be able to understand precisely what They think and feel because this is a part of their seva. Only then they can arrange all that is necessary for Their pastimes. Srila Narayana Maharaja explains that whenever a breeze is blowing onto a tree the buds and leaves are also trembling. - The movements of the entire body of the tree is transmitted to them... That's why those special gopis, the maidservants of Srimati Radhika are compared to manjaries, the buds and flowers. The beautiful pastimes of Sri Sri Radha-Krishna is the tree and the gopi friends of Sri Radha are its leaves and flowers.

In Vaisnava literatures the Manjaries are most often referred to as gopis, as they ARE gopis, the cowherd girls. Srila Bhaktivedanta Narayana Maharaja explains that manjaries are the the buds, the most beautiful parts of a creeper or a tree. In somewhat concealed manner the special fortune and glory of those 'buds' were described by Raya Ramananda to Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu (Madhya, 8.207-210) .. note: those verses were spoken right after Sri Caitanya had already clovered the mouth of Raya Ramananda indicating that those were very special, intimate topics, not for anyone.. TEXT 207 TEXT sakhira svabhava eka akathya-kathana krsna-saha nija-lilaya nahi sakhira mana SYNONYMS sakhira--of the gopis; svabhava--natural inclination; eka--one; akathya-- inexplicable; kathana--narration; krsna-saha--with Krsna; nija-lilaya--in His personal pastimes; nahi--not; sakhira--of the gopis; mana--the mind. TRANSLATION "There is an inexplicable fact about the natural inclinations of the gopis. The gopis never want to enjoy themselves with Krsna personally. TEXT 208 TEXT krsna saha radhikara lila ye karaya nija-sukha haite tate koti sukha paya SYNONYMS krsna saha--with Krsna; radhikara--of Srimati Radharani; lila--the pastimes; ye--which; karaya--they bring about; nija-sukha--personal happiness; haite-- than; tate--in that; koti--ten million times; sukha--the happiness; paya--they derive. TRANSLATION "The happiness of the gopis increases ten million times when they serve to engage Sri Sri Radha and Krsna in Their transcendental pastimes. TEXT 209 TEXT radhara svarupa----krsna-prema-kalpalata sakhi-gana haya tara pallava-puspa-pata SYNONYMS radhara svarupa--the spiritual nature of Srimati Radharani; krsna-prema--of love of Krsna; kalpa-lata--a creeper; sakhi-gana--the gopis; haya--are; tara--of that creeper; pallava--the twigs; puspa--flowers; pata--and leaves. TRANSLATION "By nature, Srimati Radharani is just like a creeper of love of Godhead, and the gopis are the twigs, flowers and leaves of that creeper. TEXT 210 TEXT krsna-lilamrta yadi latake sincaya nija-sukha haite pallavadyera koti-sukha haya SYNONYMS krsna-lilamrta--the nectar of Krsna's pastimes; yadi--if; latake--the creeper; sincaya--sprinkles; nija-sukha haite--than personal happiness; pallavaadyera-- of the twigs, flowers and leaves; koti--ten million times; sukha--the happiness; haya--there is. TRANSLATION "When the nectar of Krsna's pastimes is sprinkled on that creeper, the happiness derived by the twigs, flowers and leaves is ten million times greater than that derived by the creeper itself. PURPORT In his Amrta-pravaha-bhasya, Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura states, "Srimati Radharani is the creeper of love of Godhead, and the gopis are exactly like twigs, flowers and leaves. When water is sprinkled on the creeper, the twigs, flowers and leaves indirectly receive all the benefits of the creeper itself. But water sprinkled directly on the twigs, leaves and flowers is not as effective as water sprinkled on the creeper's root. The gopis are not as pleased when they directly mix with Krsna as when they serve to unite Srimati Radharani with Krsna. Their transcendental pleasure lies in uniting Them."

It's not a fact we would have been able to recognize Krishna if He appeared in front of us. I mean, we'd probably notice His unique skin color and other such things, but still personal relationship is such a tricky thing... Isn't it that quite often our perception of someone changes when we actually meet the person? Sometimes it is easier to stay in the 'safe' mood of reverential fear until a while after you actually have met the person. Plus Krishna apparently does not have much authority in His personality, instead He is told to be quite sweet. But then again not everyone is able to recognize that sweetness either. Kamsa was not allured.. many other also were not.