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Although the philosophical problems inherent in the relation between bhakti and Advaita are the chief interest " of the present study, an introduction to the Bhakti-rasayana would not be complete without a discussion of the theory of rasa or poetic "sentiment" that figures so prominently in the text. The notion of bhaktirasa, the "sentiment of devotion,' in fact was important in all of the North Indian schools of Krsna devotion that drew their inspiration from the Bhagavata. Accordingly, this chapter will provide a brief survey of the subject. An overview of the theory of rasa, as developed by the writers on Sanskrit poetics (alamkara- sastra), 1 will be followed by a short history of its adoption by the Krsnaite devotional movements. The Bengal Vaisnava exposition of bhaktirasa will be discussed as the primary example of this development. Then, in the last section, a summary of Madhusudana's views will be given. Certain technical details of the rasa-theory, not essential to the general discussion here, will be elaborated in the notes to the translation in part II. 199

I ! 200 6.1 Bhakti, Myth, and Imagination Once the rasa-theory had been adapted to their particular religious milieu, the Vaisnava teachers placed a great deal of emphasis on it and indeed developed it to a high level of sophistication. Still, classical Sanskrit aesthetics, from the standpoint of the devotionalists, was a secular (laukika) discipline. 2 Although it had a good deal to say about human emotions and their expression in poetry and drama, it was indifferent, if not hostile, toward bhakti. The reason that devotional theologians took such an inordinate interest in the rasa-theory will not therefore be immediately apparent. This may especially be true for those whose familiarity with Indian spirituality is confined to the ascetically oriented forms more well-known in the West. 3 Understanding, in this case, must begin with a clear appreciation of the fact that the divine sports of Krsna's youth in Vrdavana were the central, all-consuming focus of the religious life of the post-Bhagavata Vaisnava schools in the North. This particular concentration resulted in a high religious valuation being placed on the accounts of the god's exploits that were contained in the puranas, especially the Bhagavata-purana, and the rich literary tradition dependent on those texts. We have already mentioned that the intense love of the gopis for their Lord was taken as the paradigm of the highest and most ecstatic kind of bhakti. Other

201 modes of devotion were illustrated by the love for Krsna experienced by, for example, his friends, his parents, or the sages that happened to have contact with him. 4 It must be emphasized that the stories that made these various expressions of bhakti present and real for the devotees were not treated in simple allegorical fashion, as is now too often the practice. They were not reduced to a collection of symbols "standing for," say, certain abstract metaphysical states, or stages of attainment realized through yoga. Rather, the whole Krsna-lila was taken integrally as a mythic narrative that, continuously recounted and reenacted in various ritual contexts in the community, had to be, not symbolically deciphered for its "meaning" in terms of metaphysics or spiritual praxis, but imaginatively and whole-heartedly entered into. The interaction of the devotee with the Krsna-story took place in a way that was essentially dramatic in inspiration. The theme of the Lord's play or lila suggested that the activities of the unborn, infinite bhagavat on earth were a role assumed in fun, a kind of divine stageplay with hidden, cosmic dimensions. This, combined with the aesthetic and emotional richness of the literary accounts of the life of the cowherd avatara, seem naturally to have lead the Vaisnava community to see drama as a means 5 of drawing the devotee closer to God. As Hein has shown,

202 century B.C.E. vernacular Krsna plays were popular in ancient Mathura, the traditional birthplace of the deity, as early as the second And drama--in practice as well as concept-continued to be a central element of Krsnaite spirituality.6 The bhakta was, on one level, an avid spectator of the reenactments of the Lord's lilas that took place in the community, as well as a devoted hearer of the accounts of Krsna's life read in communal gatherings. Such literarydramatic experiences served as an effective devotional sadhana. In this connection, Wulff (whose work on the plays of Rupa Gosvamin vividly illustrates this phase of Vaisnava spirituality) notes that even today the popular Krsna dramas have "the power to awaken profound religious emotions in the devotees who witness them, and to sustain and deepen those emotions not only during the period of a single performance, but through repeated performances over the course of a devotee's entire lifetime."7 The serious bhakta was not, however, confined to role of a mere spectator or auditor. Another, more profound, level of participation was available for the more serious aspirants. The Bhagavata-purana describes the gopis as miming Krsna's gestures and sports, and recommends that the devotee do the same. 8 Accordingly, the Vaisnavas developed a theory of devotional practice which allowed the devotee to become an actor, not only in the stage play, but ultimately in the divine drama itself.

203 Especially in the Bengal school, the highest experience of bhakti came through participation in the mode of devotion experienced by one of the Lord's companions (parikaras), a participation brought about by identification with the character as he, or more likely she, appeared and acted in the mythic narrative. The key practice of advanced aspirants was raganugabhakti--"devotion following passionate attachment, i.e., bhakti that imitated the love for Krsna "I that was evidenced by his associates.⁹ admirably summarized by Kinsley: Its essence has been The devotee seeks to involve himself completely in the ongoing drama of Krsna by identifying himself with one or another of its participants. In effect, the devotee seeks to replace the ordinary world with the imaginative world of Krsna and his companions. While remaining physically'in the ordinary world, he seeks to remove himself from it by constantly remembering the transcendental world of Krsna and imagining himself to be a part of that world. With the help of scriptural descriptions, he tries to conjure up a world that is as real and immediate to him as the ordinary world in which he normally lives.10 Comparing the aesthetic approach of the Gaudiyas with the ascetic orientation of Yoga, Kinsley writes: The Bengal Vaisnava devotee does not seek to still his mind but stir it by imagination. In yoga the sadhaka attains samadhi by immobilizing his mind and intellect-by stopping the imaginative process. In Bengal Vaisnavism the devotee attains samadhi by ceaselessly imagining himself to be a female companion of Krsna. 11 This spirituality of imaginative participation was taken very seriously, and worked out in careful detail, by the Vaissnava theologians. In order to provide a conceptual

204 basis for it, they had to deal with several important problems. How, to begin with, could the devotees enter the realm of the divine drama? To a certain extent the solution was obvious: by natural acts of piety such as reciting the story, meditating on it, acting it out in religious plays, and even, if possible, taking up residence in the place where the events took place, where the hallowed landmarks were yet recognizable and the memory of the divine presence was still alive. These practices were of course adopted and no doubt were effective. But theoretical difficulties remained. How could the bhaktas actually realize the emotions experienced by other persons who were actors in a drama that was, whether temporally or metaphysically, removed from them? And, especially perplexing, how could men, if they wished to enjoy the bliss of the highest bhakti, participate in the love of the female gopis for the male character Krsna? Fortunately, since drama had for many centuries been regarded in India as the highest, most comprehensive form of art, almost identical questions had already been explored in depth by the writers on Sanskrit aesthetics. It was therefore natural for the Vaisnava theologians to turn to the theories of these "secular" thinkers for aid in conceptualizing their particular imaginative and dramatically-oriented style of devotional sadhana. 12