Radha
| Radha | |
|---|---|
| Member of Panch Prakriti[9] | |
Idol of Radha at ISKCON Temple, Pune | |
| Other names | Madhavi, Keshavi, Shreeji, Shyama, Kishori, Radharani |
| Devanagari | राधा |
| Sanskrit transliteration | Rādhā |
| Venerated in | Radha Vallabh Sampradaya, Nimbarka Sampradaya, Gaudiya Vaishnavism, Pushtimarg, Mahanam Sampradaya, Manipuri Vaishnavism, Swaminarayan Sampradaya, Vaishnava-Sahajiya, Haridasi Sampradaya[10] |
| Affiliation | |
| Abode |
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| Mantra |
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| Symbol | Golden Lotus |
| Day | Friday |
| Texts | Brahma Vaivarta Purana, Devi-Bhagavata Purana, Naradiya Purana, Padma Purana, Skanda Purana, Shiva Purana, Gita Govinda, Gopala Tapani Upanishad, Garga Samhita, Brahma Samhita, Chaitanya Charitamrita |
| Gender | Female |
| Festivals |
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| Genealogy | |
| Avatar birth | Raval, Barsana (present-day Uttar Pradesh, India) |
| Parents |
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| Consort | Krishna |
| Dynasty | Yaduvamsha-Chandravamsha |
| Part of a series on |
| Hinduism |
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| Part of a series on |
| Vaishnavism |
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Radha (Sanskrit: राधा, IAST: Rādhā), also called Radhika, is a Hindu goddess and the chief consort of the god Krishna. She is the goddess of love, tenderness, compassion, and devotion. In scriptures, Radha is mentioned as the avatar of Lakshmi[13][14] and also as the Mūlaprakriti, the Supreme goddess, who is the feminine counterpart and internal potency (hladini shakti) of Krishna.[1][15][16][17][18] Radha accompanies Krishna in all his incarnations.[19][20] Radha's birthday is celebrated every year on the occasion of Radhashtami.[21][22]
In relation with Krishna, Radha has dual representation—the lover consort as well as his married consort. Traditions like Nimbarka Sampradaya worship Radha as the eternal consort and wedded wife of Krishna.[23][24][25][26] In contrast, traditions like Gaudiya Vaishnavism revere her as Krishna's lover and the divine consort.[27][25]
In Radha Vallabha Sampradaya and Haridasi Sampradaya, only Radha is worshipped as the Supreme being.[28] Elsewhere, she is venerated with Krishna as his principal consort in Nimbarka Sampradaya, Pushtimarg, Mahanam Sampradaya, Swaminarayan Sampradaya, Vaishnava-Sahajiya, Manipuri Vaishnavism, and Gaudiya Vaishnavism movements linked to Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.[29]
Radha is described as the chief of Braj Gopis (milkmaids of Braj) and queen of Goloka and Braj including Vrindavan and Barsana.[25] She has inspired numerous literary works, and her Raslila dance with Krishna has inspired many types of performance arts.[30][31][27][32]
- ^ a b Diana Dimitrova (2018). Divinizing in South Asian Traditions. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-8153-5781-0.
Radha is mentioned as the personification of the Mūlaprakriti, the 'Root nature, that original seed from which all material forms evolved
- ^ Vemsani 2016, p. 222: "The Devibhagvata purana and Padma purana describe Radha's cosmological role as Prakriti and Shakti"
- ^ David R. Kinsley (1986). Hindu Goddesses. Motilala Banarsidass. p. 91. ISBN 978-81-208-0394-7.
Radha is called mother of the world and Krishna father of the world
- ^ Wendy Doniger (1999). Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of World Religions. Merriam-Webster. p. 900. ISBN 978-0-87779-044-0.
- ^ Prafulla Kumar Mohanty (2003). "Mask and Creative Symbolisation in Contemporary Oriya Literature: Krishna, Radha and Ahalya". Indian Literature. 2 (214). Sahitya Akademi: 182. JSTOR 23341400.
Radha is the power of joy, the Hladini shakti of Krishna
- ^ Guy Beck (2005). Alternative Krishnas: Regional and Vernacular Variations on a Hindu Deity. SUNY Press. pp. 64–81. ISBN 978-0-7914-6415-1.
Radha is goddess of love to Krishna
- ^ Edwin Francis Bryant (2007). Krishna: A Sourcebook. SUNY Press. p. 443. ISBN 978-0-19-803400-1.
Significant manifestation of the feminine in Vaishnavism...the supreme goddess Radha, the favorite gopi of Krishna
- ^ Roy C Amore (1976). "Religion in India". Journal of the American Academy of Religion. 14 (2): 366.
Radha as Prakriti comes to supreme prominence, assuming epithets of transcendence - Brahmasvarupa, Nirguna...
- ^ Ludo Rocher (1988). "The Purāṇas (A History of Indian Literature". Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies. 51 (2): 355.
- ^ Vemsani 2016, pp. 222–223.
- ^ Ved Vyaas. Brahma Vaivarta Purana. Gita Press, Gorakhpur. p. 297.
- ^ Menzies 2006, p. 54.
- ^ Jones, Naamleela Free (2015). "From Gods To Gamers: The Manifestation of the Avatar Throughout Religious History and Postmodern Culture". Berkeley Undergraduate Journal. 28 (2): 8. doi:10.5070/B3282028582.
- ^ Gokhale, Namita; Lal, Malashri (10 December 2018). Finding Radha: The Quest for Love. Penguin Random House India Private Limited. ISBN 978-93-5305-361-1.
Like Sita, Radha is also a manifestation of Lakshmi.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:4was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Bryant, Edwin Francis (2007). Krishna: A Sourcebook. Oxford University Press. p. 551. ISBN 978-0-19-514892-3.
- ^ Kar, Nishamani (2001). "Sriradha: A Study". Indian Literature. 45 (2 (202)): 184–192. ISSN 0019-5804. JSTOR 23344745.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:5was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Vyasadeva (18 June 2015). Narada Pancaratra Part 2. p. 448.
Whenever Sri Hari appears in this world, Sri Radhika appears with him
- ^ Farquhar, J. N. (1926). "The Narada Pancharatra". Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland (3): 492–495. ISSN 0035-869X. JSTOR 25221011.
- ^ Vemsani 2016, p. 223.
- ^ Mohanty, Prafulla Kumar (2003). "Mask and Creative Symbolisation in Contemporary Oriya Literature: Krishna, Radha and Ahalya". Indian Literature. 47 (2 (214)): 181–189. ISSN 0019-5804. JSTOR 23341400.
- ^ Farquhar, J. N. (1926). "The Narada Pancharatra". Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland (3): 492–495. ISSN 0035-869X. JSTOR 25221011.
- ^ Bhattacharya, Sunil Kumar (1996). Krishna-cult in Indian Art. M.D. Publications Pvt. Ltd. p. 13. ISBN 978-81-7533-001-6.
Radha is the eternal consort and wedded wife of Krishna, who lives forever with him in Goloka.
- ^ a b c Lochtefeld 2002, p. 542.
- ^ Jones & Ryan 2007, p. 341, Radha.
- ^ a b "Radha". Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
- ^ White 1977; Snell 1991, chapter1; Rosenstein 1998; Beck 2005; Vemsani 2016, p. 222.
- ^ Hawley & Wulff 1982, pp. xiii–xviii; Dalal 2010, pp. 321–322; Hayes 2005, pp. 19–32; Vemsani 2016, p. 221.
- ^ Archer 2004.
- ^ Hawley & Wulff 1982, pp. xiii–xviii.
- ^ Pintchman 2005, pp. 46–47.