Text 43
kṛṣṇera viyoge yata prema-ceṣṭita
āsvādiyā pūrṇa kaila āpana vāñchita
kṛṣṇera — of Lord Kṛṣṇa; viyoge — in separation; yata — as many; prema — loving affairs; ceṣṭita — activities; āsvādiyā — tasting them; pūrṇa — fulfilled; kaila — made; āpana — own; vāñchita — desires.
In separation from Kṛṣṇa, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu relished all these ecstatic activities, and thus He fulfilled His own desires.
In the beginning of the Caitanya-caritāmṛta it is said that Lord Caitanya appeared in order to taste the feelings Rādhārāṇī felt upon seeing Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa Himself could not understand the ecstatic feelings of Rādhārāṇī toward Him, and therefore He desired to accept the role of Rādhārāṇī and thereby taste these feelings. Lord Caitanya is Kṛṣṇa with the feelings of Rādhārāṇī; in other words, He is a combination of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa. It is therefore said, śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya rādhā-kṛṣṇa nahe anya. By worshiping Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu alone, one can relish the loving affairs of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa together. One should therefore try to understand Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa not directly but through Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and through His devotees. Śrīla Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura therefore says, rūpa-raghunātha-pade haibe ākuti, kabe hāma bujhaba se yugala-pīriti: “When shall I develop a mentality of service toward Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī, Sanātana Gosvāmī, Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī and the other devotees of Lord Caitanya and thus become eligible to understand the pastimes of Śrī Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa?”