Radha

Happy Holi to my Hindu/South Asian followers!! May your life be as colourful every day as it is today! (Except in Scotlandm where our family spent a very lowkey, stormy lockdown Holi!) For those of you who don’t know, my boyfriend is Hindu and my PhD is on India/Hindu mythology so I thought I’d share a wee history of Holi for those who don’t know.

Holi is one of the most important Hindu festivals, also known as the "Festival of colours", and the "Festival of spring". In Hindu mythology, it celebrates the victory of Lord Vishnu's Narasimha Avatar over Hiranakashyap which signifies the triumph of good over evil, and the divine and eternal love of the deities Radha and Krishna. Today, however, it also celebrates the end of winter and the arrival of spring, and the blossoming of love. Holi originated and is predominantly celebrated in India but has also spread to other regions of Asia and is now popular in India diasporas across the globe as well as as well as among Non-Hindus who relate to its themes of love, happiness, and hope.

Like other festivals, Holi is a festive occasion to come together and forget their differences. It lasts for a night and a day, starting on the evening of the Purnima (Full Moon Day) falling in the Hindu Calendar month of Phalguna, which falls around middle of March in the Gregorian calendar. The first evening is known as Holika Dahan (burning of demon holika) or Chhoti Holi. On Holika Dahan, people gather to perform religious rituals in front of a bonfire, and pray that their internal evil be destroyed the way Holika, the sister of the demon king Hiranyakashap, was killed by fire.

The next morning is celebrated as Rangwali Holi – a free-for-all festival of colours, where people smear each other with colours and soak each other with water guns and water balloons.  Social conventions are dispensed with and anyone can be a target – strangers, friend or foe, rich or poor, man or woman, children, and elders. Colour fights occur in the open streets and groups carry drums and other musical instruments, go from place to place singing and dancing. People visit family, throw coloured powders on each other, and catch up over Holi delicacies. 

As I mentioned, an important part of the history of Holi is the story of Krishna and Radha, and as this is a HERstory blog, I thought I’d dedicate a post to Radha because I haven’t done a goddess for a while!

Radha, a.k.a. Radhika, is a Hindu goddess and consort of the important Hindu god, Krishna. She is worshipped as the goddess of love, tenderness, compassion and devotion. She is the chief of Krishna’s gopis (milkmaids). During Krishna's youth, Radha features as his lover and companion. Some traditions accord Radha the status of Krishna’s primary consort and wife. In these traditions, Radha is worshipped as a supreme goddess, the eternal female counterpart and the internal power of Krishna, who resides with him in their abode, Goloka.

The Sanskrit term Rādhā means "prosperity, success" and is a common word and name found in various contexts in the ancient and medieval texts of India. Radha is intrinsic to Krishna’s identity. In early Indian literature, mentions of her are elusive. The traditions that venerate her explain this is because she is the secret treasure hidden within the sacred scriptures. During the Bhakti movement era in the sixteenth century, she became more well known as her extraordinary love for Krishna was highlighted.

Her first major scriptural appearance comes in the 12th century Gita Govinda by Jayadeva. She also appears in the late Puranic scriptures. Though not named in the Bhagavata Purana, Visvanatha Chakravarti (c. 1626–1708) interprets an unnamed favourite gopi in the scripture as Radha. In most of her brief mentions in the other scriptures, Radha is depicted as someone who is deeply in love with Krishna and is deeply saddened when Krishna leaves her. However, her traits, manifestations, descriptions, and roles vary by region.

Radha is said to have been born near to Gokul but is often said to be Barsana. It is in Barsana that the Lathmar Holi is practiced depicting the episode of Krishna going to Barsana and then running away from a beating by the womenfolk of Barsana.

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Radha's connection to Krishna is of two types: svakiya-rasa (married relationship) and parakiya-rasa (a relationship signified with eternal mental "love").  Theirs is regarded as the highest form of love, even sharing thoughts when they are apart. The love the gopis (milkmaids) feel for Krishna is also described in this esoteric manner as the highest platform of spontaneous love of God, and not of a sexual nature – despite the somewhat erotic literature and artwork that usually depicts them.

In one tale, Radha asked Krishna why he wouldn’t marry her. He replied: “Marriage is a union of two souls. You and I are one soul, how can I marry myself?” The Brahmavaivarta Purana and the Garg Samhita mention that Krishna secretly married Radha, but that this was kept hidden in order to prioritise the Parakiya nature of their relationship.  

Thus, according to Jaya Chemburkar, there are at least two significant and different aspects of Radha in the literature associated with her, such as Sriradhika namasahasram. One aspect is she is a milkmaid (gopi), another as a female deity comparable to other Hindu goddesses. She also appears in Hindu arts as Ardha Nari with Krishna, that is an iconography where half of the image is Radha and the other half is Krishna. This is found in sculpture and texts such as Shiva Purana and Brahmavaivarta Purana. In these texts, this Ardha Nari is sometimes referred to as Ardharadhavenudhara murti, and it symbolizes the complete union and inseparability of Radha and Krishna.

Radha and Krishna are often compared to the “ideal” relationship of Rama and Sita. My masters thesis basically involves debunking that whole story but for now I’ll restrain myself and say that Sita-Rama and Radha-Krishna represent two different personality sets, two perspectives on duty and relationships, both sanctioned in traditional Hinduism. Sita is traditionally depicted as the dedicated and virtuous wife of Rama, an “introspective temperate paragon of a serious, virtuous man”. Radha, meanwhile, is a flirtatious and independent gal who is constantly persued by the playful playboy Krishna. As one scholar put it: "Sita is a queen, aware of her social responsibilities… Radha is exclusively focused on her romantic relationship with her lover", giving two contrasting role models from two ends of the moral universe. Yet they share common elements as well. Both face life challenges and are deeply devoted to their lovers. They are both influential and beloved goddesses in Hindu culture.

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A slightly more feminist interpretation of Radha is to view her as a metaphor for the human spirit (atma), her love and longing for Krishna theologically viewed as symbolic of the human quest for spiritual growth and union with the divine. This view is championed by David Kinsley who views the Radha-Krishna romance as a metaphor for a divine-human relationship, where Radha is the human devotee or soul who is frustrated with the past, obligations to social expectations, and the ideas she inherited, who then longs for real meaning, the true love, the divine (Krishna). This metaphoric Radha (soul) finds new liberation in learning more about Krishna, bonding in devotion, and with passion.

Radha is sometimes considered as an avatar of goddess Lakshmi (as Krishna is an avatar of Vishnu) and by some, as the feminine form of Krishna himself. Thus, In some devotional (bhakti) traditions of Vaishnavism that focus on Krishna, Radha represents "the feeling of love towards Krishna". For some of the adherents of these traditions, her importance equals or even exceeds that of Krishna. She is considered to be Krishna's original shakti (power). Nimbarka was the first well known Vaishnava scholar whose theology centered on goddess Radha.

Radha Chalisa mentions that Krishna accompanies one who chants "Radha" with a pure heart. Other gopis are usually considered to be self-willing maidservants (Sevika) of Radha. However, Radharani's superiority is seen in Krishna's flute, which repeats the name Radha.

She has inspired numerous literary works, and her Rasa lila dance with Krishna has inspired many types of performance arts. She is also frequently evoked in song and film. Radha's birthday is celebrated annually as Radhashtami.

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The eternal love of Radha and Krishna is also celebrated during Holi, the festival of colours which falls today (see previous post). It is said that in his youth, Krishna despaired whether the fair-skinned Radha would like him because of his dark skin colour. His mother, tired of his desperation, asks him to approach Radha and ask her to colour his face in any colour she wanted. This she did, and Radha and Krishna became a couple. Ever since, the playful colouring of Radha and Krishna's face has been commemorated as Holi. So happy love day!!