Chapter summary
यमुनामाहात्म्यम् Yamunā Māhātmyam
The Glory of the Yamunā
**The revered Sadguru said:**
I shall now recount the supreme and most auspicious glory of the divine Yamunā. Merely by bathing in her sacred waters, a person is forever freed from any wretched fate. Indeed, just as the wish-fulfilling cow, Kāmadhenu, grants all desires, and the wish-fulfilling jewel, Cintāmaṇi, fulfills every longing, so too does a bath in the Yamunā bestow all the aspirations of humankind. Hari, the Supreme Lord, is not as pleased by vows, charities, or austerities as Keśava is gratified by the simple act of bathing in the Yamunā. For the delight of Vāsudeva and the removal of all sins, a Vaiṣṇava should undoubtedly take a purifying dip in the Kālindī at Mathurā. (v.1-4)
Of what use is this body, though protected, well-nourished, and strong? Of what avail is this handsome form, if it remains stained by sin without a dip in the Yamunā? The Yamunā is declared to be the bestower of liberation when she flows through Mathurā; even elsewhere, she is supremely sacred and the remover of the gravest sins. (v.5-6)
The ancestors of one who drinks the holy and auspicious water of the Yamunā are profoundly gratified, remaining satisfied in heaven for hundreds of aeons. Yamunā is renowned as the daughter of the divine Vivasvān, the Sun God, and Yama and Śrāddhadeva are her revered brothers. (v.7-8)
She who is known as the river Virajā in the spiritual realm of Vaikuṇṭha is none other than the Yamunā on earth. For the sole purpose of serving Govinda, she herself chose to become the daughter of the Sun. From her very childhood, the mind of that goddess was firmly fixed on Govinda. Journeying to the Kalinda mountain, she undertook a most arduous penance. With the unwavering resolve to obtain Govinda alone as her husband, that beautiful-faced goddess, pure in heart, turned away from all other deities. (v.9-11)
Then, the glorious Lord Vāsudeva, who holds the conch and discus and is adorned with the resplendent Vaijayantī garland, granted her His divine vision. Beholding the lotus-eyed Lord of the worlds in His most pleased form, the goddess Yamunā, her eyes brimming with tears, began to offer Him praise. (v.12-13)
**Yamunā said:**
Salutations to You, the Supreme Being, the Lord who is ever affectionate to those who take refuge in You. Your supremely sacred foot-dust is that which the Vedas themselves, desiring to attain ultimate auspiciousness, still yearn for even today. (v.14)
Salutations to that God of supremely auspicious form, who is served by hosts of gods and sages, and whose lotus feet Śrī herself constantly worships, like Tulasī, even after having obtained her place upon His chest. (v.15)
Salutations to that Supreme Being, the sacred water flowing from whose lotus feet gained holy fame in the three worlds as Mandākinī in heaven, as Bhogavatī in the nether regions, and as Bhāgīrathī on earth. (v.16)
Salutations to that Supreme Being, by partaking of the nectar of whose lotus feet, great souls in this world, intoxicated like bees, have abandoned even a trace of enjoyment related to all sense objects and remain in profound silence. (v.17)
Salutations to You, the Supreme Lord, the Supreme Being, by taking hold of the boat of whose feet, devotees easily cross the ocean of worldly existence—which is exceedingly difficult to traverse and is the very root of all suffering—and attain the state of eternal bliss. (v.18)
**The revered Sadguru said:**
Thus praised by Yamunā, the glorious Lord Nārāyaṇa, His face graced with a gentle smile, spoke, "Choose a boon." Then, with her hands folded in reverence and her mind joyful, the goddess Yamunā, speaking with a lovely smile, uttered these sweet words. (v.19-20)
**Yamunā said:**
Day after day, I desire the service of Your lotus feet; I ask for no other boon. O Mukunda, may You alone be my lord! Please place Your lotus feet upon my lap. Shamelessly I speak today, O Keśava, for those afflicted by love have neither fear nor shame. Beholding Your form which enchants the world, I desire to embrace Your every limb. (v.21-22)
Therefore, O Mukunda, by Your grace and by the power of the penance I have performed, I shall become a river. May You, with Your friends, sport in it forever. This much is enough for me, O God of gods. I shall be satisfied with any form of service. Constantly bathing Your limbs, I shall become worthy of worship by the sages in the world. (v.23-24)
On my banks, in the most charming forest, may You always graze the herds of Gokula. O Murāri, joyfully playing Your flute, engage in childhood sports with Your friends. On my sacred sands, O Murāri, sporting with the joyous cowherd boys, adorn me with Your lotus feet, which are marked with the auspicious signs of the flag, lotus, goad, and thunderbolt. (v.25-26)
As You freely engage in amorous pastimes here with the beautiful women of Vraja, I desire the blessed remnants of fragrant saffron, musk, and other unguents shed from Your limbs. O son of Nanda, may You always enjoy boat pastimes here in my current. Enraptured in my own bliss, I shall delight You and Your companions with the sounds of my waves. (v.27-28)
Knowing my glory to be greater than that of other rivers, Your foremost devotees will always bathe in me. By Your grace, I shall render constant service to them as well. Other sinful people too will always bathe and cast off their impurities in me. I will endure all of that within myself, for my sins will be removed by the service of Your devotees. (v.29-30)
**The revered Sadguru said:**
Having thus praised the Lord of the Universe, Yamunā then vanished. Immediately, in the form of a river, she flowed upon the surface of the earth. Crossing mountain peaks, from village to village, from forest to forest, the daughter of the Sun joyfully reached that sacred land of Vraja. On her banks, Govinda, the ocean of mercy, devoted to grazing the cows, sports even today along with His personal associates. (v.31-33)
She who is Mahālakṣmī in Vaikuṇṭha is Rādhā in the region of Vraja. She who is Virajā there is known as Yamunā here. Victorious is that Yamunā, the best of rivers, by merely bathing in whom Śrī Kṛṣṇa came into view. By merely bathing, Akrūra indeed saw Kṛṣṇa directly. What other river could be equal to that river Yamunā? (v.34-36)
Blessed is this goddess Yamunā, blessed are her sands, and blessed is this Vṛndāvana where Keśava sports. A birth even as a fish, tortoise, or frog in the waters of the Yamunā is considered superior; one should not desire a birth as a god in Amarāvatī. (v.37-38)
Who among Kṛṣṇa's devotees would not take refuge in Kṛṣṇā (Yamunā), who is dear to Kṛṣṇa, a devotee of Kṛṣṇa, the bestower of union with Kṛṣṇa, and the very form of Kṛṣṇa? By chanting the names Kālindī, Sūryaputrī, Kṛṣṇā, and Yamunā, a devotee of Kṛṣṇa attains the bliss of union with Kṛṣṇa. (v.39-40)
Thus, in the work "Divyadeśavaibhavam" composed by Śrī Kṛṣṇapremi Mahāprabhu, in the First Part, the sixteenth chapter entitled "The Glory of the Yamunā".
