Text 27

An introduction to the evening pastimes (sāyaṃ-kālīya-līlā ) is found in Govinda-līlāmṛta (20.1):

सायं राधां स्व-सख्या निज-रमण-कृते प्रेषितानेक-भोज्यां
   सख्यानीतेश-शेषाशन-मुदितम्-हृदं तां च तं च व्रजेन्दुम्
सुस्नातं रम्य-वेशं गृहम् अनु-जननी-लालितं प्राप्त-गोष्ठं
   निर्व्यूढो’स्रालिदोहं स्व-गृहम् अनु पुनर् भुक्तवन्तं स्मरामि

sāyaṃ rādhāṃ sva-sakhyā nija-ramaṇa-kṛte preṣitāneka-bhojyāṃ
   sakhyānīteśa-śeṣāśana-muditam-hṛdaṃ tāṃ ca taṃ ca vrajendum
susnātaṃ ramya-veśaṃ gṛham anu-jananī-lālitaṃ prāpta-goṣṭhaṃ
   nirvyūḍho’srālidohaṃ sva-gṛham anu punar bhuktavantaṃ smarāmi

I remember Śrī Rādhā who, in the evening, sends many kinds of cooked foodstuffs with Her sakhīs to Her lover, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, and who becomes joyful by taking Kṛṣṇa’s remnants that are brought back to Her by Her sakhīs. I remember Śrī Kṛṣṇa, who takes bath upon returning from cowherding, who dresses very beautifully, and who is fondly attended in many ways by Mother Yaśodā. He goes to the cowshed, and after milking the cows returns home for His evening meal.

श्री-राधिका सायं-काले, कृष्ण लागि’ पाठाइले,
सखी हस्ते विविध मिष्ठान्न
कृष्ण-भुक्त शेष आनि’, सखी दिल सुख मानि’,
पाञा राधा हैल प्रसन्न

śrī-rādhikā sāyaṃ-kāle, kṛṣṇa lāgi’ pāṭhāile,
sakhī haste vividha miṣṭhānna
kṛṣṇa-bhukta śeṣa āni’, sakhī dila sukha māni’,
pāñā rādhā haila prasanna

स्नात रम्य-वेश धरि’, यशोदा लालित हरि,
सखा-सह गोदोहन करे
नाना-विध पक्व अन्न, पाञा हैल परसन्न,
स्मरि आमि परम आदरे

snāta ramya-veśa dhari’, yaśodā lālita hari,
sakhā-saha godohana kare
nānā-vidha pakva anna, pāñā haila parasanna,
smari āmi parama ādare

Commentary: Bhajana-rahasya-vṛtti:

When Śrī Rādhā sees that evening has come, in Her heart, She becomes very eager and thinks, “Now Kṛṣṇa must have returned from cowherding!” In the kitchen, She wears a white dress, and together with Her sakhīs prepares many kinds of sweets, such as amṛta-keli, karpūra-keli, candrakānti and modaka. All the preparations are put into new clay pots and covered with white cloth. She places the pots in the hands of Her nitya-sakhīs and prāṇasakhīs to take to Her priyatama in Nanda-bhavana. The sakhīs depart, and Śrī Rādhā’s mind goes with them. She thinks, “When My sakhīs reach the house of Nanda, Maiyā will embrace them to her heart, and she will remember Me and give Me her blessings. My prāṇanātha, surrounded by Bābā and the sakhās, will eat these preparations. I do not know which ones He will like and which ones He will not.” In this way, with eyes of bhāva, Śrī Rādhā has internal darśana of the evening meal. The sakhīs offer all the preparations to Yaśodā, the queen of Vraja, who affectionately serves them to Kṛṣṇa, Balarāma and the sakhās. Cleverly, Dhaniṣṭhā places Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s remnants in the hands of a sakhī and sends them to Śrī Rādhā, along with information about the location of Their abhisāra later that night. At that time, Śrī Rādhā anxiously awaits the sakhīs’ return from Nanda-bhavana. When they arrive, they describe all the conversations at Nanda-bhavana and how Kṛṣṇa appreciated each preparation. Śrī Rādhā relishes Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s remnants in the same way. The sakhīs are also extremely happy to take the remnants of Śrī Kṛṣṇa and Śrī Rādhā.

Thus ends the Ṣaṣṭha-yāma-sādhana,
Sāyaṃ-kālīya-bhajana, of Śrī Bhajana-rahasya.