Verse Text
prāyaḥ sukha-mayāḥ śītā uṣṇā duḥkha-mayā iha |
citreyaṁ paramānanda-sāndrāpy uṣṇā ratir matā ||77||
Translation
Among the bhāvas, it would seem that those such as harṣa are filled with happiness and others such as viṣāda are filled with sorrow. But the astonishing fact is that rati filled with sorrow is considered to be the highest, most intense bliss.
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
One would assume (prāyaḥ) that bhāvas such as harṣa (śītā) are filled with happiness and others such as viṣāda (uṣṇā) are filled with sorrow. Rati has by its very nature some sorrow even in meeting of the lovers, because there is a predominance of longing during separation which causes suffering and worry about separation during meeting which causes suffering as well. Thus it is said:
adṛṣṭe darśanotkaṇthā dṛṣṭe viccheda-bhīrutā
nāḍṣṭena na dṛṣṭena bhavatā labhyate sukham
If I do not see You, then I am filled with longing to see You, and when I do see You, I am filled with fear of separation. Thus, both on not seeing You, and on seeing You, I do not attain happiness.
Purport (Nectar of Devotion)
One old devotee said, “My dear Lord, when we are away from You we become so anxious to see You again, and there is great misery in our lives. But then when we do see You, there immediately comes the fear of separation. Under the circumstances, both when we see You and when we do not see You, we are subjected to different kinds of tribulation.” This is an instance of a contradictory mixture of ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa.