Saptamy Amṛta Vṛṣṭiḥ
Bhāva – Transcendental Emotion
Verse 1
When āsakti achieves full maturity it is called rati or bhāva.
Bhāva is the preliminary stage of manifestation of the three energies sat, cid and ānanda, emanating from the Lord Himself.
It is called the blossoming flower on the creeper of bhakti, whose outer luster is the quality of "sarvaiḥ sudurlabhā" (rarity) and whose inner luster is "mokṣa laghu kṛt" ("taking mokṣa as insignificant"), just one particle of which uproots ignorance completely.
Moreover, by the profuse release of its fragrances, the flower of bhāva is able to invite Madhusūdana and make him appear there.
In short, scented by those fragrances, all the emotions of the heart, like a cluster of sesame seeds, liquify into a perfumed oil, and become immediately fit to be smeared on all the limbs of the Lord.
At the appearance of bhāva, its receptacle the body of even a caṇḍāla becomes worthy of the respect that is due to Lord Brahmā and other devatās.
Verses 2-3
At that time, his eyes, full of longing, turn towards Kṛṣṇa to lick the blackness of his limbs, the rosy hue of his lips and eye-rims, the white brilliance of his moon-like teeth shining in his smiling face, the yellow hue of his clothing and ornaments; and begin to bathe his body in unlimited tears.
Like a hunted animal, here and there, from time to time, freezing his motion, he raises his ears to try to hear the sound of Kṛṣṇa's flute, the jingling of his anklets, the sweet intonation of his voice, the messages of his wandering footsteps.
And his body erupts in ecstasy on experiencing the longed-for touch of the Lord's tender hands.
His nostrils open wide again and again, and inhale, anxious to examine the fragrance of his body.
Hankering to taste the Lord's saliva, his tongue feels great joy on attaining that taste, and he licks his lips.
Sometimes, when he gains the association of the Lord by the Lord's whim, his heart feels exhilarated, and he becomes drunk with the abundance of sweetness, and then, at the departure of the Lord he grieves and becomes despondent.
In this way the symptoms of sañcārī bhāva decorate his body.
His intelligence, in the states of wakefulness, sleep, and deep sleep, determines to fix itself without deviation on the path of remembrance of Kṛṣṇa.
At the time of attaining his spiritual body suitable for performing his eternal service, the indestructible soul enters that body, and the material body becomes almost lifeless.
At this stage the devotee begins to experience extreme possessiveness of Kṛṣṇa: like a bee, he becomes anxious to imbibe fragrance of Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet.
Having obtained the most precious jewel of bhāva, the devotee, like a miser, hides it from ordinary people.
As he becomes the residence of renunciation, tolerance, and the other wonderful qualities which manifest themselves at the stage of bhāva, advanced devotees will understand his internal status by those external symptoms, but others who see his distracted mind will conclude that he is mad.
Verse 4
This stage of bhāva is of two types: that arising from rāgānuga bhakti, and that arising from vaidhī bhakti.
The first type of bhāva, arising from rāgānuga bhakti, being greater in its strength and natural feeling, with a predominance of the feeling that the Lord is on an equal level and a distaste for seeing the Lord as the almighty master, is very thick or intense.
The second type, arising from vaidhī bhakti, being somewhat lesser in strength and natural feeling, with a type of possessiveness of the Lord mixed with perception of the Lord as the almighty God, is not so condensed.
These two types of bhāva are tasted in two different ways in the two types of hearts possessed of two types of spiritual desires in two types of devotees.
Verse 4
This bhāva is tasted in different degrees of sweetness, as in various degrees of condensation of mango, jackfruit, sugarcane or grape juice.
There are five types of devotees: those acting as śāntas, dāsas (servants), sakhās (friends), pitṛs (elders), and preyasīs (lovers), acting in the moods of śānta, dāsya, sakhya, vātsalya, and priyatā.
Bhāva by its own energy causes the appearance of vibhāva, anubhāva, and vyabhicārī.
The dominating mood generated from these elements is called sthāyī bhāva, which, by mixing with the elements, produces śānta, dāsya, sakhya, vātsalya, and ujjvala rasas.
Verse 5
The śruti texts define rasa as the very essence of the Lord (raso vai saḥ).
Just as water is present in all the streams, rivers, and ponds but is water personified in the ocean, so this rasa, though it is present in all the avatāras of the Lord and touches perfection in each of them, attains its absolute climax in Kṛṣṇa, the son of the King of Vraja.
Rasa (Kṛṣṇa Himself), which appears at the first stage of maturity (bhāva) and becomes fully substantiated in the stage of prema, is directly experienced by such a qualified devotee.