Editing Radha (section)

== Portrayal ==

=== As Krishna's lover consort (Parakiya rasa) ===
Radha is admired as an ideal of perfect lover. In [[Gita Govinda]], it is not certain whether Radha was married or if she was an unmarried maiden. But, the relationship between [[Radha Krishna]] was unfolded in the secrecy of [[Vrindavan]] forest hinting at the ''Parakiya rasa.'' This can be understood from the verse where [[Nanda Baba|Nanda]], the father of Krishna, who represents social authority and ideal of [[dharma]] ordered Radha Krishna to go home as storm was approaching Vrindavan but the order was defied by the couple. The translation of first verse of Gita Govinda is as follows:

{{Block quote|text=Radha, you alone must take him home. This is Nanda's command. But, Radha and Madhava (Krishna) stray to a tree in the grove by the path and on the bank of the Yamuna their secret love games prevail.|author=Jayadev|source=Gita Govinda}}

In the Gita govinda, Radha stands in relation to Krishna as his consort. She is neither a wife nor a devoted rustic playmate. She is an intense, solitary, proud figure who is addressed as ''Sri, Candi, Manini, Bhamini'' and ''Kaamini''. She is portrayed as Krishna's partner in a mature and exclusive love.{{sfn|Miller|1975|pp=655–671}}

In Vidyapati's work, Radha is depicted as a young girl barely twelve years old, while Krishna is depicted slightly older than her and as an aggressive lover. In the work of poet Chandidas, Radha is depicted as a bold woman who is unafraid of social consequences. Radha abandons all social propriety in the name of her love for Krishna. Excerpts of Chandidas's work showing Radha's boldness:

{{Poem quote|text=Casting away all the ethics of caste, my heart dotes on Krishna day and night. The custom of the clan is far away cry, and now I know that love adheres wholly to its own laws.
I have blackened my golden skin longing for him. As the fire encircled me, my life begins to wilt. And my heart brooding eternally, parched for my dark darling, My Krishna.|author=Chandidas}}

In loving Krishna, Radha violates the basis of caste, showing no care for the realities of social structures. Love consumed her to extent that once having fair complexion, Radha turned herself into Krishna's dark color.  Chandidas used the word "fire" as synonym for Radha's love towards Krishna. The Radha of Chandidas is favored by [[Gaudiya Vaishnavism|Gaudiya Vaishnavas]].<ref name=":4">{{Cite journal |last=Steward |first=David S. |year=1980 |title=DOCTORAL DISSERTATION ABSTRACTS IN RELIGIOUS EDUCATION 1978–79 |journal=Religious Education |volume=75 |issue=4 |pages=474–494 |doi=10.1080/0034408800750410 |issn=0034-4087}}</ref>

=== As Krishna's married consort  (Svakiya rasa) ===
[[File:Krishna paints Radha's feet (6124588881).jpg|thumb|Krishna painting feet of Radha, 1760 art form based on Braj's Rasikapriya text.]]

''Rasikapriya'', a [[Braj]] text on poetics depicts Radha as the married consort of Krishna. It is a frequently illustrated text that deals with the Radha Krishna's romance and is written by one of the most prominent writers of the ''Riti kavya'' tradition, Kesavdas.  Changes in the portrayal of Radha, as articulated in the Rasikapriya, have significant implications for later literary traditions. In the ''Riti kavya'' literature, especially the ''Rasikapriya'', Radha is depicted as the archetypal heroine and is used to exemplify the ideal form of connection to Krishna. Rather than depicting her as a ''parakiya'' heroine,  Kesavdas, on the whole, presents her as a ''svakiya'' heroine, the one to whom Krishna belongs wholeheartedly. If she is separated from him, it is only temporarily, for as archetypal lovers they are connected forever. The suggestion that Radha is Krishna's rightful wife is clearly articulated in the first chapter in the exemplary verse for the manifest form of union. Here, Kesavdas compares the union of Radha and Krishna with that of [[Sita]] and [[Rama]]. Kesavdas compares the union of Radha and Krishna with that of Sita and Rama:

{{Poem quote|text=Once Krishna sat with Radha on the same couch with pleasure, and in the mirror held, as he looked to watch the splendor of her face, his eyes filled with tears. In her reflections he saw the red gem on her forehead which seemed to glow like fire, reminding him of Sita sitting in fire, adorned, with her husband's leave.|author=Kesavdas|source=Rasikapriya (I,22)}}

In this verse, Kesavdas connects Radha with Krishna as his legitimate wife not only in this lifetime but even in the previous one. Chapter 3 and verse 34 of ''Rasikapriya'', depicted Radha as ''Madhya arudhayovana nayika''  and is described as a beautiful woman who looks like a heavenly damsel, with perfect features (forehead like the half moon, arches like a perfect bow, etc.), golden body, and a beautiful body fragrance. In chapter 3, verse 38, one attendant talks to another:

{{Poem quote|text=I have seen such an amazingly beautiful gopi, that I wonder if she really is a cowherdess&nbsp;! Such splendor shone from her body that my eyes remained transfixed on her! No other beautiful women appeal any more; having seen her delicate walk once, I see the beauty of all three worlds. Who could be the husband of such a beauty, Kamadeva or Kalanidhi [moon]? No, Krishna himself.|author=Kesavdasa|source=Rasikapriya (III, 38)}}

In chapter 3, verse 38, Radha is very specifically described as the wife of Krishna. In most of the verses, whenever she is mentioned by name, she is usually seen as a virtuous court lady with utmost beauty and charm. Her husband Krishna is said to be in control of her love. Kesavdasa in ''Rasikapriya'' mentioned that while it is common to see women devoted to their husbands but it is not as common to see a husband as Krishna who is so devoted to his wife Radha and considering her as goddess.(VII, 6)<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Desai|first=Vishakha N.|date=2000|title=Loves of Rādhā in the "Rasikapriyā" Verses and Paintings|journal=Ars Orientalis|volume=30|pages=83–92|jstor=4629572|issn=0571-1371}}</ref> In [[Sanskrit]] scripture ''[[Brahma Vaivarta Purana]],'' Radha and Krishna are understood to be eternally related to each other as husband and wife validating their Svakiya relationship.{{Sfn|Kinsley|1988}} The celebrated poets of [[Radha Vallabh Sampradaya]], Dhruva Dasa and Rupalji composed "''Vyahulau Utsav ke Pad''" or "Marriage Festival songs" which describe the eternal wedding of Radha and Krishna with praise and adulation.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Beck|first=Guy L.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0SJ73GHSCF8C&q=Alternative+Krishnas%3A+Regional+and+Vernacular+Variations+on+a+Hindu+Deity&pg=PP11|title=Alternative Krishnas: Regional and Vernacular Variations on a Hindu Deity|publisher=SUNY Press|year=2012|isbn=978-0-7914-6415-1|location=United States of America|pages=66}}</ref> In the Indian state of [[Maharashtra]], Radha is often identified as [[Rahi (goddess)|Rahi]], a regional form of Radha who is worshiped as the married consort of [[Vithoba]], a regional form of Krishna.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Novetzke |first=C. L.|chapter=A Family Affair: Krishna Comes to Pandharpur and Makes Himself at Home |date=2005-01-01|chapter-url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/292378289 |editor-last=Beck |editor-first=Guy L. |title=Alternative Krishnas: Regional and Vernacular Variations on a Hindu Deity |url=https://muse.jhu.edu/pub/163/monograph/book/4933 |pages=113–138|access-date=2022-01-13}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|last=Pande|first=Dr Suruchi|date=August 2008|title=Vithoba of Pandharpur|url=http://www.advaitaashrama.org/pb_archive/2008/PB_2008_August.pdf|journal=Prabuddha Bharata|volume=113|pages=447|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081221081306/http://www.advaitaashrama.org/pb_archive/2008/PB_2008_August.pdf |archive-date=21 December 2008 |via=Wayback Machine}}</ref>