Spread Ripples of Love

Shri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu once visited Vrindavan where he observed the holi festival. After his return to Bengal, he pondered deeply and decided to introduce the festival but in a different form. It came to be known as Dolyatra.

What is the significance of Dolyatra? Winter is over, and people are active once again. They plan to do so many things for the benefit of society. Similarly, when they think of Krishna, their minds are filled with joy. The very thought of Krishna produces ripples of joy in in people’s mind and these vibrations of joy also produce a corresponding vibration in Krishna’s mind. They think, “Oh Krishna! I love you – but you also love me, that I know.” In this way the ripples of joys in their own minds also create vibrations of joy in His mind.

Shri Chaitanya said to his followers, “Go to the Krishna temple on that day, and apply red powder and red color to Krishna. Then you should play with the red powder and color amongst yourselves.”

And those who gave red powder and color to others would also feed them with malpoa, the delectable sweet. So it is neither Holy festival nor Phaguya – it is the Dolyatra of Shri Krishna.

In the days of Mahaprabhu, the prevailing rule was to seek the prior permission of the person to whom you were going to give the red powder. If that person gave permission, then only could you smear him with colored powder; and then treat them to malpoa.

In Sanskrit there are two similar words: Varna and raga. Though the meanings are approximately the same, they are not completely synonymous. Varna means color what is called rang in Bengali. But the word Varna does not indicate the color which will color other objects as well; an object has its own color but its color may not necessarily that particular color which can dye other objects also. So the inner spirit of the science of color in Vaishnavi Tantra is this – which each and every expression of this universe has its own rhythm, its own vibration, its own sound, and its own color, and thus it has its own form as well. And as it has its own sound, it has a particular sweetness of its own.

When Tantra was first formulated, there was only one science of Tantra; but later various cults emerged according to their respective philosophical viewpoints. Each had a different name although their inner spirit was the same; for instance, Buddha Tantra, Jain Tantra and in later times, Shiva Tantra, shakti Tantra Ganapatiya Tantra and vaishnaviya Tantra. The inner idea is form and color – both raga and Varna – in the rhythmic expressions of parama purusha, and those cosmic rhythms also have a sweet sonic vibration.

The sonic vibration is instrumental in giving expression to various other forms in this universe as well. To find the answer to questions of “why”, just as the devotees run towards His sonic expression which the Vaishnavas call His flute sound, they also run towards the expressions of His color. They think, I will color my mind with the same color in which He manifests Himself before me, and move towards Him. If I can color my mind in His color, I will be very close to Him.