When describing spiritual affairs, many may want to give a comparison or what can be called reflection of the spiritual and material planes. In some senses reflection has been used by our acaryas in terms of the varigatedness of the material and spiritual words, but a broken mirror brings warped reflections . So we are warned not to mix the spiritual trancendental rasa or spiritual emotions , especially of the residents of Vrndavana , with our affairs or emotions . Our emotions are carried out within the conditioned modes of nature , or sometimes through a semblance of spirituality that can enter by following the order of the spiritual masters in the param para and by engaging in Sadhana Bhakti , in an approach to Ragganuga spontaneous Bhakti.
The atoms , elements and compounds, and emotions based on the modes of material nature can not possibly mimic the trancendental pure existence where soul on soul exchanges of unalloyed pure love exists, especially of Srimati Radharani and Her companions.
If you were on a beach alone , some forty-five years later, after visiting it with your family on a regular basis, and if your children were in far distant lands and your partner had died , how would you feel ? You would be overcome by memories and separation from them , but can that separation and memories compare to the feelings Krishna and Radharani feel when they are separated , even for short times ? The original spiritual emotions have been written on by the Goswami’s of Vrndavana as directed by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu . For instance when Vishakha was once clicking her fingernails , Krishna was sent into waves of trancendental ecstatic bliss , or when He hears the voices of the Gopies , surging spiritual emotions erupt within His heart . When the Gopies hear Krishna’s flute calling them for union , tears of emotions and joy flow through them uncontrollably . In seperation from Krishna, the Srimad Bhagavatam clearly describes those emotions , and Sri Caitanya Mahāprabhu demonstrated these deep feelings of spiritual seperation, His trancendental body became contorted, this is described in the Caitanya Caratamrita.
So we should be careful not to compare or bring conditioned emotions within the spiritual experiences. Such genuine spiritual emotions decend by their own will by the mercy of Radha Krishna, the more we feel a hankering for genuine spiritual consciousness the more that attracts the spiritual realms.
Something on Rasabhasa
Rasabhasa (Sanskrit: रसाभास, rasābhāsa) translates “to a “semblance of emotion” or a “shadow of a mellow”. Rather than simply mixing spiritual and material emotions, it specifically refers to an improper, mismatched, or incompatible blending of emotional sentiments (rasas).
In the context of Indian aesthetics and Bhakti theology (devotional philosophy), the term breaks down into:
- Rasa: Taste, flavor, or the essence of an emotional relationship.
- Abhasa: A shadow, reflection, or superficial appearance.
How Rasabhasa Occurs
- Incompatible Mixing (Virasata):
In classical Indian poetry and drama, rasabhasa occurs when two conflicting emotions are forced together. For example, trying to evoke comedic humor (hasya-rasa) directly out of deep terror or grief (karuna-rasa) creates an aesthetic clash. It disrupts the purity of the emotional experience. - Adulteration in Bhakti (Devotion):
In the Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava tradition outlined by scholars like Rūpa Goswāmī, rasabhasa specifically happens when a devotee’s transcendental relationship with the divine becomes adulterated or overlapping with incompatible moods. It can manifest when a practitioner artificially projects mundane or material qualities onto pure spiritual exchanges, or when they mismatch the fundamental roles of spiritual relationships (such as treating a mood of pure servitude with inappropriate, cheeky arrogance).
Because rasabhasa results in a distorted or “adulterated” reflection rather than the genuine, pure experience of ultimate spiritual ecstasy (bhakti-rasa), ancient teachers advise practitioners to recognize and avoid it.
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