Who Is Radha Rani?
Understanding Radha’s Divinity This Radhashtami
We greet one another with “Radhey Radhey,” sing Her name in sankirtan, and celebrate Her appearance on Radhashtami. But who is Shree Radha? A devotee of Krishna, His eternal beloved, or the Supreme Divine Herself?
This question takes us to the heart of Radha tattva, to the spiritual truth of Her identity.
In the spiritual teachings of Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj and Swami Mukundananda ji, Radha Rani is Krishna’s own divine bliss-giving power, eternally inseparable from Him. Understanding this relationship helps us appreciate not only who She is, but also what Her grace means for our spiritual lives.
One divine reality, two forms
The Supreme Lord Shree Krishna possesses innumerable powers. Three are especially important for our spiritual understanding:
- Maya Shakti: God’s insentient material energy.
- Jeeva Shakti: God’s marginal but sentient energy, the individual souls.
- Para Shakti: God’s inconceivably glorious personal energy.
It is through Maya Shakti that God creates the infinite material universes. His Jeeva Shakti manifests as souls, the true selves of all living entities.
Radha Rani is not a Jeeva, nor is She to be understood as a great devotee who attained the status of a Mahapurush, a great God-realized soul. She is the highest manifestation of Krishna’s own Para Shakti. This Para Shakti is also called Yogamaya. In the Bhagavad Gita, Shree Krishna calls it Atmamaya. It is with this personal power that God controls all other powers.
In Bhagavad Gita (Verse 4.6), Shree Krishna says:
“ajo ’pi sannavyayātmā bhūtānām īśhvaro ’pi san
prakṛitiṁ svām adhiṣhṭhāya sambhavāmyātma-māyayā”Translation: Although I am unborn, the Lord of all living entities, and have an imperishable nature, yet I appear in this world by virtue of Yogmaya, My divine power.
📖 Bhagavad Gita 4.6 — Read in Holy Bhagavad Gita ↗
Radha and Krishna: What scriptures say about their divine forms
Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj says in his Bhakti Shatak:
“jai rādhā soi kṛṣhṇa haim,
ina mem bheda na māna
ika haim hlādīnī śakti aru,
śaktimāna ika jāna”Translation: Śrī Krishna is the other inseparable form of Śrī Rādha, and Śrī Rādha is the other inseparable form of Śrī Krishna. Śrī Rādha is hlādinī śakti (bliss potency) and Śrī Krishna is the possessor of this power.
📖 Source: Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj, Bhakti Shatak, English pocket-size edition, Radha Govind Samiti, verse 2, p. 4.
The relationship between Krishna and Radha is to be understood as the unity of Shaktimaan and Shakti. Just as Shiva, Vishnu, and Narayan are the different manifestations of the one Supreme Lord, so Parvati, Lakshmi, Kali, and Durga are different manifestations of that one Yogamaya. Both Shaktimaan and Shakti are non-different from each other. Yet, their manifestations differ in rasa, the distinctive sweetness or nectar of divine relationship.
The Brahma Vaivarta Purana states:
“yathā tvaṁ rādhikā devī goloke gokule tathā
vaikuṇṭhe cha mahālakṣhmī bhavati cha sarasvatī
kapilasya priyā kāntā bhārate bhāratī satī
dwāravatyāṁ mahālakṣhmī bhavatī rukmiṇī satī
tvaṁ sītā mithilāyāṁ cha tvachchhāyā draupadī satī
rāvaṇena hṛitā tvaṁ cha tvaṁ cha rāmasya kāminī”Translation: O Radha, You are the Divine Goddess of Golok [Shree Krishna’s divine Abode] and Gokul [Shree Krishna’s Abode in the material realm, when He descended on earth 5,000 years ago]. You exist in Vaikunth [Lord Vishnu’s Abode] as Mahalakshmi. You are the consort of Lord Kapil [one of the descensions of God]. You reside in Dwaraka as Rukmini [the wife of Shree Krishna]. You manifested as Sita in the city of Mithila. The wife of the Pandavas, Draupadi, was like a manifestation of Your shadow. It was You who was kidnapped by Ravan in the form of Sita, and You are the wife of Lord Ram.
📖 Source: Brahma Vaivarta Purana
The Sāma Rahasyopanishad states:
“anādirāyaṁ puruṣhaṁ ekamevāsti tadeva rūpāṁ
dividhāvihāya samārādhana tatparobhūt tasmāt tāṁ
rādham rasikānandām vedavido vadanti”Translation: Since eternity, the one Supreme Lord has divided Himself in two forms, the Energetic and the Energy. That Supreme Energy [the Yogamaya power] is Radha, Who is worshiped by the knowers of the Vedas.
📖 Source: Sāma Rahasyopanishad
Just as whiteness is inseparable from milk, sun rays from the Sun, moonshine from the Moon, Radha and Krishna are one in essence. Yet in their Leelas, divine pastimes, They take two forms to relish the bliss of divine love. It is by the power of Yogamaya that God manifests His divine personal forms, abodes, and pastimes.
Radha Rani: The divine power of bliss
In the Vedas, God is synonymous with bliss. This divine power of bliss is none other than Radha Rani Herself. As given in the Bhakti Shatak verse above, She is the hlādinī-shakti, the bliss-giving potency of God.
She is the personification of Prem, Divine Love itself. Krishna is controlled by Radha’s Prem. While the Brahmas and Shivas of countless universes worship Krishna, Krishna worships Radha Rani and is subservient to Her Prem. Her boundless, selfless love makes Her the foremost Devotee of Shree Krishna.
Radha Rani: Our all-merciful Divine Mother
Radha Rani is simply concerned with the loving service of Shree Krishna and engages the souls in that same loving service. She is our Eternal Mother and the bestower of selfless divine love, the highest treasure a soul can receive. It is through Her grace that one can attain Shree Krishna.
Jagadguru Kripalu Maharaj reveals the unfathomable grace of Shree Radha in his many kirtans. In his unique and esoteric loving expression, he says:
“terī kṛpā binu brahma, nyāyī rahe rādhe
terī kṛpā te ‘kṛpālu,’ bane brahma rādhe”Translation: O Radhey! Without Your grace, Shree Krishna, the Supreme Divine, dispenses justice like a judge. But through Your grace and mercy, He becomes compassionate and merciful.
📖 Source: Swami Mukundananda, “Kaha Ghati Jaye Tora Kripa Karu Radhey,” written by Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj; from approximately 6:55 onward. Listen to the referenced kirtan ↗
This penultimate verse of the kirtan praises the supremacy of Her grace.
So let us approach Her with trust, humility, and longing for divine love. As we sing “Radhey Radhey,” we can also offer a simple prayer:
“O Radha Rani, please soften my heart, deepen my devotion, and teach me to love and serve without seeking anything in return.”
This Radhashtami, let us celebrate Her eternal divinity, Her selfless divine love, Her causeless grace.
Celebrate Radhashtami at RKTNC
Join the Radha Krishna Temple of North Carolina on September 20, 2026, to celebrate Radha Rani’s appearance day. Visit the official event page for celebration details and updates.
Radhashtami 2026 Event Details →
Radhey Radhey
Further reading
- Swami Mukundananda, Questions You Always Wanted to Ask (Rupa Publications India, 2023)
- Swami Mukundananda, Spiritual Secrets of Hinduism: Essence of the Scriptures (Rupa Publications India, 2024).
