Mahaprabhu Ji said, “Tell me something more.”
Then Raya Ramanand Ji said, quoting from Bhagwatam says,
नायं श्रियोऽङ्ग उ नितान्तरतेः प्रसादः
स्वर्योषितां नलिनगन्धरुचां कुतोऽन्याः ।
रासोत्सवेऽस्य भुजदण्डगृहीतकण्ठ-
लब्धाशिषां य उदगाद् व्रजवल्लभीनाम् ॥Nāyaṁ śhriyo ’ṅga u nitāntarateḥ prasādaḥ
swar-yoṣhitāṁ nalin-gandh-ruchāṁ kuto ’nyāḥ.
Rāsotsave ’sya bhuj-daṇḍ-gṛihīt-kaṇṭh-
labdhāśhiṣhāṁ ya udagād vraj-vallabhīnām.- Bhagwatam 10.47.60
He said (this about) these Gopis (cowherd maidens of Braj). This is actually a quote of Uddhav Ji after he had been to Braj and met all the Gopis and came back to Mathura. He was telling Shree Krishna,
“Who could understand the greatness of Gopis, who during rāsleelā, Shree Krishna puts His arm around their necks, and they are dancing together?”
He said,
“Even Lakshmi (the Goddess of fortune) did not receive such close association with Shree Krishna. What to say of other maidens of swarg (the celestial realm) or the ladies of the Earth planet? These Gopis have received the most proximity with Shree Krishna. Nobody is closer than the Gopis who loved Shree Krishna with madhurya bhav (the mood of Divine conjugal love), selfless madhurya bhav!”
See, there are three kinds (of bhav): sadharana rati madhurya bhav, samanjasa rati madhurya bhav, and samartha rati madhurya bhav. Samartha rati madhurya bhav means loving Shree Krishna as your sweetheart, as your Beloved, with one desire in mind - His happiness.
आश्लिष्य वा पादरतां पिनष्टु माम्
अदर्शनान्मर्महतां करोतु वा ।
यथा तथा वा विदधातु लम्पटो
मत्प्राणनाथस्तु स एव नापरः ॥Āśhliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣhṭu mām
adarśhanān marma-hatāṁ karotu vā.
Yathā tathā vā vidadhātu lampaṭo
mat-prāṇ-nāthas tu sa eva nāparaḥ.- Shikshashtakam 8.
Other gyānīs (seekers of knowledge) are amazed, seeing in Braj,
“My Brahm (the Absolute Reality) is being called lampaṭa (a rogue lover) and chaur (a thief) by the Gopis.”
They are scolding Him, and He is chasing behind them. Young Krishna (saying)
“O Gopi!”
And the Gopis scolding Him, “Imagine what has happened to my Brahm!”
The gyānīs get confused. What has happened is that your Brahm is under the control of bhakti (Divine love devotion), and those Gopis have the highest form of bhakti.
अहं भक्तपराधीनो ह्यस्वतन्त्र इव द्विज ।
Ahaṁ bhakta-parādhīno hy asvatantra iva dvija.
- Bhagwatam 9.4.63.
“I am under the control of My bhakt (devotee).”
So the Gopis are the highest of all the bhaktas because they have the most intimate love for Shree Krishna and the most selfless love for Shree Krishna.
This shlok (verse) said by Chaitanya Mahaprabhu expresses those feelings of selflessness, where a Gopi is saying to Shree Krishna,
“However You treat me, whether You shower Your affection on me by embracing me, or You tell me to get lost (by saying) get out! I never want to see you again! Or You completely ignore me! These are the only three ways in which You can treat me. And my challenge to You is, no matter how You treat me, only You are mine! I have nowhere else to go. There is no one else for me. You are the soul of my soul. You are my only life! You are my everything! So my love for You will only go on increasing. My job is to love You. Whether You love me in return is of no concern to me!”
Only the Gopis embody this pure selflessness in love for Shree Krishna.
