प्रीति की रीति न सखि सब जान ।
Preeti ki reeti na sakhi sab jān.
- Prem Ras Madira: Pad: 3.65
Preeti’ means love and then ‘reeti’ (the rules).
One sakhi (intimate female friend), a Gopi is the highest Saint of Vrindavan. The Gopis’ position is so high that even Brahma, Sanak, Sanandan, Sanatan, Sanat Kumar, etc., are begging to become creepers, grass, trees in Braj. So when these Gopis will walk, the dust of their feet will come on them, and they’ll be blessed. One such Gopi is saying to her very intimate friend,
“O sakhi! The laws of love are not known by everyone in the world!”
‘Sab nahi jānte’ - सब नहीं जानते । (Not everyone knows.)
A lot of people say, “I love you.” It’s a normal thing in this world to use this word, love.
Tumse bahut pyar hai in Hindi and ‘I love you a lot in English’, or ‘jān hājir’ - ‘जान हाज़िर’ (my life is at your service), all these things we say.
But what is love? Do we know love? What is love?
So this Gopi is saying, “Not many people know about love and the rules of love!”
Look, there are three things:
One is ‘lenā lenā’ - ‘लेना लेना’ (to take and only take).
One is ‘lenā denā’ - ‘लेना देना’ (to give and take).
And one is ‘denā denā’ - देना देना (to give and only give).
‘Lenā lenā’, to take and only take is called lust or kām (lust). ‘Lena dena’ is ‘give and take’ - it’s vyapar (a business). And ‘denā denā’, ‘to give and only give’, and want nothing in return, is called love or prem (love). We have been well taught and well practiced in only taking, ‘lenā lenā’, and also in the business of ‘give and take’.
“You love me, I will love you! Don’t love me, get lost!”
No one has ever taught us to only give. This is what we have to learn.
