The name ‘Dwarkadheesh’ means ‘the lord who engages in His leela with the gopis of Vraj beside the waters of the Yamuna when they enter the van of Vrinda. So Dwarkadheeshji is not the lord of Dwarka because here ‘Dwar’ means door, ‘Ka’ means water and ‘Adheesh’ means lord.
Dwarkadheeshji’s Swaroop
Dwarkadheeshji holds the Panchajanya Shankha and the Sudarshan Chakra in his left lower and upper hands and the Kaumodaki Gadha and a Padma in his right upper and lower hands. The Kaustubha adorns his chest.
Dwarkadheeshji’s feet are straight, his gaze downcast. He is usually draped in a tanio and wears a Kirit on his head but Dwarkadheeshji loves wearing toe rings, anklets, bracelets, bangles, necklaces and floral garlands too. Why?
The essence of Dwarkadheeshji’s swaroop
Krishna’s Purusha gets Artha only with Radha’s Prakriti for the mind cannot exist without matter. So when Krishna plays the role of the creator, Radha willingly becomes His creation. If Krishna symbolises Dharma it is Radha who helps us understand the principle behind the rules and values.
Krishna may well hold the Shankha, Chakra, Gada and Padma in his four arms but it is Radha who gives Him the strength to use them. Krishna may reveal his cosmic form as Kaala to us manavas at the right time but it is Radha who pulsates through every Nimisha of our lives.
Yes, Krishna does lead us by example through his intellect but it is Radha who infuses the sense of perception and intuition within us. We can find these complementary aspects of Radha and Krishna even in Dwarkadheeshji’s rectangular Peethika
Dwarkadheeshji’s Peethika
The figurines on Dwarkadheeshji’s left
The woman on Dwarkadheeshji’s left rests her left hand and folded leg firmly on the floor while her right folded leg and hand seeks the support of the male figurine above her whose body sways to the right. He raises his right hand upwards towards Dwarkadheeshji’s Panchajanya which He holds vertically in His left lower palm.
A lone rishi with four hands sits on Dwarkadheeshji’s top left. His left leg is folded upwards and his right folded leg rests firmly on the floor. He holds a ‘danda’ and a gadha in his left and right upper hands while he holds his two lower hands in abhaya mudra .
The figurines on Dwarkadheeshji’s right
Unlike the rishi to Dwarkadheeshji’s left, the rishi to Dwarkadheeshji’s top right sits in Padmasana with both his folded legs on the floor. He too holds a mace and danda in his upper hands and holds his lower hands in abhaya mudra.
The figurines to Dwarkadheeshji’s right bottom are mirror images of the ones to his left. The male sways to the left and seems to seek the support of the female who rests her right folded leg and hand on the floor while her left folded leg is raised upwards.
The essence of Dwarkadheeshji’s Peethika
According to the Vedas, the jet black chaturbhuj swaroop of Dwarkadheeshji symbolises the Ananda Rasa.
We associate the left side of our bodies with the feminine/emotional/material aspect of Prakriti and the right side of our bodies with the male/mind/spiritual aspect of Purusha.
All the figurines in Dwarkadheeshji’s Peethika reflect the complementary aspects of Radha and Krishna and are bare-bodied. This signifies that no barriers can ever exist between Radha and Krishna for they are a part of the same cosmic essence.
Krishna is Purna Purushotham. Complete on His own. Yet, He gains Artha and experiences Ananda only when he engages with Radha and the gopis of Vraj in Vrindavan.
Likewise, we too can live meaningful lives, experience Ananda and aspire for loftier goals like Moksha only when there is a union between Prakriti and Purusha, our material and spiritual worlds, minds and hearts and thoughts and emotions.
Yes, this means – only when we experience the joys and sorrows of our lives with our partners we can strike that balance in our lives. And then, like the Panchajanya we enable each other to communicate to the divine stillness that lies within us.
The Sudarshan Chakra symbolises the passage of time because it takes us years and sometimes a lifetime to reach that state of bliss. For like the lone rishi on Dwarkadheeshji’s top left, we have to use a ‘danda’ and a mace – often – to discipline our chaotic thoughts and emotions. Only then can we rise above our materialistic pursuits and embark on our spiritual journey. That is why the rishi’s left leg is folded upwards while his right leg rests on the floor.
Both the rishis hold their lower hands in abhaya mudra to indicate that we can understand the value of spirituality only after we satiate our material hungers.
The rishi to Dwarkadheeshji’s right sits in Padmasan to signify that he is totally engrossed in his spiritual pursuits now and has managed to discipline his mind and heart completely. But that leads to complete detachment from Prakriti, the material world. How can we pursue spirituality on a hungry stomach?
And like the male figurine below Dwarkadheeshji’s right hand, we falter and fumble till this reality sinks in. We then seek the support of our feminine counterparts to sober up and remain grounded.
The figurines to the right and left bottom are smiling and looking at one another. Because they have been able to strike a balance between their inner and outer worlds and know the value of both these realms.
Dwarkadheeshji’s Ankh Michauni Leela
One day, when Radha is playing happily with her friends in Vrindavan, Krishna enters stealthily from behind, silences all her friends with his gestures and closes her eyes with his palms. Radha thinks it is one of her friends and asks, “Who is this?”
That is when Krishna reveals his chaturbhuj swaroop. He continues to blindfold Radha with his hands. But plays the flute with his other two hands and says, “Now guess who I am?” When Radha hears the mystic notes of the flute she knows it is none other than her Krishna. So she merges into him out of Ananda. For Radha is none other than Krishna and Krishna is Krishna but is Radha too.
Dwarkadheeshji’s Pragatya and Seva
Dwarkadheeshji has been worshipped in Sat Yug, Treta Yug and Dwapar Yug too. We continue to offer our seva to Him even in Kaliyug.
Vishnu bears Brahma in the lotus that blooms through his navel and gives him the task of creation. Brahma invites Vishnu to his ashram before he begins his task. So Vishnu manifests in Brahma’s ashram in the form of Dwarkadheeshji.
Brahma, rishi Kardam, Devahuti, Kapilmuni, Deva Sharma, king Ambarish, rishi Vashishta, lord Rama’s mother, Kaushalya, the Pandavas, a tailor and Damodardas Sambharwala, the Diwan of Kannauj offered their seva to Dwarkadheeshji’s swaroop.
Gusainji then continued with the seva in Adel, Mathura, Gokul and Ahmedabad. Gusainji’s third son Balkrishnalalji enshrined Dwarkadheeshji’s swaroop in a new temple on the banks of the Yamuna. Today Dwarkadheeshji is enshrined in a big beautiful temple near Kankroli, in Rajasthan.
Like Radha and Krishna, we too share a tumultuous equation with our partners. Yet we cannot imagine living without them. Like Krishna, our partners too will depart from our lives forever someday. That is inevitable. But like Radha, we will carry the love that we have for our partners in our souls. Forever. And ever. For Krishna is a part of Radha. And Radha is a part of Krishna. And that is how it will always be. This is what Dwarkadheeshji wants us to remember. Always.
Photo given by: Shri. Yogeshji & Smt. Veena
Click here to read about the other Nidhi Swaroops.
Click here to read stories about Krishna.