Internal Potency
A Comprehensive Guide to Śrī Vṛndāvana Dhāma
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Overview
"The Sanskrit word 'dhäma' has several meanings: a) dwelling place, house, abode, and so on; b) a favorite thing or person; delight; or pleasure; c) form or appearance; d) power, strength, majesty, glory, splendor, or light. (SB 10.27.4)
We usually think of the word "dhama" as the place where the Supreme Personality of Godhead resides. Any place where the Lord is present by His name, fame, glory, or paraphernalia immediately becomes a dhama. "We speak of Vrndavana-dhama because the name, fame, qualities, and paraphernalia of the Supreme Godhead are always present." (SB 10.2.17)
"Lord Sri Krsna has His eternal dhama, or abode, where He eternally enjoys Himself with His eternal associates and paraphernalia." (SB 1.3.43) The Lord's eternal abode is an expansion of His internal (spiritual) potency. (KB Ch. 37)
Krsna's Dwelling Place
Vrndavana is Lord Krsna's transcendental dwelling place. Being a manifestation of His svarupa-sakti, Vrndavana is a part of Him. Therefore, like Krsna Himself, Vrndavana is made of sat (existence), cit (intelligence), and ananda (bliss). The material world is also a manifestation of Krsna's external energy (maya-sakti). But as Sri Krsna is svayam bhagavan Himself, and all other forms of the Personality of Godhead such as Narayana, Nrsimha, Visnu, etc., are simply manifestations of Krsna, so Vrndavana is the svayam dhama and all other dhamas are simply manifestations of Vrndavana. (PRC)
Since Vrndavana is a manifestation of Krsna's svarupa-sakti, Vrndavana cannot be separated from Krsna. Vrndavana cannot exist without Krsna and Krsna cannot exist without Vrndavana. Everything about Vrndavan is transcendental (cinmaya), even the objects in the dhama that appear material. Srila Sanatana Gosvami states in Brhad-Bhagavatamrta that every object in Vrndavana-dhama is concentrated Brahman and therefore inconceivable. (SVMP)
"The peerless and supremely sweet land of Vrndavana is the blissful abode where the Supreme Personality of Godhead enjoys pastimes. It is the incarnation of the Lord's form and is nondifferent from Him." (Vraja-riti Cintamani). Vrndavana is nondifferent from Krsna because in Vrndavana "the Lord enjoys the transcendental bliss of His internal potency." (SB 3.1.2).
Sri Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, eternally enjoys pastimes in Vrndavana-dhama. Therefore, Vrndavana is better than all other dhamas. "Sixty-billion sacred places reside in Mathura-Vrndavana" (MM). "Vrndavana is the only transcendental abode in this universe where Krsna consciousness is automatically revealed." (PL III).
Celestial Vrndavana
Vrndavana is always spiritual, and the goddess of fortune and the gopis always live there. Krsna loves them, and each of them is spiritual just like Krsna. In Vrndavana, Krsna is the Supreme Person and the husband of all the gopis. Every tree in Vrndavana is a wish-fulfilling tree, the land is made of touchstone, and the water is nectar. Words are musical vibrations, and every movement is a dance. "The flute is the Lord's constant companion. The planet of Goloka Vrndavana is self-luminous like the sun and is full of spiritual bliss. The perfection of life lies in tasting that spiritual existence; therefore, everyone should cultivate its knowledge. In Vrndavana, spiritual cows are always supplying spiritual milk; but not a single moment is wasted there. In other words, there is no past, present, or future." (Cc. Madhya 8.138, purport)
A Replica of the Spiritual World
"In the highest region of Vaikuntha (spiritual sky) is the spiritual planet called Krsnaloka. It has three divisions--Dvaraka, Mathura, and Goloka. Sri Gokula, the highest of all, is also called Vraja, Goloka, Svetadvipa, and Vrndavana. That abode is manifested within the material world by the will of Lord Krsna. It is identical to the original Gokula; they are not two different bodies. The above mentioned dhamas are moveable, by the omnipotent will of Lord Krsna. When Sri Krsna appears on the face of the earth, He can also make His dhamas appear, without changing their original structure. One should not discriminate between the dhamas on the earth and those in the spiritual sky, thinking those on earth to be material and the original abodes to be spiritual. All of them are spiritual." (Cc. Adi 5.16-19)
"The celestial Dvaraka, Mathura, and Gokula or Vrndavana have their replicas on earth in the form of the geographical Dvaraka, Mathura, and Vrndavana, which are known as their prakata-prakasa (manifested forms). Here also Krsna is eternally present with Nanda, Yasoda, and the other eternal associates performing His lilas with them as in the celestial Dvaraka, Mathura, and Vrndavana" (PRC).
"When Krsna descends to the universe, this same Vrndavana descends just as an entourage accompanies an important personage. Because when Krsna comes, His land also comes. Vrndavana is not considered to exist in the material world. Therefore, devotees take shelter of the Vrndavana in India, for it is considered to be a replica of the original Vrndavana." (Cc. Adi, Introduction)