Rūpa Gosvāmin's (Hansa-duta, हंसदूत) or ''Swan Messenger'' was composed in the early part of the sixteenth century CE. In ' romantic and religious love are combined, to produce a poem that shines with the intensity of love for

Krishna Krishna (; Sanskrit language, Sanskrit: कृष्ण, ) is a major deity in Hinduism. He is worshipped as the eighth avatar of Vishnu and also as the Supreme God (Hinduism), Supreme God in his own right. He is the god of protection, c ...

, the godhead. It was composed in Bengal by Rūpa Gosvāmin, who was one of the most famous poets of the Gaudiya sampradāya established by his contemporary,

Chaitanya Chaitanya or Chaithanya may refer to Philosophy *Chaitanya (consciousness), Hindu philosophical concept People *Chaitanya (name) *Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (1486–1533), founder of Gaudiya Vaishnavism Media *Chaitanya (film), ''Chaitanya'' (film), ...

. The Gaudiyas were devotees of

.
In the '

has left

Vrindavan Vrindavan (; ), also spelt Vrindaban and Brindaban, is a historical city in the Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh, India. It is located in the Braj, Braj Bhoomi region and holds religious importance for Hindus who believe that Krishna, one of ...

for

Mathura Mathura () is a city and the administrative headquarters of Mathura district in the states and union territories of India, Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located south-east of Delhi; and about from the town of Vrindavan. In ancient ti ...

, abandoning the many cowherd girls who adore him. Chief among them was

Rādhā Radha (, ), also called Radhika, is a Hindu goddess and the chief consort of the god Krishna. She is the goddess of love, tenderness, compassion, and devotion. In scriptures, Radha is mentioned as the avatar of Lakshmi and also as the Mūl ...

, and she is distraught. Her friend Lalitā meets a swan on the banks of the Yamuna and begs him to take a message to

.
The theme, as of all messenger poems, is viraha, separation in love. Allusions to romance are never far away.
The journey of the swan in the ' is concluded in 35 of its 142 stanzas, as the distance of swan has to cover is fairly short, from Vrindavan to Mathura. Lalitā's message takes up over half the poem, and dwells upon the state of the grief-stricken lover,

in this case, while praising her sweetheart – though

is chided for forsaking the cowherd girls.
In the ', Rūpa Gosvāmin uses a number of puns which are ingeniously employed in order to weave the mythology of

into the work.

English translations

The

Clay Sanskrit Library The Clay Sanskrit Library is a series of books published by New York University Press and the JJC Foundation. Each work features the text in its original language (transliterated Sanskrit) on the left-hand page, with its English translation on the ...

has published a translation of ' by Sir James Mallinson as a part of the volume ''Messenger Poems''.

External links

Clay Sanskrit Library
(official page) {{DEFAULTSORT:Hamsaduta Vaishnavism Sanskrit poetry