62 Facts About Radha

Radha, called Radhika, is a Hindu goddess and the chief consort of the god Krishna.

Radha is worshiped as the goddess of love, tenderness, compassion, and devotion.

Radha is the avatar of goddess Lakshmi and is described as the chief of the Gopis.

Radha is said to accompany Krishna in all his incarnations.

Radha is described as the feminine form of Krishna himself.

Radha has inspired numerous literary works and her Raslila dance with Krishna has inspired many types of performance arts.

Radhika refers to an endearing form of gopi Radha and means greatest worshiper of Krishna.

Radha is an important goddess in the Vaishnavite traditions of Hinduism.

Radha appears in the Puranas namely the Padma Purana, the Devi-Bhagavata Purana, the Brahma Vaivarta Purana, the Matsya Purana, the Linga Purana, the Varaha Purana, the Narada Purana, the Skanda Purana and the Shiva Purana.

In most of these, Radha is depicted as someone who is deeply in love with Krishna and is deeply saddened when Krishna leaves her.

In Western India, Vallabhacharya's Krishna-centric sampradaya Pushtimarg, Radha is revered as the Swamini of Krishna, who is worthy of devotion.

Radha appears in Hindu arts as Ardhanari with Krishna, that is an iconography where half of the image is Radha and the other half is Krishna.

Radha is therefore acknowledged by Chaitanyaite Vaishnavas to be part of very center of their theological doctrine.

Sacred images of the forms of Radha Krishna, standing together side by side, are elaborately worshiped in the Indian temples.

Radha is a power potency of Krishna, who is a playful adventurer.

Radha is mostly depicted along with Krishna or gopis in the land of Braj.

Various art forms based on Radha Krishna are majorly inspired by Gita Govinda and Rasikapriya.

In Rajput paintings, Radha represents an ideal of beauty, wearing the traditional sari decorated extensively with patterns and ornamented in jewelry with lighter skin tone and emphasized facial features.

In Kishangarh paintings, Radha is represented as beautifully dressed woman in ghagra choli with pearl jewelry and a dark diaphanous veil over her head.

In religious art forms, Radha appears as Ardhanari with Krishna, that is an iconography where half of the image is Radha and the other half is Krishna forming the combined masculine and feminine form of Ardhanarishvara.

Radha is often dressed in traditional sari or ghagra-choli along with a veil.

One of the basic traits of Radha is her unconditional love for Krishna and her sufferings that forms the basis for Radha's exaltation as a model of devotion.

Radha was born to Vrishbhanu, a Yadava ruler of Barsana and to his wife Kirtida.

Radha's birthplace is Raval which is a small town near Gokul in Uttar pradesh, but is often said to be Barsana where she grew up.

Youth phase of Radha's life is filled with her divine pastimes with Krishna.

The story mentioned in Brahma Vaivarta Purana indicates that Radha has always been Krishna's divine consort.

In Brahma Vaivarta Purana, Radha, who is inseparable from Krishna, appears as the main goddess.

Radha is mentioned as the personification of the Mulaprakriti, the "Root nature", that original seed from which all material forms evolved.

At highest level Goloka, Radha is said to be united with Krishna and abiding with him in the same body.

The relationship between Radha Krishna is that of substance and attribute: they are as inseparable as Milk and its whiteness or Earth and its smell.

The left portion of the body of the Supreme Lord is Srimati Radha, seated blissfully, as beautiful as the Lord Himself; who is served by thousands of gopis: we meditate on the Supreme Goddess, the fulfiller of all desires.

When love attains to the highest pitch, it constitutes itself into Radha, who is the most lovable of all and full of all qualities.

Radha was the object of the highest love of Krishna and being idealized as love, some of the agreeable feelings of the heart are considered her ornaments.

In Narada Pancharatra Samhita, Radha is mentioned as the feminine form of Krishna.

Radha is said to have come out from primordial body of Krishna, forming his left side, and is eternally associated with him in his amorous sports in this world as well as the world of cows.

Radha is often identified with the "sweet" aspect of goddess Lakshmi's essence and thus worshiped as an avatara of Lakshmi.

In Gita Govinda, it is not certain whether Radha was married or if she was an unmarried maiden.

But, the relationship between Radha Krishna was unfolded in the secrecy of Vrindavan forest hinting at the Parakiya rasa.

Radha is neither a wife nor a devoted rustic playmate.

Radha is an intense, solitary, proud figure who is addressed as Sri, Candi, Manini, Bhamini and Kaamini.

Radha is portrayed as Krishna's partner in a mature and exclusive love.

In Vidyapati's work, Radha is depicted as a young girl barely twelve years old, while Krishna is depicted slightly older than her and as an aggressive lover.

Love consumed her to extent that once having fair complexion, Radha turned herself into Krishna's dark color.

Changes in the portrayal of Radha, as articulated in the Rasikapriya, have significant implications for later literary traditions.

The suggestion that Radha is Krishna's rightful wife is clearly articulated in the first chapter in the exemplary verse for the manifest form of union.

The poet mentioned that while it is common to see women devoted to their husbands but it is not as common to see a husband as Krishna who is so devoted to his wife Radha and considering her as goddess.

In some devotional Krishnaite traditions of Vaishnavism that focus on Krishna, Radha represents "the feeling of love towards Krishna".

Radha is worshipped along with Krishna in Nepal and many Indian states including West Bengal, Manipur, Assam, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Haryana, Delhi, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh and Odisha.

In Maharashtra region, Radha is often worshipped in her regional form as Rahi.

Radha is considered as Krishna's original shakti, the supreme goddess in both the Nimbarka Sampradaya and following the advent of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu within the Gaudiya Vaishnava tradition.

Radha is one of the major and celebrated goddess in Hinduism.

Krishna and Radha have been the pivotal characters in Rajasthani miniature paintings.

Krishna and Radha are one of the favorite subject in Rajput paintings because they portrayed a theme that symbolized the desire of the soul to be united by god.

In Rajput paintings, Radha is always dressed in more elegant way.

Radha was adorned with ornaments and is often depicted holding a white garland when enthroned next to Krishna.

Rajasthani Painting with a love theme where Radha is getting ready and Krishna admires her silently.

Pahari painting of Radha offering bowl of curd to Krishna.

Kangra painting, Radha dressed as Krishna and Krishna dressed as Radha.

The sacred love of Krishna and his beloved Radha, are woven into all aspects of the Kathak dance and is clearly visible during the discussions of the music, costumes and finally the role of the Kathak dancer.

Radha is considered as the power of joy, the hladini shakti of Krishna and is often identified with both Durga and Mahakali, the bright and dark forms of the cosmic energy.

Krishna and Radha have entered the Oriya psyche and have inspired the mythic imagination of the Oriya poets in a big way.

Radha is mentioned in many Jain commentaries including the popular Venisamhara by Narayana Bhatta and Dhvanyaloka by Anandavardhana written in 7th century.