Govinda-bhashya

No, I haven't received it yet. According to my information it will reach me on or before Aug 22. Dang! Oh well, I just wanted to say that I hope that the text will help me go some way in answering the following points:

Radha and Krishna as one, divided into two

Ontological position of Srimati Radharani, in Gaudiya Vaishnavism

I brought up those subjects and I was disappointed that they didn't "take off" mostly because, to my recollection, most board participants seemed to be more intent on hearing the latest gossip on Pete (and by extension, Jagat) as it was all going down then at the time.

From a Vedantic point of view Bhagavan and His Shakti are distinct entities (I think!) and interact with ech other. The Gaudiya view appears to regard Bhagavan and Shakti (Krishna and Radha) as two distinct entities of the same substance, am I correct? I guess I'll find out.

avatArI kRSNa yaiche kare avatAra
aMzinI rAdhA haite tina gaNera vistAra

Just as Krishna, the source of all incarnations, takes incarnations, so is Radha the source of these three groups. [Lakshmis, Mahishis, Vraja-devis]

rAdhA - pUrna-zakti kRSNa - pUrna-zaktimAn
dui vastu bheda nAi, zAstra-paramANa

Radha is the fullness of sakti, and Krishna is the full possessor of sakti. The two are not different, as evidenced by the scripture.

mRgamada, tAra gandha - yaiche aviccheda
agni, jvAlAte - yaiche kabhu nAhi bheda

Just as musk and it's scent are inseparable and just as fire and it's heat are insperable, so too are are They nondifferent.

rAdhA-kRSNa aiche adA eka-i svarUpa
lIlA-rasa AsvAdite dhare dui-rUpa

In this way Radha and Krishna are of one nature, and have manifested in two forms in order to taste lila-rasa.

Eka-i svarUpa, dui-rUpa. That's interesting. So I want to find out how Sripada Baladeva explained all of this in the context of Vedanta. You know, the fact that the Gaudiyas actually have a Vedanta-bhashya fills me with immense pride (of the good kind!) and makes my chest swell with said pride. :-) I'm so proud.