86. Damanaka and the cupid

Damanaka and the cupid:

The procedure for the worship of the Lord with fragrant damanaka is also described, with another aspect added to it, in the Padma Purana (8.6.84.1-19). Therein, this plant is considered to be a symbol of the god of desire, Cupid. Kamadev is identified with Vishnu, and is addressed with epithets of Vishnu such as Jagannath, Srinivas, and Janardhan. The Padma Purana states that as part of the worship with damanaka, the Kama Gayatri is chanted 108 times. The worshiper offers abhisheka, foodstuffs, damanaka, ärati, and kirtana to the deity, and at the end, worships his guru and takes prasada with the vaishnavas. During the ceremony, mantras are recited that blend Kamadev's and Jagannath's personality in the same prayer. Just as Jagannath, who is non-different from Krishna in Vrindavan, is the transcendental god of love, so damanaka, by the description of the Padma Purana, is the "plant of love". It is a plant for worshipping Shyamasundar, the original Vishnu, whose identity as the unsurpassable Cupid for all living entities is confirmed in Sri Caitanya- caritamṛta (madhya 8.138):"

vṛndāvane 'aprākṛta 

navīna madana' 

käma-gayatri kama-bije 

yanra upasana

In the spiritual realm of Vrindavan, Krishna is the spiritual, ever-fresh Cupid. He is worshiped by the chanting of the Kama-Gayatri mantra, with the spiritual seed "klim".

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