1. Ananga Manjari (Jahnava/Vasudha) [Radha]
The 13 years old younger sister of Shri Radha, Ananga Manjari, has a complexion the color of a golden springtime ketaki flower and wears garments the color of a blue lotus just like Nityananda. Her kunja is above the center of Radha Kunda and connected to the northern bank by a crystal foot bridge. In the center is a dazzling jewelled temple in the shape of a sixteen petaled lotus. Many flowers, swans and other objects carved from gems. Krsna feels great bliss in the beautiful kunja. Ananga Manjari is exquisitely beautiful and therefore it is very appropriate that she is named after Ananga [Cupid]. Her nature is vama-madhya. She is especially dear to Lalita, Vishakha, and Rupa. In gaura-Lila she appears as both Jahnava and Vasudha.
2. Rupa Manjari (Rupa) [Lalita/Svarupa]
In the northern part of Sri Lalita Sakhi’s kunja lies Rupollasa Kunja, where the very beautiful and graceful Sri Rupa Manjari resides. She is the foremost among the gopis known as priya-narma-sakhis. Her complexion is the color of gorochan (bright yellow), and she delights in wearing a dress the color of peacock feathers. Her age is 13 years 6 months. The panditas call her Rangana-malika. Her home is in Yavat, and she is vama-prakhara. In age, she is one day younger than Lavanga Manjari. In gaura-lila she appears as Srila Rupa Gosvami.
3. Vilasa Manjari (Jiva) [Vishakha/Ramananda Raya]
In the southeast part of Sri Visakha’s kunja lies the very beautiful Vilasanandada Kunja, where Sri Vilasa Manjari always remains as one of Sri Rupa Manjari’s sakhis. She has a bodily color like that of a golden ketaki flower, and her dress is the color of a bumblebee. Her nature is vama-mrdvi, and she is 4 days younger than Sri Rasa Manjari, making her age 12 years, 11 months and 26 days. In gaura-lila she is known as Sri Jiva Gosvami.
4. Rasa Manjari (Raghunath Bhatta) [Chitra/Govindananda]
In the western part of Sri Chitra’s kunja lies Rasananda Kunja, where the beautiful Rasa Manjari always resides. She is famous as being in all respects the life of Sri Rupa Manjari. Her dress is like the feathers of a swan, and her complexion is like a fully blossomed campaka flower. She is rich in qualities much like those of Sri Lavanga Manjari. Because she has taken shelter of Sri Rupa Manjari, she has become very dear to her. She serves as a messenger between Radha and Krsna, and she is very clever in arranging Their meeting. Her age is 13 years, and in gaura-lila, she is known as Raghunatha Bhatta Gosvami.
5. Rati Manjari (Raghunath Das) [Indulekha/Vasu Ramananda]
In the southern part of Sri Indulekha’s kuñja lies Ratyambuja Kuñja, where the beautiful Sri Rati Manjari always resides. Her dress is covered with stars, her complexion is like lightning, and she is daksina-mrdvi in nature. The panditas also call her Tulasi. Her age is 13 years 2 months. In Kali-yuga, in gaura-lila, she is known as Raghunatha dasa Gosvami.
6. Guna Manjari (Gopal Bhatta) [Champakalata/Shivananda]
In the northeastern part of Sri Champakalata’s kunja lies the beautiful Gunanandaprada Kunja, where Sri Guna Manjari always resides. Her complexion is bright like lightning, and she wears a fine silk dress the color of a red jaba flower. She is famous for her strong desire to make Rupa Manjari happy. She is three days younger than Sri Tulasi (Rati Manjari) and is the delight of Sri Krsna. She is described as being daksina-prakhara in nature. Her age is 13 years, 1 month and 27 days. In gaura-lila she is known as Sri Gopala Bhatta Gosvami.
7. Kasturi Manjari (Krishnadas) [Rangadevi/Govindananda Ghosh]
In the southwest corner of Sri Rangadevi’s kunja lies one more kunja, which is known as Kausturyanandada Kunja, the residence of Sri Kasturi Manjari. She wears a dress that resembles crystal, and her complexion is like pure gold. Her age is 13 years, and her nature is vama-mrdvi. In Kali-yuga, in gauranga-lila, she is known as Sri Krsnadasa Kaviraja Gosvami.
8. Lavanga Manjari (Sanatana) [Tungavidya/Vakreshwar]
In the eastern part of Sri Tungavidya’s kunja lies Lavanga-sukhada Kunja, which is very enchanting to all the beautiful-eyed gopis. In that kunja, Sri Lavanga Manjari always blissfully resides. In age, she is one day older than Sri Rupa Manjari, and she is very famous for her pleasant nature. Her complexion is like lightning, and she wears a dress marked with stars. She gives much happiness to Sri Krsna, and her nature is always daksina-mrdvi. Her age is 13 years 6 months and 1 day. In Kali-yuga, in gaura-lila, she is known as Sri Sanatana Gosvami.
9. Manjulali Manjari (Lokanath) [Sudevi/Vasudev Ghosh]
In the northern part of Sri Sudevi’s kunja lies the beautiful Lilanandaprada Kunja, where the charming Sri Manjulali Manjari always resides. She is full of pleasant qualities and is very dear to Sri Rupa Manjari. Her dress is red like a jaba flower, and her complexion is like molten gold. She is also known as Sri Lila Manjari. Her nature is vama-madhya, and her age is 13 years, 6 months and 7 days. In gaura-lila she is known as Sri Lokanath Gosvami.
10. Nayana-Mani Manjari (Bhaktisiddhanta) is under Ananga By Nityananda’s Mercy
11. Who is Ananga Manjari?
Ananga Mañjarī is the upa-mañjarī of Lalita Devī and Rūpa Gosvāmī is the mukhya-mañjarī of Lalita Devī. Both of them are serving the lotus feet of Śrīmati Lalita Devī, who is the principle sakhi of Rādhā.
Śrīmati Jāhnavā Devī, who is none other than Ananga Mañjarī, is the topmost maidservant of Śrīmati Rādhārani. She is the younger sister of Rādhārani and the topmost among all the mañjarīs, including Rūpa Mañjarī, Mani Mañjarī, and Guna Mañjarī. All these mañjarīs, along with Ananga Mañjarī, serve in the nikunja-sevas of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa. Ananga Mañjarī is the mādhurya-svarūpa of adi-guru Śrī Nityananda Baladeva.
12. Bhaktivinoda is Rupanuga via Ananga
Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākur, you can read in Navadvipa-bhāva-taranga and also in his Gita-mala, is Kamala Mañjarī, the eternal maidservant of her Supreme Goddess, Śrīmati Ananga Manjari. And it is Ananga Mañjarī who introduces her, Kamala Mañjarī, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākur, to Rūpa Mañjarī, Rūpa Gosvāmī.
13. Bhaktisiddhanta’s Ananga-Ecstasy
Nayana-Mani Mañjarī, just as Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākur as Kamala Mañjarī, her Supreme Goddess is Ananga-Mañjarī. So similarly, Nayana-Mani Mañjarī’s Supreme Goddess is also Ananga Mañjarī. One time, in Calcutta, at the Bagbazaar Math, Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākur was speaking to a group of scholars from the Calcutta university and began by explaining to them that our line of disciplic succession is very, very sublime. Our line is coming from Radhika to Lalita Devī. He was explaining this to some scholars.
Our line is coming from Śrīmati Radhika to Lalita Devī to Rupa and Ananga. And as soon as he said “Ananga Mañjarī,” incessant tears poured from his eyes and he became completely choked up, incapable of speaking; he just couldn’t control it. He said only, “Our line is very exalted” – like that. Then he just folded his hands and said, “Please excuse me” and got up, went to his room, locked the door, and did not come out for three days. He didn’t eat, sleep, or anything. So Śrīmati Ananga Mañjarī is also the life and soul of Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākur. By her grace, he gained the feet of Śrīmati Rūpa Mañjarī.
14. Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati’s Eternal Age
Nayana-Mani Mañjarī, she is a beautiful kisori-gopī – twelve years, three months, and fifteen days old. That is her eternal age. She has a bodily lustre and is pinkish in color. Śrīla Prabhupāda also said that his bodily color, in his spiritual svarūpa, is gaura-rata – golden with a reddish hue, with reddish highlights. So bodily color, Perhaps this is why Bhaktisiddhānta turned vivarna, whitish and then reddish-pinkish, because it was coming out, shining through.
15. Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati’s Svarupa
Nayana-Mani Mañjarī’s nature, like Ananga Mañjarī’s and all the mañjarīs’ in her line, is vama-madhyam. Vama means “contrary” and madhya means “intermediately so.” Prakara means “harshly so” and mrti means “very softly so.” Rādhārani is vama-madhya; She has the capacity to be a little harsh when She needs to be. And She can also be soft. That is the beauty of the madhya-position. Kamala Mañjarī – Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākur in his Mañjarī-svarūpa – and Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākur are also vama-madhya.
16. Bhaktivinoda Thakur’s Nitya-Seva
And Nayana-Mani Mañjarī’s seva – we should know something about what seva she does, and by extension, Kamala Mañjarī, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākur’s seva as Kamala Mañjarī, his antara-vraja-svarūpa – is karpura-seva. She makes camphor for the pleasure of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa.
17. Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati’s Nitya-Seva
And Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākur in his vraja-mādhurya-svarūpa as Nayana-Mani Mañjarī – what does he, or she, do? Alakatak-seva, painting the soles of the feet of Śrīmati Rādhārani with lacquer. Every maidservant of Śrīmati Rādhārani can do so many varieties of sevas, but that is her main seva, which she desires most. And her kuñja is meghambuja-kuñja. Her nivasa, her place of residence, is Yavat.
