Sudevi is the eighth of the varistha gopis. She is
sweet and charming by nature. She is the sister of Rangadevi. Her husband
is Vakreksana, the younger brother of Bhairava. Her marriage with
Vakreksana was arranged by his younger brother. Her form and other
qualities are so similar to those of her sister Rangadevi that they are
often mistaken for one another.
Sudevi always remains at the side of her dear friend
Srimati Radharani. Sudevi arranges Radharani's hair, decorates Her eyes
with mascara and massages Her body.
She is expert in training male and female parrots and
she is also expert in the pastimes of roosters. She is an expert sailor
and she is fully aware of the auspicious and inauspicious omens described
in the Sakuna-sastra.
She is expert at massaging the body with scented oils,
she knows how to start fires and keep them burning and she knows which
flowers blossom with the rising of the moon.
Kaveri-devi and the other friends of Sudevi are expert
at constructing leaf-spitoons, playing music on bells and decorating
couches in various ways.
Sudevi's friends are also entrusted with the decoration
of the divine couple's sitting place. Sudevi's friends act as clever spies,
disguising themselves in various ways and moving among Radharani's rivals
(Candravali and her friends) to discover their secrets. Sudevi's friends
are the deities of Vrndavana forest and they are charged with the
protection of the forest birds and bees. Sudevi is the leader of these
gopis. (SSRKGD)
On the northwest petal of
Madanananda
Kunja lies the beautiful emerald-colored Vasanta-sukhada Kunja, the
residence of Sri Sudevi. She is very loving toward Sri Hari, has a
complexion the color of a lotus stamen, and
wears a dress the color of a red jaba
flower. She possesses the bhava
known as kalahantarita
and her seva
is to bring water. She is vama-prakhara.
Her age is 14
years, 2 months and 4 days. Her home is in Yavata, her mother is Karuna,
her father Rangasagara, and she is married to
the younger brother of Vakreksana (Rangadevi’s
husband). In gaura-lila she
appeared as Sri Vasudeva Ghosa.
The
principal gopis
in Sri Sudevi’s yutha
are Kaveri, Carukavari, Sukesi,
Manjukesika, Harahira, Harakanthi,
Haravalli and Manohara. (SGGSP)
