A day before Valentine’s Day, a monk went for a walk in a garden that usually remains quiet and empty. When visitors do come, they are typically engaged in walking or exercising. However, on this day, the garden was flooded with young boys and girls from a school. The boys were tearing off their shirts, scrawling marks across their bodies in the name of week-long Valentine’s festivities, turning the serene space into chaos.
The monk, concerned about the disturbance, approached the security personnel and urged them to maintain the garden’s serenity. When the guards spoke to the students, the kids remained adamant and refused to listen. Seeing this, the monk asked the security to call the police, as the garden’s rules require to maintain decency.
Noticing the monk speaking to security, a group of unruly boys aggressively charged toward him, challenging his complaint and questioning his right to interfere in their activities. The monk was flabbergasted—he hadn’t expected schoolchildren to display such audacity in their rebellion.
It was shocking to witness young boys and girls behaving in a manner completely disconnected from the refined expressions of friendly affection.
In Dharmic Shastra, true affection is considered as most genuine and authentic when expressed privately. Those involved do not flaunt their emotions but cherish them in quiet sincerity. Traditionally, such expressions of love were destined to culminate in marriage, binding both to a lifelong commitment of responsibility and consequence.
Public displays of Valentine’s celebrations have not deepened relationships among young people. Instead, they have fueled violence, insensitivity, betrayal, and shamelessness—largely due to a lack of education and understanding of the psychology of love. One essential quality of true love is shyness. When genuine emotions exist between a boy and a girl, they are naturally accompanied by modesty, which nurtures mutual respect. Such respect naturally creates privacy in their expressions of love.
When we study timeless stories—Shakuntala and Dushyant, Nala and Damayanti, or Rukmini and Krishna—we witness a profound sense of madhurya (sweetness in love). These stories illustrate the depth of emotions, respect, and the sacred essence of relationships.
In Rasa Shastra, the sweet bond between a boy and a girl is regarded as the pinnacle of human experience. Such relationships are often portrayed as profound spiritual truths, exemplified in the divine pastimes of Sri Radha and Krishna.
Thus, the purest essence of Valentine’s Day traces its origins to Dharmic literature, which upholds refined emotions, sensitivity, and respect—untainted by shamelessness and never meant for public display. In fact, during Rasa Purnima, the divine love of Sri Radha and Krishna is remembered and celebrated in its most sacred form.
Unfortunately, while Dharmic scriptures illuminate the deepest truths of love, modern society has reduced Valentine’s Day to a commercialized, fleeting, and often vulgar concept, losing sight of its true essence.
– Govinda Das (ISKCON Member)
