Sri Krishna Madbhagavatam
21. The Gopīs Attracted by the
Flute
Kṛṣṇa was very
pleased with the atmosphere of the forest where flowers bloomed and bees and
drones hummed very jubilantly. While the birds, trees and branches were all
looking very happy, Kṛṣṇa, tending the
cows, accompanied by Śrī Balarāma and the cowherd boys, began to vibrate His
transcendental flute. After hearing the vibration of the flute of Kṛṣṇa,
the gopīs in Vṛndāvana remembered Him and began to
talk amongst themselves about how nicely Kṛṣṇa was playing
His flute. When the gopīs were describing the sweet vibration of Kṛṣṇa's
flute, they also remembered their pastimes with Him; thus their minds became
disturbed, and they were unable to describe completely the beautiful
vibrations. While discussing the transcendental vibration, they remembered also
how Kṛṣṇa dressed, decorated with a peacock feather
on His head, just like a dancing actor, and with blue flowers pushed over His
ear. His garment glowed yellow-gold, and He was garlanded with a vaijayantī
necklace. Dressed in such an attractive way, Kṛṣṇa
filled up the holes of His flute with the nectar emanating from His lips. So
they remembered Him, entering the forest of Vṛndāvana,
which is always glorified by the footprints of Kṛṣṇa
and His companions.
Kṛṣṇa was very
expert in playing the flute, and the gopīs were captivated by the sound vibration,
which was not only attractive to them, but to all living creatures who heard
it. One of the gopīs told her friends, "The highest perfection of the eyes
is to see Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma entering the forest and
playing Their flutes and tending the cows with Their friends."
Persons who are constantly engaged in the
transcendental meditation of seeing Kṛṣṇa, internally
and externally, by thinking of Him playing the flute and entering the Vṛndāvana
forest, have really attained the perfection of samādhi. Samādhi (trance) means
absorption of all the activities of the senses on a particular object, and the
gopīs indicate that the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa are the
perfection of all meditation and samādhi. It is also confirmed in the
Bhagavad-gītā that anyone who is always absorbed in the thought of Kṛṣṇa
is the topmost of all yogīs.
Another gopī expressed her opinion that Kṛṣṇa
and Balarāma, while tending the cows, appeared just like actors going to play
on a dramatic stage. Kṛṣṇa was dressed in
glowing garments of yellow, Balarāma in blue, and They held new twigs of mango
tree, peacock feathers, and bunches of flowers in Their hands. Dressed with
garlands of lotus flowers, They were sometimes singing very sweetly among Their
friends. One gopī told her friend, "How is it Kṛṣṇa
and Balarāma are looking so beautiful?" Another gopī said, "My dear
friend, we cannot even think of His bamboo flute--what sort of pious activities
did it execute so that it is now enjoying the nectar of the lips of Kṛṣṇa?"
Kṛṣṇa sometimes kisses the gopīs; therefore
the transcendental nectar of His lips is available only to them, and His lips
are considered their property. Therefore the gopīs asked: "How is it
possible that the flute, which is nothing but a bamboo rod, is always engaged
in enjoying the nectar from Kṛṣṇa's lips?
Because the flute is engaged in the service of the Supreme Lord, the mother and
the father of the flute must be happy."
The lakes and the rivers are considered to be the
mothers of the trees because the trees live simply by drinking water. So the
waters of the lakes and rivers of Vṛndāvana were full of happy lotus
flowers because the waters were thinking, "How is it our son, the bamboo
rod, is enjoying the nectar of Kṛṣṇa's lips?"
The bamboo trees standing by the banks of the rivers and the lakes were also
happy to see their descendant so engaged in the service of the Lord, just as
persons who are advanced in knowledge take pleasure to see their descendants
engage in the service of the Lord. The trees were overwhelmed with joy and were
incessantly yielding honey, which flowed from the beehives hanging on the
branches.
Another gopī said, "My dear friends, just see the deer! Although they are dumb animals, they have approached the son of Mahārāja Nanda, Kṛṣṇa. Not only are they attracted by the dress of Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, but as soon as they hear the playing of the flute, the deer, along with their husbands, offer respectful obeisances unto the Lord by looking at Him with great affection." The gopīs were envious of the deer because the deer were able to offer their service to Kṛṣṇa along with their husbands. The gopīs thought themselves not so fortunate because whenever they wanted to go to Kṛṣṇa, their husbands were not very happy.
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Another gopī said, "My dear
friends, Kṛṣṇa is so nicely dressed that He appears to be the
impetus to various kinds of ceremonies held by the womenfolk. Even the wives
of the denizens of heaven become attracted after hearing the transcendental
sound of His flute. Although they are traveling in the air in their
airplanes, enjoying the company of their husbands, on hearing the sound of Kṛṣṇa's flute, they immediately become perturbed.
Their hair is loosened and their tight dresses are slackened." This
means that the transcendental sound of the flute of Kṛṣṇa extended to all corners of the universe. Also,
it is significant that the gopīs knew about the different kinds of airplanes
flying in the sky.
Another gopī said to her friends,
"My dear friends, the cows are also charmed as soon as they hear the
transcendental sound of the flute of Kṛṣṇa.
It sounds to them like the pouring of nectar, and they immediately spread
their long ears just to catch the liquid nectar of the flute. As for the
calves, they are seen with the nipples of their mothers pressed in their
mouths, but they cannot suck the milk. They remain struck with devotion, and
tears glide down their eyes, illustrating vividly how they are embracing Kṛṣṇa heart to heart." These phenomena indicate
that even the cows and calves in Vṛndāvana
knew how to cry for Kṛṣṇa and embrace Him heart to heart. Actually, Kṛṣṇa conscious affection can be culminated in
shedding tears from the eyes.
A younger gopī told her mother,
"My dear mother, the birds, who are all looking at Kṛṣṇa playing on His flute, are sitting very
attentively on the branches and twigs of different trees. From their features
it appears that they have forgotten everything and are engaged only in
hearing Kṛṣṇa's flute. This proves that they are not ordinary
birds; they are great sages and devotees, and just to hear Kṛṣṇa's flute they have appeared in Vṛndāvana forest as birds." Great sages and
scholars are interested in Vedic knowledge, but the essence of Vedic
knowledge is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā: vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ. Through the knowledge of the Vedas, Kṛṣṇa has to be understood. From the behavior of
these birds, it appeared that they were great scholars in Vedic knowledge and
that they took to Kṛṣṇa's transcendental vibration and rejected all
branches of Vedic knowledge. Even the river Yamunā, being desirous to embrace
the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa after hearing the transcendental vibration of
His flute, broke her fierce waves to flow very nicely with lotus flowers in
her hands, just to present flowers to Mukunda with deep feeling.
The scorching heat of the autumn
sunshine was sometimes intolerable, and therefore the clouds in the sky
appeared in sympathy above Kṛṣṇa
and Balarāma and Their boy friends while They engaged in blowing Their
flutes. The clouds served as a soothing umbrella over Their heads just to
make friendship with Kṛṣṇa. The wanton aborigine girls also became fully
satisfied when they smeared their faces and breasts with the dust of Vṛndāvana, which was reddish from the touch of Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet. The aborigine girls had very full
breasts, and they were also very lusty, but when their lovers felt their
breasts, they were not very satisfied. When they came out into the midst of
the forest, they saw that while Kṛṣṇa
was walking, some of the leaves and creepers of Vṛndāvana turned reddish from the kuṅkuma powder which fell from His lotus feet. His
lotus feet were held by the gopīs on their breasts, which were also smeared
with kuṅkuma powder, but when Kṛṣṇa travelled in the Vṛndāvana forest with Balarāma and His boy friends,
the reddish powder fell on the ground of the Vṛndāvana
forest. So the lusty aborigine girls, while looking toward Kṛṣṇa playing His flute, saw the reddish kuṅkuma on the ground and immediately took it and
smeared it over their faces and breasts. In this way they became fully
satisfied, although they were not satisfied when their lovers touched their
breasts. All material lusty desires can be immediately satisfied if one comes
in contact with Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
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Another gopī began to praise the unique
position of Govardhana Hill in this way: "How fortunate is this Govardhana
Hill, for it is enjoying the association of Lord Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma who are accustomed to walk on it.
Thus Govardhana is always in touch with the lotus feet of the Lord. And because
Govardhana Hill is so obliged to Lord Kṛṣṇa
and Balarāma, it is supplying different kinds of fruits, roots and herbs, as
well as very pleasing crystal water from its lakes, in presentation to the
Lord." The best presentation offered by Govardhana Hill, however, was
newly grown grass for the cows and calves. Govardhana Hill knew how to please
the Lord by pleasing His most beloved associates, the cows and the cowherd
boys."
Another gopī said that everything
appeared wonderful when Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma travelled in the forest of Vṛndāvana playing Their flutes and making intimate
friendship with all kinds of moving and nonmoving living creatures. When Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma played on Their transcendental
flutes, the moving creatures become stunned and stopped their activities, and
the nonmoving living creatures, like trees and plants, begin to shiver with
ecstasy.
Kṛṣṇa
and Balarāma carried binding ropes on Their shoulders and in Their hands, just
like ordinary cowherd boys. While milking the cows, the boys bound the hind
legs with a small rope. This rope almost always hung from the shoulders of the
boys, and it was not absent on the shoulders of Kṛṣṇa
and Balarāma. In spite of Their being the Supreme Personality of Godhead, They
played exactly like cowherd boys, and therefore everything became wonderful and
attractive.
While Kṛṣṇa
was engaged in tending the cows in the forest of Vṛndāvana or on Govardhana Hill, the gopīs in the
village were always absorbed in thinking of Him and discussing His different
pastimes. This is the perfect example of Kṛṣṇa
consciousness: to somehow or other remain always engrossed in thoughts of Kṛṣṇa. The vivid example is always present in the
behavior of the gopīs; therefore Lord Caitanya declared that no one can worship
the Supreme Lord by any method which is better than the method of the gopīs.
The gopīs were not born in very high brāhmaṇa
or kṣatriya families; they were born in the families of
vaiśyas, and not in big mercantile communities but in the families of cowherd
men. They were not very well educated, although they heard all sorts of
knowledge from the brāhmaṇas, the authorities of Vedic knowledge. The gopīs'
only purpose was to remain always absorbed in thoughts of Kṛṣṇa.
22. Stealing the Garments of the
Unmarried Gopī Girls
According to Vedic civilization, unmarried girls
from ten to fourteen years of age are supposed to worship either Lord Śiva or
the goddess Durgā in order to get a nice husband. But the unmarried girls of Vṛndāvana
were already attracted by the beauty of Kṛṣṇa. They were,
however, engaged in the worship of the goddess Durgā in the beginning of the
hemanta season (just prior to the winter season). The first month of hemanta is
called Agrahāyana (October-November), and at that time all the unmarried gopīs
of Vṛndāvana began to worship goddess Durgā
with a vow. They first ate haviṣyānna, a kind of foodstuff prepared by
boiling together mung dahl and rice without any spices or turmeric. According
to Vedic injunction, this kind of foodstuff is recommended to purify the body
before one enacts a ritualistic ceremony. All the unmarried gopīs in Vṛndāvana
used to daily worship goddess Kātyāyanī early in the morning after taking bath
in the River Yamunā. Kātyāyanī is another name for goddess Durgā. The goddess
is worshiped by preparing a doll made out of sand mixed with earth from the
bank of the Yamunā. It is recommended in the Vedic scriptures that a deity may
be made from different kinds of material elements; it can be painted, made of metal,
made of jewels, made of wood, earth or stone or can be conceived within the
heart of the worshiper. The Māyāvādī philosopher takes all these forms of the
deity to be imaginary, but actually they are accepted in the Vedic literatures
to be identical with either the Supreme Lord or a respective demigod.
The unmarried gopīs used to prepare the deity of
goddess Durgā and worship it with candana pulp, garlands, incense lamps and all
kinds of presentations--fruits, grains and twigs of plants. After worshiping,
it is the custom to pray for some benediction. The unmarried girls used to pray
with great devotion to goddess Kātyāyanī, addressing her as follows: "O
supreme eternal energy of the Personality of Godhead, O supreme mystic power, O
supreme controller of this material world, O goddess, please be kind to us and
arrange for our marriage with the son of Nanda Mahārāja, Kṛṣṇa."
The Vaiṣṇavas generally do not worship any
demigods. Śrīla Narottama dāsa Ṭhākur has strictly forbidden all
worship of the demigods for anyone who wants to advance in pure devotional
service. Yet the gopīs, who are beyond compare in their affection for Kṛṣṇa,
were seen to worship Durgā. The worshipers of demigods also sometimes mention
that the gopīs also worshiped goddess Durgā, but we must understand the purpose
of the gopīs. Generally, people worship goddess Durgā for some material
benediction. Here, the gopīs prayed to the goddess to become wives of Lord Kṛṣṇa.
The purport is that if Kṛṣṇa is the center
of activity, a devotee can adopt any means to achieve that goal. The gopīs
could adopt any means to satisfy or serve Kṛṣṇa.
That was the superexcellent characteristic of the gopīs. They worshiped goddess
Durgā completely for one month in order to have Kṛṣṇa
as their husband. Every day they prayed for Kṛṣṇa,
the son of Nanda Mahārāja, to become their husband.
Early in the morning, the gopīs used to go to the
bank of the Yamunā to take bath. They would assemble together, capturing each
other's hands, and loudly sing of the wonderful pastimes of Kṛṣṇa.
It is an old system among Indian girls and women that when they take bath in
the river they place their garments on the bank and dip into the water
completely naked. The portion of the river where the girls and women take bath
was strictly prohibited to any male member, and this is still the system. The
Supreme Personality of Godhead, knowing the minds of the unmarried young gopīs,
benedicted them with their desired objective. They had prayed for Kṛṣṇa
to become their husband, and Kṛṣṇa wanted to
fulfill their desires
At the end of
the month, Kṛṣṇa,
along with His friends, appeared on the scene. Another name of Kṛṣṇa is Yogeśvara, or master of all mystic
powers. By practicing meditation, the yogi can study the psychic movement of
other men, and certainly Kṛṣṇa could understand the desire of the gopīs. Appearing on the
scene, Kṛṣṇa immediately collected all the
garments of the gopīs, climbed up in a nearby tree, and with smiling face began
to speak to them.
"My dear
girls," He said. "Please come here one after another and pray for
your garments and then take them away. I'm not joking with you. I'm just
telling the truth. I have no desire to play any joke with you, for you have
observed the regulative principles for one month by worshiping goddess
Kātyāyanī. Please do not come here all at once. Come alone; I want to see each
of you in your complete beauty, for you all have thin waists. I have requested
you to come alone. Now please comply."
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When the girls in the water heard
such joking words from Kṛṣṇa,
they began to look at one another and smile. They were very joyous to hear
such a request from Kṛṣṇa because they were already in love with Him. Out
of shyness, they looked at one another, but they could not come out of the
water because they were naked. Due to remaining in the water for a long time,
they felt cold and were shivering, yet upon hearing the pleasing and joking
words of Govinda, their minds were perturbed with great joy. They began to
tell Kṛṣṇa, "Dear son of Nanda Mahārāja, please do
not joke with us in that way. It is completely unjust to us. You are a very
respectable boy because You are the son of Nanda Mahārāja, and You are very
dear to us, but You should not play this joke on us because now we are all
shivering from the cold water. Kindly deliver our garments immediately,
otherwise we shall suffer." They then began to appeal to Kṛṣṇa with great submission. "Dear
Śyāmasundara," they said, "We are all Your eternal servitors.
Whatever You order us to do, we are obliged to perform without hesitation
because we consider it our religious duty. But if You insist on putting this
proposal to us, which is impossible to perform, then certainly we will have
to go to Nanda Mahārāja and lodge a complaint against You. If Nanda Mahārāja
does not take action, then we shall tell King Kaṁsa about Your misbehavior."
Upon hearing this appeal by the
unmarried gopīs, Kṛṣṇa answered, "My dear girls, if you think
that you are My eternal servitors and you are always ready to execute My
order, then My request is that, with your smiling faces, you please come here
alone, one after another, and take away your garments. If you do not come
here, however, and if you lodge complaints to My father, I shall not care
anyway, for I know My father is old and cannot take any action against
Me."
When the gopīs saw that Kṛṣṇa was strong and determined, they had no
alternative but to abide by His order. One after another they came out of the
water, but because they were completely naked, they tried to cover their
nakedness by placing their left hand over their pubic area. In that posture
they were all shivering. Their simple presentation was so pure that Lord Kṛṣṇa immediately became pleased with them. All the
unmarried gopīs who prayed to Kātyāyanī to have Kṛṣṇa as their husband were thus satisfied. A woman
cannot be naked before any male except her husband. The unmarried gopīs
desired Kṛṣṇa as their husband, and He fulfilled their desire
in this way. Being pleased with them, He took their garments on His shoulder
and began to speak as follows. "My dear girls, you have committed a
great offense by going naked in the River Yamunā. Because of this, the
predominating deity of the Yamunā, Varuṇadeva,
has become displeased with you. Please, therefore, just touch your foreheads
with folded palms and bow down before the demigod Varuṇa in order to be excused from this offensive
act." The gopīs were all simple souls, and whatever Kṛṣṇa said they took to be true. In order to be freed
from the wrath of Varuṇadeva, as well as to fulfill the desired end of
their vows and ultimately to please their worshipable Lord, Kṛṣṇa, they immediately abided by His order. Thus
they became the greatest lovers of Kṛṣṇa,
and His most obedient servitors.
Nothing can compare to the Kṛṣṇa consciousness of the gopīs. Actually, the gopīs
did not care for Varuṇa or any other demigod; they only wanted to
satisfy Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa
became very ingratiated and satisfied by the simple dealings of the gopīs,
and He immediately delivered their respective garments, one after another.
Although Kṛṣṇa cheated the young unmarried gopīs and made them
stand naked before Him and enjoyed joking words with them, and although He
treated them just like dolls and stole their garments, they were still
pleased with Him and never lodged complaints against Him. This attitude of
the gopīs is described by Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu when He prays, "My
dear Lord Kṛṣṇa, You may embrace Me or trample Me under Your
feet, or You may make Me brokenhearted by never being present before Me.
Whatever You like, You can do, because You have complete freedom to act. But
in spite of all Your dealings, You are My Lord eternally, and I have no other
worshipable object." This is the attitude of the gopīs toward Kṛṣṇa.
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Lord Kṛṣṇa
was pleased with them, and since they all desired to have Him as their husband,
He told them, "My dear well-behaved girls, I know of your desire for Me
and why you worshiped goddess Kātyāyanī, and I completely approve of your
action. Anyone whose full consciousness is always absorbed in Me, even if in
lust, is elevated. As a fried seed cannot fructify, so any desire in connection
with My loving service cannot produce any fruitive result, as in ordinary
karma."
There is a statement in the Brahma-saṁhitā: karmāṇi
nirdahati kintu ca bhakti-bhājām. Everyone is bound by his fruitive activities,
but the devotees, because they work completely for the satisfaction of the
Lord, suffer no reactions. Similarly, the gopīs' attitude toward Kṛṣṇa, although seemingly lusty, should not be
considered to be like the lusty desires of ordinary women. The reason is
explained by Kṛṣṇa Himself. Activities in devotional service to Kṛṣṇa are transcendental to any fruitive result.
"My dear gopīs," Kṛṣṇa continued, "your desire to have Me as your
husband will be fulfilled because with this desire you have worshiped goddess
Kātyāyanī. I promise you that during the next autumn season you shall be able
to meet with Me, and you shall enjoy Me as your husband."
Taking shelter of the shade of the
trees, Kṛṣṇa became very happy. While walking He began to
address the inhabitants of Vṛndāvana. "My
dear Stokakṛṣṇa, My dear Varūthapa, My dear Bhadrasena, My dear
Sudāmā, My dear Subala, My dear Arjuna, My dear Viśāla, My dear Ṛṣabha--just look at these most fortunate trees of Vṛndāvana. They have dedicated their lives to the
welfare of others. Individually they are tolerating all kinds of natural
disturbances, such as hurricanes, torrents of rain, scorching heat and piercing
cold, but they are very careful to relieve our fatigues and give us shelter. My
dear friends, I think they are glorified in this birth as trees. They are so
careful to give shelter to others that they are like noble, highly elevated
charitable men who never deny charity to one who approaches them. No one is denied
shelter by these trees. They supply various kinds of facilities to human
society, such as leaves, flowers, fruit, shade, roots, bark, flavor extracts
and fuel. They are the perfect example of noble life. They are like a noble
person who has sacrificed everything possible--his body, mind, activities,
intelligence and words--in engaging in the welfare of all living
entities."
Thus the Supreme Personality of Godhead
walked on the bank of the Yamunā, touching the leaves of the trees and their
fruits, flowers and twigs, and praising their glorious welfare activities.
Different people may accept certain welfare activities to be beneficial for
human society, according to their own views, but the welfare activity that can
be rendered to people in general, for eternal benefit, is the spreading of the
Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Everyone should be
prepared to propagate this movement. As instructed by Lord Caitanya, one should
be humbler than the grass on the ground and more tolerant than the tree. The
tolerance of the trees is explained by Lord Kṛṣṇa
Himself, and those who are engaged in the preaching of Kṛṣṇa consciousness should learn lessons from the
teachings of Lord Kṛṣṇa and Lord Caitanya through Their direct disciplic
succession.
While passing through the forest of Vṛndāvana on the bank of the Yamunā, Kṛṣṇa sat down at a beautiful spot and allowed the cows
to drink the cold and transparent water of the Yamunā. Being fatigued, the
cowherd boys, Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma also drank. After seeing the young
gopīs taking bath in the Yamunā, Kṛṣṇa
passed the rest of the morning with the boys.
23. Delivering the Wives of the
Brahmāṇas Who Performed Sacrifices
The morning
passed, and the cowherd boys were very hungry because they had not eaten
breakfast. They immediately approached Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma and said, "Dear Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, You are both
all-powerful; You can kill many, many demons, but today we are much afflicted
with hunger, and this is disturbing us. Please arrange for something that will
mitigate our hunger."
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Requested in this way by Their
friends, Lord Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma immediately showed compassion on
certain wives of brāhmaṇas who were performing sacrifices. These wives
were great devotees of the Lord, and Kṛṣṇa
took this opportunity to bless them. He said, "My dear friends, please
go to the house of the brāhmaṇas nearby. They are
now engaged in performing Vedic sacrifices known as āṅgirasa, for they desire elevation to heavenly
planets. All of you please go to them." Then Lord Kṛṣṇa warned His friends, "These brāhmaṇas are not Vaiṣṇavas.
They cannot even chant Our names, Kṛṣṇa
and Balarāma. They are very busy in chanting the Vedic hymns, although the
purpose of Vedic knowledge is to find Me. But because they are not attracted
by the names of Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, you had better not ask them for
anything in My name. Better ask for some charity in the name of
Balarāma."
Charity is generally given to high
class brāhmaṇas, but Kṛṣṇa
and Balarāma did not appear in a brāhmaṇa
family. Balarāma was known as the son of Vasudeva, a kṣatriya, and Kṛṣṇa
was known in Vṛndāvana as the son of Nanda Mahārāja, who was a
vaiśya. Neither belonged to the brāhmaṇa
community. Therefore, Kṛṣṇa considered that the brāhmaṇas engaged in performing sacrifices might not be
induced to give charity to a kṣatriya
and vaiśya. "But at least if you utter the name of Balarāma, they may
prefer to give in charity to a kṣatriya,
rather than to Me, because I am only a vaiśya."
Being thus ordered by the Supreme
Personality of Godhead, all the boys went to the brāhmaṇas and began to ask for some charity. They
approached them with folded hands and fell down on the ground to offer
respect. "O earthly gods, kindly hear us who are ordered by Lord Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma. We hope you know Them both very
well, and we wish you all good fortune. Kṛṣṇa
and Balarāma are tending cows nearby, and we have accompanied Them. We have
come to ask for some food from you. You are all brāhmaṇas and knowers of religious principles, and if
you think that you should give us charity, then give us some food and we
shall all eat along with Kṛṣṇa
and Balarāma. You are the most respectable brāhmaṇas within the human society, and you are expected
to know all the principles of religious procedure."
Although the boys were village boys and
were not expected to be learned in all the Vedic principles of religious
ritual, they hinted that because of their association with Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, they knew all those principles.
When the Supreme Personality of Godhead Kṛṣṇa
and Balarāma, asked for food, the boys would immediately deliver it without
hesitation because it is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā that one should perform
yajña (sacrifices) only for the satisfaction of Viṣṇu.
The boys continued, "Lord Viṣṇu as Kṛṣṇa
and Balarāma is standing waiting, and you should immediately deliver whatever
food you have in your stock." They also explained to the brāhmaṇas how foodstuffs are to be accepted. Generally,
the Vaiṣṇavas, or pure devotees of the Lord, do not take
part in ordinary sacrificial performances. But they know very well the
ceremonials called dīkṣā, paśusamtha sautrāmnya. One is permitted to
take food after the procedure of dīkṣā
and before the animal sacrificial ceremony and the Sautrāmaṇī, or ceremony in which liquors are also offered.
The boys said, "We can take your food at the present stage of your
ceremony, for now it will not be prohibitory. So you can deliver us the
foodstuff."
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Although the companions of Lord Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma were simple cowherd boys, they were
in a position to dictate even to the high class brāhmaṇas engaged in the Vedic rituals of sacrifices. But
the smārta brāhmaṇas, who were simply sacrificial-minded, could not
understand the dictation of the transcendental devotees of the Lord. They could
not even appreciate the begging of the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma. Although they heard all the
arguments on behalf of Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, they did not care for them, and
they refused to speak to the boys. Despite being highly elevated in the
knowledge of Vedic sacrificial rites, all such nondevotee brāhmaṇas, although they think of themselves as very
highly elevated, are ignorant, foolish persons. All their activities are
useless because they do not know the purpose of the Vedas, as it is explained
in the Bhagavad-gītā: to understand Kṛṣṇa.
In spite of their advancement in Vedic knowledge and rituals, they do not
understand Kṛṣṇa; therefore their knowledge of the Vedas is
superficial. Lord Caitanya, therefore, gave His valuable opinion that a person
does not have to be born in a brāhmaṇa
family; if he knows Kṛṣṇa or the science of Kṛṣṇa
consciousness, he is more than a brāhmaṇa,
and he is quite fit to become spiritual master.
There are various details to be
observed in the performance of sacrifices, and they are known as collectively
as deśa. They are as follows: kāla means the time, pṛthak dravya, the different detailed paraphernalia,
mantra, hymns, tantra, scriptural evidences, agni, fire, ṛtvij, learned performers of sacrifices, devatā, the
demigods, vajamāna, the performer of the sacrifices, kratu, the sacrifice
itself, and dharma, the procedures. All these are for satisfying Kṛṣṇa. It is confirmed that He is the actual enjoyer of
all sacrifices because He is directly the Supreme Personality of Godhead and
the Supreme Absolute Truth, beyond the conception or speculation of material
senses. He is present just like an ordinary human boy. But for persons who
identify themselves with this body, it is very difficult to understand Him. The
brāhmaṇas were very interested in the comforts of this
material body and in elevation to the higher planetary residences called
svarga-vāsa. They were therefore completely unable to understand the position
of Kṛṣṇa.
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When the boys saw that the brāhmaṇas would not speak to them, they became very
disappointed. They then returned to Lord Kṛṣṇa
and Balarāma and explained everything that had happened. After hearing their
statements, the Supreme Personality began to smile. He told them that they
should not be sorry for being refused by the brāhmaṇas because that is the way of begging. He
convinced them that while one is engaged in collecting or begging, one should
not think that he will be successful everywhere. He may be unsuccessful in
some places, but that should not be cause for disappointment. Lord Kṛṣṇa then asked all the boys to go again, but this
time to the wives of those brāhmaṇas
engaged in sacrifices. He also informed them that these wives were great
devotees. "They are always absorbed in thinking of Us. Go there and ask
for some food in My name and the name of Balarāma, and I am sure that they
will deliver you as much food as you desire."
Carrying out Kṛṣṇa's order, the boys immediately went to the wives
of the brāhmaṇas. They found the wives sitting inside their
house. They were very beautifully decorated with ornaments. After offering
them all respectful obeisances, the boys said, "Dear mothers, please
accept our humble obeisances and hear our statement. May we inform you that
Lord Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma are nearby. They have come here
with the cows, and you may know also that we have come here under Their
instructions. All of us are very hungry; therefore, we have come to you for
some food. Please give us something to eat for Kṛṣṇa, Balarāma and ourselves."
Immediately upon hearing this, the
wives of the brāhmaṇas became anxious for Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma. These reactions were spontaneous.
They did not have to be convinced of the importance of Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma; immediately upon hearing Their
names, they became very anxious to see Them. Being advanced by thinking of Kṛṣṇa constantly, they were performing the greatest
form of mystic meditation. All the wives then became very busily engaged in
filling up different pots with nice foodstuff. Due to the performance of the
sacrifice, the various food was all very palatable. After collecting a feast,
they prepared to go to Kṛṣṇa,
their most lovable object, exactly in the way rivers flow to the sea.
For a long time the wives had been
anxious to see Kṛṣṇa. However, when they were preparing to leave
home to go see Him, their husbands, fathers, sons and relatives asked them
not to go. But the wives did not comply. When a devotee is called by the
attraction of Kṛṣṇa, he does not care for bodily ties. The women
entered the forest of Vṛndāvana on the bank of the Yamunā, which was
verdant with vegetation and newly grown vines and flowers. Within that
forest, they saw Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma engaged in tending the cows, along
with Their very affectionate boy friends.
The brāhmaṇas' wives saw Kṛṣṇa
putting on a garment glittering like gold. He wore a nice garland of forest
flowers and a peacock feather on His head. He was also painted with the
minerals found in Vṛndāvana, and He looked exactly like a dancing
actor on a theatrical stage. They saw Him keeping one hand on the shoulder of
His friend, and in His other hand, He was holding a lotus flower. His ears
were decorated with lilies, He wore marks of tilaka, and He was smiling
charmingly. With their very eyes, the wives of the brāhmaṇas saw the Supreme Personality of Godhead, of
whom they had heard so much, who was so dear to them, and in whom their minds
were always absorbed. Now they saw Him eye to eye and face to face, and Kṛṣṇa entered within their hearts through their eyes.
They began to embrace Kṛṣṇa to their hearts' content, and the distress of
separation was mitigated immediately. They were just like great sages who, by
their advancement of knowledge, merge into the existence of the Supreme. As
the Supersoul living in everyone's heart, Lord Kṛṣṇa could understand their minds; they had come to
Him despite all the protests of their relatives, fathers, husbands, brothers,
and all the duties of household affairs. They came just to see Him who was
their life and soul. They were actually following Kṛṣṇa's instruction in the Bhagavad-gītā: one should
surrender to Him, giving up all varieties of occupational and religious
duties. The wives of the brāhmaṇas
actually carried out the instruction of the Bhagavad-gītā in total. He
therefore began to speak to them, smiling very magnificently. It should be
noted in this connection that when Kṛṣṇa
entered into the wives' hearts and when they embraced Him and felt the
transcendental bliss of being merged with Him, the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa did not lose His identity, nor did the
individual wives lose theirs. The individuality of both the Lord and the
wives remained, yet they felt oneness in existence. When a lover submits to
his lover without any pinch of personal consideration, that is called
oneness. Lord Caitanya has taught us this feeling of oneness in His Śikṣāṣṭaka:
Kṛṣṇa may act freely, doing whatever He likes, but
the devotee should always be in oneness or in agreement with His desires.
That oneness was exhibited by the wives of the brāhmaṇas in their love for Kṛṣṇa.
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Kṛṣṇa
welcomed them with the following words: "My dear wives of the brāhmaṇas, you are all very fortunate and welcomed here.
Please let Me know what can I do for you. Your coming here, neglecting all the
restrictions and hindrances of relatives, fathers, brothers and husbands, in
order to see Me, is completely befitting. One who does this actually knows his
self interest, because rendering transcendental loving service unto Me, without
motive or restriction, is actually auspicious for the living entities."
Lord Kṛṣṇa
here confirms that the highest perfectional stage of the conditioned soul is
surrender to Him. One must give up all other responsibilities. This complete
surrender unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the most auspicious path
for the conditioned soul because the Supreme Lord is the supreme objective of
love. Everyone is loving Kṛṣṇa ultimately, but
realization is according to the advancement of his knowledge. One comes to
understand that his self is the spirit soul, and the spirit soul is nothing but
a part and parcel of the Supreme Lord; therefore the Supreme Lord is the
ultimate goal of love, and thus one should surrender unto Him. This surrender
is considered auspicious for the conditioned soul. Our life, property, home,
wife, children, house, country, society and all paraphernalia which are very
dear to us are expansions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is the
central object of love because He gives us all bliss, expanding Himself in so
many ways according to our different situations, namely bodily, mental or
spiritual.
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"My dear wives of the brāhmaṇas," Kṛṣṇa
said. "You can now return to your homes. Engage yourselves in
sacrificial activities and be engaged in the service of your husbands and
household affairs so that your husbands will be pleased with you, and the
sacrifice which they have begun will be properly executed. After all, your
husbands are householders, and without your help how can they execute their
prescribed duties?"
The wives of the brāhmaṇas replied, "Dear Lord, this sort of
instruction does not befit You. Your eternal promise is that You will always
protect Your devotees, and now You must fulfill this promise. Anyone who
comes and surrenders unto You never goes back to the conditioned life of
material existence. We expect that You will now fulfill Your promise. We have
surrendered unto Your lotus feet, which are covered by the tulasī leaves, so
we have no more desire to return to the company of our so-called relatives,
friends, and society and give up the shelter of Your lotus feet. And what
shall we do, returning home? Our husbands, brothers, fathers, sons, mothers
and our friends do not expect to see us because we have already left them
all. Therefore we have no shelter to return to. Please, therefore, do not ask
us to return home, but arrange for our stay under Your lotus feet so that we
can eternally live under Your protection."
The Supreme Personality of Godhead
replied, "My dear wives, rest assured that your husbands will not
neglect you on your return, nor will your brothers, sons, or fathers refuse
to accept you. Because you are My pure devotees, not only your relatives but
also people in general, as well as the demigods, will be satisfied with
you." Kṛṣṇa is situated as the Supersoul in everyone's
heart. So if someone becomes a pure devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa, he immediately becomes pleasing to everyone.
The pure devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa
is never inimical to anyone. A sane person cannot be an enemy of a pure
devotee. "Transcendental love for Me does not depend upon bodily
connection," Kṛṣṇa said further, "but anyone whose mind is
always absorbed in Me will surely, very soon, come to Me for My eternal
association."
After being instructed by the Supreme
Personality of Godhead, all the wives again returned home to their respective
husbands. Pleased to see their wives back home, the brāhmaṇas executed the performances of sacrifices by
sitting together, as it is enjoined in the śāstras. According to Vedic
principle, religious rituals must be executed by the husband and wife
together. When the brāhmaṇas' wives returned,
the sacrifice was duly and nicely executed. One of the brāhmaṇas' wives, however, who was forcibly checked from
going to see Kṛṣṇa, began to remember Him as she heard of His
bodily features. Being completely absorbed in His thought, she gave up her
material body conditioned by the laws of nature.
Śrī Govinda, the ever-joyful
Personality of Godhead, revealed His transcendental pastimes, appearing just
like an ordinary human being, and enjoyed the food offered by the wives of
the brāhmaṇas. In this way, He attracted common persons to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. He attracted to His words and
beauty all the cows, cowherd boys and damsels in Vṛndāvana.
After the return of their wives from
Kṛṣṇa, the brāhmaṇas
engaged in the performance of sacrifices began to regret their sinful
activities in refusing food to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. They could
finally understand their mistake; engaged in the performance of Vedic
rituals, they had neglected the Supreme Personality of Godhead who had
appeared just like an ordinary human being and asked for some food. They
began to condemn themselves after seeing the faith and devotion of their
wives. They regretted very much that, although their wives were elevated to
the platform of pure devotional service, they themselves could not understand
even a little bit of how to love and offer transcendental loving service to
the Supreme Soul. They began to talk among themselves. "To hell with our
being born brāhmaṇas! To hell with our learning all Vedic
literatures! To hell with our performing great sacrifices and observing all
the rules and regulations! To hell with our family! To hell with our expert
service in performing the rituals exactly to the description of scriptures!
To hell with it all, for we have not developed transcendental loving service
to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is beyond the speculation of the
mind, body and senses."
The learned brāhmaṇas, expert in Vedic ritualistic performances,
were properly regretful, because without developing Kṛṣṇa consciousness, all discharge of religious
duties is simply a waste of time and energy. They continued to talk among
themselves; "The external energy of Kṛṣṇa
is so strong that it can create illusion to overcome even the greatest mystic
yogi. Although we expert brāhmaṇas
are considered to be the teachers of all other sections of human society, we
also have been illusioned by the external energy. Just see how fortunate
these women are who have so devotedly dedicated their lives to the Supreme
Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa.
They could easily give up their family connection, which is so difficult to
do. Family life is just like a dark well for the continuation of material
miseries."
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Women in general, being very simple in
heart, can very easily take to Kṛṣṇa
consciousness, and when they develop love of Kṛṣṇa
they can easily get liberation from the clutches of māyā, which is very
difficult for even so-called intelligent and learned men to surpass. According
to Vedic injunction, women are not allowed to undergo the purificatory process
of initiation by the sacred thread, nor are they allowed to live as brahmacāriṇī in the āśrama of the spiritual master; nor are
they advised to undergo the strict disciplinary procedure; nor are they very
much expert in discussing philosophy or self-realization. And by nature they
are not very pure; nor are they very much attached to auspicious activities.
"But how wonderful it is that they have developed transcendental love for
Kṛṣṇa, the Lord of all mystic yogīs!" the brāhmaṇas exlaimed. "They have surpassed all of us in
firm faith and devotion unto Kṛṣṇa. Being too attached
to the materialistic way of life, although we are considered to be masters in
all purificatory processes, we did not actually know what the goal is. Even
though we were reminded of Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma by the
cowherd boys, we disregarded Them. We think now that it was simply a trick of
mercy upon us by the Supreme Personality of Godhead that He sent His friends to
beg foodstuff from us. Otherwise, He had no need to send them. He could have
satisfied their hunger then and there just by willing to do so."
If someone denies Kṛṣṇa's self-sufficiency on hearing that He was tending
the cows for livelihood, or if someone doubts His not being in need of the
foodstuff, thinking that He was actually hungry, then one should understand
that the goddess of fortune is always engaged in His service. In this way the
goddess can break her faulty habit of restlessness. In Vedic literatures like
Brahma-saṁhitā it is stated that Kṛṣṇa is served in His abode with great respect by not
only one goddess of fortune but many thousands. Therefore it is simply illusion
for one to think that Kṛṣṇa begged food from the brāhmaṇas. It was actually a trick to show them the mercy
of accepting Him in pure devotional service. The Vedic ceremonial
paraphernalia, the suitable place, suitable time, different grades of articles
for performing ritualistic ceremonies, the Vedic hymns, the priest who is able
to perform such sacrifice, the fire and the demigods, the performer of the
sacrifice and the religious principles are all meant for understanding Kṛṣṇa, for Kṛṣṇa
is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is the Supreme Lord Viṣṇu, and the Lord of all mystic yogīs.
"Because He has appeared as a
child in the dynasty of the Yadus, we were so foolish that we could not
understand that He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead," the brāhmaṇas said. "But on the other hand, we are very
proud because we have such exalted wives who have developed pure transcendental
service of the Lord without being shackled by our rigid position. Let us
therefore offer our respectful obeisances unto the lotus feet of Lord Kṛṣṇa, under whose illusory energy, called māyā, we are
absorbed in fruitive activities. We therefore pray to the Lord to be kind
enough to excuse us because we are simply captivated by His external energy. We
transgressed His order without knowing His transcendental glories."
The brāhmaṇas repented for their sinful activities. They wanted
to go personally to offer their obeisances unto Him, but being afraid of Kaṁsa, they could not go. In other words, it is very
difficult for one to surrender fully unto the Personality of Godhead without
being purified by devotional service. The example of the learned brāhmaṇas and their wives is vivid. The wives of the
brāhmaṇas, because they were infused by pure devotional
service, did not care for any kind of opposition. They immediately went to Kṛṣṇa. But although the brāhmaṇas had come to know the supremacy of the Lord and
were repenting, they were still afraid of King Kaṁsa
because they were too addicted to fruitive activities.
Om
Tat Sat
(Continued...)
(My humble salutations H H Swami Sri Prabhupada ji, Sri Krishnalilas
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