ANANYA BHAKTHI
(Please note that Gopalakas
indicate males and gopikas are females)
The first episode is an
extract from the Book, "SRI SATHYA SAI ANANDADAAYI" written by
very old devotee of Swami. (This book is available in Prashanthi
Nilayam Book Stall) The lady describes that one day one Mr.
Laskshminarayana Sastry was giving a discourse at Prashanthi
Nilayam, in the Divine presence. Swami intervened and said, "You
were telling about Akrura. Tell my devotees about Gopikas".
Sastri said, " Swami, I leave that to you. You were the one
who knew their longing for Krishna. Knowing from You would be
wonderful. What do I know? I know only what is written in the
books".
Swami did not reply. The
Sastry then continued the story and told that Krishna went to
Mathura at the age of eight years. Swami intervened again and
said, "How is it possible? Krishna went to Mathura at the age
of fourteen years. Isn’t it? Sastry said, "Swami, How do I
know? Bhagavatha tells so. Only You know at what age Krishna went
to Mathura. Now tell us all your secrets!" Swami laughed gently;
turned towards the devotees and started telling the story.
Krishna went to Mathura at
the age of fourteen years, not at the age of eight years. Up to
the age of eleven years, He was with Gopalakas. From the
eleventh year up to His fourteenth year, He was with Gopikas.
Once Kamsa sent a giant
python to kill Krishna. At that time Krishna was staying in a
village called Rapalle. This place was surrounded by
hills and the only way in and out was a small path in between two
hills. A very huge python slept on that path with its big mouth
open. Krishna knew about this. He came with all the Gopalakas
after their cows had finished gazing in the fields. Krishna led
all the gopalakas into the mouth of the python. As Krishna walked
through the body of the python, He slit open the stomach of the
python. All the gopalakas and their cows came out safely. After
coming out, Krishna explained to them what had happened. If they
had known about the snake earlier, they would not have volunteered
to follow Krishna into the snake’s mouth.
Till the age of fourteen
Krishna teased gopikas by playing pranks on them. They were
complaining to Yasodha about the unbearable and provocative
mischief of Krishna. Once in a while Yasodha felt irritated. Once,
when Yasodha expressed her displeasure about His playing pranks on
the gopikas, Krishna told her, "Mother, did I not sleep near
you all night? Why do you believe their words that I harassed
them?" Placating Yasodha like this was not a problem for
Krishna. Even with all these, the gopikas could not bear the
separation from Him even for a moment. Seeing this, the villagers
got jealous and moved Krishna from Gokula to Brindavan. Any person
who entered Brindavana had to pay an entry tax!
Just as he villagers tried to
separate gopikas from Krishna, the villagers of Puttaparthi also
tried to drive Me out of this place thinking that I will amass a
lot of wealth! (Swami’s wealth is His devotees!)
But Radha made it to
Brindavana. The old man guarding Brindavana refused entry and
demanded her to pay the entry tax. Radha told, "I am poor and
cannot pay the tax." When the old man informed this to
Krishna, He said, "Is that so? When she comes again don’t allow
her inside. Hold her and inform me. I will come and make inquiries."
Radha came next day and on hearing Krishna would come, she became
extremely happy. Krishna came and asked her, "Why did you come?
Pay the tax." She answered, "Krishna, I do not have
anything except a basket of cow dung." Krishna said, "In
that case, offer yourself (Atma arpana)" She agreed and
totally surrendered her soul to Him. To attain liberation there
are many paths; eligibility is essential.
The Gopalakas of Gokula
celebrated regularly a festival in which Lord Indra was
worshipped. Krishna asked Yasodha, "Mother, why is this
festival celebrated?" She said, "Indra is responsible for
the timely rains, which help in keeping our fields green and is
responsible for the well-being of our cows. So we worship Him>’
Krishna said, "Indra may give rains, but it is because of
Govardhana Giri we have greenery all around us. Why not worship
it?" Thereafter gopalakas worshipped Govardhana Giri.
After some time, Krishna
asked His mother, "Mother, why do you worship Govardhana Giri?"
She asked Him, "What else should we worship?" Krishna replied to
His mother, "Govardhana Giri is responsible for the green trees
and grass. But it is the cows, which feed on them and give us milk
and butter. Why not worship the cows?" The gopalakas started
worshipping cows.
Krishna, after some time
asked His Mother, "Why do you worship the cows?" She
replied, "You told us to do so." Krishna said, "Then, why not
worship Me?" The Gopis worshipped only Krishna and none else.
Their husbands and mother-in-law were against their total devotion
to Krishna and harassed them. But the Gopis endured all the
problems by chanting the name of Krishna. Their despair when
Krishna left with Akrura to Mathura cannot be described in words.
Some of them slept in front of the chariot. Some held the reins of
the horses. Some tied their hair to the wheels of the chariot.
Some of them tried to stop the wheels of the chariot from turning.
Akrura saw how these Gopis were crying and pleading Krishna not to
leave. He could not bear to see their sorrow and stopped the
chariot. Krishna got down from the chariot and consoled them. They
were badly hurt and were bleeding due to their efforts to stop the
chariot. They were too tired even to speak to Krishna. Only after
Krishna promised that He would come back to them, they allowed Him
t leave. After Krishna left, the entire Gokula became desolate and
the residents were in tears and crestfallen. Krishna did not
return to Gokula since then.
Once Krishna came to Gokula
with Rukmani and Satyabhama to attend the worshipping of
Govardhana Giri. Radha had a sister called Chandravalli. They were
poles apart in their approach to life.
Extract from the Book, "SRI
SATHYA SAI ANANDADAAYI
Chandravalli hated Krishna.
She believed that Krishna, the mischief monger, created problems
for Gopikas. Having stolen their hearts and making their thoughts
involve around Him, she thought that He was driving a wedge
between them and their husbands and other relatives. As she did
not want to succumb to Krishna’s charms, she stayed back in her
husband’s house. Her mother, however, was not happy about this and
persuaded hr son-in-law to send his wife to attend the function.
Reluctantly, he agreed to send her only for three days.
Chandravalli came to her mother’s house and shut herself in, as
her hatred for Krishna was very intense. Radha somehow wanted to
take Chandravalli to the function. She came, knocked on the door
and called her. While doing so, she called "Krishna" instead of
"Chandra". This infuriated Chandravalli further. Somehow Radha
consoled her and took her to the riverside to fetch water telling
that there was no danger of Krishna meeting her there as He was
busy attending the function at Govardhana Gir. After they walked a
little distance, Chandravalli saw Krishna coming towards them. For
a moment, the pot she was holding, the dress she was wearing, the
trees, the creepers, the flowers, the sky above, the earth beneath
and Radha, who was accompanying her, everything appeared as
Krishna. Blinded by fury, she slapped Krishna on the cheek. Radha
was shocked at this. She turned around and began to scold
Cchandravalli. Pointing to the three welts on His cheek, Krishna
smiling said, "No, don’t scold her. She has shown that all the
three of us are one and the same", and left the scene.
When Krishna came home,
Sathyabhama saw the welts on the cheeks of Krishna and told
Rukhmani, "Sister, see the cheeks of Krishna. Someone has slapped
Him." Rukhmani, being a person with "Sathvaguna", did not
notice them. Krishna consoled Sathyabhama and went towards the
house of Chandravalli.
When Chandravalli was
relaxing at her house, Krishna assuming the form of Radha went to
her house and said, "Do you know that when I think of Krishna, I
take His form!". Believing it, Chandravalli spent three days in
Krishna’s company. Occasionally, Krishna showed His true form, ut
Chandravalli thought it was Radha in that form and kept silent.
When she was about to go back to her husband’s house, Krishna took
the form of her husband and came to her. He confirmed from her
that neither did she go to see Krishna nor talked to Him. On the
way, riding her in the cart, Krishna told her, " Look, Krishna
might even come in the form of your husband. Don’t believe Him."
At the very moment, her
husband was coming in search of Chandravalli. With hatred for
Krishna ranging in her, she got down from the cart, rushed over
and started beating him. The husband infuriated over his wife’s
behavior cursed her and went away. The villagers, unaware of
Krishna’s pranks, were alarmed at these developments. To prevent
any further woman going astray, they built a pyre and made Radha
and Chandravalli sit on it. They wanted this to be lesson to all
those who were running after Krishna. When the pyre was lit to
burn them alive, Radha saw Krishna standing just in front of the
pyre. She told Krishna, "Let the disaster fall on us, we do not
care. Keep looking at us like this. We will not feel any of the
torture."
When the fire started to
rage, Radha and Chandravalli suddenly disappeared from the pyre.
Even Krishna was not seen. In the sky above, the villagers saw
Lord Vishnu riding on Garuda with Bhudevi and Sridevi,
on either side of Him. They were astonished at this marvel.
This incident opened the eyes of villagers and they understood
that Krishna was none other than Lord Vishnu. They conveyed the
meaning of what they saw to others. They understood the
Krishna Thatva – the all knowing, all pervading Lord does
not leave even those who hate Him in a lurch. That being the case,
how easy it is to obtain salvation through Bhakthi.
People view this sacred,
unsullied love of gopikas for Krishna in a wrong sense. You are
aware of the feelings, which are only concerned with the body. You
project these feelings on to all sacred things. God has no
physical relationship. The transparent love of the gopikas can
only be understood by a clean mind and God can be reached only
with pure feelings. God can never be attracted to impure feelings.
Such transparent and sacred feelings were present only in gopikas.
No one can match their transparent love and singular devotion. We
canhave them as your ideals. You may ask, "What is the greatness
of gopikas?" Was not the devotion of Ramadasa. Kabir, Surdas and
others equal to that of gopikas" Devotion of all others is a shade
lower than that of Gopikas. God is pure and so have pure feelings
towards Him and attain Him.
(Swami concluded the
discourse with the message to the devotees present there that one
could attain Him through pure thoughts and ANANYA BHAKTHI!
Today I am presenting two
Chinna Kathas (small stories) of Lord Sri Krishna as
told by Bhagavan. Source: From the Book,
Sri Sathya Sai ANANDADAAYI.
VIRAAT SWAROOPA:
In order to prove that
Viraat Swaroopa is the presiding deity of all Yagnas, Krishna
related this story to Arjuna.
"One day I had taken the
cows for grazing. After a long time, I felt hungry. I could hear
the chanting of vedas from a distant place, where a Yagna was
being performed. I sent Gopalakas to that place to get food. They
went and asked the Brahmins, who were performing the yagna, for
food. The Brahmins told that as they had not yet offered the food
to Yagna Devatha, they could not give it.
The Gopalakas came and
told this to Me. Then, I said, "The men would not know the pangs
of hunger. Go and ask the ladies." They went back to the place
again. This time they went through the back door, unnoticed by the
men. They told the women there, "Gopala wants food". As soon as
they heard the name of Gopala, they took the food with them, and
came running in search of Me. The Brahmins tried to stop them
telling that the food had to be offered to Yagna Devatha first.
The women ignored them and came in search of Me. As soon as Viraat
Swaroopa ate the food brought by them, the presiding deities of
Yagnaas were satisfied. Arjuna, know that I am
"Yagna Swaoopa".
THE PRIEST AND THE THIEF:
A Brahman, whose
profession was singing the glories of the Lord, was once reciting
Bhagavatha in the house of a patron. A thief broke into the house
where the recital was going on and hid himself in the attic.
Perforce, he had to listen to Bhagavatha.
The singer was describing
the 0rnaments worn by Krishna. He described the various ornaments
Yasodha put on Krishna before sending Him out with the cows. The
thief thought that he should kill that lad, Krishna and rob all
the ornaments at one stroke instead of struggling every day with
petty stealing. He waited till the Brahmin finished the story and
left the place.
The thief wanted to know
where this boy was. He, therefore, followed the Brahmin and
waylaid him. The Brahmin was frightened and feared that he would
lose even the small amount collected as dakshina and told
the thief, "I do not have anything with me". The thief
told, "I do not want any material from you. I want only some
information. You were telling that one lady Yasodha adorned a boy
Krishna with ornaments before she sent him for grazing the cows. I
want to know where I can find him." The Brahmin was in a fix.
Cleverly he told the thief, "There
is a book in my house where I keep all these particulars. Come
with me."
He took the thief to his
house, and looked in some book and told, "In Brindavana, on the
banks of Yamuna, in a green meadow, two boys will come in the
morning. One dark like the cloud with a flute, and the other fair
clad in white silk. The dark one will have all the ornaments I had
described." The thief believed the story and set out to Brindavana
immediately. He located the place, climbed up a tree and waited
for the boys. The sun rose. Faint melody of the flute wafted along
the morning breeze. The enchanting music could then be heard
closer and the thief spotted two boys coming.
He got down from the tree
and went near them. The moment he saw them, he forgot himself for
a moment, folded his hands and shed tears of joy. He wondered
which wretched mother had sent these radiant boys, vigrahas
chiseled to perfection, loaded with ornaments to the riverbank.
Since the thief had carefully listened to the story of Krishna as
told by the Brahmin, he noticed that Krishna was not wearing one
particular piece of ornament described by the Brahmin. He even
wanted to adorn Krishna with the missing ornament, which he wanted
to get even by stealing, and enjoy the sight to his heart’s
content. Just as the clouds cover the bright sun, wicked thoughts
developed in his mind again. He approached the boys to kill them.
Shouting, "Stop,"
he held Krishna’s hand. The moment he touched Krishna all his
previous karma was wiped clean and he inquired lovingly, "Who
are you?" Krishna told him, "Leave My hands. I am frightened by
your looks." The thief told Krishna, "It is my evil mind
which is reflected in my face. If you are frightened I shall go
away." Krishna then told the thief, "Have you forgotten the
purpose for which you have come? Here, take my ornaments."
Confused the thief said, "Will not your mother scold you, if
you gift away all your ornaments to me?" Krishna smiled and
said, "Do not worry about that. I have plenty of them. I am a
bigger thief than you. But there is a difference between you and
me – however much I steal, the owners do not complain. I am
lovingly called "Chitha Chora". Though you are not aware of
it, you have a previous ornament in your possession, the "Chitha".
I shall steal it now and take the same with Me." So saying
both the boys vanished.
The thief found to his
surprise a bag full of ornaments on his shoulder. He brought it to
the Brahmin’s house and told him what had happened. The Brahmin
was frightened, took the thief inside and opened the bag. To his
utter amazement he saw all the ornaments described as being worn
by Krishna in the Bhagavatha, in the thief’s bag. Shedding tears
of joy, the Brahmin asked the thief to take him to the place where
he saw the dark boy.
The thief obliged and both
of them waited in the same place where the thief accosted the boy
the previous day. Suddenly the thief exclaimed, "Look, here
they come!" However, the Brahmin could not see any one.
Stricken with remorse, he said, "Swami,
when You give Darshan to a thief, why not me? If you do not give
Darshan to me, I shall end my life."
Krishna then told him,
"You are reading Bhagavatha just
as another story. The thief on the other hand, believed what you
had told him. I manifest only for those who surrender to Me."
Sincere belief takes one
nearer to God.
Extracts from "SAI VAANI"
(Significance of birth,
name, leelas and Life story.)
(Words as uttered by
Bhagavan)
Krishna was born on 20th of
July, 3228 years before the advent of Christ. It was the year
Srimuka, the month of Sravana, the fortnight named Bahyla, and the
day of Ashtami. The Star was Rohini and the time was 5 A.M. If we
count backwards from today, the day on which Krishna gave up His
mortal body will work out to be 5078 years. The time when Krishna
gave up His body is the day when Kali age commenced. This day is
also called Yugadi.
Since Krishna was born on Ashtami (the eighth day of the lunar
month), right from the moment of His birth, He was subjected to
troubles. On the other hand, whoever cherishes the name of the
Lord is set free from bondage.
**********
Krishna’s advent signifies the dispelling of darkness, the removal
of troubles, banishing of ignorance and teaching mankind supreme
wisdom. Krishna is said to have been in Mathura. He grew up in
Brindavan, and He had established His home finally at Dwaraka. The
significance of this to the Sadhaka is "Let Krishna be born in the
Gokula of your mind; Let Him grow and play pranks in the Brindavan
of your Heart; Let Him then be fixed in the Chitha of Mathura; and
finally, let Him rule over the agitationless consciousness as the
Lord and Master of Dwaraka."
**********
Krishna, whose advent is celebrated, is not the cowherd boy who
charmed the village folk with His flute. Krishna is indefinable,
inscrutable Divine Principle that is born in the navel of the body
(Mathura) as the product of Divine energy (Devaki), which is then
transported to the mouth (Gokula) and fostered by the tongue
(Yashoda), as the source of sweetness. Krishna is the
visualization of the Atma that the repetition of the Name grants;
the vision that was gained by Yashoda. You must foster that
Krishna on your tongue; and when He dances on it, the poison of
the tongue will be rejected without harming any one, as it had
happened when, as a child, He danced on the hoods of the serpent
Kaliya.
******
Krishna is the symbols of idealism. Krishna is able to give a lead
and set an example in all spheres of activity. Krishna is not a
mere individual. He is to be regarded as an ideal for the whole
world.
In order to comprehend the ideal aspect of Krishna, we have to
concentrate on the Divine aspects of His life and work. To
understand the human aspects of Krishna, we have to go back to the
times in which He lived. Humility and Obedience were two
characteristic features of Him. In this century, people may get
doubts regarding the personality of Krishna. The reason is that
the depiction of Krishna in the movies today and the description
of Krishna we read in texts of today differ very much from the
facts, and hence the doubts. When we see these things, we
visualize a Krishna was always fighting with kings and removing
them from their thrones. We also think that his devotees blindly
worshipped Him. Looking carefully at the contents of the
Mahabharatha written by Vyasa, we get the unmistakable feeling
that humility and obedience were present in Krishna in a large
measure.
*********
Among all Avatars, Krishna’s is the most attractive incarnation.
The very word Krishna means "one who attracts". "Krishyathi iti
Krishnaha" is another derivation for the name. Krishna is the one
who cultivates. This means that Krishna is the Lord who cultivates
the heart of the devotees by weeding out the bad qualities, sowing
the seeds of good qualities and growing the crops of love. Krishna
thus means one who cultivates our hearts and raises in them the
crop of bliss.
The individual who can satisfy your yearning pertaining to the
Divine can be called Krishna. "Karshate iti Krishna, Krushite iti
Krishna, Krushate iti Krishna" are three different aspects of
Krishna. These are the three different forms of Sat, Chit and
Ananda. These are present in all the yugas. Kunthi addresses
Krishna as Madhava. ‘Ma"- means Lakshmi and it also means Maya
(Illusion). Te word Dhava means master. In this sense, Krishna is
the Master of Nature, Lakshmi and Maya.
*******
Everything is the Universe is governed by certain laws. Certain
laws and regulations control the five elements constituting earth
and the vast ocean. Since man’s life is part of the world, it has
to be regulated. Whether it is for love or for hatred or anger,
some regulation is necessary. Krishna has showed such regulation
to us as an example in His lifetime.
*******
When Krishna was three years old, he saw an old lady carrying a
basket of fruits from the jungle. Krishna told her that He would
like to have some fruits. The old woman said that He would get
them only if He paid the price. Krishna innocently asked the
meaning of the word ‘Price’. The woman said that something should
be given in return for the fruit. Krishna went in and brought as
palm-full of rice. The woman placed the rice in her basket and
gave Krishna some fruits. She was charmed by the beauty of the
child. As she was returning to her cottage, she felt that the
basket was getting heavier. When she placed it down in her hut,
she was amazed to find that all the rice grains had turned into
precious gems! She realized that the child must be Divine.
Extracts from "SAI VAANI"
(Significance of birth,
name, leelas and Life story.)
(Words as uttered by
Bhagavan)
Once when baby Krishna
clamoured for milk, Yashoda said that it was too early an hour and
that she would feed him only at nightfall. Krishna closed His eyes
and said that night had fallen. The mother said that darkness of
night was different. It could not happen when one person closed
his eyes. But Krishna argued that light contains darkness and
darkness contains light in it.
Krishna was pleading with
Yashoda that He should be allowed to go to the forest with other
cowherd boys. Thinking that if He were put to sleep, he would
forget His desire to the forest, Yashoda gave Him milk. Krishna
was no ordinary child. While drinking the milk, He pretended as if
He was sleeping. He made pretense of yawning to indicate His
drowsiness. In that wide-open mouth of Krishna, Yashoda saw all
kinds of things –all the world in motion and many deities. She
could not make out what it meant. "Is it a dream or Vishnu’s
Maaya? Alternatively, is it some fantasy of mine? Or, is it real?
Am I Yashoda?." These thoughts racked her mind.
One should take care to
protect Truth and Honesty. This was the ideal taught and
demonstrated by Krishna. He was the one who had eternal youth. By
saying that He was eternally young, we should not imply that He
had a young and youthful body forever. This should convey to us
the meaning that He had no anxiety and that He always had a
smiling disposition. This kind of bliss and happiness also gives
happiness to one’s body and bodily health.
Once it so happened that
Krishna, Balarama, and Satyaki, who were little boys at that time,
were stranded in a thick jungle. Krishna frightened them with his
description of ghosts, ghouls and demons roaming in search of
human prey. He proposed that two of them should sleep for three
hours at a stretch while the other one kept watch. It was
Krishna’s duty to keep awake and be on the lookout from 7 p.m. to
10.pm. Satyaki was to be vigilant from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m., and
Balarama was to start his part of duty at 1 a.m. and keep till 4
a.m. Satyaki got up at 10 p.m. Balarama and Krishna laid
themselves on beds of dried leaves and slept soundly. Meanwhile, a
demon did actually present himself before the little Satyaki. He
fell upon the boy, who resisted heroically, dealing and in turn
receiving hammer of strokes with fists, with a good number of
clawing and biting i.n between. Satyaki was badly mauled, but was
happy at the end that two brothers were still sound asleep; they
had not been disturbed in the least by the noise of the encounter.
Satyaki had met blow with
blow’ and dealt injury for injury. At 1 a.m., he awakened Balarama
and stretched his body on the heap of leaves, s if nothing had
happened. The demon invited Balarama too for a compact and had to
retreat humiliated, because Balarama was too strong, and his blows
were even more terrible than Satyaki’s. Balarama curled himself
into the bed at 4 a.m., after waking up Krishna who was to keep
watch in the Brahma-Muhurtha.
The infuriated demon came
roaring like a wounded tiger and advanced ferociously at the
little Divine boy. Krishna turned His sweet charming face at him,
and rewarded him with a lovely smile. The smile disarmed the
demon. The longer he came under its influence, the weaker became
his vengeance and venom. At last, the demon became docile as a
lamb; when the other two woke up, they were surprised at he
victory that Krishna had won by the weapon of love. You cannot
destroy anger by anger, cruelty by cruelty, hatred by hatred.
Anger can be subdued only by forbearance; cruelty can be overcome
only by non-violence; hatred yields only to charity and
compassion.
Fill your mind with Leelas of
the Lord (Krishna) and His glory. Once He and His comrades stole
into a house and brought down the vessel of curds. When the
mistress of the house came in and asked, "Why did you come
in?" Krishna replied, "My mother had a stick in her
hand; so I ran in here out of fear." "Who are these boys?"
she asked. "I brought them to bear witness to what I say."
Said KRISHNA. "Why have you placed that vessel
between your legs? She asked. "So that these fellows
may not get hold of the butter", was the answer.
"Why do you go from house to
house and eat the butter from their stores?"
asked Yashoda. "I like things that I
select and choose; I do not like to be fed." Repelled
Krishna. Krishna could not be confined to one house or one
routine. He is Sarva-Vyaapi (Omnipresent). He is Bhaktha
Vatsala. Make your heart the seat of the Lord. Then it will
have value.
"Krishna was only a few weeks
old when a certain ascetic came into the house of Nanda. Yashoda
was having the baby in her lap. Of course, this is an incident not
found in any book. I have myself to tell you this. The maids ran
in, for they were afraid the child might start weeping at the
sight of the uncouth individual. He walked in nevertheless, and
Yashoda found that when he was sent away, the baby raised a cry
but not when he approaching! The Muni (ascetic) also
announced himself as having come to see Krishna-Paramaathma – a
name that was new to the entire family. No wonder, the baby cried
when that distinguished visitor was asked to go! Devaki had been
given the vision of Krishna being the Lord Himself, but this Muni
(ascetic) discovered the arrival of the Avatar, by the
grace of the Almighty. It was the Baby who had invited the Muni (ascetic)
for His Darshan," said Swami.
When Krishna danced on he
head of Kalinga, the poison was vomited and the serpent was
subdued. When God is revered, the world and all its poisonous
fumes recede, and you are restored to original health. Make the
name and the form of the Lord dance on the hood of your heart.
Krishna had no vishaya-vaasana (attachment to worldly things) and
so He could plunge into the pool, call out to Kalinga, jump on to
its hood, trample on it, and squeeze the poison out. Krishna never
parted in those days from Balarama; but He came alone on this day.
He was wearing a necklace of green beads; a nose ring of pearl,
and in His right ear, a ring of pearls. He wore no shirt or coat;
just yellow silk round His waist and a kerchief wound around the
head, or rather thrown carelessly round the head, one end this way
and another end that way. (Bhagavan showed, the way, Krishna used
to tie the turban)! The peacock feather that is described by poets
and sages was not always worn. It was stuck into the turban
occasionally. Of course, peacocks abounded in Brindavana then, and
are in plenty even today. On His bare chest, there was a mole
that could be clearly seen, an inevitable mark of all Avatar,
including Sai’s. Krishna saw the carcass of animals that had died
when they inhaled the poisoned air near the pool; birds had fallen
dead on the ground. Nothing green could survive in the
neighborhood. As soon as Krishna jumped into the pool to save the
region from the serpent’s havoc, His companions ran home to bring
His parents so that they could intercede and stop the foolish
pranks of their mischievous son. They were in great panic. Only
Radha was calm and collected. She knew that for Him, it was a
minute’s fun, a moment’s Sankalpa (Divine Will). He had no Vishaya
(attachment), so Visha (poison) could not affect Him.
Gopikas are cowherdesses only
in physical form. In the human head, there is Lotus with thousand
petals. Each of these petals has sixteen Kalas (aspects) As
the Lord of Sahasrara (thousand-petalled Lotus), He presides over
the 16000 Kalas, which are present in Lotus.
The Lord is described s the
embodiment of 16 Kalas . The Kundalini Shakthi (Serpent
Power) which starts at the bottom of spinal column (Mooladhara)
rises and merges with the 16000 entities in the Sahasrara. Thus,
it is stated that Krishna was wedded to16000 gopikas.
Yashoda, despite many
occasions in which Krishna demonstrated His Divinity, continued to
regard Him as human and frequently thanked the Lord for saving her
child from many dangers. Once, Yashoda appealingly asked Krishna
as to why He was going to the Gopikas’ houses to steal butter,
when there was so much in their own house. The child Krishna
replied, "Mother, I am not stealing the butter, but the
hearts of the gopis. Their hearts are pure and full of devotion.
Their butter is filled with the devotion with which they churn the
buttermilk. Their bangles keep time as they sing Krishna’s name
while churning. The butter that emerges contains the essence of
Vedas.". In this manner, every word of Krishna was replete
with spiritual significance.
Extracts from "SAI VAANI"
(Significance of birth,
name, leelas and Life story.)
(Words as uttered by
Bhagavan)
Balarama and Krishna were in
the habit of taking the cowherd boys with their cows for grazing
in the forest near Gokulam. Once, the gopalas were engaged in
merry making, dancing and singing, quite unconcerned about the
time while the cows were grazing. Suddenly they found that the
cows had disappeared. They went in different directions to search
for them. They found the cows grazing at a distant place and saw a
fire blazing al around. The cowherd boys could not approach the
cows. They cried in desperation, "Krishna, Krishna". When
Krishna called the cows by their names, they responded, running
towards Him, crying "Amba.." The cows could always
recognize Krishna’s call and understand His call. The cowherd lads
were terribly shaken by the sight of the advancing fire. Balarama
and Krishna told them, "Why fear when we are here?" Krishna asked
them to close their eyes and not to open until He gave the order.
They always implicitly obeyed the command of Krishna, in whom they
had total faith. When Krishna asked them to open their eyes they
did so and found themselves in the same place where they had been
dancing, and it was cool around. The fire had disappeared.
Immediately they fell at the feet off Krishna and hailed Him as
supreme Lord. When such miracles were performed they used to hold
Him as God, but after some time, they would revert to their old
habit of calling Him their friend.
Even today, people consider
the Avatar as God only when miracles happen, but at other times
they consider Him as ordinary being.
Krishna wanted to teach the
Gopalas about Atma. It was a rainy season, and dark clouds were
hovering over the sky. There was lightening followed by thunder.
Krishna said, "The dark clouds represent the Tamasik
quality in man, thunder the Rajassic quality and the
lightning the Sathwic. Because of Thamoguna, you are
The cow transforms grass and
gruel into sweet strengthening milk and gives it away in plenty to
its master. Develop that quality, that power to transform food you
consume with sweet thoughts, words and deeds of sympathy for all.
The child Krishna wept for permission to go along with the cows to
the fields of pasture. Yashoda said, "Dear child! Your tiny
silken feet can’t walk along those pebble-filled tracks. I shall
get nice little sandals for you. You can go, after the sandals are
ready.". But Krishna prattled back, "The cows whom
we serve are not shod. Why should we, who are their servants,
avoid the thorns and stones which they can’t avoid."? No
wonder, cows and calves of Gokula were immobilized and wept when
Krishna left for Mathura.
Krishna propagated the view
that cow gives prosperity. He regarded the cow as wealth, and this
wealth was equally distributed among the people. The requirements
of humanity are two kinds. One is milk and related products and
the other is the agricultural harvest. The task related to these
two, were distributed between two brothers. Gopala (Krishna)
looked after the cows and milk and Balarama symbolized by plough,
looked after the agriculture. These requirements do not drop from
the sky. They must come through the cattle and land.
The gopies, simple sincere
cowherd maids of Gokula, sought Krishna within or behind every
bush, for He fascinated them, but ever keeping Himself away! This
is only another way of describing the search of God that we know
to be within us, who eludes our efforts to sink into that
sweetness. Krishna is hiding in the recesses of your heart; you
have to trace Him there and hold fast. He runs away, but leaves
footprints marked by the split of the milk on which He has
trodden, in a hurry to be beyond our search. Yes, the lesson is,
"Recognize His foot prints in
everything of beauty, in every act of goodness, in every tear of
gratitude, in every sign of compassion, and discover Him in the
bower of your own heart, filled with the fragrance of Love and
Light of virtue."
Once a Gopika went to a well
to bring two pitchers of water. After placing one pitcher on her
head, she wanted someone to place the other water-filled pitcher
on the first one. Krishna refused to do so. Soon another Gopika
came along and helped the first Gopika. The Gopika carrying the
two pitchers reached her home. Krishna followed her to the house,
without even waiting to be asked, took the top pitcher from the
Gopika’s head and placed it down. She was surprised at Krishna’s
strange behavior. She asked him, "Krishna, at the well, you
refused to place the pitcher on my head, when I appealed to you to
help me. Now you take it down from the head without my asking.
What is the inner meaning of this action?" Krishna replied,
"Oh Gopika: I am wont to remove the burden borne by the people and
not to add to them."