There was an occasion when Krishna laid His flute aside and declared that He
would not play on it again. It is a long story, not found in books; I alone
must tell you about it, for it is only the person who has experienced it, that
can describe it.
A bride called Neeraja came to Gokulam as the daughter-in-law of a Gopa
family. Her husband and parents-in-law warned her against Krishna and His
pranks and threatened her, on pain of dire punishment, to keep away from Him
and to avoid Him by every possible means.
It was Govardhana Puuja day and all the Gopas and Gopikas had to go
beyond the village limits to circumambulate and worship the Govardhan hill, a
festival they celebrated every year. Neeraja too went with the others and in
spite of the severest warning, she peeped into a crowd of enthusiastic Gopees
watching the dance of Raadha with Krishna, in a flower bower near the hill. She
was so captivated by the divine presence that she was no longer the same person.
Another day, while on the Yamuna bank, she saw Krishna fashioning a Flute
from a reed taken out of Vamsi Kunj (bamboo bower) and she heard Him play! Oh,
it was overwhelmingly ecstatic! It was a call to transcend the material bonds,
to free oneself from the trammels of earthly endeavours. Neeraja did not care
for any one now. She became God-mad. In fact, she was the first to hold the
reins of Akrura's chariot when he was taking Krishna to Mathura away from
Gokulam, and try to push the vehicle back!
Well; she was driven out of her house by the mother-in law for that. She
was an outcast. The whole village rose up against her; she spent her days in
the Vamsi Kunj, her whole mind fixed on the Lord whom she had installed there.
Years passed. Nandha, Yasodha and Raadha left the world. She was now 52 years
old. One day, she prayed desperately to Krishna; I can no longer bear this
forlorn life. My eyes have gone dry, they have no more tears to keep this love,
green. My heart too is fast turning a wasteland. Come, O Lord, come and save
me, take me unto yourself. Krishna heard the prayer.
He responded to her yearning and called her by name, so sweetly that the
very voice filled her with new life. The Vamsi Kunj was fragrant with divine
glory. Krishna came near and took Neeraja's palm in His hand. "What do you
desire?" He asked. She questioned, "What is the purpose of life?" "To merge in
God." "Well let me merge in You... but, before that, before my Prema merges in
Yours, let me hear You play on that flute for a short while." Krishna smiled
and gave the excuse that He had not brought His flute. But, seeing Neeraja's
yearning, He plucked a reed from the Vamsi Kunj and broke it right and in a
trice converted it into a flute. With Neeraja on his lap, Krishna played so
melodiously on the flute that the entire Gokula and even the whole world, was
bathed in ecstatic joy.When He stopped, Neeraja had attained final beatitude
and was no longer a limited individual Gopee separate from Him.
Krishna laid aside His flute and said, He will not play on it again. That
is the story of one Gopee; the story of every Gopee will be interesting, each
in its own way, for they were all so transmuted by the Bhakthi they bore
towards the Lord. The Gopees were declared by Naaradha in the Bhakthi Suuthras
to be the greatest among the Bhakthas.
- taken from Swami's Krishnastami Discourse on 12th August 1963.
Sai Ram
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