|
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
8
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
10
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
12
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
14
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
16
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
18
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
20
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
22
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
24
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
26
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
28
29
29
29
29
29
30
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
32
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
34
35
35
35
35
35
35
36
37
37
37
38
|
KB 1970-1-22 / Stealing the Garments of the Unmarried Gopi Girls
22 / Stealing the Garments of the Unmarried Gopi Girls
According to Vedic civilization, unmarried girls from ten to
fourteen years of age are supposed to worship either Lord Siva
or the goddess Durga in order to get a nice husband. But
the unmarried girls of Vrndavana were already attracted by the
beauty of Krsna. They were, however, engaged in the worship of
the goddess Durga in the beginning of the hemanta season (
just prior to the winter season). The first month of hemanta is
called Agrahayana (October-November), and at that time all the
unmarried gopis of Vrndavana began to worship goddess Durga
with a vow. They first ate havisyanna, 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 gopis in Vrndavana used
to daily worship goddess Katyayani early in the morning after
taking bath in the River Yamuna. Katyayani is another name
for goddess Durga. The goddess is worshiped by preparing a doll
made out of sand mixed with earth from the bank of the Yamuna.
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 Mayavadi 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 gopis used to prepare the deity of goddess Durga
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 Katyayani, 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 Maharaja, Krsna." The Vaisnavas
generally do not worship any demigods. Srila Narottama dasa
Thakur has strictly forbidden all worship of the demigods for
anyone who wants to advance in pure devotional service. Yet the
gopis, who are beyond compare in their affection for Krsna,
were seen to worship Durga. The worshipers of demigods also
sometimes mention that the gopis also worshiped goddess Durga,
but we must understand the purpose of the gopis. Generally,
people worship goddess Durga for some material benediction.
Here, the gopis prayed to the goddess to become wives of Lord
Krsna. The purport is that if Krsna is the center of activity,
a devotee can adopt any means to achieve that goal. The gopis
could adopt any means to satisfy or serve Krsna. That was the
superexcellent characteristic of the gopis. They worshiped
goddess Durga completely for one month in order to have Krsna
as their husband. Every day they prayed for Krsna, the son of
Nanda Maharaja, to become their husband.
Early in the morning, the gopis used to go to the bank of the
Yamuna to take bath. They would assemble together,
capturing each other's hands, and loudly sing of the
wonderful pastimes of Krsna. 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 gopis,
benedicted them with their desired objective. They had prayed
for Krsna to become their husband, and Krsna wanted to fulfill
their desires.
At the end of the month, Krsna, along with His friends,
appeared on the scene. Another name of Krsna is Yogesvara, or
master of all mystic powers. By practicing meditation, the yogi
can study the psychic movement of other men, and certainly
Krsna could understand the desire of the gopis. Appearing on
the scene, Krsna immediately collected all the garments of the
gopis, 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 Katyayani. 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."
When the girls in the water heard such joking words from Krsna,
they began to look at one another and smile. They were very
joyous to hear such a request from Krsna 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 Krsna, "Dear son of Nanda Maharaja,
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 Maharaja, 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 Krsna
with great submission. "Dear Syamasundara," 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 Maharaja and lodge a complaint against You.
If Nanda Maharaja does not take action, then we shall tell King
Kamsa about Your misbehavior."
Upon hearing this appeal by the unmarried gopis, Krsna 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 gopis saw that Krsna 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
Krsna immediately became pleased with them. All the unmarried
gopis who prayed to Katyayani to have Krsna as their husband
were thus satisfied. A woman cannot be naked before any male
except her husband. The unmarried gopis desired Krsna 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 Yamuna. Because of
this, the predominating deity of the Yamuna, Varunadeva, has
become displeased with you. Please, therefore, just touch your
foreheads with folded palms and bow down before the demigod
Varuna in order to be excused from this offensive act." The
gopis were all simple souls, and whatever Krsna said they took
to be true. In order to be freed from the wrath of Varunadeva,
as well as to fulfill the desired end of their vows and
ultimately to please their worshipable Lord, Krsna, they
immediately abided by His order. Thus they became the greatest
lovers of Krsna, and His most obedient servitors.
Nothing can compare to the Krsna consciousness of the gopis.
Actually, the gopis did not care for Varuna or any other
demigod; they only wanted to satisfy Krsna. Krsna became very
ingratiated and satisfied by the simple dealings of the gopis,
and He immediately delivered their respective garments, one
after another. Although Krsna cheated the young unmarried gopis
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 gopis
is described by Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu when He prays, "My
dear Lord Krsna, 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 gopis toward Krsna.
Lord Krsna 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 Katyayani, 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-samhita: karmani nirdahati
kintu ca bhakti-bhajam. 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 gopis' attitude toward Krsna,
although seemingly lusty, should not be considered to be like
the lusty desires of ordinary women. The reason is explained by
Krsna Himself. Activities in devotional service to Krsna are
transcendental to any fruitive result.
"My dear gopis," Krsna continued, "your desire to have Me as
your husband will be fulfilled because with this desire
you have worshiped goddess Katyayani. 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, Krsna became very happy.
While walking He began to address the inhabitants of
Vrndavana. "My dear Stokakrsna, My dear Varuthapa, My
dear Bhadrasena, My dear Sudama, My dear Subala, My dear
Arjuna, My dear Visala, My dear Rsabha -- just look at these
most fortunate trees of Vrndavana. 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 Yamuna, 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 Krsna 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 Krsna Himself, and those who are engaged in
the preaching of Krsna consciousness should learn lessons from
the teachings of Lord Krsna and Lord Caitanya through Their
direct disciplic succession.
While passing through the forest of Vrndavana on the bank of
the Yamuna, Krsna sat down at a beautiful spot and allowed the
cows to drink the cold and transparent water of the Yamuna.
Being fatigued, the cowherd boys, Krsna and Balarama also drank.
After seeing the young gopis taking bath in the Yamuna, Krsna
passed the rest of the morning with the boys.
Thus ends the Bhaktivedanta purport of the Twenty-second
Chapter of Krsna, "Stealing the Garments of the Unmarried Gopi
Girls."
|
|
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
10
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
12
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
14
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
16
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
18
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
20
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
22
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
24
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
26
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
28
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
30
31
31
31
31
31
32
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
34
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
36
37
37
37
37
37
37
38
39
39
39
40
|
KB 22: Stealing the Garments of the Unmarried Gopi Girls
CHAPTER TWENTY–TWO
Stealing the Garments of the Unmarried Gopi Girls
According to Vedic civilization, unmarried girls from ten to
fourteen years of age are supposed to worship either Lord Siva
or Goddess Durga in order to get a nice husband. But
the unmarried girls of Vrndavana were already attracted by the
beauty of Krsna. They were, however, engaged in the worship of
Goddess Durga in the beginning of the Hemanta season (
just prior to the winter season). The first month of Hemanta is
Agrahayana (October-November), and at that time all the
unmarried gopis of Vrndavana began to worship Goddess Durga
with a vow. They first ate havisyanna, a kind of food
prepared by boiling together mung dal and rice without any
spices or turmeric. According to Vedic injunction, this kind of
food is recommended to purify the body before one enacts a
ritualistic ceremony. All the unmarried gopis in Vrndavana used
to daily worship Goddess Katyayani early in the morning after
taking a bath in the river Yamuna. Katyayani is another name
for Goddess Durga. The goddess is worshiped by preparing a doll
made of sand from the bank of the Yamuna.
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 Mayavadi philosopher takes all these forms of the deity to
be imaginary, but actually they are accepted in the Vedic
scriptures to be identical with either the Supreme Lord or a
respective demigod.
The unmarried gopis used to prepare the deity of Goddess Durga
and worship it with candana pulp, garlands, incense, lamps and
all kinds of presentations -- fruits, grain 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 Katyayani, addressing her as follows: "O
supreme external 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 Maharaja, Krsna." The Vaisnavas
generally do not worship any demigods. Srila Narottama dasa
Thakura has strictly forbidden all worship of the demigods for
anyone who wants to advance in pure devotional service. Yet the
gopis, who are beyond compare in their affection for Krsna,
were seen to worship Durga. The worshipers of demigods
sometimes mention that the gopis worshiped Goddess Durga,
but we must understand the purpose of the gopis. Generally,
people worship Goddess Durga for some material benediction.
Here, the gopis prayed to the goddess to become wives of Lord
Krsna. The purport is that if Krsna is the center of activity,
a devotee can adopt any means to achieve that goal. The gopis
could adopt any means to satisfy or serve Krsna. That was the
superexcellent characteristic of the gopis. They worshiped
Goddess Durga completely for one month in order to have Krsna
as their husband. Every day they prayed for Krsna, the son of
Nanda Maharaja, to become their husband.
Early in the morning, the gopis used to go to the bank of the
Yamuna to take a bath. They would assemble together and,
holding one another's hands, loudly sing of the
wonderful pastimes of Krsna. It is an old system among Indian
girls and women that when they take a 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 bathe was strictly prohibited to any male,
and this is still the system. The Supreme Personality of
Godhead, knowing the minds of the unmarried young gopis,
blessed them with their desired objective. They had prayed
for Krsna to become their husband, and Krsna wanted to fulfill
their desires.
At the end of the month, Krsna, along with His friends,
appeared on the scene. Another name of Krsna is Yogesvara, or
master of all mystic powers. By practicing meditation, the yogi
can study the psychic movement of other men, and certainly
Krsna could understand the desire of the gopis. Appearing on
the scene, Krsna immediately collected all the garments of the
gopis, climbed up into a nearby tree, and with a 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 are tired from
observing the regulative principles for one month by worshiping
Goddess Katyayani. 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."
When the girls in the water heard such joking words from Krsna,
they began to look at one another and smile. They were very
joyous to hear such a request from Krsna 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
joking words of Govinda, their minds were perturbed with great
joy. They told Krsna, "Dear son of Nanda Maharaja,
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 Maharaja, 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 Krsna
with great submission. "Dear Syamasundara," 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 Maharaja and lodge a complaint against You.
If Nanda Maharaja does not take action, then we shall tell King
Kamsa about Your misbehavior."
Upon hearing this appeal by the unmarried gopis, Krsna 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 with My father,
I shall not care anyway, for I know My father is old and cannot
take any action against Me."
When the gopis saw that Krsna 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
Krsna immediately became pleased with them. All the unmarried
gopis who prayed to Katyayani to have Krsna as their husband
were thus satisfied. A woman cannot be naked before any male
except her husband. The unmarried gopis desired Krsna 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 Yamuna. Because of
this, the predominating deity of the Yamuna, Varunadeva, has
become displeased with you. Please, therefore, just touch your
foreheads with folded palms and bow down before the demigod
Varuna in order to be excused from this offensive act." The
gopis were all simple souls, and whatever Krsna said they took
to be true. In order to be freed from the wrath of Varunadeva,
as well as to fulfill the desired end of their vows and
ultimately to please their worshipable Lord, Krsna, they
immediately abided by His order. Thus they became the greatest
lovers of Krsna, and His most obedient servitors.
Nothing can compare with the Krsna consciousness of the gopis.
Actually, the gopis did not care for Varuna or any other
demigod; they only wanted to satisfy Krsna. Krsna became very
ingratiated and satisfied by the simple dealings of the gopis,
and He immediately delivered their respective garments, one
after another. Although Krsna cheated the young unmarried gopis
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 gopis
is described by Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu when He prays, "My
dear Lord Krsna, 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 gopis toward Krsna.
Lord Krsna 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 Katyayani, 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-samhita: karmani nirdahati
kintu ca bhakti-bhajam [Bs. 5.54]. 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 gopis' attitude toward Krsna,
although seemingly lusty, should not be considered to be like
the lusty desires of ordinary women. The reason is explained by
Krsna Himself. Activities in devotional service to Krsna are
transcendental to any fruitive result.
"My dear gopis," Krsna continued, "your desire to have Me as
your husband will be fulfilled because it is with this desire
that you worshiped Goddess Katyayani. 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."
Later Krsna, in the company of His cowherd boyfriends, took
shelter of the shade of some trees and became very happy.
Thus He addressed the inhabitants of
Vrndavana: "My dear Stoka-krsna, My dear Varuthapa, My
dear Bhadrasena, My dear Sridama, My dear Subala, My dear
Arjuna, My dear Visala, My dear Vrsabha -- just look at these
most fortunate trees of Vrndavana. 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 fatigue 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 -- for the welfare of all living entities.
"
Thus the Supreme Personality of Godhead walked on the bank of
the Yamuna, 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 Krsna 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 toleration of the tree is
explained by Lord Krsna Himself, and those who are engaged in
the preaching of Krsna consciousness should learn lessons from
the teachings of Lord Krsna and Lord Caitanya through Their
direct disciplic succession.
While passing through the forest of Vrndavana on the bank of
the Yamuna, Krsna sat down at a beautiful spot and allowed the
cows to drink the cold and transparent water of the Yamuna.
Being fatigued, the cowherd boys, Krsna and Balarama also drank.
After seeing the young gopis bathe in the Yamuna, Krsna
passed the rest of the morning with the boys.
Thus ends the Bhaktivedanta purport of the Twenty-second
Chapter of Krsna, "Stealing the Garments of the Unmarried Gopi
Girls."
|