Chapter XXXIV - 125 Home | Index | Previous | Next

The king fell at the sage's feet and continued, "Master! I have heard much, in various versions of sport and prank, of the Rasakrida (the Raasa dance) of Krishna, with the cowherd maids (the Gopis) of Brindavan. They appear to be sensual pastime of ordinary mortals. If such incidents had happened in truth, how can they be interpreted as divine? Are they not disapproved by the world? These incidents at Brindavan on the Yamuna banks, where such loose sensual, lascivious play was enacted, besmirch the divine nature of Krishna. I am afraid. It is said that ultimate release or Moksha can be attained only by those who transcend the Gunas or qualities. These Gopis were afflicted with qualities, and the desires born out of them, mostly sensual and objective. When it is said that the Gopis too were able to attain Moksha, it causes amazement; indeed, it appears even ridiculous! If, however, these immoral activities have some inner significance which justifies their being accepted as praiseworthy, please enlighten me."

When Parikshith prayed thus, Suka had a hearty laugh. He said, "O king! Do not think that You are afflicted by a doubt; it is much worse! For, those who have realised that Krishna is the Lord Himself will not entertain such doubts! This is the final period of the Dwapara Age; the Kali Age is beginning soon. It is the Kali spirit, the spirit of the age of wickedness that has entered into you, that has prompted you to lodge such ideas in your mind. Or else, you ad unshaken faith that Krishna is the sovereign supreme God. Every incident in His career shines in your heart with divine brilliance. The moment you recollect His name, you are overcome by joy and your thoughts merge in Him. So these doubts cannot arise in such as you! You are defiling your personality by them. Again, consider what type of person I am. You know that there is no place in my heart for activities born out of Gunas or the impulses created out of those qualities. Just consider how such a one as I is overpowered with supreme joy, when I contemplate the divine sport of Krishna with the Gopis! Consider how I praise the good fortune of the Gopis who got that precious companionship. Can they be ordinary sensual sport? Or are they the pure and genuine exuberance of divine intoxication? Think a while. Sensual exultation and divine exhilaration might appear the same, in their external manifestations, to the untrained eye. But, when the senses are transcended, when the individual and the universal have merged into one thought and consciousness, when all awareness of the body has been negated - to interpret these activities as objective and sensual is sheer stupidity, to say the least."

"A knife in the hands of a murderer is fraught with danger to all. A knife in the hands of a surgeon confers freedom from pain, though in both cases there is a hand that holds the knife. So too, the acts of those whose self is centred in the body are to be condemned; those of people whose self is centred in the Atma or inner reality are highly beneficent and praiseworthy."

"It all looked so peculiar, so extraordinary. Very often, it resembled lawlessness and sheer mischief. While walking in the eastern direction, his attention was fixed in the western direction! He conversed through His eyes; the flash of His eyes spoke out His plans and intentions. He did not care for human limitations and disciplines. He did not recognise the distinction between new and old acquaintances; He treated both alike. He did not respect kinship or yield to the demands of convention."

Next