Ananda Vrindavan Champu

Chapter Six Binding Sri Krsna

Deliverance of the Yamala-arjuna Trees

The following episode occurred one day during Krsna's transcendental pastimes in Gokula. Though any number of maidservants could have done this chore, Yasoda tactfully engaged them elsewhere in order to show her expertise in preparing butter. With her own hands, which appeared as soft and elegant as lotus flowers, Yasoda personally churned butter for her beloved boy.

The beauty of her delicate arms put lotus stems to shame. As she rhyth­mically pulled the ropes back and forth, the jingling of her emerald-stud­ded bangles resounded like the bells on the feet of a dancer. As Yasoda's hair loosened and became wet from the exertion of churning, it looked like the opened tail feathers of a jubilant peacock. When her hair braid untied, the jewels, flowers, and peacock feathers decorating it fell on the ground. As shooting stars beautify the dense darkness of night, similarly, these falling items increased the beauty of the earth.

The necklace on her raised breasts swung back and forth with the move­ments of her blouse. The shining effulgence emanating from her jeweled-earrings appeared like a constant flow of nectar. Bathed in the sweet mellow of maternal affection, Yasoda's neck and shoulders looked ex­ceedingly beautiful. The ornamental belt surrounding her highly raised hips appeared captivating. The radiant gems and tinkling bells on that belt further increased its elegance. Drenched in a river of devotional per­spiration, Yasoda's delicate body looked delightful. The sweetness of this scene defeated the beauty of seeing a swarm of intoxicated bees buzzing over a blooming lotus flower.

A loud sound resembling the roaring of the ocean rose out of the wide mouth of Yasoda's butter pot. The drops of yogurt spilling out of the pot and falling on the golden border of Yasoda's sari made it look even more attractive. As Yasoda passed the time remembering Krsna, she recalled the enchanting look in her son's eyes whenever He got caught stealing butter. At that time He would proudly say, "Mother, you should know that I am expert in this art of stealing."

Krsna felt hungry and anxious to drink Yasoda's breast milk. In a threat­ening voice, Krsna said, "Either you stop to feed Me or I will break the churning pot." Suddenly, the one who chums the hearts of everyone in creation forcefully caught the churning rod. Yasoda stopped, sat Krsna on her lap, and happily fed Him. While gazing at His, loosely hanging curly dark blue hair, Yasoda's heart swelled with appreciation of Krsna's wonderfully gentle nature.

Just at that time in the kitchen some boiling milk foamed up in a pot. Fearing it might spill over, Yasoda left her son and ran to the kitchen. This deeply pierced the core of Krsna's heart. Becoming angry, He picked up a rock and broke the butter pot. Churned butter flowed in all direc­tions across the floor.

In a fearful yet playful mood Krsna ran through the butter and romped from room to room engaging in more mischief. Stealthily entering the milk storeroom, Krsna quickly ate small amounts of freshly churned but­ter from various pots. From relishing His favorite food He soon felt satis­fied and gave up His anger. Then Sri Hari, who is worshiped by all the demigods, snatched a pot of butter and ran into the courtyard.

The pastimes Krsna enjoyed at this time appeared to be classic perfor­mances on a dramatic stage. While standing on a grinding mortar in the courtyard and anxiously looking around for mother Yasoda, Krsna fed fresh butter to all the assembled children and monkeys. The fortunate Yasoda, whose jewel-like son benedicts the entire creation, took the boil­ing milk off stove and returned to Krsna.

The fame of attaining Krsna as her son enhanced the brilliant beauty of Yasoda's body. She wanted to embrace her son and console Him, but not finding Him there she became morose. In a mood of lamentation she frantically searched everywhere for Krsna. She found some broken pots emitting innumerable streams of yogurt that flowed across the floor mak­ing it slippery and white in color. Out of anger, Krsna had smashed many clay pots, which now lay strewn on the floor in hundreds of pieces.

Mother Yasoda thought, "Alas! What has happened? Why is this yogurt pot broken?" At first she could not understand, but upon seeing a small. rock she concluded that Krsna had perpetrated this naughty act. With a look of surprise mother Yasoda touched the tip of her nose with the index finger of her beautiful left hand and thought, "How could my child show such impudence? I tried so patiently to train Him properly, so how could He behave so horribly."

Although no impurities resided in her heart, Yasoda appeared to mani­fest a special form of motherly pride. Showing false anger, she thought, "The glories of my son's transcendental pastimes are unlimited. His every action increases His own pride and pleasure while simultaneously creat­ing a festival for one and all. He derives boundless happiness by His con­stant pastimes of stealing."

As soon as Krsna, who enchants the demigods with His beautiful body the color of a monsoon cloud, saw mother Yasoda coming out of the house, He jumped up in fear and ran away as fast as possible. Expertly under­standing the human-like nature of her son, Yasoda chased after Him call­ing, "Stop running! Stop! 0 You foremost cheater in the world!"

Krsna kept looking fearfully back over His shoulder while running away from Yasoda. Though Yasoda felt fatigued and mentally distressed, her body, arms, and legs looked very beautiful as she pursued her mischie­vous son. Full of pride and anger, Yasoda continued shouting to Krsna, "Stop You thief and liar! How can you carry on like this? Where are You going?. Just stop running and stand where You are!"

Krsna said, "I will stop if you drop your stick." After saying this Krsna stopped running away, but kept a safe distance from His mother. Yasoda said, "If You are so afraid of being punished, then why did You break my yogurt pot today?"

Krsna said, "I will never do it again. Now just drop the stick from your hand." Yasoda's mind turned into an abode of amazement as she tried to approach her son. But seeing her angry mood, Krsna quickly ran away again while speaking in a distressed tone, "Mother! Please drop that big stick and do not punish Me! 0 sinless one, if you do this I will come to you." After hearing Krsna's innocent appeal Yasoda dropped the stick.

Seeing this, Krsna stopped running. Absorbed in watching Krsna's tran­scendental pastimes, the immortal denizens of heaven felt totally amazed. One can easily understand how powerful demigods like Lord Brahma, who lives for trillions of years, became upset and bewildered upon seeing Krsna's pastime of showing fear before His mother. They could not fathom how the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is feared by fear personi­fied, ran away in fear of a stick in His mother's hand.

The fine hairs curling over Yasoda's face dripped with perspiration and her blouse moved from her heavy breathing. Her hair hung loose from running and her lotus face appeared exhausted. When she caught Krsna's hand He said, "Mother please do not beat Me." While saying this Krsna rubbed His tear-filled lotus eyes with His delicate palms which resembled the petals of a fresh lotus flower.

With a choked voice Krsna slowly uttered some sweet yet indistinct words that came out from His beautiful mouth like drops of nectar falling from the full moon. Indeed, it was a maryelous sight to see Krsna becoming overwhelmed in fear and crying helplessly. Yasoda thought, "If I do not bind Him immediately, He may run away into the deep forest." Yasoda •then brought a grinding mortar and considered how to bind the one of boundless glories. Observing this, Krsna beamed an attractive smile.

Yasoda ordered some maidservants, "0 Kurangavati and Lavangavati, fetch some smooth soft rope made of jute." The attempt of Vrajesvari Yasoda to bind Krsna, the ever well-wisher of the whole creation, immersed her in an ocean of joy. Soon many opulently dressed elderly gopis the embodiments of limitless motherly affection, came there along with sev­eral curious boys with clean, beautiful curly hair.

Mother Yasoda tied many ropes together but they always measured two inches too short. Surprisingly, no matter how many ropes she collected they remained two inches too short. She said, "Alas! This small distance seems to have become as vast as Brahma's universe. The Supreme Lord enacts this pastime by His personal energy to display His unlimited power."

Observing this wonderful incident, the elderly gopis tried to relieve Yasoda's anxiety by saying, "0 Yasoda! You are the most blessed one in creation. A minute ago you tied a small golden belt around Krsna's thin waist, but now you cannot bind him with all the ropes in your house! Despite the number of ropes you tie together, they always end/up two inches too short. There is some strange cause behind this phenomena, so you better stop trying to bind your son."

In great astonishment Yasoda addressed the gopis, "0 Vraja gopisi I have no more ropes, so please bring all the ropes stored in your houses." It was not out of fear that the gopis gave all their ropes to Yasoda, but they did so in order to see Krsna's glorious transcendental character and relish His blissful pastimes. Feigning anger, Yasoda took all the addi­tional ropes and tried again to bind her naughty son. While enjoying this scene, the doe-eyed housewives of Vrndavana laughed quietly while se­cretly tasting a special joy in their hearts.

All the blissful moods of spiritual love harmonized in Krsna's childhood pastimes. Though Krsna's hands were very delicate, His eyes soon pained from continually rubbing the tears falling from them. In a choked up voice He spoke some richly sweet words that captivated the minds of all. Fi­nally, Krsna cried in a gentle, honey sweet voice. Empathizing with Krsna, close friends like Subala also wept along with their bosom friend.

Yasoda's heart palpitated with her heavy breathing, her hair loosened, and the flowers fell to the ground. Perspiring, tired, overwhelmed, snd her labors frustrated, Yasoda sat down to rest and figure out how to tie up Krsna. A short time later she tried again to bind her matchless son. The elderly gopis, having lost all desire to return to their homes, stood mo­tionless while staring at Krsna with unblinking eyes.

Now all the ropes in Vrndavana joined in a fruitless attempt to bind the master of the universe. It is impossible to tie up bliss, wisdom, power, and consciousness, so how can anyone tie up Krsna who is made of nothing but bliss, wisdom, power, and consciousness? How could Yasoda bind one who has no inside or outside, who is limitless, who has no beginning or end, who has infinite power, who is the totality of everything, who is com­pletely full and beyond any contamination, and who is within and outside everything? Viewing the situation, the all-powerful Supreme Lord decided to bestow His mercy upon Yasoda.

Even though mother Yasoda eagerly desired to tie up Krsna, she met no success despite her total exhaustion. The endeavor of a devotee to bind the Lord can only be successful with the Lord's sanction. All of Yasoda's work now bore fruit because Krsna, out of compassion for her, suddenly allowed Himself to be bound. Extending His mercy, He saved His be­loved mother from further anger and frustration.

Yasoda asked the assembled cowherd boys to watch Krsna to prevent Him from untying Himself and running away. Then Yasoda and the eld­erly fflpis entered her private chambers. The moment Yasoda left, Krsna stopped crying, and His face assumed a peaceful and effulgent glow like the luminous moonshine.

Krsna thought how to use His present bondage to fulfill a prophecy of Narada Muni. Previously Narada had cursed two intoxicated and inde­cent demigods named Nalakuvera and Manigriva to become trees. De­ciding to bestow His mercy upon them, Krsna dragged the grinding mor­tar. tied to His belly along the ground toward those two trees. Krsna's playmates cheerfully followed Him.

From a distance Krsna saw the two trees connected at the root. Simi­larly, a student will understand thatprakrti andpurusa originate from one source. As karma kanda andjriana kanda are separate paths, the two trees had different trunks. The Sama and Yajur Vedas have various divisions, and similarly, the two trees had many branches. As a great king has the qualities of valor and achievement, as a mountain range possesses steadi­ness, and as a cluster of clouds is laden with showers, similarly, these two trees displayed an abundance of natural opulence.

The demigods embodied in the two trees had become purified by suf­fering many years in that way, just as clouds abound in the rainy season and as water becomes clear and pure in autumn. As the universe is vast and broad, these trees stood stout and strong. Known as a pair of arfuna ^ees, they reminded everyone of the great heroes Arjuna and Kartavirya. "keNakula and Sahadeva, these two trees were also twins. Seeing Krsna moving towards the huge trees, His friends said, "Perhaps Krsna cannot tolerate the scorching sunshine so He is seeking shelter under those shady trees."

While His friends spoke thus, Krsna pulled the mortar over and it got c between the two trees. He who annihilates all pretenders appeared Pendid with His curly hair hanging loosely over His shoulders. Though Kṛṣṇa’s body is pure and spotless. His character is colored with wonderful colours or rasa.

With a slight jerk of the mortar Krsna easily uprooted those huge trees in a moment. A loud cracking sound filled the air when the trees solit open. As a person pokes a hole in a clay pot, that unique vibration, which conquered all other sounds, raced through the sky to puncture a hole in the coverings of the universe. The sound exactly resembled the terrible noise produced by the fierce thunderbolts crashing at the time of devasta­tion. Krsna remained calm and joyful amidst the tremendous tumult.

Krsna is eternally free, but He appeared to be bound to a grinding mor­tar. His character is eternally pure, but it was stained by His pastimes of stealing. Although He can liberate anyone trapped in material existence He was bound by the loving affection of His mother.

At that time two effulgent persons emerged from the trees. Delivered from their curse, the two demigods offered prayers to Krsna, "0 embodi­ment of eternity and boundless bliss. You appear more attractive than a cluster of soft, beautiful dark blue rain clouds. All glories to You! All glories to You! No one can understand the mysteries of Your transcen­dental pastimes. You have appeared on earth just to enact Your splendid spiritual sports. Along with Your appearance came many mighty demons eager to fight with You. However You always exhibited greater power and easily defeated them in an artistic fashion.

"Even though just a tender boy, You have personally uprooted these two massive arjuna trees. You are definitely one without a second. You pour mercy upon everyone and bestow abundant affection to the fallen. As a common man enjoys different playful sports, You relish wonderful varieties of rasa in all Your pleasantly artistic transcendental pastimes.

"Truly You are the embodiment of auspiciousness appearing in Vrndavana to benedict all the Vrajavasis. The moon, lord of the stars, becomes totally afflicted upon seeing the beautiful radiance of Your moon-like face. The natural glow of Your attractive lips surpasses the reddish color of a bimba fruit. You delight learned sages by cutting the dense vines of ignorance with the axe of Your mercy.

"Human intelligence cannot penetrate the fathomless ocean of Your transcendental pastimes. But one can attain Your lotus feet by following pure devotees. The words of the lotus-bom Brahma, the blue-throated Mahadeva, and other demigods are always ornamented with descriptions of Your transcendental qualities. While Your effulgence alone displays complete and unlimited power, You personally perform various playful pastimes. Strands of jeweled necklaces adorn Your broad chest. Your fes' deride the purity of land lotuses. Although You appear in specific forms in all four yugas, You have as many unlimited names and forms as there are stars in the sky. As the white incarnation Your glorious deeds wer pure and faultless.

"0 Lord of the three worlds! You quickly satisfy the desires of all materialistic people who proudly proclaim, "This is mine!” 0 master! We offer our respectful obeisances unto You. In this whole creation who can compare with You? You are one without a second! 0 Supreme Personality of Godhead! Who is not bewildered by Your illusory energy? 0 enchanter of all minds! You astonish everyone with Your matchless ability to do the impossible.

"Oh bliss personified! 0 darling son of Nanda Maharaja! As the crest-jewel among all the immortals who wander through the pleasure groves of Vrndavana You perform superexcellent pastimes. Though using the choic­est Sanskrit slokas, the best of sages fail to properly praise You.

"You exist simultaneously as formless bliss and bliss personified. In ei­ther gross or subtle forms. You alone exist everywhere. You exhilarate both Your humble servants and the realized souls. The incessant stream of consciousness flowing from Your lotus feet looks like a form of the nectarean Mandakini (celestial Ganges). Please shelter us under Your splendidly sweet lotus feet, and destroy all attachments preventing this.

"0 friend of the distressed! We have no desire other than the desire to touch the pollen dust on Your lotus feet. Narada's curse turned into our greatest boon. Association with sadhus who intensely yearn for Your ser­vice, therefore, always gives good results. May our words perpetually glo­rify You. May our minds be forever fixed on Your lotus feet. May our ears be constantly absorbed in hearing Your teachings.

"What more can we say? Now that all our senses are engaged in pleas­ing You, we can relish the nectar of Your loving service. Narada Muni, that saintly honeybee who always drinks the nectar of Your feet, has re­leased rain clouds of mercy upon us by His apparent curse. You, who display Your attractive pastimes in thousands of universes, have kindly allowed such fallen souls as us to see them.

"0 Lord! Who can describe the immense fortune of Your mother who bound You to this mortar? What more can we say? Even Lord Brahma, Lord Siva, Indra, and all the exalted sages in the universe do not possess even a fraction of a grain of the good fortune of mother Yasoda. 0 om­nipotent one! Even the greatest jnanis, vedantists, and yogis cannot un­derstand You. But You quickly avail Yourself to premi-bhaktas intent on hearing Your transcendental pastimes as Nandanandana.

“O Lord! We want to become completely attached to Your lotus feet. we beg You to please reveal within in our hearts the right prayer to in this. Alas! Show us how to live righteously by accepting the results of our good and bad karma." Praying thus the demigods proceeded Northward and disappeared. Then the twin arjuna trees crashed to the ground. Their falling such a terrible sound that it deafened the village ladies as well as the four elephants controlling the four directions of the heavenly planet All the Vrajavasis felt fearful. The sweet taste of bliss that Vrajesvari Yasoda and the Vrajavasis had previously relished now suddenly disan peared. Becoming bewildered and fearing another calamity, they stormed their duties and rushed to that place.

When they saw the huge fallen trees they thought perhaps mother earth offered dandavats to Krsna-kumara with the arms of these tree trunks The split open trees looked like the gaping mouth of the lower planetary system. Its two branches appeared like two huge snakes rising up and desiring to go in different directions. The two trees seemed like the dead bodies of the demons Madhu and Kaitabha thrown on the ground by the Lord Himself. When the Vrajavasis found Krsna, He appeared calm, fear­less, and free from danger. Though only a child, Krsna looked like a price­less jewel ornamenting mother earth, and assuring Her of protection by His very presence.

At that time the Vrajavasis thought, "0 what is this? How have these huge arjuna trees suddenly fallen without being pushed down by the wind? In a second they could have crushed and killed Krsna. But Krsna just stands peacefully between them looking as fresh as a newly formed rain cloud. It is our good fortune that nothing has happened to Him.

"For a long time these two trees have stood here troubling others. Now due to old age their roots have become rotten, and they toppled over from the weight of their leaves and branches. But upon closer examina­tion, we see this is not the reason because the roots, branches, and leaves are all fresh and hard." In various ways the Vrajavasis tried to evaluate the situation.

While deeply drinking the pure nectar of Krsna's wonderful pastimes, Nanda Maharaja's face beamed with transcendental delight. The mind of Krsna also danced in jubilation over His recent exploit. Vrajaraja Nanda untied Krsna from the mortar and placed Him on his lap. Then the expert and learned Nanda scolded his wife, "Nandarani, You have made a big mistake!" But suddenly Nanda Maharaja remembered Garga Munis prophecy that Krsna equals Narayana, and that all the scriptures pro­claim His transcendental qualities. Thinking thus, Nanda concluded that no one but his son could have done this amazing feat.

The friends of Krsna said, "Hey look what Krsna has done. Our spotless hero has done something impossible. Afraid of His mother, Krsna dragged the mortar over here. Then it got stuck between these two trees and Krsna uprooted them." None of the assembled Vrajavasis believed the words of the innocent children.

Taking auspicious articles such as rice, arghya, and durva grass, Nan worshiped Krsna, who is the source and bestower of all benedictions and who surpasses Narayana in good qualities. Afterwards Nanda brought Kṛṣṇa back home to the accompaniment of musicians playing drums and cymbals.