Five Ways To Look Down At The People Of Gokula

By krishnasmercy on March 18, 2024 • ( 0 )

“My dear father, I am very respectfully and humbly inquiring. What is this arrangement? Why you are busy in making some sacrificial ceremony, what is the reason, and what is the result? For whose benefit is it and by what means will it be accomplished?” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 10.24.3)

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कथ्यतां मे पित: कोऽयं सम्भ्रमो व उपागत:
किं फलं कस्य वोद्देश: केन वा साध्यते मख:

kathyatāṁ me pitaḥ ko ’yaṁ
sambhramo va upāgataḥ
kiṁ phalaṁ kasya voddeśaḥ
kena vā sādhyate makhaḥ

1. They farm for a living

“Seriously, they love cows. Why that particular animal over all the others? Who knows? They live simply and produce grains. They follow the barter system in that manner. The grains are something like their currency. Trade one thing for something else. There is the documented interaction with the fruit vendor. For some reason, she accepted only a small handful of grains in exchange for an abundance of fruit. This trade took place with a child, no less. Weird. Who would do that?

फलविक्रयिणी तस्य च्युतधान्यकरद्वयम् ।
फलैरपूरयद् रत्नै: फलभाण्डमपूरि च ॥

phala-vikrayiṇī tasya
cyuta-dhānya-kara-dvayam
phalair apūrayad ratnaiḥ
phala-bhāṇḍam apūri ca

“While Krishna was going to the fruit vendor very hastily, most of the grains He was holding fell. Nonetheless, the fruit vendor filled Krishna’s hands with fruits, and her fruit basket was immediately filled with jewels and gold.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 10.11.11)

2. They are not overly educated

“I mean they are not necessarily bad people; at least how I see it. They are probably not evil, but what can you really learn from them? They have no education of which to speak. They can show you how to milk cows, how to cook, how to manage the fields, but any person can do those things. It does not require great skill.

“These folks are kind of backwards, if you want to be honest. They think their little village is everything, that there is nothing more to life. At least that is how they behave. They probably settled into this way because they do not know any better. They lack sufficient means to travel the world, to explore everything this creation has to offer. They cling to their religion and its outdated traditions.”

3. They believe in superstition

“These people worship imaginary figures. They call out the various names of their beloved god whenever they are in trouble. For instance, if they feel that their favorite child has encountered evil spirits, they recite the different names of this person named Vishnu. They reference a different name of the same Vishnu to supposedly protect different parts of the body. A little out there, if you ask me. Oh, and don’t forget the cow urine. Don’t ask me how they came up with something so crazy.”

“When the gopis saw little Krishna fearlessly playing on Putana’s lap, they very quickly came and picked Him up. Mother Yashoda, Rohini, and other elderly gopis immediately performed the auspicious rituals by taking the tail of a cow and circumambulating His body. The child was completely washed with the urine of a cow, and the dust created by the hooves of the cows was thrown all over His body. This was all just to save little Krishna from future inauspicious accidents.” (Krishna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vol 1, Ch 6)

4. They are ungrateful

“These are supposedly good people. They are honest folk. They are simple, yet dedicated. Well, just see how ungrateful they are. They decided to skip the regular yajna in honor of Indra, the king of heaven. What kind of appreciation is that? The rain means everything to them. Their little farm wonderland would be nothing if not for the benedictions kindly bestowed by Indra. They think that somehow they can go it alone, that they don’t need the heavens to help them. You wouldn’t expect such impudence from people who have so few luxuries in life.”

5. They follow the advice of a child

“As if you needed further evidence of their lack of intelligence, these people think the blue-complexioned youth named Krishna is some mystical genius. They literally listen to whatever He says. The leader sets the example. The father, Nanda Maharaja, transitions the worship paraphernalia towards Govardhana Hill. He deliberately leads the people towards hell by intentionally insulting Indra, the king of heaven. Not very smart, if you ask me.”

…

To look down at someone is not difficult. Just by observing how a person walks, we can find ways to criticize. If a person acts in a certain way, it means that they do not act in other ways. This creates a potential for offense by omission. I overlooked someone. I slighted them. I ignored their influence. I failed to pay the proper amount of respect.

As much as someone might look down upon innocent devotees of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, we see from the first Govardhana Puja that such surrendered souls are fully protected. Why should someone in a position of power look down upon dependents? Does that not indicate the worst version of a person? Does that not show a lack of appreciation, compassion, honesty, and due deliberation?

Yet, this is precisely what took place. One side was protected by Krishna and the other side was not. The other side thought they could punish those lowly village people. The ones who were too dumb to know what was good for them at least had the inclination to follow the advice of Krishna.

The supposedly superior party then lost their cool. They instigated a terrible downpour. A resulting flood to wash away an entire village. The intent was clear. The damage was in the works. The delivery model was proposed, executed, and in place. Simply the result had to manifest, but that was a mere formality.

Except it was not. Shri Krishna lifted Govardhana Hill. Shri Krishna had originally suggested that worship, based on a few innocent questions, pertaining to the desired fruit of religious activity. The people followed in allegiance; without malice. They were not looked down upon in the eyes of the person whose judgment matters most.