“When King Indra ordered the samvartaka and companion clouds to go to Vrindavana, the clouds were afraid of the assignment. But King Indra assured them, ‘You go ahead, and I will also go, riding on my elephant, accompanied by great storms. And I shall apply all my strength to punish the inhabitants of Vrindavana.’” (Krishna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Volume 1, Chapter 25)

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“If you could not tell by now, Govardhana-puja is likely my favorite annual celebration of the Vedic tradition. It typically falls somewhere in October or November, aligning with the Kartik month of the lunar calendar. The food is not everything. Sure, the sight of fifty-six kinds of offerings, the chhapan-bhoga, immediately triggers delight in the senses, from the anticipation alone. But for me it is the origin of the tradition, in what took place in Gokula-Vrindavana some five thousand years ago, that really hits home.

“It feels as if the Supreme Lord Himself was giving the middle finger to tradition followed blindly. He was saying that the foundation of religion should be more than just fear. We should not be relegated to mind-numbed robots who simply go along with what everyone else is doing. We should pause from time to time to consider just who and what benefits us. We should contemplate the highest goal in life and how to meet that goal.

“To give a brief synopsis, the people of the area were preparing for a formal worship ceremony in honor of Indra, the king of heaven. Even if you don’t believe in the presence of individuals serving as administrators of the various aspects of the material creation, you can at least appreciate the role that rainfall plays in sustaining life. In one sense, the rain is everything. The people were appreciating the maker of the rain, in a formal way.

“A young Krishna, who had no sway other than His charm and His words innocently delivered, managed to convince the leader of the community to worship a nearby hill, instead. This was a literal swap in worship ceremonies. Take everything for Indra and approach Govardhana, instead. Govardhana was good to the cows. The cows were good to the people. The leader, Nanda Maharaja, who happened to also be Krishna’s father, agreed.

“The worship part went well. It was the aftermath that did not go swimmingly, no pun intended. Indra retaliated by giving the people more rain than they could ever imagine. It was worse than those flashfloods we see today. Krishna established the tradition, and so He showed there was an insurance policy supporting everything. Krishna lifted Govardhana Hill and held it as an umbrella, to protect the people.

“What bothers me is the forgiveness that took place. Sure, Indra apologized, but see how people are known to react today. They want the worst things to happen to criminals. No mercy shown. Even after the perpetrator dies, the resentment remains. Why wasn’t the same happening for Indra? Why is he still the king of heaven? Why does an attempted murderer get off so easy? How can Krishna, who is supposed to be the Supreme Lord, be associated with a character like that?”

The better question to ask is how someone with so much was envious of people with so little. Nanda was running a farm community, after all. The people were wealthy with their cows and their grain. They used the barter system to conduct commerce. Even the young Krishna participated, as He one time innocently tried to bring grain as payment to a fruit vendor. Most of the grain fell by the time He reached the vendor, but she did not mind. She filled His hands with fruit, regardless, showing that she did not want anything in return from the loving child.

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)

The people were still living in a village, after all. And you can’t really get higher than the king of heaven; at least not in the material world. Think of the influence you wield. Think of the connection you have to life itself. Good and bad, high and low, leader and follower, man and woman, adult and child, alike all rely on the rain. You are in one of the most respectable and responsible positions there can be.

Despite the elevation, there was still vulnerability to pettiness. The people meant no disrespect. They were not flaunting their move away from the Indra-yajna. They were still appreciating. It is not like they suddenly took to atheism and attributed the wonders of the universe to magic or some mythological concept like chemicals randomly colliding to create intelligent and self-sustaining systems. The people were good. The people were pure. The people were innocent.

Indra still attacked them. This shows that vulnerability to poor behavior is not dependent on economic status or elevation in terms of residence. As Krishna Himself describes, every planet in the material world, from the highest to the lowest, features birth and death. When there is birth and death, there are other dualities like happiness and sadness, contentment and resentment, and calmness and agitation.

आ-ब्रह्म-भुवनाल् लोकाः
पुनर् आवर्तिनो ऽर्जुन
माम् उपेत्य तु कौन्तेय
पुनर् जन्म न विद्यते

ā-brahma-bhuvanāl lokāḥ
punar āvartino ‘rjuna
mām upetya tu kaunteya
punar janma na vidyate

“From the highest planet in the material world down to the lowest, all are places of misery wherein repeated birth and death take place. But one who attains to My abode, O son of Kunti, never takes birth again.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 8.16)

There would be no reason for a wise person to hold resentment against Indra. Even the devas are vulnerable to committing mistakes. If you are going to mess up, might as well do it in an extraordinary way. You might as well take part in something that will be remembered forever. Whenever we think of Govardhana Puja, we think of the obstacle that Krishna overcame. The person presenting that obstacle automatically becomes part of the story.

In Closing:

Even from vengeful wrath to wage,
To share the transcendental stage.

Part of most auspicious tale,
How his attack brilliantly to fail.

Against villagers innocent and pure,
Of protection of their Krishna sure.

Govardhana lifted despite its might,
That vision bringing endless delight.

Categories: questions

Tags: dailyprompt, govardhana, hare krishna, poem, poems, poetry