“O sober Vidura, King Indra, his honor having been insulted, poured water incessantly on Vrindavana, and thus the inhabitants of Vraja, the land of cows, were greatly distressed. But the compassionate Lord Krishna saved them from danger with His pastime umbrella, the Govardhana Hill.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 3.2.33)

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वर्षतीन्द्रे व्रज: कोपाद्भग्नमानेऽतिविह्वल:
गोत्रलीलातपत्रेण त्रातो भद्रानुगृह्णता

varṣatīndre vrajaḥ kopād
bhagnamāne ’tivihvalaḥ
gotra-līlātapatreṇa
trāto bhadrānugṛhṇatā

1. They turned to atheism

“You know, it is all just make-believe. It is a good practice to follow, in general, but you have to accept the reality at some point. There is no magical observer beyond the clouds, overseeing everything. If we somehow skip the yajna this one year, it is not like anything bad will happen. Rain falls at the appropriate time. Rain falls when it is needed. Rain does not fall based on what the population of human beings does. It is good to think that way, to appreciate, but we have no obligation to supplicate some higher power that chooses to remain hidden behind the veil of nature.”

2. They decided to throw a party instead

“Hold on a second. We have these wonderful preparations. People went to all of this trouble. Why are we going to just give everything away? To some god that no one really believes in. Why should we live in fear of something that cannot be proven? Let’s just throw a celebration, instead. In honor of ourselves. We make this community work. We are the ones who deserve to be honored.”

3. They simply forgot

“I was thinking that yesterday might have been important. Like one of those special days on the calendar. Sure enough, I just checked and it was the time to conduct that religious sacrifice. You know, that yajna that we have dutifully followed, almost religiously, for many years now. We must have been caught up in the real world, in our personal affairs, such that we totally forgot. It is probably not a big deal. I think the higher powers will understand. We are human, after all.”

4. They cursed the previous benefactor

“What kind of god is this? He only distributes benedictions if he receives sufficient payment first? That sounds more like a businessman than a higher being. Just consider how miserly you must be to withhold something so vital like the rain. You will only part with something that means nothing to you if lowly and innocent people bow down and present offerings first? That does not sound like a good person to me. We should teach him a lesson.”

5. They attacked others for worshiping

“Stop it! Right now. Do not drop another oblation into that fire. You people are wasting your time. This god does not deserve anything from our community. We already made the announcement to skip this year. There are alternate plans. Why are you following through on something which is now forbidden? Do not step over to the dark side.”

…

In reliving the events surrounding the very first Govardhana-puja, which took place during the manifest lila of Shri Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, we cannot help but consider the perspective of the villain in that story. Though he is a deva, and though he is known to be aligned with Vishnu, for a brief period of time Indra attacked in a manner resembling the many asuras who were sent by King Kamsa to eliminate Krishna. Those wicked characters wanted to kill a child, based on a prediction which foretold the impending doom of the leader of Mathura. For his part, Indra actually went after an entire village of innocent people.

What justification would be acceptable? Just what offense could someone have committed to warrant sending the cloud of devastation, samvartaka, to the area near the hill known as Govardhana? What visual could trigger a god to exact revenge in such a forceful manner? No talking things out. No sending a messenger to inquire as to the nature of the disruption. No approaching a wise counsellor for advice.

The people skipped the Indra-yajna. The people transitioned their preparations towards Govardhana Hill. The people only did this because Shri Krishna, who was a young child, managed to ask a few innocent questions. There was a destination the son of Nanda was trying to reach. Krishna had a plan up His sleeve. He wanted Indra to take notice. As Krishna is satya-sankalpa, He knew just what to do in order to trigger rage in the king of heaven.

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

“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)

From the above reviewed hypothetical situations, we consider what might make an honest person upset over being neglected. If they happened to be in charge of something important like distributing rain, it would make sense to feel a bit insulted if the people brazenly ignored your influence. If they went in the wrong direction, on purpose, foolishly considering themselves to be entirely self-sufficient.

But the people of Vrindavana were different. There was no malice. They were following Krishna, and innocently, at that. They continued in the spirit of appreciation. They merely worshiped a hill instead of the king of heaven. That hill was good to the people. That hill was good to the cows. That hill was dear to Krishna. All angles were covered. There was nothing sinful about this approach, even if it was new.

Skipping a religious observance in honor of a deva might get you in trouble, but devotion to Krishna will always be worth it. Though the cloud of devastation should have easily fulfilled the wish of Indra, the very same Govardhana protected the people. It was uprooted and held in the air, resting on the pinky finger of the left hand of Nanda’s son. The hill became something like a pastime umbrella, to be forever celebrated thereafter.

In Closing:

On the pinky finger resting,
After samvartaka testing.

Intentionally at Govardhana placed,
Such that greatest danger faced.

But then on hand of Krishna graced,
Trouble immediately erased.

Whether Indra warranted or not,
Lesson with humiliation got.

Categories: the five

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