A Friend Will Help You Move

By krishnasmercy on March 19, 2026 • ( 0 )

“It is not proper to remain in this place. Let us go to another great forest, as here we have seen numerous calamities which are causes of ruin. The destruction of Putana and the reversal of the cart, and similarly the falling of the trees without the intervention of the wind. Therefore, let us without delay depart from Gokula to Vrindavana, where the earthly calamities will not overpower us.” (Vishnu Purana, 5.6.22-24)

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स्थानेनेह न नः कार्यं व्रजामो ऽन्यन् महावनम्
उत्पाता बहवो ह्य् अत्र दृश्यन्ते नाशहेतवः

पूतनाया विनाशश् च शकटस्य विपर्ययः
विना वातादिदोषेण द्रुमयोः पतनं तथा

वृन्दावनम् इतः स्थानात् तस्माद् गच्छाम मा चिरम्
यावद् भौममहोत्पातदोषो नाभिभवेद् व्रजम्

sthāneneha na naḥ kāryaṃ vrajāmo ‘nyan mahāvanam
utpātā bahavo hy atra dṛśyante nāśahetavaḥ

pūtanāyā vināśaś ca śakaṭasya viparyayaḥ
vinā vātādidoṣeṇa drumayoḥ patanaṃ tathā

vṛndāvanam itaḥ sthānāt tasmād gacchāma mā ciram
yāvad bhaumamahotpātadoṣo nābhibhaved vrajam

The decision was made. That judgment was final. The people carefully considered the matter. It is not like they were reaching this point hastily. Rather than remain in the comfortable position, with everything where it always is, in comfortable surroundings, the moment called for an abrupt shift. The people would move to a great forest, mahavana, and all for the welfare and safety of one person. That person happens to be our longstanding friend, since time immemorial. We have forgotten His kindness, His grace, His guiding hand, and His close presence, but saintly people of the Vaishnava tradition and the books they study, such as Shrimad Bhagavatam, are here to remind us.

श्री-भगवान् उवाच
बहूनि मे व्यतीतानि
जन्मानि तव चार्जुन
तान्य् अहं वेद सर्वाणि
न त्वं वेत्थ परन्तप

śrī-bhagavān uvāca
bahūni me vyatītāni
janmāni tava cārjuna
tāny ahaṁ veda sarvāṇi
na tvaṁ vettha parantapa

“The Blessed Lord said: Many, many births both you and I have passed. I can remember all of them, but you cannot, O subduer of the enemy!” (Bhagavad-gita, 4.5)

In a hypothetical case, we have a person who has one line they are not willing to cross. It is not drawn in the sand. It is firm. The line was not always there, but past experiences warranted a change. You see, this person refuses to help anyone move. They really mean it. Any person. Be it a friend, a child, a parent, or even an elderly neighbor, they will not lift a finger. Past experiences serve as justification. They offer the following testimony when questioned on their policy.

“I am sorry, but I am never doing that again. It has to be the worst experience of all time. They say that a friend will help you move, and a best friend will help you move a body. I am here to tell you that if you were really my friend, you would never ask me to help you move. I cannot stand the chaos. I have no idea how to pack anything. I will scuff the walls when trying to move furniture. I will break things. I will cut my hands. My back will take days to recover. I have been roped into these tasks before, where nothing was organized. Even packing the items in the kitchen takes forever. Your so-called friend always waits until the last minute, too. They have to move out by the next morning, after you start the task at midnight.

“I even offer an alternative. I will give you money to hire movers. Seriously, I will help you pay someone else to take my place. For some reason, no one accepts that offer. They get insulted. They are uncomfortable with strangers touching their stuff. Hello, how do you think this precious stuff was manufactured? Strangers built it in a factory. Strangers delivered it to your door. Strangers assembled it. Now, suddenly your dirty, worn, and used stuff is too precious to be touched by strangers? Get outta here!”

While possibly time-consuming, tedious, and painstaking, the move also has the potential to be purifying. A fresh start. A new chapter in life. An opportunity to start over. Hopefully, there is an improvement. Better living conditions. A safer neighborhood. Closer proximity to points of interest, such as restaurants, supermarkets, and mass transportation hubs.

For the people of Gokula, the primary issue was safety. Instead of forcing others to help them move for a personal interest, everything was for the safety of Krishna. Though He was the son of Nanda and Yashoda, Krishna was like the adopted child for every family. He was the friend to every child. He was the well-wisher and protector of the cows and the calves. For this reason, He was known by such names as Govinda and Gopala.

The one problem was that Krishna kept finding danger. He was right in the middle, though there was no personal harm done. There was no worry on Krishna’s part. You would think that two large trees falling in front of Him would make Him cry. Perhaps startle Him or make Him hesitant to move around. Nope. Krishna was just fine, as moments prior He had broken a pot of butter in anger. He was subsequently discovered feeding some of the butter He stole to the monkeys of the neighborhood. This then led to a chase, with the mother in hot pursuit of the subject who was her son. Yashoda eventually won, though she had a difficult time implementing her chosen form of punishment. It was not until Krishna subtly agreed that the ropes became long enough to bind Him. These were ropes of love.

“Mother Yashoda wanted to impress upon Krishna that since He was afraid merely to see her stick, He should not perform such disturbing activities as breaking the container of yogurt and butter and distributing its contents to the monkeys.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 10.9.12 Purport)

Perhaps by binding Krishna to a mortar, earning Him the name of Damodara, the mother could return to her housework without worrying. Where could Krishna go? He was tied to a mortar, after all? Next thing you know the two trees in the courtyard are down, with Krishna right at the center. He is unharmed, though. If investigated as a crime scene, one might suspect that Krishna was involved in the collapse. But how? The children said they saw Krishna cause the trees to fall, but the elders could not believe it.

Since Krishna’s safety came first, the logical decision was to shift places. There were similar falls that occurred previously. Krishna survived. Krishna did not skip a beat, in fact, but why take chances? Perhaps in Vrindavana the threat of earthly calamities would cease. If Krishna was safe, then the people would be happy. This is the meaning of pure devotion.