Son of a Vaishnav from South India
Varta 40 from 252 Vaishnavs
Once when Shri Gusainji was in south India, the son of a Vaishnava heard the guru speak on Shri Krishna's eternal Braja lila. Shri Gusainji told how while Gopal plays with His friends and herds the cows He dresses up as an actor and appears upon the stage of the world. Shri Gusainji also revealed Shri Krishna's Venu Gita, the song of the flute, as well as His return home in the late afternoon when mother Yashoda waves the arati lights around her precious son. The attentive son of the Vaishnava then innocently asked, "Do these lilas happen now?"
The guru explained, "Shri Krishna's lila's are eternal"From that moment the boy was absorbed in the thought of Shri Krishna's divine land of Braja, "When will I be able to go to Braja and witness Shri Krishna's lilas?" Some days later, that son of a Vaishnava left home and sent word to his parents "I have gone to Gokul and will return after seeing Shri Krishna's lilas."
He first went to Gokul and then pilgrimaged to the Govardhan hill. There he sat at a place Shri Gusainji had described and began looking for Shri Krishna thinking, "Krishna! Where are you. When will you come and see me?"
He sat there for hours. Late in the afternoon, he saw the local cow lads returning with their cows, but still did not see anything like Shri Gusainji described. The sun finally set and that son of the Vaishnava wondered, "Shri Gusainji would never lie, yet I have not seen a single Krishna lila."
He sat there for three days, waiting for Gopal to appear, his heart filling with divine affliction. After the sun set on the third day, as the boy pangs of separation increased, he thought, "If I can't see Shri Nathji, I will leave this unless body."
Meanwhile, Shri Nathji, the knower of all hearts, could no longer stand the boy's separation, "Now I must go and appear to him." At that moment, the boy saw the night suddenly transformed into dusk. The sun began peering through a cloud. The boy wondered, "Am I imagining this?" Then Shri Nathji's lila appeared to Him exactly as Shri Gusainji had described.
The young bhakta saw many cows, all with golden horns. Their eyes were wide and adorned with khol. There were countless groups of them and each hoof was plated with gold. Milk poured from their huge utters milk as they hastily made their way back to Braja, thinking of their darling calves. The dust raised from their hoof cover the entire realm.
Behind them followed thousands of cow lads. They were singing and playing instruments. Then the boy saw in their midst the astonding Shri Nathji. His arm was placed around Shri Dhama's shoulder. In front of Him was His brother Balram. Shri Nathji wore a crown of peacock feathers. Behind His ears were placed clusters of flowers. The Blessed Lord wore a yellow shawl. Many beautiful designs, all drawn with mineral colors, adorned His body. Shri Nathji curly locks were covered with the dust raised by the cows. His face was splendid beyond words, His lotus eyes produced a continual joy. Shri Krishna held a flute in His hand and His slight laugh astounded all of the cow lads.
Shri Nathji blessed him and then with His own hand, caught hold of him and brought that son of a Vaishnava into the lila. At that moment, he became part of Shri Krishna's party of friends. Shri Krishna escorted him to His divine home and kept him there for three days always close to His divine Self. He gave him many things to eat and drink and let the boy sleep next to Him. He was afforded unlimited pleasures.
In the lila, that boy is Gopdevi and is from the Kumari group of bhaktas.
When the boy became restless with the thought, "When can I return home and tell Shri Gusainji about this lila," Shri Nathji brought him back to this world, back to his home in south India.
Because that boy's parents were very fond of him, Shri Nathji brought him home. As long as there are attachments in this world, one can not be fully established in the eternal lila. Another reason for the boy's return is that Shri Gusainji wanted to demonstrate to the world that his words are true.
While Shri Gusainji was explaining the lila that the boy bhakta had just experience, he arrived there and bowed before his guru. After Shri Gusainji completed the account, he asked him, "We have not seen you for many days, Where did you go?"
After recounting his lila experiences, Shri Gusainji commented "His vessel is still a bit small for the colossal gift, so he could not stay there."The following morning the boy left his body and attained Shri Nathji's eternal abode. Know for sure that the land of Braja is utterly divine. One should never have any doubts concerning the bhaktas or the eternal lila land of Braja. It is realized with grace. Through Shri Gusainji intervention, Shri Nathji showers his grace upon divine souls.
That boy remains Shri Gusainji's great bhakta and Shri Krishna graced him
with lila darshan. There is no end to his tale. To what extent can we praise
him!
Also, it could be that Shri Gusainji renounced him at first to create a
viraha bhava, which is of course a fruit in itself. Hard to judge the actions
of the Great Ones, but very interesting to reflect upon.
This was kindly translated by Shyamdas.
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