Krishna—Incarnation of Love

In this extraordinary revelatory discourse delivered during the 1991 Krishna Janmashtami [birth] day, Bhagavan Sri Sathya Sai Baba sheds light on the inner spiritual meaning behind many of the Indian customs prescribed by ancient sages. Love for the Divine is the key to realization, He emphasized. This year the festival falls on 2nd September.

Love is God; the cosmos is permeated with love.
Assuming the love form, to save His beloved ones,
Showering the nectarine stream of love,
Krishna came as the embodiment of love
For those yearning for Him.

Everything is born out of pure love;
All joy is derived from unalloyed love;
So are truth, sacrifice, peace, and forbearance
If love is lacking, there can be no contentment.
This is the path of Sai and the word of truth.

Embodiments of Divine love! Affection and love are mutually dependent and inseparable. When the mind is turned toward worldly things, it is called anuraga (affection or attachment), and when it is turned toward God, it is called prema (love or devotion). Love is the fruit of love. Love is comparable only with love. Love can offer only love itself. Love cannot be described by poetry; it cannot be proved by the mind or the spoken word. Hence, the Vedas [Hindu scriptures] declared that love transcends the mind and speech. Love is priceless and indescribably precious; its sweetness is unexcelled. The scriptures have described amrit (nectar) as indescribably sweet; but love is far sweeter than even nectar.

Love and unselfishness

Love is a precious diamond that can be got only in the realm of love and nowhere else. The kingdom of love is located in the heart, in a heart filled with love. Love can be experienced only in a mind flowing with love and a heart filled with love. The precious diamond of love cannot be got through japa [chanting] or meditation, through prescribed rituals or various sacred acts. These [spiritual practices] can only give mental satisfaction.

Love can be got only through love. The different paths of devotion—shanti (peace), sakhya (friendship), vatsalya (maternal love), anuraga (affection), and madhura marga (path of sweetness)—are all based on love. The essence of all spiritual disciplines is contained in love.

The greater a man’s love for God, the greater the bliss that he experiences. When love declines in man, his joy declines equally. The lover of God sees God everywhere. Hence man’s heart must be filled with the love of God.

Love will not enter the heart of one who is filled with selfishness and self-conceit. Therefore, man should forget his petty self, and concentrate on God. Love of God makes a man oblivious to his own existence; love becomes a form of intoxication. Love makes the devotee and God dance in ecstasy. It induces self‑forgetfulness; and it generates an ecstasy in which everything is forgotten.

Krishna’s advent as love

Love cannot bear separation from the beloved. Today, we celebrate the advent of the Lord in the human form to instill divine love in human beings. The nature of divine love can be understood only when the Divine in human form teaches, as man to man, the nature of this love.

In ancient times, the sages performed rigorous penance in the forests, living among wild animals. Devoid of weapons, they relied on love to protect them. They performed their penance with love for all beings; indeed, their love transformed even the wild animals to live in peace.

The power of love

Love is a powerful force in transforming man’s animal nature into humanness. The hearts of men in the olden days were soft and loving. Although love inherently is soft and compassionate, in certain situations it assumes a stern form.  Thus, sometimes harsh words and punishment are also associated with love. When it rains, it is a downpour of drops of water. Sometimes, hard hailstones accompany the rain, but they are only water in a condensed form. Likewise, softness and punishment are merely different expressions of love.

Akrura and the gopikas

Sometimes, even devotees use harsh words about the Divine. Kamsa [Lord Krishna’s uncle], who regarded Balaram [Krishna’s brother] and Krishna as his mortal enemies, tried to get rid of them without success. Then on the pretext of performing a sacrifice, he sent Akrura [Krishna’s close devotee] to bring (to Mathura) Balaram and Krishna. Akrura was a kind devotee of Krishna. Despite his reluctance, he could not disobey his master’s orders. He reached Repalle [the place where Krishna lived] and conveyed to Devaki and Vasudeva and Yashoda and Nanda [Krishna’s real and foster parents] Kamsa’s invitation to Balaram and Krishna. On hearing this, the gopikas [milk maidens] rushed to Yashoda’s house and asked, “Who is this cruel fellow (krura) who has come here? He has been named Akrura (a man without cruelty) by mistake. Are Balaram and Krishna to be entrusted to such a cruel person?” They appealed directly to Balaram and Krishna.

Gopikas’ appeal to Krishna

However, the main purpose of Balaram’s and Krishna’s advent was to destroy Kamsa. This task had to be accomplished. Hence, the brothers mounted Akrura’s chariot while the gopikas surrounded them and entreated them with humility and love. Sobbing and praying from the depths of their hearts, they said, “We cannot bear separation from you even for a moment. Is it right for you to leave us like this? Is it a game of yours? Take pity on us, oh Lord! What is this farce of a yaga [spiritual offering]! It is Kamsa’s disease.  Please take us also with you.” (Swami sang the song sung by the gopikas).  Even as they were praying thus, the chariot disappeared from their sight.

The gopikas hearts were filled with love. They went to every plant, bush, and flower in Brindavan [the gardens that Krishna played in] entreating them to reveal Krishna’s whereabouts. (Here Swami sang the song in which the gopikas described Krishna.)

The love‑impulse, which is boundless, is manifested differently in different persons. For supreme devotees like the gopikas, Krishna was their very life breath.

Yashoda’s maternal love

In contrast, Yashoda’s love for Krishna was that of the mother toward her child. After Krishna’s departure, she waited for two days for news from Mathura. Yashoda looked upon Krishna as an ordinary child, the darling of her heart, who was innocent of the ways of the world. She was in anguish and thought, “I cannot imagine what tortures the inhuman demons in Mathura have inflicted on Balaram and Krishna. Oh Krishna! I cannot wait any longer for your return.” (Swami sang a song with great feeling.)

There is a great difference between the love of devotees and the love of a mother. The intensity of the mother’s feelings arises from the sense of maternal attachment. The gopikas’ lamented, “Oh Krishna! Why don’t you show your beautiful face and let us listen to the divine music of your flute?” Whereas, Radha’s [a gopi who loved Krishna totally], love was: “Oh Krishna! Wherever you may be and whatever the form you may assume, bless me so that I may be one with you in that form.” Radha yearned for this kind of union.

But the love principle in all these cases was one and the same. Love may be called by different names, but its expression is the same. “The Brahmam [Universal Self] is the form suffused with love. One can have the experience of unity with the Divine—the advaitic [non-dual] experience—only through love.” (Poem)

Avatar as teacher of love

Prema is a two-letter (akshara) word (in Telugu). But in this short word, the entire universe (akshaya jagat) is contained. Alas there is so little awareness of the power of this kind of love. Wrapped up in their trivial attachments, people are ignoring the power of this infinite, sacred, and all‑encompassing Divine love. Divine love is immortality and nectar itself and is incomparable.

It is to teach mankind the truth about this Divine love that love itself incarnates on earth in human form. The scriptures declare that the Divine descends on earth to teach mankind the ways of dharma [righteousness], justice, and truth.  Krishna declared in the Bhagavad Gita, “Dharma samsthaapanaarthaaya sambhavaami Yuge Yuge.” (“I incarnate on earth from age to age to establish righteousness.”) Once people are filled with love, all dharma, justice, and truth will be instilled in them. Without love, righteousness will be a mechanical ritual.  Love is life.

Hence, love is the form of the Supreme Lord. It is to preach the doctrine of love that the Krishna Avatar and other divine incarnations made their advent on earth. According to the place, time, and circumstances prevailing then, different names were given to the Lord. These differences are like the different figures made from sugar to appeal to the different preferences of children. These figures may be of a peacock or dog or frog, however, sugar is common to all of them.

Likewise, the avatars in the four yugas [ages] incarnated to teach what was appropriate for that age: dhyana (meditation) for the Krita yuga, tapas (penance) for the Treta yuga, upasana (worship) for the Dwapara yuga, and namasmarana (chanting the Lord’s name) for the Kali yuga. Common to all these is love (for the Lord). In the same way, what is common across the nine forms of worship (shravanam, kirtan, etc. [worship, devotional singing]) is love. Chanting the Lord’s name with devotion is common to all forms of worship.

Steadfast love

Steadfast love is the underlying factor across all spiritual practices. The faith of the eldest of the Pandava brothers, Dharmaja, was of this steadfast type. Whether as an exile in the forest, or as an emperor, or during the disrobing of Draupadi [Pandavas’ wife] in Duryodhana’s [Pandavas’ enemy] court, or when Abhimanyu [son of Pandava Arjuna] was killed in battle, or when the Upapandavas [Draupadi’s children] were slaughtered by Ashwathama [Pandava’s enemy]), [in all situations] his [Dharmaja] faith in Krishna never wavered. He firmly believed that Krishna was his sole savior. He was contemplating only Krishna’s name. As an emperor ruling over a vast realm or when he lost everything in the game of dice, he was neither elated with success nor depressed by defeat. The primary trait of the Pandavas was this unflinching faith in the Divine.

Unfortunately, in this Kali age small‑minded people tend to praise God in times of prosperity and traduce God in periods of adversity. People must cultivate the feeling of love that will enable them to look upon prosperity and adversity with equal serenity. People must develop the conviction that it is the same Lord who is the indweller in all beings. Just as the body is an organic whole and any ailment affecting any part of the body is felt as a pain by the whole organism, people should feel that anyone’s suffering is their own suffering, and any relief done to the other is a help done to themselves. Differences between persons will cease when we recognize the common divinity present in everyone. The foremost purpose of the Divine as avatar is to teach this truth to humanity.

Welcome difficulties

Men should shed their pettiness and develop broad‑mindedness by cultivating love.

Human life is beset with ups and downs, joys and sorrows. These experiences [trials and difficulties] are intended to serve as guideposts that bring out the human values in man. Because of the manner in which Harishchandra [a king devoted to truth] faced all the trials in his life, his story has become a glorious chapter in human annals. Prahlada [son of a demonic king] stands out equally as a great devotee who stood up to all the persecutions of his father.

Today, however, people want instant salvation, without the slightest effort or sacrifice on their part. But if such instant salvation is achieved, it also will vanish in a trice. Only that which is acquired through hard effort will yield lasting benefit.

People pray to Swami to rid them of all difficulties and losses. This is a totally wrong kind of prayer. Difficulties must be welcomed and must be overcome.  You cannot get the juice of the sugarcane without crushing it. You cannot enhance the brilliance of a diamond without cutting it and making many facets. The body is like a sugarcane stalk. It is only when it goes through various difficulties that you can experience the sweet bliss of self‑realization. Where does that sweetness reside in man? It is in every limb and organ.

All have faith in the power of love. But how is this love to be fostered and developed? The answer is, “There is only one way. When you put into practice the love in which you have faith, that love will grow.” A plant will grow only when it is watered regularly. When you have planted the seed of love, you can make it grow only by watering it with love every day. The tree of love will grow and yield the fruits of love.

Sahasa and sadhana

The mind is allowed to wander and engage itself in external exercises like japa and puja [prayer]. Here is a story to illustrate this:

King Vikramaditya was once going round his country incognito to find out what the people were doing. He noticed an old brahmin [of priestly class] performing a yajna (fire sacrifice). Apparently, as the yajna had been performed over many years, a huge mound of ash had come up near the place of the sacrificial fire. Vikramaditya asked the brahmin what he was doing. The brahmin replied, “I have been performing a yajna for the past 60 years and this mound you see is the accumulated ash from the yajna. Though I have performed this yajna ceaselessly, I have not yet had a vision of the Yajna Purusha (the Lord of the sacrifice).”

Moved deeply  by the  old man’s anguish, the king sat in meditation himself and performed a severe penance. Despite his long penance, he could not have a vision of the Yajna Purusha either. He felt, “Of what use is all the penance I have performed? If I cannot get the grace of the Lord, what use is there in living?” Thinking in this way, he took out the sword from inside his cloak and decided to end his purposeless existence as he could not have a vision of the Lord.

Mentally addressing the Yajna‑Purusha, he said, “If you will not appear before me, I am offering my life to you.” As he drew his sword to offer his head, the Yajna‑Purusha appeared before him and seized the sword from the king’s hand. He said to the king, “Oh Vikramaditya! This is an act of recklessness (sahasa) and not a spiritual offering. Where am I? As Vaishwanara, I am dwelling in all beings as the digestive power. Is it a sign of spirituality for you on the one hand to externally seek a vision of the Divine who is within you, and on the other, put an end to your life because you do not have a vision of the Divine that is in you? This kind of act exhibits rajasic (aggressive) tendency. A real devotee should not resort to such desperate actions.

To realize me, just practice love, and not reckless courage. Whatever you see, whatever you do, be conscious of the all‑pervading Divine. Only then work will be transformed into worship. What this old brahmin has been doing for 60 years is to mumble the words of the mantra without understanding their meaning. He did not invite my presence with all his heart and soul. I present myself to one who prays for me with all his heart and with harmony in thought, word, and deed. If one cannot offer such dedicated worship, he should adhere to my injunctions without hesitation.”

Parashurama’s example

A similar incident occurred in the life of Parashurama, son of the sage Jamadagni. One day when Jamadagni’s wife went to the river to fetch water, King Vichitravirya passed by in his chariot. She was a pure‑hearted lady. She just looked up to see who was going in the chariot. She was struck for a moment by his beauty. When she returned to the hermitage, Jamadagni ordered Parashurama to cut off the head of his mother. Parashurama did not flinch for a moment. Implicitly carrying out his father’s command, he cut off the head of his mother. Jamadagni then asked his son, “What boon do you want? You have implicitly carried out my command.” Parashurama said, “Dear father! Restore my mother’s life.” The sage gave back her life. Implicit obedience merits its own reward.

Mistaken notions about Krishna

Here is the inner secret of the Divine’s working. In the life of Krishna, there are many incidents that have an esoteric meaning, but that have been misunderstood and misinterpreted by scholars and commentators. Such misunderstandings have been caused by stories that Krishna had eight wives, and that he dallied with 16,000 gopikas.

In the spinal column, there are six chakras [spiritual nodes], of which two are important—the Sahasrara Chakra in the brain, and the Hridaya Chakra in the middle of the spinal column. The Hridaya Chakra is a flower‑like chakra with eight petals. The eight petals are symbols of the eight parts of the earth, whose master is the Lord Himself. The esoteric meaning of this is that God is the Lord of the eight‑petalled lotus of the heart in man. The Lord of the Heart is described as Madhava. Ma means Lakshmi, or maya [illusion]or prakriti [nature]. Dhava means husband. God is the Lord of Lakshmi, or maya or prakriti. Krishna is thus the Lord of the eight‑petalled lotus of the heart.

Sahasrara is the topmost chakra of the spinal column. It is pictured as a thousand-petalled flower. In each petal, God dwells with all His 16 potencies (kalas). Altogether, there are 16,000 potencies, which represent the gopikas. Go means sound, speech, and life breath. God is the Lord of this thousand-petalled Sahasrara. The inner significance of the reference to 16,000 gopikas should be understood in this manner.

Few attempt to understand the spiritual significance of many episodes in the Bhagavatam. Young men may easily be misled by references to Krishna’s eight wives or his association with 16,000 gopikas. The real meaning is that each one should awaken the 16,000 potencies within him. This can be done only by implicit obedience to the commands of God. The Kundalini shakti [latent spiritual energy], which starts at the Mooladhara (the root of the spinal column), ascends to the Sahasrara to attain its fullness. The life‑breath for this power is prema (Divine love). This love has to be generated at the Mooladhara and taken up to the Sahasrara.

Ardhanareeshwara & the atom

In this age of science and technology, students should try to understand the inner meaning of the concept of Ardhanareeshwara (the combination of the male and female principle in God). No scientist has attempted to explain this concept. Consider the similarity between the ancient sages’ concept of Ardhanareeshwara and the ideas of modern science regarding the atom. There are many such ancient concepts that have contemporary validity.

Every object is composed of atoms and in every atom (anu), there is a proton and an electron. The electron is described in Sanskrit as the vebhaga (the left side) of the atom and the proton is described as the dhanabhaga (the right half) of the atom. The vebhaga represents the female principle and the dhanabhaga (the right half) the male principle. The coming together of these two constitutes the material base of each object. This process of coming together is represented in the concept of Ardhanareeshwara—the coming together of the female and male aspects.

Ardhanareeshwara means half‑feminine and half‑masculine. The electron represents the feminine aspect. The proton represents the male aspect. The atom is formed when they come together. Every object in the universe is made up of atoms. Hence, the ancients regarded the entire cosmos as an embodiment of the Ardhanareeshwara principle.

Tradition and science

Similarly, many of the ancient Indian customs and practices are based on profound scientific truths. For instance, during festive occasions green leaves and plants are displayed at the entrance of houses. The scientific principle behind this custom is noteworthy. During festive occasions, large groups of people used to gather in houses and they exhale carbon dioxide which fouls the air. The green leaves and plants serve to absorb the carbon dioxide and give out oxygen, which is essential for the health of the people. As the houses in old days had only small windows, this practice helped to ensure fuller supply of oxygen. Could the display of green leaves be called a superstition?

Similarly, the use of cow‑dung for cleaning floors in houses had a scientific basis. The cow‑dung has antiseptic properties and its use in cleaning floors served to eliminate germs. When cow‑dung water was sprinkled in front of houses, all disease‑causing germs were destroyed.

Such practices helped to promote the health and longevity of people. Let any scientist today experiment with the use of cow‑dung. Unfortunately, the scientists seem to be more concerned to conduct experiments on remote objects than with those lying at their doorstep.

The ancient seers established practices that were designed to make life more healthy and joyous. For instance, in the past women were accustomed to making use of turmeric for cleansing the body. Turmeric was also used for adorning the threshold. This turmeric has antiseptic properties. The use of turmeric served to destroy germs entering the houses. People today wish to substitute yellow paint for turmeric! The paint may look attractive, but has no antiseptic properties.

Thus, the ancients always had in view the inner purpose of each small practice that they prescribed. The use of kumkum [the red powder used by women on their forehead] and turmeric by women was based on hygienic principles. (Swami recited a song composed by Him in His early years in which He had lamented the replacement of kumkum and turmeric by face powder.) The application of turmeric helped to prevent the growth of hair on the face. By giving up these practices, diseases like Oesonophilia and asthma have spread among women. In the olden days, people valued health as the key to happiness.

If we study the Indian cultural tradition in this manner, we will find that its emphasis was always on what was beneficial and good for the individual and society.

The Vice‑Chancellor (in his address earlier) made a reference to the doctrine of surrender. Surrender does not mean that the devotee and God are different. True surrender implies the sense of oneness with God. “Without you I cannot exist,” should be the attitude of the devotee. This was the feeling that the gopikas expressed about Krishna. (Swami sang a song in which the gopikas express their love for Krishna and how they cannot bear separation from him.) The love of the gopikas was pure and sacred. This is exemplified by the story of Suguna [a gopika], who was so completely lost in thinking about Krishna that she was not conscious of her fingers being burnt while she was getting her lamp lighted in Yashoda’s house. When Yashoda asked her what had happened to her, she said that she was seeing the charming face of Krishna in the flame of the lamp.

Devotion should flow from the heart, as was the case with the gopikas. Much of what passes for devotion nowadays is artificial. Develop pure and sincere devotion and sanctify your lives.

Source: Sanathana Sarathi, Oct. 1991