Krishna’s Birthday
The following’ excerpt is taken from Sai Baba’s discourse in 1990 on the occasion of Krishna Janamashtami.
Krishna was born during the dark fortnight of the month. The effulgence of the Lord is seen with greater effect when it is dark. In a world of disorder, Krishna was born to establish order.
He was born on Ashtami (8th day of the lunar fortnight). Ashtami is associated with troubles and difficulties. When do troubles arise? When righteousness is forgotten. Krishna’s advent signifies the dispelling of darkness, the removal of troubles, banishing of ignorance and teaching mankind the supreme wisdom.
Krishna’s primary role was that of teacher. He taught the Gita to Arjuna. He told Arjuna, “Be only My instrument!” Krishna thereby declared, “Using you as an instrument l am reforming the whole world.” All the teachings of the Divine are related to dharma (right action) and prema (Divine Love).
The gopikas (cow girls who were devoted to Krishna) prayed to Krishna that He should never leave their hearts in which they had installed Him. Mira (a devotee of Krishna) also sang in the same strain. “I dived deep into the ocean and found a pearl. Will you let me slip it out of my hand?”
Samsara (worldly life) is a vast ocean. Desires are like the waves. Our feelings constitute the depth of the ocean. In this deep there are crocodiles, whales and sharks in the form of attachments and hatred. It is not easy for ordinary beings to cross this ocean. The gopikas declared that only with the help of the Divine name can people save themselves.
People tend to look upon the devotion of the gopikas in worldly terms. Their minds never turned toward any sensory objects. They were completely free from sensual desires. All their desires were concentrated on God. They viewed the entire universe as the manifestation of God.
The gopikas did not concern themselves with the question whether the divine was attributeless or full of attributes. They preferred to worship the divine in the form of Krishna and they wanted their forms to merge in the divine. “Thereby we shall be formless,” they declared.
Source: Sanathana Sarathi, September 1990
