A Story of Dvapar Yuga in Prose: ( part- 13-F)
By Lokanath Mishra
Adharam Madhuram, Vadanam Madhuram, Nayanam Madhuram, Hasitam Madhuram —
Hridayam Madhuram, Gamanam Madhuram, Madhurādhipater Akhilam Madhuram.
The lips are sweet, the face is sweet, the eyes are sweet, the smile is sweet —
The heart is sweet, the gait is sweet; everything about the Lord of Sweetness is sweet.
The flute is sweet, the dust is sweet, the hands are sweet, the feet are sweet —
The dance is sweet, the friendship is sweet; everything about the Lord of Sweetness is sweet.
From every limb of the Lord of Sweetness flowed divine nectar.
Honey dripped from His words; rhythm and grace marked His every step.
A hundred-petaled lotus of beauty bloomed beneath His feet.
Even the gods longed for a glimpse of Gopāla, surrounded by His beloved gopīs.
The divine play of Rādhā and Krishna is so celestial that millions of souls, overwhelmed with love, sing their glories.
Many foreign devotees too lose themselves in the thought of that transcendent embodiment of love, drowning in the ocean of bliss.
To ordinary human thought, such love may seem illicit or worldly.
But in the Rāsa dance, all are pure, detached, and divine.
They are born of divine essence, the fruit of penance across lifetimes.
Wise men say this; only a few differ.
For the common devotee, if one surrenders wholly to Krishna in the mood of a gopī or Rādhā,
an unbroken stream of pure love flows forth.
Otherwise, to see it as mere worldly passion is a grave mistake.
The Fragrant Forest of Vṛndāvana
Like the gentle Lavanga vines swaying in the soft Malaya breeze,
In bowers where bees hum and cuckoos coo among blossoming trees,
Spring eternally reigned upon the Rāsa ground.
The air was fragrant, the groves were heavy with flowers,
And amidst them, the gopīs danced daily with their Lord.
The divine music of the flute blended with the celestial instruments
as Nārada and the gods looked on from the heavens, enthralled.
Near Vṛndāvana stands the temple of Gopīśvara Mahādeva —
and behind its name lies a wondrous story.
The Tale of Gopīśvara Mahādeva
When Lord Shiva once visited Lord Rāma, he forgot to take Mother Pārvatī along.
She remembered that omission.
Later, when she desired to witness Krishna’s Rāsa-līlā,
she went alone, without taking Mahādeva with her.
Lord Śaṅkara wondered: Where does Pārvatī go at night and return at dawn?
Curious, one morning he stopped her with his trident and asked,
“Wait! Tell me where you have been.”
Smiling, she replied, “Why? Do you doubt me?
I went to Vṛndāvana — to join the Rāsa dance of Lord Krishna.”
Śiva said, “Why did you not take me with you? I too wish to see it!”
The Goddess replied, “No man may enter there; how can you go?”
Śiva pleaded, “Beloved, find me a way somehow!
My heart is restless — I must behold my Lord’s Rāsa!”
Pārvatī said, “There is one way — you must become a gopī.”
She called Nandī and Bhṛṅgī:
“Cleanse your Lord, wash away the ashes, oil his hair and comb his matted locks.”
They obeyed.
Then Lord Bhole Shankara donned a sari and took the form of a woman.
His matted hair was tied into a bun.
But still, something in his frame betrayed his masculine nature.
Even after much practice, he could not quite imitate a woman’s voice.
Pārvatī then said, “Listen, when we go there, speak not a word.
If anyone asks, ‘Are you a gopī?’, just nod your head.”
Thus agreeing, Mahādeva went with the Divine Mother to Vṛndāvana.
By then, the Rāsa assembly had begun —
Gopīs were gathering, gods and Gandharvas filled the skies.
Lord Krishna’s eyes noticed one gopī of unusual height and build.
He called her near, but she bashfully pulled her veil lower.
One gopī whispered, “Who is she? Is she new here? You there — you’re new, aren’t you?”
Just as instructed, Sadāśiva nodded yes.
The dance began — all moved gracefully to the music.
But Mahādeva knew only the Tāṇḍava!
With mighty steps — dha-dha-dhrīṭaṅ-dha! —
he lifted his foot high, and his veil slipped off!
His bun came undone; his sari nearly fell —
Pārvatī quickly caught it, having wisely tied it beforehand.
Seeing her Lord thus embarrassed, she lowered her gaze.
Krishna smiled and came forward to embrace Śiva, halting his wild dance.
Then the heavens echoed with cries of joy:
“Victory to Lord Bholenātha! Glory to the Lord of Kailāsa!
Victory to the Lord of Vraja! Glory to the Lord of Vṛndāvana!”
And from that moment, the spot became sacred —
the place where Śiva once donned the garb of a gopī.
Thus arose the temple of Gopīśvara Mahādeva.
A Playful Scene
Once, as Krishna returned from Rāi Bhavan,
some sakhīs surrounded him in jest.
Lalitā teasingly sang:
“O Śyāmasundara, O one with sandal-scented curls,
Was your night’s labour fruitful or not?
Did you pass the night sleepless, conquering the fortress of Cupid?
Why is your moonlike face blushing?
Did you give your sari to some Vraja maiden?”
( to be continued)