ISKCON’s 15th Annual Vraja Mandala Parikrama, Final Part

ISKCON’s 15th Annual Vraja Mandala Parikrama,
Final Part
by Ekanath dasa

HH Lokanath Swami: "We are now in the forest of Mahavan where Krsna mostly performed his pastimes in vatsalya rasa. These pastimes are very sweet. Lila Madhuri. Such sweet, sweet pastimes, meant to attract the conditioned soul and encourage him to desire to return to Krsna. One of the last pastimes to be performed here was the Damodara lila. We know that it is after this lila that the residents of Gokul decided to go to Vrndavan.

"It is not possible to enter into these pastimes because we are full of lust and greed. We were hearing the other day that even Laxmi devi had to perform austerities in order to be allowed to enter the rasa lila. So, what to speak of us?! But by hearing these sweet pastimes, we can become free from lust and greed. We hope and pray that these bad qualities will be reduced and that love and devotion to Krsna will manifest in our hearts.

"One day Mother Yashoda decided to churn the butter herself. She had been hearing so many complaints that Krsna was stealing butter from the other gopis. So, she was thinking, "Let me make such nice butter, that Krsna will not want to take butter elsewhere."

"As she churned, she thought of her son's childhood pastimes. Her thoughts manifested into song. She joyfully and without care sang about Krsna's pastimes. In former times, this was normal practice, to sing about the Lord as you worked. Sitting on the bank of the Ganges, approximately 150 years after the performance of these pastimes, Sukadeva Goswami is relating this story to Pariksit. The acaryas have revealed that the milk in Mother Yashoda's breast was thinking, "Oh, Yashoda is making butter and Krsna's stomach will be full from this butter. He will not want to drink us!" They were lamenting in this way.

"As Mother Yashoda works, she perspires. The bangles on her wrists jangle and her earrings swing to and fro. The movement of the churning rod produces a swooshing sound. In this way, her singing is accompanied by the rhythmical sounds of her ornaments and the churning rod.

"The flowers of the malati tree which decorate her hair, fall from her head. These flowers were thinking that they were not fit to be on the head of Mother Yashoda but rather at the feet of such a great personality.

"When Krsna awoke He was upset to see His mother working and neglecting Him. He reached over to stop the churning by holding the rod and stopping it from moving. Yashoda was happy to see that her young son was intelligent enough to see that by stopping the rod, He could stop the churning. She was also satisfied to see that He was strong enough to stop the rod. In her mind she was thinking that her son was growing and developing nicely.

"She stopped her work and fed Krsna with great affection with her breast milk, looking down at His beautiful smiling face, as she did so. One of the reasons He was smiling was because He had succeeded in stopping His mother's work and getting what He wanted—her full attention.

"Mother Yashoda had to put Krsna down and rush to the kitchen to save the milk from boiling over. The milk in the kitchen pot had been thinking, "Krsna will be satisfied by drinking Mother Yashoda's breast milk. He will not want me. What is the use of my life, when I cannot be used in Krsna's service?" The milk wanted to jump from the pot and into the fire.

"Again, upset at being neglected, Krsna picked up a stone and broke the pot of butter. He gently broke it so that His mother would not hear a great crash. He then quickly and quietly leaves the scene on His tiptoes. These are the sweet pastimes of the Lord"

Ukhal. This is the place where mother Yashoda tied Krsna to the grinding mortar, for stealing butter and yoghurt. She not only wanted to punish Krsna, but the mortar also because the Lord would often use it to stand on in order to get at the butter.

Mahavan (Gokul). Where the Lord spent His early childhood. Lord Balarama took birth here from Rohini, and Vasudeva carried Lord Krsna here, across the Yamuna, from Mathura.

Raval. The birthplace of Srimati Radharani. Once king Vrshabhanu went to the Yamuna river to take bath. He saw a golden lotus flower in the middle of the river. Within the flower was baby Radharani. In the evening, the resident young girls of this village visit the temple here, where we are staying, and sing songs glorifying Radharani.

Traditionally, the Vraja Mandal Parikrama begins and ends with a bath in the river Yamuna at Vishram Ghat, Mathura. The devotees joyfully splashed about in the cool waters of the Yamuna and were greeted by HH Gopal Krsna Goswami.

After the bath, devotees were garlanded, and chandan was applied to their foreheads. Then we headed back to ISKCON's Krsna Balaram Mandir, Vrndavan, where we were served a sumptuous feast. Everyone agreed that the prasadam on Parikram this year was exceptionally good. The devotees from the Mayapur kitchen had come especially to do this service.

HH Lokanath Swami: "The challenge for everyone now, after undertaking the purifying experience of this parikrama, is how to stay pure. We should not follow the example of the elephant, who takes bath and then goes and throws dust on himself. Our consciousness has been elevated and we should try and keep it high by continuing with our careful hearing and chanting and enthusiastically engaging in the sankirtan movement."

HH Gopal Krsna Goswami: "This one month in the dhama has charged your spiritual batteries. Now, use this charge for the next 11 months and then come back again for recharging next kartika. Everyone should try and go out for the upcoming Prabhupada marathon."

HG Bhadra Prabhu
HG Radha Raman Prabhu
HG Murli Mohan Prabhu
HG Braja Bhuma Prabhu
HG Rama Das Prabhu
HG Radha Dyuti Prabhu (Kitchen Manager)

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