Krishna –Manifestation of the Supreme

Today is Janmashtami.The birthday of Krishna who is worshipped by millions as the supreme god. The day is marked with prayers, processions ,fasting, singing ,dancing and making special dishes and offering it to God.An atmosphere of joy and devotion prevails all over in these gloomy times .

Krishna is also known as Govinda, Mukunda, Madhusudhana and Vasudeva. Krishna is often described and portrayed as an infant eating butter, a young boy playing a flute as in the Bhagavata Purana, a young man along with Radha, a young man surrounded by women or as an elder giving direction and guidance as in the Bhagavad Gita. The stories of Krishna appear across a broad spectrum of Hindu philosophical and theological traditions. They portray Him in various perspectives: a god-child, a prankster, a model lover, a divine hero, and the Supreme Being. The principal scriptures discussing Krishna's story are the Srimad Bhagavatam, the Mahabharata, the Harivamsa, the Bhagavata Purana, and the Vishnu Purana. The anecdotes and narratives of Krishna, in topic, are generally titled as Krishna Leela.

Krishna is a very fascinating .Krishna talks himself as God and Swami Vivekananda says

“Krishna talks of himself as God. He sees the Deity in himself. And He says, "None can go a day out of my path. All have to come to me. Whosoever wants to worship in whatsoever form, I give him faith in that form, and through that I meet him. ..”

Krishna is an integral part of our believes , tradition and culture from time immemorial. So many temples, songs, dances, stories paintings and various other art forms are created only to worship Him. This is in line with our philosophy which says whatever you do should be done as an offering to God .This continues even today .

Another fascinating aspect of Krishna worship is that His worship can be customized as you want .He can be worshipped  as your infant son, as your mischievous little kid doing pranks and steals butter ,grown up kid who roams around with his friends and cows while eliminating demons who has been sent to kill him, for ladies as the perfect young man of their dreams ,as ideal tactician and fighter ,a great motivator when you are depressed and the giver of salvation or the ultimate of goal Moksha,  the release from the cycle of rebirth impelled by the law of karma, the transcendent state attained as a result of being released from the cycle of rebirth.

You worship Him in any form you want and the great thing is that even if you think of Him as an enemy all the time, fights Him and get killed by Him, still you will attain Him .This was shown in the case of Kamsa and Jarasandha .Even if you are thinking about Him and planning to destroy Him you are still thinking about Him. According to Him he is the servant of those who think about Him always leaving aside everything and there is no discrimination as friend and foe in this.

In Modern times the examples will be the atheists, secular leftist intellectuals who constantly criticise and deny everything about Him, pointing out about His short comings is also worshipping Him as they are constantly thinking about Him .

Comrades of Kerala are another example who was denying everything about Him is celebrating His birthday in a grand scale now.This is a best example of Krishna Leela in modern times

Krishna is the manifestation or Avataar of God who showed the world how to behave in different situations in life and not get carried away by the circumstances.

The message of Krishna for the world is as Swami Vivekananda says

“In Krishna we find ... two ideas [stand] supreme in his message: The first is the harmony of different ideas; the second is non-attachment. A man can attain to perfection, the highest goal, sitting on a throne, commanding armies, working out big plans for nations. In fact, Krishna's great sermon was preached on the battlefield Krishna did everything but without any attachment; he was in the world, but not of it. "Do all work but without attachment; work for work's sake, never for yourself.

Bhagavad-Gita the sermon given to Arjuna by Him in the  midst of two huge armies in the battlefield of Kurukshetra is the ultimate inspirational words given to Mankind .It clearly describes how one should navigate through different situations in life and  not to get attached to circumstances or  actions ,how to keep a balanced intellect and achieve the ultimate goals in your life .Krishna also shows  Arjuna His real form or the Viswaroopam which shows everything in the Universe is embedded in Him and everything is a manifestation of Him

Bhagavad-Gita has inspired and continues to inspire millions of people all over the world to lead a harmonious and blissful life .It inspired and continues to inspire many to do great work to help people to achieve freedom from oppressors, help the poor and provide education and health care to the needy. It has now being included in the curriculum of some of the greatest business schools in the world to teach people the need for balanced and non attached view of various life situations,

The life of Krishna and His teaching is relevant today, will be relevant tomorrow and always.

As Swami Vivekananda explains

In the Krishna Incarnation He says that the root of all sorts of misery is Avidyâ (Nescience) and that selfless work purifies the mind. Krishna did everything but without any attachment; he was in the world, but not of it. "Do all work but without attachment; work for work's sake, never for yourself

It will inspire millions to work without attachment to achieve the ultimate goals in their lives and give inspiration and guidance to millions to uplift their lives and fill it with joy and happiness.

May this Janamashtami shower on you blossoms of love and peace. May the divine grace of Lord Krishna be with you today and always.

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare …

Sources :Wikipedia /Vivekananda Sahitya Sarvaswam