Metaphorical Krishna Leela

श्रावणमासः, कृष्णपक्षः, अष्टमीतिथिः, गोपालकाला, १९४५ शकसंवत्सरः

Yesterday was Shri Krishna Janmaashtami, the day Lord Vishnu was born on this earth as Krishna, the dark one. Happened to hear a beautiful talk on the metaphorical meaning behind Krishna's childhood antics fondly known as Krishna leela and thinking on it, my imagination added some more interpretations on Gopaalakaalaa (गोपालकाला ) and Dahihandi (दहीहंडी) what with today being the day these events are remembered and celebrated!

But first a little about what are Gopaalakaalaa and Dahihandi. 

Gopaalakaalaa: The recipe for Diversity, Equity, Equality and Inclusion

Gopaalakaalaa is what Krishna and his cowherd friends ate mixing all their individual lunch box contents together. The cowherds set out early in the morning with their cows to take them to graze in the fields. They each had some packed lunch but not everyone was from a well to do household so some had simpler, smaller lunches than others. Krishna was the son of the village chief but was connected to each and every one of his friends and he knew the discomfort of his poorer friends in taking out their meager lunch in front of others. So he devised a simple plan, to take all the lunches (which were made up of rice, poha, curds, buttermilk, pickles, salads etc) and mix them up to make one big Gopaalakaalaa that all the friends then happily ate! To this day, thousands of years later, households across Bharat make this dish. What is the recipe? There is none! Mix whatever is available in the kitchen such as the usual rice, poha, curd, pickles as per your taste and somehow it turns into this amazing delicious concoction! What Shri Krishna teaches us is that anything that is diverse, thinks of everyone and gives a fair share to everyone and includes and assimilates all, that is bound to be fulfilling, satisfying and loved by all!

Dahihandi: The pyramid of all for one and one for all

Dahihandi is also the creation of Krishna to reach the butter hung in earthen pots high up from the ceiling! And the prize, the butter, was not just for himself but more to share with his little friends too. Krishna loved butter and was always trying to get to it any way he could. But the butter was kept in earthen pots and hung from the ceiling high above his reach so now what? Krishna got his friends together and created a human pyramid of multiple tiers to reach the butter that was then shared equally and enjoyed by all. On this day, even today, such human pyramids are made to reach the pot hung several stories high remembering this Krishna leela.

What does this teach us? It tells us how an effective team works whether it is a small company team or the team of humans we call society! Where team players are assigned roles as per their abilities, aptitude and capabilities and where each plays a crucial role in holding up this society. The lowest tier of people is not "low" just because of their placement. In fact, they are the very foundation holding up the societal structure. They are also the largest in number providing solid support to the entire structure and without their load bearing capability and steady support the structure will come crashing down or fail at getting the butter. Denigrating them as "low caste" is not just insulting that foundational group but also damaging to the entire society. 

A civilized, mature society is one where the lowest tier along with the tiers it supports are all working towards getting the butter collectively and they all share and enjoy it together! This is why we see categories in all civilized societies used for administering and managing the society efficiently. 

The Bharatiya civilization is no different. But malicious minds trying to divide and destroy will only see "high" and "low" and "left" and "right" and thus fail to see the complete picture as a whole!

The butter of knowledge

What is the metaphorical meaning of this butter? The elements in Krishna's story have earthen pots that are broken to get to the butter. A talk (referenced below) helped me understand this butter a bit better! 

Krishna is the dark one with the word Krishna itself meaning black in Sanskrit. When saints sing of being immersed in Krishna ranga (color), they are perhaps referring to the color we see when we close our eyes, black. When one is immersed in a deep meditative state, they are experiencing this Krishna ranga! 

The mind is like milk and the world we live in like water, and as we are immersed in the world we live in with our day to day lives and material pursuits and desires, this milk mind is all mixed in with the water of the material world. How then can one progress spiritually to get the butter that is likened to knowledge? 

The first step is to quieten the mind using Yog. Patanjali's yogsutras defines Yog as "yogas chitta vritti nirodha” which means yoga is the quieting, stilling or controlling of the modifications or fluctuations of the mind. This is compared to converting the liquid, unstable, water mixed milk to a solid, stable curd.

Once the mind is stilled and converted to curd, it can then be churned with Vichaar (contemplative thoughts) and Vivek (discernment) using the tool of Abhyaasa (study of scriptures like the Bhagvad Gita and works of sages and saints) to then get the butter of knowledge. But to get to this butter, one needs to break away from the mire of the senses of the body. The body is often compared to an earthen pot and it is this "breaking" of the pot that is necessary by developing Vairagya, being detached from the pulls of the sense pleasures.

It is this Vairagya that provides the slow, gradual heat to the butter, even as the person continues in their day to day duties and responsibilities, to eventually evaporate any remaining droplets of the water of worldly desires and get the ghee of self-realization that is imperishable and immortal.

And just like it takes an expert to convert a theoretical recipe into a delicious dish, it takes a guru to turn this world water mixed mind milk into the ghee of self-realization thus making one a Jeevan Mukta!

Shri Krishna is that best friend, teacher and guru who is our constant companion and guide in our attempts to get to the butter and turn it into ghee. 

वसुदेवसुतं देवं कंसचाणूरमर्दनम्।
देवकीपरमानन्दं कृष्णं वन्दे जगद्गुरुम्॥

The one who is the son of Vaasudeva and the destroyer of Kamsa and ChaaNura. The one who is the reason for the supreme bliss or happiness of his mother, Devakii. To such a Krishna, the guru of the world, salutations!

Inspiration: Dr. Sudhanshu Trivedi's talk on the Bhagvad Gita