Chraranamrita...

Once Sri Rukmini, Satyabhama and the six other Pat Ranis, had a discussion: “We all love and serve our Lord with great devotion and sincerity but He does not bestow any attention on any of us. He always repeats Radha’s name alone. We must ascertain from our Lord why she is so dear to Him”.

(Lord Krishna comes and He is garlanded by all of them. They sing and welcome Him.)

Radha Krishna Bhajo Kunjabihari. 

Muralidhara Govardhanadhari. 

Sankha-Chakra Pitambaradhari. 

Karunasagara Krishna Murari.

(Sri Krishna is extremely pleased at the very mention of Radha’s name; repeats “Radhe, Radhe’ and is immersed in the bliss of the name “Radha”. The Ranis all stand at a respectable distance watching this. Then pent-up emotion bursts out and tears rain down their cheeks. Sri Krishna, still lost in his trance sits down.

Lord Krishna: My dear Ranis! Your faces indicate that you are worried over something. I see traces of tears left on your smooth flowery cheeks. May I know what it is that stands in the way of my enjoying the sight of the sweet and blissful faces of all of you, my dear ones?

Rukmini: My Lord. We all serve you, sincerely and devoutly. We love you; we adore you. Yet you always repeat Radha’s name and show great reverence to it. This pains us greatly. Are we not superior to Radha in our devotion to you? This thought greatly torments us.

Lord Krishna: Rukmini, you—every one of you—no doubt, serve me with all sincerity, but as you yourself said just now, you feel you are superior to others on account of your relationship towards me. When you nourish your ego with such ideas, where is the necessity for me to think of any of you? But Radha has no such thoughts of herself or her superiority to others. She is completely merged in me; she has burnt up all her ego. Therefore, I should bring her particularly into my sphere of protection by always remembering her and attending to her welfare.

Rukmini: My Lord, we can’t follow you. You are rather puzzling us. What do you mean by saying that Radha has completely merged herself in you and that we have not? Have we not surrendered ourselves to you completely? Why, we are even prepared to give up our life in your service!

Lord Krishna: My dear Rukmini, don’t be so impatient. Wait for some time and you will yourself know.

(After a week Lord Krishna pretended that he had intense pain in His stomach. All His Ranis and servants were busy procuring medicines and administering them to the Lord. But they found that the “pain” did not abate. Therefore they begged of Krishna to tell them what they should do.

Lord Krishna: O! The pain is unbearable. What am I to do? (Keeps silent for a few minutes.) There is only one medicine. I can’t think of any other. It is easy to get; but I don’t know if you will get it.

Rukmini: Why do you say so, my Lord. We are all ready to sacrifice our lives if you should need it. Name the medicine and it shall be brought before you have said it.

Lord Krishna: The only cure for stomach-ache is to drink a spoonful of the “Chraranamrita” of any of my true devotees. My pain will vanish immediately I drink it. Will any of you oblige me by giving me this medicine? You are all my Bhaktas and you can produce this medicine in the winking of an eye. O Rukmini! Help me, help me. I can’t bear the pain. I shall lose my life if I am not relieved of it immediately. O! please Rukmini, get a vessel and let me have a little “Charanamrita”.

(Rukmini is shocked to hear these words. She closes her ears with her hands, looks greatly perturbed and worried, looks hither and thither like a mad woman.)

Rukmini: My Lord. You are the Lord of three Worlds. I respect you more than I respect any one else in the world. How can I commit this heinous crime of offering you my Charanamrita? What a horrible sin would it be, that you want me to commit? Oh, please ask anything else. My life is yours. (Falls at his feet.)

(Krishna looks at the others.)

All: We are ready to serve our Lord in any respect; but how can we give the Lord our Charanamrita? We will go to Naraka and suffer there for ever.

(All prostrate before the Lord.)

Lord Krishna: O! My pain is increasing every moment. O! Lord, is there not any one here who would help me. O! Rukmini, if you are not willing, please ask any one of my Bhaktas to give me the Charanamrita. O! won’t any one take pity on me? ...... Ah! (Krishna swoons.)

Confused as to what they should do, they all disperse willy-nilly.

(After sometime they return one by one.)

Sri Krishna is in the meantime ministered to by one of the Ranis. He slowly opens his eyes.

Rukmini: I tried all the Bhaktas of the palace. None is willing to give Charanamrita for fear of falling into Naraka.

Satyabhama: I tried all the Bhaktas in the town. They have the same feeling. Oh! Lord. Suggest some way out of this dilemma.

Lord Krishna: Send a man to Barsana and try there.

(All disperse again except an attendant. Messengers are dispatched to Barsana. One of them returns after a couple of hours, with a cup of Charanamrita. All are pleased, overjoyed, Rukmini and the Ranis are astonished. The Charanamrita is offered to Krishna. He drinks and is relieved of the “pain”. He heaves a sigh of relief.)

Lord Krishna (Smiling): Who is that Bhakta who gave me this medicine?

Kaladas: My Lord, I went to Barsana and asked everybody to give “Charanamrita” for the Lord. They all took me for a mad man. Some of them shed tears but they could not bring themselves up to offering Charanamrita to the Lord for fear of falling into hell. I had not passed through two streets before a lady came running up to me, made me halt and gave me this cup. She was gasping. In spite of this, she wouldn’t even stop for a breath, but said, “Hurry up to the Lord with this”. People around us were scolding her “You fool of a Radha! Do you think you are great enough to offer your Charanamrita to Lord Krishna? Take care, you are committing the greatest sin and you are sure to suffer in this life and go to hell afterwards”. But she would not pay any heed.

Lord Krishna: Did you not ask her if she was not afraid of Naraka?

Kaladas: Yes, my Lord. But she was impatient, abused me for entering into such arguments with her and urged me again to go to you first and give this. She asked me to return to her if necessary, and put her any questions then. I was afraid that she would even beat me; and so took to my heels.

(Rukmini listens to this narration, speechless.)

Lord Krishna (to Rukmini): Look, Rukmini! Radha is not afraid of Naraka like all of you here, nor does she revere me so much more than herself (as you do) as to deny me my requirements or to refuse to carry out my wishes. She feels one with me and acts in a way that would be to my good. She has no thought for herself and she does not care if she goes to Naraka. Nor is she desirous of joy in heaven apart from me. When she has no thought for herself, and always thinks of me, is it not my duty to remember her always and take care of her interests? When each one of you thinks of your fortune and your sufferings in Naraka, you imagine you can take care of yourselves; why should I then trouble myself about you?

Rukmini: Good Lord! This is why you made all this fuss about your stomach-ache! But I am your Jnana Shakti. Why did I not know this answer at first?

Lord Krishna: Because you felt that you were separate from me. This feeling of separation emanating from egoism should he expunged if you want to develop Parabhakti and merge in me.

All Ranis: Oh! Is this the secret of love?

Lord Krishna (Smiling): Radhe Radhe ! Radhe Radhe !