In the Srimad Bhagavata Purana, it is stated that when the gopis of Vrindavan heard Sri Krishna playing his flute, they dropped whatever they were doing and rushed to him. It was evening, and he was on the bank of the Yamuna. The gopis went there and started to dance. Sri Krishna danced with them. Each gopi thought Krishna was dancing only with her. The gopis grew proud, thinking that they are special to Krishna. As soon as pride appeared, Krishna disappeared. If a devotee develops pride in their closeness to God, they lose Him.
When the gopis realised that Krishna was no longer with them, they were in despair. They went to the surrounding forest to look for him. When they could not find him, they started asking the trees about Krishna’s whereabouts. But Krishna was nowhere to be seen. The gopis lamented, ‘He was with us, and in our foolishness, we thought we owned him. So, to punish us, he has gone away.’
Unable to find Krishna anywhere, the gopis began to imagine themselves as Krishna. One gopi acted as the demoness Putana, while another acted like the infant Krishna. The gopis perfectly imitated how Krishna would call the cows that had wandered far away, how he would play his flute, and how he would engage in sports with Balarama and his friends.
One gopi tied another with a flower garland and said, ‘This boy has broken the butter pots and stolen butter. I will bind him with a rope.’ Another gopi covered her face, pretending to be a fearful Krishna. Yet another one said, ‘Do not be afraid of the wind and rain. I will save you.’ She lifted her shawl above her head, just as Krishna had lifted Mount Govardhana. One gopi put her foot on another’s head and said, ‘Go away from here, O wicked snake.’ She was imitating Krishna’s subduing of the serpent Kaliya.
A little later, Sri Krishna appeared before the gopis with a smile on his face. As long as one retains an ego, one cannot find God. When one forgets oneself and remembers only God, He appears.
The Persian poet Rumi wrote about a man who went to the door of his beloved and knocked. A voice asked, ‘Who is there?’ He said, ‘It is I.’ The voice replied, ‘There is no room here for both me and you.’ The door remained shut. After a year of solitude, the man returned to the door of the Beloved and knocked. A voice from within asked, ‘Who is there?’ The man said, ‘It is You.’ The door opened for him.