It’s Janmashtami this week, celebrating the advent of Sri Krishna in our midst, and it seems right to revisit some Krishna facts. For one, visitors to Delhi can enjoy Krishna’s river with sunrise and sunset boat rides from Yamuna Ghat, and the new Vasudev Ghat reportedly hosts Yamuna aratis on Tuesday and Sunday evenings. But it’s in Vraja or Brajbhumi that the Yamuna draws innumerable seekers—dreamers, drop-outs, mystics, musicians, poets and saints.
One such fascinating person was Ras Khan, who authored the Rachnavali, in which he says, “Manus ho to vahi raskhani baso braj gokul gaon ke gvaran/ jo pasu hon to kaha bas mero charaun nit nand ko dhenu manjharan”. ‘If I, Ras Khan, am reborn as human, I wish to be a cowherd in the village of Gokul in Brajbhumi. If born an animal, I would like to be a cow in the herd of Nanda, grazing all day blissfully’.
How did 16th-17th century Syed Ibrahim, a Kabuli Pathan, become Ras Khan of Brajbhumi? One story says he was from a rich zamindari family in Amroha, Uttar Pradesh. Disdained by the proud beauty he loved, he grew morose and lonely.
Perhaps in a rebound, Ibrahim fell in love with the son of a Hindu merchant and followed him everywhere, outraging everyone. One day, he heard one Vaishnava tell another, “We should love the Lord as fearlessly and openly as Syed Ibrahim loves the merchant’s son.” The other snorted scornfully, “You call that love? It’s only infatuation.”
Ibrahim sprang at them in fury with his sword raised. But they stood their ground and said staunchly, “If you loved Krishna as you do that boy, you would be a liberated person.”
Taken aback, Ibrahim dropped his sword arm. He turned around and went home to think it over. Who exactly was this Krishna that his fellow citizens loved so much? Being emotionally honest, he decided to find out more.
As a nobleman’s son, Ibrahim apparently knew both Persian and Sanskrit. He read the Srimad Bhagavatam, the ‘biography’ of Krishna. He was intrigued by the unconditional love of the gopis for Krishna and decided to go to Brajbhumi as a tourist to see it for himself.
Four things are still in Brajbhumi since Krishna’s time. The Yamuna, the soil of Braj, called ‘Brajraj’, Govardhan hill and the site of the Katyayani Devi temple, where Sati’s hair is said to have fallen. Ibrahim must have seen them all and experienced the sheer joy of Krishna-love around him.
Genuine Vaishnavism all over the land is meant to be open, unconditional, happy and extroverted. In the overwhelmingly festive atmosphere at Vrindavan, Ibrahim was able to enter this joyous bandwidth. To express his feelings, he began to write heartfelt poetry, which is how we have his Rachnavali. You can find his songs online even today.
However, beyond such interesting instances of Krishna-love and the ecstatic mood of Janmashtami, there is a dark side to recall from Krishna’s babyhood. The grim circumstances of his birth in jail and Yogmaya’s warning to Kamsa that his killer was alive put Krishna in danger at once. He killed his first demon when he was only seven days old by sucking the life out of Putana’s poisoned breast.
The Yadavas, in their bewilderment and love, normalised Krishna’s feats, but a modern person shudders to think of how many attempts were made, and what powerful forces were used to kill that baby.
Krishna was barely three months old when he killed Shakatasura, the cart demon. This rakshas entered an ordinary wooden handcart and waited for an opportunity to run over Krishna. But Krishna, left under it by Yashoda while busy, kicked it with his foot, killing the demon on the spot.
Next, Trinavarta, the tornado demon, whirled Krishna away to dash him to death by dropping him from a great height. But the baby grew so heavy that Trinavarta himself was dragged down. He hit a boulder when he fell and died instantly.
Vatsasura, the calf demon, came by not long after. He blended in with Nanda’s herds disguised as a tender young calf, hoping to get at Krishna when the chance arose. But Krishna recognised him. To the horror of the cowherds, who loved their cattle and never mistreated them, Krishna seized the demon calf by its hind legs and dashed it to death against a tree. The demon’s real form appeared when he died and only then did the cowherds realise the danger.
Then came Bakasura, the crane demon, Putana’s brother and a close friend of Kamsa. He took the form of an outsize crane and tried to pierce Krishna with his sharp beak. But Krishna wrenched his beak apart until it snapped and Bakasura died.
Aghasura, the eldest brother of Bakasura and Putana, then assumed the form of a monstrous snake. He opened his jaws wide like a cave, hoping to swallow Krishna. Several little gopa boys even trooped in unknowingly. But Krishna killed Aghasura with fierce blows and saved them.
Another day, Arishtasura, the bull demon, charged at Krishna to trample him to death. Krishna seized him by the horns and threw him back eighteen paces. Arishtasura charged back, and this time, the little boy killed him.
In several cases, Krishna used his attackers’ own strength against them, as in later martial arts like jiu-jitsu, judo and aikido. May we be inspired anew by Krishna this Janmashtami to identify and successfully tackle our own inner demons.
Renuka Narayanan | FAITHLINE | Senior journalist
(Views are personal)
(shebaba09@gmail.com)
