Hare Kṛṣṇa,
With Kṛṣṇa performing one powerful activity after another (atypical of a small boy), it is natural for the Vrajavasis to be astonished despite how much love and affection they have for Him. For devotees who are completely absorbed in prema for the Lord, does witnessing such activities decrease their prema and instead increase their awe and reverence for Him? Is this another test of Vrajavasis’ prema by Kṛṣṇa? Before the lifting of the Govardhana Hill pastime, they had witnessed other powerful superhuman activities but may not have thought about His powers. They were too absorbed in their love for Him. But now seeing a seven-year old Kṛṣṇa holding Govardhana Hill with just one hand for seven days and nights cast doubts in their mind? They are wondering – is He a God, demigod, a demon, a Yaksa, a Gandharva, or just another child endowed with supernatural powers?
“How could this seven-year-old boy playfully hold up the great hill Govardhana with one hand, just as a mighty elephant holds up a lotus flower?” (SB 10.26.3)
“As a mere infant who had hardly yet opened His eyes, He drank the breast milk of the powerful demoness Pūtanā and then sucked out her very life air as well, just as the force of time sucks out the youth of one’s body. As a three-month old, baby Kṛṣṇa kicked a cart upside down by the tip of his foot. As a one-year old, Kṛṣṇa killed the demon Tṛṇāvarta who appeared as a whirlwind. He grabbed the demon’s neck, causing him great pain, and thus killed him. As a slightly older child, Krsna dragged the mortar between a pair of arjuna trees and pulled them down. At other times, He killed the demons Bakāsura, Vatsasura, and Dhenukasura. He arranged Pralambasura to be killed by Balarama, saved Vraja’s cowherd boys and their animals from a forest fire, and chastised the most poisonous serpent, Kāliya”? (Paraphrased from SB 10.26.3-12)
Who wouldn’t be astonished by the immense unbelievable powers displayed by a mere child?
“Dear Nanda, how is it that we and all the other residents of Vraja cannot give up our constant affection for your son? And how is it that He is so spontaneously attracted to us? On the one hand this boy is only seven years old, and on the other we see that He has lifted the great hill Govardhana. Therefore, O King of Vraja, a doubt about your son arises within us.” (SB 10.26.13-14)
Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura provided one perspective of Vrajavasis’ doubts. The Vrajavasis provided the wonderful activities of the child as evidence to prove that Kṛṣṇa is God. Because of His powers and His being the shelter and object of their prema, He cannot be a child. They are all unanimous in proposing to Nanda Maharaja that this child is other than an ordinary child. Even then the love and affection between Krsna and the Vrajavasis do not diminish. In normal circumstances, one’s love for someone becomes covered with awe and reverence (or even some sort of fear) if the other person’s extraordinary powers are revealed. For example, the child of James Bond may have grown up thinking that his dad is simply powerful. He is unlike other dads. He can do everything, drive cars superfast, fly airplanes, jump from cliff, fight bad people, come out of dangerous situations easily, and so on. But on coming to know one day that his dad is a highly trained spy working for the government, the child’s amazement would diminish and would be replaced by some element of fear. The Vrajavasis’s predicament is similar. Thus, they approached Nanda Maharaja to resolve their doubts about Krsna’s identity and source of power.
Nanda Maharaja informed the cowherds using Garga Muni’s words, which he understood to mean that Krsna was a child but has some extraordinary qualities similar to the Lord. Garga Muni informed Nanda Maharaja that his child possessed qualities equal to Nārāyaṇa. He should not become indifferent to protecting Him by becoming astonished.
“Therefore, O Nanda Mahārāja, this child of yours is as good as Nārāyaṇa. In His transcendental qualities, opulence, name, fame and influence, He is exactly like Nārāyaṇa. Thus you should not be astonished by His activities.” (SB 10.26.22)
Conveying the same message of Garga Muni to Vrajavasis, Nanda Maharaja requested that though they had seen Kṛṣṇa’s phenomenal powers, they should not give up their affection and should continue to give blessings to Him daily.
“Because of Kṛṣṇa’s wonderful activities you should not think of Him as God. You should make Him the object of your compassion by blessing Him to live a long life. You should not be indifferent to Him.” Nanda Maharaja then repeated Garga’s statement, ‘Protect Him well.’ By removing the cowherd men’s bewilderment, Nanda Maharaja removed their doubts.” (Sārārtha-darśini, SB 10.26.22)
Citing Visnu Purana, Srila Jiva Goswami, in his Laghu Vaisnava Tosani, reveals an interesting dialogue between Krsna and the cowherds:
“When Indra had gone, the cowherds, on seeing that Kṛṣṇa had lifted Govardhana Hill, spoke affectionately to Kṛṣṇa who removes all calamity.
O Lord, we are most fortunate since you have saved us and the cows from the greatest danger by lifting the hill. Your play as a child is unequalled but being a cowherd is to be condemned. O child! How can your attractive actions be described? You subdued Kāliya in the water and killed Dhenuka. You lifted Govardhana. Now we have doubts in our minds. We swear at the feet of the Lord, O Kṛṣṇa of unlimited prowess! It is true. We cannot consider that you are human on seeing such powers. All of Vraja, including women and children, have affection for you, O Keśava! Even the devatās cannot perform such acts. Since you have such powers as a child, it is not proper to stay among us. O unlimited Kṛṣṇa! These thoughts give rise to doubt. Are you a devatā, a demon, a Yakṣa, or a Gandharva? Thinking about this we conclude that you are our friend. We offer respects to you. (Viṣṇu Purāṇa 5.13.1–8)
When the cowherds spoke in this way, wise Kṛṣṇa was silent for a moment and then spoke with affectionate anger. O cowherds! If you are not ashamed of having a relationship with me, or if I am praiseworthy, then why think about this at all? If you have affection for me and if I am praised by you, you should think of me as the closest friend. I am not a devatā, Gandharva, Yakṣa or demon. I have been born as your friend. You should not think otherwise.
(Viṣṇu Purāṇa 5.13.9–12)
Just as all of you, having great prowess, think of me in the same way, I should not be disrespected. I am your relative and friend. If I am worthy of your praise, as a friend and have powers like a devatā, what is the use of thinking too much about this, if you are merciful to me?
(Viṣṇu Purāṇa Hari-vaṁśa 2.20.11, 13)
As devotees who are hearing this pastime, how should we process this and apply to ourselves?
We should follow Kṛṣṇa’s advice to the cowherds by thinking of Him as our closest friend. Of course we are not on the level of Vrajavasis’s prema; but still, we can consider Kṛṣṇa as our dearest friend. In that mood, we should perform devotional service to Him so that He is pleased with us.
Sukadeva Goswami summarizes the mood perfectly for us. He said, “O King Pariksit! May that Kṛṣṇa who lifted Govardhana and protected the Vrajavasis from the disturbances caused by hunger, hail and rain arising from Indra’s wrath, and who expertly initiated the worship of Govardhana to cut down the demigods’ pride, be pleased with us. In the same way may He who protects you from the lightning bolt curse of Srngi’s anger with the essence of the Vedas in the form of this Bhagavata, who is expert at starting the sacrifice of listening to the Bhagavatam, and who destroyed the pride of the brahmanas devoid of bhakti, be pleased with us… May “the Lord of the cows”, who destroyed Indra’s false pride, be pleased with you, me and all the assembled listeners.” (Sārārtha-darśini, SB 10.26.25)
All glories to Srila Prabhupada!
Krsna Katha 