“It is better to perform one’s own duties imperfectly than to master the duties of another”
There is no place for materialistic desires; this is what I have learned from the tales of Lord Krishna. Krishna, the 8th avatar of Lord Vishnu, has been influencing the lives of billions of people since his birth.
He was a human with extraordinary capabilities and a large heart. He kept the duties above the personal relations. He exhibited how different souls can be in love with the ultimate creator.
There are so many learnings that could be inherited by us from the story of Krishna. Said to be alive in the 5th-6th century BC, Krishna has been a source of inspiration for me.
Artists across the globe have been trying to reflect the grace of the prophet in numerous Lord Krishna paintings.
If I keep talking about the greatness and the interpretation of Krishna lives and actions, I think I am going to exceed the word limit of this article.
Hence, I will be focusing on the two main aspects of Krishna that has been a topic of debates among the artists, thinkers, and philosophers for centuries.
In the first half, I will be covering what is the implication of the blue skin of Lord Krishna. Was his skin really blue? Or does the blue colour have some hidden interpretation?
The succeeding part will be centred on the relationship of Krishna with numerous gopis.
Let’s start:
The blue skin of Lord Krishna
First of all, there is not an iota of doubt that Lord Krishna skin was not blue. So, why is it that in every Lord Krishna paintings, he is being depicted as blue-skinned?
Have you noticed what else is blue? The sky and the sea.
The colour blue is a representation of all-inclusiveness. This meanssomething which is beyond human’s perception and understanding is blue.
The tale of the life of Krishnapost-written was passed on orally. People of that era insisted that Krishna was blue.
Maybe Krishna was dark-skinned but what people saw was a blue-bodied man.
The aura of Lord Krishna was so magnificent that his physical body was surrounded by the electrifying blue energy. He was an avatar of Lord Vishnu, so the aura of all-inclusiveness incorporated him.
This is why Krishna was so attractive. We have seen a lot of good-looking people, but it is quite possible that their personality is not as appealing as an average looking person with scintillating aura.
Historians and religious experts tell that the aura of Krishna was such that even the people who plotted to kill him would sit with him and hear him.
Hindu scriptures tell us that human life as per the several hues can attain various aura. Blue aura is attainable when the person is at its peak and still chooses to beproactive in the world.
So, Krishna was dynamic, had an electric blue aura, and was considered as a supernatural human to others.
Hence, people who looked at him, saw him blue in colour, owing to the electrifying aura surrounding him. Contrarily, people who focused on his skin, never saw the blue colour (because they were focusing on something materialistic).
Krishna, the divine lover
A lot of people misinterpret the connection of Krishna with so many gopis as multiple affairs. Let me clear the concept here.
You must have seen a lot of Lord Krishna paintings that depict him playing flutewith numerous gopis surrounding him.
Krishna was an avatar of Vishnu. The people get fiercely attracted to him at the first touch, look, and instance only.
Radha, one of the most adored gopis of Krishna, was in love with the soul of Krishna. So was the other gopis.
They all somehow got connected with the purity and the piousness that resided in the Krishna. The love between the souls and the creator is inseparable.
There was no feeling of lust involved in this sort of love.
Krishna always loved his lovers (disciples) because he knew the string of love between souls is not detachable and free from all sorts of adulteration of materialistic desires.
It was this love only that make Krishna and Radha inseparable. Both were in love since childhood, but Krishna was bounded by his duties. He told Radha that their love will be eternal (as is the love of a creator and a soul). Radha agreed and let Krishna go his way. Both got married to different people.
Today, after more than thousand years, Radha-Krishna is the most common way of terming the duo. Even in all of the Krishna temples, bhajans(religious songs) are sung about the love affair of Radha and Krishna.
So, Krishna never was a flirt or a playboy. He was the reincarnation of our supreme creator. He looked blue-skinned because he had a mesmerising aura.
He had so many gopis in love because that’s what happens when a soul interacts or see its creator.
I hope I am able to decipher the two factors related to Lord Krishna.
In my next write-up, I will be coming up with some more intriguing aspects about Lord Krishna.
Stay Tuned!