Krishna Only Accepts Love And Affection

[Bankebihari dasa]

KRISHNA ONLY ACCEPTS LOVE AND AFFECTION

Krishna will only accept an offering that is made with love and affection. One incident which shows this very clearly took place many years later, when He was in Hastinapura.

One day, Krishna was visiting Arjuna and his four

brothers, who were all His very dear friends and devotees. Duryodhana, who also lived in Hastinapura, was the sworn enemy of Arjuna and his brothers (later they fought each other at the Battle of Kuruksetra), but he wanted to invite Krishna to a feast. Duryodhana was very wealthy, so he served preparations of delicious foodstuffs — such as Iaddu, pera, kicodi, puns and makhan - in golden dishes, and put water in golden cups. Then he requested Krishna, “Please come and take Your meal with Me.“ Krishna objected, “I can’t eat anything, because I have no appetite. I can eat anything where there is love and affection, but I can never eat with you, because you have no love and affection for Me! Besides that, I came to Hastinapura to make a specific proposal to you, but you haven’t complied with it. How can I take My meal with you? I’m not a beggar, and I’m not hungry.“

DELICIOUS BANANA PEELS

Shortly after speaking with Duryodhana, Krishna went to

Vidura’s house. Vidura was Krishna’s devotee, and was also very affectionate to Arjuna and his four brothers; in fact, on several occasions he had saved them from great danger. Because of this, Krishna was very fond of Vidura. When Krishna got to Vidura’s house, Vidura was not there, so Krishna pleaded with his wife Vidurani, “Oh, Vidurani Maiya, I am so hungry! Please give Me something to eat.“ Vidurani was very affectionate to Krishna, and she was anxious to serve Him. She began to offer Him bananas, but in her confusion, she threw away the fruit and gave Him the peels. Krishna affectionately accepted the peels, and relished them joyfully. They tasted sweeter to Him than all the preparations and offerings made in Dvaraka by his chief queens Rukmini and Satyabhama.

While Krishna was completely absorbed in accepting

Vidurani’s offering of banana peels, Vidura came in. He was astonished at what he saw, and exclaimed, “Oh, Vidurani! What are you doing?“

Krishna tried to caution him, “Don’t speak to her. She is

not in her external senses. She is fully absorbed in

transcendental love and affection.“ Vidurani, however, came back to external consciousness when she heard her husband speak, and she soon realised what was happening. Then she began to give Krishna the fruit of the bananas, and throw away the peels.

Krishna was a little disappointed. “Oh! This fruit is not as tasty as the peels were.“

From this pastime, we can see that Krishna never

becomes hungry. He doesn’t want to taste banana, or rabadi, or milk or anything. He just wants to take the essence of all the fruits. What is that essence? It is simply love and affection, the mood of bhakti in the offering. Krishna will never take anything from someone who has no love and affection for Him. On the other hand, He will forcibly take what He wants from a devotee who has love and affection for Him, if that devotee does not give Him enough.

When Krishna appeared in the form of His own devotee as Caitanya Mahaprabhu, He used to quarrel with His dear devotee Sridhara, and take the things that Sridhara was selling. Sridhara used to protest, “No! I won’t give you these things without payment! I’m a very poor person, or, You shouldn’t take these things. Go and get them from someone else.“ But Mahaprabhu used to take his moca, and banana flowers and other things anyway. That is Krishna’s nature. Krishna is not a beggar. He is full in all opulence, but still He comes to Vraja to serve all His associates, and to play with them.

The Butter Thief - His Divine Grace B.V. Narayan Maharaj