A wonderful story of Krishna

" There was an occasion when Krishna laid His flute aside and
declared that He would not play on it again. It is a long story, not
found in books; I alone must tell you about it, for it is only the
person who has experienced it, that can describe it.

A bride called Neeraja came to Gokulam as the daughter-in-law of a
Gopa family. Her husband and parents-in-law warned her against
Krishna and His pranks and threatened her, on pain of dire
punishment, to keep away from Him and to avoid Him by every possible
means.

It was Govardhana Pooja day and all the Gopas and Gopikas
had to go beyond the village limits to circumambulate and worship the
Govardhan hill, a festival they celebrated every year. Neeraja too
went with the others and in spite of the severest warning, she peeped
into a crowd of enthusiastic Gopees watching the dance of Raadha with
Krishna, in a flower bower near the hill. She was so captivated by
the divine presence that she was no longer the same person.

Another day, while on the Yamuna bank, she saw Krishna fashioning a
Flute from a reed taken out of Vamsi Kunj (bamboo bower) and she
heard Him play! Oh, it was overwhelmingly ecstatic! It was a call to
transcend the material bonds, to free oneself from the trammels of
earthly endeavours. Neeraja did not care for any one now. She became
God-mad. In fact, she was the first to hold the reins of Akrura's
chariot when he was taking Krishna to Mathura away from Gokulam, and
try to push the vehicle back!

Well; she was driven out of her house by the mother-in law for that.
She was an outcast. The whole village rose up against her; she spent
her days in the Vamsi Kunj, her whole mind fixed on the Lord whom she
had installed there. Years passed. Nandha, Yasodha and Raadha left
the world. She was now 52 years old. One day, she prayed desperately
to Krishna; I can no longer bear this forlorn life. My eyes have gone
dry, they have no more tears to keep this love, green. My heart too
is fast turning a wasteland. Come, O Lord, come and save me, take me
unto yourself. Krishna heard the prayer.

He responded to her yearning and called her by name, so sweetly that
the very voice filled her with new life. The Vamsi Kunj was fragrant
with divine glory. Krishna came near and took Neeraja's palm in His
hand. "What do you desire?" He asked. She questioned, "What is the
purpose of life?" "To merge in God." "Well let me merge in You...
but, before that, before my Prema merges in Yours, let me hear You
play on that flute for a short while." Krishna smiled and gave the
excuse that He had not brought His flute.

But, seeing Neeraja's
yearning, He plucked a reed from the Vamsi Kunj and broke it right
and in a trice converted it into a flute. With Neeraja on his lap,
Krishna played so melodiously on the flute that the entire Gokula and
even the whole world, was bathed in ecstatic joy. When He stopped,
Neeraja had attained final beatitude and was no longer a limited
individual Gopee separate from Him.

Krishna laid aside His flute and said, He will not play on it again.
That is the story of one Gopee; the story of every Gopee will be
interesting, each in its own way, for they were all so transmuted by
the Bhakthi they bore towards the Lord. The Gopees were declared by
Naradha in the Bhakthi Suthras to be the
greatest among the Bhakthas (devotees).

From Swami's Divine Discourse on Gokulaashtami Day, 12 August 1963.


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