LORD
KRISHNA’S BIRTH IS NO ACCIDENT…
- Has a unique body with beautiful features
- Should be marked with all auspicious characteristics
- Born in an
auspicious way
- At an auspicious time
- In a unique and auspicious manner
- Must be and become extremely pleasing to all
- A radiating personality who is ever effulgent
- A strong person – physically, intellectually, emotionally and spiritually
- Should be ever youthful
- Should be a wonderful linguist – who talks pleasingly and is fluent with the human language (Manushya Bhasha) as well as the language of the gods (Deva Bhasha)
- He should be
- Highly
learned
- Highly Intelligent and Extremely clever
- A genius of sorts in life, love and war
- An artistic individual in all forms of art, dance & music
- An expert judge of time and circumstances
- An authoritarian on the Vedas who can see and speak scriptures
- An individual with a purity of thought, actions and emotions – chaste in every way – a person who can live and depict Nishkaama Prema (pure love free from lust)
- A calm individual who is
- Patient
- Tolerant
- Forbearing
- A shy, happy & fun loving person who drives away sorrows of others yet at the same time be serious, self-controlled, steadfast, and firmly determined in all situations that will present before him.
- He should be gentle, compassionate, liberal, grateful and respectful to all concerned.
- He should be a self-satisfied person who possesses equilibrium of the mind
- He should be popular, heroic, most powerful, all famous protector of surrendered souls and a well-wisher of devotees and also who is partial/ biased towards them.
- He should be so attractive encompass their hearts and reside within it.
- An extremely religious person who should be all worshippable
- An all honorable, magnanimous personality who will grow up to be the supreme controller
- A person who will have acquired and gained mastery over the 3 gunas – Sattva Guna, Rajo Guna and Tamo Guna.
- Perform
austerities to energize yourselves
- Meditate and contemplate on this form of mine in ISOLATION.
- Despite this the soul will have to attain purity through Yoga
- It is only in the 8th birth that the soul will be ready
Therefore I ask you to conceal this four armed form of mine and commence
your PENANCE (or saadhana)”.
THE LORDS ACTION…
- Kamsa immediately
attacked Vasudeva’s Kingdom and was about to kill Devaki at this moment
Vasudeva tried to reason it out with Kamsa & used the Neeti Shastra. According to Neeti Shastra when life is in
danger, you can do whatever to protect yourself. And Vasudeva just did that
& he said that It is the 8th Child that is propheciated and not
her why do you want to kill her, she is after all your sister. I promise to
bring the child to you when it is born. This pacified Kamsa’s anger & fear
of Kamsa and he thus put Vasudev & Devaki in his prison guarded by his
soldiers.
- The couple Vasudeva and Devaki being jailed was the play of Lord Mahavishnu and thus the Lord gave them the ISOLATION they needed to meditate & contemplate upon his divine form.
- The sequence of events that unfolded over the next 15 years was the real phase of inner development to ensure the manifestation of the Lord’s aspect in the womb of Devaki. This period of isolation and the loss of lives of newly born children strengthened Devaki & Vasudev internally – emotionally as well as spiritually. The soul through the passage of 7 births attained purity through each of the births, evolved, prepared and paved the way Devaki’s womb for the lords manifested form to be born through her. Devaki this meditates and allows the foetus over these 7 births to imbibe
- Purity and robustness through the proper evolutionary process.
- Imbibe the knowledge of the soul and the universe that –
- the body changes but the soul remains the same
- A sober person is not bewildered by change
- The wise do not lament for the living or the dead; sadness or happiness, deeds and activities or the age.
- A year after being jailed Devaki delivers her first baby. It was a beautiful girl baby and the soldiers promptly informed Kamsa about its birth. Kamsa summoned Vasudeva, who brought him the new born infant. When Kamsa saw the baby girl he was pleased with its looks and asked Vasudeva to take her back to the Jail as it was not a boy baby. Vasudeva returned back to their cell in the Jail.
- It was now to ensure that the lord takes birth through the purified soul
Narada appeared at the palace of Kamsa. If Kamsa will
be pitiful, there will be no avatara. To deviate Kamsa's mind, he had brought
flowers with eight petals. He said to Kamsa, “That eighth child will be the
reason for your death. He asked Kamsa as to why he allowed Vasudeva to go
with the child?” Kamsa replied, “But it's the first
one!” Narada who had brought the flower with him said, “Look at the flower.
Which is eighth petal?”. Kamsa said, “1,2,3…8. Yes this one!”. Narada then
said, “Okay, count from the other end side!”. Kamsa said, “1,2…8. This one!”
And now the enraged Kamsa went to the cell of Vasudeva & Devaki and slayed
the 1st baby.
- Like this right from the 1st baby delivered by Devaki (in her 18th Year) and subsequently in her 21st, 23rd, 25th, 27th, 28th & 30th year of her life she had delivered a child which were mercilessly slayed by Kamsa and then the 33rd year of her life the lords aspect manifested in the form of the 8th child which was a baby boy who went on to be called Krishna.
It was the night of Ashtami of Sharavana Maasa (The 8th day of
the month of Monsoon) Krishna Paksha (The waning phase of the moon) and with
the star Rohini on the aspect. The clouds had hovered throughout the day and by
evening it was absolutely dark. As night progressed the downpour had begun and with
time it intensified to heavy rain. For the first time the people noticed
nature’s heightened state and the river Yamuna was in-spate. It is said that Yamuna was so excited to
receive the lord that she ebbed and flowed at her best peak. It is also
mentioned in the Bhagvatam that just as the moon doesn’t form in the night but
effortlessly and silently it appears in the sky so also lord Krishna
noiselessly appeared on amidst the thunder, lightning and the roaring cheer of
nature’s various aspects. Vasudev noticed the smiling baby and looking at it
heard an inner voice “take me to Brindavan” and then a bright light led the
way. Vasudev found a discarded bamboo basket with a big leaf of Ashwatha
(peepul tree) and placed the baby in it. No sooner he placed the baby the
Ashwatha leaf grew large due to the divine energy of the child and another leaf
too just like this was put on the baby as a blanket.
Vasudev then noticed that the gates of his cell automatically opened on
their own and the light led the way for his exit. As he walked through the
exits of the jail he noticed all the guards in deep slumber. Following the
light (as though it was day light) Vasudev walked out of the jail and in front
was the Yamuna ebbing in full glory. As he stepped into the river the water the
waters of Yamuna were very excited to touch the feet of the Lord and its waves
rose high. The lord then put his tiny feet out of the basket and once the
waters of Yamuna touched the feet of the lord the river calmed down leaving
space for Vasudeva to cross it. Sesha the divine snake to protect the baby from
the downpour covered the basket with its hood from behind as Vasudeva walked in
front. Vasudeva reached Brindavana, silently entered the house of Nandaraaj and
as per the divine voice suggestion exchanged his baby for the girl baby of
Nandraaj and Yashodha. Promptly Vasudev with the baby girl walked back to his
cell in the jail of Mathura. Automatically all the gates closed as they
entered. Finally when Kamsa got the news of birth of the baby and he rushed to
the cell of Vasudev & Devaki he was surprised to see a beautiful girl baby.
Just as before when he wished to crash the baby against the wall – the baby
slipped out of his hand turned herself into the form of divine mother Mahamaya
and pronounced “NO one can kill me Kamsa, I am the divine manifested form of
Shakti. The boy who is poised to slay you has taken birth elsewhere and will
one day come to Mathura slay you and relieve people of your tyranny. Until that
day it will be my duty to protect Devaki & Vasudeva as they are under my
protection. The baby girl was none other
than the yogmaaya manifested human form called Mahamaya. – WHAT
A UNIQUE BIRTH.
They say when you earnestly pray, god answers and fulfils that most
venerable prayer. Hence Lord Mahavishnu fulfilled the wish of Devaki and
Vasudeva. Their prayers were not only to elevate them and release them of the
misery in prison but also for the upliftment of mankind. Thus the boy grew up
at Brindavana as Krishna. By virtue of birth Krishna acquired the Rajasic
Qualities (Rajo Guna) of Vasudeva & Devaki as the suckling baby Krishna
acquired the Saatvik qualities from Yashodha and the Tamasik qualities from
Pootana. After the war, just before Krishna departed from the bodyKrsihna cried
“AMMA” in pain when struck by the arrow of the hunter. His mothers’ arrived
instantly at that spot – Devaki, Yashodha & Pootana – Shocked to see
Pootana when both Devaki & Yashodha asked Pootana why she had come? Pootana
replied “he has sucked my milk too and that why I am here, in this regard I am
his mother too”. This laid a very hard foundation as to why we in Bharat as a
matter of fact all Sanatani’s or Hindu’s call the cow “Gou Maata”.
Had it not been for the prayers of Devaki & Vasudev and the Lord Mahavishnu’s considerate acceptance to fulfill this prayer the cute child would not have:-
- Had the unique birth
- Received the right Upbringing of Yashodha & Naandraaj
- Be unequally courageous, brave and fierce strategic from the milk of Pootana
- Would not have kicked the wheels of the cart & killed the demon Shakatasura
- Become as heavy as a mountain so that Tranavarta could not lift him
- Play over and dance on the hood of Kalinga the Serpent
- The world would not have heard the Song of the Lord – Bhagvad Geeta
- None would have deciphered between Right & Wrong when every day we tread on Dharma Kshetra (the pathway of Duty).
- Saved and elevated thousands of lives who prayed to him fervently – Draupadi, Rukhmini, Arjuna, Vidura, Bheeshma, Bheema …. The list is endless.
- Above all give us pathways to evolve into better beings by choosing the pathway that is best suited to ones one nature and character.
Krishna is not just a name it’s a mantra, its energy manifested in every
human that unveils itself in silence and above all it’s that activant force
that involves to help others evolve. Just one call and he always answers.
On each Ashtami of Krishna Paksha Shraavana Maasa its best we sit back contemplate on this persona and replay within ourselves the secret of his birth and the purposefulness of his life here prior to us and also during this very birth who has reached out to us as a father, brother, friend, husband, Guru and of course as God. It’s just a matter of time for us to realize in the numerous ways he has reached out to us. That’s why we always end and offer everything we think & do at his feet by says “Krishna-arpanam-astu”. May the radiance of Krishna always fill our hearts and minds and drive away the ignorance with knowledge, clear hindrances and problems with solutions, drive out the darkness through rightful enlightenment. Wishing all of you a blessed Janmashtami…
NOTE:- I give due recognition and credit to the owners of the pictures and paintings that I found on the internet and have used only as a depiction to the act of the lord that were apt to the article on the internet hence request your kind hearted cooperation in using these pictures..