One after the other, the Rain festival and the Spring festival passed peacefully. Radha was worrying about Krishna knowing the happenings in His life. War was looming large over the Aryavarta. Many kingdoms declared their support to their preferred side. Before plunging into an all-pervasive and destructive war, He wanted to give a chance to peace. While seeking guidance from Krishna, Pandavas pleaded with him to go as their messenger to Hasthinapur to convey their message to Kauravas.
Krishna left for Hasthinapur on his chariot to give peace a chance to prevail. Slowly the chariot was moving forward. A big turmoil stirred his heart. He knew very well that peace had no place then, the mutation of sin was the only solution. The need of the hour was to awaken and elevate the collective consciousness. Throughout his life, he had faced different crises that arose like waves, one after the other. Even then, not once was his countenance clouded by sorrow. He solved all the problems with wisdom. But now he felt there was a void in his heart. A longing to get solace from someone! The possibility of an ethical conflict would be there if the war happened. Guidance with spiritual knowledge was necessary. He whispered a word into the ears of his horses. The horses changed their route...
On that crisp Spring day, Radha saw colorful flowers wavering in the breeze like celestial smiles and tender buds ready to open in the night. The trees with full-bloomed branches were lined up like guards as if standing there in advance to receive an unexpected visitor that day! Before bidding adieu, the Sun asked the blinking sky to watch over the maiden there!
There ...there, she sat under the Tamala tree on that riverside with a beautiful dream to witness the divine light in her life, adjusting her veil on her head. That veil was looking like a veil between the anguished wait and the delirious delight, a veil between the parched thirst and the fulfilling thought, a veil between the longing and possessing, a veil between the interlude and the union. When the veil would be blown away, a new dawn would arrive in her life! There was a frisson of excitement in her heart and an exotic gamut of exhilaration on her beautiful face. The last veil and wail of her past sorrow were being blown away!
Radha had a premonition that something eventful was going to happen. All of a sudden, she was possessed by an overwhelming nervous ecstasy! The trees on the river bank were swaying their heads absorbing the cool breeze. The floral shrubs were in full bloom. It looked as if every branch and bush were trying to convey something to her. The nearby bamboo grove started singing the melodious evening raga Abhogi. The stars were blinking like giving a message to her pulsating heart! There was an eagerness to meet someone. Why is this happening today ... all of a sudden? She looked at the sky, the moonlight grinned merrily at her!
"There is a message ... someone is coming for me... to meet this cowherd maiden, how can I receive that divine light? Why are my eyes searching for Him in this sultry night," were her throbbing musings!
Darkness was slowly widening its territory! The entire nature was resonating in unison, "He is coming, he is coming ... see there he is, crossing all boundaries and trying to reach out to you!" The crescent of the waning moon was coming out from its languorous slumber and started smiling at the world with his cool rays. Clouds were still there looking at the moon with awe and envy. The night was awaiting an event of epic proportions!
Her cheeks were flushed with excitement, her frizzy black hair stuck on her forehead. She stood there wonderstruck! Looking at the charmingly dark, mesmerizing, enchanting divine light with a wondrous aura standing in front of her, smiling at her! " Krishna" ... a sweet cry from her heart resonated in her soul! She was astonished, unable to move her eyes ...stranded there! A song of prayer was transforming into the poetry of desire there!
"Radha ...please, allow me to be with you for a while, forgive me for the long separation! I am back here searching for myself, to immerse myself again in your tender embrace! Radha, my duty is calling me. War is peeping over mankind with an indication of annihilation! On that destined day, a duty-bound human being marched towards Mathura and I left behind my tender lover image for you. Want to see that lover once again in your eyes Radha."
She was stranded between the seductive interplay of action and interaction! She stood there wearing her pride as a transparent veil, while gentle zephyr played with her black tresses. All of a sudden, the veil of pride yielded to the intense yearning of timeless love and like a lovelorn girl she wanted to own Him but when she saw the colorful floral garland adorning His neck, she stopped!
It reminded her of His sending garlands as a gift to her every time after losing Himself to another girl's love. She looked into His serene eyes to seek the answer. 'Is it not pure love, is it not a complete surrender?' Her heart said 'yes, He is here for you, to get back His divine self in your embrace.' But the earth will never accept a cloud hugging it, it will adorn only the lightning it produces. His smile touched her body, His presence itself engulfed her whole self. She stood still in front of Him!!
The passing breeze asked the flowing river,
"Why is Radha not accepting her Krishna into her arms?"
The river replied with its wading wavelets,
"She is absorbed by His mere presence and lost her veil in that swaying pride, recollecting those past stories which were passionately entrenched on each other's hearts!"
The brimming stream smiled a bit, the running river stirred the love, but the moon reflecting on the waves reminded her that He was owned by many queens!
"While I sat at the threshold of our love, waiting to have a glance of my Kanha, no one answered my longing wails! You were busy owning your queens," in a fit of pique she murmured.
"No Radha, I was searching for you, to own you in another form! No one is more beautiful than you, no one is there to caress my head when I am in distress, please hug me with that assurance one more time Radha. No one dares to squeeze my cheeks like you do whenever you were angry! I am here to bathe in your warmth. Please allow me to hug you once Radha!"
"Who are you?" in a fit of mock anger, she inquired!
"I am you! " with zest He replied.
With confusion, she questioned him again, "Who am I?"
"Radha, together we are the definition of love! In separation, we are the images of sorrow! Am I not you Radha? It will be difficult for me to define myself without mentioning your name because you are the totality of me! I am a tiny part of you!"
Silence reigned between them for a while! They knew that it was the glorious moment of their life, their moment of reckoning!
"Krishna, are you a charmer of life, or a judge of wisdom? The cause of desire and the effect of love are so evenly balanced in your mere presence on earth!"
With a shy smile, she questioned him. When it was time for souls to meet, there was nothing on earth that could prevent this preordained event.
She wanted to run into his arms, but before she realized her thought, he was already on her feet!
She was startled and satisfied at the same time. She was unable to hide her bliss for this encounter, and it overflowed as an enigmatic smile on her lips.
She wanted to lift his face to look into his eyes, for that moment she had longed since ages, but her eyes were filled with tears and she was unable to see his face; she tried to touch his cheeks, but all of a sudden, she remembered the gift she sent to him after his marriage with Rukmini...a stiff thought,
'now he is not mine, he is a universal lover with many queens.' She hesitated for a moment!
How the ground between them had erased, no one could recall, but at that moment, they were morphed into a single being. His hands were clasped around her waist and with each soft touch, more tears fell, neither of them tried to wipe those. The resonating hearts whispered to each,
" after ages we got a chance to make new memories". Her eyes resembled the water-bearing clouds at that moment.
His touch was writing a new verse on her heart. She wanted to weave a garland with all her memories to adorn His feet.
'Is it true? My Krishna is in front of me?' It was unbelievable for her.
As if talking to herself she said, "You are the reason for my existence, Krishna. Without you, I am lifeless. Without you, I am just a mere illusion. Why didn't you inform me about your coming? If I had known you are coming today, I would've spread tender flowers on your path, if I knew of your arrival, I would have sprinkled moonbeams on both sides to soothe your heart, if I knew you are coming today, I'd have arranged fresh butter for you to relish like earlier. Is it you my Krishna, are you really here? For me? For your Radha? To be owned by her?"
"Yes, Radha! As I promised to you earlier, I am here to search myself in your eyes, to lose again in your presence. I came here to meet you Radha, only to meet you. On that day, I left all attachments behind, moved forward to save my parents, to define a new society to keep people happy. Don't want to re-establish those ties and bind me in more knots now. I have tired Radha, so very tired. Let me rest my head on your lap for a while. That will give me immense strength which I need now. You are the only person who can give peace to this distraught peacemaker."
He closed his eyes in peace, she ran her fingers through his curly hair. He felt a sense of comfort in that soft touch.
He slowly pulled her close to him, wrapped his arms around her. His embrace was warm and in those divine protective arms, she wanted to lose herself forever. The world around them melted away as they were close to each other, not wanting that moment to end.
In that embrace, the world stopped still on its axis. There was no time, no space, no other thought!
Their minds were at peace. Pure. Unselfish. Undemanding. She lost her identity and felt only the presence of Krishna. This was the moment she'd waited for, prayed for, longed for. She thanked God for this eternal bliss.
The God on her lap smiled benevolently. Earth rejoiced and told itself, "A moment like this has to be cherished for life."
She turned her head away to hide her tears while pointing towards the river, "Look, Krishna, look at the Yamuna, ask the river, it will narrate the stories of my sorrow for you!" She choked, barely holding back her breath.
"I can feel your pain, Radha. Heard all the stories you keep telling with your heartbeats. But one look from you has put all my hesitations at bay. You are a perfect solace for this endless wanderer. What shall I do? That passion in your eyes, the purity of your soul, the deep connect within, the strong desire for this union, how can I explain to you, I can't stay far from you, because you are a part of me, you are a part of my destiny!"
"Krishna, see, how the entire Brindavan transformed itself like a beautiful bride when it heard your footsteps! How fortunate is this milkmaid to have God within her arms!" Radha cupped his face in her hands to watch his compassionate eyes.
"Radha, I am here to share my emotional turmoil with you. War is staring at earth. The human race is mindlessly opting for extinction. What to do Radha? Your Krishna has to lead this destruction from the front. The coming generations will blame me for this." His thoughtful eyes mirrored more of His sorrow than His words to her.
Krishna said again with a concerned voice, "Showing disrespect towards a woman and avarice are indeed the worst sins. I had taken a stand when the honor of a woman was at stake. Draupadi is not going to be a passive woman. She is fiery, will never tolerate injustice. She is brilliant and does have the properties of purity and purification. Moreover, anyone who touches the fire gets burnt. Fire is not that forgiving like God. Everyone who tried to touch Draupadi even in their thoughts will burn. Desire is to live like what wind is to fire, it extinguishes the small, it inflames the great. What to do Radha, I have to decide the fate of these kingdoms with wisdom. I don't want destruction, have never liked pain and loss to the human race."
"Krishna, how could you get answers without leaving the association of this worldly bonding? You think like a monk and implement justice like a monarch? With an assertive smile, she continued, "Where a man reaches by renouncing the world, a woman reaches by embracing the world in its wholeness." [2293]
Viswasruti2019-03-15 23:55:04
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