Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Epilogue

Radha's love is a song of oblation, a perennial flow of joy. Her life was nothing but a story of love and longing. For her, the meaning of life was to give....and to keep giving. Her eyes were filled with an ocean of worship, its waves rising with an endless longing for Him.

Though I am an ardent admirer and worshipper of the purity, divinity, intensity, romance, and mythology associated with the Radha-Krishna love saga, there has always been one thing that troubled me about Krishna's decision to part from her in the later years of their lives. How could a God be powerless enough to leave his beloved behind and never turn back? How could the one who bestowed equal love, respect, and care upon all his wives be unable to do even a little for the love of his life, his Pranadhika Radhika?

Was he helpless and incapable only when it came to Radha? No, he wasn't. I firmly believe that Krishna, the God of Love, never truly separated from his Radha. She was always with him. He carried her within his heart; in every circumstance, she walked beside him, holding his hand as an unseen guiding force. Although invisible to human eyes, they remained together until eternity.

No other goddess combines the elements of Bhakti and Shringara quite as exquisitely as this divine milkmaid. Radha spans a rainbow of vivid emotions and images, from the playful ecstasy of Raas Leela to the profound emotionality of Krishna's everlasting love for her. She is the eternal mystery of love...the epitome of a devotion that defied conventional codes and transcended social prohibitions through the power of spiritual and metaphysical love.

Radha, the bucolic milkmaid, followed the dictates of her heart, her instincts, and her passion, seeking union with her innermost self, her Krishna. She was her own mistress even in the act of surrendering herself completely to her beloved. And it is this paradox of surrender and sovereignty that has made her worthy of worship through the ages.

We have heard of great epic love stories, but most of them culminated in some form of happy ending. The crux of the Krishna-Radha story, however, was a gnawing longing for one another. They spent only a brief span of togetherness, followed by an apparently never-ending separation.

The Radha-Krishna romance epitomized a love that was sweet, tender, and passionate, a love that surpassed words and remained a surreal experience beyond human comprehension. Radha is forever the embodiment of pure love, and no one can be more pious than she.

But what happened after Krishna's brief visit on that fateful night?

The Morning After Krishna's Visit

Just like a flash of lightning, He had appeared and then vanished, leaving her in a state of dizziness and confusion. It all seemed like a dream. She looked around; the river Yamuna confirmed His presence with its gentle wavelets. A memory of a soothing melody awakened something deep within her.

"Yes... a few moments ago He was here, with me. I had enfolded myself in His embrace!"

She was exhilarated by the memory of the night's events. How long she had yearned for His darshan! When the waiting finally ended and the divine meeting occurred, how had it passed so quickly? What had transpired between those moments, and why had it ended so soon? She was besieged by a whirlpool of emotions.

Time moved like the shadow of life, while Space had its own mysterious ways of bringing the day out of the night. In those serene surroundings, she tried to relive the dream of the previous night. But her eyes refused to dream, even when they were closed. The vision was already imprinted upon her eyelids.

Her heart whispered with a wave of happiness, "He is here—for me, with me, within me, in every beat of my heart!"

Slowly, the village began to awaken. The gopikas headed toward the river with empty pots, preparing to carry water back home. Radha began walking along the riverbank, recounting the memories of the night. She searched within herself, trying to understand who she truly was at her core. She had immersed herself in a million magical moments....some transient, some eternal, thoughts that needed no words.

With every step, her mind became clearer and more resolute, as though the growing physical distance between them had now transformed into an emotional chasm. Her eyes grew misty, and a few droplets gathered at their corners. Yet she continued walking.

Suddenly, she wiped away her tears. In an effort to contain the turmoil within and conceal her emotions, she quickened her pace. She was a maiden walking with the attitude of a warrior returning to the battlefield, a warrior who now had to fight her own hankering, the inevitable separation from her beloved, and the immense void she would have to live with from that day onward. That walk of longing would last her entire life.

At that moment, she looked like a sculpture carved by the ocean and installed in the sky.

"The imprints of His feet are here. The music of His flute has merged with the melody of the breeze. His love for me is imbibed in every bud and every flower that blooms each morning and spreads His love like a sweet fragrance throughout Vrindavan from this day onward," she thought.

As they approached the river, the milkmaids saw Radha walking toward Nand's house. There was an unusual luminosity on her face, making even her surroundings appear effulgent.

They were surprised and hurried toward her. Vakula studied her perceptively, astonished by what she saw, and questioned her.

"Radha, how did you get that orange tilak on your chest? And why, girl, are your cheeks smeared with vermilion streaks? Why are your eyes so red? Did you not sleep last night? Why are you looking like this? And what is the meaning of that satisfied smile amidst those flowing tears, Radha? What happened?"

Radha was startled for a moment. Her silence only heightened their curiosity.

"Wake me not, sakhis. Wake me not from this reverie, from this bliss so deep. One Radha was enough for Him, but many Krishnas visited me last night! Do you know? Krishna was here!"

They looked at one another with a grin and dismissed her claim. They thought it must be yet another of her innumerable illusions.

With an emphatic voice, she implored them, "Believe me! He was here. He spoke with me while resting His head on my chest."

Radha was overcome with joyful elation. Her sensations came rushing one after another, and in her phantasmic trance, a smile, innocent yet knowing...brought a wave of sweet earthly joy to her face.

The intoxicating fragrance of Kasturi, musk...lingered around her, surprising them. They knew that fragrance. It was their Krishna's sweet, unmistakable scent.

Radha remained lost in her trance and did not answer their questions. Then they noticed a peacock feather hanging from her veil. They carefully picked it up and examined it. A pink floral garland adorned her neck. They had never seen those flowers in Brindavan before.

Vaishnavi suddenly exclaimed, "Look here! There are marks of chariot wheels. Someone came this way!"

They looked at one another with wide eyes, disbelief slowly giving way to realization. Reality dawned upon them. Krishna had indeed been there!

Completely flabbergasted, they stared at Radha with a thousand questions and began asking them all at once.

She smiled faintly, a smile with a little twist to it, it reflected the smile of a child determined not to cry.

In a low voice, Radha began narrating the reason behind His visit.

"He came here to share His grief—the grief of the approaching, all-pervasive war. The sorrow over the destruction it will bring upon mankind. He is going as a messenger to meet the opposing kings. While on His way, He halted here for a while to seek the blessings of His motherland, His Vrindavan, and the sacred river Yamuna.

"He said that if He met His sakhis and Maa Yashoda, He might not be able to leave this place again. That is why He visited without anyone's notice and then left for Hastinapur, carrying a proposal of peace."

With wide eyes, they stared at her in awe.

"You met Him, Radha? How fortunate you are! Your penance for Him has finally been rewarded with His darshan!"

"Radha, how does He look now? We knew Him many years ago as a mischievous young boy. Does He still remember all of us, with whom He played so blissfully during those halcyon days?"

With a gentle smile, she replied, "Now He looks like the savior of humanity, a preacher to mankind. I saw commitment in His glowing eyes, Vaishnavi. War and peace are His two eyes now—one to extinguish enmity and the other to propagate unity. He wants to save kings and warriors from that sin-inflicting conflict. I saw a God whose divine eyes overflowed with peace."

"Alas, we did not see Him! He left before we even realized He was here," Vakula said in a broken voice.

"Vakula, He did not leave us. His thoughts are imprinted on our souls, lifting the spiritual being within us. He is present in every new life on this earth, spreading love and bliss throughout the universe. We are but small wavelets, carrying the flow of life toward the vast ocean of devotion, where we ultimately unite with His supreme love.

"Let us carry this love as a perennial dhara through every river and every bower. Let us strengthen those shoulders that bear the responsibilities of the entire universe through the power of our worship. He may have left Vrindavan, but Vrindavan has never left Him—and neither have we."

She walked on, like a ray of light coalescing the earth and the sky. Wisdom dawned upon her as she gazed into the endless expanse of the luminous sky. The dusty path beneath her feet silently wrote the Radha-Krishna saga of love upon the heart of the earth, preserving it for generations yet to come.

Now and then, she heard stories from wandering yogis and sadhus who spoke of Krishna's exploits and conquests, of the Kurukshetra war, and of His profound teachings to Arjuna on the battlefield. Radha smiled a secret smile. She knew that she had been there with Him when all of it was unfolding.

For time itself knew what the world could not: they were never truly apart, because together, they were timeless.

She walked on, like a ray of light coalescing the earth and the sky. Wisdom dawned upon her as she gazed into the endless expanse of the luminous sky. The dusty path beneath her feet silently wrote the Radha-Krishna saga of love upon the heart of the earth, preserving it for generations yet to come.

Radha and Krishna's romance is complete and sanguine... the lilting tunes of his flute linger long after their bower stood empty, waiting for two lovers to reunite in their comforting embrace in the future, because time knew that together they were timeless! [ 17000 words] END.

Viswasruti2019-04-03 08:19:01