Vrindavan, 2017.09.30 (VT): Near the Shri Radhavallabh temple, within the enclosure of Radhavallabh Ghera, you will find the temple of Anand-Vallabh. Anand-Vallabh is the beloved deity of a female saint named Anandi Bai.
Anandi Bai was from a family of Kashmiri Brahmins who lived in Amritsar. She was from the lineage of priests who served Motilal Nehru and his ancestors. Her father was an inspector for the city of Amritsar. She was born in Kartik month of Vikram Samvat 1912 (1855 AD).
Anandi Bai was fascinated with Shri Krishna and his devotees since her childhood. She always loved to serve others. When she came of age, her marriage was arranged, but the boy she was meant to marry died. Her parents wanted to find another boy, but Anandi Bai took it as a sign Krishna wanted her to dedicate her entire life to him.
She asked her father to make a temple for her, and so he did, right within the family home. There the deities of Shri Anand-Vallabh were established. Anandi Bai took diksha from Acharya Vanshidharji Maharaj of the Ramanuja Sampradaya, but she was always immersed in the mood of Vrindavan. She threw herself into the seva of Shri Anand Vallabh and never looked back.
Shri Anand Vallabh
After her parents died, Anandi Bai moved to Vrindavan. In Samvat 1963 (1906 AD) she bought some property in Radhavallabh Ghera and made a temple for her beloved deities.
Anandi Bai was had vatsalya bhaav. Anand Vallabh was her son, and Radharani was her daughter-in-law. She had a very close connection with them, and they used so speak with her. They would tell her what they wanted to eat, and how they wished to dress.
Sometimes at their request, she would dress them for different lilas. Sometimes Anand Vallabh wore a cowherding dress, and sometimes he dressed for the Raas dance. He would ask for different musicians by name to come and perform for him, and perform they did. Soon, Anandi Bai’s little temple became one of the must-see attractions in Vrindavan.
Once Anandi Bai went to a shop to buy a saree for Radharani, but the one she wanted was too expensive, so she purchased a simpler one. But Radharani refused to wear it, and told her, “Ma, I want that other saree… the one you left back at the shop.” Unable to fulfill Radharani’s request, Anandi Bai was very sad. She sat down outside the temple in a sulk.
Next door at the Dauji mandir there lived a saint named Kishori Das Babaji, who used to help Anandi Bai with her seva. Kishori Das Babaji asked what was the matter. When Anandi Bai told him what had happened, he went straight to the shop and bought the saree Radharani wanted on credit in the name of one of Anandi Bai’s wealthy followers.
Anandi Bai with her son and daughter-in-law, Shri Radha-Anand Vallabh
On another occasion, Anandi Bai went to Lahore (now a part of Pakistan) in search of a very specific type of cloth for Radharani. She searched through many shops but was unable to find the perfect dress. Just then she saw a prostitute boarding a horse-cart, who was wearing the exact type of fabric she was looking for. So Anandi Bai boarded another cart and chased the prostitute all the way to the red-light district, just to find out where she had gotten her dress. The prostitute was so charmed by Anandi Bai that she herself ordered the rare cloth from Amritsar and had it sent as a gift to Anand-Vallabh in Vrindavan.
Anand Vallabh loved to eat halwah. Sometimes Anand Vallabh would wake Anandi Bai up at two in the morning just to make halwah for him. Once Anandi Bai went Haridwar to collect donations for Anand Vallabh’s seva. Suddenly she heard Anand Vallabh saying, “Maiya! Please come home. The pujari forgot to feed me my halwah last night.” She had to come back to Vrindavan immediately.
In addition to serving Radha and Krishna as her son and daughter-in-law, Anandi Bai loved to serve their devotees. Her kitchen was always open, and no matter what time of day someone came, she was always ready to serve them prasad. Many sadhus and beggars used to sleep in the old Radhavallabh Temple hall. And every night, Anandi Bai would make her rounds of the temple premises, searching to see if anyone was going to sleep hungry. If she found anyone who hadn’t eaten, she would make sure they ate before she herself took prasad.
As Anandi Bai got older, her health began to worsen. Once she was sick in bed for many days straight. After about eight days, some devotees heard her talking to someone in her room, saying, “Why did you two come up here? You know I haven’t bathed in a long time. Please don’t touch me, you could get sick yourself!” They could only guess who she was talking to, but the next day her health was completely back to normal.
Anandi Bai left this world in Samvat 1993 (1936 AD). Just as her funeral pyre was about to be lit, a young Brajwasi girl appeared and said, “Anandi Bai was my mother-in-law. Please allow me to honor her by lighting the pyre.” The little girl lit Anandi Bai’s funeral pyre, and suddenly she was gone. Nobody saw where she went. For many days after that, the devotees of Vrindavan discussed amongst themselves. “Who was that little girl who came with so much love to send Anandi Bai off to the eternal lila?”
Shri Radha-Anand Vallabh’s full altar
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