The Pushti Marg saints: Chapter 2: Krishna Bhat — Parts 10-11.
One time Nihal Chand Bhai accompanied Krishna Bhat to Gokul to see Sri Gusainji. He was delighted to have his darshan. One day, the two of them were going from Gokul towards Mahavan. They caught sight of an isolated cave on the way. They went close to it and sat there.
Finding the place congenial, they began to speak of the Lord’s pastimes. They ended up staying there for a whole three days. They forgot their bodies,so immersed were they in this bliss of the Divine Stories.
On the fourth day Sri Gusainji was sitting in his meeting hall (baithak) after the Rajbhog Arati. Many Vaishnavas came there to pay their respects. Sri Gusainji enquired of them, “I have not seen Krishna Bhat nor Nihal Chand Bhai for three days. Has any of you seen them?”
The Vaishnavas said they they had also not seen them for three days. Sri Gusainji told them to go on the road to Mahavan and climb up a hill to try to find them, and to bring them back to him if they were able to do so.
The Vaishnavas all set out for Mahavan to look for them.When they went up the hill they caught sight of the two devotees sitting in front of that cave. The Vaishnavas approached them and told them that Sri Gusainji had summoned them because he had not seen them for three whole days and was now thinking of them.
Hearing what the Vaishnavas had to say, Krishna Bhat and Nihal Chand Bhai got up and immediately returned to Sri Gusainji and bowed to him. At that moment Sri Gusainji had just finished his prasad and was eating some paan leaves.
Sri Gusainji asked them, “Oh, you have come?”
They supplicated Sri Gusainji, “You were remembering us so why would we not come?”
The two of them paid their respects to Sri Gusainji and returned to their lodgings. Sri Gusainji had recognized the state of their hearts and so did not ask them anything further. He is, after all, the Inner Witness. That is why he sent the Vaishnavas to fetch them back.
Not long after Krishna Bhata and Nihal Chand Bhai took their leave and returned to Ujjain. The two of them were recipients of Gusainji’s grace and accomplished Vaishnavas.
PART 11
In Gokul Sri Gusainji would give discourses on the Sri Subodhiniji [Vallabhacharya’s commentary on the Bhagavatam]. The Vaishnavas got to hear his discourses. Two Vaishnavas from among them did not understand what he had said. They asked him, “O Maharaj! We hear the discourses that you give, but we do not understand them. What can we do to solve our confusion?”
Sri Gusainji told them to ask some other Vaishnavas for help, but still their questions were not answered. He then told them to go to Krishna Bhat for he would be able to allay their doubts. The two Vaishnavas set off for Ujjain on Sri Gusainji’s instructions. When they arrived Krishna Bhat had just made the lunchtime offerings to his Sri Thakurji and was outside on the porch reading his daily texts. Krishna Bhat got up to greet them. He was very glad to see them especially since Sri Gusainji had sent them.
He greeted them with the Lord’s name and invited them to sit down. Suddenly he recited one verse from the Srimad Bhagavatam and then explained it to the Vaishnavas. He explained its inner meaning. As soon as they heard it the two Vaishnavas’ doubts were dispersed.
Bhavaprakasha
The question that arises here is that when Sri Gusainji explained it to them they still did not understand,but they did when Krishna Bhat explained it to them. Why was this? The verse is from the 10th canto of the Srimad Bhagavatam, from the chapter entitled “the Song of the Flute.” It reads,
barhāpīḍaṁ naṭa-vara-vapuḥ karṇayoḥ karṇikāraṁ
bibhrad-vāsaḥ kanaka-kapiśaṁ vaijayantīṁ ca mālām |
randhrān veṇor adhara-sudhayā pūrayan gopa-vṛndair
vṛndāraṇyaṁ sva-pada-ramaṇaṁ prāviśad gīta-kīrtiḥ ||
Exhibiting [before their mental eyes] an exquisite form resembling that of an actor [on the stage], adorned with a crest of peacock feathers, wearing karnikara flowers on his ears, a wreath of flowers of five different colours and a golden cloth [round his lips], and filling the holes of his flute with the nectar of his lips,the Lord entered Vrindavan, charming with his footprints found at every step, his glory being sung by hosts of cowherd boys. [SB.10.21.5]
Sri Gusainji had explained this verse as describing the Lord’s form. However, those devotees were attached to Sri Gusainji’s form and therefore not able to be satisfied by his explanation. They still had doubts. Sri Gusainji then sent them to Krishna Bhat who immediately used this verse to describe Sri Gusainji’s form. How? This verse contains the full description of the Lord’s divinely decorated form, which generates the heartfelt mood of excitement. Steeped in this very mood Krishna Bhat nicely described Sri Gusainji’s form.
Sri Gusainji reigns within the heart of Krishna Bhat. Through him Sri Gusainji revealed his spiritual form to those two Vaishnavsas and their questions were answered.
Hearing these words the two Vaishnavas were totally satisfied and very happy. Krishna Bhat entered his Sri Thakurji’s temple in order to accept back the Rajbhog offerings as prasad. He offered the Lord some paan leaves and then opened the temple doors. The Vaishnavas were delighted to have Sri Thakurji’s Holy Sight.
Krishna Bhat performed the arati, settled the Lord down for his afternoon rest and came outside to offer the prasad to the Vaishnavas. Afterwards they said that they were going to set off for Gokul. Krishna Bhat asked them why they were in such a hurry since they had only arrived that same day. They replied that the reason for their visit had been fulfilled. Krishna Bhat asked they what that was, and they told him everything in detail. Krishna Bhat begged them sincerely and so they stayed on for four more days. Whilst they were there they all got together to discuss the Lord’s pastimes and the Vaishnavas felt most contented.
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