Reading from Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10.21.18: [Mahārāja and devotees repeat] [chanting of the verse]
hantāyam adrir abalā hari-dāsa-varyo
yad rāma-kṛṣṇa-caraṇa-sparaśa-pramodaḥ
mānaṁ tanoti saha-go-gaṇayos tayor yat
pānīya-sūyavasa-kandara-kandamūlaiḥSynonyms
hanta — oh; ayam — this; adriḥ — hill; abalāḥ — O friends; hari-dāsa-varyaḥ — the best among the servants of the Lord; yat — because; rāma-kṛṣṇa-caraṇa — of the lotus feet of Lord Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma; sparaśa — by the touch; pramodaḥ — jubilant; mānam — respect; tanoti — offers; saha — with; go-gaṇayoḥ — the cows, calves and cowherd boys; tayoḥ — to Them (Śrī Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma); yat — because; pānīya — with drinking water; sūyavasa — very soft grass; kandara — caves; kanda-mūlaiḥ — and edible roots.
Translation
Of all the devotees, this Govardhana Hill is the best! O my friends, this hill supplies Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, along with Their calves, cows and cowherd friends, with all kinds of necessities — water for drinking, very soft grass, caves, fruits, flowers and vegetables. In this way the hill offers respects to the Lord. Being touched by the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, Govardhana Hill appears very jubilant.
Purport
This translation is quoted from Śrīla Prabhupāda’s Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya 18.34).
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura explains the opulence of Govardhana Hill as follows: Pānīya refers to the fragrant, cool water from the Govardhana waterfalls, which Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma drink and use to wash Their feet and mouths. Govardhana also offers other beverages, such as honey, mango juice and pīlu juice. Sūyavasa indicates dūrvā grass, used to make the religious offering of arghya. Govardhana also has grass that is fragrant, soft and conducive to the strong growth of cows and increased production of milk. Thus this grass is used for feeding the transcendental herds. Kandara refers to the caves where Kṛṣṇa, Balarāma and Their friends play, sit and lie down. These caves give pleasure when the weather is too hot or too cold, or when it is raining. Govardhana also features soft roots for eating, jewels for ornamenting the body, flat places for sitting, and lamps and mirrors in the form of smooth stones, glistening water and other natural substances.
HH Bhaktividyā Pūrṇa Svāmī Mahārāja: So, Govardhana Hill here is then being mentioned by the gopīs that he is the best of all the servants, because he assists the Lord’s pastimes in so many wonderful ways. There is many, many nice things that are being offered by Govardhana to enhance the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa and His cowherd boyfriends and girlfriends, and Govardhana is able to present all of these things. So then, therefore, it becomes the focus, actually, of attention of the pastimes of Vṛndāvana. We see that when the decision was being made to move from Gokula to Vṛndāvana, one of the major points was that Govardhana Hill was there. It had a lot of very, very wonderful grass, on which then the cows could be fed. And being cowherds, then naturally this is an important consideration. So with that in mind, then the cowherd men moved to Vṛndāvana, because then they could take advantage of Govardhana Hill. Also, we see that Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes then with the cowherd boys happen there, and also His most intimate pastimes with the gopīs also happen in this place. So Govardhana then becomes very, very central in the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa.
So then we see that a discussion will come up, and here He is best of devotees, at the same time, as we see, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is referring to Him as Kṛṣṇa Himself. And we also see in the pastimes given in Bhāgavatam in the lifting of Govardhana Hill. Then we see that Kṛṣṇa takes the form of Govardhana Hill personified, and stands there in a huge form, and He eats all the offerings of the devotees. When Nanda Bābā and the cowherd men, they were very busy arranging so many things for the Indra-yajña. They were coming, everybody was moving around, doing so many, bringing many, many nice, wonderful items. Then Kṛṣṇa inquired, “What is going on, what is happening? What is everyone doing?” So then Nanda Bābā… Basically He is a young boy, so then it’s kind of like basic principles, He is a young boy, how He will understand all these things? But Kṛṣṇa very cleverly said, “You know, you may think I am a young child, but if you feel that I could understand, then you could explain to me everything: what you are doing, why you are doing it, who is being worshipped? Who are the priests who are going to conduct this worship and guide you, and everything. And, you know, all these things because it is said that for someone who is intimate, then one can reveal all secrets. But for someone who is an enemy, then of course, you do not want to say anything.” So after speaking so maturely like this, then Nanda Bābā, he, you know, sat down and then picked up Kṛṣṇa, put Him on his lap. At that time, Kṛṣṇa was only seven. And then started to explain that, “You know, for many, many generations, we have been offering this yajña to Lord Indra because he provides all the nice rain. And by that rain, the grass grows; the grass grows, then the cows eat it, the cows give milk,” and then they are maintained. This is cowherd men and it is their duty to take care of cows.
So then, so after hearing all this explanation, then Kṛṣṇa, He made the point of “Why you have to worship Indra?” Means, it’s, “You have done work, according to your karma, you are going to get results, it is not some other way. It means, if you haven’t done good work, then Indra won’t give rain. If you have done your work, Indra has given rain, so the actual cause is your work.” So He was quoting from one of the Vedic philosophies called Karma-mīmāṁsā, which, its central point is that activity is the controller. In other words, your activities is what makes things happen. So basically, since we are doing the activities, it means we are God. So it’s one of the bogus philosophies. But for argument’s sake, it’s, a lower philosophy can be used to establish a higher principle. So then he pointed out is, “He is only doing it because he has to do it. There is no other, there’s no other alternative for it. So you have done the work, so he is giving.”
Śrīla Prabhupāda points out though that the actual point is, is that even you have done the work, still someone has to be pleased with the work. You do the work in the wrong attitude, it is not that they have to be pleased and give you the result you are looking for. You get the result because you perform the activity properly and being pleased, then they are giving. But in this, in this argument, then Kṛṣṇa is pointing out that “He has to anyway give you the result. He doesn’t, there’s no, he doesn’t have another alternative. So you have no need to worship him.” And then He points out: “Anyway, this Govardhana Hill, he is taking care and he is doing everything for you, so you should just worship him. So, by worshipping this Govardhana Hill, then everything will be provided.” And like in this verse, it says, all these wonderful things are being provided by Govardhana. So He spoke so sweetly and so logically that Nanda Bābā and all the cowherd men, they thought, “Okay, this is very nice.”
So then Kṛṣṇa described that, “Okay, then you make a very big hill of grains and make unlimited amounts of sweet rice and other nice things to offer, fragrant vegetables, and all these different things, and you offer that to Govardhana and being pleased then he will accept the offerings. And then you should feed all the brāhmanas very sumptuously until they all start laughing and that. And then after that, then feed everyone else right down to the dogs and the caṇḍālas. And then after that, then you circumambulate Govardhana Hill.” Then they, keeping the cows in front, then they would go around. So the cowherd men all thought: “This is very nice,” so they arranged and then they performed the, they set everything up like Kṛṣṇa said, they made a huge mountain of rice and covered it with so much ghee, it looked like golden, and then put unlimited pots of sweet rice and other things, and all kinds of nice piṭhās and all kinds of cakes on the hill that looked like boulders. And so many pots with various sabjīs and other wonderful preparations. And then after that, then they made the offering. And then Kṛṣṇa expanded as Girirāja and in a huge form then He came there and He ate at all the offerings. He was very, very happy with all these things. And then Kṛṣṇa pointed out to the cowherd men, “See, he is so happy with you! He has personally come and now he is accepting your offerings.”
So he accepted the offerings, they did worship. And then after they fed all the brāhmanas, and then they arranged to circumambulate Govardhana. And when they were… They circumambulated in the front and they had all kinds of singers and musicians playing on various drums and other things, making a nice sound, and all the cows, cowherd boys and cowherd men went. And then behind them, then another group of singers with fine instruments and vocalists and that, and they were singing. And then behind that, then all the cowherd women dressed very nicely, riding in their… In the bullock carts, in the chariots. So like this, they went around Govardhana Hill. And everyone was talking about what a nice festival it was. You know, very, very happy, with music and singing. And as they went around, they came to the river Yamunā. Yamunā used to flow very near to Govardhan. So they decided, since they are there, to take advantage, take a bath.
And it was also the time, Govardhana Pūjā is also known as Bhrātri-dvitīya. So then this day is when sisters then give blessings to the brother that they may live long and that. So then, Kṛṣṇa’s cousin sister, Sunandā, the daughter of Upananda who is Nanda Bābā’s eldest brother, then she invited Kṛṣṇa to sit and she brought all kinds of nice things and fed him and Madhumaṅgala very nicely, and, you know, like this way, served. And so then Madhumaṅgala, then he was saying that “This is – this is – this is a good program! You know, Govardhana Pūjā, we had very nice, we were fed very wonderfully, but it was not as nice as this time, when we were being fed by Kṛṣṇa’s cousin sister. She is feeding so nicely, so many things are there,” because it is natural. If there is a small group, you can render service more nicely than if there is a huge group, like this. In the Manu-saṁhitā it mentions that if you are going to do a function for the benefit of somebody, especially if it is somebody who is deceased, then better a small group, three persons or even one person, than hundreds of people not taken care of nicely. You know, better to do a few nicely, than hundreds of people not nicely. So here, of course, Govardhana Pūjā went very nicely, but the point is, is Madhumaṅgala is always looking for an opportunity to get more things to eat. So he was, he was saying that “This festival, such a nice festival, we should have it every day. Every day then, you know, Krishna’s sister should come, and she should feed us like this. It was very, very nice.” So he was very happy and he gave so many nice blessings. Then they continued around the hill.
So we see that, and that Kṛṣṇa Himself took this form of this hill, so now, this is, then makes a very interesting point, is that he is the best devotee, at the same time he is Kṛṣṇa. So sometimes a discussion comes up, some say he’s Kṛṣṇa, and others say, “No, he is the best devotee.” But that makes it very difficult if it’s one or the other. Because then, if we want to take up that form, that concept, that “it is this or that,” then we are in the wrong Sampradāya [Indistinct]. And we should join, I think, Viṣṇusvāmī’s line, which is, Dvaita-advaita: it is one – it is two. You can look at it as two, or you can look at it as one. But our Sampradāya is acintya-bhedābheda-tattva, means it is simultaneously one and different. Simultaneously he is Kṛṣṇa and he is the best devotee. So that is why Lord Caitanya’s philosophy, that actually harmonizes everything that there is in the way of Vaiṣṇava philosophy. Otherwise, then you see so many, you know, one group does not appreciate another group, this, that, but actually Lord Caitanya’s philosophy harmonizes everything. So we see is, what it is, is Kṛṣṇa himself personally has expanded as Govardhana Hill, like this. So we see in the various kinds of expansions of the Lord, then there are those that expand that are Him, they are the same as Him, and there are those who expand that are Him, but they take a different form. Like that. So just like Kṛṣṇa, when He dances in the rāsa dance, there is so many Kṛṣṇas there, but the same mood is there. So there, even though each one is doing a different activity, dancing in a different way with a different gopī, but still the mood, the bhāva is the same. And at the same time is, we see that another is that when He expands, like Balarāma, same potency, there is no difference in potency between Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, the only, Prabhupāda says, the only difference is Kṛṣṇa is black, Balarāma is white, that is the only difference. So, but we see, His mood has changed something. He becomes very much in the mood of servitor Godhead, and He takes on a whole different taste, whole different rasa. And so then He is being the elder brother, then he tastes things in a different way than Kṛṣṇa. So the two of Them together are the complete manifestation of Godhead because Kṛṣṇa is the enjoyer, and Balarāma expands as everything else in the cosmic creation. In this way, then Kṛṣṇa tastes all these different aspects.
So Govardhana then becomes a very unique manifestation of Kṛṣṇa in that he is directly Kṛṣṇa, he is non-different from Krishna, he is Kṛṣṇa, but because he has expanded, he is also in that mood of servitor, but he didn’t change personality, like Balārama. So he is the servitor, like that, because anything that expands from something else is naturally the servant of what it has expanded from, because it’s dependent upon that, right? Like that’s just the natural thing. Without the origin, the expansion doesn’t manifest. You have the generator and you have the electricity, so the electricity is naturally dependent upon the generator, like that. So anything that expanded from that is naturally dependent on that. So then, Girirāja is in that way a dependent and a servitor of Kṛṣṇa, but at the same time, it is Kṛṣṇa in the same mood of Vraja Kṛṣṇa, who has taken that form. Therefore, you can simultaneously see the mood of Vraja Kṛṣṇa and as the best servant. So this, then we see then explains why Girirāja is so unique, is he can give love for Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa doesn’t give love for Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa’s devotees give love for Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is, you approach Him, then He will approach you. But here we see that that Girirāja, he can give. Girirāja, the dust of Vṛndāvana and Yamunā, they can give you prema for Kṛṣṇa. So this means that he is in that mood of devotee. At the same time, he is Kṛṣṇa. So it is a very unique position, so Girirāja is very special in this way. Therefore, we see all the pastimes happen around this. The gopīs are going through it, describing so many glories. And so in this one verse, they explain the glories of Girirāja. Then we see that Kṛṣṇa has manifested this huge form. And then in this huge form, he is eating everything and appreciating all the service.
But unfortunately, in this process, Indra is not overly pleased. He is seeing that this big opulent worship that was due to him, now it’s not coming to him. It is going to go, it has gone to Govardhana. And this small seven-year-old boy has changed the mood and the mind of the cowherd men so that they have taken up this worship. So he is not pleased. So then he calls for his Saṁvartaka, cloud servant. And then he comes with his assistants, and he tells them that normally they are supposed to destroy the universe, but “Now you don’t have to worry about destroying the universe. You just destroy only this one village, this little village of Vṛndāvana.” So then they are very happy with this assignment, very proud to please Indra, so they step forward, and then they assemble so many clouds, they come together, dark, dark clouds that are so dark, it is described just like moss, it just covers the sky and there is no light, no sun, it becomes dark. And so many clouds come that from Rasātala all the way up to the heavenly planets, it is all covered in clouds. It is all dark, so no one can see anything. And then from that position, they start raining. And the rain is thick, it says, as a mature banana tree, so that’s quite thick. It’s not just coming in little drops. So then the cows, when this rain comes, then they cover their calves with that fold of skin under their necks. You can see on these purebred cows that they have from, I think, Gujarat, there is a few of them in the Gośālā, they have that, that is the sign of… How you say? The thoroughbred Indian cows. Means it’s, I don’t remember what it’s called. But in any case, that describes the cow. Means if you say, well, a cow has four legs, it has horns and it gives milk. But buffaloes have horns, so do goats. So many animals have four legs, so many animals give milk. But none of them have that flap of skin. So that is a special thing to the cow. So the cows would put that over the calves, and then they would have to pretty much close their eyes because of the rain. And their skin would get tight and everything would stand up, the hair would stand up because it was very cold and windy and raining. So they were distressed and the bulls were getting annoyed and upset as the water is coming and hitting their horns and then bouncing onto the hump on their back. And they would look up very angrily at the clouds that nothing much could happen.
So then the cowherd men seeing all this, and this is like water everywhere. They come to Kṛṣṇa and say that, “You protected us in every situation. So now again, we have this great calamity that is just like a huge anartha that we cannot remove from our heart. So you please remove this difficulty.” So then Kṛṣṇa, He was very pleased with their gentle behavior. And so then He said, “Yes, for the devotees, there is no anartha that is a problem. By the process of their bhakti, it is always removed.” So then He said: “I will now smash the pride of Indra.”
And then He picked up Govardhana Hill. So we must remember, Govardhana Hill was very big. He has been… There was a… Every year he gets smaller by one mustard seed, like this. So if we go back, you know, he was very big. Originally he was two yojanas high. So that means 16 miles high. Now, very tall mountain… What is that? Everest is maybe like about five miles, like that, five miles high, or maybe, you know, five and a half miles high. And Govardhana was 16 miles high. So Everest is quite small compared to Govardhana. So Kṛṣṇa picked up Govardhana. And then when He picked him up, then He asked everyone to come inside. He says: “Don’t worry about all your nice pleasure gardens and nice houses and everything. You just bring your wealth and your family, and your cows and everything and come inside.” So, so then everybody came inside, and He said: “You see, when I picked up the hill wall, so much dirt fell off the edges of the mountain and it has created a little dam, so no water from outside will come in.” And when the residents came inside and they saw there were all kinds of nice fields of grass and barley and, you know, wonderful places to stay and beautiful gardens. And it was very nice there, you know, and Kṛṣṇa, Govardhana was giving a nice effulgence, so it was very pleasant inside. And Kṛṣṇa was standing and holding up Govardhana with his left hand on his little finger. So He said, “Don’t worry, you know, Govardhana is very kind. You have pleased him with your yajña. And so now he is actually just floating in the air. And just I am the instrument, I am simply, you know, standing here to take part in this.” So then they all came inside.
And then while they were inside, then, you know, they all were very, everyone, no matter where they were, the cows were on the outside eating grass, and then everybody else was in the center. And then Kṛṣṇa was in the center of everybody. And it appeared that wherever you were, Kṛṣṇa was looking at that devotee. So everyone felt that Kṛṣṇa was just looking at them only. And then they would, because of their affection, and their intimacy with Kṛṣṇa, then they all started, you know, without any shyness, just talking about Kṛṣṇa, how beautiful He was, how He is standing there and is… He’s standing there, then you can… He is holding up Govardhana Hill, and He is just standing with his his right foot over the left, and, and He is, you know, how nice His belt is, and His hair, and all His beauty, whatever was attracting each of the devotees. So they were discussing all these things… Then, and Madhumaṅgala would come, and he would make all kinds of jokes, he would make, you know, like this, and make Kṛṣṇa laugh, and everything.
But Mother Yaśodā was very upset. She was thinking: “How is it, my little boy, He is holding up this mountain? See, His hands and feet are becoming reddish from the difficulty, you know, from not eating, and doing all this work. He is perspiring, and His face is going dry, He needs to eat.” And she is complaining that “Madhumaṅgala, you are just joking about all this stuff, what’s going on here?” Then Nanda Bābā said, “No, no, don’t worry. Someone who is expert in diplomacy knows that when somebody is having a difficult time, you should encourage them, you know, make the atmosphere light, so that they feel inspired. So he is doing the right thing.” Mother Yaśodā then is trying to feed Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa is playing his flute with the other hand, and so then she says: “You stop playing your flute, you eat something, I’ll feed you. And then, you know, the cows aren’t eating, you should eat something. Till you eat, they won’t eat.” So this is going back and forth. So finally, then she comes along with one offering of paan. It’s nice, it has cardamom and cinnamon, no, the cardamom, cloves, and nutmeg, and the lime, and this, what’s that called? Catechu or something, I never know how to pronounce it. It’s kind-of like a red, also paste, very sweet. And then she convinced Kṛṣṇa to take that, gave it to Subala, and Subala then fed it to Kṛṣṇa. And then Mother Yaśodā was somewhat pacified that Kṛṣṇa was at least eating something.
So then, like this, then for seven days, they all were in there and no one felt any disturbance, no hunger, no thirst, no one was tired. Everyone for seven days got to just see Kṛṣṇa and enjoy that interaction with Kṛṣṇa. Mother Yaśodā, the cowherd boys, the gopīs also, they were also seeing Kṛṣṇa, and so then these things went. And then after seven days, which for the residents of Vṛndāvana seemed just like seven hours, for Indra, who was very upset and angry at this whole thing, especially when he came and saw the situation hadn’t changed from what it was before, then he felt that these seven days were like seven millenniums. He was very disturbed. So when he came riding on his elephant, he had already sent the clouds before and figured he would come now and enjoy seeing the devastation. Then he came and out of the top of the Saṁvartaka clouds, Govardhana was poking, just came out of the top and was just going way beyond. And on the top of the mountain then, you know, all the different animals, the deers and the birds were happily moving around and eating their grass and sitting in the trees. And the clouds that he had sent looked like they were just surrounding the bottom. So even though they had gone from the lower planets up to the heavenly planets, Govardhan went way past all this. And then it looked like he was an umbrella that had little, like the clouds looked like little pearl, a pearl necklace that was around the bottom of him. So he [Indra] was not overly pleased with the situation. So then he encouraged the clouds more, to rain more and more winds and this and that, but nothing happened. Even the animals on the side of the hill, they just kept on eating the grass and they didn’t care. And even so much rain fell on Govardhana, not even one grain of dust, speck of dust was washed away. So he just remained as he is.
So after seven days, the Saṁvartaka clouds were completely tired because they have to go to the ocean, suck up all the water, bring it there, pour it down there, go back, suck up. And they were very tired. They were almost ready to die. Indra was so frustrated and so angry, he just became completely blind, he couldn’t see anything, he was so upset. And so after this, then the clouds, they dispersed and the sun came out again. Everything became nice after, you know, one week of not shining and the sun again came back out and everything went back. All the water went back to the rivers, and the rivers went back to the ocean, and everything became peaceful. So Kṛṣṇa told everyone, “See, now it is nice, the mud is dried up, so now everyone can go.” So then the cowherd men then took the cows, they all went out and then they all got outside. When the cows saw Kṛṣṇa was still inside, they all again ran back inside, like that. But you know, Kṛṣṇa can’t put down the hill. So then with His eyebrows, then He motioned that the cows should leave. So then they again went back out. Then Kṛṣṇa came, put Govardhan down in exactly the same place it was, and then they all went back to their places in Vṛndāvana.
So then after a few days, then Kṛṣṇa went on Govardhan, He went away from the cowherd boys and went off alone like that. Even though it was very difficult for the cowherd boys, then He knew that Indra, being so proud, would not be able to face anyone else. So He gave the opportunity that he just came alone. So then he came along with Surabhi, Indra, because Surabhi was going to see Kṛṣṇa, because she was very happy, because Kṛṣṇa had protected all the cows. And taking the opportunity, Indra thought, “Well, if I go with Surabhi, maybe, you know, I will get somewhere here.” So he came, they came, and Surabhi then was offering prayers and thanks to Kṛṣṇa. And Kṛṣṇa was just completely ignoring Indra, who was standing there feeling very bad. And after she had offered her prayers, then she said that, “You know, this Indra, he is feeling very bad within his mind. He is always rebuking himself. He is feeling very humbled. So you should accept his apologies.” So then Indra offered prayers.
And then after all the demigods came, Lord Brahmā and Śiva, and the whole universe came. So then they had a huge Abhiṣeka ceremony and everyone in the universe brought something: Varuṇa brought an umbrella, Earth provided all kinds of nice things, Surabhi gave all the Pañcagavya, and different persons came and did everything. And then after everything was set up, then, I think, Balarāma then instructed that okay, then all the chaste ladies of the main, of the universe, Anasūyā and Pārvatī, Aditi, like this, they should come forward and bathe Kṛṣṇa. and then all the other demigods came and bathed and then when all the bathing was finished, they dried Him nicely, ornamented Him with so many nice things. And then Brahmā prepared the offerings, performed all the offerings. And then Lord Śiva came and nicely took a bath in Manasī Gaṅgā and left, you know, all his snakes and washed off all the ashes and everything, and then he came and offered the āratika. And then after that, then everyone was pleased, offered their prayers, they went back to the heavenly planets.
And then Surabhi and Indra stayed back a few moments. And then Kṛṣṇa told him that “Because you were proud, therefore I did this, means, My devotee, I do not tolerate when they are proud. When they are proud, then I must correct that. Because otherwise, if they’re proud, they don’t please Me. If they don’t please Me, they don’t, they will not be happy.” So, therefore, He did like this. So Indra was feeling very sorry, he was wiping the tears from his 1000 eyes. [Laughter] So then he understood. So then he and Surabhi left. And then Kṛṣṇa walked back, in His nice clothes and everything that the demigods had given. He went back to where the cowherd boys were, and again took up playing with them and everything, just like an ordinary cowherd boy.
So this is, it’s a very special day. Govardhana, Girirāja, if we take shelter of him, we pray to him, he can give us love for Kṛṣṇa in that mood of Kṛṣṇa in Vṛndāvana. So it is a very special day, very nice day. We should all take advantage and get the blessings of Girirāja Mahārāja. Giri Govardhana kī jaya! Śrīla Prabhupāda kī jaya! Samavetā bhakta vṛnda kī jaya!



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