There can be no one more blessed than the Yadava boys with whom Krishna played and the Gopikas with whom He danced, said Kidambi Narayanan, in a discourse.
One day Krishna suggested to His playmates, that they bring food from their houses, and that they could all have a picnic, on the banks of the Yamuna. Delighted, the boys brought whatever their mothers had cooked. The boys opened the packets they had brought, and Krishna sat in the middle, surrounded by all the boys. The Lord who resides as antaryami in everyone, sat down for a simple repast with the boys, who were from a humble background. Can there be a better example of the Lord’s simplicity and His affection for those whose thoughts remain focused on Him?
Krishna dipped His hand into a packet of rice, and with a ball of rice in one hand, He dipped His hand into some pickles. He had a portion of pickles between each of His fingers! One of the boys pulled out a piece from between His fingers. Krishna did not protest. This in itself is reason enough to marvel at His accessibility, for here He was the Supreme One, and He allowed the playful boys to take such liberties with Him.
But more was to come. Not only did He allow the snatching away of the pickles from His hand, but He took food from one of the boys and ate it. This food had already been partially eaten by the boy. But Krishna did not mind. To Him, the love of the boys for Him appealed so much, that nothing else mattered.
Watching this scene were the celestials, and they were amazed, for here was the One whose help they sought every time they were in trouble. Here was the One who was master of the Universe, and yet He allowed the boys to treat Him as if He were just an ordinary mortal.
Brahma was watching too, and was consumed by jealousy. How could the Lord allow ordinary, unlettered boys to be on such terms with Him? After all it was not a privilege ever granted even to Brahma. The important point to note in this episode is that the Lord mingled with the boys, as if they were His equals, because of their bhakti. Brahma might have had an exalted status, but the Lord is not moved by pelf or position.
