The Supreme One’s will always prevail. No one has the power to go against it. And yet, there have been occasions when attempts have been made to go against His will, and in the end the person who makes such attempts is humbled. The Govardhana Hill episode during the Krishna avatara is one such instance, explained Akkarakkani Srinidhi, in a discourse.
Indra is the king of rains, and the cowherds in whose midst Krishna grew up would make offerings to Indra to please him, and to get his blessings. They wanted to ensure that Indra would give them adequate rains, for without rains or rains in excess, the pastures for grazing their cows would not thrive. But Krishna told the cowherds that they should not offer anything to Indra. They did as the Lord told them to. Indra was angry. So he caused torrential rains to pour down on the cowherds. There was no escape from the rains which did not stop. Lord Krishna then lifted the Govardhana hills and sheltered the cowherds and all the cattle they owned. Indra was humbled by the experience, and he worshipped Lord Krishna.
The Lord did not punish Indra for his arrogance. The Lord’s reasoning was that Indra had lost his temper only because what was due to him had been denied. So the Lord was prepared to excuse him. Thus the Lord’s will cannot be thwarted. But the Lord, in spite of being all powerful, is also the embodiment of gentleness and kindness. That is why He chose to forgive Indra.
He has this whole Universe and all that is in it as His body. Every atma belongs to Him and there is no distinction among atmas, no kind of gender division or anything. Once Meera Bai wanted to attend a discourse. But the man who was giving the discourse had taken a vow never to see women. So he sent word that she could not attend the discourses. Meera Bai told him that an atma did not have a gender and he was wrong to keep her out. So impressed was the speaker with the gnana Meera Bai’s words showed that he came out to meet her himself! Thus for us to reach the Supreme One, it is imperative that we understand the nature of the atma.
