It is held that when the Lord incarnated as Krishna, Neela Devi took birth as the daughter of Yasodha’s brother Kumban and was known as Nappinnai. The story goes that Kumban had bought seven calves that were really asuras in disguise, and they eventually turned out to be recalcitrant bulls. Krishna subdued the bulls and won Nappinnai’s hand. She came to live in Nandagopa’s house. In the Pasuram ‘Undhu Madhagalitran,’ after waking Nandagopa and Yasodha, the Gopis proceed to wake up Nappinnai who sleeps along with Krishna in Nandagopa’s house. This is in keeping with the tradition that the jivatma seeks the Lord through the good graces of His consort, pointed out Kalyanapuram Sri Aravamudhachariar in a discourse. Andal and the Gopis entreat Nappinnai to help them have darshan of Krishna. The picture of Nappinnai holding a ball in her palm as she sleeps next to Krishna while evoking the bhava of play between them implies that Nappinnai, with her charming ways, is able to bind the very Lord who bears the entire creation as a mere play or leela. The Gopis begin to wake up Nappinnai and tell her that they have come to sing the glory of her husband Krishna. They request her to get up and walk towards the door and open it for their sake. They eagerly wait to hear the melodious tinkling of her bangles that are symbolic of Samslesham with her Lord in this context. Vedanta Desika, in the hymn Daya Sataka, sung in praise of Lord Srinivasa’s most auspicious quality, enumerates the individual roles of His consorts Sri, Bhu and Neela when they are forever engaged in the act of leading the jivatmas to salvation. He extols Neela Devi’s ability to enthrall the Lord with her delightful conduct and behaviour and shows that her intent is to make the Lord turn a blind eye to the faults of the jivatmas.
