The Bhagavata Purana highlights the Bhakti doctrine in myriad ways to bridge the wide chasm between the Jivatma and the Paramatma. The description of the love of the Gopis towards Krishna unfolds many truths about the essence of Bhakti, pointed out Srimati Prema Pandurang in a discourse. The situation in Vraja is an exceptional one.
The Supreme Lord forgets His divinity and lives with His bhaktas, sharing their simple life. He eats and sleeps in their midst and takes up their livelihood as well. While celebrating their good fortune which the Lord’s proximity affords them, there are many lessons to be learnt by the Gopis. The most important one is to shed one’s ego and pride which is innate in all human beings.
To enable the Gopis overcome this hurdle and instil true humility in them, the Lord disappears from their midst. He is all along with them but not available to their grasp. This is the plight of all Jivatmas who fail to perceive His divine presence in the entire creation including one’s inner self. The physical separation leads to a psychological longing and yearning which represents the true aspirant’s search for the truth. The song of the Gopis captures the stages of realisation that takes place in them. What presumption on their part to think that the Lord is theirs? The attitude that ‘You are mine’ had prevailed in them. But is not the truth the other way round? Should they not experience the feeling that ‘I am yours’ at all times and at all costs? Is not this experience the true one? Once this surrender takes place in their minds, all tensions are released. The shift in responsibility brings about peace of mind and a sense of relief. The onus is now on the Lord, the sole owner of the Jivatma, to safeguard His possession.
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