SB 10.11: The Childhood Pastimes of Kṛṣṇa
( Bala lila – Killing The Demons Vatsasura And Bakasura )
- Krishna delivered the sons of Kuvera
- Everyone was bewildered.
- Cowhered boys claim they saw everything
- Is he Narayana or not?
- Nanda Maharaj would ask Krishna to bring him stuffs
- Sometimes small Krishna cant carry them
- The Lord pleasures his relatives by striking his body to show his strength
- Krishna would brings pleasure to everyone
- Gopis would ask Krishna to dance
- One day a fruit vendor wanted to sell fruits
- Krishna brought grains to barter, she get jewels in her basket
- Grains actually fell on the ground instead of the basket
- She filled Krishna’s hands with fruits
- Krishna and Balaram always like to play with their cowherd friends.Rohini tried calling them for lunch.
- Yasoda always repeatedly calls both to come home for lunch
- Krishna returns and is given a nice bath and was also dressed well.
- Krishna eternally plays in Vrindavan
- Concern was for His safety because of the various demoniac attacks on Him
- Upananda suggested Vrindavan
- Everyone moved to Vrindavan
- They immediately set up their homes
- Everyone enjoyed the beautiful places and sceneries
- Krishna and Balaram grew up and started taking care of the cows
- They would play various games with their cowherd friends
- The demon Vatsasura assumed a calf’s form and Krishna knew this
- He caught him and twirled it till it was dead and threw the demon on top of the Kapittha tree
- While drinking water one day beside a reservoir, they saw a huge body resembling a mountain and as if struck down by thunderbolt
- The demon Bakasura immediately swallowed Krishna whilst Balaram was bewildered for a moment
- Krishna became hotter than fire in Bakasura stomach and Bakasura disgorged him
- Krishna immediately bifurcated the beak of the demon and it was killed
- Celestial beings showered flowers onto the Lord
- Cowherd boys related this story to their families and everyone also got bewildered
- Everyone was thinking that Krishna is protected by Lord Vishnu
- Krishna killed demons in his past life
- Nanda Maharaj, Devaki and the cowherd families were all absorbed in hearing about Krishna
Lessons to be learned:
- Offer everything to Krishna with love.
- Patram puspam phalam toyam yo me bhaktya prayacchati tad aham bhakty-upahrtam asnami prayatatmanah.
- If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower, fruit or water, I will accept it. BG(9.26).
- Demons will be killed if they harm the innocent.
- Krishna is like fire and demons are flie.
- Lord give reciprocation: Millions of times – materially and spiritually.
- To observe one’s birthday ceremony, one should do something in terms of one of these three items (yajna, dana and tapa), or all of them together.
- Be proactive, not inactive in face of disturbances..
- Seniors must assemble for the meeting. All must be present.
- Consider/ Think/ Look at every situation thoroughly before taking decision.
- There should be discussions about problems we have experienced and by wich we have been affected. Discussion should be individual but also with superior personalitis as our guru.
- Every meeting must have chairman, or leader.
- Leader must be concerned with problems who are affecting all people.
- The purpose of meeting must be to solve /stop problem, not just inform, discuss problem.
- One should discuss local situations and problems which are directly perceived and experienced.
- Execution should only be after decisions agreed upon by all – unanimously.
- There must be concrete plans, suggestions, steps for execution.
- Execution: Once decisions taken, execution should be immediate.
- Not shoot down people who has made suggestion. We should consider everyone opinion.
Esoteric meaning of Lila:
Calf represent problems encountered in helping children advance spiritualy
Vatsasura (the calf demon) represents a childish mentality, mischievous and too easily influenced by bad association. It gives rise to a type of greediness for sense gratification through which one becomes absorbed in materialism.
Points from Srila Bhaktisiddhanta’s article:
1. Children are by nature playful, and this should not be stifled.
2. The only effective way to protect children from becoming contaminated by sensuality is to engage them in Krishna conscious activities, not just restrict them.
3. The object of the Puritanic idea is to stop children engaging in sinful activities so they can enjoy those same activities more when they are adults.
4. There is also a spurious idea that young boy’s should be trained as morally upright brahmacaris so that in the future they will have the strength to carry out worldly duties very nicely — but “morality is a valued commodity only on the plane of delusion.”
5. Parents must hand their sons over to properly qualified spiritual teachers. This is also a type of training for the parents.
6. “The mundane nature of the boy is no less a clog to the wheel of spiritual progress than the adult nature of the grown-up worldling. The process of training is identical in the two cases as the soul is neither young nor old.”
Bakasura represents cunning duplicity, deceptive behaviour and hypocrisy, the outward manifestations of a false lifestyle of cheating activities.
Notes from “Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s Teachings” by Professor Sanyal:
Religious hypocrisy. Consists of offenses to the Holy Name. Those who are in the clutches of the pseudo-guru have not got the judgement to properly understand their real position, and they deceive themselves by agreeing to adopt a higher grade of worship than they are qualified for. Those who, even after becoming aware of their unfitness, persist in these practices, hoping to gain honour and wealth, commit this offense. They are real thorns in the side of the world. They show external marks of sectarianism and pseudo-renunciation. So devotees should watch out for indications of real attachment for KŠa without being too worried about external marks.