Braj Revisited
Although born in Mathura, Krishna spent his childhood years among the gopa and gopi cow-herders of Vrindavan absorbed in lila or divine play. These towns are central to Braj, also called Braj Bhoomi, and defy political boundaries in the same way Krishna’s lilas defy Maya or illusion. I have often said that Maya’s veil is so thin that in Braj, you can shred it with your breath; however, it can also be as thick as the mud from the Yamuna River, flowing through the region. During my ten years in Vrindavan, I experienced both. Like Dickens wrote, ”It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” I have chosen the “best of times” to illustrate my recollections of Braj, even though a few depict the sad departure of friends and the saints they revered.
“Aisi Lagi Lagan,” a devotional bhajan song by Mirabai and chanted by Ram Charan Biharilal, sets the tone to celebrate these photographic memories. The difficulty in translating the text arises from the different contextual use of some words. "Lagan" renders as an affectionate attachment, and "magan" describes Merabai's passion for her Lord. Although she endured innumerable sufferings, she “continues to sing to the Lord.” Mirabai recounts her trials. As a Rajasthani queen, her court thought her devotion mad. She sings, “Rana (her brother-in-law) gave me poison, but when I drank it, it turned to nectar; Mira has become like the river discharged into the ocean.” (In 18th-century bhakti poetry, it was common for the poets to refer to themselves in the third person, as a form of signature.) Mirabai’s devotional attachment occurred only from the Lord’s kripa or grace. May His grace descend upon you.
Негізгі бет Braj Revisited
Пікірлер: 4