RASALEELA

RASA LEELA ...

Bala Krishna was very mischievous; He would go with His playmates to the houses of Gopis, break butter pots and steal butter. The Gopis were not annoyed because they enjoyed the Lord’s mischief. This bala leela, childhood play of the Lord, captivated the hearts of the Gopis; they felt very blissful.There are millions of people in the world. Each one of us have differing nature and experience countless moods from time to time. From morning to night, we have moods like anger, fear, apathy, happiness, anxiety, peace, hatred, etc. We should see them all as the Lord’s play.Let us take the example of a family. We should see the members of the family and their moods as Krishna’s bala leela or we may react to them showing our feelings. Fear, anger, hatred will arise in us. These emotions will be registered in the mind and they become samskaras, deep impressions causing rebirth. Like food that is made sweet, salty or spicy according to our individual taste, we take birth according to our deep impressions.We must see everything as the Lord’s play. How? First one should realize that the universe is the play of the Supreme Consciousness. There is only the One who has become many, this is 'Ekohum bahushyam'.
An example. The same vegetable is used in many different ways. For instance, potatoes can be cooked in a variety of different ways; as fries, sambar, chips, etc. Similarly, the primal source of all creation is God. One may be good or bad, the Lord is the Indweller in all. If we know this truth we will not react to the moods of others. All is His leela. Only if we realize this, we will feel the sweetness of the Lord at all times. We should know to drink the rasa, the sweet nectar of the Lord. Then the whole world will be a Rasaleela. Rasa means nectar, so we call it Rasaleela.If someone in the family is angry with you, think that it is the anger of Bala Krishna and enjoy it as His mood. Poet Barathiyar sang,‘Kanha, You are very naughty,You are throwing dust on my beautiful new sari!’Like Kanha, who plays with you mischievously, you should think that the person’s anger is the Lord’s leela. If you are disappointed by someone’s behavior you should think of the following lines of the poet.‘You are giving me a fruit to eat Kanha,When I am relishing its taste, You suddenly snatch it away!’This is how you should accept failure and disappointment thinking that it is the Lord’s play. If you take everything as His leela you will enjoy bliss.
In the book on Yoga Sutra, I have said that pranayama is absorbing the Prana shakthi, the universal life force fully into us. How can we do this? Connect everyone and everything to God, see only the good in all, then their life force flows into us. Never find fault with others. You should see the Truth in all and enjoy bliss. This is Raasleela, the divine play of the Lord.I have written a song in my youth about the bliss of the Lord’s play...Bliss! Infinite Bliss!See the wonderful play of Lord SaiYou are blessed.Take refuge at His feetYou are blessed.Bliss! Infinite Bliss!Get the grace of the Lord,All your sorrows dissolve.Attain Him,He is the fruit of your birth!The Lord is bliss. If we see Him in everything at all times, we will have the Rasaanubhava, the experience of bliss. Rasaanubhava is Raasleela. Radha and Gopis experienced this bliss. They saw Krishna everywhere. The world is Krishna leelamritha, the divine nectarine play of Krishna. Look! How much bliss is there in the world! High rising mountains, low flowing seas, the green carpeted plains, many shades of trees in the valleys, blossoms of different kind, singing birds, dancing peacocks, prancing deer, fleeting butterflies.., do not all these give you bliss? If not, then you are not a human being.Among people, we see great souls like the mountains, there are mean people like the lowlands, and there are restless ones like the waves of the ocean. There are hard hearted ones like the rocks and there are soft hearted souls like the creepers that sway in breeze.Like birds, there are free souls that fly in the spiritual sky, there are also selfish men trapped like snails in their shells. Many different types of people! Learn to enjoy their nature. Seeing only the differences without recognizing the basic unity of all will make impressions in the mind and sow the seed for rebirth.
Another song....How many different kinds of people?How different their nature?Oh my Sai! All show only Your grace!This creation is Yours my Sai,So finding a relationship binding my mindis ignorance.This creation is for the Creator. One has to see everything as the Lord’s. Instead, if we identify ourselves as mother, father, husband or wife, our mind gets caught and causes bondage. Bondage is the mind caught in duality, it is the differences we see. Moksha is the freedom from bondage, it is the bliss of Oneness. We must learn to enjoy this bliss.
The inner meaning of Raasleela is to see the rasa or the sweetness of the Lord in everything and enjoy bliss. I am seeing the Sai rasa, the Sathya rasa in everything, so my life has become blissful; I am dancing the Raasleela with my Lord every moment. Mukthi Nilayam is the stage for Raasleela. Here we connect every moment, every object with God. So we are enjoying infinite bliss. The Sai rasa fills us.Raasleela was performed in Brindavan by Krishna and the gopis. Swami said, “Mukthi Nilayam is Brindavan.” Now I understand why only those who are in Brindavan can dance the Raasleela and enjoy Krishna Rasa.Once Rukmini and Sathyabhama met Radha. They asked her to dance the Rasa leela. After the dance, they asked Radha if it was like the Raasleela of Brindavan. She said, “When we danced in Brindavan the trees, plants and creepers showered their blossoms in great joy and the spring season arrived.”The Raasleela in Brindavan changed the season. This is the uniqueness of Raasleela danced in Brindavan. It can be danced in other places, but only in Brindavan the wonder of the change in the season happen. A severe winter or a hot summer season would change into cool spring! In the same way, the Mukthi Nilayam Raasleela will make the entire world experience spring forever. All hearts will be immersed in joy as in springtime. The world will become rasa maya, filled with sweetness. All are going to drink the sweetness of the Lord.Saint Thyagaraja sang, ‘Pibarey Rama rasam,’Come! come! I call all of you to drink Sai Ram rasa. Join hands with the Mukthi Nilayam children and dance the Raasleela. I invite all people of the world!Let the milky moon shine it’s cool rays.Let all hearts blossom with the colors of spring.Let the fire of wisdom rage.Let the Lord’s flute echo the OmkarLet hearts be flooded in sweet music and dance.Let the whole world be immersed in the bliss of Raasleela.The mistaken notion that Raasleela is a dance of Krishna with some women should be removed.
Gita Govinda and Raasleela should be the two eyes of Jeevatma and show the path to attain Paramatma!