We are celebrating Bhagavaan Sri Krishna ‘s birth today. Krishna was the last Avataara of Bhagavaan – one of the most fun loving, most lovable and at the same time, the most controversial of all the avataaras of Bhagavaan.
Very often the controversies overshadow the person that he was. All avataaras are Bhagavaan manifesting in human form, living human lives at the same time bringing about a revival and renaissance in Dharma in addition to the other roles that they perform. In this case, the fact that he broke all the rules is highlighted compared with Bhagavaan Sri Rama who is considered as having followed all the rules and is known as Maryaada Purushottama.
If you look at the bigger picture you will see that all Sri Krishna’s rule-breaking was for greater good. It is true that he made promises left, right and centre and fulfilled them. In the process of doing that, he broke many rules. Each time, it was not for a personal gain but for a greater good. Often, people do not pay adequate attention to how Sri Krishna upheld Dharma which was his primary function as an avataara. We tend to interpret even avataaras through our narrow lens of biases. These two avataaras – Sri Rama and Sri Krishna – together highlight one important principle: Most of the time one follows Dharma by the rule, that helps us grow. Dharma is meant at the individual level for growth and at the level of the society for establishing rule of law and harmony. Ninety per cent of the time we grow by following the rules and perhaps 10 per cent of the time by breaking the rules.
Can we live like Sri Krishna? No. Can we follow his teachings? Yes. In following the rules most of the time and occasionally breaking the rules, together, one lives a life of dharma and greater understanding. This helps us to be mature enough to follow Sri Krishna’s teachings through the Bhagavad Gita about that reality which is both beyond right and wrong, good and bad.
The writer is the founder of Aarsha Vidya Foundation. You can write to him at aarshavidyaf@gmail.com
