Foreword
It pleases me immensely to know that Devi Vanamali, the author of this admirable book on the life of Bhagavan (Lord) Sri Krishna, wants me to write a few words by way of an introductory appreciation and suggestion. I have gone through this book carefully and my first impression after reading it was that this is the first attempt perhaps ever made by a scholar-devotee to present in one compact volume the multifaceted and majestic life of the Great Incarnation. What charmed me especially was the perspicacious and deeply touching style and expression in which the whole story is told so beautifully and so comprehensively.Usually, devotees of Lord Sri Krishna confine their attention to the childhood and boyhood days of Krishna in Gokula, Vrindavana, and Mathura and even if they are a little more extended, the writings generally add only the events in Dwaraka, of Sri Krishna's regime and His social greatness as delineated in the Shrimad Bhagavatha Mahapurana.
Very few pay sufficient attention to the wonderful deeds of the towering Krishna of the Mahabharata, without which facet of His life the great story would remain incomplete. It is delightful to observe that Mata Devi Vanamali has not omitted any salient feature and has managed to press into her book the essentials of the story as we have in both the Shrimad Bhagavatha and the Mahabharata.
The divine play of the child in Vrindavana, the serious posture of a mature potentate in Dwaraka, and the transcendent power exhibited in the Mahabharata constitute the three sections in the book of Sri Krishna's life. The author of this book is not merely a devotee in the ordinary sense of the term, but one who has endeavoured to saturate her very life with Krishna bhakti, due to which speciality in her, the work glows with a fervour of spirit and a radiance of clarity in presentation. A book written by a seeker who veritably lives in the presence of the Lord will no doubt have the magnetic influence it will obviously exert on every reader of this divine saga, this chronicle of God come fully in visible form.
A reading of the life of Sri Krishna will not only be a rewarding treat, as an enchanting vision of the deeds of the Divine Superman, but also charge the reader's personality with an energy and vigour not to be had on this earth.
May works of this kind see the light of day in more and more numbers, for the blessing of all humankind.
Swami Krishnananda
General Secretary
Divine Life Society
Rishikesh, India
Back Of Book
"Till My advent O Uddhava, a dip in the Ganga was supposed to eradicate all sins, but now a dip in the holy story of My Life is enough to cleanse the sins of a thousand life-times. He who listens to the story of My Life sanctifies himself."
Lord Krishna in the Sreemad Bhagvatha Purana
"I know of no Reality other than Lord Krishna, whose face is as radiant as the full moon, whose colour is that of the fully laden rain cloud, whose eyes are large and lustrous as the petals of a lotus, whose lips are red as the bimba berry, whose hands are adorned with the flute, and who is clad in resplendent garments."
Madhusudana Saraswathi
"This is the first attempt perhaps ever made by scholar-devotee to present in one compact volume the multifaceted and majestic life of the Great Incarnation!"
Swami Krishnanadaji Maharaj
'Divine Life Society', Rishikesh
|
||
Benediction | viii | |
Foreword | ix | |
Introduction | xv | |
BALA-LILA-THE PLAY OF THE CHILD |
||
1. | The Advent | 3 |
2. | The Birth of the Unborn | 13 |
3. | The Divine Infant | 19 |
4. | The Butter Thief | 28 |
5. | Bondage of the Boundless | 36 |
6. | Brahma Bemused | 45 |
7. | The Enchanting Flute | 57 |
8. | Krishna Lifts the Mountain | 66 |
9. | The Divine Lover | 71 |
10. | The Lord of Vraja | 82 |
RAJA-LILA-THE ROYAL GAME |
||
11. | The Prophecy Fulfilled | 93 |
12. | Uddhava at Gokula | 102 |
13. | Lord of Dwaraka | 113 |
14. | Abduction of Rukmini | 125 |
15. | The Cursed Gem | 135 |
16. | The Pandavas | 143 |
17. | The Divine Husband | 155 |
18. | The Sons of Krishna | 164 |
19. | The Divine Ruler | 173 |
20. | The Rajasuya Sacrifice | 183 |
UTTAMA-LILA-THE GAME SUPREME |
||
21. | The Gambling Match | 201 |
22. | The Exile | 212 |
23. | The Lord as Ambassador | 227 |
24. | Declaration of War | 245 |
25. | Srimad Bhagavad Gita | 262 |
26. | The Mahabharata War | 278 |
27. | The End of the War | 293 |
28. | The Advice of Bhishma | 314 |
29. | The Story of Sudama | 329 |
30. | Dharma Rules Supreme | 339 |
31. | The Curse of the Sages | 352 |
32. | Advice to Uddhava | 363 |
33. | The Death of the Deathless | 375 |
Epilogue-Lila-the Cosmic Play | 388 | |
List of Mantras with Meanings | 392 | |
List of Characters | 395 | |
Glossary | 405 |
Foreword
It pleases me immensely to know that Devi Vanamali, the author of this admirable book on the life of Bhagavan (Lord) Sri Krishna, wants me to write a few words by way of an introductory appreciation and suggestion. I have gone through this book carefully and my first impression after reading it was that this is the first attempt perhaps ever made by a scholar-devotee to present in one compact volume the multifaceted and majestic life of the Great Incarnation. What charmed me especially was the perspicacious and deeply touching style and expression in which the whole story is told so beautifully and so comprehensively.Usually, devotees of Lord Sri Krishna confine their attention to the childhood and boyhood days of Krishna in Gokula, Vrindavana, and Mathura and even if they are a little more extended, the writings generally add only the events in Dwaraka, of Sri Krishna's regime and His social greatness as delineated in the Shrimad Bhagavatha Mahapurana.
Very few pay sufficient attention to the wonderful deeds of the towering Krishna of the Mahabharata, without which facet of His life the great story would remain incomplete. It is delightful to observe that Mata Devi Vanamali has not omitted any salient feature and has managed to press into her book the essentials of the story as we have in both the Shrimad Bhagavatha and the Mahabharata.
The divine play of the child in Vrindavana, the serious posture of a mature potentate in Dwaraka, and the transcendent power exhibited in the Mahabharata constitute the three sections in the book of Sri Krishna's life. The author of this book is not merely a devotee in the ordinary sense of the term, but one who has endeavoured to saturate her very life with Krishna bhakti, due to which speciality in her, the work glows with a fervour of spirit and a radiance of clarity in presentation. A book written by a seeker who veritably lives in the presence of the Lord will no doubt have the magnetic influence it will obviously exert on every reader of this divine saga, this chronicle of God come fully in visible form.
A reading of the life of Sri Krishna will not only be a rewarding treat, as an enchanting vision of the deeds of the Divine Superman, but also charge the reader's personality with an energy and vigour not to be had on this earth.
May works of this kind see the light of day in more and more numbers, for the blessing of all humankind.
Swami Krishnananda
General Secretary
Divine Life Society
Rishikesh, India
Back Of Book
"Till My advent O Uddhava, a dip in the Ganga was supposed to eradicate all sins, but now a dip in the holy story of My Life is enough to cleanse the sins of a thousand life-times. He who listens to the story of My Life sanctifies himself."
Lord Krishna in the Sreemad Bhagvatha Purana
"I know of no Reality other than Lord Krishna, whose face is as radiant as the full moon, whose colour is that of the fully laden rain cloud, whose eyes are large and lustrous as the petals of a lotus, whose lips are red as the bimba berry, whose hands are adorned with the flute, and who is clad in resplendent garments."
Madhusudana Saraswathi
"This is the first attempt perhaps ever made by scholar-devotee to present in one compact volume the multifaceted and majestic life of the Great Incarnation!"
Swami Krishnanadaji Maharaj
'Divine Life Society', Rishikesh
|
||
Benediction | viii | |
Foreword | ix | |
Introduction | xv | |
BALA-LILA-THE PLAY OF THE CHILD |
||
1. | The Advent | 3 |
2. | The Birth of the Unborn | 13 |
3. | The Divine Infant | 19 |
4. | The Butter Thief | 28 |
5. | Bondage of the Boundless | 36 |
6. | Brahma Bemused | 45 |
7. | The Enchanting Flute | 57 |
8. | Krishna Lifts the Mountain | 66 |
9. | The Divine Lover | 71 |
10. | The Lord of Vraja | 82 |
RAJA-LILA-THE ROYAL GAME |
||
11. | The Prophecy Fulfilled | 93 |
12. | Uddhava at Gokula | 102 |
13. | Lord of Dwaraka | 113 |
14. | Abduction of Rukmini | 125 |
15. | The Cursed Gem | 135 |
16. | The Pandavas | 143 |
17. | The Divine Husband | 155 |
18. | The Sons of Krishna | 164 |
19. | The Divine Ruler | 173 |
20. | The Rajasuya Sacrifice | 183 |
UTTAMA-LILA-THE GAME SUPREME |
||
21. | The Gambling Match | 201 |
22. | The Exile | 212 |
23. | The Lord as Ambassador | 227 |
24. | Declaration of War | 245 |
25. | Srimad Bhagavad Gita | 262 |
26. | The Mahabharata War | 278 |
27. | The End of the War | 293 |
28. | The Advice of Bhishma | 314 |
29. | The Story of Sudama | 329 |
30. | Dharma Rules Supreme | 339 |
31. | The Curse of the Sages | 352 |
32. | Advice to Uddhava | 363 |
33. | The Death of the Deathless | 375 |
Epilogue-Lila-the Cosmic Play | 388 | |
List of Mantras with Meanings | 392 | |
List of Characters | 395 | |
Glossary | 405 |