Margazhi Blogotsavam: Day 8: Narsinh Mehta: Rescued by the Lord Himself

Narsinh (or Narsi) Mehta was born in 1414 and was brought up by his grandmother Jaykumari because his parents expired when he was very young. As a child, Narsinh couldn’t speak and this worried Jaykumari. Once, while returning from a discourse in the Shiva temple, she met a saint and told him of her worry. The saint sprinkled a little water onto Narsinh and whispered in his ears, “Say Radhakrishna.” At once, Narsinh repeated, “Radhakrishna!”

After this, Narsinh’s bhakti for Krishna grew day by day. He used to love to listen to His stories and would always be engrossed with people singing bhajans of Radhakrishna.

Image courtesy: Shri Mathura ji

Narsinh lived with his married brother and once, unable to bear the taunts of his sister-in-law, he went away to the Shiva temple inside the forest. For one whole week, he worshipped the Lord, without eating or drinking anything. Finally, he fell unconscious. Pleased with his devotion, Lord Shiva came there, and took Narsinh to Vrindavan to see Lord Krishna.

Narsinh then came back to his brother’s house and at once, fell at the feet of his sister-in-law, thanking her for driving him to leave home and ensuring he got Krishna’s darshan!

Narsinh used to be so lost in his bhakti that often, Krishna Himself would come to His devotee’s rescue. Such instances abound, but we’ll see one or two today.

Once, during the annual rites of Narsinh’s father, there was no ghee in the house. Narsinh went to the market to buy it but on the way, he saw a group of people singing Krishna’s bhajans. Lost in the bliss of bhajan-kirtan, he totally forgot about the Shraadha ceremony and the ghee. After a while, he returned home with the ghee, only to find his wife cleaning the house.

“I’ve brought the ghee. Use it and finish your cooking. But, where is everyone? And why are you cleaning up before the rites are completed?”

“Why did you buy the ghee again?” asked his wife, confounded.

Can you guess what may have happened? Yes! The Lord had stepped in to do Narsinh’s work. In the guise of His bhakta, Krishna had delivered the ghee home in time for the rites!

Narsinh was very fond of the raga “Kedar” because singing it made Krishna appear in front of him. A man once came to Narsinh asking for money for his daughter’s marriage. Narsinh didn’t have the money, but he agreed to take a loan of 500 rupees from the money lender to help that man. The lender wanted some security and the only valuable thing Narsinh had was his Kedar raga, so he agreed to mortgage that. That meant Narsinh couldn’t sing that raga till the money was returned with interest.

Even months after the marriage, the borrower didn’t return the money. Narsinh was in turmoil at being separated from Krishna. At the same time, some people complained to the King that Narsinh was faking his devotion. The King decided a test should be held.

Narsinh was to sing bhajans in the hall where a garlanded murti of Krishna was placed. If his devotion was true, Krishna Himself would walk and place His garland around Narsinh after a set amount of time. Accepting everything as Krishna’s will, Narsinh sat down and began to sing; but he couldn’t sing raga Kedar that would manifest the Lord – because, remember, it was still mortgaged to the moneylender.

Away from the palace, the moneylender heard a knock on his door. He opened it to find Narsinh with money to redeem the pledged raga. He took the money and gave Narsinh the receipt.

Back in the palace, it was decision-time. People began whispering that Krishna wouldn’t come and that Narsinh was a fake. The very next moment, the money lender’s receipt dropped into Narsinh’s lap. Raga Kedar flowed from his lips in bliss, even as tears flowed from his eyes in gratitude! Krishna walked ahead, removed the garland around His own neck and placed it around Narsinh! Yet again, the Lord had come to His devotee’s rescue!

Like Narsinh, can we learn to find joy in singing the praises of God?

Can we cultivate a spirit of gratitude towards even those who ridicule us, seeing them as the medium for some change in our lives?

Can we be selfless enough to part with something we love, to help someone in need?

Can we learn to trust that the Lord will always come to our rescue?

References

http://sivanandaonline.org/public_html/?cmd=displaysection&section_id=1628

https://www.hindujagruti.org/hinduism-for-kids/683_poet-narsi-mehta.html