The little boy ran for His life, afraid of the wrath of His mother Yashoda.
There was no place to hide from her.
Suddenly, He noticed the milkman Dadhipandyan resting under a
tree after having completed his day’s sales.
He rushed to him and begged,
“Please save me from my mother. Can I hide inside your pot?”
Dadhipandyan agreed and the little boy climbed into the pot
and crouched inside. The milkman covered the pot with the cloth of his turban,
and rested his head on it.
Yashoda reached there a few moments later, questioned
Dadhipandyan, and went away wondering where her kid had disappeared in just a
few seconds.
The danger had passed.
Baby Krishna knocked on the pot from inside, and shouted,
“Let me out, Dadhipandya.”
The man refused to do so.
The Master of the Universe pleaded with the lowly milkman.
“I’ll give you whatever you ask for, please let me out!”
“Ok, I’ll let you go, but in return, grant me moksha!”
Krishna was shocked. Never in history had anyone ever made
such a ludicrous demand!
But the man wouldn’t relent.
Desperate for a release from the smelly pot, Krishna agreed.
Still, Dadhipandyan made no move to release Him.
“What more do you want?”
“You are the friend, protector and refuge for the entire
world and all things in it. Once I’m gone, what will my poor pot do alone? You
must grant moksha to my pot, also!”
This was more ridiculous than the previous demand! When did
any non-sentient object ever get liberated?
But then, wasn’t He known as Achyuta? The One who is
infallible, and who will never desert His bhaktas? How then could He not agree
to Dadhipandyan’s demand?
And so it was that not just the illiterate milkseller devotee,
but his inanimate pot also got liberated from this world!
Many aeons later, He got reminded of this incident in the most unlikely of situations.
Lord Ranganathar of Srirangam lay serenely on His serpent bed. One of His devotees sat in front of Him, making flower garlands as he did every day. Suddenly, the bhakta felt overwhelmed with the thought of how nice it would be to be with the Lord in Srivaikuntham, with no interruption in his seva.
Moved by this feeling, he said to the Lord,
“I’ve had enough of this samsara! I need moksha right now!
When are you going to grant me the fortune of doing eternal kainkaryam to You?”
The sleeping Lord sat up in surprise.
“Pillai Perumal Iyengar, do you think it is so easy to get
moksha? There are so many great rishis and yogis and saints who dedicate many
births, undertake penance of the highest order, attain knowledge, and still
struggle for moksha. How can an ordinary human like you assume you will get
what those great souls cannot?
What penance have you done?
Have you performed yagnas?
Have you perfected the study of the Vedas?
Have you fasted in My name?
Have you cried out with deep longing for Me, and Me alone?”
Unfazed by the Lord’s tirade, His bhakta gazed calmly at Ranganathar,
choosing his words carefully.
“Do you really consider all these things before granting
moksha? I don’t think so!”
The Lord thundered,
“How dare you doubt My words?”
Pat came the reply.
“If you really considered these qualifications, then how is
it that when you came as Krishna, You liberated the pot of Dadhipandyan?”
“What dhyana yoga or jnana yoga or bhakti yoga did that pot
do?
What penance or yagnas did it perform?
What Vedas did the pot study?
What upavasa did it perform?
Did that black and dirty pot pray to You with longing for
You and You alone?
Am I less qualified than that pot?”
Stumped for an answer, all that Lord Ranganatha could do,
was to fall back on His serpent bed, marvelling at the irrefutable logic of His
bhakta!
On today’s auspicious occasion of Krishna Jayanti, let us pray for His grace to uplift us just as it did Dadhipandyan and his pot.
May Achyuta
bless us with eternal devotion towards His lotus feet, which are the both the means
and the end!
