KRISHNA, KALIYA & THE YAMUNA
Krishna As Great Ecologist
Happy Janamashamati! On August 25th Janamashamati, the Appearance Day of Lord Krishna, happens in the West. Krishna is a great ecologist. This is not a normal blog on Krishna. It's about you doing service to humanity by being like Krishna. It's a call to changing your life style and really being green. It's not for those who just talk about ecology. It's a blog for those who want to change their whole life style.
Let us be honest. We all need to take care of the planet every day. No excuses for sitting at home doing nothing. This is a call to action. Krishna loved Mother Earth so much he married her. She was his third wife, Satyabhama, an incarnation of Mother Bhumi or Mother Earth. In the Bhagavat Purana Krishna delivered one of the greatest discourses on ecology and the greatness of trees. He calls them great beings. We would not exist without them.
When Krishna appeared he came first to his parents' jail cell in Mathura. Then he was transported via Vasudeva, his father, through the Yamuna River. Vashuki, the serpent, protected Krishna and Vasudeva until he delivered Krishna to Vrindavan where Nanda and Jashoda lived. They became his foster parents until he defeated the evil Kamsa, the demon king.
One of his greatest miracles in Vrindavan was his defeat of the serpent Kaliya. You see Kaliya had poisoned the Yamuna River much like the chemical plants of 21st century New Delhi. Vrindavan was right on the Yamuna River. The serpent wanted to poison everything around him. Krishna saw the plants, trees, animals and people being poisoned by the gigantic 100 headed serpent. Krishna did not just talk about Kaliya. He did something about Kaliya.
I see a lot of enthusiasm for professional sport teams and the Olympics. People watch soccer, basketball and football. I come from an athletic family, so I understand. However, if people really wanted to do something great, they would cheer Krishna on to victory when he took on the poisonous serpent, Kaliya, on and won. They would change their ways and become real champions for the environment. The Yamuna suffers from the terrible effects of pollution today because people do not value the environment. They value convenience instead of going an extra mile for the environment. If we do not take care of Mother Earth, our lives will be full of the havoc of rain storms, floods and other extreme weather.
Krishna forgot about convenience when he jumped into the Yamuna to defeat the serpent. If we all only could be heroes for the environment like Krishna. He restored all who had been poisoned by the serpent. Kaliya had to leave the river and stop his polluting ways. Unfortunately, we are like Kaliya in many ways. Krishna Consciousness starts with awareness and acknowledgement of our shadow side. Will we start recycling, start using natural cleaning products and do what it takes to restore the Yamuna's greatness? Other rivers are polluted, too. We need to look at what we are doing to cause the pollution. We will do what it takes to change our ways. We won't put up those excuses now. With global warming going on, we will be as great an ecologist as Krishna. A Krishna Conscious person takes care of the environment.
The ghat priests on the Yamuna only know too well about people's polluting ways and how they do not follow protocols on the river. Vrindavan used to be a paradise. Unfortunately, it is not true anymore. Two-thirds of New Delhi's water supply is taken from the Yamuna and most of the waste water goes back unfiltered. Chemical plants put pollutants in the river and do not treat or filter the water. The water is unfit to drink or bathe in for humans and animals. Deforestation is also a great problem which effects the erosion rate of silt. Many of the sacred groves of Vrindavan are gone. The name Vrindavan means "the forest of vrinda." Before 1970 the human waste became manure, so there was less water pollution. After 1970 they tried a modern sewage system which failed in this environment. The older system worked and was more ecological, so Vrindavan should return to using the traditional system again.
They have started to plant trees again in Vrindavan which will help with erosion problems. However, the Indian government tends to favor the chemical plants on the Yamuna. India has tolerated pollution too long in New Delhi. Now the government is cracking down on the number of days a vehicle can operate. What is needed is a better train and public transportation system to cut down on pollution every day. Modi needs to lift restrictions of environmental non-profits who have donors from other countries. Now the government only allows Indian donations. Modi needs all the capital he can get from other sources. He needs their expertise on ecology.
The Yamuna is the fifth largest river in India and is a tributary of the Ganges (Ganga) River. Mother Yamuna is full of great sacred sites. The pollution; however, is a big problem and unacceptable. It's going to take a big commitment towards real solutions to these problems. The government and locals both need to help bring quality improvement to the whole area. Be the change you want to see in the world! Be creative and miracles can happen. Today Krishna is coming for you. He will be with you through all kind of conditions. Love Mother Earth and Mother Yamuna!
JAI SHRI MOTHER YAMUNA! JAI SHRI VRINDAVAN! JAI SHRI RADHA-KRISHNA!
