RUKMINI JAYANTI - APRIL 14
Mother of Pradyumna
Many of us know the story of how Rukmini Devi married Lord Krishna at Dwaraka. Did they live happily ever after? Like most of us they had their challenges and joys. They were like ordinary householders in this respect.
Their first child was a son named Pradyumna. Only six days after his birth, he was abducted by a demon called Sambara right from their nursery. Because he was a demon he is a shape shifter and can assume any form and go any where. Unfortunately, children are abducted today and trafficked to illegitimate adoption agencies for huge sums of money. What a sad situation for any couple. The evil Sambara thought the child was his enemy and threw him into the ocean. A huge fish shallowed the boy. This reminds me of the story of Jonah and the Whale from the Bible where the whale swallowed Jonah. The big fish in this story was caught by fishermen and given to Sambara, the demon. The cook cut up the fish and discovered the child within the belly of the fish. The maidservant, Mayavati, took care of the boy found in the fish. Narada Muni, sage to the gods, appeared to her and told her the identity of the child. Pradyumna is an incarnation of Kamadeva or Cupid. Mayavati is an incarnation of Kamadeva's wife, Ratidevi. He consider her to be his mother until she told him the whole story and about their true indentities. Praduymna killed the demon, Sambara, by the use of mystic Maha-maya mantras which Mayavati taught him. Ratidevi appeared in the sky after the demon's death and took Pradyumna to Dwaraka where Krishna lived with Rukmini and his other wives. When Pradyumna and his wife appeared in the inner chambers of Krishna's palace, many of the women thought he was Krishna because he looked so much like him. Then they finally realized he was not Krishna because of the small differences between him and Krishna. Rukmini was overwhelmed when she saw him and milk flowed from her breasts. She recalled that her son had been kidnapped from the nursery. "If He were still alive," she thought, "He would be the same age as this youth standing before me." Lord Krishna returned with his parents, Devaki and Vasudeva. Narada Muni appeared again and told every one the whole story. Every one hugged Pradyumna and welcomed him and Ratidevi into the family.
After reading the story I began to wonder about other women who get separated from their children at birth for various reasons. You do hear stories from time to time about how children are re-united with their mothers even after a number of years. What about the case of the child given to the wrong parents at birth in the hospital? What about birth mothers being re-united with their children who were put up for adoption? The list goes on and on. Pradyumna returned safe and sound. What about children who are injured or killed? Children are not always treated right. They are neglected and some die of stravation. It is time we start valuing our youth. India has a terrible problem in this regard. Girls are drown in milk, not given adequate nutrition and are aborted because of their sex. All children should be equally valued and taken care of by their parents. If every child was treasured, they would contribute so much to the world. If all parents were like Krishna and Rukmini, the world would be a great place for children. India needs to educate girls and treat them right. The modern day dowry system needs to replaced by the sisterhood system where we all get together and value every child equally. Marriage is not about greed. It is about love and family. It's about sisterhood and brotherhood. As I say the sisterhood is powerful. We can start to make a difference today!
JAI SHRI RUKMINI, JAI SHRI PADYUMNA, JAI SHRI KRISHNA!
Radhapriestess