Article sent from The Hindu on indiaserver.com

[Guest guest]

=============================================================

This article is emailed to you by Ram Chandran ( rchandran )

=============================================================

Source: The Hindu (http://www.the-hindu.com)

 

Devotee, dear to the Almighty

 

CHENNAI, DEC. 16. True devotees of God remain unaffected by

vagaries of life. From the accounts of their lives the worldly

people may wonder why God allowed such pious souls to suffer,

but, a careful perusal will show that these devotees were never

concerned with their lot and spent all their time in devotional

activities. They reposed total faith in God's saving grace and He

responded to them in equal measure.

 

One such devotee who had the singular fortune of being the Lord's

companion during His incarnation as Krishna was Sudama. Unlike

Arjuna who also enjoyed His friendship but took liberties with

Him, right from the time he studied together with Krishna under

Sandipini, Sudama's attitude to His friend was one of total

adulation. Later when they separated after the completion of

their studies he became a great devotee and spent all his time in

devotional activities and he knew of Krishna's divine nature.

 

His devotional preoccupations did not allow him to engage in

occupation to provide for his day-to-day needs and hence he lived

a life of abject penury and subsisted on the alms he received.

But this did not seem to bother him at all until his wife who

could not bear to see her children suffer from hunger prodded him

one day to go and meet his friend Krishna, for she was sure that

being the Lord of the Goddess of Wealth He would bestow

prosperity on them seeing Sudama's emaciated state.

 

It was after frequent entreaties from his wife that Sudama agreed

to her proposal as it would give him an opportunity to behold

Lord Krishna which was a supreme gain in itself, said Navalpakkam

Sri Varadachariar in his discourse. Such was his devotion that

even in that pitiable condition he wanted to take something for

the Lord to offer to Him and when he expressed his wish to his

wife she managed to give him a few handfuls of parched rice

borrowed from their neighbours.

 

He set out to Dwaraka with this humble present and his only

thought on the way was how he would manage to obtain a sight of

Lord Krishna. When he gained entry into the precincts of

Krishna's abode without any difficulty and his eyes feasted on

Him and His consort Rukmini, his joy knew no bounds knowing for

certain that he had realised the object of his life in beholding

them.

 

The reception he was accorded by Krishna and the relish with

which He partook the parched rice while recalling the incidents

of their stay in their Guru's abode and the manner in which He

blessed him with riches unsought certifies to how the Lord

reciprocates to devotion.

 

Copyrights: 2000 The Hindu & Tribeca Internet Initiatives Inc.

 

Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly

prohibited without the consent of The Hindu & Tribeca Internet Initiatives Inc.