LORD KRSNA BEWILDERS BRAHMA
After killing Aghasura, Krsna took the cowherd boys to the forest for a picnic. As the boys enjoyed eating lunch in one another’s company, the calves were allured by green grass and gradually wandered off. Krsna’s friends became a little agitated and wanted to bring the calves back, but the Lord departed. Then, just to examine the potency of Krsna, Lord Brahma took away all the calves and cowherd boys and kept them in a secluded place.
When Krsna was unable to find the calves and boys, He could understand that this was Brahma’s trick. Then, in order to please Lord Brahma, as well as His own associated and their mothers, Krsna expanded Himself to become the calves and boys, exactly as they had been before. In this way He discovered another pastime. A special feature of this pastime was that the mothers of the cowherd boys became more attached to their respective sons, and that the cows became more attached to their calves. After nearly a year, Baladeva observed that all the cowherd boys and calves were expansions of Krsna. Thus He inquired from Krsna and was informed of what had happened.
When one full year had passed, Brahma returned and saw that Krsna was still engaged as usual with His friends and calves. Then, as Brahma looked on, Krsna exhibited all the calves and cowherd boys as four-armed forms of Narayana. The calves and the boys were suddenly transformed into personalities possessing complexions the color of bluish rainclouds and wearing garments of yellow silk. All those personalities had four arms and held a conchshell, a disc, a mace, and a lotus in Their hands. They wore helmets, earrings, armlets, bracelets, and garlands of forest flowers, and on the upper portion of the right side of Their chests They bore the emblem of the goddess of fortune. With the Kaustubha gem hanging around Their necks, which were marked with three lines like a conchshell, as well as bangles on Their ankles, ornaments on Their feet, and sacred belts around Their waists, They all appeared very beautiful.
Every part of Their bodies, from Their feet to the top of Their heads, was fully decorated with garlands of fresh, tender tulasi leaves. These garlands had been offered by devotees engaged in worshiping the Lord by the greatest pious activity, namely hearing and chanting His glories.
By Their pure smiling, which resembled the light of the moon, and by the sidelong glances of Their reddish eyes, those Visnu forms created and protected the desires of Their devotees, as if by the modes of pastime of his worshipable Lord.
PAINTING BY MURALIDHARA DASA (1978)