[Advaita-l] Re: Lord Krishna lived for 125 years

[bhaskar.yr at in.abb.com]

praNAms Sri Kalyan prabhuji
Hare Krishna

Kalyan prabhuji:

The issue is not specific to Krishna bhakta-s as it is also relevant to the
concept of Ishwara.

bhaskar :

But prabhuji, according to shankara siddhAnta Ishwara & his omnipotence &
omniscient qualities are avidyAkruta & holds water only in vyavahAra is it
not??  Considering this krishna's appearance/birth & disappearance/death
also in vyavahAra only...can we close this issue by saying this prabhuji??

Kalyan prabhuji:

I dont know how many of us are celebrating janmAshTami in a "cavalier"
manner,

bhaskar :

our Hare krishna devotees here in Bangalore ISKCON temple & other krishna
bhaktha-s in other temples have involved in high handed celebrations.

Kalyan prabhuji:

but I think Krishna's "birth" and "death" may be understood in the context
of his control over his own destiny, which is absolute, as Krishna is
eternally free and knows he is so.

bhaskar :

yes prabhuji I agree with you, but his *control* over his destiny does not
deny the fact that of his birth at prison & hunter's  shooting arrow aimed
at his foot.

Kalyan prabhuji:

(contrast it with your or my birth to know the difference, of course we too
can "attain" Krishnatva if we "strive", but that is beside the point.) As
for "celebrating" janmAshTami, dont you think his "birth" on earth is a
good thing to happen, (well, atleast for those folks who are celebrating it
in a non-cavalier manner)?

bhaskar :

I agree with you prabhuji, it definitely gives us the oppotunity to do
bhagavannAma smaraNa & ArAdhana in a more intensified manner on these
occasions.

Kalyan prabhuji :

And as for his "death", that marked the beginning of kali yuga - an age
where dharma is supposedly at its lowest. That doesn't give us much reason
to "celebrate" it. Does it?

bhaskar :

prabhuji, being a student of shAstra, we all know that we are *ajOnityam
shAshvatOyaM na hanyate hanya mAne sharIre* But in vyavahAra we are
celebrating birth days & death anniversaries for the remembrance of our
beloved ones.  Like that, we can celebrate these auspicious events in the
case of divine incarnations also by calling it janana & mahA prasthAna.
Here birth & death hardly matters, point is we are creating more & more
special opportunities to do bhagavannAma saNkIrtana & upAsana.  Anything
wrong in this attitude prabhuji??

Kalyan prabhuji:

There is a specific reason for this. I forgot it but it goes like this -
Some devotees of Vishnu wanted to see his pastimes etc. etc.  I think the
bhAgavata purANa mentions this.

bhaskar :

but, I am afraid, no devotee wants to see his beloved lord's birth in a
prison that too dark, rainy night, is it not prabhuji.  As a krishna bhakta
I would have opted something better than that :-))

kalyan prabhuji:

I think the same question can be asked. Why should he disappear in to thin
air? (Interestingly some avatAra-s have come close to "disappearing into
thin air"). May be he could have disappeared into thin air if he wanted to
but he did not want that.

bhaskar :

because he wants to adhere to prakruti dharma, he wants to cast off his
physical sheath which has taken form in the prison & grown up in gOkula.
Just he followed the natural laws to give up his physical form *naturally*.

Kindly correct me if I said anything wrong.

Hari Hari Hari Bol!!!
bhaskar