Gopikas' Devotion

"Whatever you do to please God that must be in harmony with the perfection of the Divine. Your words should be absolute truth. Your actions should be totally God-oriented. All thoughts should be divinized. It should be realised that God is the Indweller in all beings. Because man has failed to realise this truth, he leads a double life and is prey to troubles and worries. Only by leading a godly life can man redeem himself.

The Gopikas are perfect examples of total devotion. They were totally absorbed in Krishna. They ignored the message brought to them by Uddhava. They told Uddhava that they were so totally immersed in the adoration of Krishna that they had no time or inclination to do anything else. They had totally identified themselves with Krishna.

Krishna was a six-year-old boy when he was sporting with the Gopikas. Even Bharatiyas (Indians) have wrong notions about Krishna's sports with cowherdesses. His sports were those of a young child with his brothers and sisters. By his sports, Krishna moved the hearts of the Gopikas. The Gopikas saw the image of Krishna in every creeper, every flower and every plant. When Krishna was away from Gokulam, the Gopikas went to Brindavan and appealed to every creeper and flower to let them know where Krishna is, who had stolen their hearts, was hiding himself. The Gopikas had only one image before them, that of Krishna.

The nature of true love between the devotee and God cannot be understood by the unbelievers, the atheists. Only the loving devotee can experience the effulgence of the Divine." Sai Baba, SS, 8/95, p. 229

"The Gopikas and Gopalas prayed to Krishna that they could not live apart from him and therefore they should be endowed with forms related to whatever forms he took, so that they should stay with him. Separation from God is the cause of men's wallowing in sensuous pleasures." Sai Baba, SS, 2/96, p. 32    ,

"The devotee must acquire the yearning that will melt the heart of God. Even butter, which is so soft, melts only when heat is applied. Likewise, the warmth of Bhakti (devotion) has to be applied to the butter of the human heart to make it melt. It was their intense devotion, which made Krishna dwell in the heart of Gopikas. They became God-intoxicated. Once, when Krishna disappeared from their midst, they started searching for him everywhere, among the trees and the bushes of Brindavan, oblivious to everything else. Their appeals to creepers to tell them whether their Krishna was hiding amongst them might seem "hysterical". But it would be a good thing if such "hysterical" love of God fills people's hearts today. Then world would be a calmer and better place." Sai Baba, SS, 10/94, p. 262

"Once Gopikas prayed to Krishna thus: '0 Krishna! Your mother is trying to catch you, to chastise you for your mischievous deeds. You don't need to run hither and thither to hide yourself. There is a place, which is beyond the reach of your mother, that is our heart. Our heart is filled with the darkness of ignorance. So, enter our heart and banish the darkness of ignorance." Sai Baba, SS, 11/12-98, p. 289