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Radha - II A Pledge Redeemed

© Harsh Nevatia

Vrishbhanu had formalised the engagement of his daughter, Radha, to one Aiyyan. Aiyyan was a resident of Vrindavan and much older than Radha. He hated the village life and left for Mathura to join Kansa's army. Kansa's family was the most powerful feudal family and had been given the functions of governance of the larger state. He had embarked on a series of wars hence it was uncertain when Aiyyan would return. However Radha had never felt the excitement at her engagement and she did not care about Aiyyan. She had always preferred playing with younger children to gossiping with older women. Now she was waiting for Krishna to redeem his pledge.

A year after she had come to Vrindavan, Nand sent a message to Vrishbhanu that wolves were attacking Gokul village at night. They would carry away heifers, dogs and even children. Hence he had decided to move to Vrindavan with all the inhabitants of Gokul. Radha's pleasure knew no bound. She began to tell all the children that her Kahn was coming. Kahn was her special name for Krishna.

Soon the people from Gokul arrived. In the lead was the blue-skinned Krishna - his staff in his hand, his flute tucked in his waistband and the peacock feather positioned in his hair. Radha, ignoring propriety, rushed forward and lifted him in her arms and began to swing him round and round. All the children of Vrindavan and Gokul began to move in a circle around the two of them.

Next morning Radha waited for Krishna to awake. At first Krishna was peeved that his brother, Balaram, and friends had left him sleeping, but the presence of Radha soon cheered him up. Radha took him to the special nook on the bank of the river Yamuna where she usually bathed. They splashed around boisterously and swam to the middle of the river. Krishna discovered that Radha could be a "boy" with the boys even though she was delicately built.

Back in the village Krishna began to play his flute and Radha sang of the paradise that was Vrindavan. The children began to clap their hands and dance to the rhythm of his flute. Soon the women left their work and joined in the dancing. Krishna's magic had come to stay.

Vrindavan was a land of peace and plenty. It was also a newer settlement compared to the neighbouring villages. As a result it was free from the prejudices of the older communities. The segregation of the sexes was not that severe and nor were gender roles that rigidly defined. Radha would often collect a group of girls and block the path of the boys when they went to graze the cattle in the mornings. She would then extract some silly promise from Krishna before letting them pass. In the afternoons the boys and girls would go to the river and indulge in water fights. But the best was reserved for the nights of the full moon. The girls and the younger women would gather in the woods and perform an intricate dance which involved moving in circles in pairs. The boys too would be there, first as spectators and then as participants. The tempo of the movements would increase and one by one the boys would drop out, leaving Krishna in the center playing his flute and the maidens dancing in a frenzy around him.

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