Meera

There is a beautiful anecdote in the life of Meera, the renowned devotee of Krishna. When she went to Vrindavan, Krishna’s birthplace, she was prevented from entering the temple on the grounds that she was a woman and women were not allowed in that temple. She was told the chief priest of the temple was under a vow not to look upon a woman – he had never seen a woman since he had taken charge of t...he temple. Meera strongly protested, and what she said is significant. She said,

”As far as I know there is only one man in all the universe and he is Krishna. How can there be another man in the form of the priest of this temple? I wonder how he continues to be a man and a Krishna devotee too!”

When this message from Meera was conveyed to the chief priest he was taken aback, speechless,and he rushed to the temple gate where Meera was being held. He threw the gates of the temple wide open and asked her forgiveness.

He said to Meera, ”I am grateful to you for reminding me of my relationship with my Lord.”

Meera is a class by herself; she is rare. Her bliss, her ecstasy comes from being, not from doing. For her, just being is festive and joyous. Her song, her dance, is not a piece of work for her, it is an expression of her bliss, her ecstasy. She is so blissful that she is bursting into song and dance....

Meera’s songs are a case in point. She cries for God,she dances for God. Her songs are superb in the sense that they are so human. Her cries are the cries of a lover, a devotee. She says, ”I have made a beautiful bed for you, please come and grace it. I have opened the door and I have been waiting long for you....”