What is the importance of Govardhan Pooja?

The mistake of the Intellect is responsible for the disturbed state of mind. Even if the mind is under control, the intellect can disturb the mind. It is the discriminative faculty of the mind and can be very destructive. It is the main cause of ignorance. External desires and the uncontrolled five senses are responsible for it. Kama, Krodha, Lobha and Moha are the causative factors.

In mythology, Krishna won over the intellect- symbolized by King Indra, the one who controls the indriyas and the senses. Govardhan pooja is the example of winning over the intellect. The same can only be done by one point concentration on the object of concentration. Krishna raised the mountain (the problem) on his one finger (one point determination) to save the people from heavy rains (turmoil of thoughts).

It means taking one point decision (one finger) whenever the mind is indecisive (mountain) with multiple possibilities (rain).

Only when the mind, body and soul are purified after one month Yagna (first Navratra to Diwali) one can use his or her intellect to take one point decisions.

Govardhan pooja can also be understood by the following story.

Once a disciple asked his Guru the difference between girlfriend and wife. The Guru asked him to go to the tomato field and pick up the largest and most colored tomato but put a condition that once he has crossed one line he cannot return back.

The disciple went and saw a large tomato in the first row. He went ahead and found a larger tomato in the next row. Thinking that the subsequent rows will have still larger tomatoes he went on further and further. In the seventh row he found a very large red tomato but in search of finding a still larger tomato he left it and went to next row only to find smaller and smaller tomatoes in the subsequent rows and ultimately came empty handed. The GURU said it is the example of search for a girlfriend.

Four days later the Guru asked the disciple to do the same exercise again. This time in the fifth row the disciple found a very large red tomato, got satisfied, plucked it and came back. When the guru asked why he did not search further, he said that that once he decided on that tomato his mental turmoil to search further stopped. It did not bother him anymore that a still larger tomato may have been ahead. The Guru said this is an example of the search of a wife.

Govardhan pooja means stopping your search at some point and getting satisfied with what you get or learning to make a stop to all your desires at some point in your life.

Author : Dr KK Aggarwal

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