During Diwali, many places in India observe a special festival or a special ritual known as Govardhan Puja. Just like many festivals and rituals, there are some myths associated with it.
Once when Shri Krishna was a child, he saw his father was making elaborate preparations for some worship. On enquiring, he was told that they were preparing to worship Lord Indra, who was responsible for giving them rain, which led to the welfare and good fortune of the people. Young Krishna questioned and reasoned his father and all present there then. He said it was not Indra, however, it was mountain Govardhan which was responsible for the welfare and good fortune of the people of the region, and it was their responsibility and foremost duty to thank the mountain and being grateful to it, that they got grazing grounds for the cattle. It was the mountain that stopped the clouds and compelled them to rain and also gave them lots of greenery, flora, and fauna and with different plants and shrubs. Mount Govardhan was also home for numerous medicinal plants which were required for preparing ayurvedic medicines. Therefore it made more sense to worship the mountain instead of worshipping Lord Indra. At last, young Krishna convinced the people to stop the worship of Lord Indra and start worshipping Govardhan Mountain. This made Lord Indra angry so much that he decided to punish the people of Vrindavan and sent merciless rains leading to days and nights of a downpour. People got scared and went to young Krishna, saying that they had angered Lord Indra, and something needed to be done.
Then young Krishna came forward, worshipped the mountain as he had decided, and lifted the mountain in his last finger creating a giant umbrella to save the people from a potential deluge. Lord Indra was thus humbled and accepted the supremacy of young Krishna, and thus the people of Vrindavan started the practice of Govardhan Puja. Since this episode, young Krishna was also referred to as Giridhari – the one who holds the mountain.
The myth makes a very significant statement that is writ large in the theory of Mythology. No hero is forever. No hero remains to be an idol forever everyone. Lord Indra had been a chief deity during the Vedic times, however by the Puranic age, Lord Indra had lost considerable sheen. Gods like Loke Vishnu (and his different avatars, like Ram, Krishna, etc.); Shiva and other gods had gained prominence. It is a human tendency to demean someone to highlight the significance of another. This is exactly what happened to Lord Indra during the Puranic times. Lord Indra who was also sometimes referred to as Devendra (Lord of the gods) was nothing but a caricature of a fallen god. There are numerous instances, where even asuras have defeated Lord Indra in battles and he had to seek help from Vishnu and other such gods. There is also the famous instance of Ravana’s son defeating Lord Indra and earning the epithet of Indrajeet (literally - one who has achieved victory over Indra) in the epic of Ramayana. Such cases of old heroes making way for new are not unheard of in mythology. Many also see this conflict as a conflict of two cults, one gaining prominence at the expense of the other. Subsequently, Lord Indra was relegated to a relatively smaller position of a smaller deity, that of being a god of rains.
Why only Mythology, isn’t the same scenario visible in our real lives too? People who were heroes and idols for our parents may or may not be for us and our heroes and idols are not the ones our children look up to. However, it is very relevant to mention here that during the Vedic times, and in Rig Veda, Lord Indra had occupied a foremost position, and a number of myths talk of his bravery and valor.
One more lesson that is hidden in the story of the initiation of Govardhan Puja is that we human beings should be grateful to our nature, which has been protecting us from a lot of calamities and providing us with our necessities. The concept of saving our nature is not at all a new concept it has been in the DNA of Indian culture, the story reveals the facts. The more we move away from our nature and district it the more we will be creating problems for ourselves.
Subroneel Saha is high in life. He enjoys life and believes to savour everything by doing along the path with passion, which he considers to be the most important part of the experience. He is a prolific writer on history, mythology, sacred lore, legends, folklore, fables and parables, and for challenging willful misinterpretations of ancient Indian and world scriptures, stories, symbols, and rituals. He intents to break the dogma and show the intentional part of every myth and the story.
Once when Shri Krishna was a child, he saw his father was making elaborate preparations for some worship. On enquiring, he was told that they were preparing to worship Lord Indra, who was responsible for giving them rain, which led to the welfare and good fortune of the people. Young Krishna questioned and reasoned his father and all present there then. He said it was not Indra, however, it was mountain Govardhan which was responsible for the welfare and good fortune of the people of the region, and it was their responsibility and foremost duty to thank the mountain and being grateful to it, that they got grazing grounds for the cattle. It was the mountain that stopped the clouds and compelled them to rain and also gave them lots of greenery, flora, and fauna and with different plants and shrubs. Mount Govardhan was also home for numerous medicinal plants which were required for preparing ayurvedic medicines. Therefore it made more sense to worship the mountain instead of worshipping Lord Indra. At last, young Krishna convinced the people to stop the worship of Lord Indra and start worshipping Govardhan Mountain. This made Lord Indra angry so much that he decided to punish the people of Vrindavan and sent merciless rains leading to days and nights of a downpour. People got scared and went to young Krishna, saying that they had angered Lord Indra, and something needed to be done.
Then young Krishna came forward, worshipped the mountain as he had decided, and lifted the mountain in his last finger creating a giant umbrella to save the people from a potential deluge. Lord Indra was thus humbled and accepted the supremacy of young Krishna, and thus the people of Vrindavan started the practice of Govardhan Puja. Since this episode, young Krishna was also referred to as Giridhari – the one who holds the mountain.The myth makes a very significant statement that is writ large in the theory of Mythology. No hero is forever. No hero remains to be an idol forever everyone. Lord Indra had been a chief deity during the Vedic times, however by the Puranic age, Lord Indra had lost considerable sheen. Gods like Loke Vishnu (and his different avatars, like Ram, Krishna, etc.); Shiva and other gods had gained prominence. It is a human tendency to demean someone to highlight the significance of another. This is exactly what happened to Lord Indra during the Puranic times. Lord Indra who was also sometimes referred to as Devendra (Lord of the gods) was nothing but a caricature of a fallen god. There are numerous instances, where even asuras have defeated Lord Indra in battles and he had to seek help from Vishnu and other such gods. There is also the famous instance of Ravana’s son defeating Lord Indra and earning the epithet of Indrajeet (literally - one who has achieved victory over Indra) in the epic of Ramayana. Such cases of old heroes making way for new are not unheard of in mythology. Many also see this conflict as a conflict of two cults, one gaining prominence at the expense of the other. Subsequently, Lord Indra was relegated to a relatively smaller position of a smaller deity, that of being a god of rains.Why only Mythology, isn’t the same scenario visible in our real lives too? People who were heroes and idols for our parents may or may not be for us and our heroes and idols are not the ones our children look up to. However, it is very relevant to mention here that during the Vedic times, and in Rig Veda, Lord Indra had occupied a foremost position, and a number of myths talk of his bravery and valor.
One more lesson that is hidden in the story of the initiation of Govardhan Puja is that we human beings should be grateful to our nature, which has been protecting us from a lot of calamities and providing us with our necessities. The concept of saving our nature is not at all a new concept it has been in the DNA of Indian culture, the story reveals the facts. The more we move away from our nature and district it the more we will be creating problems for ourselves.
Subroneel Saha is high in life. He enjoys life and believes to savour everything by doing along the path with passion, which he considers to be the most important part of the experience. He is a prolific writer on history, mythology, sacred lore, legends, folklore, fables and parables, and for challenging willful misinterpretations of ancient Indian and world scriptures, stories, symbols, and rituals. He intents to break the dogma and show the intentional part of every myth and the story.
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