THE MEETING OF SUDAMA BRAHMANA WITH LORD KRSNA

A play in one act: three scenes

Cast of Characters:

Sudama

Sudama's wife

Rukmini

Narrator

Extras

SCENE I

Narrator: Sudama was a very nice brahmana friend of Lord Krsna. As a perfect brahmana, he was elevated in transcendental knowledge. Because of his advanced knowledge, he was not at all attached to the material enjoyment. His wife was not very anxious for her personal comfort, but felt concern for her husband. Thus she spoke as follows.

Wife: My dear Lord, I know that Sri Krsna is your personal friend. Even though you are thinking that you do not render any devotional service to Him still you are surrendered and Krsna is the protector of the surrendered soul. He is always ready to help His devotee. He is your only shelter. Please, go to Him. He will understand your impoverished condition. I'm sure He will not hestate to award you some material benefit.

Sudama: I don't want any material benefit from Krsna.

Wife: He knows perfectly well how much you are fixed in devotional service...

Sudama: But Krsna is only interested in pure devotional service. Besides I am perfectly satisfied with what Krsna has provided for us. Are we not living peacefully? Do we not have shelter? Are we not eating.....

Wife: Not sufficiently, my lord. Sometimes you are even too weak to stand.

Sudama: I am not this body.

Wife: But He would want you to have the bare necessities of life....

???? core of the heart, is surely eligible to become liberated, for it has become his rightful claim."

Wife: My dear lord, please go to Him. I beg you. I cannot bear to see you in this condition any longer.

Sudama: Alright alright. I'll go. Besides, if I do go, I shall be able to see Krsna face to face...

Wife: Yes, it would be wonderful for you....

Sudama: But I can't ask Him for anything. Rather, I'll bring Him a gift. What can we offer Him?

Wife: We have nothing.

Sudama: Well then...?

Wife: I'll find something. (Exits and returns with small bundle)

Here, this is all I could find.

Sudama: This is all we have?

Wife: I'm afraid so. Please be careful on your journey. Jai Sri Krsna.

Sudama: Jai Sri Krsna.

(Exits)

SCENE II Dvaraka. Residential palace of Krsna and Rukmini. Krsna: Sudama, My dear friend.

Sudama: Krsna, my Lord.

Krsna: It's so nice to see you. Please sit here and relieve your fatigue. (Krsna proceeds to worship His brahmana friend by bringing fruits and drinks, washing his feet and offering incense and lamps.) It is great fortune that you have come to Dvaraka.

Servant I: I can't understand why Krsna is worshipping this poor brahmana.

Servant II: He's poorly dressed and not very clean either.

Servant II: Obviously this brahmana is not an ordinary person. He must have performed great pious activities; otherwise why would Lord Krsna take so much care for him?

Servant I: But he's sitting on Rukmini's bedstead.

Servant II: Yes, and Krsna whose embraces are for none else but Rukmini, has embraced this brahmana to His chest.

Krsna: My dear Sudama, remember those school days when you and I were living together at the Gurukula? Like the time we went to collect wood from the forest?

Sudama: Yes. And while collecting the dried wood we entered deeper and deeper into the forest and became lost.

Krsna: There was an unexpected dust storm, clouds, lightning in the sky and the explosive sound of tunder. Then there was a severe rainfall.

Sudama: The whole ground was flooded and we could not find our way back to our guru's ashrama. We felt greatly pained and in whichever direction we turned, we became bewildered.

Krsna: In that distressed condition, we took each other's hand and tried to find our way out. We passed the whole night in that way.

Sudama: Early the next morning, when our absence was noticed, our gurudeva along with some of his disciples came to search us out and found us in this distressed condition.

Krsna: Gurudeva, with great compassion said, "My dear boys, everyone likes to take care of his body as his first consideration, but you are so faithful that without caring for bodily comforts you have taken so much trouble for me. This is the way for a bonifide disciples to become free from his debt to the spiritual naster. It is the duty of the disciple to dedicate his life to the service of his spiritual master."

Sudama: And then he blessed us by saying, "May all your desires and ambitions be fulfilled. May your understanding of the Vedas always remain within your memory you can always quote their instuctions without difficulty. Therefore you will never be disappointed in this life or the next."

Krsna: Sudama, we can both realze that without the blessings of the spiritual master no one can be happy. Only by the mercy of the spiritual master can one achieve peace and prosperity and be able to fulfill the mission of human life.

Sudama: My dear Krsna, You are the Supreme Lord and the Supreme Spiritual Master of everyone. All the different processes of life are ultimately meant for the understanding of Your Supreme Personality. And yet You played the role of a student and lived with us like an ordinary boy. But I can understand that You adopted all of these pastimes for Your pleasure only; otherwise there is no need for Your playing the role of a human being.

Krsna: O, what have you brought Me? Has your wife sent some nice estables for Me? Sudama, you must have brought some offering for Me. Certainly, I am not in need of anything but if My devotee gives Me something as an offering of love, even though it may be very insignificant, I accept it with great satisfaction. On the other hand, if a person is not a devotee, although he may offer Me the most valuable thing, I do not like to accept it. I only accept those things which are offered to Me in devotion and love. I not only accept them but I take them with great pleasure. Chipped rice. My favorite. I consider that this quantity of chipped rice will not only satisfy Me but will satisfy the whole creation.

Rukmini: My dear Lord, You are so kind to Your devotee, that even this one morsel of chiped rice pleases You greatly and Your pleasure assures the devotee great opulence eternally.

Krsna: Sudama, it is late. Let Me show you to your quarters. Tell Me, how was your journey. (Both exit)

Narrator: Sudama brahmana passed the night in th0e house of Lord Krsna. The next morning he started for his home thinking constantly about his reception by Krsna. Thus he became merged in transcendental bliss. He was feeling very happy to have seen the Lord.

SCENE III On his way back home.

Sudama: Seeing Krsna is so wonderful. It is like drinking nectar through the eyes. How great a lover He is of brahmanical culture. He is the Supreme Brahman Himself, yet He embraced me to His chest with heartfelt pleasure. He was so kind to me that He allowed me to sit on same bedstead where the Goddess of Forune lies down. Krsna considered me His real brother. How can I appreciate my obligation to Him? Seeing me tired, Srimate Rukmini devi began to fan me with her own hand. She never considered Her exalted position. He was so merciful that He did not give me a farthing, knowing very well that I am a poverty-striken man who, if I did get some money, might become proud and mad after material opulence and therby forget Him.

Narrator: Thinking in this way the earned brahmana, Sudama, gradually reached his own home. On reaching there, he saw that everything was wonderfully changed.

Sudama: What are all these changes? Does this place belong to me

or someone else? If this is the same place I used to live, how has it changed so wonderfully? (Wife enters) My dear wife, how have these incredible changes come about?

Wife: I do not know, my lord.

Sudama: I have always been a poor man. I do not find any cause for this other than the all merciful glance of my friend Lord Krsna. When Krsna receives a little thing in love and affection from His devotee, He considers it a great and valuable gift. I simply offered Him a morsel of chipped rice and in exchange He has given me opulences greater then those of the King of heaven, Indra. I pray that I never forget the devotional service to His lotus feet, the unborn Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Sri Krsna.

Wife: Shall we enter, my lord?

Sudama: Why not?

Narrator: Sudama realized that although Lord Krsna is unconquerable, He nervertheless agrees to be conquered by His devotees. By constant meditation on Lord Krsna whatever darkness of material contamination remained within his heart was completely cleared away and very shortly he was transferred to the spiritual kingdom, which is the goal of all saintly persons. Sukadeva Goswami has stated, that anyone who hears this history of Sudama Brahmana and Lord Krsna will know how affectionate Lord Krsna is to the devotees like Sudama and will gradually become as qualified as him and will thus be transferred to the spiritual kingdom of Lord Krsna.