Daily Devotion - Jan 30, 2026 (English)- Call of the Flute
Sadhak's Question:
In kirtans, the flute is said to hold a special place. For instance, in one of your pads, "Kabahun sakhi hamahu dekhihaun Shyām" (Prem Ras Madira, Dainya Madhuri, pad no. 19), you have written, "Kaha 'Kripālu' ik aur murlidhuni, ghāyal kar avirām". Why is the flute said to have the greatest impact on the Gopī, piercing her heart?
Shri Maharaj Ji’s Answer:
That is not what it means. In this verse, the Gopi expresses how she has been wounded by one aspect of Shri Krishna, and then by another. At that point, the poet Kripalu Ji intervenes and reminds her, "You have forgotten one more thing - there is also the flute."
Certain aspects of Shri Krishna are perceived through the eyes. However, for those who do not receive His darshan, the melody of His flute fulfills that purpose. For example, when Shankar Ji was in samādhi, he heard the sound of Shri Krishna's flute and immediately rushed to Vrindavan. Thus, when the visual sense is unable to perceive Him, the flute compensates. And when the visual sense is able to perceive Him, then all aspects of His divinity are perceived together.
Shri Krishna is non-different from His divine body. Every pore of His being radiates a unique, ever-increasing, and eternally new divine bliss. Therefore, there is no question of one aspect being "more blissful" than another. In the human body, different parts serve different functions and belong to different categories - some are superior, some of middle grade, and others are considered inferior. However, such distinctions do not exist in Thakur Ji's divine form. His entire body is made of divine nectar, pervaded with the same bliss throughout. It is like candy molded into different shapes - a horse, an elephant, or a gentleman. Regardless of the form, it is all sugar. Now, can one say that the gentleman's nose is sweeter than his eyes or his teeth? The sweetness is uniform.
Follow-up Question:
Then, Maharaj Ji, why is the flute considered to evoke the highest devotional sentiments?
Shri Maharaj Ji's answer:
The sound of the flute can be heard even without direct darshan. Moreover, the means by which Shri Krishna bestows His grace are manifold.
Kānha ki jādhubhari muskān is a pad by Shri Maharaj Ji (in Prem Ras Madira, Shri Krishna Madhuri):
jina dekhī tina bisari gaī china... - Those who saw Him immediately became ecstatic and forgot everything else.
jina nahiṃ dekhī, sunī tinahuṃ mana, lahakata suni guna-gāna - Those who did not see Him - their heart was enchanted upon hearing the melody of His flute.
"jina nahiṃ dekhī" - those who did not see Him - "tin dekhan kahan, terat murlihin taan." To awaken their yearning to see Him, Shri Krishna played the flute, stirring restlessness in their hearts and making them wonder, "Who is playing such a sweet melody? I must see Him."
And those who neither saw Him nor heard His flute felt an intense longing for His darshan simply by singing His glories. It was through this very act of singing His glories that Shukdev became enchanted. Similarly, all of you are progressing by hearing and singing His glories.
Many people come to Shri Maharaj Ji's satsang just after listening to his cassettes.
Attraction and surrender to God are not limited to the present time alone. Although they manifest at present, the soul's relationship with God is very old. It is not as if it suddenly happens at that moment. God draws and inspires the soul to advance toward Him as the fruit of past devotional practices, without any deliberate effort by the individual soul. He inspires the soul from within, saying, "Go in that direction. Be drawn. Move forward." All of this occurs naturally, like a machine functioning automatically.
Recommended books by Jagadguru Shri Kripalu Ji Maharaj related to this topic:
