The Test of Shri Krishna
After hearing King Vrishabhanu’s words, the surprised people of Vraja became peaceful and free of all doubts which I have explained in “The Dispute Among the Gopas”.
The gopas said: “O king, you speak the truth. Radha is Lord Hari’s beloved. His potencies have made you become opulent and glorious in this world. We see that you have thousands of intoxicated elephants, tens of millions of restless horses, tens of millions of chariots glorious as the demigods’ airplanes, tens of millions of beautiful palanquins, many millions and millions of cows beautiful with gold and jewels, many wonderful jewel palaces, and all possible pleasures. Even Kamsa himself is defeated when he sees your wonderful strength. You are as rich as Kuvera.”
“Even King Nanda’s home does not have wealth and opulence equal to yours. The farmer King Nanda, who is the master of many cows, is poor in comparison to you.”
“O master, if Nanda’s son is in truth the Supreme Personality of Godhead, then please put Him to a test that will reveal His divinity as we all watch.”
Hearing their words, King Vrishabhanu devised a test to determine the extent of King Nanda’s wealth.
As everyone watched, King Vrishabhanu took ten million necklaces of giant pearls, each pearl splendid as ten million glittering crowns, placed them in many jewel caskets, and had many handsome men take them to King Nanda with a proposal for his son’s marriage.
Entering King Nanda’s assembly, bowing down, and presenting the caskets of pearls, the handsome men bearing the marriage-proposal spoke to Nanda.
The men bearing a marriage-proposal said: “Aware that his daughter Radha, who is splendid as ten million moons and whose eyes are like new lotus flowers, is now old enough to be married, King Vrishabhanu has given some thought to who should be Her husband. He has decided on your son, who is charming as Kamadeva himself, and whose powerful arm lifted Govardhan Hill. O master, O king of the Vaishyas, seeing us, glorious King Vrishabhanu sent us with this message.”
“Please accept these pearls as a wedding gift. Please give a similar gift to this girl. She is very respectable and glorious.”
Gazing at the precious gift, Nanda became filled with wonder. Thinking to ask Yashoda if they had anything equal to that gift, he went to the palace’s inner rooms.
Thinking for a long time, King Nanda and glorious Yashoda came to the same conclusion: “In our home, there is nothing equal to these pearls.”
“If we do not give a proper gift we will be embarrassed before everyone. Everyone will laugh at us. What should we do? What can we give on the occasion of Shri Krishna’s wedding?”
Observing that Nanda and Yashoda thought they had nothing suitable to give in return, Lord Krishna, the savior from distress, took one hundred of the pearl necklaces and, with His own hand, planted the pearls one by one as if He were a farmer planting grains.
When he again counted the pearl necklaces and found they were one hundred necklaces less, Nanda became filled with doubt.
Shri Nanda said: “There are fewer necklaces than before. Alas, this is the fault of my own relatives! Now I am unhappy at heart. I will ask whether Krishna or Balarama took the necklaces for their playing.”
Thinking in this way, Nanda asked Krishna. Lord Krishna, the lifter of Govardhan Hill, smiled and respectfully spoke to King Nanda.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: “We gopas are farmers. We plant all kinds of seeds. I planted some pearls in the fields.”
Hearing his son’s words, and rebuking Him, Nanda, the king of Vraja, went with Him to the fields to retrieve the pearls. In that place, millions upon millions of bunches of pearls shone like many stars in the sky.
Then the delighted Nanda could understand that Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. These glittering pearls were bigger even than the first ones.
Placing many millions of bharas of these pearls on many wagons, Nanda, the king of Vraja, gave them to the men carrying the marriage-proposal.
They took the gift and gave it all to King Vrishabhanu. Everyone who saw this pastime praised the great wealth of King Nanda.
Filled with wonder, free of doubt, and now convinced that Nanda’s son really was the Supreme Personality of Godhead, all the people of Vraja bowed down before King Vrishabhanu.
From that day on everyone in Vraja understood that Radha was Krishna’s beloved and Krishna was Radha’s beloved.
The place where Nanda’s son planted pearls became the lake Mukta-Sarovara or Mukta Kunda, the king of holy places. A person who at that place gives in charity a single pearl attains the result of giving a hundred thousand pearls. I have explained briefly about Mukta-Kunda in Nandagrama – Part II.