Krishnapriya Devashree

24. Conversation

Krishna and Balrama hurriedly made their way towards Sulabha Kaki's house, which was closest to the Yamuna. 

Balram hesitated for a moment before speaking,

"Kanha, my dear anuj, there is a question which is driving me crazy. Mata Lakshmi seems to have forgotten the bond you once shared. How can it be that someone so deeply connected to you does not remember you? With my divine powers, I can recognize that Mata is in her transcendental form, she should be aware of you, yet she did not recognize you. What is the  reason behind this ?" Balram inquired, his voice tinged with confusion and curiosity.

Krishna stopped midstep, pausing his movements, and a gentle smile played upon his lips. His gaze, deep and knowing, met Balram's. There was a pause, a moment of silence that seemed to hold within it the wisdom of the ages.

"Dau, your concern echoes the pain of separation that lies at the heart of my existence. This forgetfulness you speak of is not a mere accident of fate but the result of the curse-a curse borne out of a moment of deep anguish and misunderstanding in ages past."

Balram leaned in closer, his interest piqued by Krishna's words.

"A curse? But who would dare to curse such a love, and for what reason? How does such a curse manifest, and is there a path to liberation from it?"

"Do you remember the curse given to Radha Dau?" Krishna asked, his countenance acquiring a serious tone.

"But that was given to Radha, Kanha; how does it affect the eternal form of Mata?" Balram questioned his Anuj, his voice agitated, thinking about the pain his brother was suffering.

"You yourself answered, dau. Who is Radha? She is the embodiment of the sheer amount of devotional love that my Lakshmi has for me. I still remember that day, dau, when she was cursed. My Lakshmi had been utterly inconsolable, for her love for me was once again questioned, and once again she was asked to sacrifice, but this time not herself but something she held much dearer, her memories of me. Because of the profound grief she felt over the loss of memories, the part that has forgotten me dominates her now. There is, of course, a part of her that remembers who she actually is and remembers me and you, but that part is yet to be unleashed. This is the effect of the curse."

" Then can't you break Radha's curse?" Balrama questioned, his mind still fixed on the agony his mata had gone through.

"NO! That cannot happen, dau. That is fate, it is a time-bound curse, it cannot be broken until and unless the Kaal chakra deems it fulfilled, until and unless Radha fulfills her karma in this life."

"What karma kanha?" Balrama dreaded the answer to his question.

"The fulfillment of a boon dau. Bade bhaiyaa Ayan was a great devotee of mine in his previous life and had asked to marry Lakshmi as his boon. It has to be fulfilled, which is why my Lakshmi even in her great grief had accepted the curse. She is set to fulfill the boon, which is why the curse eventually came into being. Do you think my Lakshmi would go against her eternal vows of our marriage and marry another? She knew she could never do it, would never do it which is why she accepted the curse, to fulfill my Karma of the boon I had given to my devotee." Krishna's eyes glistered with tears as he thought back about the love of his wife. In the completion of his boon, she was still following her eternal vows to support him in every situation.

"Is there no remedy, no way to break this effect of the curse and restore the memory of your divine love?"

Krishna looked towards the horizon, where the first rays of the sun painted the sky in hues of gold and orange. "The effect of the curse, powerful as it may be, holds within it the seeds of its own undoing. It is love itself that is the key-the pure, unconditional love that endures beyond the confines of memory and time. Through love, all curses are lifted, and all separations are bridged. My beloved and I are bound by a love that transcends the curse's grip. In time, all will be remembered, and all will be reunited. Soon dau, soon," Krishna assured his brother with a gentle smile.