19/11/2020
Who is Damodar?
Damodar is the other name of Lord Krishna. ‘Dam’ means rope and ‘udar’ means waist. One whose waist was tied with a rope by mother yashoda is Damodar.
How is the vow for Damodar?
Damodar vow or kartik vow has been continuing form the ancient Vedic era. This vow is observed in the month of Kartik. In this month Lord Krishna is greeted waving earthen lamp of oil or ghee mixed with camphor and Damodar astakam is rehearsed.
The Significance of lamp-lightening
Greeting Lord Krishna with oil lamp mixed with camphor is like living in Golok-vrindavan for seven kalpas. At the greeting of Sri Hari with lamp one may get respite from lust and anger and he/ she had not to take birth again in this material world. If the face of Lord Krishna is seen with the lamp, one can be free from the sin of slaying of a brahmin. One who lights the lamp in his/ her house, obtain estate, fame, son and predecessors also become happy.
The Glorious month, Kartik
According to Vaishnava ideology, the month, Kartik is glorious and fruitful to the devotees of Lord Krishna because Lord Krishna played the most of His pastimes in this month.
When Sri Krishna Himself was present in this material world, the natives of Braja enjoyed the pastimes of Lord Krishna all the time.
Needless to say that the wonderful Damoara pastimes happened in this month. His pastime is divine. Srikrishna Himself has said in the holy Gita (4-9), “All my actions and birth are transcendental.” As Sri Krishna’s pastime is transcendental, so only the transcendentalists can taste the transcendental pastime of Lord Krishna. Others taste Lord’s pastime as a fairy tales.
Anyway, let’s some of His pastimes are studied . Once Mother Yashoda wanted to bind naughty krishna but could not. At every attempt there was a shortage of two inches of rope. At last Mother Yashoda succeeded in winning the last attempt as He surrendered to His Mother. He surrendered because His mother had causeless love for Him. The materialists may call the fact about the shortage of rope abull-story, but it is true. The almighty can do everything. Nothing is impossible to Him.
Krishna is the Almighty, so He may shorten the ropeeasily. Only the transcendentalists know it.
Likewise He lifted the Govardhana Hill at 5 years of age.
Radha K***a and Shyam K***a appeared in this month. Krishna said to Radha, “ This Radha K***ais as dear to me as you are.” Sri Krishna with His devotees held Rasalila every day at the bank of Radha K***a.
In this month the festival Gopastami is celebrated. Sri Krishna achieved the rank of a cowboy in this day.
This Kartik month is very important to vaishnava community for an another reason that is --- in this month the disappearance days of great acharyas are observed. The acharyas are-- Sril Gadadhar Das Goswami; Murari Gupta; Sri Vasudev Ghosh; Sri Raghunath Das Goswami; Srinibas Acharya; Sri Narottam Das Thakur; Krishna Das Kabiraj Goswami; Sril Gour Kishore Das Babaji and the founder Acharya, His grace Srila Prabhupada.
So let’s come, vow for Lord Krishna’s grace and fulfil our hearts with divine love.
