JR
Hare Krishna
Ramdas of Dwaraka
Source: http://www.ramakrishnamath.com
In a park in the village of Tanko a boy was plucking flowers and singing.
An old man came there listening to the song. He asked the boy, “My boy! You
sang a song now. Who taught you that song?”
The boy replied, “Sri Krishna appeared before me in a dream and taught me
that song.”
The old man blessed this boy that he would become a great devotee and have
darshan of the Lord.
The boy Ramadas grew up. He was married. But he took up his mission to do
Bhajans and singing the Lord’s name. He would go around the streets begging
with his brass bowl. He would conclude his ekadashi fast only after feeding at
least a few devotees.
On Ekadashi day he would walk forty miles all the way to Dwaraka, deck the
image of Krishna with flowers with garlands of Tulasi and feel delighted. He
would feed the devotees before retuning home. This went on for a number of
years.
As he grew old, one day he could not walk to Dwaraka. One day, thoroughly
exhausted he stopped half way near a temple and went to sleep chanting the
Lord’s name
In a dream, he had a vision of Sri Krishna. The Lord consoled him and
said, “I will come to your place. You take me to your place.”
Ramadas woke up and looked around. There was a golden chariot. He ran and
mounted the chariot. He saw that the Lord’s image was also in the chariot.
Ramadas continued to gaze at his beloved Lord as the chariot moved and
stopped near his house. Ramadas installed the image in the front courtyard and
started doing Bhajans.
The next morning, people in Dwaraka were startled to find the image of the
Lord missing.
Soldiers started searching for the image everywhere. Presently it came to
be known that the image was at Ramadas’s place. People started for his place.
Learning this, Ramadas was perturbed that he would be considered to have
stolen the Lord. No one would believe that the Lord came with him of his own
accord.
Fearing public accusation, Ramadas placed the image on a box and lowered
it into a well. The people as well as officers came and searched the place
everywhere. At last they searched the well and found the image there.
When they found the image, they made ready to take the image to Dwaraka.
Ramadas was in great anguish to be separated from his Lord. He banged his
forehead on the feet of the Lord in agony.
Suddenly he heard a formless voice tell him, “Say that you will give gold
equal to that of the image. They will accept the proposal and leave the image
with you.”
Accordingly Ramadas told the soldiers, “Sirs, please leave the divine
image. I shall give you gold equal to that of this image”
The panchayat was assembled. They all felt that there must have been some
miracle in the image coming so far as it was not possible for one man to have
carried the image all the way. So they decided that if he gave gold equal to
the weight of the Lord they would make another image and leave the divine image
with Ramadas.
A balance was set up. Ramadas placed on it, his wife’s nose stud and
chain. The assembled people laughed. Ramadas said, “This is all the gold I
have.”
Then praying to the Lord, Ramadas placed a Tulasi leaf on the pan.
As soon as the Tulasi leaf was placed, the two pans balanced each other. At
once all of them realized the greatness of Ramadas’s devotion and fell at his
feet.
On that spot where Ramadas placed and worshipped the Lord, the public
raised a temple. Even today the songs of Ramadas of Dwaraka are being sung
there.
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