Krishna Joo Razdan
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KRISHNA JOO RAZDAN's "Maharaja
Mahadevun Che Chhui Saal" is a superb Puranic picture gallery. In this
devotional lyric cosmos is the studio-cum-exhibition hall, Lord Vishnu is the
model and Krishna Joo Razdan, incognita as Narada, is the inspired literary
painter. The bard's devout imagination, telescoping Lord Vishnu's variegated
associated exploits, objectified them on literary canvas. Like impressionistic
painters, Krishna Joo paints diverse fleeting associations conjured up by his
unique model. Each quatrain in the lyric is a picture-frame exhibiting two or
more pictures. Here the model remains unaltered but there are constant changes
in the perspective.
Narada, journeying through the vast cosmic
expanses, informs Lord Vishnu about developments in the celestial regions. He
invites Lord Vishnu to Lord Mahadeva's marriage. Krishna Joo Razdan, incognite
as Narada, paints ingratiating memories associated with his unique model. In the
incarnation as Lord Rama, Lord Vishnu showers bounteous love upon Mother Sita.
By quickening up the associated memories of the readers, Krishna Joo conjures up
the picture of Lord Rama and Mother Sita enjoying perfect conjugal bliss.
Radha-Krishna Deep Love
He juxtaposes with it a picture depicting
deep love between Lord Krishna and Mother Radha. In the same frame he fits in
the portrait of Lord Krishna lifting the Goverdhan mountain to protect the cows,
cowherds and calves against the torrential rain sent by jealous Lord Indira to
lash the Gokul landscape. Next Krishna Joo paints Lord Krishna enjoying butter
offered with love by Ma Jessuda. He conjures up infant Krishna with
butter-besmeared mouth and face playing pranks about Jessuda. Alongside with
this picture is placed the picture of Kubza whose hunch is set right as she
unhestitatingly applies sandal paste to Lord Krishna's forehead meant especially
for Kans, the king of Mathura. This is followed by a suggestive painting of
Sudama offering Lord Krishna rice chaff to eat.
Shrimad Bhagwatam mentions that Sudama was
one of the dearest boyhood friends of Lord Krishna. One cold rainy evening he
was munching some grains. On enquiry he attributed chattering of his teeth to
intense cold. This false statement subjected him to perpetual penury in his
later life. Once he is directed by his wife, Sushila, to seek help of his
boyhood friend who is now the king of Dwarika. In the royal place, Sudama is
received very warmly. Lord Krishna himself washes clean his tired feet. Sudama
has brought for Lord Krishna some chaffy rice. The Lord enjoys a handful of the
offering of love. He is prevented from enjoying more by Rukmini. She fears that
the kind Lord will bestow everything upon Sudama rendering his own person and
family impecunious. This incident too is the content of a picture in Razdan
Sahib's picture gallery.
Bhagwatam & Ramayana Juxtaposed
Sugreve, the king of Kishkindha, is driven
out of his capital city by his unrighteous brother Bali. Along with his faithful
lieutenants, he retires to a hilly eminence where Bali is destined to die under
a curse pronounced by a sage. Lord Rughvir befriends Sugreve and, after killing
lascivious Bali, he places upon his head the crown of Kishkindha. Vibhishana,
deserting the camp of his demoniacal brother Ravana, joins Lord Rughvir in
Kishkindha. He is enthroned in exile as the king of Lanka. Bali Dhaanav, the
demon king, is bestowed the underworld for his generosity. These three Puranic
episodes are held by a single picture-frame forming the fourth quatrain of the
poem. Feeling envious of the tremendous popularity of Lord Krishna, Lord Brahma,
the god with three heads, hides away all his calves and cowherd companiuns in a
cave. Lord Krishna creates all the stolen creatures himself. This abashes
Brahma. Lord Krishna forgives Brahma's insolence. Krishna Joo paints this
episode without going too deep into its ontological implications. He feels
ecstatic while painting Lord Krishna dancing with the gopis. Devki, the dear
sister of Kansa, is married to the Yadhava prince Vaasudev. When the newly
wedded couple are driven towards Vasudev's country, the elements predict Kansa's
death at the hands of Devki's offspring. Thereupon, Kansa imprisons Devki and
her husband. He assassinates Devki's six babies in succession and Lord Krishna,
the seventh, is spared by divine intercession. As Lord Krishna grows up, he
kills Kansa for the restoration of moral order. Leaving his foster mother,
Yashodha, in Gokul, he comes to Mathura. At the request of Devki, he brings to
life the six children which she has lost. These children later become Gandharvas.
This Puranic episode forms the sixth picture-frame in Razdan Sahib's picture
gallery.
On the completion of his education at
Sandipini's hermitage, the guru asks his illustrious disciple to bring to life
his son drowned in a naval tragedy. Lord Krishna jumps into the sea and
retrieves alive the son of his guru. Krishna Joo paints this episode in the
seventh and the eight quatrains which run into each other In shrimad Bhagvatam
there is mention of Shankhasur. This demon unleashes terror and unrighteousness
all around. When pursued by superior righteous strength, he hides himself in the
vast conch shell which forms his abode. Lord Krishna jumps into the sea and
challenges to a battle the demon who has been perpetrating horrible atrocities
upon the devout. Shankhasur is killed and his conch shell, called Panch Janya,
becomes a coveted possession of the yaadavas. This episode too is the content of
one of the pictures lightly sketched by Krishna Joo.
Spirituality in Devotion
As the Pandavas are befriended by Lord
Krishna during their exile, they recognize the essential divinity of their
kinsman. They start supplicating before him in deep devotion. This is resented
by a contemporary prince, Shishupal, who regards Krishna nothing better than a
common cowherd. Shishupal nourishes grudge against Krishna also for eloping away
with his sister Rukmini, Lord Krishna, the merciful, forgives Shishupal's
impertinence a number of times. He cuts off Shishupal's head with his rotating
disc (Sudharshan Chakra) as the latter persists in pouring forth abusive
language. This episode too forms one of the painted canvases in Krishna Joo's
vast picture gallery.
With his carnal passions perfectly under
control, Lord Krishna dallies with 16108 ladies and maidens. Razdan Sahib paints
this fact with light verbal strokes. Lord Krishna's separate dalliance with each
gopi is an objectification of the essential oneness of God. Lord Krishna sows
rubies from a string which, first changing the sapling, develop into sizeable
trees bearing rubies on boughs and branches. Collecting these rubis the
messenger from Radhika grows quite rich. In this picture-frame, Razdan Sahib
also includes the spectacle of a pearly shower sent by Lord Shiva to lash the
Kashmir landscape. At the end of the frieze, Razdan Sahib juxtaposes the
portraits of Lord Vishnu and Lord Mahesh with their divine consorts Laxmi and
Gauri.
Razdan's Perpetual Struggle
Spiritual progress enjoins an arduous
effort. Spiritual bliss and enlightenment are realizable only through constant
meditation and assiduous observance of high psycho-physical discipline. This is
manifest from Krishna Joo Razdan's all devotional lyrics. We observe him as a
seeker constantly seeking to realize Brahman. Sometimes, he is a dualist with an
impersonal concept of God. Soon he becomes a dualist with a personal concept of
God. Again he feels that Advaita Vedantic monism is the highest truth. The
bard's imagination, surcharged with devotional ecstasy, keeps shifting
constantly from one point of view to the other. He is obviously living the
experiences which he is communicating through his devotional lyrics. Being a
true devotee of God, he feels divine contemplation an existential
indispensability. He is painfully conscious about the dwindling numbers of
Kashmiri Pandit community. He fears its complete extirpation due to the
prevalence of numerous social evils.
Razdan Sahib is proud of Kashmiri language
which is the principal medium of his poetic expression. He regards it dearest to
the Mother Goddess. He is convinced that salvation for Kashmiris is attainable
only by singing praises of the Mother Goddess in Kashmiri language. Razdan
Sahib's poetry objectifies his perpetual struggle for comprehending the
mysterium tremendum enveloping man all around.
Subjective Idealism
Idealism is the school of philosophy which
regards God or Brahman as the ultimate reality. This Philosophy is the bed-rock
of all religions of the world. Some philosophers believe that man and God are
essentially one. God is attainable by directing sense perceptions inwards
towards the self. This is the cardinal viewpoint of subjective idealists.
Essential Brahminism too is subjective idealism. There are other idealists who,
recognizing the existence of God, consider Him an entity separate from man. For
them, God directs the course of nature. He is an entity outside man. Man is
answerable for his actions to God on the day of resurrection. This type of
idealism is called objective idealism. It is the main philosophic content of the
religions like Islam and Christianity.
In some of his lyrics, we observe Razdan
Sahib marshalling the basic postulates of objective idealism. There are others
in which subjective idealism is the poet's predominant philosophical
preoccupation. He discerns greater rectitude in the subjective philosophical
postulates. In one of his poems, he advocates observance of Islamic practices
for the enjoyment of spiritual bliss. Razdan Sahib's lyrics objectify the great
bard's patient perpetual struggle for comprehending the mystery of existence. He
perpetually investigates the validity of polytheistic and monistic religious
concepts. He is sometimes a polytheist objectifying his devotion separately for
Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh. In such moods, Rama and Krishna are two different
incarnations. But at the same time, he regards all the principal gods of Hindu
pantheon a single entity. God appears to him permeating every cosmic object
around. In the concluding couplets of Maharaja Mahadevun Che Chuui Saal, he
reveals his belief in the essential monistic nature of God. He longs for the
realisation of the eternal truth of advaita vedantic monism and desires to
realise his essential oneness with God.
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