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A loving life-partner is what most people look forward to in this world. But if such a relationship is embellished with Krishna-Consciousness, it would be the icing on the cake! :)

Two years had passed since I had first met Radhika. I was doing my post-graduation in English Literature at the time and Radhika and I were in the same class. We were also in the same study-group and we would meet every day. We soon became close friends. And one day, I realized that I was deeply in love with her.

She was that sort of a person. She had the sweetest nature in any person that I'd met, and that was what attracted me to her the most. Always smiling and cheerful, she was liked by everyone and was literally the friend, philosopher and guide to many people in our class.

She was slim and averagely good-looking but her eyes were simply captivating. They were large and could convey as per her wish, the light and solemnity of intelligence as well as the twinkle of mischievousness.
She was reputed to be an excellent cook and on many an occasion we all benefited from her talent, when she would cook up some snacks for all of us.

The day arrived when I could not keep it to myself anymore. I wanted to propose to her. Coming from a fairly conservative family, I did not believe in ‘fooling around’ with women. I wanted to ask for her hand in marriage. I felt she would be the ideal life-partner for me.

I tried to get some feedback from our common friend, Lakshmi. She told me that Radhika had always spoken favourably about me.
So I had a chance!

In keeping with the ‘proposing protocol’, I went with Lakshmi to the local jeweller and selected a ring for Radhika. Then on Valentine’s Day, after our classes were over, I approached Radhika and asked her if I could speak to her in private. She consented and we went to our college cafeteria.
We sat down at a table near the window and I started thinking about how I would propose to her.

'Manohar, are you going to propose to me or something?’
Her question took me completely unawares! I stammered and tried to find my bearings. ‘Well, I…umm…you see, I…like you and—’
‘What do you like about me, Manohar?’ She looked at me intently. Her expression was dead serious.

I understood and cursed the situation. Lakshmi had to open her big mouth! She had probably told Radhika everything!
I managed to regain my confidence. I decided to complete what I had set out to do.

I said, ‘Radhika, we have been close friends for about two years now. I have known you to be a wonderful person, with a lovely nature, the kind of person I had always wanted to spend my life with.’
I named all the other virtues that she possessed and finally said, 'And so I want to ask for your hand in marriage...I will approach your father for his permission, of course…’ I hastened to clarify.

Radhika turned and looked vacantly out of the window, her mood still serious.
With a heavy heart, I realized that she wanted to decline my proposal, but being my close friend, she did not wish to hurt my feelings.
I said gently, ‘Radhika, if you wish to refuse my proposal, that’s fine with me, really. After all, we have been and will always remain good friends.’

Then a thought entered my mind. I asked her softly, ‘Is there…someone else?’
She turned to me for a moment, confusion written on her face. Then she lowered her eyes, imperceptibly nodded and returned to look out of the window.
I silently cursed my luck. Of course, there was someone else! How could a beautiful person like Radhika be walking around single like that...
I decided to do the gentlemanly thing.

I waved my hand in the air dramatically. ‘Well then, the least you can do is to introduce me to this guy so I can tell him that he is the luckiest fellow in the world!’

Radhika turned and looked at me in astonishment. ‘Do you…do you really want to meet…?’
I shrugged and tried to look casual. ‘Well, I guess I must meet the one to whom I’ve lost the trophy. After all, I am a gentleman and sportsman and all that sort of thing! Hey, in fact, I think I should befriend him. After all, since you have chosen him, he must be some fabulous kind of guy. Yes indeed, my dear Radhika, I’d love to meet him.’

Radhika smiled for the first time that evening. Then she suddenly got up from her chair. 'Come on then, Manohar, let's do just that! I’m supposed to meet him in a few minutes. He too will be thrilled to see you, I know it!’
I had never seen Radhika so excited before. She grabbed my hand and literally pulled me out of the cafeteria. We got into a taxi, Radhika gave the driver the necessary instructions and we sped off.

Throughout the journey, she appeared euphoric. It was nice to see her so happy, but deep inside, my mood was sombre. I also felt a bit guilty. I knew that as one of her closest friends, I was supposed to be equally delighted at the prospect of meeting her chosen one. I did my best to hide my feelings and tried to make conversation to distract myself.
‘What sort of guy is he? I mean, is he in a big position or something? Is he like, very handsome and all?’
Radhika looked at me and gave a girlish giggle. ‘Oh yes! He is in a very big position, and extremely influential. And he is EXTREMELY good-looking!’
‘Good for you,’ I observed.
It was now my turn to stare out of the window.

The taxi turned into a small lane opposite the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, near Wilson’s College in Mumbai. It came to a halt opposite an impressive structure that stood out starkly in contrast to its surroundings in terms of architecture. I had not seen such a beautiful temple in a long time.
‘He’s going to meet you here? In a temple?!’
I was incredulous! I had expected him to call her to a swanky restaurant or something. Radhika only smiled in reply.

We entered the premises and I espied a group of young men at a distance, near a book stall. They waved to Radhika and she waved back.
Her eyes lit up and she smiled at one of them. A special smile, I observed.
She motioned to him that she was going upstairs. He indicated that he would join us later.

‘That’s Mukunda.’ Radhika whispered to me.
I regarded him with interest. He looked familiar. Then I remembered that he had come to our college a few days earlier to meet Radhika.
So Mukunda was Mr Lucky Guy.
I had to admit; he certainly was handsome and looked pretty well-off. He also looked the decent sorts. I felt genuinely happy for Radhika. She deserved someone good.
Mukunda waved to me as well and smiled. I smiled and waved back.

As we climbed the steps to the first floor, I scratched my head and tried to figure out this Mukunda guy, who thought that the highpoint of romancing his lady-love was to rendezvous with her in a temple! I decided I HAD to meet him.
Then again, I thought, maybe he was the religious sorts and came here to pray every day. He’d probably take her out someplace else later. Or perhaps, if he was such a big-shot, he probably owned the temple or was a trustee of the temple, and had his office there or something.

We entered a large hall and I immediately felt my breath taken away. The floor was of wood, polished to perfection. The walls portrayed large, beautiful paintings of scenes from Lord Krishna’s life and from the life of a Saint I didn’t recognize.
To the left was a large life-like statue of a Sage in ochre robes, sitting on a gold-and-wooden chair that was elevated on a similarly designed pedestal. He had on his face, the most peaceful expression I had ever seen. He seemed to be gazing directly ahead across the hall; my attention turned to the same.

The entire wall was composed of wood in an ornate chocolate brown and gold design, and at the centre stood two large, imposing doors bearing the same design. A beautiful, white, lotus-shaped fountain in front of the doors added to the décor.

There were a few people sitting near the walls on the sides with their eyes closed. They all had one hand in a small cloth bag, and were muttering something under their breath. Some ladies were sitting in the corner, making garlands from a heap of fresh flowers next to them. Some of them smiled at Radhika, seeming to know her well.
The entire ambiance bespoke of peace and calm.

I turned to mention this to Radhika and to my surprise, found her lying prostrate on the ground offering some prayers. Not knowing what to do, I followed suit. After all, I was used to prayers and the like. My parents were quite religious and we had a small ‘God’s Altar’ at home where we offered our prayers every day.

We walked up to the small wooden fence adjacent to the fountain, which presumably formed the barrier protecting the sanctum-sanctorum behind the closed doors. As we sat down in front of the closed doors, she explained briefly to me the names of the Deities installed in the temple.
However, I was looking around the hall, more interested in looking out for this guy who had upset my nuptial plans.
I asked Radhika, ‘Are we going to meet him here?’
She looked at her watch and nodded. ‘Anytime now.’

There was a noise and we both looked back at the entrance. A large group of people entered the hall. I craned my neck to see if one of them was Radhika’s betrothed.
The sound of a conch-shell filled the air and we all stood up. The doors of the Altar opened, but I was too engrossed in looking behind me, for I had spotted Mukunda just entering the hall.

Radhika then suddenly whispered in my ear, ‘Behold, Manohar, behold my beloved! The One who has stolen my heart!’
I turned towards the Deities, for to my surprise, it was in Their direction that she was alluding.

I almost gasped at the sight. Suddenly, I was confronted with the Deities of Sri Radha and Gopinath, and their two Gopi Devotees-Friends, Vishakhadevi and Lalitadevi, on either side.

The brilliance of their opulent, glittering, bejewelled, bright red and blue attire was only matched by the lustre on their faces.
Sri Radha and Sri Gopinath’s eyes held my gaze with such an unbelievingly compassionate and benevolent glance that I felt almost physically bound by it!
The enchanting smiles on Their faces left me stupefied, and incomprehensibly, I felt tears rush to my eyes! 

I could not understand these waves of strange, overwhelming emotions that were sweeping over me, one after the other.
I tore my gaze away to look at the Deities of Sri Nitai-Gaurchandra to the left and Sri Gopalji to the right of them. Their magnificent, smiling faces seemed to enhance the effect.
It was an experience I hadn’t had in a long time.

We waited for the Sandhya Arati (as I learnt it was called) to finish. Radhika then introduced me to Mukunda, her first cousin who was also a regular visitor to the Temple.

We stopped at the exit and cupped our hands to receive the Prasadam, a besan laddoo being handed out by a Brahmachari, who cheerfully smiled at us and said, ‘Hare Krishna!’
Before stepping out of the hall, I turned to look back at the Deities, almost as if I hadn’t had my fill of Their Darshan.

I tasted the laddoo while climbing down the stairs. It was exquisitely delicious. I mentioned the same to Radhika.
She smiled and said, ‘That is because it has the taste of Krishna in it!’
I was intrigued by that concept.
She looked at me and smiled, ‘You must be hungry, and it looks like we need to talk...’
I agreed on both counts. By now, I had realized that Radhika was very deep into this devotional business and I was keen to know how and why she had chosen this path.

We ducked into a cosy restaurant called ‘Govinda’s’, just adjacent to the temple, where a smiling Devotee-waiter served us steaming hot dosas.

I told Radhika about my experience in the temple. She was delighted to hear that. She said that she had felt the same way, the first time she had visited the temple. Between mouthfuls, she told me how she had come on a chance visit to the temple many years ago. She was invited to discuss philosophy by a female Devotee or ‘Mataji’ as they were called. As Radhika always had an interest in philosophy, she accepted the invitation. And at the end of 4 hours, she felt like she had taken an invigorating, refreshing spiritual and intellectual bath!

While leaving the temple, the Mataji had asked her to begin chanting the Hare Krishna Mahamantra; that was all. Radhika, as an experiment, had done so, and after a few months, she felt like a new person altogether.

Her entire perception of the world changed for the better. All her negative thoughts and behaviour vanished; she became more proactive and began to find solutions to all the problems that she encountered. She mentioned that those problems to which she could not find a solution somehow always miraculously got solved of their own accord.
She realized she could not carry on with her life without Krishna.

She felt like she had finally realized her goal in life; to dedicate everything she said and did to Krishna, for she knew that this was the Path to Eternal Bliss.

‘Manohar, even just possessing the desire for Bhakti makes the difference. Krishna will immediately respond, show you the way and carry to you what you lack, and preserve what you have!’
Her tone was earnest and full of conviction.

‘Do you know, Manohar, all those nice things that you credited me with, when we were sitting in our college cafeteria, are solely the result of my friendship with my beloved Krishna! He is my solace, my protector, my guide…my everything! So now you know why I am so madly in love with this VERY influential, VERY attractive Person!’
She smiled with a mischievous twinkle in her eye.

I couldn’t help but stare at her. Not because she was teasing me, but because I began to imagine a way of life with a concrete goal; one endorsed by saints for over millions of years. A selfless life devoted to serving Krishna, and in the process, developing all those virtues and qualities sought by those desiring perfection. It sounded utopian! Just thinking about that idea filled me with bliss.

I asked her, ‘Radhika is it possible for anyone to try and adopt this path? I mean, I would like to give it a shot.’
For the second time that evening, Radhika stared at me in astonishment. ‘Do you really mean it, Manohar?’
‘Of course, Radhika. I have just realized that I was living such an aimless life, always running after this and that, without knowing where it would all end. I liked what you just told me about living a ‘Krishna-Consciousness’ life, as you call it. It seems to offer that ‘something’ that I was always searching for.
Of course, don’t expect me to immediately reach the level that you have, but I’m willing to give it a try!’

I continued somewhat hesitatingly. ‘Only one thing though. I wouldn’t know how or where to begin. I’ll need some of your help in this venture. Only if you are willing to, of course. And I seek your help only as good friend, nothing more!’ I added, lest she misunderstood me.

Radhika continued to stare at me for a while with her mouth half-open, seemingly at a loss of words. Then she closed her eyes and softly murmured something like, ‘Thank you Krishna, for taking care of it!’
I bent forward, ‘I beg your pardon, did you say something, Radhika?’

She looked up at me with a serious look in her eyes. ‘Yes, actually I was just saying, that if you truly wish to adopt a Krishna-Conscious way of life, and want me to help you with it, there is one very important thing that you must first accomplish...’
‘And that is...?’ I asked with some concern. Was there some difficult religious ritual that I’d have to complete in order to become eligible for this path?

Radhika looked at me steadily and continued with a slight smile playing on her lips, unable to conceal the rosy-red blush that was now progressively adorning her fair cheeks.
‘You had better give me that ring to wear; the one that you are carrying in your pocket. It’ll be easier for both of us that way!’
I was too shocked to speak for a while. Then I hurriedly complied with her suggestion!

‘Just possessing the desire for Bhakti makes the difference. Krishna will immediately respond, show you the way and carry to you, what you lack...’

This thought was uppermost in my mind as we walked hand-in-hand towards the taxi-stand. I looked sideways at Radhika’s blissful, smiling face and marvelled at Lord Krishna’s plan. In one master-stroke, He had shown and tempted me into following the Path of Eternal Bliss and delivered to me the right life-companion who would help me on that path.
It was going to be a memorable Valentine’s Day for me...