Albert Einstein once said, “I think the most important question facing humanity is, ‘Is the universe a friendly place?’ This is the first and most basic question people must answer for themselves.”
“Yes”, a lover of Krishna would answer, the universe is a friendly place, because Krishna, the source of the universe, tells us in the Bhagavad-gita that he is a friend to all.
According to the Vedas, the material world (millions of universes) is a small corner of the much larger existence which is spiritual. We are part of this spiritual plane, but our corner is covered by a cloud of material energy which covers our spiritual nature and catches us in the cycle of birth and death. Therefore, from our material perspective, the universe (and our own personal life, a sort of mini-universe) can get mighty unfriendly at times as it is a cocktail of the modes of goodness, passion, and ignorance. These modes that play with our senses, minds, and false ego can influence people to act in sad, violent, angry, uncaring, and truly evil ways. We thus experience an unfriendly universe.
When life gets overwhelming–and it surely will at times–Krishna calls us to lean on him. When it’s hard to carry all that is happening around us, to try to figure it out–to be the rugged individualist who saves the day, to be a mother with young children, a middle aged man with no future, a young woman who is ready to give up–lean on Krishna.
When the mad dog of the mind won’t stop barking, when the lethargy in the heart won’t stop dragging you down, when you are feeling so lonely and alone, unworthy and unloved – remember you have a friend, a dear most friend, in Krishna.
A friend never gives up on us, no matter what we are going through or what we do. Krishna is like that. He was a friend to Arjuna on the battlefield. He helped Arjuna face his challenge, stood by him, and supported him in his fight.
We don’t have to prove ourselves to Krishna, showing HIm that we are some marvelous, great, pure, saintly person. That’s not the point. The point is to lean on Krishna, come under his shelter, accept his friendship. He will guide us as we make our way through the sojourn of this life. He gives us permission to stop worrying. He tells He will take care of us. He says, “Do not fear”.
Life is never easy. It’s a struggle as long as we are in our body. Having Krishna as a friend, makes it doable. We can make it to the end in one piece, with trust, confidence, and a joyful sense of belonging, of being loved, and being a part of something big.
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