Govardhan: The Protector of Brij

Clad in emerald garments, Mount Govardhan stood with its head held high against the sky. Lush meadows stretched all the way to the distant Yamuna. At its foothills lay many lotus-laden lakes; the beautiful land of Braj was adorned with cranes, ducks, swans, and wondrous birds, as well as deer, tigers, and a host of wild creatures.
 
Along the Yamuna’s banks, groves thick with Kadamba, mango, guava, and myriad other plants and trees made leafy bowers. One day, herdsmen came into this region with their cows, buffaloes, and goats. As humans do, they felled trees to build and to burn—but they planted none in return. In a short time, Mount Govardhan was stripped of vegetation; only soil and stones remained. With each monsoon, the rain slashed the mountain sides and landslides wreaked havoc. The lakes at Govardhan’s base silted up with mud and rock. The bowers along the Yamuna vanished. The wild creatures too departed from Braj.
 
One day a storm came: clouds roared and a terrible rain fell. The Yamuna swelled in flood, with no trees along her banks to hold her back. Her waters entered the villages. Elsewhere, the treeless slopes of Govardhan crumbled. A torrent of mud surged down into the settlements. Hundreds of homes were levelled. Hundreds of herdsmen and thousands of animals were carried away. All believed it was the wrath of Lord Indra. They resolved to conduct a sacrifice to appease him. But Shri Krishna opposed the rite.
 
Krishna said, “This calamity has come upon us through our own folly. We ourselves destroyed the trees and plants on Mount Govardhan and along the Yamuna’s banks. We forgot that Govardhan is our guardian. Had we not been blinded by selfishness and acted foolishly, this terrible rain would not have harmed us so. We must restore Govardhan to his former glory.” The herdsmen accepted Krishna’s counsel. Under his leadership, they planted trees again upon the mountain. They revived the lakes at its base. Moreover, Krishna caused ninety-nine lakes to be made. Along the Yamuna he had thousands of trees planted, reweaving the groves.
 
Time passed. Braj once more grew rich in greenery. Wild creatures—beasts and birds—returned. One day another fierce rain came, but this time no muddy flood followed. The hundreds of ponds across the land gathered and held the rain. The trees along the Yamuna gentled the force of the flood. The herdsmen and their animals were safe. Mount Govardhan guarded Braj.

Krishna showed the world the way: when we protect nature, nature protects us. To keep nature safe, our sages endowed mountains, rivers, lakes, and forests with divinity. Today we have grown selfish; for petty gains we are destroying nature. The result: terrible floods, collapsing hills, thousands perishing. If we would save humankind, we must again follow the path Krishna showed.