KRSNA MISUNDERSTOOD

Being misunderstood is a natural phenomenon of this world.The bigger we are bigger is the misunderstanding.  The small and simple peasant is misunderstood by his master, and vice versa. The rope is some time misunderstood to be a snake, or the opposite is also true.  Imitation is taken to be real and real to be imitation. No one in this world can avoid being misunderstood.  If we are worried about being misunderstood, and obsessed with being understood rightly, we will have to become inactive in this world.  Lord Buddha said, “ action is the cause of bondage, better to cease all activity, and experience nirvana.”  Therefore his path was called as path of “Sunyavada”  meaning zero-ism.  

Lord Krishna on the other hand taught the concept of “karma yoga”. It says whilst  performing action experience union and harmony with the world and beyond.  Giving up action is unnatural, according to Krishna, and giving up is also an action, and hence freedom from action is as unavoidable as stopping to breathe while wanting to live.

Krishna’s life was a life of many misunderstandings,  “why he ate butter? why he killed his uncle? how could he dance with other men's wife? how could he allow this war to happen? why did he make the most truthful person, Yudhisthira speak a lie?  There is no limit to misunderstanding, but with all these misunderstandings the lord did not stop functioning. In fact he acted for the sake of Dharma. He came to establish Dharma. To establish Dharma action is important, and part of establishing dharma is being misunderstood.  Being misunderstood, should not change our understanding of our responsibility and ability to function.  

Misunderstood or not one has to continue to function and do something tangible which is recommended by highly evolved souls.

Lord Krishna is the best example. He continued doing what he was doing from the very beginning.  Therefore in the Gita He said, “I do not need to act, but to set an example to the world, I still function.”

We have the choice to stop functioning so that no one misunderstands us yet we may get misunderstood for this decision of inaction or we can continue to function in a Dharmik manner and be misunderstood. Misunderstanding prevails its our choice which misunderstanding  we want.