The dance that Lord Krishna performed with the gopis by the banks of the Yamuna turned into rasa-leela — a dance of joy. When they came together with Lord Krishna, the very embodiment of bliss, the gopis forgot all body-awareness and merged into the Pure Self. What happened there was the merging of Purusha and Prakriti —Creator and creation, pure consciousness and Nature. When they forgot everything in pure love, the Krishna within the gopis awakened. That was why the gopis experienced an exclusive Krishna with each one of them.
One should remember the Creator while enjoying the creation. One should be able to enjoy chocolate and remember the person who made the chocolate. It is not easy. For this, one needs to have knowledge of the scriptures.
In the circus, we can see gymnasts balancing themselves on a tightrope while balancing a pot on top of their head. Sometimes they also dance. They need to know how to balance the pot on the head and also keep themselves steady on the rope. It comes only after a lot of practice. Such are our lives in the world. In earlier times life was like just having to balance a pot on the head. Now we have to walk on the rope as well.
Today’s world is as open as a supermarket full of enticing sights and distractions. To develop vairagya living amidst all attractions is not easy. It is only possible for the brave. It is like putting sugar in your mouth and asking the tongue not to salivate. The lives of such brave people who try to live like this are beneficial not only for themselves but for the world as well. They only take what they need from the world.
A $10 watch and a $10,000 watch both show the same time. If one can be content with the $10 watch, the rest of the money can be used to help the poor and needy. The look, words, thoughts and actions of people who live like this are beneficial for the world.
The Bhagavad-Gita says that for every 100,000 seekers who try, maybe one may reach the state of perfection. All seeds that are sowed may not sprout. Today things are different: Out of hundreds of thousands, there may be only a handful who know even a little bit about spirituality. Even then, their understanding may be confined to temple worship. They may not have a deeper spiritual understanding. Hence, it may be that only one out of two and half million comes to the spiritual path. Out of that, only a very small percentage reach the goal. The times are such.
However, the effort put forth on this path is never wasted. It will always stay with the seeker. It makes impressions that will awaken again and propel the person further forward. How many hundreds of thousands appear for the Civil Services exams! Only a few become IAS officers. Regardless, so many youngsters keep trying. Hence, we need to keep trying in spirituality as well.