Krishna with Gopas ( Cow Herd Boys)

Krishna with Gopas ( Cow Herd Boys)

by Fattu. Bhagwat Puran Series. Kangra School, Mid-18th century AD.

      Vrindavan--the forest of Tulsi or Basil--was an idyllic setting for Krishna to show his love and his strength.  Here while tending on his cows, he could spend hours with his cow herd friends, the Gopas. Fattu paints the beautiful landscape where Krishna sits and has his meagre lunch with his friends,  while the cows leisurely graze around them. The Yamuna River meanders around Krishna. It is a picture perfect landscape. But despite the presence of God, there is no opulence.  There is only a simple setting of a pastoral countryside.  The Gopas are in their loincloth and shawls; only Krishna wears a crown. But even he sits with a plate full of rice.
According to the Bhagwat Puran, the great sages had reincarnated as Gopas so they could enjoy God's company in Vrindawan.
          Where there is God, it is paradise.  Vrindavan is the land of Gopas and Gopis, the land of Radha and Raslila. It is the land of pristine love.  But like the Garden of Eden,  this paradise has its own share of serpents.