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14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Delight in God's Play, November 14, 2000
This review is from: The Play of God: Visions of the Life of Krishna (Paperback)
This book is a delight. Although I possessed little knowledge of either Krishna or Indian spirituality before reading it, I finished the captivating story feeling happily enriched and awakened to a broader conception of what `God' and `divinity' represent to me. More than just the traditional Western view of God as an old man or "heavenly father," divinity expresses itself in the form of a playful child, a friend, a warrior, a lover, (and, ultimately, in everything and everyone.) No figure better illustrates this conception of the divine- or God-within than the wonderfully vital and vibrant Krishna, who is all of the above and more. Each chapter of this book, which is a chronicle of the eventful life of Krishna, is an engaging adventure. Whether taken as allegorical or historical, the tales that comprise Krishna's biography are not unlike Biblical stories in that they have a timeless relevance to the human experience. They are relayed, due to the evocative writing of author Devi Vanamali, in a joyful and celebratory, rather than stodgy or dry, tone. Vanamali is an unfussy yet faintly flowery writer who clearly rejoices in and excels at lively, magical descriptions. As a baby, Krishna has "rose-petal feet." When he plays his enchanted flute as a boy, the mesmerized "calves stand pinned to the spot, forgetting even to swallow the milk and eat the grass in their mouths, fixing their gaze on Him as if they would drink Him in through their eyes." This is the ideal book from which to read a chapter each night with your beloved or even your child. The rich, colorful prose, the journeys, battles, beauty and infallible love present in the story will captivate anyone, regardless of their spiritual or religious background. Its chief asset, however, is neither the engaging writing nor the many adventures, but in the underlying message that the hero's existence-be it real or invented- embodies. Doesn't everyone, no matter what their role in this life may be, contain within them an essence or aspect of the divine? Another widely loved religious figure, seemingly aeons apart from Krishna, is reported to have said, "The Kingdom of God is all around, but men do not see it." This book is a treasure that helps to open our eyes to and delight in that often unseen divinity (Kingdom) of which Jesus spoke, which both encompasses and is all things and people. In one of her more prosaic moments, Vanamali writes, "The melody (of Krishna's flute) was the call of the finite to the infinite, and it awoke the chords in even the most sluggish hearts and made them yearn for union with the infinite, which is the hidden desire of every heart. This yearning is present in every human being, but sometimes we are too engrossed in the world or too poor of understanding to know what it is. Sometimes a touch, a glance, or a word spoken by some great sage is enough to loosen our bonds and open our eyes, and then our heart leaps forward to meet its maker." For some, this book may be just such an illuminating "word." For others it will be pure, escapist enjoyment. For myself, it was both.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Read this book and fall in love, December 14, 1998
This review is from: The Play of God: Visions of the Life of Krishna (Paperback)
Presents Krishna as He is to the reader, giving a complete and uncut picture of his entire life as it is found in the principal Hindu scriptures. A must read for any student of Spirituality, Hinduism or India. The best source to understand Sri Krishna in all his totality I have come across so far. Superbly written and, without a doubt, divinely inspired this book is the only one of its kind. No sectarianism or religious hard-sell of any kind, just pure spirituality at its best.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The many faces of the Divine, April 25, 2004
This review is from: The Play of God: Visions of the Life of Krishna (Paperback)
I read this book at the age of twenty-two, having been deeply interested in Eastern religions (including Hinduism) since studying them in my Global Studies class at age fourteen. This book reawakened my interest in Hinduism, particularly the Krishna sect. Vishnu had always been my favourite of the three major Hindu gods, since he preserves life, so it was a real treat to read a book about his eighth and greatest/most popular avatar. Most people in the Western world are used to imagining God (who is incorporeal anyway, anthropomorphisms aside) as an old man and stern judge and king, but the Krishna story teaches one how to relate to the Divine on so many other different levels. The people in Krishna's life see him as a baby, sneaky little boy, lover, dear friend, guardian and saviour of his village in boyhood, young cowherd, daring hero, father, husband, grandfather, warrior, charioteer, teacher, bestower of enlightenment, brother, grandfather, godfather, uncle, and the list goes on and on. Viewing him in these multifaceted ways is so much more emotional and personal a view of the Divine than the tired old image in the West of a stern old man with a long white beard and golden trident. And unlike Christians and their belief in Jesus, the author, Ms. Vanamali, says that Hindus would hardly care if it came to be shown that Krishna as an actual historical person did not exist and he were just a myth or wild elaboration on an important figure who really did exist those thousands of years ago in ancient India. It's what Krishna taught, what he represents, that matters, not whether these beautiful lessons came from a real man who lived long ago in the past, a man whose life story has become mostly the work of myth, or someone who is entirely a fictitious creation. Vishnu decided to take on this avatar for the same reason he always decides to take on a human (or earlier, animal) avatar-not to try to save the world and to redeem humanity from sinning, but to help people, to teach them, to be a hero when a very horrible time is upon the world and they need someone to get rid of that evil (in this instance, Krishna's evil uncle Kamsa, and in the incarnation just prior to Krishna, the horrible demon king Ravana). I find it really beautiful, touching, and true what Krishna says to his dear friend Arjuna during the course of the sermon which has come to be known as the Bhagavad Gita. He, Krishna, Vishnu, has many names and forms to many different people; one need not be a Hindu to properly worship him or to find enlightenment. However one sees the Divine, be it Krishna, Jesus, the Tao, Great Spirit, the Goddess, the traditional Western view of God, kanji, local spirits, a special rock, even the broader realms of Nature or Science, is how he will come to that person, and in that guise he is being worshipped. Krishna acknowledges that there are many paths to him, none of them incorrect if approached with a pure and devout heart. If only more people would care to learn this beautiful ancient story, there might be less religious intolerance and bigotry in the world and more love and understanding. If God can understand that all of these different religions ultimately lead up to the same Divinity, then why can't ordinary human beings?
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