PLATE ELEVEN
At the conclusion of her prayers, Queen Kuntī asks Kṛṣṇa to cut off her mundane attachment to her family members so that she can be attracted to Him alone: “O Lord of Madhu, as the Ganges forever flows to the sea without hindrance, let my attraction be constantly drawn unto You without being diverted to anyone else.” Just to enchant the hearts of pure devotees like Queen Kuntī, who possessed maternal affection for Him, Kṛṣṇa enacted His delightful childhood pastimes in Vṛndāvana. Here we see how He and His brother Balarāma stole butter from the pots hanging in the home of one of His mother’s friends. Several of her friends caught Kṛṣṇa in the act, and later they went to Kṛṣṇa’s mother, Yaśodā, and jokingly complained about Him: “My dear mother Yaśodā, your son always comes to our houses and steals butter. When we conceal our butterpots in the dark so that He might not see them, somehow He still finds them. We think that the light of His jeweled ornaments helps Him find the butterpots, so could you please remove the jewels from His body?”
Mother Yaśodā replied, “Yes, I will take off all His ornaments.”
But then the neighbors said, “No, no. On second thoughts, that would be useless. Somehow this boy has an effulgence that emanates from His very body. So He would find the butter even without the ornaments.” ( p. 191 )