This is the day of the appearance of Lord Balaram. He, through five other forms, serves Lord Krishna and assists in His pastimes. In the form of Catur-Vyuha (four-armed forms, namely a) Vasudeva, b) Sankarshana, c) Pradyumna, and d) Aniruddha), He serves Krsna for creating, maintaining and annihilating the universe. Implementation of Krishna’s instructions through the form of Lord Sesha is also His task. Thus, He relishes the transcendental ecstasy of serving Lord Krishna. His glories are such that unless having His mercy, no one can attain Krishna.

Krishna is always accompanied by His friends and paraphernalia whenever He descends into this material world. Five thousand years ago, Baladeva appeared in this material world just before Lord Krishna descended. Having been the intimate relationship between them, it appeared that Lord Krishna came here by Baladeva’s mercy.

His bodily feature:

Lord Balarama is sixteen years old, overflowing with the luster of youth and crystal-clear skin. He’s dressed in blue with a garland of woodland flowers around his neck. His hair is pulled back into an elegant topknot. His ears are decorated with beautiful jewelry, and his neck is decorated with flower garlands and gem strings. Balaram’s elegant and very muscular arms are adorned with splendid armlets and bracelets, and His feet are ornamented with glittering anklets.

The earrings that touch Lord Balarama’s cheeks enrich His beauty. His large chest is decorated with a garland of gunja, and His face is adorned with tilaka composed of musk. Balarama’s voice is very grave, and His arms are long enough to reach his thighs. Many millions of glittering rising moons are eclipsed by Lord Balarama’s splendor, and even a whiff of His limitless strength is enough to annihilate armies of demons.

 

His pastimes:

Balarama is Sri Krishna’s closest friend and a huge reservoir of many pastimes. Srimad Bhagavatam and other Vedic literature describe Lord Balarama’s various pastimes in Vrindavan, Mathura, and Dvarka as well. During His pastimes, He killed demons like Dhenukasura and Pralambasura. He reprimanded Yamuna Devi for not giving way and the Kauravas as well for capturing Samba. He married Ravati, His eternal wife. He expressed anger at Bhima for killing Duryodhana tricky and killed Romaharshana for failing to represent Vyasadeva properly.

 

Glories of Lord Balaram

Despite the fact that Lord Balaram is aware of Krishna’s extraordinary abilities, He never leaves Krishna alone in the forest, even for a second, out of love for Him. He is very much recognized for His great service attitude towards Krishna. Pleasing Krishna is His mission and He serves Him either by creating the material world, maintaining the spiritual world, or becoming His personal paraphernalia.

Being Sri Krishna’s eternal companion, He first appeared with Lord Rama as Lakshman and then with Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu as Nityananda Prabhu. He is the original spiritual master, and anyone seeking spiritual advancement must bag Lord Balarama’s mercy first; ultimately, one must get the blessings of the spiritual master. We can’t, but through Lord Balaram reach Krishna directly. Thus, we can obtain Krishna’s blessing by pleasing our spiritual master through following his instructions.

Updated 13th May, 2023