- Aksharaa
To the world, he was Kuchela. His extreme poverty had left him with nothing but rags to wear; hence, the name Kuchela. This means: one who wears bad clothes. His greatest asset though was his devotion towards Shri Krishna – the Lord of the universe and his childhood friend. What has the Lord of fourteen worlds to do with a handful of flattened rice? It must be known that what we offer serves no purpose to the Lord. However, the all-merciful Lord considers the devotion with which the offering is made. The ardent devotion behind Kuchela’s offering brought him immense wealth and a house so beautiful that the people began addressing him as Sudhama i.e the ‘one with a beautiful home’.
This is not just a story from Shrimad Bhagavata. This has relevance in our lives as well. Our souls are bound by a Kuchela, which is the linga shareera (the subtle body). As long as the linga shareera exists, we cannot be liberated from the misery of the endless cycle of birth and death. It is only by the mercy of Lord Shri Hari that we can get rid of our Kuchela forever and reach the Lord’s abode, the ultimate Sudhama. To be blessed with such liberation, firm and untainted devotion towards the Lord, along with knowledge of His Supremacy, such knowledge being commensurate with one’s intrinsic ability, is the most essential qualification.
