Well, she was driven out of her house by the mother-in-law for that. She was an outcast. The whole village rose up against her; she spent her days in the vamsi kunj, her whole mind fixed on the Lord whom she had installed there. Years passed. Nandha, Yasodha and Radha left the world. She was now 52 years old. One day, she prayed desperately to Krishna: I can no longer bear this forlorn life. My eyes have gone dry, they have no more tears to keep this Love, green. My heart too is fast turning a wasteland. Come, O Lord, come and save me, take me unto yourself. Krishna heard the prayer.

He responded to her yearning and called her by name, so sweetly that the very Voice filled her with new life. The vamsi kunj was fragrant with Divine glory. Krishna came near and took Neeraja’s palm in His Hand. “What do you desire?” He asked. She asked “What is the purpose of life?” “To merge in God.” “Well let me merge in You—but before that, before my Prema merges in yours, let me hear you play on that flute for a short while.”