Makhan Chor - Krishna Stealing Butter

The iconic representation of Bala Krishna (child Krishna) stealing butter from his neighbours.

“He catches the butter pots which are beyond His reach by stacking many small tables on top of each of other, climbing them, and extending His arm to grab the pots. Krishna is always stealing our butter and yogurt. If someone tries to stop Him, He immediately drops the food on the ground and quickly escapes. If by chance a housewife captures Him, Krishna twists her wrist and runs away. Then from a safe distance He yells back, ‘Hey just stay where you are! If you come any closer, I will give you even more trouble by teasing your babies and making them cry.’
"In front of you, Krishna is so quiet and well behaved." The Gopi's (cow-herding girls famous for their unconditional devotion to Krishna) complained to his mother "But when He enters our homes He acts frivolously, steals our food, speaks sharp words, and becomes angry and greedy.”
“Before our cows have been milked, your son unties the calves and lets them drink all the milk. If someone tries to rebuke Him, He simply smiles sweetly, and that person immediately forgets all his anger. If we keep our butter in a dark storeroom, He uses His natural effulgence to easily find our stock and steal it. But instead of eating it Himself, He takes great plea­sure in feeding it to the monkeys. When the monkeys reach their fill and refuse to eat more, Krishna breaks the pot and throws the butter on the ground."

In this way the ladies of Vrndavana, pretending to be angry, made many complaints against Krishna. Rather than getting upset, they felt the greatest happiness when­ever Krishna broke their clay pots and stole their butter. The housewives of Vrndavana pretended to be angry and complained to Yasoda about Krishna’s stealing. But in reality Krishna’s joyous pranks filled ev­eryone with pleasure. When accused by the gopis, Krishna feigned inno­cence and shed false tears.

Amma or Sri Mata Amritanandamayi Devi elaborates on the philosophy behind this image and behaviour of
Krishna - Amma said, “Sri Krishna was not a thief. Just as the Sun doesn’t need the light from a candle flame, Sri Krishna never needed anything from anyone."

“Some of his childhood friends were poor. As Krishna and his friends went out to play, the friends complained that they were hungry. So Krishna visited the houses of different Gopis, took the butter and offered it to his friends. He didn’t do it for his own sake.
“Secondly, the family members of the Gopis were not fond of Krishna. They thought that Krishna was a mere cowherd boy. But the Gopis had deep devotion for Krishna. They longed to offer butter to Krishna, but were forbidden by their family members. Even while churning the butter, the Gopis prayed to Krishna to accept the butter as their token of love. They stored some butter in pots and left to sell other milk products such as buttermilk, butter and cheese.
“By stealing the butter, not only did Krishna answer their prayers, but also stole their hearts. That was why he was known as chitta chora, stealer of hearts. As the Gopis went out for business they thought constantly, ‘Will Krishna visit my house today? Won’t he grab his share of butter?’ Thus they were constantly thinking of Krishna.
“By engaging himself in the divine sport of stealing butter from different households, Lord Krishna hit three birds in one shot. Apart from satiating the hunger of his poor friends, Krishna responded to the prayers of the Gopis and helped them to think of him constantly.”