How a Rakhi Tied By Lakshmi Tricked King Bali Into Protecting Vishnu
Riya Kumari | Aug 04, 2025, 23:53 IST
( Image credit : Timeslife )
Highlight of the story: This Raksha Bandhan, remember the thread isn’t a ritual. It’s a reminder. That love, dharma, and dignity, when bound together, can even bring God back home. There are moments in Sanatan Dharma that are not written to entertain, but to awaken. They do not ask for belief, they invite recognition. This is one such moment.
It does not begin with a war, nor end in triumph. It begins with a woman. A goddess. A thread. And a king whose heart was so aligned with dharma that he gave up even God, for the sake of his word.
Vishnu at the Gates of Sutala
After the Vamana avatar humbled King Mahabali, not to punish, but to restore balance, Bali was not defeated. He was liberated. He surrendered everything to Vishnu: his kingdom, his pride, and finally, himself. In return, he asked for just one thing:
"May You, O Lord, remain with me always."
And Vishnu, true to His devotee, left Vaikuntha. He stood as a guardian at Bali’s gates in the netherworld realm of Sutala. But in Vaikuntha, Lakshmi Devi—the divine energy of wealth, prosperity, and balance, felt the absence of her eternal companion. Without Him, even heaven was incomplete. Yet Lakshmi did not protest. She acted. Not with force. Not with demand. But with the deepest wisdom Sanatan Dharma teaches, yukti over shakti, grace over argument.
The Raksha-Sutra That Changed Everything
Lakshmi went to Bali in the form of a simple Brahmin woman. She tied a thread, a raksha-sutra, on his wrist. A symbol not of decoration, but of sacred duty. When King Bali asked what she desired, she revealed herself and said,
"My husband is at your door. I have come to take Him home."
And Bali, bound not by the thread, but by the dharma it represented, folded his hands and said:
"Take Him, Devi. A promise made in love is never broken."
He did not cling to pride. He did not demand repayment. He understood what very few truly grasp: That protecting dharma is greater than possessing divinity. And letting go is sometimes the most powerful form of holding on.
This Was Not a Festival. It Is Dharma
What Lakshmi tied was not a Rakhi as we know it today. But its essence was purer than any celebration. It was a moment where:
A woman did not ask for protection, she reminded a king of his own nobility.A king did not assert his power, he surrendered to a higher order.And Vishnu Himself stood witness to how love can move even the cosmos.
What Raksha Bandhan Meant Before We Forgot
Today, Raksha Bandhan is wrapped in rituals, thalis, sweets, and curated posts. But back then, it was about a sacred bond of responsibility. Not between brother and sister, but between protector and protected, seeker and truth, love and duty. This moment reminds us:
That a woman’s power lies not just in what she gives, but in what she knows when to claim.That a man’s dharma is not just to guard, but to uphold the cosmic order, even when it means loss.That a simple thread, tied with intention, can realign the divine balance of the universe.
Why This Matters
In a world obsessed with power, this leela quietly shows the strength of surrender. In a time of noise, it teaches the softest acts, done in dharma, resonate the loudest. We do not tie threads today for custom. We tie them because Lakshmi once did. To awaken the Bali within us, the part that still honours promises, that still hears the whisper of dharma in a noisy world.
This Raksha Bandhan Don’t just celebrate a festival. Remember a sacred moment where a goddess tied a thread, not to ask for protection, but to remind us what it truly means to protect.
Vishnu at the Gates of Sutala
"May You, O Lord, remain with me always."
And Vishnu, true to His devotee, left Vaikuntha. He stood as a guardian at Bali’s gates in the netherworld realm of Sutala. But in Vaikuntha, Lakshmi Devi—the divine energy of wealth, prosperity, and balance, felt the absence of her eternal companion. Without Him, even heaven was incomplete. Yet Lakshmi did not protest. She acted. Not with force. Not with demand. But with the deepest wisdom Sanatan Dharma teaches, yukti over shakti, grace over argument.
The Raksha-Sutra That Changed Everything
"My husband is at your door. I have come to take Him home."
And Bali, bound not by the thread, but by the dharma it represented, folded his hands and said:
"Take Him, Devi. A promise made in love is never broken."
He did not cling to pride. He did not demand repayment. He understood what very few truly grasp: That protecting dharma is greater than possessing divinity. And letting go is sometimes the most powerful form of holding on.
This Was Not a Festival. It Is Dharma
A woman did not ask for protection, she reminded a king of his own nobility.A king did not assert his power, he surrendered to a higher order.And Vishnu Himself stood witness to how love can move even the cosmos.
What Raksha Bandhan Meant Before We Forgot
That a woman’s power lies not just in what she gives, but in what she knows when to claim.That a man’s dharma is not just to guard, but to uphold the cosmic order, even when it means loss.That a simple thread, tied with intention, can realign the divine balance of the universe.
Why This Matters
This Raksha Bandhan Don’t just celebrate a festival. Remember a sacred moment where a goddess tied a thread, not to ask for protection, but to remind us what it truly means to protect.