The Slaying of Ariṣṭa, the Bull Demon

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TRANSLATION

O girls! This son of Nanda, who gives joy to the distressed, bears steady lightning on His chest and has a smile like a jeweled necklace. Now please hear something wonderful. When He vibrates His flute, Vraja’s bulls, deer and cows, standing in groups at a great distance, are all captivated by the sound, and they stop chewing the food in their mouths and cock their ears. Stunned, they appear as if asleep, or like figures in a painting.

COMMENTARY

What to speak of the intelligent wives of the demigods, who are the most expert practitioners of social niceties, even the foolish animals became completely captivated by Kṛṣṇa’s flute.

Another gopī spoke, “Ah, this is wonderful, more amazing than the most amazing thing! O weak girls (abalāḥ)! From the very beginning, Kṛṣṇa has stolen the strength of your chastity toward your husbands. On Kṛṣṇa’s cloud-like chest, effulgent with a pearl necklace resembling a row of flying cranes, flashes the golden line of Laksmī like stationary lightning. O gopīs, the sunlight of your faithfulness toward your husbands has become obscured by that cloud of Kṛṣṇa’s chest with its lightning and flying cranes. Kṛṣṇa makes you who are suffering become the object of ridicule for society.”

“How does He do this? Kṛṣṇa does this simply by vibrating His flute (kūjita-veṇuḥ). When you hear the seductive song of Kṛṣṇa’s flute, the knots of your undergarments loosen and the garlands in your hair fall down. You then attain the state of unmāda (madness in love) and become the objects of everyone’s ridicule.”

“What to speak of humans like us; even dumb animals become stunned by the vibration of Kṛṣṇa’s flute. When the bulls, cows and forest animals hear the sound of Kṛṣṇa’s flute they become stunned, and cannot swallow the grass that they are chewing. The sound of the flute steals their minds and stops the functioning of their senses so that they appear as if asleep. The chewed grass remains in their mouths without falling to the ground. As the sañcārī-bhāva of jāḍya (being stunned) becomes even stronger, they become completely immobilized and their breathing almost stops. Then rather than appearing like statues, they look like painted pictures. This gives rise to the mellow of wonder or amazement known as adbhuta-rasa.”

|| 10.35.6-7 ||

barhiṇa-stabaka-dhātu-palāśair baddha-malla-paribarha-viḍambaḥ

karhicit sa-bala āli sa gopair gāḥ samāhvayati yatra mukundaḥ

tarhi bhagna-gatayaḥ sarito vai tat-padāmbuja-rajo ’nila-nītam

spṛhayatīr vayam ivābahu-puṇyāḥ prema-vepita-bhujāḥ stimitāpaḥ

TRANSLATION

My dear gopī, sometimes Mukunda imitates the appearance of a wrestler by decorating Himself with leaves, peacock feathers and colored minerals. Then, in the company of Balarāma and the cowherd boys, He plays His flute to call the cows. At that time the rivers stop flowing, their water stunned by the ecstasy they feel as they eagerly wait for the wind to bring them the dust of His lotus feet. But like us, the rivers are not very pious, and thus they merely wait with their arms trembling out of love.

COMMENTARY

In this verse the gopīs state, “What to speak of conscious beings such as the bulls and deer, even the unconscious entities become stunned on hearing Kṛṣṇa’s flute.”

One other gopī spoke, “When Mukunda is decorated with mineral powders such as red earth and leaves, peacock feathers, or peacock feathers and flowers, He imitates the attire of wrestlers yet mocks them with His incomparably brilliant beauty. When Kṛṣṇa, Balarāma and the cowherd boys call the cows by name, ‘Oh Kālindī, Gaṅge, Sarasvatī!’ then rivers such as the Yamunā, Mānasa Gaṅgā, Sarasvatī and others in Vraja, even though they are unconscious, attain consciousness, thinking, ‘Oh, what good fortune we have! Kṛṣṇa is calling us in order to bathe and dive in our waters. Let us break our banks with strong currents and flow towards Him.’ Though desiring in this way, because of being stunned with bliss, their natural movement is checked and their currents stop flowing.”

The hidden implication of the phrase bhagna-gatayaḥ (broken movement) is that the rivers’ worldly progress was spoiled (bhagna) because of failing to attain the happiness of physical association with Kṛṣṇa, and because they became the laughing stock of other rivers. Their progress in the next life was also spoiled because of transgressing the vows of chastity to their husbands (the ocean). Just see the misfortune of these rivers!

“But this is to some extent good fortune also that the rivers were hankering for the dust of Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet, which was carried to them by a favorable breeze. But even after attaining it, they cannot be satisfied and desire more. Like us gopīs who sometimes get Kṛṣṇa’s association and sometimes are deprived of it, the rivers do not have bad fortune, but have only a little good fortune (ābahu-puṇyāḥ).”

“The waves (arms) of the river shake out of love, just as our arms also tremble with prema. Though their waters become solidified (stimita-āpaḥ) because of being stunned, again they liquefy. We also experience the water in our eyes drying up and solidifying, just like one who is lighting a sacrificial fire experiences his eyes drying up from the fire. In the same way, our movements were checked by our husbands, brothers and other relatives who prevented us from meeting Kṛṣṇa, and thus we have lost our goal in life. Because of being ridiculed by the general populace, and for transgressing the rules of chastity, we have lost our fame and the chances for our future lives also. Like the rivers, we also hanker for the dust from Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet.”

|| 10.35.8-11 ||

anucaraiḥ samanuvarṇita-vīrya ādi-pūruṣa ivācala-bhūtiḥ

vana-caro giri-taṭeṣu carantīr veṇunāhvayati gāḥ sa yadā hi

vana-latās tarava ātmani viṣṇuṁ vyañjayantya iva puṣpa-phalāḍhyāḥ

praṇata-bhāra-viṭapā madhu-dhārāḥ prema-hṛṣṭa-tanavo vavṛṣuḥ sma

darśanīya-tilako vana-mālā-divya-gandha-tulasī-madhu-mattaiḥ

ali-kulair alaghu gītām abhīṣṭam ādriyan yarhi sandhita-veṇuḥ

sarasi sārāsa-haṁsa-vihaṅgāś cāru-gītā-hṛta-cetasa etya

harim upāsata te yata-cittā hanta mīlita-dṛśo dhṛta-maunāḥ

TRANSLATION

Kṛṣṇa moves about the forest in the company of His friends, who vividly chant the glories of His magnificent deeds. He thus appears just like the Supreme Personality of Godhead exhibiting His inexhaustible opulences. When the cows wander onto the mountainsides and Kṛṣṇa calls out to them with the sound of His flute, the trees and creepers in the forest respond by becoming so luxuriant with fruits and flowers that they seem to be manifesting Lord Viṣṇu within their hearts. As their branches bend low with the weight, the filaments on their trunks and vines stand erect out of the ecstasy of love of God, and both the trees and the creepers pour down a rain of sweet sap.

Maddened by the divine, honeylike aroma of the tulasī flowers on the garland Kṛṣṇa wears, swarms of bees sing loudly for Him, and that most beautiful of all persons thankfully acknowledges and acclaims their song by taking His flute to His lips and playing it. The charming flute song then steals away the minds of the cranes, swans and other lake-dwelling birds. Indeed they approach Kṛṣṇa, close their eyes and, maintaining strict silence, worship Him by fixing their consciousness upon Him in deep meditation.

COMMENTARY

(Text 8-9) “It is natural that the rivers should react in this way, because although they are unconscious, they are eternally perfect beings in the form of demigods. But just see how even the most dull entities like trees who have taken a low birth due to their previous karma relish transcendental mellows from hearing Kṛṣṇa’s flute.” In this way another group of gopīs spoke.

“Although Kṛṣṇa is endowed with unchanging opulence (ācala-vibhūtiḥ) similar to Nārāyaṇa (ādi-pūruṣa), nonetheless He wanders through the forest with His cowherd boyfriends because of His affection for the living entities dwelling there. At that time, just as household Vaiṣṇavas and their wives become ecstatic when they hear a sankirtana party approaching and offer obeisances, similarly the creepers of the forest, who are female, and the trees, who are their husbands, bowed low with their branches and vines, as if revealing Lord Viṣṇu within their minds. They weep abundant tears in the form of streams of honey.

“The trees appeared beautiful, rich with flowers and fruits. The flowers represent the sañcārī-bhāva of “joy,” and the fruits represent the sthāyī-bhāva called rātī. Their completely bent branches indicate the anubhāva of paying obeisances. The statement that the filaments on their trunks and vines stand erect out of ecstatic love indicates the sāttvika-bhāva of romāñca (ecstatic symptom of hair standing on end).”

(Text 10-11) After describing the Vaiṣṇava status of the trees and creepers, like that of grhastha devotees who are still attached to the pleasures of household life, the gopīs describe the swans and cranes as self-satisfied sages (ātmārāmas) worshiping Viṣṇu upon hearing His flute.

Kṛṣṇa wore attractive tilaka markings (darśanīya-tilakaḥ) made from red mineral clays. The phrase can also mean that Kṛṣṇa is like the tilaka of all extremely beautiful persons worth seeing. Kṛṣṇa wore a vaijayanti flower garland with flowers of five different colors interspersed with divinely fragrant tulasī, whose honey was sought by greedy bees, humming loudly (alaghu:uccaiḥ) due to intoxication (mattaiḥ).

There may be an objection. Usually lotus, jasmine and nāga-keśara flowers are described as fragrant by ordinary people. Though the glories of tulasī are much greater, she is not normally considered an especially fragrant plant. The objection is answered as follows. Ordinary people cannot perceive tulasī’s fragrance, but early in the morning spiritually advanced persons can experience her fragrance as greater than that of the lotus. The bees who are privileged to swarm about the flower garlands on Kṛṣṇa’s neck certainly appreciate this fragrance. Actually the most sublime fragrance of tulasī is only fully appreciable to the superexcellent and most perfect sense of smell of Kṛṣṇa Himself. By the covering of yogamāyā, tulasi’s fragrance cannot be appreciated by anyone else.

The Bhāgavatam explains that the most fragrant plants in Vaikuṇṭha also appreciate the special qualifications of Tulasī-devī.

mandāra-kunda-kurabotpala-campakārṇa-

punnāga-nāga-bakulāmbuja-pārijātāḥ

gandhe ’rcite tulasikābharaṇena tasyā

yasmiṁs tapaḥ sumanaso bahu mānayanti

“Although flowering plants like the mandāra, kunda, kurabaka, utpala, campaka, arṇa, punnāga, nāga-keśara, bakula, lily and pārijāta are full of transcendental fragrance, they are still conscious of the austerities performed by tulasī, for tulasī is given special preference by the Lord, who garlands Himself with tulasī leaves.” (SB 3.15.19)

The word abhīṣṭam (desirable) indicates that when Kṛṣṇa thought about what pitch He would play on His flute, the bees would buzz, and Kṛṣṇa would thankfully acknowledge (ādriyan) them, “Excellent, excellent, My dear bees, I see this is the correct note,” and play His flute according to that pitch.

The word sandhita-veṇuḥ means that Śrī Kṛṣṇa placed His flute firmly upon His lips. The melody emanating from that flute was certainly the most enchanting of sounds, as the gopīs describe in this chapter. Hearing that sweet song, the water birds left the lakes, approached Kṛṣṇa, and worshiped the Lord by looking at Him, listening and meditating on Him. The phrase mīlita-dṛśaḥ, “they closed their eyes” indicates the birds were absorbed in the rapture of relishing rasa. Closing one’s eyes due to relishing transcendental mellows is an anubhāva, a sign of ecstatic love for Kṛṣṇa.

|| 10.35.12-13 ||

saha-balaḥ srag-avataṁsa-vilāsaḥ sānuṣu kṣiti-bhṛto vraja-devyaḥ

harṣayan yarhi veṇu-raveṇa jāta-harṣa uparambhati viśvam

mahad-atikramaṇa-śaṅkita-cetā manda-mandam anugarjati meghaḥ

suhṛdam abhyavarṣat sumanobhiś chāyayā ca vidadhat pratapatram

TRANSLATION

O goddesses of Vraja, when Kṛṣṇa is enjoying Himself with Balarāma on the mountain slopes, playfully wearing a flower garland on the top of His head, He engladdens all with the resonant vibrations of His flute. Thus He delights the entire world. At that time the nearby cloud, afraid of offending a great personality, thunders very gently in accompaniment. The cloud showers flowers onto his dear friend Kṛṣṇa and shades Him from the sun like an umbrella.

COMMENTARY

Having described the joy the conscious and unconscious entities on the earth felt from hearing the flute, the gopīs now describe the bliss of the unconscious entities in the sky.

Saha-balaḥ means accompanied by Balarāma and a troop of cowherd boys. Kṛṣṇa looked gorgeous as He playfully draped garlands on the top of His head, on His chest, and as ornaments over His ears. Kṛṣṇa stood on the slope of a mountain, and joyfully vibrated His flute to inundate the universe with bliss.

The clouds in the sky began to rumble gently, so that their sound would not disrupt the great cloud of Kṛṣṇa. The thundering of the clouds blended favorably with the flute sound, not disturbing it in any way. The cloud was a dear friend (suhṛdam) of Kṛṣṇa, because both are of dark color and act to remove people’s distress. The cloud then sprinkled fine particles of ice, which were just like tiny flowers, and made an umbrella (pratapatram) from its own shadow to relieve his friend from the scorching heat of the sun. Pratapatram means that which delivers (trāyate) one from intense heat (pra-tapa).

Here we can understand that Kṛṣṇa is the cloud standing on the slope of the mountain. His garland and earrings are the cranes flying in the sky, His yellow dhotī is the lightning, and the song of His flute is the rain showering the essence of delicious nectar.

|| 10.35.14-15 ||

vividha-gopa-caraṇeṣu vidagdho veṇu-vādya urudhā nija-śikṣāḥ

tava sutaḥ sati yadādhara-bimbe datta-veṇur anayat svara-jātīḥ

savanaśas tad upadhārya sureśāḥ śakra-śarva-parameṣṭhi-purogāḥ

kavaya ānata-kandhara-cittāḥ kaśmalaṁ yayur aniścita-tattvāḥ

TRANSLATION

O pious mother Yaśodā, your son, who is expert in all the arts of herding cows, has invented many new styles of flute-playing. When He takes His flute to His bimba-red lips and sends forth the tones of the harmonic scale in variegated melodies, Brahmā, Śiva, Indra and other chief demigods become confused upon hearing the sound. Although they are the most learned authorities, they cannot ascertain the essence of that music, and thus they bow down their heads and hearts.

COMMENTARY

Late in the afternoon, some gopīs presented logical reasons why their beloved, who was supposed to be returning to Vraja at this time, had remained absent from their sight for so long. On some pretext they went to mother Yaśodā’s house and mixed with the elders, young girls and children to talk about Kṛṣṇa’s transcendental qualities, activities and power. Mother Yaśodā listened intently and also related numerous pastimes of her darling son. In order to pacify Yaśodā, who was becoming overwhelmed with separation from Kṛṣṇa, and also to appease their own minds, the gopīs told her about the power of Kṛṣṇa’s flute song in this verse.

The gopīs said, “O Yaśodā, your son is expert at herding the cows, caring for them and milking them. He holds the flute to His cherry red lips and plays the tones of the harmonic scale in variegated melodies, which were all self-taught. When all the demigods led by śakra (Lord Indra) such as Upendra, Agni and Yamarāja, and those led by śarva (Lord Śiva) such as Kātyāyani, Skanda and Gaṇeśa, and those led by parameṣṭhi (Lord Brahmā) such as the four Kumāras and Nārada, as well as the best composers of songs, hear that song and taste its sweetness, they bow down their necks and minds. Incapable of comprehending the rāga and tāla, they become completely bewildered by the dulcet flute song and lose their ability to understand the real identity of the musical scales. If such illustrious demigods become bewildered, then what can we say of ordinary mortals? In this way, your son bewilders the whole universe.”

|| 10.35.16-17 ||

nija-padābja-dalair dhvaja-vajra nīrajāṅkuśa-vicitra-lalāmaiḥ

vraja-bhuvaḥ śamāyān khura-todaṁ varṣma-dhurya-gatir īḍita-veṇuḥ

vrajati tena vayaṁ sa-vilāsa vīkṣaṇārpita-manobhava-vegāḥ

kuja-gatiṁ gamitā na vidāmaḥ kaśmalena kavaraṁ vasanaṁ vā

TRANSLATION

As Kṛṣṇa strolls through Vraja with His lotus-petal-like feet, marking the ground with the distinctive emblems of flag, thunderbolt, lotus and elephant goad, He relieves the distress the ground feels from the cows’ hooves. As He plays His renowned flute, His body moves with the grace of an elephant. Thus we gopīs, who become agitated by Cupid when Kṛṣṇa playfully glances at us, stand as still as trees, unaware that our hair and garments are slackening.

COMMENTARY

In these verses, the gopīs are no longer in the company of mother yaśodā, so they freely describe their confidential conjugal attraction to Śrī Kṛṣṇa.

The gopīs said, “The soft touch of Kṛṣṇa’s lotus petal feet, marked with a conch, flag and goad pacifies mother earth from the pain she feels from the hooves of the cows returning to vraja in the late afternoon. as Kṛṣṇa walks by with the gait of a maddened elephant, He agitates our hearts with lust by His playful glances, and thus we become stunned and immobilized like the trees. In our bewilderment we fail to notice that the garlands in our hair and our garments are slipping off. On one hand Kṛṣṇa removes the distress of the earth, but for us, the beautiful-browed gopīs of Vraja, He agitates our minds by glancing at us with His beautiful lotus eyes. Such is our misfortune.”

|| 10.35.18-19 ||

maṇi-dharaḥ kvacid āgaṇayan gā mālayā dayita-gandha-tulasyāḥ

praṇayino ’nucarasya kadāṁse prakṣipan bhujam agāyata yatra

kvaṇita-veṇu-rava-vañcita-cittāḥ kṛṣṇam anvasata kṛṣṇa-gṛhiṇyaḥ

guṇa-gaṇārṇam anugatya hariṇyo gopīkā iva vimukta-gṛhāśāḥ

TRANSLATION

Now Kṛṣṇa is standing somewhere counting His cows on a string of gems. He wears a garland of tulasī flowers that bear the fragrance of His beloved, and He has thrown His arm over the shoulder of an affectionate cowherd boyfriend. As Kṛṣṇa plays His flute and sings, the music attracts the black deer’s wives, who approach that ocean of transcendental qualities and sit down beside Him. Just like us cowherd girls, they have given up all hope for happiness in family life.

COMMENTARY

In this verse the gopīs describe the bewilderment of the deer in the forest upon hearing Kṛṣṇa’s flute, which is similar to the bewilderment they experience while remaining in the village.

For each of the four colors of cows—white, red, black and yellow—there are twenty-five sub­divisions, making a total of one hundred colors. Such qualities as being colored like sandalwood-pulp tilaka [speckled] or having a head shaped like a mṛdaṅga drum create eight further groups. To count these 108 groups of cows, distingui-shed by color and form, Kṛṣṇa uses a string of 108 jewel-beads.

Thus when Kṛṣṇa calls out “Hey Dhavalī,” [the name of a white cow], a whole group of white cows come forward, and when He calls “Hamsī, Candanī, Gaṅgā, Muktā” and so on, the twenty-four other groups of white cows come. The reddish cows are called Aruṇī, Kuṇkuma and Sarasvatī; the blackish ones: Śyāmalā, Dhūmalā and Yamunā, and the yellowish ones: Pitā, Piṅgalā and Haritālikā. Those in the group with tilaka marks on their foreheads are called Citritā, Citra-tilakā, Dīrgha-tilakā and Tiryak-tilakā, and there are groups known as Mṛdaṅga-mukhī [mṛdaṅga-head], Siṁha-mukhī [lion-head] and so on.

The gopīs said, “Thus being called by their names, the cows came forward, and in this way Kṛṣṇa would not forget even one of them. He also wears a tulasī garland bearing the fragrance of His beloved. Leaning on the shoulder of a friend, Kṛṣṇa plays His flute, and that sound steals the hearts of the female black deer and brings them near Him, the ocean of all transcendental qualities. These deer have given up their hopes for family life, just like us cowherd girls.

|| 10.35.20-21 ||

kunda-dāma-kṛta-kautuka-veṣo gopa-godhana-vṛto yamunāyām

nanda-sūnur anaghe tava vatso narma-daḥ praṇayiṇāṁ vijahāra

manda-vāyur upavāty anukūlaṁ mānayan malayaja-sparśena

vandinas tam upadeva-gaṇā ye vādya-gīta-balibhiḥ parivavruḥ

TRANSLATION

O sinless Yaśodā, your darling child, the son of Mahārāja Nanda, has festively enhanced His attire with a jasmine garland, and He is now playing along the Yamunā in the company of the cows and cowherd boys, amusing His dear companions. The gentle breeze honors Him with its soothing fragrance of sandalwood, while the various Upadevas, standing on all sides like panegyrists, offer their music, singing and gifts of tribute.

COMMENTARY

When the gopīs assembled at mother Yaśodā’s house in the afternoon they saw that she was disturbed over Kṛṣṇa’s late return, so they pacified Yaśodā by telling her the reason for Kṛṣṇa’s delay in this verse.

The gopīs said, “After bathing in the Yamunā to relieve His fatigue, Kṛṣṇa sat down on her bank and dressed in a festive way to please His cowherd boyfriends, who were eagerly waiting to meet Him. A gentle breeze blew to refresh Kṛṣṇa as He played in the water with His foot. To engladden His friends Kṛṣṇa told jokes and listened to theirs.

“O sinless Yaśodā, you never committed any sins previously or in this life, by which danger could come to your son. Why do you, who are endowed with the most spotless fame (yaśodā), uselessly worry about danger from demons if Kṛṣṇa is a little late? He is the son of Nanda, who is famous as the crest-jewel of all pious men, and He is your darling son (vatsa, object of affection). We see that children fall into danger only when the parents have bad karma. Therefore no danger can befall your son.

“Listen as we tell you the reason for Kṛṣṇa’s being late as we have heard it from His friends. The wind, which has acquired its fine fragrance and coolness by touching the sandalwood trees growing on the Malaya Hill, is blowing very pleasantly to honor your son. The Upadevas (minor demigods) like the Gandharvas [famous for their celestial music and dancing] have surrounded Kṛṣṇa and are worshipping Him by playing musical instruments and praising His qualities. In order to acknowledge them, Kṛṣṇa is delaying a bit according to the logic that “Those of quality delight in seeing persons with good qualities.” Therefore there is no need to worry about your son. Actually it is your great fortune that the Upadevas are honoring your son in this manner.”

|| 10.35.22-23 ||

vatsalo vraja-gavāṁ yad aga-dhro vandyamāna-caraṇaḥ pathi vṛddhaiḥ

kṛtsna-go-dhanam upohya dinānte gīta-veṇur anugeḍita-kīrtiḥ

utsavaṁ śrama-rucāpi dṛśīnām unnayan khura-rajaś-churita-srak

ditsayaiti suhṛd-āsiṣa eṣa devakī-jaṭhara-bhūr uḍu-rājaḥ

TRANSLATION

Out of great affection for the cows of Vraja, Kṛṣṇa became the lifter of Govardhana Hill. At the end of the day, having rounded up all His own cows, He plays a song on His flute, while exalted demigods standing along the path worship His lotus feet and the cowherd boys accompanying Him chant His glories. His garland is powdered by the dust raised by the cows’ hooves, and His beauty, enhanced by His fatigue, creates an ecstatic festival for everyone’s eyes. Eager to fulfill His friends’ desires, Kṛṣṇa is the moon arisen from the womb of mother Yaśodā.

COMMENTARY

“Seeing that my son, who is so eager to play, has not come back at the end of twilight, I will now kill myself.” Fearing such a response from mother Yaśodā, the gopīs try to console her by giving reasons why Kṛṣṇa will come quickly in this verse.

The gopīs said, “Kṛṣṇa is affectionately remembering how the bulls and the calves tied up in Vraja are suffering in separation from Him, so He will quickly come back, even at the risk of neglecting the Gandharvas and other demigods. One cannot say that for a cowherd boy like Kṛṣṇa the expert singing of such extremely insignificant singers as these Gandharvas is more attractive than seeing the cows, feeding them grass, touching them and scratching their necks. Kṛṣṇa showed how much affection He has for His cows by lifting Govardhana Hill just to protect them. Though the Gandharvas may have heaps of good qualities, Kṛṣṇa has not even a trace of affection for them.”

Mother Yaśodā replied, “If that is so, then by this time Kṛṣṇa should have returned home.”

Replying to that objection, the gopīs present yet another reason for Kṛṣṇa’s delay: “Brahmā, Śiva, Indra and other chief demigods are now offering their respects to your son while standing along the path. Attracted by the sound of Kṛṣṇa’s flute, the demigods come from their own abodes and remain all day in the sky watching Kṛṣṇa in great bliss. When Kṛṣṇa returns to Vraja in the evening, the demigods also return to their celestial abodes, but not before descending to earth to worship the lotus feet of your son in order to obtain His mercy. What can Kṛṣṇa do in this circumstance? Kṛṣṇa’s extended delay is caused by His taking time to bless the demigods. Why don’t you see your own great fortune, that the feet of your son are being honoured even by Brahmā, Śiva and the other chief demigods? Therefore, why are you so distressed?”

In a tearful choking voice, Yaśodā said, “O, dear young girls of Vraja! Please run to the watch-towers and tell me how far away my son is?”

On Yaśodā’s order the tallest of the beautiful young gopīs climbed up the watchtower to see when Kṛṣṇa would arrive. She said, “Kṛṣṇa is now coming home to fulfill the desires of His well wishers. With the sweet sound of His flute He has collected all the cows in one place. The fatigue of cow herding has brilliantly enhanced Kṛṣṇa’s beautiful form. His garland is sprinkled with the dust raised by the cows’ hooves. Indeed, seeing Kṛṣṇa in this way creates a festival (utsavam) of ecstasy for the eyes of the entire world.”

Beyond the perception of Yaśodā, the gopī hints here that Kṛṣṇa is casting love-filled sidelong glances toward His intimate girl friends. Though dust is mentioned in relation to Kṛṣṇa’s garland, there was no dust anywhere else on His body because His friends repeatedly wiped off the dust with their own chādars. There was some dust on Kṛṣṇa’s garland, however, because the boys were afraid of breaking the petals so they did not remove the dust completely.

Kṛṣṇa did not discard this garland even though it had become dirtied, and neither did He put on a new garland which a servant kept ready in the fold of his cloth. This indicates that Kṛṣṇa wanted very much to exhibit this favorite garland hanging from His neck because it was fashioned by His beloved Rādhikā with Her own hands and given to Him in the forest by one of Her sakhīs.

The word devakī in the phrase devakī jaṭhara (womb) refers to Yaśodā. Kṛṣṇa appeared like the moon (udu-raja) rising from the milk ocean of Yaśodā’s womb. In Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa Gaṇodeśa Dīpikā, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī cites the ādi Purāṇa which states that Nanda Mahārāja’s wife had two names: Devakī and Yaśodā.

|| 10.35.24-25 ||

mada-vighūrṇita-locana īṣat māna-daḥ sva-suhṛdāṁ vana-mālī

badara-pāṇḍu-vadano mṛdu-gaṇḍaṁ maṇḍayan kanaka-kuṇḍala-lakṣmyā

yadu-patir dvirada-rāja-vihāro yāminī-patir ivaiṣa dinānte

mudita-vaktra upayāti durantaṁ mocayan vraja-gavāṁ dina-tāpam

TRANSLATION

As Kṛṣṇa respectfully greets His well-wishing friends, His eyes roll slightly as if from intoxication. He wears a flower garland, and the beauty of His soft cheeks is accentuated by the brilliance of His golden earrings and the whiteness of His face, which has the color of a badara berry. With His cheerful face resembling the moon, lord of the night, the Lord of the Yadus moves with the grace of a regal elephant. Thus He returns in the evening, delivering the cows of Vraja from the heat of the day.

COMMENTARY

In this verse the gopīs say, “Please hear the reason why even now, as Kṛṣṇa reaches the outskirts of the town, He is a little delayed.”

Kṛṣṇa eyes are rolling about in intoxication due to the bliss of seeing His father and other loved ones, or due to the love generated from seeing His beloved gopīs. The first meaning is for those in the mood of parental affection (vātsalya-rasa), and the second meaning is for those in the mood of conjugal love (mādhurya-rasa). This will be understood from a later description.

The gopīs said, “To His own well wishers (sva-suhṛdāṁ) such as His family priests, maternal grandparents, brothers, servants, and betel-nut bearers, who are each greeting Kṛṣṇa and giving benedictions according to his position, Kṛṣṇa shows only slight respect by nodding His head, since, though a prince, He is still young and not obliged to strictly follow the etiquette according to scriptural rules (Nīti-śāstra). This is another reason for His delay.”

The phrase sva-suhṛdāṁ (well wishers) can also refer to Kṛṣṇa’s beloved girlfriends, who have climbed up the watchtowers to worship Him with the blue lotuses of their smiling sidelong glances. Unseen by others, Kṛṣṇa honored (māna-daḥ) the gopīs with sidelong glances signifying that He would soon fulfill their desires.

Kṛṣṇa’s face was slightly flushed like a ripe badarī fruit, due to thirst, hunger and fatigue from wandering in the forest. Or Kṛṣṇa’s face was flushed due to experiencing prolonged separation from His dear gopīs. This is an anubhāva, a symptom of ecstasy. His tender cheeks were illuminated with the effulgence of His trembling golden earrings.

Kṛṣṇa is addressed as the Lord of the Yadus (yadu-patir), which here means Lord of the cowherd men. Previously in chapter five, verse twenty it was explained that the cowherds are Yadavas. Kṛṣṇa walked slowly like the king of the elephants. The word gavām refers to cows or senses. Thus as Kṛṣṇa, His face blossoming with joy, came closer He relieved the inhabitants of Vṛndāvana from the distress their eyes and other senses felt in separation from Him during the day.

|| 10.35.26 ||

śrī-śuka uvāca

evaṁ vraja-striyo rājan kṛṣṇa-līlānugāyatīḥ

remire ’haḥsu tac-cittās tan-manaskā mahodayāḥ

TRANSLATION

Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: O King, thus during the daytime the women of Vṛndāvana took pleasure in continuously singing about the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa, and those ladies’ minds and hearts, absorbed in Him, were filled with great festivity.

COMMENTARY

My dear King Parīkṣit! The gopīs minds (tat-manaskāḥ) were absorbed in Kṛṣṇa, and Kṛṣṇa’s mind was absorbed in them. Therefore, since Kṛṣṇa and His beloved gopīs shared both roles of being the object (āśraya) and the subject of love (viṣaya), they concentrated their minds on each other. Thus, because they continually relished each other at every moment both in separation and meeting through their minds, it is said in this verse that the gopīs enjoyed (remire) the separation during the day.

Prema has two states: union and separation. Though the person absorbed in Kṛṣṇa appears to be suffering when He is separated from Kṛṣṇa, actually He is internally relishing the highest state of bliss. On the spiritual platform, the so-called pain of separation is simply a different variety of transcendental ecstasy. Thus pure love of God is the crown jewel of all goals of human endeavor.

Thus ends the commentary on the Thirty Fifth Chapter of the Tenth Canto of the Bhāgavatam for the pleasure of the devotees, in accordance with the previous ācāryas.

Chapter Thirty-six

|| 10.36.1 ||

śrī bādarāyaṇir uvāca

atha tarhy āgato goṣṭham ariṣṭo vṛṣabhāsuraḥ

mahīm mahā-kakut-kāyaḥ kampayan khura-vikṣatām

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