The Gopis Sing of Krishna as He Wanders in the Forest (Yugala-gita)

What to speak of the intelligent wives of the devatas, the inferior animals also became completely bewildered. One other gopi spoke. “This is more astonishing than the most astonishing thing. O young women (abalah –literally weak persons), whose vow of chastity to husband has become stolen by Krsna. On his chest like a cloud effulgent with a necklace like a string of flying crames, flashes the golden line of Laksmi, like stationary lightning. O gopis , the hot sun of your vows of chastity have been covered by that cloud of Krsna’s chest with its lightening and flying cranes. He makes you who are suffering become the object of ridicule for society (narma da). When does he do this? When he blows his flute (kujita venuh). Just on hearing the flute, your belts become loose. When you attain the state of unmada, you become the object of ridicule for all people.

Krsna not only enchants you women, but also the animals and other entities. When the bulls, cows and forest animals chew on the grass, and the sound of the flute enters their bodies through their ears, they cannot swallow the grass, but remain stunned, listening to the flute. Their hearts are stolen by the sound of the flute. Their senses are so bewildered that they appear as if sleeping. The chewed grass remained in their mouths, not falling to the ground. They attain the sancari bhava called jadya. Breathing becomes weak, and they remain standing still, like painted pictures. Rather than being like statues, being like painted pictures gives more astonishment. It was as if a remarkable artist had painted pictures on the canvas of the sky. This gives rise to adbuta rasa.

“What to speak of the living creatures, even the unconscious entities become stunned on hearing the flute.” One other gopi spoke. “When Mukunda, decorated with peacock feathers, or peacock feathers and flowers, imitating the appearance of wrestlers, or mocking them with his own brilliance, along with Balarama and the cowherd boys, calls the cows by name “Oh Kalindi, Gange, Sarasvati!” all the rivers such as Yamuna and Sarasvati and other rivers, though unconscious, take on consciousness and begin to think, “Oh, what good fortune we have! Krsna is calling us in order to bathe in our waters. With strong currents we will break the banks and flow towards him.” Though desiring in this way, because of being stunned with bliss, with the stoppage of natural movement, currents became immobile.

Another meaning of bhagna gati is as follows. The rivers’ progress in this life was stopped because they had not attained the happiness of contacting Krsna’s body, or because they became the laughing stock of other rivers. And next life’s goal was destroyed because of transgressing the vows of chastity to their husbands. What misfortune for these rivers!

But they have a little good fortune. Desiring the dust from Krsna’s lotus feet carried to them by favorable breezes, they attain it, but even though attaining it, they cannot be satisfied, and desire more. Like us gopis who sometimes get Krsna’s association and sometimes are deprived of it, the rivers do not have bad fortune, but have only a little good fortune (abahu punya).

The waves (arms) of the river tremble because of prema. Our arms also tremble with prema. Though the waters become solid (stimita apa) because of being stunned, again they liquefy. Our vision is clouded by the water of tears and thus we become motionless. And we also, because of being stopped by our mothers and fathers from meeting Krsna, have lost our goal in life, and because of the ridicule of others and the transgression of the rules of chastity, we have lost chances in future life also. Like the rivers, we also desire the dust from his lotus feet.

As these rivers, though unconscious entities, are eternally perfect, being the forms of devatas, it is natural that they should react in this way. But see how the immobile trees of low birth born due to previous karma relish the sound of the flute. In this way another group of gopis spoke.

When Krsna, endowed with unchanging opulence (acala vibhuti), similar to Narayana (adi purusa iva), whose strength is described by the cowherd boys, wanders in the forest, being attracted by the souls there, all the creepers along with their husbands the trees, having directly seen Visnu who usually appears in the mind, weep tears in the form of streams of honey. They are just like grhastha vaisnavas who on hearing sankirtana offer their obeisances along with their wives. Being endowed with flowers and fruit, the creepers have sthayi bhava (fruit) along with sancari bhava of joy (flowers). Their completely bent branches indicate the anubhava of paying obeisances. As their hairs were standing on end in joy, they displayed the sattvika bhava of romanca.

10-11.After describing the creepers and trees as householder devotees in the previous verse, the swans and cranes are described as detached atma ramas, worshiping Visnu on hearing the flute.

Krsna wore attractive markings made from mineral clays (darsaniya tilaka). The phrase can also mean that Krsna was like tilaka, the most excellent among all beautiful things. Krsna wore a garland of five colors, with fragrant tulasi whose honey was sought by greedy bees, who hummed loudly because of their unrestricted madness.

There may be an objection. Usually the lotus, jasmine and naga kesara are described as fragrant by ordinary people. Though the glories of tulasi are much greater, her fragrance is not highly praised. The objection is answered as follows. Ordinary people can sense a little of tulasi’s fragrance, but spiritually advanced persons can experience her fragrance as greater than that of the lotus. Since the bees had qualification for the flower garland on Krsna’s neck, they also could sense more fragrance in tulasi than even the spiritually advanced persons. However, only Krsna’s nostrils can smell the most sublime of fragrances. By the covering of Yogamaya, these fragrances cannot be perceived elsewhere. The special nature of tulasi is stated in the description of Vaikuntha.

gandhe ’rcite tulasikabharanena tasya

yasmins tapah sumanaso bahu manayanti

Although flowering plants like the mandāra, kunda, kurabaka, utpala, campaka, arṇa, punnaga, nagakesara, bakula, lily and parijata are full of transcendental fragrance, they are still conscious of the austerities performed by tulasi, for tulasi is given special preference by the Lord, who garlands Himself with tulasi leaves.

Sb 3.15.19

When Krsna thought about what pitch he would play on his flute, the bees would buzz and Krsna would play his flute according to that pitch. Respecting the song, when he placed his flute on his lower lip, the water birds left the lakes and, approaching Krsna, began to worship him—by seeing, hearing and thinking of him. They closed their eyes, indicating that they were tasting the rasa.

12.-13.Having described the joy from hearing the flute of the conscious and unconscious entities of the earth, the gopis now describe the bliss of the unconscious entities in the sky.

When Krsna, brilliant with garlands on his head and chest and ornaments in his ears, accompanied by a troop of cowherd boys (saha balah), situated himself on the side of a hill, and, blissful at the sound of his own flute, began to taste that sound, in order to fill the universe with that bliss, the clouds in the sky began to rumble gently, so that the sound would not disrupt the great cloud of Krsna. The thundering of the clouds was favorable to the flute sound, not disturbing it in any way. The cloud was a friend of Krsna, being similar with dark color and function--taking away the distress of the people of the world. The cloud began to sprinkle fine rain like tiny flowers, and in order to give shelter from the heat of the sun, made an umbrella from its own shadow. Pratapatra means that which delivers one ( trayate) from intense heat (pra tapa).

On the form of the cloud called Krsna were his garland and earrings like flying cranes and his yellow dhoti like lightening. The song of the flute was a shower of nectar.

In the afternoon, the gopis, thinking of how to get continuous sight of Krsna, went to Mother Yasoda’s house. They mixed with the elders, young girls and children, and talked about Krsna’s qualities and activities. Yasoda listened and then spoke. In order to console Yasoda, who was feeling separation from her son and also appease their own minds, they began describing to her the power of the flute’s song.

O Yasoda, when your son who is skilful at herding the cows, caring for them and milking them, holds the flute to his red lips and plays the various jatis (18 chief ones) numbering in the thousands, which were self taught, all the devatas including Indra along with Upendra Agni and others, Siva along with Katyayani, Kartikya and Ganesa, and Brahma along with the four kumaras, Narada and others, as well as composers of songs, hear that song, and tasting the sweetness of the song, bow down their shoulders and minds. But they cannot comprehend the raga and tala. They become completely bewildered by the sweetness of the song and lose their sense of judgement. If the devatas become bewildered what can we say of ordinary mortals? Your son bewilders the whole universe.

One gopi of another group then spoke of her personal bewilderment on hearing the flute to mother Yasoda.

When Krsna, with elephant gait, walks around to relieve the earth of the pain of the cows’ hooves striking the ground by the touch of his feet which resemble lotus petals, which are marked with symbols like the flag and conch, we gopis whose hearts are agitated with lust through his glances become stunned like the trees, and are not aware of our clothing or hair, which all become loose without our noticing it. Though Krsna has relieved the earth of pain, he has produced pain in us by his lotus eyed glances. This is our misfortune.

This verse describes the bewilderment of the deer in the forest, similar to the bewilderment of the gopis in the village, on hear the flute.

Krsna had a string of one hundred and eight beads of four different colors-white, red, black and yellow, twenty-five of each color. As well there were eight other beads to count cows of mixed color and different shaped heads. He would hold the beads in his hand and count the cows. Though the number of cows was unlimited, Krsna counted one hundred and eight different groups of cows using the beads. Calling “Dhavali” the dhavali groups of cows wound come. In that way, he called out for Hamsa, Ganga, mukti, (white). Similarly twenty four other groups would come. He would call for Aruna, Kumkuma, Sarasvati (red) , Syamala, Dhumala, Yamuna (black), Pita, Pingala, Haritalika (yellow) . and Citrika, Citratilaka, Dirgha tilaka, mangala tilaka (mixed), and mrdanga and simha mukhi.

Calling all the cows in this way, he would not forget even one of them. He also wore a fragrant tulasi garland. When he placed his arm on a friend’s shoulder and began to play his flute, that sound stole the hearts of the female Krsna sara deer. They began to follow after Krsna, because they had tasted the qualities of Krsna, the ocean of all qualities. They gave up attachment to house and food, just as we gopis. We are in the same state as the deer.

When the gopis who had assembled at Yasoda’s house saw that she was disturbed because Krsna was late in coming, they pacified her by giving reasons for his lateness.

To relieve himself of fatigue, Krsna has bathed in the Yamuna and then sat on the bank. In order to please his friends, who were so enthusiastic, he dressed himself comically with kunda flower garlands. As he walked on the bank of the river, the wind began to blow gently and pleasantly. Krsna gave joy to his friends by giving and receiving jokes and defeating their jests. O sinless one, you have not committed any sins previously or in this life, by which danger could come to your son. So why do you uselessly worry about danger from demons if his is a little late? He is the son of Nanda, who is famous as the jewel of piety, and is the son (vatsa object of affection ) of you, endowed with the most spotless fame (yasoda). We see that children fall into danger only when the parents have bad karma. Therefore there is no danger for your son.

Listen as we tell you the reason for his being late as we have heard it from his friends. The wind, so fragrant and cool from touching the sandalwood trees of Malaya Mountain that it only blows very slowly, began to blow pleasantly on your son. The upadevatas, gandharvas, began to worshipping him in all ways including playing musical instruments as they praised his qualities. To accept this worship he has become late. Those of quality delight is seeing the person of quality. Therefore there is no need to worry for your son, for if they are worshipping him, it is your good fortune.

“Seeing that my son has not come back at the end of twilight, I will now kill myself.” Fearing this response from Mother Yasoda, the gopis then gave reasons why Krsna would come quickly in order to calm her.

Being affectionate to the bulls tied up in Vraja, remembering this suffering in separation from him, he has ignored the worship of the upadevatas, and is coming quickly. One cannot say that for a cowherd boy the skilful singing of the lowly gandharvas is more attractive than giving grass to the cows or seeing, tickly or touching their bodies. Krsna lifted Govardhana Hill to protect the cows. From this we see he has great affection for the cows. Though the gandharvas may have heaps of qualities, Krsna has not a morsel of affection for them.

“If that is so, then he would have been here immediately.”

Thus the gopis give the reason for his lateness. “Brahma, Siva and others are now offering their respects along the path. The devatas, coming from their houses and situating themselves close by in the sky, watch Krsna all day in bliss. When Krsna returns in the evening, they also return to their houses, but not before descending from the sky to earth to offer their respects to his lotus feet to obtain his mercy. What can he do in this circumstance? This request from the devatas is a greater cause of his lateness. But do you not see the good fortune in the devatas’ offering their respects to your son’s feet? Why do you lament?”

Yasoda with choked voice said, “O young women, please go quickly to the roof and see how far my son is distant.”

Going to the roof, the gopis then spoke to her in loud voices.

“Stopping all the cows in one place with the sound of his flute, to fulfill the desires of well wishers, Krsna is now coming. He is brilliant in his fatigue, a festival for the eyes, with garland covered by dust raised by the cows’ hooves.”

Whatever was said for the benefit of Mother Yasoda was also for the benefit of other gopis, to whom they threw indirect glances.

Though dust is mentioned in relation to the garland, it did not exist in other places, because the gopis were diligent to clean all the dust using pieces of cloth. There was some dust on the garland because, though the gopis cleaned the garland, they feared breaking the petals to remove the dust completely. Even if it were a garland of jewels, or a new garland protected by cloth offered by servants, Krsna would were no other garland. Krsna was particular to show those dusty garlands on his neck which were made by the gopis with their own hands and sent to him while he was in the forest.

Devaki in this verse means Yasoda. Krsna, the moon, was born from the milk ocean womb of Yasoda. According to the Ganodesa dipika, quoting Adi Purana, Nanda’s wife had two names: Devaki and Yasoda.

“Though he\has arrived at the edge of the town, hear why he is slightly delayed.”

His eyes are mad (mada), rolling about due to the bliss from seeing his father and other loved ones, or due to love generated from seeing the gopis. The first meaning is for those in vatsalya rasa and the second meaning is for those in madurya rasa. This will be understood later.

He is giving some acknowledgement of respect by nodding his head, since, though a prince, he was still young, and not obliged to strictly follow the etiquette according to scriptural rules. He gives respect to those dear ones (sva suhrdam) offering blessings—the priests, elders, brothers, servants and tambula makers. This is the reason for his delay.

Sva surdam also indicates his beloved gopis. Krsna gives respect to those gopis worshipping him with smiling blue lotus glances from the roof tops, by his own glances, unseen by others, signifying that he would fulfill their desires.

His face was slightly flushed like a ripe badari fruit, due to thirst, hunger and fatigue from wandering in the forest. Or his face was flushed due to experiencing prolonged separation from his dear gopis.

His tender cheeks were decorated with the glint from his gold earrings. Krsna is addressed as the lord of the yadus which here means lord of the gopas. The reason has been explained previously. (see 10.5.20).

He walked slowly like the king of the elephants. With happy face, he approached nearer, cooling the eyes of the inhabitants of Vraja, which had become hot due to separation during the day.

O Pariksit, the gopis minds had concentrated on Krsna, and Krsna’s mind was centered on them. Because Krsna and his beloved gopis were mutually visaya and asraya, 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 they enjoyed (remire) the separation during the day.

Prema has two states : union and separation. Though the person absorbed in Krsna appears to suffering in separation, actually he has attained the highest state of bliss internally. In this way the highest degree of prema is manifest.