The Reunion

Verse 1 (bhagavata.10.32.1)

श्रीशुक उवाच इति गोप्यः प्रगायन्त्यः प्रलपन्त्यश्च चित्रधा । रुरुदुः सुस्वरं राजन् कृष्णदर्शनलालसाः ॥ १ ॥

śrī-śuka uvāca iti gopyaḥ pragāyantyaḥ pralapantyaś ca citradhā ruruduḥ su-svaraṁ rājan kṛṣṇa-darśana-lālasāḥ

Sukadeva said: O King, having sung and cried out in this manner in so many wondrous ways, the gopis wept aloud, their hearts aching to see Krishna again.

Verse 2 (bhagavata.10.32.2)

तासामाविरभूच्छौरिः स्मयमानमुखाम्बुजः । पीताम्बरधरः स्रग्वी साक्षान्मन्मथमन्मथः ॥ २ ॥

tāsām āvirabhūc chauriḥ smayamāna-mukhāmbujaḥ pītāmbara-dharaḥ sragvī sākṣān manmatha-manmathaḥ

Then, before their eyes, Krishna appeared — his lotus face smiling, clothed in yellow silk and garlanded with flowers, himself the very bewilderer of Cupid, who bewilders the world.

Verse 3 (bhagavata.10.32.3)

तं विलोक्यागतं प्रेष्ठं प्रीत्युत्फुल्लदृशोऽबलाः । उत्तस्थुर्युगपत् सर्वास्तन्वः प्राणमिवागतम् ॥ ३ ॥

taṁ vilokyāgataṁ preṣṭhaṁ prīty-utphulla-dṛśo ’balāḥ uttasthur yugapat sarvās tanvaḥ prāṇam ivāgatam

Seeing their beloved return, the women rose up all at once, their eyes wide with joy, as though the very breath of life had come back into their bodies.

Verse 4 (bhagavata.10.32.4)

काचित् कराम्बुजं शौरेर्जगृहेऽञ्जलिना मुदा । काचिद् दधार तद्बाहुमंसे चन्दनभूषितम् ॥ ४ ॥

kācit karāmbujaṁ śaurer jagṛhe ’ñjalinā mudā kācid dadhāra tad-bāhum aṁse candana-bhūṣitam

One gopi joyfully clasped Krishna's lotus hand between her folded palms; another set his sandalwood-anointed arm upon her shoulder.

Verse 5 (bhagavata.10.32.5)

काचिदञ्जलिनागृह्णात्तन्वी ताम्बूलचर्वितम् । एका तदङ्घ्रिकमलं सन्तप्ता स्तनयोरधात् ॥ ५ ॥

kācid añjalināgṛhṇāt tanvī tāmbūla-carvitam ekā tad-aṅghri-kamalaṁ santaptā stanayor adhāt

A slender gopi took in her folded hands the betel-leaf he had chewed; another, burning with longing, placed his lotus feet upon her breasts.

Verse 6 (bhagavata.10.32.6)

एका भ्रुकुटिमाबध्य प्रेमसंरम्भविह्वला । घ्नन्तीवैक्षत् कटाक्षेपैः सन्दष्टदशनच्छदा ॥ ६ ॥

ekā bhru-kuṭim ābadhya prema-saṁrambha-vihvalā ghnantīvaikṣat kaṭākṣepaiḥ sandaṣṭa-daśana-cchadā

One gopi, overwhelmed by the fury of her own love, knit her brows, bit her lip, and fixed him with sidelong glances as though she meant to strike him with them.

Verse 7 (bhagavata.10.32.7)

अपरानिमिषद्दृग्भ्यां जुषाणा तन्मुखाम्बुजम् । आपीतमपि नातृप्यत् सन्तस्तच्चरणं यथा ॥ ७ ॥

aparānimiṣad-dṛgbhyāṁ juṣāṇā tan-mukhāmbujam āpītam api nātṛpyat santas tac-caraṇaṁ yathā

Another drank in his lotus face with unblinking eyes, yet even having drunk deeply she was not satisfied — just as saints are never satisfied meditating on his feet.

Verse 8 (bhagavata.10.32.8)

तं काचिन्नेत्ररन्ध्रेण हृदिकृत्वा निमील्य च । पुलकाङ्ग्युपगुह्यास्ते योगीवानन्द सम्प्लुता ॥ ८ ॥

taṁ kācin netra-randhreṇa hṛdi kṛtvā nimīlya ca pulakāṅgy upaguhyāste yogīvānanda-samplutā

One drew him in through the doorway of her eyes and set him in her heart; then, closing her eyes, the hair on her limbs standing on end, she remained locked in that inner embrace, immersed in bliss like a yogi absorbed in meditation.

Verse 9 (bhagavata.10.32.9)

सर्वास्ताः केशवालोकपरमोत्सवनिर्वृताः । जहुर्विरहजं तापं प्राज्ञं प्राप्य यथा जनाः ॥ ९ ॥

sarvās tāḥ keśavāloka- paramotsava-nirvṛtāḥ jahur viraha-jaṁ tāpaṁ prājñaṁ prāpya yathā janāḥ

All the gopis, overwhelmed by the supreme joy of seeing Keshava again, cast off the pain born of separation, just as people forget their sorrow on meeting an enlightened soul.

Verse 10 (bhagavata.10.32.10)

ताभिर्विधूतशोकाभिर्भगवानच्युतो वृतः । व्यरोचताधिकं तात पुरुषः शक्तिभिर्यथा ॥ १० ॥

tābhir vidhūta-śokābhir bhagavān acyuto vṛtaḥ vyarocatādhikaṁ tāta puruṣaḥ śaktibhir yathā

Surrounded by them, their grief now dispelled, the infallible Lord shone forth ever more brilliant, dear king, as the Supreme Person shines when surrounded by his own divine powers.

Verse 11 (bhagavata.10.32.11)

ताः समादाय कालिन्द्या निर्विश्य पुलिनं विभुः । विकसत्कुन्दमन्दारसुरभ्यनिलषट्पदम् ॥ ११ ॥

tāḥ samādāya kālindyā nirviśya pulinaṁ vibhuḥ vikasat-kunda-mandāra surabhy-anila-ṣaṭpadam

Taking the gopis with him, the all-powerful Lord entered the sandy bank of the river Kalindi, where the breeze, fragrant with blooming kunda and mandara flowers, hummed with swarms of bees.

Verse 12 (bhagavata.10.32.12)

शरच्चन्द्रांशुसन्दोहध्वस्तदोषातमः शिवम् । कृष्णाया हस्ततरलाचितकोमलवालुकम् ॥ १२ ॥

śarac-candrāṁśu-sandoha- dhvasta-doṣā-tamaḥ śivam kṛṣṇāyā hasta-taralā- cita-komala-vālukam

It was an auspicious spot where the abundant rays of the autumn moon had banished the darkness of night, and where the restless waves of the Kalindi, like her own hands, had gathered the soft sand along the shore.

Verse 13 (bhagavata.10.32.13)

तद्दर्शनाह्लादविधूतहृद्रुजो मनोरथान्तं श्रुतयो यथा ययुः । स्वैरुत्तरीयैः कुचकुङ्कुमाङ्कितै- रचीक्लृपन्नासनमात्मबन्धवे ॥ १३ ॥

tad-darśanāhlāda-vidhūta-hṛd-rujo manorathāntaṁ śrutayo yathā yayuḥ svair uttarīyaiḥ kuca-kuṅkumāṅkitair acīkḷpann āsanam ātma-bandhave

Their heartache washed away by the bliss of seeing him, the gopis — like the personified Vedas before them — found the very fulfillment of their heart's desire. With their own veils, still marked with the vermilion from their breasts, they arranged a seat for their soul's own dear companion.

Verse 14 (bhagavata.10.32.14)

तत्रोपविष्टो भगवान् स ईश्वरो योगेश्वरान्तर्हृदि कल्पितासनः । चकास गोपीपरिषद्गतोऽर्चित- स्त्रैलोक्यलक्ष्म्येकपदं वपुर्दधत् ॥ १४ ॥

tatropaviṣṭo bhagavān sa īśvaro yogeśvarāntar-hṛdi kalpitāsanaḥ cakāsa gopī-pariṣad-gato ’rcitas trailokya-lakṣmy-eka-padaṁ vapur dadhat

There the Supreme Lord took his seat — he for whom the great masters of yoga arrange a throne within their own hearts — and, seated in the assembly of the gopis, worshiped by them, he shone resplendent, his form the sole abode of beauty for all three worlds.

Verse 15 (bhagavata.10.32.15)

सभाजयित्वा तमनङ्गदीपनं सहासलीलेक्षणविभ्रमभ्रुवा । संस्पर्शनेनाङ्ककृताङ्घ्रिहस्तयोः संस्तुत्य ईषत्कुपिता बभाषिरे ॥ १५ ॥

sabhājayitvā tam anaṅga-dīpanaṁ sahāsa-līlekṣaṇa-vibhrama-bhruvā saṁsparśanenāṅka-kṛtāṅghri-hastayoḥ saṁstutya īṣat kupitā babhāṣire

Honoring him — who had kindled desire within them — with playful, smiling glances and the sporting arch of their brows, drawing his feet and hands into their laps and touching them, and praising him, they spoke, still a little vexed.

Verse 16 (bhagavata.10.32.16)

श्रीगोप्य ऊचुः भजतोऽनुभजन्त्येक एक एतद्विपर्ययम् । नोभयांश्च भजन्त्येक एतन्नो ब्रूहि साधु भोः ॥ १६ ॥

śrī-gopya ūcuḥ bhajato ’nubhajanty eka eka etad-viparyayam nobhayāṁś ca bhajanty eka etan no brūhi sādhu bhoḥ

The gopis said: Some people love only those who love them, others love even the very opposite kind, and some love neither the one nor the other. Please explain this to us clearly, dear one.

Verse 17 (bhagavata.10.32.17)

श्रीभगवानुवाच मिथो भजन्ति ये सख्यः स्वार्थैकान्तोद्यमा हि ते । न तत्र सौहृदं धर्मः स्वार्थार्थं तद्धि नान्यथा ॥ १७ ॥

śrī-bhagavān uvāca mitho bhajanti ye sakhyaḥ svārthaikāntodyamā hi te na tatra sauhṛdaṁ dharmaḥ svārthārthaṁ tad dhi nānyathā

The Lord replied: Those who exchange affection with each other purely out of self-interest are not true friends at all — that is not dharma, for such affection exists only for the sake of personal gain, and for no other reason.

Verse 18 (bhagavata.10.32.18)

भजन्त्यभजतो ये वै करुणाः पितरौ यथा । धर्मो निरपवादोऽत्र सौहृदं च सुमध्यमाः ॥ १८ ॥

bhajanty abhajato ye vai karuṇāḥ pitarau yathā dharmo nirapavādo ’tra sauhṛdaṁ ca su-madhyamāḥ

But those who love even those who give nothing back, as merciful parents love their children — theirs, O slender-waisted ones, is a faultless dharma and true friendship.

Verse 19 (bhagavata.10.32.19)

भजतोऽपि न वै केचिद् भजन्त्यभजतः कुतः । आत्मारामा ह्याप्तकामा अकृतज्ञा गुरुद्रुहः ॥ १९ ॥

bhajato ’pi na vai kecid bhajanty abhajataḥ kutaḥ ātmārāmā hy āpta-kāmā akṛta-jñā guru-druhaḥ

Some do not love even those who love them — what then of those who do not? Such are the self-satisfied, those who already have everything they want, the ungrateful, and those who bear ill will toward their elders.

Verse 20 (bhagavata.10.32.20)

नाहं तु सख्यो भजतोऽपि जन्तून् भजाम्यमीषामनुवृत्तिवृत्तये । यथाधनो लब्धधने विनष्टे तच्चिन्तयान्यन्निभृतो न वेद ॥ २० ॥

nāhaṁ tu sakhyo bhajato ’pi jantūn bhajāmy amīṣām anuvṛtti-vṛttaye yathādhano labdha-dhane vinaṣṭe tac-cintayānyan nibhṛto na veda

As for Me, dear friends, I do not immediately return the love of those who worship even Me — I do this only to deepen their devotion, so that they become like a poor man who, having gained wealth and then lost it, can think of nothing else, absorbed entirely in that one thought.

Verse 21 (bhagavata.10.32.21)

एवं मदर्थोज्झितलोकवेद- स्वानां हि वो मय्यनुवृत्तयेऽबलाः । मयापरोक्षं भजता तिरोहितं मासूयितुं मार्हथ तत् प्रियं प्रियाः ॥ २१ ॥

evaṁ mad-arthojjhita-loka-veda svānām hi vo mayy anuvṛttaye ’balāḥ mayāparokṣaṁ bhajatā tirohitaṁ māsūyituṁ mārhatha tat priyaṁ priyāḥ

So it was, my dear ones — knowing that for My sake alone you had cast aside the opinion of the world, the authority of the Vedas, and even your own kin, I withdrew Myself from your sight only to deepen your love for Me, though I was never truly apart from you. Do not, then, harbor any resentment toward Me, your own beloved, on this account.

Verse 22 (bhagavata.10.32.22)

न पारयेऽहं निरवद्यसंयुजां स्वसाधुकृत्यं विबुधायुषापि वः । या माभजन् दुर्जरगेहशृङ्खलाः संवृश्च्य तद् वः प्रतियातु साधुना ॥ २२ ॥

na pāraye ’haṁ niravadya-saṁyujāṁ sva-sādhu-kṛtyaṁ vibudhāyuṣāpi vaḥ yā mābhajan durjara-geha-śṛṅkhalāḥ saṁvṛścya tad vaḥ pratiyātu sādhunā

Even were I given the lifespan of the gods themselves, I could not repay you fully for the spotless devotion with which you served Me — you who worshiped Me by cutting through the chains of household life, chains so hard for others to break. Let your own noble deeds be reward enough.