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KB 1970-1-30 / Krsna's Hiding from the Gopis
 
 
 
30 / Krsna's Hiding from the Gopis
 
When Krsna suddenly disappeared from the company of the gopis, 
they began to search for Him in every place. After 
not finding Him anywhere, they became afraid and almost mad 
after Him. They were simply thinking of the pastimes of Krsna 
in great love and affection. Being absorbed in thought, 
they experienced loss of memory, and with dampened eyes they 
began to see the very pastimes of Krsna, His beautiful talks 
with them, His embracing, kissing, and other activities. Being 
so attracted to Krsna, they began to imitate His dancing, 
His walking and smiling, as if they themselves were Krsna. 
Due to Krsna's absence, they all became crazy; each one of them 
began to tell the others that she was Krsna Himself. Soon they 
all began to assemble together and chant Krsna's name 
very loudly, and they moved from one part of the forest to 
another searching for Him. Actually, Krsna is all-pervasive; 
He is in the sky, and He is in the forest; He is within the 
heart, and He is always everywhere. 
 
The gopis therefore began to question the trees and 
plants about Krsna. There were various types of big trees and 
small plants in the forest, and the gopis began to address 
them. "Dear banyan tree, have you seen the son of Maharaja 
Nanda passing this way, laughing and playing on His flute? He 
has stolen our hearts and has gone away. If you have seen Him, 
kindly inform us which way He has gone. Dear asoka tree, dear 
naga flower tree and campaka flower tree, have you seen the 
younger brother of Balarama pass this way? He has disappeared 
because of our pride." The gopis were aware of the reason for 
Krsna's sudden disappearance. They could understand that when 
they were enjoying Krsna, they thought themselves to be 
the most fortunate women within the universe, and since they 
were feeling proud, Krsna disappeared immediately just to 
curb their pride. Krsna does not like His devotees to be proud 
of their service to Him. He accepts everyone's service, but He 
does not like one devotee to be prouder 
than others. If sometimes there are such feelings, Krsna ends 
them by changing His attitude toward the devotee. 
 
 
The gopis then began to address the tulasi plants: "Dear 
tulasi, you are much beloved by Lord Krsna because your leaves 
are always at His lotus feet. Dear malati flower, dear mallika 
flower, dear jasmine flower, all of you must have been touched 
by Krsna while He was passing this way after giving us 
transcendental enjoyment. Have you seen Madhava passing this 
way? O mango trees, O trees of jack fruit, O pear trees 
and asana trees! O blackberries and bael trees and trees of 
kadamba flower -- you are all very pious trees to be living on 
the bank of Yamuna. Krsna must have passed through this way.
 Will you kindly let us know which way He has gone?" 
 
 
The gopis then looked upon the ground they were traversing and 
began to address the earth, "Dear earthly planet, we do not 
know how many penances and austerities you have undergone to be 
now living with the footprints of Lord Krsna upon you. You are 
very jolly; the hairs on your body are these jubilant trees and 
plants. Lord Krsna must have been very much pleased with you, 
otherwise how could He have embraced you in the form of Varaha 
the boar? When you were submerged in water, He delivered you, 
taking the whole weight of your existence on His tusks." 
 
 
After addressing the innumerable trees and plants,
 they turned their faces toward the beautiful deer who were 
looking on them very pleasingly. "It appears," they addressed 
the deer, "that Krsna, who is the Supreme Narayana Himself, 
must have passed through this way along with His companion, 
Laksmi, the goddess of fortune. Otherwise, how is it possible 
that the aroma of His garland, which is smeared with the red 
kunkuma from the breast of the goddess of fortune, can be 
perceived in the breeze blowing here? It appears that they must 
have passed through here and touched your bodies, and thus you 
are feeling so pleasant and are looking toward us with sympathy.
 Will you kindly, therefore, inform us which way Krsna has gone?
 Krsna is the well-wisher of Vrndavana. He is as kind to you as 
to us; therefore after leaving us, He must have been present in 
your company. O fortunate trees, we are thinking of Krsna, the 
younger brother of Balarama. While passing through here, with 
one hand resting on the shoulder of the goddess of fortune and 
the other hand whirling a lotus flower, He must have been very 
pleased to accept your obeisances, and He must have 
glanced at you with great pleasure." 
 
 
Some of the gopis then began to address their other gopi 
friends, "Dear friends, why don't you question these creepers 
who are so jubilantly embracing the big trees as if the trees 
were their husbands? It appears that the flowers of the 
creepers must have been touched by the nails of Krsna. 
Otherwise, how could they feel so jubilant?" 
 
 
After searching for Krsna here and there, when the gopis became 
fatigued, they began to talk like madwomen. They could 
only satisfy themselves by imitating the different 
pastimes of Krsna. One of them imitated the demon, Putana, and 
one of them imitated Krsna and sucked her breast. One gopi 
imitated a hand-driven cart, and another gopi lay down beneath 
the cart and began to throw up her legs, touching the wheels of 
the cart, as Krsna did to kill the demon Sakatasura. They 
imitated child Krsna, lying down on the ground, and one 
gopi became the demon Trnavarta and carried the small child 
Krsna by force into the sky; and one of the gopis began to 
imitate Krsna while He was attempting to walk, ringing His 
ankle bells. Two gopis imitated Krsna and Balarama, and many 
others imitated Their cowherd boy friends. One gopi 
assumed the form of Bakasura, and another forced her to fall 
down as the demon Bakasura did when he was killed; similarly, 
another gopi defeated Vatsasura. Just as Krsna used to call His 
cows by their different names, so the gopis imitated Him, 
calling the cows by their respective names. One of the gopis 
began to play on a flute, and another praised her the way Krsna'
s boy friends praised Him while He played on His flute. 
One of the gopis took another gopi on her shoulders, just as 
Krsna used to take His boy friends. Absorbed in thoughts 
of Krsna, the gopi who was carrying her friend began to boast 
that she was Krsna herself: "All of you just see my movement!" 
One of the gopis raised her hand with her covering garments and 
said, "Now don't be afraid of torrents of rain and severe 
hurricanes. I'll save you!" In this way she imitated the 
lifting of Govardhana Hill. One gopi forcibly put her feet on 
the head of another gopi and said, "You rascal Kaliya! I shall 
punish you severely. You must leave this place. I have 
descended on this earth to punish all kinds of miscreants!" 
Another gopi told her friends, "Just see! The flames of the 
forest fire are coming to devour us. Please close your eyes, 
and I shall immediately save you from this imminent danger." 
 
 
In this way all the gopis were madly feeling the absence of 
Krsna. They enquired for Him from the trees and plants. In 
some places they found the imprints of the marks on the sole 
of His feet -- namely the flag, the lotus flower, the trident, 
the thunderbolt, etc. After seeing those footprints, they 
exclaimed, "O here is the impression of the marks on the 
sole of Krsna. All the marks, such as the flag, the 
lotus flower, the trident and the thunderbolt, are distinctly 
visible here." They began to follow the footprints, and shortly 
they saw another set of footprints beside them, and immediately 
they became very sorry. "Dear friends, just see! Whose are 
these other footprints? They are beside the footprints of the 
son of Maharaja Nanda. It is certainly Krsna passing through, 
resting His hand on some other gopi, exactly as an elephant 
goes side by side with his beloved mate. We must, therefore, 
understand that this particular gopi served Krsna with greater 
affectionate love than ourselves. Because of this, although He 
has left us, He could not leave Her company. He has taken Her 
along with Him. Dear friends, just imagine how the dust of this 
place is transcendentally glorious. The dust of the lotus feet 
of Krsna is worshiped even by Lord Brahma and Lord Siva, and 
the goddess of fortune, Laksmi. But at the same time, we are 
very sorry that this particular gopi has gone along with Krsna, 
for She is sharing the nectar of Krsna's kisses and leaving us 
aside to lament. O friends, just see! At this particular spot 
we do not see the footprints of that gopi. It appears that 
because there were some pin-pricks from the dried grass, 
Krsna took Radharani on His shoulder. O, She is so dear to Him!
 Krsna must have picked some flowers in this spot to satisfy 
Radharani, because here, where He stood erect to get the 
flowers from the high branches of the tree, we find only half 
the impression of His feet. Dear friends, just see how Krsna 
must have sat down here with Radharani and tried to set flowers 
in Her hair. You can be certain that both of Them sat together 
here." Krsna is self-sufficient; He has nothing to enjoy from 
any other source, yet just to satisfy His devotee He has 
treated Radharani exactly as a lusty boy treats his girlfriend. 
Krsna is so kind that He always tolerates the disturbances 
created by His girl friends. 
 
 
In this way, all the gopis began to point out the faults of 
the particular gopi who had been taken alone by Krsna. They 
began to say that the chief gopi, Radharani, who was taken 
alone by Krsna, must be very proud of Her position, thinking 
Herself the greatest of the gopis. "Yet how could Krsna take 
Her away alone, leaving all of us aside, unless She be 
extraordinarily qualified and beautiful? She must have taken 
Krsna in the deep forest and told Him, 'My dear Krsna, I am 
now very tired. I cannot go any further. Please carry Me 
wherever You like.' When Krsna was spoken to in this way, He 
might have told Radharani, 'All right, better get on My 
shoulder.' But immediately Krsna must have disappeared, and now 
Radharani must be lamenting for Him, 'My dear lover, My dearest,
 You are so fine and so powerful. Where have You gone? I am 
nothing but Your most obedient maidservant. I am very much 
aggrieved. Please come and be with Me again.' Krsna, however, 
is not coming to Her. He must be watching Her from a distant 
place and enjoying Her sorrow." 
 
 
All the gopis then went further and further into the forest, 
searching out Krsna, but when they learned that actually 
Radharani was left alone by Krsna, they became very sorry. This 
is the test of Krsna consciousness. In the beginning they were 
a little envious that Krsna had taken Radharani alone, leaving 
aside all other gopis, but as soon as they knew that Krsna 
had also left Radharani and that She was alone lamenting for 
Him, they became more sympathetic to Her. The gopis found 
Radharani and heard everything from Her, about how She 
misbehaved with Krsna and how She was proud and was insulted 
for Her pride. After hearing all this, they became actually 
very sympathetic. Then all the gopis, including Radharani, 
began to proceed further into the forest, until they could 
no longer see the moonlight. 
 
 
When they saw that it was getting gradually darker, they 
stopped. Their mind and intelligence became absorbed in the 
thoughts of Krsna; they all imitated the activities of Krsna 
and His speeches. Due to their heart and soul being completely 
given to Krsna, they began to chant His glories, completely 
forgetting their family interests. In this way, all the gopis 
assembled together on the bank of Yamuna
, and expecting that Krsna must return to them, they 
simply engaged in the chanting of the glories of Sri Krsna -- 
Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, 
Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. 
 
 
Thus ends the Bhaktivedanta purport of the Thirtieth Chapter of 
Krsna, "Krsna's Hiding from the Gopis." 
 

KB 30: Krsna's Hiding from the Gopis

CHAPTER THIRTY

Krsna's Hiding from the Gopis

When Krsna suddenly disappeared from the company of the gopis,

they searched for Him everywhere. After

not finding Him anywhere, they became afraid and almost mad

after Him. They were simply thinking of the pastimes of Krsna

in great love and affection. Being absorbed in thought of Him,

they experienced loss of memory, and with dampened eyes they

began to see the very pastimes of Krsna -- His beautiful talks

with them, His embracing, kissing and other activities. Being

so attracted to Krsna, they imitated His dancing,

His walking and His smiling, as if they themselves were Krsna.

Due to Krsna's absence, they all became crazy; each one of them

told the others that she was Krsna Himself. Soon they

all assembled together and chanted Krsna's name

very loudly as they moved from one part of the forest to

another, searching for Him.

Actually, Krsna is all-pervasive: He is in the sky, and He is

in the forest; He is within the heart, and He is always

everywhere. The gopis therefore began to question the trees and

plants about Krsna. There were various types of big trees and

small plants in the forest, and the gopis addressed

them: "Dear banyan tree, have you seen the son of Maharaja

Nanda passing this way, laughing and playing on His flute? He

has stolen our hearts and gone away. If you have seen Him,

kindly inform us which way He has gone. Dear asoka tree, dear

naga flower tree and campaka flower tree, have you seen the

younger brother of Balarama pass this way? He has disappeared

because of our pride." The gopis were aware of the reason for

Krsna's sudden disappearance. They could understand that when

they had been enjoying Krsna they thought themselves to be

the most fortunate women within the universe, and since they

were feeling proud, Krsna had disappeared immediately just to

curb their pride. Krsna does not like His devotees to be proud

of their service to Him. He accepts everyone's service, but He

does not like one devotee to proudly consider himself better

than others. If sometimes there are such feelings, Krsna ends

them by changing His attitude toward the devotee.

The gopis then addressed the tulasi plants: "Dear

tulasi, you are much beloved by Lord Krsna because your leaves

are always at His lotus feet. Dear malati flower, dear mallika

flower, dear jasmine flower, all of you must have been touched

by Krsna while He was passing this way after giving us

transcendental enjoyment. Have you seen Madhava passing this

way? O mango trees, O trees of jackfruit, O pear trees

and asana trees! O blackberries and bael trees and trees of the

kadamba flower -- you are all very pious trees to be living on

the bank of the Yamuna. Krsna must have passed through this way.

Will you kindly let us know which way He has gone?"

The gopis then looked upon the ground they were traversing and

began to address the earth: "Dear earthly planet, we do not

know how many penances and austerities you have undergone to be

now living with the footprints of Lord Krsna upon you. You are

very jolly; the hairs on your body are these jubilant trees and

plants. Lord Krsna must have been very much pleased with you;

otherwise how could He have embraced you in the form of Varaha

the boar? When you were submerged in water, He delivered you,

taking the whole weight of your existence on His tusks."

After addressing the innumerable trees and plants and the earth,

they turned their faces toward the beautiful deer, who were

looking at them very pleasingly. "It appears," they addressed

the deer, "that Krsna, who is the Supreme Narayana Himself,

must have passed through this way along with His companion,

Laksmi, the goddess of fortune. Otherwise, how is it possible

that the aroma of His garland, which is smeared with the red

kunkuma from the breasts of the goddess of fortune, can be

perceived in the breeze blowing here? It appears that they must

have passed through here and touched your bodies, and thus you

are feeling so pleasant and are looking toward us with sympathy.

Will you kindly, therefore, inform us which way Krsna has gone?

Krsna is the well-wisher of Vrndavana. He is as kind to you as

to us; therefore after leaving us, He must have been present in

your company. O fortunate trees, we are thinking of Krsna, the

younger brother of Balarama. While passing through here, with

one hand resting on the shoulder of the goddess of fortune and

the other hand twirling a lotus flower, He must have been very

much pleased to accept your obeisances, and He must have

glanced at you with great pleasure."

Some of the gopis then addressed their gopi

friends: "Dear friends, why don't you question these creepers,

who are so jubilantly embracing the big trees as if the trees

were their husbands? It appears that the flowers of the

creepers must have been touched by the nails of Krsna.

Otherwise, how could they feel so jubilant?"

After searching for Krsna here and there, the gopis became

fatigued, and then they began to talk like madwomen. They could

satisfy themselves only by imitating the different

pastimes of Krsna. One of them imitated the demon Putana, and

one of them imitated Krsna and sucked her breast. One gopi

imitated a hand-driven cart, and another gopi lay down beneath

the cart and threw up her legs, touching the wheels of

the cart, as Krsna did to kill the demon Sakatasura. One gopi

imitated child Krsna and lay down on the ground, and one

gopi became the demon Trnavarta and carried the small child

Krsna by force into the sky; and one of the gopis began to

imitate Krsna while He was attempting to walk, ringing His

ankle bells. Two gopis imitated Krsna and Balarama, and many

others imitated Their cowherd boyfriends. One gopi

assumed the form of Bakasura, and another forced her to fall

down as the demon Bakasura did when he was killed; similarly,

another gopi defeated Vatsasura. Just as Krsna used to call His

cows by their different names, so the gopis imitated Him,

calling the cows by their respective names. One of the gopis

began to play on a flute, and another praised her the way Krsna'

s boyfriends praised Him while He played on His flute.

One of the gopis took another gopi on her shoulders, just as

Krsna used to take His boyfriends. Absorbed in thoughts

of Krsna, the gopi who was carrying her friend began to boast

that she was Krsna herself: "All of you just see my movement!"

One of the gopis raised her hand with her covering garments and

said, "Now don't be afraid of the torrents of rain and severe

hurricanes. I'll save you!" In this way she imitated the

lifting of Govardhana Hill. One gopi forcibly put her feet on

the head of another gopi and said, "You rascal Kaliya! I shall

punish you severely. You must leave this place. I have

descended to this earth to punish all kinds of miscreants!"

Another gopi told her friends, "Just see! The flames of the

forest fire are coming to devour us. Please close your eyes

and I shall immediately save you from this imminent danger."

In this way all the gopis were madly feeling the absence of

Krsna. They inquired about Him from the trees and plants. In

some places they found the imprints of the marks on the soles

of His feet -- namely the flag, the lotus flower, the trident,

the thunderbolt, etc. After seeing those footprints, they

exclaimed, "Oh, here is the impression of the marks on the

soles of Krsna's feet! All the marks, such as the flag, the

lotus flower, the trident and the thunderbolt, are distinctly

visible here." They began to follow the footprints, and shortly

they saw another set of footprints beside them, and immediately

they became very sorry. "Dear friends, just see! Whose are

these other footprints? They are beside the footprints of the

son of Maharaja Nanda. It is certainly Krsna passing through,

resting His hand on some other gopi, exactly as an elephant

goes side by side with his beloved mate. We must, therefore,

understand that this particular gopi served Krsna with greater

affectionate love than ourselves. Because of this, although He

has left us, He could not leave Her company. He has taken Her

along with Him. Dear friends, just imagine how the dust of this

place is transcendentally glorious. The dust of the lotus feet

of Krsna is worshiped even by Lord Brahma and Lord Siva and

the goddess of fortune, Laksmi. But at the same time, we are

very sorry that this particular gopi has gone along with Krsna,

for She is enjoying the nectar of Krsna's kisses and leaving us

aside to lament. O friends, just see! At this particular spot

we do not see the footprints of that gopi. It appears that

because there were some pinpricks from the dried grass,

Krsna took Radharani on His shoulder. Oh, She is so dear to Him!

Krsna must have picked some flowers in this spot to satisfy

Radharani, because here, where He stood erect to get the

flowers from the high branches of the tree, we find only half

the impression of His feet. Dear friends, just see how Krsna

must have sat down here with Radharani and tried to set flowers

in Her hair. You can be certain that both of Them sat together

here." Krsna is self-sufficient: He has nothing to enjoy from

any other source. Yet just to satisfy His devotee, He

treated Radharani exactly as a lusty boy treats his girlfriend.

Krsna is so kind that He always tolerates the disturbances

created by His girlfriends.

In this way, all the gopis pointed out the faults of

the particular gopi who had been taken alone by Krsna. They

said that this chief gopi, Radharani,

must be very proud of Her position, thinking

Herself the greatest of the gopis. "Yet how could Krsna take

Her away alone, leaving all of us aside, unless She is

extraordinarily qualified and beautiful? She must have taken

Krsna into the deep forest and told Him, ‘My dear Krsna, I am

now very tired. I cannot go any further. Please carry Me

wherever You like.' When Krsna was spoken to in this way, He

might have told Radharani, ‘All right, better get on My

shoulder.' But immediately Krsna must have disappeared, and now

Radharani must be lamenting for Him, ‘My dear lover, My dearest,

You are so fine and so powerful. Where have You gone? I am

nothing but Your most obedient maidservant. I am very much

aggrieved. Please come and be with Me again.' Krsna, however,

is not coming to Her. He must be watching Her from a distant

place and enjoying Her sorrow."

All the gopis then went further and further into the forest,

searching out Krsna, but when they learned that actually

Radharani was left alone by Krsna, they became very sorry. This

is the test of Krsna consciousness. In the beginning they were

a little envious that Krsna had taken Radharani alone, leaving

aside all the other gopis, but as soon as they knew that Krsna

had also left Radharani and that She was alone lamenting for

Him, they became more sympathetic to Her. The gopis found

Radharani and heard everything from Her -- about how She had

misbehaved with Krsna and how She was proud and was insulted

for Her pride. After hearing all this, they became actually

very sympathetic. Then all the gopis, including Radharani,

proceeded further into the forest, until they could

no longer see the moonlight.

When they saw that it was getting gradually darker, they

stopped. Their mind and intelligence became absorbed in

thoughts of Krsna; they all imitated the activities of Krsna

and His speeches. Due to their heart and soul being completely

given to Krsna, they began to chant His glories, completely

forgetting their family interests. In this way, all the gopis

returned to the bank of the Yamuna and assembled

there, and expecting that Krsna must return to them, they

simply engaged in chanting the glories of Sri Krsna --

Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare / Hare Rama,

Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.

Thus ends the Bhaktivedanta purport of the Thirtieth Chapter of

Krsna, "Krsna's Hiding from the Gopis."