Krishna Nectar Lila 51 -“THE YOGI GOPIS”

Mahanidhi Madan Gopal Das

As Krishna entered His pauganda period (six to ten years old) He looked exceedingly attractive with His sweet nectarean smile, puffy raised cheeks, and the natural fragrance of His body.

At this time Krishna and Balarama no longer played in the dust of Vrndavana, nor did They play with the honeybees that always buzz in the lotus flowers. For mother Bhumi, the touch of Krishna’s lotus feet gave the perfection of happiness. At six years of age Krishna and the gopas, the abodes of purity and good qualities, stopped caring for the calves and tended the cows instead.

Now Krishna rarely acted restlessly and frivolously as He did during His kaumara period. As a student of the Vedas becomes sober and serious, Krishna turned thoughtful and grave in His movements. His waist reduced to slender proportions and His eyes shone with a glimmer of excitement. He cast anxious glances in all directions. Where did Krishna’s naughty childish behavior suddenly go?

As a great epic is full of expertly placed words and phrases, similarly, Krishna now used precise language with perfect pronunciation. The nectarean beauty of Krishna’s effulgence far surpassed the splendor of a tamala tree blooming in spring with fresh sprouts and colorful flowers. Every part of Krishna’s transcendental body diffused a special sweetness like the liquid nectar oozing from a lotus flower.

When flower buds unfold their petals, pollen, and honey they become surrounded by swarms of eager bees. Similarly, at this time Krishna’s body revealed all the qualities of beauty, softness, fragrance, and sweetness. Krishna combined these attributes with a playful desire to enjoy in a way just suitable for this age. This is symptomatic of His characteristic as Cupid personified and His dhira lalita nature (a youthful hero expert at joking, devoid of anxiety, and controlled by the prema of His beloveds).

The creeper named syama-lata becomes free from bitterness before it produces fruits. Even before fully ripe, the fruits are soft, tasty, and tempting. Similarly, though not fully mature, Krishna’s body displayed a tantalizing charm. As a necklace acquires more attraction when strung with different jewels, similarly, the elegance of Krishna’s body enhanced from the variety of radiant pastimes He performed.

The serenity of a lake is destroyed when intoxicated elephants enter and playfully spray water from their trunks. Similarly, Krishna’s broad chest and wide shoulders emanated a sweet wantonness that enchanted and agitated the minds of all observers. 

Radha and all the other beloved gopis of Krishna appeared on earth along with the Lord. Krishna’s complexion compares with the hue of a blue sapphire, a blue lotus, or a fresh monsoon cloud. The complexion of the gopis’ defeats the brilliance of molten gold, lightning, and golden campaka flowers. The gopis appeared on earth within two weeks or one month of the birth of Sri Krishna.

The beauty of any one gopi could easily crush the pride of Parvati. To increase the various flavors of Radha-Govinda’s srngara-rasa (ecstatic conjugal love), the gopis appeared in Vrndavana to selflessly serve Krishna, the fountainhead of madhura-rasa. Radhika and Syama could not have relished the summit of sweetness in srngara-rasa without the Vraja gopis.

In the beginning stage, tulasi manjaris grow straight but upon developing they turn crooked. Similarly, Radhika and the other lovers of Krishna behaved innocently and honestly as children, but upon attaining youth they were crafty and cunning. As a verse from an epic can have many different meanings, the gopis’ speech at this time contained many outer and inner meanings.

The slow and measured steps of the gopis resembled the gentle dripping of water falling off the edge of a roof after a monsoon. The gopis felt a little insecure about the new sensations they felt upon flowering into youth. As the whorl of a lotus flower looks like a golden demigod sitting there ruling over his kingdom, it seemed that the demigod of lust had suddenly taken possession of the gopis’ hearts and established his kingdom there. They no longer cared to play in the dust of Vrndavana.

The palms of the gopis now displayed a pinkish hue like the rising sun. Their reddened lips looked like luscious ripe bimba fruits shining with nectar. Under the control of Cupid, their eyes and limbs moved in various enchanting ways. Their hips expanded with shapely curves and their speech sounded sweet and captivating.

The gopis now walked with petite and gentle steps. Their long, thick hair defeated the dense darkness. These beautiful characteristics heralded the glories of the gopis like a raised flag waving in the wind. The subtle powers of the nine planets now reposed within them.

Since they had lost all the attributes of their childhood, the gopis now plundered the special qualities of others. Their restless running here and there as children reentered their eyes as furtive glances. Their waists became very slender as the broadness of their childhood waists moved out to their hips. Their talkative nature as children turned into the abundant sweetness of youth.

The eight mystic siddhis now resided in the bodies of the gopis. Anima-siddhi (becoming smaller than the smallest) entered their waists. Mahima-siddhi (becoming bigger than the biggest) took shelter within the broad hips of the gopis. Laghima-siddhi (becoming lighter than the lightest) entered their rarely spoken words. Prapti-siddhi (acquire whatever one desires) took the form of the gopis’ shyness.

Kamavasayita-siddhi (obtain anything from anywhere) moved into the corner of their eyes. Vasitva-siddhi (ability to control others) took shelter in the gopis’ glances. Prakamya-siddhi (fulfillment of all desires) manifested in the sweetness of their forms. Isitva-siddhi (create something wonderful or willfully annihilate something) entered their sidelong glances. Thus the eight mystic siddhis fully manifested within the bodies of the gopis.

Excerpt: Sri Kavi Karnapura’s Ananda Vrindavana Campu ki jai!

Krishna Nectar Lilas ki jai! Jai Jai Sri Radhe!

All parts of Krishna Nectar Lilas can be found here.