Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 10.65.27
Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devoteesYamunā Humbly Approaches Balarāma
“[Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued:] Thus scolded by the Lord, O King, the frightened river-goddess Yamunā came and fell at the feet of Śrī Balarāma, the beloved descendant of Yadu. Trembling, she spoke to Him the following words.”
What the purport teaches
- Frightened by the Lord’s rebuke, the river-goddess Yamunā fell at Śrī Balarāma’s feet. Trembling, she began to speak.
- Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī calls this goddess a “shadow” of Śrīmatī Kālindī, one of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s queens in Dvārakā. Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī confirms that she is an expansion of Kālindī, not Kālindī herself.
- Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī also cites Śrī Hari-vaṁśa as evidence that Goddess Yamunā is the wife of the ocean.
Try this today
Offer a brief prayer to Lord Balarāma asking for humility when corrected.
Ask yourself
What can Yamunā’s humble approach teach me about responding to correction?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
From Canto 10, chapter 14 onward, the translation and purports were completed by Śrīla Prabhupāda's disciples after his departure, and published by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.