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Canto 10 · The Summum Bonum · 90 chapters

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How to study this verse, in six steps
  1. 1Chant the verse. Say the Sanskrit slowly and carefully.
  2. 2Read the word meanings. Go through each Sanskrit word and its meaning.
  3. 3Find the meaning yourself. Before the translation, piece the meaning together from the words.
  4. 4Read the translation. Ask: what is the Lord teaching here, and how does it apply to my life?
  5. 5Read the purport slowly. Read it two or three times. Don't rush.
  6. 6Write down what touched you. Note the main points in your own notebook.
Read the full guide: how to hear the Bhāgavatam ›
Canto 10 · Chapter 29: Kṛṣṇa and the Gopīs Meet for the Rāsa Dance
10.28.1710.29.2

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.29.1

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 10.29.1inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

श्रीबादरायणिरुवाच

भगवानपि ता रात्री: शारदोत्फुल्लमल्लिका: । वीक्ष्य रन्तुं मनश्चक्रे योगमायामुपाश्रित: ॥ १ ॥

śrī-bādarāyaṇir uvāca

bhagavān api tā rātṛīḥ

śāradotphulla-mallikāḥ

vīkṣya rantuṁ manaś cakre

yoga-māyām upāśritaḥ

Translation

Śrī Bādarāyaṇi said: Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, full in all opulences, yet upon seeing those autumn nights scented with blossoming jasmine flowers, He turned His mind toward loving affairs. To fulfill His purposes He employed His internal potency.

Read the purport on Vedabase.io

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.

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Kṛṣṇa’s Loving Pastimes Are Spiritual

  1. 1

    Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, full in all opulences. He is satisfied in Himself and free of all material desire.

  2. 2

    When Kṛṣṇa desired to enjoy loving affairs, He employed His internal spiritual potency. His pastimes are spiritually pure, not expressions of material need.

  3. 3

    Human conjugal love is only a reflection of spiritual reality. The gopīs of Vṛndāvana are Kṛṣṇa’s internal potency, and His love with them is transcendental.

Key points from the purport
  • In his description of the Lord’s rāsa dance in Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Śrīla Prabhupāda painstakingly explains the spiritual purity of these transcendental activities.
  • Thus it is clearly stated here that when Kṛṣṇa decided to enjoy the romantic atmosphere of autumn, “He resorted to His spiritual potency” (yoga-māyām upāśritaḥ).
  • The spiritual nature of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s conjugal affairs is a major theme in this section of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

The purport's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

How it feels

Separation → Transcendental intimacy. The peak of longing reveals the intensity of selfless love.

Chapters 29–33 of Canto 10: The gopīs' yearning, reunion and rasa. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 29: Kṛṣṇa and the Gopīs Meet for the Rāsa Dance

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Remembering the promise He had made to the gopīs when He had stolen their clothes, Lord Kṛṣṇa employed His Yoga-māyā potency and manifested within Himself the desire to enjoy pastimes during an autumn night. Thus He began to play His flute.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.29
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. śrī-bādarāyaṇiḥ uvācaŚrī Śukadeva, the son of Śrīla Badarāyaṇa Vedavyāsa, said
  2. bhagavānKṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead
  3. apialthough
  4. tāḥthose
  5. rātrīḥnights
  6. śāradaof autumn
  7. utphullablossoming
  8. mallikāḥthe jasmine flowers
3

Key ideas in this verse

The subject this verse serves and the themes it speaks of.

  • Īśānukathā · The science of God

    Who is the Lord, and how do His devotees live? · Subject 7 of 10

  • Prema · Transcendental love

    The intimacy and sweetness of devotion to Kṛṣṇa. · Theme in SB 10.29

    In this verse: “love”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 10.29

    In this verse: “material”

Chapter themes come from the story phase this chapter belongs to.

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does knowing that Kṛṣṇa is fully satisfied change the way I understand His loving pastimes?

Practice

Reread the translation once, keeping in mind that Kṛṣṇa acts through His spiritual potency.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayKṛṣṇa’s Loving Pastimes Are SpiritualThis verse's lesson: one practice and one question for today

Study points are short summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport on Vedabase.

Ask the BhāgavatamHave a question about SB 10.29.1? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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