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Read one verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with its Sanskrit, word meanings, translation and study points.

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Canto 10 · The Summum Bonum · 90 chapters

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How to study this verse, in six steps

1Chant the verse. Say the Sanskrit slowly and carefully.
2Read the word meanings. Go through each Sanskrit word and its meaning.
3Find the meaning yourself. Before the translation, piece the meaning together from the words.
4Read the translation. Ask: what is the Lord teaching here, and how does it apply to my life?
5Read the purport slowly. Read it two or three times. Don't rush.
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 30: The Gopīs Search for Kṛṣṇa

10.30.12 10.30.14

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.30.13

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:The gopīssince 10.30.5inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

पृच्छतेमा लता बाहूनप्याश्लिष्टा वनस्पते: ।

नूनं तत्करजस्पृष्टा बिभ्रत्युत्पुलकान्यहो ॥ १३ ॥

pṛcchatemā latā bāhūn

apy āśliṣṭā vanaspateḥ

nūnaṁ tat-karaja-spṛṣṭā

bibhraty utpulakāny aho

Translation

Let us ask these creepers about Kṛṣṇa. Even though they are embracing the arms of their husband, this tree, they certainly must have been touched by Kṛṣṇa’s fingernails, since out of joy they are manifesting eruptions on their skin.

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.

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Joy From Kṛṣṇa’s Touch

1
The gopīs proposed asking the creepers about Kṛṣṇa, seeing signs of joyful rapture on them.
2
They reasoned that embracing their husband, the tree, would not by itself produce such signs.
3
They therefore concluded that Lord Kṛṣṇa’s fingernails must have touched the creepers as He moved through the forest.

Key points from the purport

The gopīs reasoned that the creepers would not show signs of rapture merely by physical contact with their husband, a tree.
Thus the gopīs concluded that although the creepers were embracing the strong limbs of their husband, they must have been touched by Lord Kṛṣṇa as He moved through the forest.

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

Chapter 30: The Gopīs Search for Kṛṣṇa

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Later, while wandering in a corner of the forest, the gopīs saw Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s footprints, which appeared mixed with Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī’s. Seeing these footprints perturbed them greatly, and they declared that surely Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī must have worshiped Kṛṣṇa with unusual excellence, since She had been privileged to associate with Him in seclusion.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 10.30