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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

10.30.17 10.30.19

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.30.18

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

आहूय दूरगा यद्वत् कृष्णस्तमनुवर्ततीम् ।

वेणुं क्‍वणन्तीं क्रीडन्तीमन्या: शंसन्ति साध्विति ॥ १८ ॥

āhūya dūra-gā yadvat

kṛṣṇas tam anuvartatīm

veṇuṁ kvaṇantīṁ krīḍantīm

anyāḥ śaṁsanti sādhv iti

Translation

When one gopī perfectly imitated how Kṛṣṇa would call the cows who had wandered far away, how He would play His flute and how He would engage in various sports, the others congratulated her with exclamations of “Well done! Well done!”

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This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

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.

Encouraging Remembrance of Kṛṣṇa

1
One gopī perfectly imitated Kṛṣṇa calling cows that had wandered far away.
2
She also imitated His flute playing and His various sports.
3
The other gopīs warmly praised her enactment, exclaiming, “Well done! Well done!”

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:

Further along the path the gopīs came to a place where they could no longer see Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī’s footprints; they then concluded that Kṛṣṇa must have taken Rādhārāṇī onto His shoulders. In another place they noticed that Kṛṣṇa’s footprints were showing only the toes, and thus the gopīs concluded He had been picking flowers with which to decorate His beloved.

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