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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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Choose a chapter to see all its verses.

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 31: The Gopīs’ Songs of Separation
10.31.1410.31.16

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.31.15

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The gopīssince 10.31.1inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

अटति यद् भवानह्नि काननं

त्रुटि युगायते त्वामपश्यताम् ।

कुटिलकुन्तलं श्रीमुखं च ते

जड उदीक्षतां पक्ष्मकृद् दृशाम् ॥ १५ ॥

aṭati yad bhavān ahni kānanaṁ

truṭi yugāyate tvām apaśyatām

kuṭila-kuntalaṁ śrī-mukhaṁ ca te

jaḍa udīkṣatāṁ pakṣma-kṛd dṛśām

Translation

When You go off to the forest during the day, a tiny fraction of a second becomes like a millennium for us because we cannot see You. And even when we can eagerly look upon Your beautiful face, so lovely with its adornment of curly locks, our pleasure is hindered by our eyelids, which were fashioned by the foolish creator.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

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.

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Separation Makes a Moment Seem Endless

  1. 1

    When Kṛṣṇa goes to the forest, the gopīs cannot see Him. A tiny fraction of a second then seems like a millennium.

  2. 2

    When He is present, they eagerly gaze upon His beautiful face, adorned with curly locks.

  3. 3

    Even their eyelids interrupt the pleasure of seeing Him. They call the creator foolish for making this obstacle.

Connected verses· 2

Quoted in the purport ofCC Ādi 4.152

This verse is spoken by the gopīs in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.31.15).

Quoted in the purport ofCC Madhya 21.124

This verse is spoken by the gopīs in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.31.15).

Each link is a verse the purport itself quotes, or a purport elsewhere that quotes this verse, shown with the purport's own words.

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 31: The Gopīs’ Songs of Separation

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Even when they had previously seen Him they had found the blinking of their eyelids intolerable, for it blocked their vision of Him for a fraction of a second. The ecstatic sentiments for Lord Kṛṣṇa that the gopīs expressed may appear like symptoms of lust, but in reality they are manifestations of their pure desire to satisfy the Supreme Lord’s spiritual senses.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.31
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. aṭatitravel
  2. yatwhen
  3. bhavānYou
  4. ahniduring the daytime
  5. kānanamto the forest
  6. truṭiabout 1/1700 of a second
  7. yugāyatebecomes like an entire millennium
  8. tvāmYou
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 10.31

    In this verse: “lovely”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does the gopīs’ impatience with blinking reveal about their longing to see Kṛṣṇa?

Practice

Read this verse once without distraction, attending to the gopīs’ longing for Kṛṣṇa.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todaySeparation Makes a Moment Seem EndlessThis 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 10.31.15? Get an answer from the verses themselves.