1 · Learn4 of 6 · 5 min

Study a Verse

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

Or browse by canto and chapter
Canto

Canto 10 · The Summum Bonum · 90 chapters

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 ›

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.31.16

Who is speaking and story frame

पतिसुतान्वयभ्रातृबान्धवा-

नतिविलङ्‌घ्य तेऽन्त्यच्युतागता: ।

गतिविदस्तवोद्गीतमोहिता:

कितव योषित: कस्त्यजेन्निशि ॥ १६ ॥

pati-sutānvaya-bhrātṛ-bāndhavān

ativilaṅghya te ’nty acyutāgatāḥ

gati-vidas tavodgīta-mohitāḥ

kitava yoṣitaḥ kas tyajen niśi

Translation

Dear Acyuta, You know very well why we have come here. Who but a cheater like You would abandon young women who come to see Him in the middle of the night, enchanted by the loud song of His flute? Just to see You, we have completely rejected our husbands, children, ancestors, brothers and other relatives.

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.

The Gopīs Plead Not to Be Abandoned

  1. 1

    Enchanted by the loud song of Kṛṣṇa’s flute, the gopīs come to see Him in the middle of the night.

  2. 2

    They tell Acyuta that they have completely rejected their husbands, children, ancestors, brothers and other relatives just to see Him.

  3. 3

    They insist that He knows why they have come. In their plea, they call Him a cheater for abandoning them.

Connected verses· 2

Quoted in the purport ofSB 10.29.9

This fact is clear from verses yet to come: mātaraḥ pitaraḥ putrāḥ, yat-paty-apatya-suhṛdām anuvṛttir aṅga and pati-sutānvaya-bhrātṛ-bāndhavān.

Quoted in the purport ofCC Madhya 19.210

This verse, quoted from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.31.16), describes how the gopīs went to the forest for Kṛṣṇa’s enjoyment in the dead of night.

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:

They sang, “O Lord, O lover, O cheater, when we remember Your smile, Your loving glances and Your pastimes with Your boyhood friends, we become extremely agitated. Remembering Your lotus face, adorned with locks of blackish hair smeared with the dust of the cows, we become irrevocably attached to You.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.31
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. patihusbands
  2. sutachildren
  3. anvayaancestors
  4. bhrātṛbrothers
  5. bāndhavānand other relatives
  6. ativilaṅghyacompletely neglecting
  7. teYour
  8. antiinto the presence
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

  • Vātsalya · Parental affection

    Affection and protective concern for the Lord as a child. · Theme in SB 10.31

    In this verse: “children”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How do the gopīs express both their longing and their pain directly to Kṛṣṇa?

Practice

Offer one brief, honest prayer to Kṛṣṇa expressing your desire to turn toward Him.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayThe Gopīs Plead Not to Be AbandonedThis 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 10.31.16? Get an answer from the verses themselves.