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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
  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.
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Canto 10 · Chapter 31: The Gopīs’ Songs of Separation
10.31.710.31.9

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.31.8

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

मधुरया गिरा वल्गुवाक्यया

बुधमनोज्ञया पुष्करेक्षण ।

विधिकरीरिमा वीर मुह्यतीर्

अधरसीधुनाप्याययस्व न: ॥ ८ ॥

madhurayā girā valgu-vākyayā

budha-manojñayā puṣkarekṣaṇa

vidhi-karīr imā vīra muhyatīr

adhara-sīdhunāpyāyayasva naḥ

Translation

O lotus-eyed one, Your sweet voice and charming words, which attract the minds of the intelligent, are bewildering us more and more. Our dear hero, please revive Your maidservants with the nectar of Your lips.

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.

Longing for Kṛṣṇa’s Reviving Nectar

  1. 1

    Kṛṣṇa’s sweet voice and charming words attract the minds of the intelligent.

  2. 2

    The gopīs tell the lotus-eyed Lord that His words are bewildering them more and more.

  3. 3

    Addressing Him as their dear hero, they ask Him to revive them with the nectar of His lips. Even in this intense longing, they call themselves His maidservants.

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:

Remembering Your lotus face, adorned with locks of blackish hair smeared with the dust of the cows, we become irrevocably attached to You. And when we remember how You followed the cows from forest to forest with Your tender feet, we feel great pain.”
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.31
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. madhurayāsweet
  2. girāby Your voice
  3. valgucharming
  4. vākyayāby Your words
  5. budhato the intelligent
  6. mano-jñayāattractive
  7. puṣkaralotus
  8. īkṣaṇaYou whose eyes
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: “sweet”

  • Viraha · Longing in separation

    Love and remembrance experienced in apparent absence. · Theme in SB 10.31

    In this verse: “longing”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does the gopīs’ continued identity as servants teach me about loving devotion?

Practice

Read the verse slowly once, noticing how the gopīs express both longing and service.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayLonging for Kṛṣṇa’s Reviving NectarThis 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 10.31.8? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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