Live Caitanya Caritamrta · CC Madhya 19.210
Kṛṣṇa Tests the Gopīs’ Sincerity
“ ‘Dear Kṛṣṇa, we gopīs have neglected the order of our husbands, sons, family, brothers and friends and have left their company to come to You. You know everything about our desires. We have come only because we are attracted by the supreme music of Your flute. But You are a great cheater, for who else would give up the company of young girls like us in the dead of night?’
What the purport teaches
- Attracted by Kṛṣṇa’s flute, the gopīs left the company of friends and relatives and went to the forest in the dead of night. They came for Kṛṣṇa’s enjoyment in the rāsa dance.
- Kṛṣṇa knew their desires but superficially tried to avoid them with so-called good instructions. Having first attracted them, He was addressed by them as kitava, a great cheater.
- The gopīs expressed great disappointment, and their lamentation was appropriate. In this way, Kṛṣṇa tested their sincerity.
Try this today
Choose one sentence from the gopīs’ appeal and reflect for a minute on the longing it expresses.
Ask yourself
What in the gopīs’ words reveals the sincerity of their desire to be with Kṛṣṇa?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
The study points are short summaries drawn from Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport; the practice and question are plain words for trying the verse today.