Srimad Bhagavatam — Dashama Skandha, Shloka 24
Brahmā’s Bewilderment and Kṛṣṇa Becoming the Calves and Cowherd Boys
Brahma-vimohana-līlā
गावस्ततो गोष्ठमुपेत्य सत्वरं हुङ्कारघोषै: परिहूतसङ्गतान् । स्वकान् स्वकान् वत्सतरानपाययन् मुहुर्लिहन्त्य: स्रवदौधसं पय: ॥ २४ ॥
gāvas tato goṣṭham upetya satvaraṁ huṅkāra-ghoṣaiḥ parihūta-saṅgatān svakān svakān vatsatarān apāyayan muhur lihantyaḥ sravad audhasaṁ payaḥ
Thereafter, all the cows entered their different sheds and began mooing loudly, calling for their respective calves. When the calves arrived, the mothers began licking the calves’ bodies again and again and profusely feeding them with the milk flowing from their milk bags.
All the dealings between the calves and their respective mothers taking care of them were enacted by Kṛṣṇa Himself.
FAQs
This verse describes the cows rushing to the goṣṭha, calling out and nursing their calves again and again, licking them while milk freely flows—showing intense, natural vatsalya (motherly devotion) that becomes a vehicle for divine līlā.
In this chapter’s context (Brahmā’s bewilderment), Kṛṣṇa manifests as the calves (and boys). The mothers’ affection surges because their objects of love are directly connected with Kṛṣṇa’s own expansion, intensifying their nurturing behavior.
Offer care, protection, and steadiness in relationships without selfish calculation—serve with warmth and consistency, and let devotion express itself through simple, repeated acts of love, like the cows’ constant nursing and affectionate attention.