Srimad Bhagavatam — Dashama Skandha, Shloka 17

Gopī-gīta: The Song of the Gopīs in Separation

Viraha-bhakti

Devanagari script

रहसि संविदं हृच्छयोदयं प्रहसिताननं प्रेमवीक्षणम् । बृहदुर: श्रियो वीक्ष्य धाम ते मुहुरतिस्पृहा मुह्यते मन: ॥ १७ ॥

Transliteration

rahasi saṁvidaṁ hṛc-chayodayaṁ prahasitānanaṁ prema-vīkṣaṇam bṛhad-uraḥ śriyo vīkṣya dhāma te muhur ati-spṛhā muhyate manaḥ

Translation

Our minds are repeatedly bewildered as we think of the intimate conversations we had with You in secret, feel the rise of lust in our hearts and remember Your smiling face, Your loving glances and Your broad chest, the resting place of the goddess of fortune. Thus we experience the most severe hankering for You.

Synonyms

• rahasi: secretly
• rahasi: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: rahas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb): ‘in secret’

• saṁvidam: conversation/meeting
• saṁvidam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saṁvid (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• hṛt-śaya-udayam: the rise of heart’s desire
• hṛt-śaya-udayam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hṛt (प्रातिपदिक) + śaya (प्रातिपदिक) + udaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘hṛdi śayasya udayaḥ’ = arising of what lies in the heart (love)

• prahāsita-ānanam: your smiling face
• prahāsita-ānanam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pra-has (धातु) + ānana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त ‘prahāsita’ (smiling) + ānana (face)

• prema-vīkṣaṇam: loving glance
• prema-vīkṣaṇam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prema (प्रातिपदिक) + vīkṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘premṇaḥ vīkṣaṇam’

• bṛhat-uraḥ: broad chest
• bṛhat-uraḥ: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bṛhat (प्रातिपदिक) + uras (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मधारय: ‘bṛhad uras’

• śriyaḥ: of Lakṣmī/of beauty
• śriyaḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śrī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन

• vīkṣya: having seen
• vīkṣya: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vi-īkṣ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (gerund): ‘having seen’

• dhāma: splendor/abode (radiance)
• dhāma: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhāman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया/प्रथमा, एकवचन; अत्र कर्मरूपे (object)

• te: your
• te: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी, एकवचन

• muhuḥ: repeatedly
• muhuḥ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: muhuḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb): ‘again and again’

• ati-spṛhā: intense longing
• ati-spṛhā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ati (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + spṛhā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; अव्ययीभाव: ‘ati’ + ‘spṛhā’ = excessive longing

• muhyate: becomes bewildered
• muhyate: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: muh (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• manaḥ: the mind
• manaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: manas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

Characters & Entities

• Śrī Kṛṣṇa
• Śrī (Lakṣmī-devī)

FAQs

What does the Srimad Bhagavatam say about viraha-bhakti (devotion in separation)?

This verse shows that remembrance of Kṛṣṇa’s intimate words, smile, and loving glances intensifies longing so powerfully that the mind becomes overwhelmed—separation itself becomes a fuel for deeper bhakti.

Why do the gopīs mention Lakṣmī (Śrī) while speaking to Kṛṣṇa?

They recall Kṛṣṇa’s broad chest as the abode of Śrī, highlighting His supreme beauty and divine majesty—yet their personal love makes them yearn to see that form and intimacy again.

Practical application of this teaching in modern life?

Cultivate steady remembrance (smaraṇa) of the Lord’s qualities and pastimes; even when you feel distance or dryness, sincere recollection can transform that gap into increased longing and commitment to devotion.