Srimad Bhagavatam — Dashama Skandha, Shloka 2
Gopī-gīta in Separation: The Flute’s Call and Vraja’s Ecstatic Response
श्रीगोप्य ऊचु: वामबाहुकृतवामकपोलो वल्गितभ्रुरधरार्पितवेणुम् । कोमलाङ्गुलिभिराश्रितमार्गं गोप्य ईरयति यत्र मुकुन्द: ॥ २ ॥ व्योमयानवनिता: सह सिद्धै- र्विस्मितास्तदुपधार्य सलज्जा: । काममार्गणसमर्पितचित्ता: कश्मलं ययुरपस्मृतनीव्य: ॥ ३ ॥
śrī-gopya ūcuḥ vāma-bāhu-kṛta-vāma-kapolo valgita-bhrur adharārpita-veṇum komalāṅgulibhir āśrita-mārgaṁ gopya īrayati yatra mukundaḥ
The gopīs said: When Mukunda vibrates the flute He has placed to His lips, stopping its holes with His tender fingers, He rests His left cheek on His left arm and makes His eyebrows dance. At that time the demigoddesses traveling in the sky with their husbands, the Siddhas, become amazed. As those ladies listen, they are embarrassed to find their minds yielding to the pursuit of lusty desires, and in their distress they are unaware that the belts of their garments are loosening.
Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī states that this chapter consists of a collection of statements the gopīs made at various times as they stood in small groups here and there in Vṛndāvana.
FAQs
In Canto 10, Chapter 35, the gopīs describe how Kṛṣṇa’s posture and flute-playing captivate all beings; His veṇu becomes a vehicle of divine attraction that draws hearts toward Him.
Because their love is fully absorbed in Kṛṣṇa; even small details—His cheek on His arm, moving eyebrows, flute on His lips—intensify their remembrance and express the depth of their longing.
Train the mind to dwell on the Lord’s qualities and pastimes through śravaṇa (hearing) and smaraṇa (remembrance), replacing distraction with steady devotional contemplation.