Shloka 59
Gokula’s Wonder, Kṛṣṇa’s Bhakta-vaśyatā, the Move to Vṛndāvana, and the Slaying of Vatsāsura and Bakāsura
एवं विहारै: कौमारै: कौमारं जहतुर्व्रजे । निलायनै: सेतुबन्धैर्मर्कटोत्प्लवनादिभि: ॥ ५९ ॥
evaṁ vihāraiḥ kaumāraiḥ kaumāraṁ jahatur vraje nilāyanaiḥ setu-bandhair markaṭotplavanādibhiḥ
So verbrachten Krishna und Balarama ihre Kindheit in Vraja mit Knabenspielen: Verstecken, eine Scheinbrücke bauen und wie Affen hin und her springen, und dergleichen.
Thus end the Bhaktivedanta purports of the Tenth Canto, Eleventh Chapter, of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, entitled “The Childhood Pastimes of Kṛṣṇa.”
FAQs
This verse describes how Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma spent their kaumāra years in Vraja playing simple childhood games like hide-and-seek, making small bridges, and jumping about—revealing the Lord’s intimate, sweet humanlike pastimes (bāla-līlā).
Śukadeva narrates these līlās to draw the listener—especially Mahārāja Parīkṣit—into loving remembrance of Bhagavān, showing that the Supreme Lord becomes approachable through His Vraja pastimes.
Remembering Kṛṣṇa’s simple, joyful pastimes helps cultivate steady bhakti through smaraṇa—reducing anxiety and bringing the mind back to devotion by contemplating the Lord’s sweetness rather than merely His power.