Shloka 19
Pūtanā-mokṣa — The Witch Pūtanā’s Attempt and Kṛṣṇa’s Deliverance
यशोदारोहिणीभ्यां ता: समं बालस्य सर्वत: । रक्षां विदधिरे सम्यग्गोपुच्छभ्रमणादिभि: ॥ १९ ॥
yaśodā-rohiṇībhyāṁ tāḥ samaṁ bālasya sarvataḥ rakṣāṁ vidadhire samyag go-puccha-bhramaṇādibhiḥ
Danach schwenkten Mutter Yaśodā und Rohiṇī zusammen mit den anderen älteren Gopīs den Schwanz einer Kuh, um dem Kind Śrī Kṛṣṇa vollen Schutz zu gewähren.
When Kṛṣṇa was saved from such a great danger, mother Yaśodā and Rohiṇī were principally concerned, and the other elderly gopīs, who were almost equally concerned, followed the activities of mother Yaśodā and Rohiṇī. Here we find that in household affairs, ladies could take charge of protecting a child simply by taking help from the cow. As described here, they knew how to wave about the switch of a cow so as to protect the child from all types of danger. There are so many facilities afforded by cow protection, but people have forgotten these arts. The importance of protecting cows is therefore stressed by Kṛṣṇa in Bhagavad-gītā ( kṛṣi-go-rakṣya-vāṇijyaṁ vaiśya-karma svabhāvajam ). Even now in the Indian villages surrounding Vṛndāvana, the villagers live happily simply by giving protection to the cow. They keep cow dung very carefully and dry it to use as fuel. They keep a sufficient stock of grains, and because of giving protection to the cows, they have sufficient milk and milk products to solve all economic problems. Simply by giving protection to the cow, the villagers live so peacefully. Even the urine and stool of cows have medicinal value.
FAQs
In this verse, the gopīs, along with Yaśodā and Rohiṇī, perform careful protective rites around the child—using auspicious acts like waving a cow’s tail fan—to guard Him from danger.
Because Vraja was facing hidden threats (notably the Pūtanā incident in this chapter), the elders and gopīs expressed their maternal devotion by doing traditional protective measures meant to ward off evil influences.
It highlights attentive care and loving responsibility: protect what is sacred and vulnerable in your life (children, family, spiritual practice) with sincerity, prayerful intention, and practical safeguards.