Shloka 2

Dāmodara-līlā: Mother Yaśodā Binds Kṛṣṇa; the Two-Fingers Mystery; Prelude to the Yamala-Arjuna Deliverance

Devanagari script

श्रीशुक उवाच एकदा गृहदासीषु यशोदा नन्दगेहिनी । कर्मान्तरनियुक्तासु निर्ममन्थ स्वयं दधि ॥ १ ॥ यानि यानीह गीतानि तद्बालचरितानि च । दधिनिर्मन्थने काले स्मरन्ती तान्यगायत ॥ २ ॥

Transliteration

śrī-śuka uvāca ekadā gṛha-dāsīṣu yaśodā nanda-gehinī karmāntara-niyuktāsu nirmamantha svayaṁ dadhi

Translation

Śrī Śukadeva fuhr fort: Eines Tages, als Mutter Yaśodā, die Hausfrau Nandas, sah, dass die Dienerinnen mit anderen Arbeiten beschäftigt waren, begann sie selbst, den Joghurt zu buttern. Während des Butterns erinnerte sie sich an Kṛṣṇas kindliche Spiele, dichtete nach ihrer Art Lieder und sang sie voller Wonne vor sich hin.

Synonyms

यानिwhich

यानिwhatever

इहhere

गीतानिsongs

तत्that (his)

बालचरितानिchildhood deeds

चand

दधिनिर्मन्थनेduring the churning of curd

कालेat the time

स्मरन्तीremembering

तानिthose

अगायत्sang

Purport

Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura, quoting from the Vaiṣṇava-toṣaṇī of Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī, says that the incident of Kṛṣṇa’s breaking the pot of yogurt and being bound by mother Yaśodā took place on the Dīpāvalī Day, or Dīpa-mālikā. Even today in India, this festival is generally celebrated very gorgeously in the month of Kārtika by fireworks and lights, especially in Bombay. It is to be understood that among all the cows of Nanda Mahārāja, several of mother Yaśodā’s cows ate only grasses so flavorful that the grasses would automatically flavor the milk. Mother Yaśodā wanted to collect the milk from these cows, make it into yogurt and churn it into butter personally, since she thought that this child Kṛṣṇa was going to the houses of neighborhood gopas and gopīs to steal butter because He did not like the milk and yogurt ordinarily prepared.

Characters & Entities

Śukadeva Gosvāmī

Mother Yaśodā

Nanda Mahārāja

Kṛṣṇa

FAQs

What does the Srimad Bhagavatam say about remembering Krishna while doing household work?

This verse shows Mother Yaśodā churning yogurt while remembering Kṛṣṇa’s childhood deeds and singing about Him—teaching that daily duties can become bhakti when joined with smaraṇa (remembrance) and kīrtana (singing).

Why is Mother Yaśodā personally churning yogurt in Canto 10 Chapter 9?

With the servants occupied elsewhere, Yaśodā herself churns—setting the intimate Vraja scene where her parental love naturally expresses itself through singing Kṛṣṇa’s bāla-līlā, leading into the Dāmodara pastime.

Practical application: how can I apply Yaśodā’s mood in modern life?

While doing routine tasks, consciously recall Kṛṣṇa’s names and pastimes—listen to or sing bhajans, or mentally repeat the holy name—so work becomes an offering rather than a distraction.