Shloka 13

अक्रूर-सत्कारः, मथुरायात्रा-विरहः, यमुनातटे दिव्यदर्शनम्, चतुर्व्यूह-नमस्कारः

Devanagari script

दृष्ट्वा गोपीजनः सास्रः श्लथद्वलयबाहुकः निशश्वासातिदुःखार्तः प्राह चेदं परस्परम्

Transliteration

dṛṣṭvā gopījanaḥ sāsraḥ ślathadvalayabāhukaḥ niśaśvāsātiduḥkhārtaḥ prāha cedaṃ parasparam

Translation

Seeing one another, the band of gopīs—eyes brimming with tears, bangles loosened upon their arms, and hearts overwhelmed by grief and heavy sighs—began to speak among themselves.

Word by Word

• दृष्ट्वा: having seen
• दृष्ट्वा: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (Gerund/Absolutive), धातु: दृश्, अर्थे: ‘दृष्ट्वा’ = having seen

• गोपीजनः: the group of cowherd women
• गोपीजनः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गोपी (प्रातिपदिक) + जन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (गोपीणां जनः)

• सास्रः: tearful
• सास्रः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सास्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (स-अश्र = with tears)

• श्लथद्वलयबाहुकः: whose armlets had become loose (on the arms)
• श्लथद्वलयबाहुकः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: श्लथ (प्रातिपदिक) + वलय (प्रातिपदिक) + बाहुक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (श्लथानि वलयानि यस्य बाहुकाः/बाहवः)

• निशश्वासातिदुःखार्तः: afflicted with extreme sorrow, sighing
• निशश्वासातिदुःखार्तः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निशश्वास (प्रातिपदिक) + अति (अव्यय/उपसर्गभाव) + दुःख (प्रातिपदिक) + आर्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (अतिदुःखेन आर्तः; निशश्वास-सम्बद्धः)

• प्राह: said
• प्राह: Kriyā (Main verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + अह् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्; धातु: अह् ‘to say’

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• इदम्: this
• इदम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• परस्परम्: to one another
• परस्परम्: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: परस्पर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb) ‘mutually/to one another’

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya); within the narrative, the gopīs begin speaking to each other.

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: Krishna proceeds toward Mathurā as part of his divine mission to remove oppressive adharma and fulfill destiny.

Leela: Moksha-dana

Dharma Restored: Sustaining bhakti through viraha (separation) that intensifies surrender.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Bhakti Type: Madhurya

Characters & Entities

• Gopis (cowherd women)

FAQs

What is the significance of the gopīs’ tears and loosened bangles in the Vishnu Purana?

They are classic signs of viraha (love-in-separation), showing how devotion to Krishna (Vishnu) transforms the whole being—mind, breath, and body—into remembrance.

How does Sage Parāśara frame the gopīs’ grief in the dialogue with Maitreya?

Parāśara narrates their collective condition as a devotional crisis—sorrow expressed through breath and tears—before introducing their spoken reflections, which carry the theological and emotional meaning of Krishna’s līlā.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu (as Krishna) in this context?

Krishna’s apparent absence intensifies bhakti: the Supreme Lord, while complete in Himself, draws devotees into deeper surrender through longing, making separation itself a vehicle of realization.