Shloka 32
अक्रूर-सत्कारः, मथुरायात्रा-विरहः, यमुनातटे दिव्यदर्शनम्, चतुर्व्यूह-नमस्कारः
इत्य् एवम् अतिहार्देन गोपीजननिरीक्षितः तत्याज व्रजभूभागं सह रामेण केशवः
ity evam atihārdena gopījananirīkṣitaḥ tatyāja vrajabhūbhāgaṃ saha rāmeṇa keśavaḥ
Thus, watched by the gopīs with hearts overwhelmed by tender anguish, Keśava left the land of Vraja, accompanied by Rāma (Balarāma).
Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)
Avatara: Krishna
Purpose: Krishna leaves Vraja with Balarāma to proceed to Mathurā, where He will confront and remove adharma while deepening the devotees’ prema through separation.
Leela: Loka-rakshana
Dharma Restored: Protection of the Yādavas and re-establishment of righteous rule by removing Kaṃsa and his oppressive order.
Concept: The Supreme Lord may depart outwardly, yet His lordship and grace remain the ground of devotees’ experience, with viraha itself becoming a sanctifying force.
Vedantic Theme: Brahman
Application: Hold together theology and emotion: acknowledge grief, but stabilize it with mantra and the conviction of the Lord’s abiding sovereignty and nearness.
Vishishtadvaita: Explicitly identifying Keśava as the Supreme Lord aligns intimate līlā with Para-Brahman doctrine—Bhagavān is both transcendent (supreme) and relational (accessible in Vraja).
Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman
Bhakti Type: Madhurya
Jagat Karana: Yes
FAQs
It marks a pivotal shift from pastoral līlā to the Lord’s wider dharmic mission, while elevating the gopīs’ separation (viraha) as an intense form of devotion.
He frames their gaze as “atihārda”—an overflow of tender pain—showing that bhakti can be expressed as longing when the Lord withdraws His visible presence.
“Keśava” signals Krishna’s identity as Vishnu Himself—Supreme and sovereign—whose human-like departure is a deliberate līlā, not a limitation of divinity.