Shloka 18

Hari’s Boon to Muchukunda, Security of the Yādus, and Balarāma’s Consolation in Vraja

Viraha-Bhakti

Devanagari script

दामोदरः स गोविन्दः पुरस्त्रीसक्तमानसः अपेतप्रीतिर् अस्मासु दुर्दर्शः प्रतिभाति नः

Transliteration

dāmodaraḥ sa govindaḥ purastrīsaktamānasaḥ apetaprītir asmāsu durdarśaḥ pratibhāti naḥ

Translation

That very Dāmodara—Govinda—whose mind is now captivated by the women of the city, seems to have withdrawn his former affection for us; to us he appears distant, hard to behold.

Word by Word

• दामोदरः: Damodara
• दामोदरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दामोदर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Co-referent subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• गोविन्दः: Govinda
• गोविन्दः: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गोविन्द (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• पुर: formerly, earlier
• पुर: Sambandha (Qualifier/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुरस् (अव्यय/उपसर्गवत्)
• Form: अव्यय; पूर्व/पुरः-भावे (adverbial preverb meaning 'formerly/before')

• स्त्री: woman
• स्त्री: —
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्त्री (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; (समासाङ्ग) प्रातिपदिक

• सक्त: attached, devoted
• सक्त: —
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सञ्ज् (धातु) + क्त (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past participle) 'attached'; (समासाङ्ग)

• मानसः: mind
• मानसः: Karta (Predicate nominal/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मानस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; (समासान्त)

• पुरस्त्रीसक्तमानसः: whose mind was formerly attached to women
• पुरस्त्रीसक्तमानसः: Karta (Qualifier of subject/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुरस् (अव्यय) + स्त्री (प्रातिपदिक) + सक्त (सञ्ज्+क्त) + मानस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः: 'पुरा स्त्रीषु सक्तं मानसं यस्य' (mind attached to women formerly)

• अपेत: departed, gone
• अपेत: —
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अप + इ (धातु) + क्त (कृत्)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त; 'gone away, departed' (समासाङ्ग)

• प्रीतिः: affection, love
• प्रीतिः: Karta (Predicate nominal/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रीति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अपेतप्रीतिः: whose affection has gone away
• अपेतप्रीतिः: Karta (Qualifier of subject/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अपेत (अप+इ+क्त) + प्रीति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः: 'अपेता प्रीतिः यस्य' (one whose affection has departed)

• अस्मासु: among us, towards us
• अस्मासु: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उभयलिङ्ग; सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), बहुवचन

• दुर्दर्शः: hard to see, difficult to meet
• दुर्दर्शः: Karta (Predicate adjective/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दुर्दर्श (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• प्रतिभाति: appears, seems
• प्रतिभाति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्रति + भा (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार; परस्मैपद; प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन

• नः: to us
• नः: Sampradana (To/for us/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी/चतुर्थी-एकवचन बहुवचनार्थे (enclitic); here दत्तिवत्/सम्प्रदानार्थे: 'to us/for us'

Speaker

The gopīs of Vraja (cowherd maidens), expressing viraha (love-in-separation) about Krishna

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: To draw souls into loving surrender by enchanting līlā, while ultimately re-establishing dharma through the removal of adharma-bearing powers.

Leela: Madhurya

Dharma Restored: The primacy of single-minded devotion over worldly attachment, revealed through the gopīs’ viraha.

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The devotee’s love interprets the Lord’s apparent distance as loss of affection, intensifying exclusive dependence on him.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: When spiritual dryness arises, do not conclude abandonment; use the pain to deepen remembrance and exclusive refuge (śaraṇāgati).

Vishishtadvaita: Personal Lord (Bhagavān) engages in relational līlā; the jīva’s qualified dependence is expressed as felt separation, not impersonal abstraction.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Bhakti Type: Madhurya

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu
• Krishna (Dāmodara/Govinda)
• Vraja
• Mathurā (implied as ‘city’)

FAQs

What is the significance of the gopīs’ lament in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse frames viraha-bhakti: the gopīs interpret Krishna’s absence as a loss of visible grace, yet their longing keeps the Supreme (Govinda) constantly present in remembrance.

How does Sage Parāśara explain devotion through separation in this narrative?

Through the Vraja episode, the text shows that when the Lord seems ‘durdarśa’ (hard to behold), the devotee’s attachment is purified into unwavering contemplation—an intensified form of bhakti.

What is the theological importance of calling Krishna “Dāmodara” and “Govinda” here?

The names bind intimacy and supremacy together: Dāmodara signals the Lord who allows himself to be ‘bound’ by love, while Govinda affirms him as the sovereign sustainer—Vishnu manifest in approachable, personal līlā.