Shloka 5

Gopī-Vipralambha: The Search for Kṛṣṇa and the Revelation of Divine Footprints

Devanagari script

द‍ृष्टो व: कच्चिदश्वत्थ प्लक्ष न्यग्रोध नो मन: । नन्दसूनुर्गतो हृत्वा प्रेमहासावलोकनै: ॥ ५ ॥

Transliteration

dṛṣṭo vaḥ kaccid aśvattha plakṣa nyagrodha no manaḥ nanda-sūnur gato hṛtvā prema-hāsāvalokanaiḥ

Translation

¡Oh aśvattha, oh plakṣa, oh nyagrodha! ¿Habéis visto a Kṛṣṇa? El hijo de Nanda Mahārāja se ha ido tras robarnos la mente con sus sonrisas y miradas amorosas.

Synonyms

• dṛṣṭaḥ: seen (was he seen?)
• dṛṣṭaḥ: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु) → dṛṣṭa (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकाले क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (Past passive participle/क्त), पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; भावे/कर्मणि प्रयोगः—‘seen?’ (elliptic)

• vaḥ: by you / for you
• vaḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive) वा चतुर्थी (4th/Dative) बहुवचन; अत्र ‘you (pl.)’ संबोधनार्थे/सम्बन्धे

• kaccit: whether/indeed?
• kaccit: Prashna-nipata (प्रश्न-निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kaccit (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रश्नार्थक निपात (Interrogative particle)

• aśvattha: O aśvattha tree
• aśvattha: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aśvattha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative/सम्बोधन), एकवचन

• plakṣa: O plakṣa tree
• plakṣa: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: plakṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन

• nyagrodha: O banyan (nyagrodha)
• nyagrodha: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nyagrodha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन

• naḥ: our
• naḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, षष्ठी (Genitive) बहुवचन; ‘our’

• manaḥ: mind/heart
• manaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: manas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• nanda-sūnuḥ: Nanda’s son
• nanda-sūnuḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nanda (प्रातिपदिक) + sūnu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (Genitive tatpuruṣa): ‘नन्दस्य सूनुः’; पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• gataḥ: has gone
• gataḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु) → gata (कृदन्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (Past participle), पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘gone’

• hṛtvā: having taken away
• hṛtvā: Purvakala-kriya (पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: hṛ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (Gerund/क्त्वा), ‘having taken/stealing’

• prema-hāsa-avalokanaiḥ: by loving smiles and glances
• prema-hāsa-avalokanaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prema (प्रातिपदिक) + hāsa (प्रातिपदिक) + avalokana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समाहार/निर्देशार्थ बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः (determinative chain): ‘प्रेम्णा सह हासः’ + ‘हासेन अवलोकनम्’; नपुंसकलिङ्ग (avalokana), तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन

Characters & Entities

• Krishna
• Nanda
• Gopis

FAQs

What does the Srimad Bhagavatam say about the gopīs searching for Kṛṣṇa?

This verse shows the gopīs’ intense longing: they address even the trees as witnesses, asking if Kṛṣṇa has passed by, because His loving smiles and glances have ‘stolen’ their hearts.

Why do the gopīs speak to trees like aśvattha, plakṣa, and nyagrodha?

Overwhelmed by separation, they see all of Vraja as connected to Kṛṣṇa’s līlā and ask nature itself for guidance, revealing their single-minded absorption in Him.

Practical application of vipralambha-bhakti (devotion in separation) in modern life?

Channel feelings of absence into remembrance—hearing, chanting, and reflecting on the Lord’s qualities—so longing deepens devotion rather than turning into despair.