Shloka 25

Nanda Mahārāja Celebrates Kṛṣṇa’s Birth; Vasudeva Warns of Danger

Devanagari script

नैकत्र प्रियसंवास: सुहृदां चित्रकर्मणाम् । ओघेन व्यूह्यमानानां प्लवानां स्रोतसो यथा ॥ २५ ॥

Transliteration

naikatra priya-saṁvāsaḥ suhṛdāṁ citra-karmaṇām oghena vyūhyamānānāṁ plavānāṁ srotaso yathā

Translation

നദിയുടെ ഒഴുക്കിൽ ഒഴുകുന്ന തടി കഷണങ്ങൾ ഒരുമിച്ച് നിലനിൽക്കാത്തതുപോലെ, വ്യത്യസ്ത കർമ്മങ്ങളും കാലത്തിന്റെ തരംഗങ്ങളും കാരണം സുഹൃത്തുക്കളും ബന്ധുക്കളും ഒരുമിച്ച് കഴിയാൻ കഴിയില്ല।

Synonyms

नnot

एकत्रin one place

प्रियसंवासःpleasant companionship; living together with loved ones

सुहृदाम्of friends

चित्रकर्मणाम्of those with varied activities/occupations

ओघेनby the flood; by the current

व्यूह्यमानानाम्of those being carried/borne along

प्लवानाम्of boats/rafts

स्रोतसःof the stream/current

यथाas; like

Purport

Vasudeva was lamenting because he and Nanda Mahārāja could not live together. Yet how could they live together? Vasudeva warns that all of us, even if intimately related, are carried away by the waves of time according to the results of past karma.

FAQs

What does the Srimad Bhagavatam say about the impermanence of friendships and association?

This verse explains that even loving friendship does not stay fixed; like boats moved by a river’s current, people are brought together and separated by circumstances and time.

Why does Śukadeva Gosvāmī use the example of boats in a river?

To show how external forces—like the river’s current—shift living beings’ meetings and partings, emphasizing that worldly arrangements are not fully under personal control.

What is the practical application of this teaching in modern life?

Value relationships without possessiveness: do your duties sincerely, stay devoted to Kṛṣṇa, and accept changes in association without bitterness, remembering time constantly rearranges life.