Shloka 20
Uddhava Meets the Gopīs: Bhramara-gītā and Kṛṣṇa’s Message of Separation
प्रियसख पुनरागा: प्रेयसा प्रेषित: किं वरय किमनुरुन्धे माननीयोऽसि मेऽङ्ग । नयसि कथमिहास्मान् दुस्त्यजद्वन्द्वपार्श्वं सततमुरसि सौम्य श्रीर्वधू: साकमास्ते ॥ २० ॥
priya-sakha punar āgāḥ preyasā preṣitaḥ kiṁ varaya kim anurundhe mānanīyo ’si me ’ṅga nayasi katham ihāsmān dustyaja-dvandva-pārśvaṁ satatam urasi saumya śrīr vadhūḥ sākam āste
Wahai sahabat kepada kekasihku, adakah engkau datang lagi? Adakah yang tercinta mengutusmu? Sahabat, engkau wajar dihormati—pilihlah anugerah apa pun yang kau mahu. Namun mengapa engkau kembali untuk membawa kami kepada Dia yang kasih suami-isterinya sukar ditinggalkan? Wahai lebah yang lembut, di dada-Nya sentiasa bersemayam Dewi Śrī, permaisuri-Nya.
In Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Śrīla Prabhupāda explains the context of this verse: “While Rādhārāṇī was talking with the bee and the bee was flying hither and thither, it all of a sudden disappeared from Her sight. She was in full mourning due to separation from Kṛṣṇa and felt ecstasy by talking with the bee. But as soon as the bee disappeared, She became almost mad, thinking that the messenger-bee might have returned to Kṛṣṇa to inform Him all about Her talking against Him. ‘Kṛṣṇa must be very sorry to hear it,’ She thought. In this way She was overwhelmed by another type of ecstasy.
FAQs
In this verse Rādhā addresses Uddhava, asking whether Kṛṣṇa has sent him and what message he brings, while expressing the gopīs’ intense attachment to Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet and highlighting that Lakṣmī eternally resides on His chest—showing both Kṛṣṇa’s majesty and the gopīs’ intimate, exclusive love.
She contrasts Kṛṣṇa’s royal, divine opulence—where Lakṣmī is always with Him in Dvārakā/Vaikuṇṭha mood—with the gopīs’ desperate longing in separation, implying that it seems impossible for them to be brought to Him when He is surrounded by such eternal fortune and honor.
By keeping the mind steadily connected to Kṛṣṇa through remembrance, chanting, and service even when one feels distance or difficulty—turning longing into focused practice rather than distraction.