chapter 31 canto 10 THE SONG OF SEPARATION .....GOPIs sing

  

Canto 10

Je anilo

 

 

Chapter 31: The Songs of the Gopîs in Separation

(1) The gopîs said: 'Because of Your birth the land of Vraja is more and more glorious and the goddess of fortune resides there perpetually. Show Yourself, oh dear beloved, You for whom the devotees, who search for You everywhere, sustain their life breath. (2) Not being here, oh Finest of Grace, You, with the beauty of Your glance which excels the exquisite beauty of the heart of the lotus that so perfectly grew in the pond of autumn, put an end to the life of us, the maidservants who gave themselves to You without expecting anything in return, oh Lord of Love. Is that not murder? (3) Time and again, oh Greatest Personality, we have been protected by You against all that is fearsome: perishing by the water [of Kâliya, 10.16], by the demon [Agha, 10.12], by the rains, the storm and thunderbolts [of Indra, 10.25], and by the bull and the son of Maya [the incidents with Arishthâsura and Vyomâsura which S'uka discusses later]. (4) Oh Friend, You who appeared in the dynasty of the devotees [the Sâtvatas] are actually not the son of the gopî [Yas'odâ]. You, oh Lordship, are the seer, the inner consciousness of all embodied beings, oh You who appeared on the request of Brahmâ who was praying for the protection of the universe [see also 3.8: 16 and 10.14]. (5) You who took the hand of the goddess, oh best of the Vrishnis, made those fearless who, in the fear about their material existence, approached Your feet. Please, oh Lover, place as an answer to our desires Your lotus like hand on our heads. (6) Oh You who put an end to the suffering of the inhabitants of Vraja, oh Hero of the women who with His smile defeats the false smiles of the people, please oh Friend, accept us, Your eternal maidservants. Please show us Your beautiful lotus face. (7) Your lotus feet, which remove the sins of the embodied souls surrendered to You, which follow the cows grazing grass, which are the abode of the goddess and which stood on the hoods of the serpent, please put them on our breasts, and dispel the lust in our hearts. (8) Oh You with Your lotus eyes, because of Your sweet charming voice and words, which are so attractive to the intelligent souls, these maidservants, oh Hero, are getting bewildered. Please restore us to life with the nectar of Your lips. (9) The nectar of Your talks as described by the great thinkers, drive away the sins of the individual souls who suffer [in this material world]. Charged with spiritual power they are a blessing for everyone who hears them. Oh, how beneficent are the persons who with song spread those talks all over the world [*].

(10) We are happy to meditate on Your affectionate smiles full of divine love, Your glances and Your pastimes, but the intimate conversations, which go straight to our hearts, oh deceiver, agitate our minds! (11) When You leave Vraja to herd the animals, oh Master, it does not feel good, oh Lover, to think of Your feet being hurt by the sharp and hard grasses and sprouting plants, oh Master, those feet that are more beautiful than a lotus. (12) When You at the end of the day show again Your bluish black locks and Your lotus face, thickly covered with dust, You time and again bring Cupid to our minds, oh Hero. (13) Your lotus feet, which fulfill the desires of those bowing down to them and which are worshiped by the one born on the lotus [Brahmâ], are the ornament of the earth and the proper object to meditate in times of distress. Therefore please, oh Lover, oh Remover of the Anxiety, place Your feet, which grant the highest satisfaction, upon our breasts. (14) Sorrow ends and the pleasure of love increases by the vibrations of the flute that, so perfectly handled [by You], makes us forget the attachments to other persons. So please, oh hero, grant us the nectar of Your lips! (15) When You wander about the forest during the day, a single moment becomes like an eon for us not seeing Your curling locks of hair and Your beautiful face. How foolish is he [Brahmā] who created the eyelids of those looking at You! (16) Completely neglecting our husbands, children, ancestors, brothers a nd other relatives, we sought Your presence, oh Acyuta, oh You who know the reasons of our movements. Oh cheater, how could You in the dead of night abandon the women who were bewildered by the clear sound of Your flute? (17) By intimately chatting with You finding the lust rising in our hearts, by seeing Your smiling face, loving glances and Your broad chest that is the abode of the goddess, our minds so full of craving, time and again got bewildered. (18) For those living in the forests of Vraja Your so very, for each and all, auspicious appearance constitutes the destruction of their distress, oh dearest. Please grant us a bit of that medicine counteracting the disease in the hearts of Your devotees hankering for You. (19) Your so tender lotus feet we, oh beloved, place gently on our breasts, afraid that the forest You roam might be too rough for them. We who consider Your Lordship our very life, with restless minds are concerned that they do not suffer any harm from small pebbles and so on [see further the S'ikshâshthaka].