Site menuChapter 46: Uddhava Spends the Night in Gokula Talking with Nanda
(1)
S'rî
S'uka said: 'The best adviser to the Vrishnis was Krishna's
beloved friend Uddhava [see also 3.2],
a direct disciple of Brihaspati
of the finest
intelligence. (2)
To him, His dearmost,
unique devotee spoke some day the Supreme Lord Hari, who
removes the distress of the surrendered, taking his hand into
His. (3)
'Please Uddhava, o gentle
one, go for the satisfaction of My parents to Vraja and
relieve, by carrying My messages, the gopîs from
the mental pain of being separated from
Me. (4)
They absorbed in Me, with
their minds fixed on Me, made Me the purpose of their lives
abandoning everything physical [of husband, home and
children, see 10.29:
4]. Understanding
those who for My sake left behind this world and its moral
obligations, I sustain them who have Me alone as their beloved
and dearmost Self. (5)
The women of Gokula
remembering Me, their dearest object of love being far away, My
best, become stunned being overwhelmed by the anxiety of
separation [see also B.G. 2:
62-64]. (6)
The cowherd women fully
dedicated to Me, with My promises to return do with great
difficulty hold on, somehow keeping their lives
going.'
(7)
S'rî
S'uka said: 'With Him thus having spoken o King, accepted
Uddhava respectfully the message of his Sustainer, mounted he
his chariot and set he off to the cowherd village of
Nanda. (8)
Just as the sun was
setting reached the fortunate one Nanda's pastures, passing
unnoticed because of the dust of the hooves of the animals that
were coming home. (9-13)
With the sounds of the
bulls in rut fighting one another for the fertile ones, with
the cows with filled udders running after their own calves,
with the beauty of the white calves capering here and there and
with the milking and the loud reverberation of flutes, were the
finely ornamented gopîs and gopas,
auspiciously singing about the deeds of Balarâma and
Krishna, resplendent. It all was most attractive with the homes
of the gopas filled with incense, lamps and
flowergarlands for the worship of the fire, the sun, the
guests, the cows, the brahmins, the forefathers and the gods
[see also 10.24:
25 ]. The forest
on all sides flowering echoed of the swarms of bees, singing
birds and the kârandava ducks and the swans crowding
around the adorning bowers of lotuses.
(14)
With him having arrived
approached Nanda the dear follower of Krishna and embraced he
him happy to be of reverence with Lord Vâsudeva in his
mind. (15)
Having him fed with the
finest food, comfortably seated on a nice sofa to be relieved
of the fatigue and with his feet massaged and so on, inquired
he: (16)
'O dear and most
fortunate one, does our friend the son of S'ûra
[Vasudeva] who is so devoted to his well-wishers, fare
well now that he is released and has joined with his
children? (17)
What a luck that the
wicked Kamsa, who constantly hated the always righteous and
saintly Yadus, because of his sins together with his followers
has been killed! (18)
Is Krishna still thinking
of us, His mother, His well-wishers and friends, the
gopas of Vraja of whom He is the master, the cows,
Vrindâvana forest and the mountain [see
10.24:
25]? (19)
Is Govinda coming back to
see once more His folk so that we may glance upon His face, His
beautiful nose, His nice smile and
eyes? (20)
By Krishna, that so very
great Soul, were we protected against insurmountable mortal
dangers like a forest fire, the wind and rain, as also against
a bull and a
serpent. (21)
The memory of Krishna's
valorous deeds, playful sidelong glances, smiles and words, my
dear, made us all forget our material
concerns. (22)
With those who see the
locations where He played, the rivers, the hills and the
different parts of the forest that were decorated by His feet,
finds the mind total absorption in
Him. (23)
I think that Krishna and
Râma are, as confirmed by Garga [see 10.8:
12], of the
demigods the two most elevated on this planet, present here for
a great and holy, divine
cause. (24)
After all, have Kamsa,
who had the strength of ten thousand elephants, the wrestlers
and the king of the elephants playfully been killed by the both
of Them, as easy as animals are by the lion
king. (25)
A bow as solid as fifty
centimeters thick [three tâlas] was by Him
royal as an elephant broken like a stick and for seven days
held He with one hand up a
mountain! (26)
Pralamba, Dhenuka,
Arishtha, Trinâvarta, Baka and other demons who had
conquered both Sura and Asura were by Them out here killed with
ease.'
(27) S'rî S'uka said: 'Nanda thus remembering again and again, fully immersed in Krishna became extremely anxious and fell silent overcome by the force of his pure love. (28) Mother Yas'odâ overhearing the descriptions of her son's activities gave way to her tears while her breasts got wet from her love. (29) Seeing the two of them in this condition of their supreme attraction of love for the Supreme Lord spoke Uddhava ecstatically. (30) S'rî Uddhava said: 'The two of you are for sure, in your having developed a mentality like this for Nârâyana, the spiritual master of all, the most praiseworthy of all embodied beings in this world, o respectful one. (31) These two of Râma and Mukunda, indeed are the seed and the womb of the universe; They are the primeval Male Principle and His Creative Energy who accompany the living beings [confused] in all their diversity with knowledge and control. (32-33) That person who in his life divided within but for a moment immerses his mind [in Him] will at that time immediately eradicate all traces of karmic impurities and will head for the supreme destination in a spiritual form with the color of the sun. With your good selves giving Him, the Great Soul and Self that is the reason of existence of all, giving Him, Nârâyana, the Ultimate Cause in a mortal frame, by all means the utmost purest love, what good deeds then would there remain for you to perform? (34) In not too long a time will Acyuta, [as] the Lord Supreme, the Master and Protector of the Devotees, to give satisfaction to His parents, return to [the full vision within the people of] Vraja. (35) Having killed Kamsa, the enemy of all Yadus, in the arena, [and all other evil in the world...] will Krishna be true to that what He told you of His turning back. (36) Please do not falter o most fortunate ones, you will see Krishna in the near future; He is present within the hearts of all living beings like fire in firewood. (37) In reality there is no one especially dear or not dear to Him, nor does He, free from false pride being of the same respect for all, hold anyone superior or inferior [compare S'rî S'rî S'ikshâshthaka and B.G. 9: 29]. (38) For Him there is no father and no mother, no wife, no children and so forth; no one is related to Him, nor is anyone an outsider and there is no [material] body or birth of Him either [compare 10: 3]. (39) For Him there is no karma in this world to appear in wombs pure or impure or mixed and yet for the sake of pastimes He appears in order to redeem His saintly devotees [see B.G. 3: 22; 4: 7; 13: 22]. (40) Though being beyond the modes called goodness, passion and ignorance accepts He it, being transcendental, to play by the modes, thus is He, as the Unborn One, of creation, maintenance and destruction. (41) Just as in one's vision when one whirls around, the ground seems to be whirling, so too seems, when one thinks of oneself as being the body, the self to be the doer, while it is the mind that is acting [compare B.G. 3: 27]. (42) He is not the son of the two of you alone, He is the Supreme Lord Hari who is the son, the very self, the father ànd the mother; He is the Lord of Control. (43) What is seen or heard, what is in the past, the present or in the future; what is stationary, mobile, large or small can in no way said to be a thing apart from Acyuta; He alone, manifesting as the Supersoul, is everything.'
(44) As Nanda and Krishna's servant were thus speaking ran the night to an end, o King, lighted the women rising from sleep lamps in worship before their deities and began they to churn the butter. (45) In the light of the lamps pulling the ropes, with the rows of bangles on their arms, with their jewels and with their faces red of the kunkum glowing of their earrings and necklaces, shone the women while their hips and breasts were moving. (46) As the women of Vraja with their eyes like lotuses with the reverberation of their loud singing that was mixed with the sounds of churning for the butter were touching the sky, was all inauspiciousness in every direction dispelled. (47) When the supreme master of the sun rose saw the residents of Gokula the golden chariot outside the house of Nanda and wondered they 'To whom does it belong? (48) Maybe Akrûra has come, that agent to the purpose of Kamsa by whom Krishna with His lotus eyes was brought to Mathurâ. (49) Would he then, with his master satisfied, be here to celebrate the death rituals with us?' And while the women were thus speaking came there Uddhava who had finished his morning duties.'
(27) S'rî S'uka said: 'Nanda thus remembering again and again, fully immersed in Krishna became extremely anxious and fell silent overcome by the force of his pure love. (28) Mother Yas'odâ overhearing the descriptions of her son's activities gave way to her tears while her breasts got wet from her love. (29) Seeing the two of them in this condition of their supreme attraction of love for the Supreme Lord spoke Uddhava ecstatically. (30) S'rî Uddhava said: 'The two of you are for sure, in your having developed a mentality like this for Nârâyana, the spiritual master of all, the most praiseworthy of all embodied beings in this world, o respectful one. (31) These two of Râma and Mukunda, indeed are the seed and the womb of the universe; They are the primeval Male Principle and His Creative Energy who accompany the living beings [confused] in all their diversity with knowledge and control. (32-33) That person who in his life divided within but for a moment immerses his mind [in Him] will at that time immediately eradicate all traces of karmic impurities and will head for the supreme destination in a spiritual form with the color of the sun. With your good selves giving Him, the Great Soul and Self that is the reason of existence of all, giving Him, Nârâyana, the Ultimate Cause in a mortal frame, by all means the utmost purest love, what good deeds then would there remain for you to perform? (34) In not too long a time will Acyuta, [as] the Lord Supreme, the Master and Protector of the Devotees, to give satisfaction to His parents, return to [the full vision within the people of] Vraja. (35) Having killed Kamsa, the enemy of all Yadus, in the arena, [and all other evil in the world...] will Krishna be true to that what He told you of His turning back. (36) Please do not falter o most fortunate ones, you will see Krishna in the near future; He is present within the hearts of all living beings like fire in firewood. (37) In reality there is no one especially dear or not dear to Him, nor does He, free from false pride being of the same respect for all, hold anyone superior or inferior [compare S'rî S'rî S'ikshâshthaka and B.G. 9: 29]. (38) For Him there is no father and no mother, no wife, no children and so forth; no one is related to Him, nor is anyone an outsider and there is no [material] body or birth of Him either [compare 10: 3]. (39) For Him there is no karma in this world to appear in wombs pure or impure or mixed and yet for the sake of pastimes He appears in order to redeem His saintly devotees [see B.G. 3: 22; 4: 7; 13: 22]. (40) Though being beyond the modes called goodness, passion and ignorance accepts He it, being transcendental, to play by the modes, thus is He, as the Unborn One, of creation, maintenance and destruction. (41) Just as in one's vision when one whirls around, the ground seems to be whirling, so too seems, when one thinks of oneself as being the body, the self to be the doer, while it is the mind that is acting [compare B.G. 3: 27]. (42) He is not the son of the two of you alone, He is the Supreme Lord Hari who is the son, the very self, the father ànd the mother; He is the Lord of Control. (43) What is seen or heard, what is in the past, the present or in the future; what is stationary, mobile, large or small can in no way said to be a thing apart from Acyuta; He alone, manifesting as the Supersoul, is everything.'
(44) As Nanda and Krishna's servant were thus speaking ran the night to an end, o King, lighted the women rising from sleep lamps in worship before their deities and began they to churn the butter. (45) In the light of the lamps pulling the ropes, with the rows of bangles on their arms, with their jewels and with their faces red of the kunkum glowing of their earrings and necklaces, shone the women while their hips and breasts were moving. (46) As the women of Vraja with their eyes like lotuses with the reverberation of their loud singing that was mixed with the sounds of churning for the butter were touching the sky, was all inauspiciousness in every direction dispelled. (47) When the supreme master of the sun rose saw the residents of Gokula the golden chariot outside the house of Nanda and wondered they 'To whom does it belong? (48) Maybe Akrûra has come, that agent to the purpose of Kamsa by whom Krishna with His lotus eyes was brought to Mathurâ. (49) Would he then, with his master satisfied, be here to celebrate the death rituals with us?' And while the women were thus speaking came there Uddhava who had finished his morning duties.'
