Verse Text
atra śiro-ghrāṇam, yathā śrī-daśame –
tad-īkṣaṇotprema-rasāplutāśayā
jātānurāgā gata-manyavo ’rbhakān |
uduhya dorbhiḥ parirabhya mūrdhani
ghrāṇair avāpuḥ paramāṁ mudaṁ te ||42||
Translation
Smelling His head, from the Tenth Canto: At that time, all the thoughts of the cowherd men merged in the mellow of paternal love, which was aroused by the sight of their sons. Experiencing a great attraction, their anger completely disappearing, they lifted their sons, embraced them in their arms and enjoyed the highest pleasure by smelling their sons’ heads. SB 10.13.33
Purport (Nectar of Devotion)
In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Tenth Canto, Thirteenth Chapter, verse 33, Śukadeva Gosvāmī tells King Parīkṣit, “My dear King, as soon as the elderly gopīs saw their sons coming, there was an inexpressible sign of parental love, and all of them became absorbed in affection. At first they were planning to chastise their sons for stealing butter, but as soon as the sons came before their eyes, they lost all of their angry attitudes and became overwhelmed with affection. They began to embrace their sons and smell their heads. While doing this, they became almost mad after their children.” In their childhood pastimes, all these cowherd boys joined with Kṛṣṇa in stealing butter.