Devanagari
एवं सुहृद्वच: श्रुत्वा सुहृत्प्रियचिकीर्षया ।
प्रहस्य जग्मतुर्गोपैर्वृतौ तालवनं प्रभू ॥ २७ ॥
Verse text
evaṁ suhṛd-vacaḥ śrutvā
suhṛt-priya-cikīrṣayā
prahasya jagmatur gopair
vṛtau tālavanaṁ prabhū
Synonyms
evam
—
thus
;
suhṛt
—
of Their friends
;
vacaḥ
—
the words
;
śrutvā
—
hearing
;
suhṛt
—
to Their friends
;
priya
—
pleasure
;
cikīrṣayā
—
desiring to give
;
prahasya
—
laughing
;
jagmatuḥ
—
the two of Them went
;
gopaiḥ
—
by the cowherd boys
;
vṛtau
—
surrounded
;
tāla
—
vanam — to the Tāla forest
;
prabhū
—
the two Lords .
Translation
Hearing the words of Their dear companions, Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma laughed and, desiring to please them, set off for the Tālavana surrounded by Their cowherd boyfriends.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Hearing the words of Their dear companions, Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma laughed and, desiring to please them, set off for the Tālavana surrounded by Their cowherd boyfriends.
KB 10.15.27
When Balarāma and Kṛṣṇa were thus petitioned by Their intimate friends, They were inclined to please them, and with smiling faces They proceeded toward the forest, surrounded by all Their friends.
Purport
Lord Kṛṣṇa was thinking, “How can a mere ass be so formidable?” And thus He smiled at the petition of His boyfriends. As stated by Lord Kapila in the
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
(3.28.32)
,
hāsaṁ harer avanatākhila-loka-tīvra-śokāśru-sāgara-viśoṣaṇam aty-udāram:
“The smile and laughter of the Supreme Lord Hari is most magnanimous. Indeed, for those who bow down to the Lord, His smile and laughter dry up the ocean of tears caused by the intense suffering of this world.” Thus, to encourage Their boyfriends, Lord Kṛṣṇa and Lord Balarāma smiled, laughed and immediately set out with them for the Tāla forest.
Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Krsna and Balarama laughed. "How can a donkey be so strong? That is impossible." Therefore they laughed loudly. Their friends must be telling a lie.
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
Surrounded by their friends, the two went to the forest. They showed their abilities (prabhū) to give joy to their friends.
Purport (Sanatana Goswami)
The two boys heard the words of Śrīdāma and others and desired to please their friends by broadcasting their glories. They laughed loudly because they heard the fearful descriptions of the boys. Or they laughed to remove the worry of the boys. Kapila says:
hāsaṁ harer avanatākhila-loka-tīvra-
śokāśru-sāgara-viśoṣaṇam atyudāram
sammohanāya racitaṁ nija-māyayāsya
bhrū-maṇḍalaṁ muni-kṛte makara-dhvajasya
One should meditate on the generous smile of the Lord which completely dries up the ocean of tears of intense grief in his devotees caused by separation. One should meditate on the Lord’s brow, manufactured by his own energy to bewilder Cupid for the benefit of the sages. SB 3.28.32
They were surrounded by the affectionate boys since the boys feared the demon would harm the boys. Another version has sārddham instead of vṛtau, with the same meaning. They showed their abilities (prabhū) in order to give the boys joy. Or as the lords of the boys (prabhū) they were suitable to please them.