Devanagari
न चैवं विस्मय: कार्यो भवता भगवत्यजे
योगेश्वरेश्वरे कृष्णे यत एतद् विमुच्यते ॥ १६ ॥
Verse text
na caivaṁ vismayaḥ kāryo
bhavatā bhagavaty aje
yogeśvareśvare kṛṣṇe
yata etad vimucyate
Synonyms
na ca
—
nor
;
evam
—
like this
;
vismayaḥ
—
astonishment
;
kāryaḥ
—
should be had
;
bhavatā
—
by you
;
bhagavati
—
in regard to the Supreme Personality of Godhead
;
aje
—
who is unborn
;
yoga
—
īśvara — of the masters of yoga
;
īśvare
—
the ultimate master
;
kṛṣṇe
—
Lord Kṛṣṇa
;
yataḥ
—
by whom
;
etat
—
this (world)
;
vimucyate
—
becomes liberated .
Translation
You should not be so astonished by Kṛṣṇa, the unborn master of all masters of mystic power, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. After all, it is the Lord who liberates this world.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
You should not be so astonished by Kṛṣṇa, the unborn master of all masters of mystic power, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. After all, it is the Lord who liberates this world.
KB 10.29.16
Śukadeva Gosvāmī therefore assured King Parīkṣit that he should always rest assured that one who is attracted by Kṛṣṇa attains liberation from material bondage because Kṛṣṇa is the transcendental master of all mystic power.
Purport
Parīkṣit Mahārāja should not have been so astonished that Lord Kṛṣṇa’s so-called romantic affairs are in fact meant to liberate the entire universe. After all, that is the Lord’s purpose — to bring all conditioned souls back home, back to Godhead, for an eternal life of bliss and knowledge. The Lord’s conjugal affairs with the
gopīs
fit in very nicely with that program because we who are actually lusty in material consciousness can be purified and liberated by hearing of them.
In the First Canto of
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
(1.5.33)
, Nārada Muni states:
āmayo yaś ca bhūtānāṁ
jāyate yena su-vrata
tad eva hy āmayaṁ dravyaṁ
na punāti cikitsitam
“O good soul, does not a thing applied therapeutically cure a disease that was caused by that very same thing?” Thus Kṛṣṇa’s romantic affairs, being pure, spiritual activities, will cure those who hear about them of the disease of material lust.
Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Though this may be astonishing to others, it should not be astonishing for you, who from the wom,b had knowledge of Krsna’s greatness. Though he is a cowherd boy, he is bhagavan, though he is the son of Devaki, he is unborn (aja), though he flirts with the damsels of Vraja, he is the lord of masters of yoga. For Krsna, the source of all avataras, there is nothing astonishing if he liberates all moving and non moving entities (yad etat) (Sridhara swami’s commentary).
Or etat vimucyate can also mean that he liberates not only those participating in the pastimes, but also others in this world who now show kama, sneha as mentioned in the previous verse..
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
Others may be astonished, but you should not be, since from the time in the womb you have known the glories of the Lord. Śukadeva uses the word bhavatā out of respect. The reason why there should be no astonishment is given. He is endowed with unlimited qualities (bhagavati). “How then was he born in the womb of Devakī?” He is actually unborn. He is not born like the jīvas but by his own will, out of affection for his devotees. Because he is endowed with all powers he is the master of all masters of yoga. Among the different forms, Kṛṣṇa, the complete manifestation of all qualities, has made his appearance.
Purport (Sanatana Goswami)
Others may be astonished, but you should not be, since from the time in the womb you have known the glories of the Lord. Śukadeva uses the word bhavatā out of respect. The reason why there should be no astonishment is given. He is endowed with unlimited qualities (bhagavati). “How then was he born in the womb of Devakī?” He is actually unborn. He is not born like the jīvas but by his own will, out of affection for his devotees. Because he is endowed with all powers he is the master of all masters of yoga. Among the different forms, Kṛṣṇa, the complete manifestation of all qualities, has made his appearance.
“Then how does he appear to be the son of Devakī?” He is the lord of lords who are able to easily to what is most difficult to do (yogeśvareśvare). Appearing by his own will, by his special śakti, he becomes the son of Devakī. It is because of his acintya-śakti, because he is Kṛṣṇa, parabrahman in human form, or because he is famous as the ocean of sweetness with inconceivable, infinite glories. Or he is the supreme Lord (bhagavate), without material birth like jīvas (aje). He appears by his mercy. Therefore he is the lord of the bhakti-yogīs like Nārada, to be served with devotion, since he is a special manifestioan of bhakti.
Or he is the lord of those having great, astonishing powers, since he displays the most astonishing, unlimited powers. And still he is Kṛṣṇa, the joy of Gokula. Because of him (yataḥ) this world of moving and nonmoving beings, though without sādhana, just by his will, by some relationship, is especially liberated—they attain Vaikuṇṭha. This indicates that the trees and creepers of places like Indraprastha would attain Vaikuṇṭha. Kuntī says:
ime jana-padāḥ svṛddhāḥ supakvauṣadhi-vīrudhaḥ |
vanādri-nady-udanvanto hy edhante tava vīkṣitaiḥ ||
This thriving land, filled with ripe herbs and fruit-laden trees, forests, mountains and rivers, has grown prosperous by your glance. SB 1.8.40
The word suvṛddhāḥ (ever increasing) indicates that they were qualified for Vaikuṇtha.
Or “Since it is very difficult to attain the Lord by sacrifices, yoga and other processes, how can he be attained just by lust or hate?” Nothing is astonishing for the Lord. Even liberated souls should not reject hearing about the rāsa dance, thinking it is filled with material lust.
Rather the topic is honored at all times as the highest result by devotees for attaining the highest perfection. This confirms the conclusion previously stated on this topic.
Or because of good fortune as gopīs of Kṛṣṇa, these gopīs, destroying all obstacles, in that body immediately attained Kṛṣṇa’s association and the rāsa dance. Placed in their houses by their husbands, being bound by ropes (Verse 9) they were not able to leave. Thinking of participating with Kṛṣṇa in the rāsa dance, they destroyed their bondage of ropes by the power of meditation. By meditation they gave up their bodies bound with ropes by their husbands (guṇamaya). They each thought, “I am not bound up, but free.” Giving up bodies refers to giving up ways of thinking as in the case of Brahmā giving up various bodies at the time of creation. By meditation they freed themselves from the ropes or from the locked doors. In this sense, they gave up their bound up bodies. They then associated with the son of Nanda, though he was also Paramātmā, because of thinking of him as their illicit lover (jarā-buddhyā). Or because he was most dear (paramātmānam) they thought of him as their lover. Otherwise they could not realize him as most dear. This was accomplsiedh by the power of meditation. They made the suffering of material existence insignificant by the intense, intolerable pain of separation and they made the happiness of material existence insiginificant by the happiness of Kṛṣṇa’s embrace.
yā mayā krīḍatā rātryāṁ vane ’smin vraja āsthitāḥ
alabdha-rāsāḥ kalyāṇyo māpur mad-vīrya-cintayā
O fortunate ladies! Although some gopīs had to remain in the cowherd village and so could not join the rāsa dance to sport with me at night in the forest, they attained me by thinking of my potent pastimes. SB 10.47.37
The meaning of the above verse is this. They remained in Vraja (āsthitāḥ) because they were tied up by their husbands. Still by the power of thinking of me, they attained the rāsa dance.
Parīkṣit then asks, “How did they give up the bondage of ropes (gunoparama) by thinking of Kṛṣṇa as their lover with qualities, not being beyond qualities? Śukadeva answers. Just as by meditation one becomes free from the bondage of saṁsāra, by special meditation the gopīs became free from the bondage of ropes. What can be said? Even those who hate the Lord can attain their goals.