Devanagari
गोप्युवाच
मधुप कितवबन्धो मा स्पृशाङ्घ्रिं सपत्न्या:
कुचविलुलितमालाकुङ्कुमश्मश्रुभिर्न: ।
वहतु मधुपतिस्तन्मानिनीनां प्रसादं
यदुसदसि विडम्ब्यं यस्य दूतस्त्वमीदृक् ॥ १२ ॥
Verse text
gopy uvāca
madhupa kitava-bandho mā spṛśaṅghriṁ sapatnyāḥ
kuca-vilulita-mālā-kuṅkuma-śmaśrubhir naḥ
vahatu madhu-patis tan-māninīnāṁ prasādaṁ
yadu-sadasi viḍambyaṁ yasya dūtas tvam īdṛk
Synonyms
gopī uvāca
—
the gopī said
;
madhupa
—
O bumblebee
;
kitava
—
of a cheater
;
bandho
—
O friend
;
mā spṛśa
—
please do not touch
;
aṅghrim
—
the feet
;
sapatnyāḥ
—
of the lover who is our rival
;
kuca
—
the breast
;
vilulita
—
fallen from
;
mālā
—
from the garland
;
kuṅkuma
—
with the red cosmetic
;
śmaśrubhiḥ
—
with the whiskers
;
naḥ
—
our
;
vahatu
—
let Him bring
;
madhu
—
patiḥ — the Lord of the Madhu dynasty
;
tat
—
His
;
māninīnām
—
to the women
;
prasādam
—
mercy or kindness
;
yadu
—
sadasi — in the royal assembly of the Yadus
;
viḍambyam
—
an object of ridicule or contempt
;
yasya
—
whose
;
dūtaḥ
—
messenger
;
tvam
—
you
;
īdṛk
—
such .
Translation
The gopī said: O honeybee, O friend of a cheater, don’t touch My feet with your whiskers, which are smeared with the kuṅkuma that rubbed onto Kṛṣṇa’s garland when it was crushed by the breasts of a rival lover! Let Kṛṣṇa satisfy the women of Mathurā. One who sends a messenger like you will certainly be ridiculed in the Yadus’ assembly.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
The gopī said: O honeybee, O friend of a cheater, don't touch My feet with your whiskers, which are smeared with the kuṅkuma that rubbed onto Kṛṣṇa's garland when it was crushed by the breasts of a rival lover! Let Kṛṣṇa satisfy the women of Mathurā. One who sends a messenger like you will certainly be ridiculed in the Yadus' assembly.
KB 10.47.12
“Bumblebee, you are accustomed to drinking honey from flower to flower, and therefore you have preferred to be a messenger of Kṛṣṇa, who is of the same nature as you. I can see on your mustaches the red powder of kuṅkuma which was smeared on the flower garland of Kṛṣṇa while it was pressed against the breasts of some other girl who is My competitor. You feel very proud because of having touched that garland, and your mustaches have become reddish. You have come here carrying a message for Me, anxious to touch My feet. But My dear bumblebee, let Me warn you—don’t touch Me! I don’t want any messages from your unreliable master. You are the unreliable servant of an unreliable master.”
It may be that Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī purposely addressed the bumblebee sarcastically in order to indirectly criticize the messenger Uddhava. Like the other gopīs, Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī saw that Uddhava’s bodily features resembled Kṛṣṇa’s, but She also saw Uddhava as being equal to Kṛṣṇa. Indirectly, therefore, She indicated that Uddhava was as unreliable as Kṛṣṇa Himself. Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī wanted to give specific reasons why She was dissatisfied with Kṛṣṇa and His messenger.
Purport
Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī indirectly chastised Kṛṣṇa by chastising the bumblebee, which She took for His messenger. She addressed the bumblebee as
madhupa,
“one who drinks the nectar (of flowers),” and She addressed Kṛṣṇa as
madhu-pati,
“the Lord of Madhu.”
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī points out that this and the following nine verses exemplify ten kinds of impulsive speech spoken by a lover. This verse illustrates the qualities of
prajalpa,
as described by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī in the following verse from his
Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi
(14.182):
asūyerṣyā-mada-yujā
yo ’vadhīraṇa-mudrayā
priyasyākauśalodgāraḥ
prajalpaḥ sa tu kīrtyate
“
Prajalpa
is speech that denigrates the tactlessness of one’s lover with expressions of disrespect. It is spoken in a mood of envy, jealousy and pride.” Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī points out that the word
kitava-bandho
expresses envy; the phrase from
sapatnyāḥ
to
naḥ,
jealousy; the phrase
mā spṛśa aṅghrim,
pride; and the phrase from
vahatu
to
prasādam,
disrespect, while the phrase from
yadu-sadasi
to the end of the verse decries Kṛṣṇa’s tactless treatment of Rādhārāṇī.
Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Seeing the bee buzzing around greedily for the fragrance of her lotus feet, Radha, possessed of divine madness (divyonmada), began to speak.
"O bee, friend of the deceitful one! (kitava bandho)" She then enumerates the reasons why Krsna should be called a cheater. "Krsna said, ‘For my sake you all have given up everything to come here filled with attraction, and I have given you up. Please forgive me for this injustice I have done.’ 10.32.21. He also said, ‘You have surrendered yourselves to me with the highest attraction, and it is impossible for me to repay you.’ Sitting on the chariot of Akrura, Krsna sent a servant’s message to the gopis, who ere pained by the impeding separation from Krsna, and said, ‘I am coming quickly from Mathura.’ 10.39.35
"Because these statements by Krsna are false, Krsna can be called a cheater. O bee you are a friend of that cheater! As a friend you are playing the role of a messenger. Do not touch my feet!"
The bee, making a buzzing sound, seemed to say, "What is this? Will you not let me offer obeisances to you?"
Radha said, "Oh one who drinks liquor (madhu pa), by contact with intoxicants, my feet will become impure. If you just want to offer obeisances, do that from far off."
The bee seemed to reply, "Why are you accusing me of being drunk, when I have no fault?"
Radha said, "This is not just an accusation, it is true. Do not touch me with your whiskers tinged by the kumkuma of the garland from another woman’s breasts which has been crushed by contact with Krsna’s chest (or the garland worn by Krsna which has been crushed by another woman’s breasts.)"
Radha here puts blame on the natural color of the bee’s yellows hairs thinking them to be tinged with kumkuma.
"That you have come to praise me when I am in a state of anger without even washing your whiskers, shows that you are without judgement, that you did drink some liquor. Any intelligent person will understand that seeing you in that condition will only increase my anger, not decrease it."
As the bee continued to hum, Radha thought that he was again speaking. "Whatever the case, you should be happy."
Radha answered, "O protector of the liquor (madhu palaka), go to Mathura, protect the liquor to be drunk by your master, and drink it yourself. That is a good job for you, because you are unsuitable to be a messenger, being so stupid."
Humming, the bee began to fly around. He seemed to be saying,"I see you are finding many faults. Why should I hear all these words? Now I am going to Mathura. Let Krsna himself come and make you happy."
Radha said, "Now he is sitting as the king of the Yadus. Though a cowherd, born to the queen of Vraja, by some good fortune, he has become a ksatriya. Let him give happiness to those women who regard him as a ksatriya. All the cowherd women mean nothing to him now. Let him continuously satisfy them."
By the use of the plural manininam, those who regard him as a ksatriya, she indicates the unlimited number of women in Mathura whom he should enjoy. "But when he satisfies one of them, others become angry. When he satisfies that women, another becomes angry. Thus he will have to continuous satisfy them one after the other. Thus he will have no opportunity to come to see us."
The bee seemed to say, "You are an ocean of good fortune for him. You should not speak like this. If he did not keep you in his mind, why would he send me here as a messenger?"
She answered, "You, as his servant, are carrying the clues of his love affairs. And he, exhibiting those clues, will be scorned in the assembly of Yadus. When the news of his transgressions with the Yadu women becomes known, the husbands will throw abuse on him. (Or, with such a messenger as you, all the assembly of Yadus will get scorned in all countries by other ksatriyas, because their women were enjoyed by a cowherd man.) And sending a messenger like you with the clues of his illicit affairs, he must certainly be intoxicated, being the master of liquor (madhu pati)."
All the words used in this verse arise from the emotions experienced by Radha. The word "cheater"iarises from her indignation (asuya). The word "co wife," another woman, arises from jealousy (irsya). "Do not touch my feet" arises from pride (mada). "Let him deliver to them" comes from her desire to disrespect (avadhirana).. "Scorned in the assembly of Yadus" arises from the urge to spit out harsh words. This constitutes prajalpa.
"To spit out rude words towards the beloved, with expressions of disrespec, tindignation, jealousy, and pride is called prajalpa."
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
Without mercy how can one understand the meaning of the words of Rādhā, whose heart was absorbed in Kṛṣṇa, and whose words arose from her innate prema?
Who can understand the disconnected words of Rādhā’s citra-jalpa filled with divyonmāda, which was brought about the highest sweetness by deep envy, pride, hatred, disrespect, joking and other emotions, filled with waves of heaps of nectar of mahābhāva, overstepping all boundaries, on seeing the messenger of Kṛṣṇa?
O bee! Or O drunkard! Alcoholics generally cheat others! Kṛṣṇa is a cheater since he has given us up. He has deviated from his words. He said na pāraye ’haṁ niravadya-saṁyujā: I am not able to repay my debt for your spotless service. (SB 10.32.22) You are his friend since you have become his messenger, and have similar colors (black and yellow). Moreover you are madhupa (bee) and he is madhu-pati (king of liquor). Even your names are similar. And your actions are similar since generally drunkards and cheaters are friends. By saying he is a cheater, she reveals malice. Thinking that the bee wants to touch her feet to flatter her when the bee lands on her nails because of thinking that they are raṅgana flowers, she says, “Do not touch my feet.” We are honorable and most independent. We are not pleased by such acts. What is the use in touching my feet? She shows pride in making her statement. She speaks further after forbidding the bee to touch her feet. He has some rival woman (sapatnyaḥ), the chief among many with whom he enjoys today or tomorrow. The word sapatnyaḥ is used to express hatred for her lover for having an affair with other women. Vilutita means “disheveled” by the strong embrace. The plural (naḥ) is used to indicate all gopīs or to show pride.
The meaning is this. The bees are Kṛṣṇa’s followers, and know the art of silence. Since this bee wanders about near him, making indistinct sounds, and now particularly moves around us, it must be his messenger. He must be considered Kṛṣṇa’s follower because his mustache is yellow because of dwelling in Kṛṣṇa’s garland. We have been forgotten and left far away because of them. Let him please an esteemed woman of Mathurā. This statement is made in rage. The plural is used (māninīnām) to indicate that after pleasing one woman he will honor another. Then after pleasing her he will honor another woman. The word madhupati indicates his great power. This suggests “What use does he have for us?” She shows disrespect for him. He is also the king of drunkards, without discrimination. Thus he has no friends. Though his pleasing them is respected because of his great power, it is not perfect since others mock hm. He will become the object of jokes in the assembly of Yadus. How will his acting for the pleasure of the women be revealed? Your servant is like you (tvam īdṛk): he wears the signs of your enjoyment with women on his body. It is not surprising that the bee reveals this. This shows Rādhā’s skill in words. Śrīdhara Svāmī says the meaning is “O bee, whose whiskers are marked with kuṁkuma from the crushed garland, do not touch me.” Another meaning is “O bee! Do not touch me with your whiskers marked with kuṁkuma from a crushed garland.”
Purport (Sanatana Goswami)
Madhupati also means one who drinks liquor. Such a person cheats others. O cheater (madhupati)! O friend of a cheater (kitava-bandho)! Krṣṇa said he could never repay us, but then he left us. The bee is called a friend of Kṛṣṇa because he acts as his messenger or because he is also black. Or you are called madhupa and he is madhupati, with similar names. Intoxicated persons and cheaters become friends. You two have similar actions.
The jalpa of Rādhā which produces intense sweetness by waves of deep hatred, pride, disrespect, and joking from abundant sweetness of mahābhāva, which ignored all rules when she saw the messenger of Kṛṣna, can be understood by some persons.
She calls him a cheater out of hatred. She thinks the bee is going to touch her feet to pacify her, when it flies towards her toenails, thinking they are raṅgana flowers. “Do not touch my feet.” We are proud and indenependent. We cannot be pacified by such things. What can touching my feet do? This shows pride. She thinks that Uddhava also is doing the same thing to pacify her because of her absorption in meeting Kṛṣṇa.
The statements are not always grammatically correct because of her state of unmāda in mahābhāva. But this becomes a good quality and somehow becomes suitable and pleases the devotees.
The rival is Lakṣmī or some other woman of Mathurā. Or it expresses the women of Mathurā in general. She imagaines that the bee’s whiskers are tinged with kuṁkuma from Kṛṣṇa’s garland, but the kuṁkuma came from his tightly embracing (vilulita) the woman’s breasts. She speaks in the plural (naḥ) to indicate her friends was well, or to show respect. The same is true of other verses also. Some say that Uddhava’s hairs were also reddish but that is not correct, since verse 2 describes him as very handsome. However one can say that she imposes that form on Uddhava who has unlimited qualities and form by imagining that Uddhava is a bee.
We are astonished by his love affairs with our rival. This expresses her envy or hatred. Māninīnām refers to the city women or women he has enjoyed. Plural is used to indicate that after pleasing one woman he goes to another. Let him do that. Let him go to them and touch their feet. What do we have to do with him? This shows disrespect. He is the lord of the Yadus (madupatiḥ). That is to be expected from some having power. He is also a master of intoxication (madhupatiḥ), having no sense of friendship. Let him do this since (yad), O bee (u), his action will be laughed at in the assembly of friends (sadasi). By the kuṁkuma on the bee’s whiskers, Kṛṣṇa’s lack of shame in dealing with women is indicated, since the quality of the master is transferred to the servant.
Or though sent to pacify us, you have come with our rival’s kuṁkuma on your whiskers. This shows your lack of intelligence. The master is controlled by women and the servant follows. This imitation (viḍambyam) will be mocked.
Or do not touch me with whiskers full of kuṁkuma, because you are friend of the cheater. He is a cheater because he has other women. He cheats not only us, but all women. Let him please them. You are similar to him. You are the intoxicated messenger and he is the master of intoxication. What is this pleasure he gives? It is all cheating. By touching feet he is merely cheating.