Devanagari
पयांसि यासामपिबत् पुत्रस्नेहस्नुतान्यलम् ।
भगवान् देवकीपुत्र: कैवल्याद्यखिलप्रद: ॥ ३९ ॥
तासामविरतं कृष्णे कुर्वतीनां सुतेक्षणम् ।
न पुन: कल्पते राजन् संसारोऽज्ञानसम्भव: ॥ ४० ॥
Verse text
payāṁsi yāsām apibat
putra-sneha-snutāny alam
bhagavān devakī-putraḥ
kaivalyādy-akhila-pradaḥ
tāsām avirataṁ kṛṣṇe
kurvatīnāṁ sutekṣaṇam
na punaḥ kalpate rājan
saṁsāro ’jṣāna-sambhavaḥ
Synonyms
payāṁsi
—
milk (coming from the body)
;
yāsām
—
of all of whom
;
apibat
—
Lord Kṛṣṇa drank
;
putra
—
sneha — snutāni — that milk coming from the bodies of the gopīs, not artificially but because of maternal affection
;
alam
—
sufficiently
;
bhagavān
—
the Supreme Personality of Godhead
;
devakī
—
putraḥ — who appeared as the son of Devakī
;
kaivalya
—
ādi — like liberation or merging into the Brahman effulgence
;
akhila
—
pradaḥ — the bestower of all similar blessings
;
tāsām
—
of all of them (of all the gopīs )
;
aviratam
—
constantly
;
kṛṣṇe
—
unto Lord Kṛṣṇa
;
kurvatīnām
—
making
;
suta
—
īkṣaṇam — as a mother looks upon her child
;
na
—
never
;
punaḥ
—
again
;
kalpate
—
can be imagined
;
rājan
—
O King Parīkṣit
;
saṁsāraḥ
—
the material bondage of birth and death
;
ajṣāna
—
sambhavaḥ — which is to be accepted by foolish persons ignorantly trying to become happy .
Translation
The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, is the bestower of many benedictions, including liberation [kaivalya], or oneness with the Brahman effulgence. For that Personality of Godhead, the gopīs always felt maternal love, and Kṛṣṇa sucked their breasts with full satisfaction. Therefore, because of their relationship as mother and son, although the gopīs were engaged in various family activities, one should never think that they returned to this material world after leaving their bodies.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, is the bestower of many benedictions, including liberation [kaivalya], or oneness with the Brahman effulgence. For that Personality of Godhead, the gopīs always felt maternal love, and Kṛṣṇa sucked their breasts with full satisfaction. Therefore, because of their relationship as mother and son, although the gopīs were engaged in various family activities, one should never think that they returned to this material world after leaving their bodies.
KB 10.6.39-40
Kṛṣṇa can offer anyone anything, from liberation to anything materially conceivable. Therefore, there cannot be any doubt of the salvation of Pūtanā, whose bodily milk was sucked by Kṛṣṇa for such a long time. And how can there be any doubt about the salvation of the gopīs, who were so fond of Kṛṣṇa? Undoubtedly all the gopīs, cowherd boys, cows and everyone else who served Kṛṣṇa in Vṛndāvana with love and affection were liberated from the miserable condition of material existence.
Purport
The advantage of Kṛṣṇa consciousness is described herein. Kṛṣṇa consciousness gradually develops on the transcendental platform. One may think of Kṛṣṇa as the supreme personality, one may think of Kṛṣṇa as the supreme master, one may think of Kṛṣṇa as the supreme friend, one may think of Kṛṣṇa as the supreme son, or one may think of Kṛṣṇa as the supreme conjugal lover. If one is connected with Kṛṣṇa in any of these transcendental relationships, the course of one’s material life is understood to have already ended. As confirmed in
Bhagavad-gītā
(4.9)
,
tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti:
for such devotees, going back home, back to Godhead, is guaranteed.
Na punaḥ kalpate rājan saṁsāro jṣāna-sambhavaḥ.
This verse also guarantees that devotees who constantly think of Kṛṣṇa in a particular relationship will never return to this material world. In this material world of
saṁsāra,
there are the same relationships. One thinks, “Here is my son,” “Here is my wife,” “Here is my lover,” or “Here is my friend.” But these relationships are temporary illusions.
Ajṣāna-sambhavaḥ:
such a consciousness awakens in ignorance. But when the same relationships awaken in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, one’s spiritual life is revived, and one is guaranteed to return home, back to Godhead. Even though the
gopīs
who were friends of Rohiṇī and mother Yaśodā and who allowed their breasts to be sucked by Kṛṣṇa were not directly Kṛṣṇa’s mothers, they all had the same chance as Rohiṇī and Yaśodā to go back to Godhead and act as Kṛṣṇa’s mothers-in-law, servants and so on. The word
saṁsāra
refers to attachment for one’s body, home, husband or wife, and children, but although the
gopīs
and all the other inhabitants of Vṛndāvana had the same affection and attachment for husband and home, their central affection was for Kṛṣṇa in some transcendental relationship, and therefore they were guaranteed to be promoted to Goloka Vṛndāvana in the next life, to live with Kṛṣṇa eternally in spiritual happiness. The easiest way to attain spiritual elevation, to be liberated from this material world, and to go back home, back to Godhead, is recommended by Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura:
kṛṣṇera saṁsāra kara chāḍi’ anācāra.
One should give up all sinful activities and remain in the family of Kṛṣṇa. Then one’s liberation is guaranteed.
Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
By saying that the elder gopis attained more than Putana in going to Vaikuntha there is a contradiction to the statement that enmity and affection lead to the same goal. That statement taken literally would lead to criticism of the Lord for lack of discrimination. If it is true that the elderly gopis attained more than Putana who attained Vaikuntha, what did they attain? That should be explained. With this in mind the present verse is spoken.
Though he is the bestower of all sorts of goals such as liberation, he drank the breast milk with extremely rare awareness (alam). As bhagavatam 10. 14.31 says, "Fortunate are the cows and gopis whose sweet breast milk he drank in great bliss." With this rare awareness he thinks, "Whatever they want I will give, and as well, whatever I want, they are willing to give." Since whatever is desired is easily attained, Krsna certainly will give to the cows and gopis a suitable reward. More than Vaikuntha or even Goloka, he will grant them Vraja on this earth which is the most attractive of all. Though born as the son of Devaki, he did not drink her milk, but the milk of the gopis. Thus by mentioning Krsna as Devaki putra in this verse there is the implication that the gopis were more attractive to him. One should not think that he bestowed on them liberation from samsara, for already they had no material bondage. There is no bondage for those engaged in the Lord’s service. That is for those attached to house, husband and sons. Krsna drank from the breasts of the bodies of these gopis. He played in their houses. Krsna’s father was their husband. Krsna was their son. This attachment did not breed samsara. That is the intent of verse 40. Suteksana means they looked on him as their son. For them samsara did not occur ( na punah kalpate).
Samsara is born of ignorance. By the jnani’s knowledge of Brahman, samsara ceases. However better than that is the santa bhakta’s realization of bhagavan as Brahman. Better than that however is the dasya bhakta who realizes the lord as his master. By that, the Lord becomes controlled. Superior to that is the sakhya bhakta who realizes the Lord as friend. Higher that that is the vatsalya bhakti who realizes the Lord as a son (mentioned in this verse). Here there is gradation of release from samsara according to the degree of surrender of the Lord to the devotee.
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
Two verses clarify the meaning of svargam mentioned in the previous verse. The Lord gives all benedictions including liberation. To persons with material desires he gives artha, dharma and kāma and not his spiritual form. To persons desiring liberation he gives kaivalya, his spiritual form as unqualified Brahman, with attainment of identity with the Lord, without realization of Bhagavān with qualities. Bhagavān gives to devotees realization of his form as Bhagavān but not his form as a son which evokes special possessiveness and special prema. He was the son of Devakī by birth only. Pitarau nānvavindetāṁ kṛṣṇodārārbhakehitam: although Kṛṣṇa was so pleased with Vasudeva and Devakī that he descended as their son, they could not enjoy Kṛṣṇa’s magnanimous childhood pastimes. (SB 10.8.47) But she did not care for Kṛṣṇa in the praiseworthy mood of Yaśodā. He drank excessively (alam) the milk of the cows and gopīs which flowed with parental affection. Thus the cows and gopīs are shown to have the deepest and most abundant affection
itthaṁ satāṁ brahma-sukhānubhūtyā
dāsyaṁ gatānāṁ para-daivatena
māyāśritānāṁ nara-dārakeṇa
sākaṁ vijahruḥ kṛta-puṇya-puñjāḥ
Neither those who are engaged in self-realization, appreciating the Brahman effulgence of the Lord, nor those engaged in devotional service while accepting the Supreme Lord as master, nor those who are under the clutches of māyā, thinking the Lord an ordinary person, can understand that certain exalted personalities, after accumulating volumes of pious activities, are now playing with the Lord in friendship as cowherd boys. SB 10.12.11
Samṣāra producing ignorance will not occur for them since they have far surpassed jñāna. They cannot be touched by saṁsāra because the pure devotee is most rare. Such a devotee is rarer than the jñānī:
muktānām api siddhānāṁ nārāyaṇa-parāyaṇaḥ
sudurlabhaḥ praśāntātmā koṭiṣv api mahā-mune
O great sage, among many millions who are liberated and perfect in knowledge of liberation, one may be a devotee of Lord Nārāyaṇa, or Kṛṣṇa. Such devotees, who are fully peaceful, are extremely rare. SB 6.114.5
They have constant devotion to Kṛṣṇa as a son. This means that Kṛṣṇa is constantly with them because of their devotion. Śukadeva addresses the king. O king (rājan), existing (rājate) with correct knowledge of the Lord! Please understand correctly! One should therefore understand that svargam mentioned in the previous verse is a non-material place since it is modified by jananī-gatim—the position of a mother which is also beyond the material realm, as explained in this verse.
Purport (Sanatana Goswami)
There was no suffering for these mothers, but rather the greatest happiness. Two verses describe more details. The son of Yāśodā (devakī-putraḥ) drank the mothers’ breast milk. Devakī means the wife of Nanda (ka) or kī, who was godly (deva). Thus Devakī means Yāśodā, the godly wife of Nanda. Since Kṛṣṇa was her direct son, Yaśodā was superior to all cowherds and cowherd women.
They had no saṁsāra, which arises by ignorance. It is not possible to show their nature, because by intense bhakti they had achieved unlimited knowledge. Punaḥ is an ornament or means tu, emphasizing their special attainment. The Lord gives to the devotees liberation or prema (kaivalya) and even more things. He drank their milk because it was from their breasts. With affection as a son he drank. And they saw him constantly as their son (sutekṣaṇam). O king (rājan)! As the best of men or by manifesting everything you can understand this truth. Or though saṁsāra is everything present (rājan), it does not exist for them.
Or they were not at all qualified for liberation, but for Vaikuṇṭha. The best of the four puruṣārthas (saṁsāraḥ), liberation, was not suitable for them because it arises from knowledge (jñāna-saṁbhavaḥ). Being the best of devotees, attaining the result from jñāna was not suitable for them. Their great bhakti is shown. They were constantly thinking of Kṛṣṇa as their son. And the Lord does not give trifling results like liberation to these devotees. He destroys all trifling things of which the best is liberation.
Or if Pūtānā attained eternal happiness by destroying saṁsāra, why do the mothers undergo saṁsāra? They have no saṁsāra, since they are eternally liberated.