XXXV. Gopala, Gopas and Gopis
Sage Suka was keen on king Parikshith's seeing the divine sports of the Lord in their proper prospective. He said, "Maharaja! Parikshith! Who can describe the supreme supra-world charm of Krishna, whose lovely form was the very embodiment of sweetness? How can any one describe it in words? You want me to relate to you stories of Krishna; but, they belong to a realm beyond the reach of human vocabulary. God has incarnated often and demonstrated during each advent, many supra-worldly miracles; but, in this Krishna incarnation, He exhibited a unique attraction. Did He but smile once, revealing the pearly line of teeth? Those who had the spring of love in their hearts, those who had the spell of devotion in their hearts, and even those who had mastered their senses and overcome their inner reactions, felt an upsurge of emotion rising in them, an upsurge of affectionate adoration! Did He but touch them softly with His tender hand? They lost all consciousness of their bodies, they were so immersed in bliss that thenceforward they lived in tune with Him! Now and then, He used to make fun, relate humorous tales. On those occasions, the listeners felt that there were few more fortunate than they, few superior to them in the entire world!"
"The Gopas and Gopis, the men and women of Vraja, might be engaged in their daily avocations; but, let them but see Krishna once, while so engaged - they stood entranced by His loveliness, rooted to the spot, like images carved in stone. The women of Vraja had surrendered their minds, their very breath to Krishna, whom they recognised as love and compassion personified. No scholar, however high his attainments, can find language adequate to describe their nature and experience. In fact, language has to be dumb; it can only fail."
"The devotion and dedication of the Gopas and Gopis, filled with elevated emotions knew no limits or bounds. No less a person than Uddhava exclaimed on seeing them 'Alas! I have laid waste all these years of my life, isn't it? Having been in the cool, comforting presence of Krishna-chandra so long, so near Him in fact, I have not gained access to His Love and His glory. My heart is not yet illumined by even a fraction of the devotion and love that these Gopis have for the Lord. Verily, if one has to take birth, one must be born as a Gopa or Gopi! Why be born otherwise and live a life sans meaning, sans significance? If I have no luck to be born as a Gopa or Gopi, let me become a green floral bower in Brindavan, or a jasmine creeper there or , if I do not merit that fortune, let me at least grow as a blade of grass on the lawns frequented by the Gopas, Gopis and Krishna.' Uddhava lamented thus. He yearned in devoted anguish; his heart was filled with yearning; in fact, he was saved by that very anguish."
"To state that this relationship between Krishna and the Gopis was low and lascivious is, therefore, only to reveal that the person is too easily led into wrong conclusions. Such statements are not worth attention."
