Another Vastra-haraṇa Līlā...

The following is an excerpt from Śrī Kṛṣṇa Premāmṛtam, a small priceless book attributed to Śrīmad Gopāla Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmipāda, which describes an instance of Kṛṣṇa stealing the gopīs' clothes when Śrīmatī Rādhikā and Her sakhīs are the targets of His loving prank and not the young, unmarried, Kātyayānī-worshipping gopīs.

Śrī Kṛṣṇa Premāmṛtam is divided into four parts: (1) Vasana-caurya-keli-varṇanam ("Description of the Playful Stealing of Garments"); (2) Bhāra-khaṇḍam (about Kṛṣṇa helping Rādhārāṇī carry a pot of yogurt to Mathurā); (3) Pāra-khaṇḍam (about coming back from Mathurā via a boat, which Kṛṣṇa sinks); (4) Dāna-khaṇḍam (about Kṛṣṇa trying to collect tax from the gopīs on their way to Mathurā some days later).

This Śrī Kṛṣṇa Premāmṛtam appears in a collection called Grantha-ratna-ṣatakam ("Six Gem-like Granthas"), published in 1955 by Kṛṣṇadāsa Bābājī (Kusum Sarovar-wāle). The other books in this nectareous anthology are Mantrārtha-dīpikā (by Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura), Kāma-gāyatrī-vyākhyā (by Śrī Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī), Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmipāda's Yugalāṣṭakam, his commentary on the explanation of gāyatrī as found in the Agni Purāṇa, and a brief arcana-paddhati by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī called Sūtra Upāsana Vaiṣṇava Pūjā-vidhi.

Prathama-khaṇḍaṁ – First Part

vasana-caurya-keli-varṇanam

Description of the Garment-stealing Pastime

śrī gauracandrāya namaḥ
Obeisances to Śrī Gauracandra

jayati jana-nivāso devakī-janma-vādo
yadu-vara-pariṣat svair dorbhir asyan adharmam
sthira-cara-vṛjina-ghnaḥ su-smita-śrī-mukhena
vraja-pura-vanitānāṁ varddhayan kāma-devam ||1||

Glory be to the abode of all beings, who is supposedly the son of Devakī. With His entourage of Yādavas, He destroys all evil by the might of His arms, ridding all moving and non-moving creatures of their troubles and sins. With His sweetly smiling beautiful face, He increases the longings of the maidens of Vraja.

tatra tāvad—Therein [in Vraja]:

ekadā rādhā yamunāṁ gantukāmā rāmāḥ samāhūtavatī |
karpūra-mañjari kalāvati candra-lekhe mugdhānane sumukhi sundari kambur-kaṇṭhi |āgacchatāmbuharaṇāya gṛhīta-kumbhāḥ saṁbhūya manda-pavanāṁ yamun āṁ vrajāmaḥ ||2||

One day, Rādhā, longing to go to the Yamunā, began summoning Her friends: “Hey Karpūra Mañjarī! O Kalāvatī! Candralekhe! Mugdhānane! Sumukhi! Sundari! Kambu-kaṇṭhi!” [Or: “Fine as camphor blossoms, you artistic ladies, moonlight-streaked faces so innocent, such pretty faces, you beautiful girls, your necks as shapely as conch shells—”] Come to fetch water. Grab your waterpots. Let us enjoy the gentle breezes together at the Yamunā.”

etan-niśamya vacanaṁ mṛga-locanāyāḥ dūre vihāya gṛha-karma gṛhīta-kumbhāḥ | dāmodarānana-vilokana-lola-cittā gopyo jalāya calitā lalitāṅghri-pātāḥ ||3||

At these words of that doe-eyed damsel, they left their housework far behind and grabbed their waterpots. Souls greedy to behold the face of Dāmodara, the gopīs proceeded to the river, their every footstep so lovely.

sarvā ghaṭīḥ kaṭi-taṭe sarasaṁ dadhānā vāmetarāṁ bhuja-latām-ati-lolayantyaḥ |śaśvan-mitha-priya-kathā smita-sundarāsyā gopāla-bāla-lalanāḥ yamunāṁ prayātāḥ || 4 ||

They all had their waterpots perched on their hips, while their right arms, like vines, waved about excessively. Talking of their sweet beloved the whole time, faces bedecked with smiles, these darlings of the cowherd boy Gopāla made their way to the Yamunā.

anyonyam-ārabdha-bhujābhujena snātuṁ prayāntyas-tapanātmajāyām |
manda-skhalac-cāru kucābhirāmā gāyanti śaśvac-caritaṁ murāreḥ || 5 ||

They began walking arm-in-arm with each other, headed to bathe in that river, a goddess herself, born from the soul of the Sun. Stumbling slightly, beautifully, their breasts burdensome, they sang the tales of Murāri all the way there.

tato yamunāṁ gatvā—Reaching the Yamunā...

utkṣipya velam adhi-jānu payaḥ pravāhe śaśvad-vidhūya tarasā payasā prapūrya | tasmāc-ca kiñcid-avakāśa-jale karābhyāṁ gopāṅganā bhuja-ghaṭīṁ ghaṭayām babhuvūḥ || 6||

They left the forested banks and, wading into the flowing water up to their knees, started filling their pots, sifting the water with their hands, and then kept the pots together in the shallow water close to shore.

tataḥ kṛṣṇo dūre tā nirīkṣya sasmitaḥ—Kṛṣṇa was watching them at a distance, smiling...

ihaiva kandarpa-kalānukūle kadamba-mūle nibhṛto bhavāmi |
kūle dukūlaṁ vinidhāya nīre gopāṅganā majjanam-ācarantu || 7 ||

“Here I will stand, hidden at the base of this kadamba tree that is so well suited to Cupid’s artistry,” He thought. “These cowherd girls will leave their clothes on the bank and go swimming in the water.”

tataḥ kule dukulaṁ nidhāya nimajjanti kācid-uccair-uvāca—As they were leaving their clothes on the bank and wading into the water, one of them cried out:

mā majja mā majja jale mṛgākṣi gṛhāṇa celaṁ sahasā bibudhya |
āyāti so’yaṁ vraja-sundarīṇāṁ nicola-cauraḥ purataḥ kiśoraḥ || 8 ||

"Don’t go in all the way. Don’t go in too deep, doe-eyed girls! Quickly, grab your clothes. That boy from town who steals the clothes of all the pretty girls of Vraja is coming this way."

tato ’sambhramaṁ nirūpya tāṁ kṛṣṇās-tatraiva māyayā ’ntar-dadhau-tatastu—Realizing they had seen Him, Kṛṣṇa disappeared right where He was, like magic...

sakhī-gaṇais-tatra nirūpya yatnāt puṁsāṁ vihīnā vidiśo diśo ’pi |
ādāya kule vanitā dukulaṁ payaḥ pravāhe sarasaṁ mamajjuḥ || 9||

The sakhīs strained to see where He had gone, but there was no one to be seen in any direction. Leaving their clothes on the bank, they waded into the current.

nīpa-śākhi-viṭapopari vāma bāhu-mūlam-upadhāya śayāluḥ |
gopikā nibhṛta-vīkṣaṇa-kāmaḥ svāpamāpa kapaṭena murāriḥ || 10 ||

Meanwhile, Murārī propped His left arm on one of the kadamba branches, using His shoulder as a pillow. Poised thus, like a python, spying on the gopīs, He pretended to take a nap.

bahula jala vihāra vyākulānāṁ nipīta
sphuṭa-kamalam-adhūnāṁ mugdha-gopāṅganānām |
pulinam api vilokya smera-vaktrāravindo
vasanam-atha mukundo harttukāmo babhūva || 11 ||

The cowherd girls were so distracted, playing in the water and mildly intoxicated by the pollen of all the lotuses in full blossom. Surveying the bank, His smiling face like a lotus flower, Mukunda started stealing their clothes.

laghu laghu-nava-nīpān-nīpa-puṣpāvataṁsaḥ
surata samara-siṁhaḥ smera-vaktrāravindaḥ |
cakita cakitamāsāṁ śaśvad-udvīkṣyamāno
vraja-yuvati-nicolaṁ corayāmāsa kṛṣṇaḥ || 12 ||

Wearing earrings made of tiny, little fresh kadamba buds, Kṛṣṇa, that lion of love’s siege, His lotus face all smile, slowly and cautiously, keeping a constant eye on those young damsels of Vraja, stole all their clothes.

tato dukūlāni kūle ’nālokya rādhā jagād—A short while later, not seeing their clothes on the bank, Rādhā exclaimed:

kūle kalinda duhitur-nihitam nicolaṁ
nālokitaṁ sapadi kena janena nītam |
śvaśrū-mukhaṁ sahaja-roṣa-vaśāruṇākṣaṁ
drakṣyāmi hanta sahasātha kṛtāparādha || 13 ||

“We left our clothes on the bank, but I can’t see them now. Did someone take them? I can see my in-laws’ faces, their eyes going red at this fiasco I have allowed.

apica—āgantum-atra guruṇā bahudhā niṣiddhā
hā hā tathāpi yamunāṁ yadupāgatā’smi |
prāptaṁ mayā tad-anurūpa-phalaṁ na jāne
kimvā phalāntaram-upaimi gṛhe gurubhyaḥ || 14 ||

“And they told me so many times not to come here, but still I came to the Yamunā. Who knows what I am going to get for this? My in-laws are going to chastise me so much.”

tata utīryya puro ’valokya kṛṣṇaṁ prati—Coming up to the bank, looking in Kṛṣṇa's direction, She said:

mādhava mādhava vidūram-idaṁ dukūlaṁ
ādāya kūla-nihitaṁ mihirātmajāyāḥ |
jñāto’si cañcala nivṛttim-upaihi sadyo
bhadraṁ bhaviṣyati na te vidite nṛpeṇa || 15 ||

“Mādhava, Mādhava, don’t hide in the distance. We put our clothes on the bank and were bathing in Yamunā. You hid our clothes! Bring them back! Quickly. Now. You restless person! We are not going to let you get away with this. If the king hears about this, it will not bode well for you.”

kṛṣṇaḥ smitvā—Kṛṣṇa, smiling...

nīpe nidhāya vapūru svataḥ dakṣiṇāṁśaṁ
sakhyāṁśalambi maṇi-kuntalamānatabhruḥ |
ālolamaṅgulidalair-muralīṁ murārīr-
āpūrayan braja-vadhu hṛdayaṁ jahāra || 16 ||

...leaned against the kadamba tree. Shoulder-to-shoulder with a friend, wearing jewelled earrings, His eyebrows long, the tips of His restless fingers shifting over the holes of His muralī, that Murārī played His flute, stealing the hearts of the young ladies of Vraja.

mañju-hāsa parihāsa-peśalaḥ kautukān-nava-kadamba-śākhinam |
āruroha sarasīruhānano manda manda-gatiḥ nanda-nandanaḥ || 17 ||

Laughing sweetly, that expert jokester, the son of Nanda, playfully and ever so slowly began to climb into the branches of the young kadamba tree, His face like a blooming lotus.

āhūya gopīravadhūya pāṇiṁ smerānano nanda-suto jagād |
utthāya kūle nava-nīpa-mūle matto dukūlaṁ nayatānukūlam || 18 ||

His face all smiles, that son of Nanda waved His hands, beckoning to the cowherd girls and said, “Come up out of the water to the base of this nice young kadamba tree to get your respective garments from me.”

ākarṇya vāṇīṁ vanitās-tadānīṁ vrīḍā-vinamrā yadu-nandanasya |
parasparaṁ smera-mukhāravindaṁ vilokayanti sma tadā taruṇyaḥ || 19 ||

Cringing shyly at hearing these words of that son of Yadu, the girls started looking at each other, their lotus faces smiling.

tataḥ kṣaṇaṁ vibhāvya tam-ūcuḥ—After pausing a moment to think, they said:

āgatya kūle vasanaṁ videhi sarvāsu dāsīṣu dayāṁ vidhāya |
tīvra-pratāpāya nṛpāya yāvad-bhavac-caritraṁ na nivedayāmaḥ || 20 ||

“Come to the bank here and give us our clothes. Have mercy on all of us, Your maidservants. Otherwise, we will submit a report of Your character, of everything You’ve done, to that ill-tempered king.”

kṛṣṇaḥ saroṣaḥ tataḥ kiṁ—Kṛṣṇa, as if angry, said:

dāsyo bhavatyo yadi me yuvatyas-tadetya gṛhīta nijāṁśukāni |
nocenna dāsye vasudhādhināthaḥ kimvā vidhātuṁ kṣamate tadartham || 21 ||

“If you really are my maidservants, then come here and get your clothes! Otherwise, I will not give out a single garment, and what can the king of the realm do about that?”

tataḥ kṣaṇaṁ vicintya kṛta-lajjā etad-anuvandhinyaḥ taruṇyo nānyathā iti vicintya—Again, they pondered a moment. Feeling embarrassed and compelled, the girls figured there was no other recourse...

adhaḥ samāgatya karāmbujābhyāṁ kucau kaṭhorau pihitau nidhāya |
vrīḍānutās-tāvad manda mandam-uttorur-uccair yamunā-pravāhāt || 22 ||

All together, covering their breasts and bodies with their lotus hands, shyly and slowly, very slowly, they waded out of Yamunā’s flow.

kṛṣṇaḥ skandopari vāsāṁsi nidhāya taror-avaruhya tāsāmantikaṁ jagāma | tatastāḥ prati—Kṛṣṇa collected the clothes on His shoulders and, climbing down from the tree, went up to them. He said:

unmīlya paśyata dṛśaḥ sarasās-taruṇyaḥ
gṛhīta vastram-iha pāṇi-yugaṁ prasāryya |
nācet-taror-upadadhāmi kadācanāhaṁ
mā yāmi gacchata punar yamunā-jaleṣu || 23 ||

“Open your eyes and look, river girls. Take these, your clothes...you will have to put out your hands. Otherwise, I am just going to climb back up the tree and you can all go back to the Yamunā.”

tatas-tat-śrutvā vanitāḥ kṣaṇameva nata-mukhī bhūya kṛṣṇaṁ maivaṁ kṛṣṇas-tadeva padyaṁ paṭhati | gopyas-tad-vākyaṁ pauruṣaṁ pratibhāvya—Hearing this, the girls kept their faces lowered and started to say to Kṛṣṇa, “That’s not going to happen…”, but Kṛṣṇa just started to repeat what He had said. The gopīs sensed a certain stubbornness in His words and...

unmīlya netra-yugalaṁ smita sundarāsyāḥ
suvrīditaṁ mura-ripor-mukham-īkṣyamāṇāḥ |
tatraiva pāṇi-kamalaiḥ katamaṁ prasāryya
saṁprārthayanti vasanaṁ sarasās-taruṇyaḥ || 24 ||

...opened their eyes and, smiling so beautifully, very shyly began to glance at Murārī’s face. A few of the “river girls” put out their hands slightly and began to ask Him for their clothes.

kṛṣṇaḥ sarahasyaṁ maivaṁ pāṇī prasāryya prārthayatām gopyas-tadākarṇya—Kṛṣṇa, mischievously, said: “Not like that. Put your hands out and ask. Hearing this, the gopīs,…

vāmoruṇāti-guruṇā nata-vaktram-anyam-ūruṁ vidhāya pulakāṅkitam-udvahantyaḥ | pāṇī prasāryya purato yadunātha dehi vāsāṁsi sa-smitam-idam pramadāḥ samūcuḥ || 25 ||

...faces bowed, all shifted their shapely left thigh to cover their right. As the hairs on their body stood on end, they extended their hands out before Him. “Lord of Yadus, now give us our clothes,” those maddeningly beautiful gopīs said, smiling.

kṛṣṇaḥ punaḥ punar-vihasya maivaṁ—Kṛṣṇa said, laughing again and again...

kṛṣṇo ’bravīt-tatra vihasya maivaṁ daṇḍāyamānau caraṇau nidhāya
prasāryya pāṇī ramaṇī-samūhāḥ yūyaṁ punaḥ prārthayatāṁśukāni || 26 ||

“Not like that, you sweet shy girls,” Kṛṣṇa said, laughing. “Stand properly, on both feet, and put out your hands. Then ask for your clothes again.”

tatastāḥ kṣaṇaṁ vimṛśya kā gatir-idānīṁ | tatas-tāsāṁ—For a moment, they reflected: “What is to be our fate now?”

gopīṇāṁ nibhṛta-tanor-viśeṣa-śobhām-
ālokya smita-vadanas-tathāpi tābhyaḥ |
khedāntaḥ pulakayuto karāmbujena
pratyekaṁ vasanam-idaṁ dadau sunandaḥ || 27 ||

As the beautiful son of Nanda beheld the unique splendour of the gopīs’ partially concealed bodies, His face held a smile. Inside, He felt somewhat guilty. The hair of His limbs stood on end as He held out His lotus hands to present each of them with their garments.

āliṅganāni niviḍāni ca cumbanāni
tasmād-avāpya yadu-nandanato ’śukāni |
sāṅketikaṁ kamapi kuñja-gṛhaṁ vidhāya
sānandam-indu-vadanā sva-gṛhāṇi jagmuḥ || 28 ||

He hugged each of them tightly and kissed them. Thus, their faces shining like the moon, they all received their garments from Yadu-nandana, hinting to Him which grove they would meet Him in later and then returned to their homes utterly delighted.

iti śrī gopāla-bhaṭṭena viracite premāmṛte vasana-caurya-keli-varṇanaṁ nāma prathama-khaṇḍaṁ samāptam – Thus concludes the stealing of garments pastime, the first section of Premāmṛta, written by Śrī Gopāla Bhaṭṭa.