etÄḥ paraá¹ tanu-bhá¹›to bhuvi gopa-vadhvo
govinda eva nikhilÄtmani rÅ«á¸ha-bhÄvÄḥ
vÄñchanti yad bhava-bhiyo munayo vayaá¹ ca
kiá¹ brahma-janmabhir ananta-kathÄ-rasasya
etÄḥ - these women; param - alone; tanu - their bodies; bhá¹›taḥ - maintain successfully; bhuvi - on the earth; gopa-vadhvaḥ - the young cowherd women; govinde - for Lord Kṛṣṇa; eva - exclusively; nikhila - of all; Ätmani - the Soul; rÅ«á¸ha - perfected; bhÄvÄḥ - ecstatic loving attraction; vÄñchanti - they desire; yat - which; bhava - material existence; bhiyaḥ - those who are afraid of; munayaḥ - sages; vayam - we; ca - also; kim - what use; brahma - as a brÄhmaṇa or as Lord BrahmÄ; janmabhiḥ - with births; ananta - of the unlimited Lord; kathÄ - for the topics; rasasya - for one who has a taste.
[Uddhava sang:] Among all persons on earth, these cowherd women alone have actually perfected their embodied lives, for they have achieved the perfection of unalloyed love for Lord Govinda. Their pure love is hankered after by those who fear material existence, by great sages, and by ourselves as well. For one who has tasted the narrations of the infinite Lord, what is the use of taking birth as a high-class brÄhmaṇa, or even as Lord BrahmÄ himself?
ÅšrÄ«la ViÅ›vanÄtha CakravartÄ« explains that here the term brahma-janmabhiḥ, “brahminical births,†refers to the threefold birth by (1) seminal parenthood, (2) sacred-thread initiation and (3) sacrificial initiation. These cannot compare to pure Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
