he nÄtha he ramÄ-nÄtha
vraja-nÄthÄrti-nÄÅ›ana
magnam uddhara govinda
gokulaá¹ vá¹›jinÄrṇavÄt

 he nÄtha - O master; he ramÄ-nÄtha - O master of the goddess of fortune; vraja-nÄtha - O master of the cowherd village; Ärti - of suffering; nÄÅ›ana - O destroyer; magnam - submerged; uddhara - uplift; govinda - O Govinda; gokulam - Gokula; vá¹›jina - of distress; arṇavÄt - from the ocean.


Text

O master, O master of the goddess of fortune, O master of Vraja! O destroyer of all suffering, Govinda, please lift Your Gokula out of the ocean of distress in which it is drowning!

Purport

ÅšrÄ«la ViÅ›vanÄtha CakravartÄ« presents the following insight into this scene: Someone might propose to the gopÄ«s, “Why don’t you just go somewhere else? Leave Vá¹›ndÄvana, and then you won’t have to see these rivers, mountains and forests. Cover your eyes with your garments, use your intelligence to lead your minds to some other thought, and thus forget Kṛṣṇa.†The gopÄ«s answer this suggestion in the previous verse by stating, “We no longer possess our intelligence, for Kṛṣṇa has taken it away by His supreme beauty and charm.â€

Now in the present verse the feelings of the gopÄ«s become so strong that they disregard Uddhava and, turning toward MathurÄ, address Kṛṣṇa Himself with humble cries. They address Kṛṣṇa as VrajanÄtha because in the past young Kṛṣṇa performed many inconceivable pastimes to protect His beloved village people, such as lifting Govardhana Hill and destroying many monstrous demons. In this heartrending verse, the gopÄ«s cry out to Kṛṣṇa to remember the wonderful, sweet relationship they once enjoyed together as innocent village people. Indeed, ÅšrÄ« Kṛṣṇa would lovingly take care of His father’s cows, and the gopÄ«s appealed to Him to remember these duties and return so He could resume them.