tÄá¹ deva-mÄyÄm iva dhÄ«ra-mohinÄ«á¹
su-madhyamÄá¹ kuṇá¸ala-maṇá¸itÄnanÄm
Å›yÄmÄá¹ nitambÄrpita-ratna-mekhalÄá¹
vyañjat-stanīṠkuntala-Å›aá¹…kiteká¹£aṇÄm
Å›uci-smitÄá¹ bimba-phalÄdhara-dyuti-
Å›oṇÄyamÄna-dvija-kunda-kuá¸malÄm
padÄ calantīṠkala-haá¹sa-gÄminÄ«á¹
siñjat-kalÄ-nÅ«pura-dhÄma-Å›obhinÄ
vilokya vÄ«rÄ mumuhuḥ samÄgatÄ
yaÅ›asvinas tat-ká¹›ta-há¹›c-chayÄrditÄḥ
yÄá¹ vÄ«ká¹£ya te ná¹›patayas tad udÄra-hÄsa-
vrÄ«dÄvaloka-há¹›ta-cetasa ujjhitÄstrÄḥ
petuḥ ká¹£itau gaja-rathÄÅ›va-gatÄ vimÅ«á¸hÄ
yÄtrÄ-cchalena haraye 'rpayatīṠsva-Å›obhÄm
saivaṠśanaiś calayatī cala-padma-kośau
prÄptiá¹ tadÄ bhagavataḥ prasamÄ«ká¹£amÄṇÄ
utsÄrya vÄma-karajair alakÄn apaá¹…gaiḥ
prÄptÄn hriyaiká¹£ata ná¹›pÄn dadṛśe 'cyutaá¹ ca
tÄá¹ rÄja-kanyÄá¹ ratham Äruraká¹£atÄ«á¹
jahÄra kṛṣṇo dviá¹£atÄá¹ samÄ«ká¹£atÄm

 tÄm - her; deva - of the Supreme Lord; mÄyÄm - the illusory potency; iva - as if; dhÄ«ra - even those who are sober; mohinÄ«m - who bewilders; su-madhyamÄm - whose waist was well-formed; kuṇá¸ala - with earrings; maṇá¸ita - decorated; ÄnanÄm - whose face; Å›yÄmÄm - uncontaminated beauty; nitamba - on whose hips; arpita - placed; ratna - jewel-studded; mekhalÄm - a belt; vyañjat - budding; stanÄ«m - whose breasts; kuntala - of the locks of her hair; Å›aá¹…kita - frightened; Ä«ká¹£aṇÄm - whose eyes; Å›uci - pure; smitÄm - with a smile; bimba-phala - like a bimba fruit; adhara - of whose lips; dyuti - by the glow; Å›oṇÄyamÄna - becoming reddened; dvija - whose teeth; kunda - jasmine; kuá¸malÄm - like buds; padÄ - with her feet; calantÄ«m - walking; kala-haá¹sa - like that of a royal swan; gÄminÄ«m - whose gait; siñjat - tinkling; kalÄ - skillfully fashioned; nÅ«pura - of whose ankle bells; dhÄma - by the effulgence; Å›obhinÄ - beautified; vilokya - seeing; vÄ«rÄḥ - the heroes; mumuhuḥ - became bewildered; samÄgatÄḥ - assembled; yaÅ›asvinaḥ - respectable; tat - by this; ká¹›ta - generated; há¹›t-Å›aya - by the lust; arditÄḥ - distressed; yÄm - whom; vÄ«ká¹£ya - upon seeing; te - these; ná¹›-patayaḥ - kings; tat - her; udÄra - broad; hÄsa - by the smiles; vrÄ«á¸Ä - of shyness; avaloka - and the glances; há¹›ta - stolen; cetasaḥ - whose minds; ujjhita - dropping; astrÄḥ - their weapons; petuḥ - they fell; ká¹£itau - to the ground; gaja - on elephants; ratha - chariots; aÅ›va - and horses; gatÄḥ - sitting; vimÅ«á¸hÄḥ - fainting; yÄtrÄ - of the procession; chalena - on the pretext; haraye - to Lord Hari, Kṛṣṇa; arpayatÄ«m - who was offering; sva - her own; Å›obhÄm - beauty;  - she; evam - thus; Å›anaiḥ - slowly; calayatÄ« - making walk; cala - moving; padma - of lotus flowers; koÅ›au - the two whorls (that is, her feet); prÄptim - the arrival; tadÄ - then; bhagavataḥ - of the Supreme Lord; prasamÄ«ká¹£amÄá¹‡Ä - eagerly awaiting; utsÄrya - pushing away; vÄma - left; kara-jaiḥ - with the nails of her hand; alakÄn - her hair; apÄá¹…gaiḥ - with sidelong glances; prÄptÄn - those present; hriyÄ - with shyness; aiká¹£ata - she looked; ná¹›pÄn - at the kings; dadṛśe - she saw; acyutam - Kṛṣṇa; ca - and; tÄm - her; rÄja-kanyÄm - the King's daughter; ratham - His chariot; Äruruká¹£atÄ«m - who was ready to mount; jahÄra - seized; kṛṣṇaḥ - Lord Kṛṣṇa; dviá¹£atÄm - His enemies; samÄ«ká¹£atÄm - as they looked on.


Text

Rukmiṇī appeared as enchanting as the Lord’s illusory potency, who enchants even the sober and grave. Thus the kings gazed upon her virgin beauty, her shapely waist, and her lovely face adorned with earrings. Her hips were graced with a jewel-studded belt, her breasts were just budding, and her eyes seemed apprehensive of her encroaching locks of hair. She smiled sweetly, her jasmine-bud teeth reflecting the glow of her bimba-red lips. As she walked with the motions of a royal swan, the effulgence of her tinkling ankle bells beautified her feet. Seeing her, the assembled heroes were totally bewildered. Lust tore at their hearts. Indeed, when the kings saw her broad smile and shy glance, they became stupefied, dropped their weapons and fell unconscious to the ground from their elephants, chariots and horses. On the pretext of the procession, Rukmiṇī displayed her beauty for Kṛṣṇa alone. Slowly she advanced the two moving lotus-whorls of her feet, awaiting the arrival of the Supreme Lord. With the fingernails of her left hand she pushed some strands of hair away from her face and shyly looked from the corners of her eyes at the kings standing before her. At that moment she saw Kṛṣṇa. Then, while His enemies looked on, the Lord seized the princess, who was eager to mount His chariot.

Purport

According to ÅšrÄ«la JÄ«va GosvÄmÄ«, Rukmiṇī was anxious that her locks of hair might impede her vision, since she was most eager to see her beloved Kṛṣṇa. The nondevotees, or demons, are bewildered at seeing the opulences of the Lord and think that His potency is meant for their gross sense gratification. But Rukmiṇī, an expansion of Kṛṣṇa’s internal pleasure potency, was meant for the Lord alone.

ÅšrÄ«la ViÅ›vanÄtha CakravartÄ« quotes the following verse to describe the kind of woman known as Å›yÄmÄ:

śīta-kÄle bhaved usṇo
 uṣṇa-kÄle tu śītalÄ
stanau su-kaá¹­hinau yasyÄḥ
 sÄ Å›yÄmÄ parikÄ«rtitÄ

“A woman is called Å›yÄmÄ when her breasts are very firm and when someone in her presence feels warm in the winter and cool in the summer.â€

ÅšrÄ«la ViÅ›vanÄtha CakravartÄ« further points out that since the beautiful form of Rukmiṇī is a manifestation of the Lord’s internal energy, the nondevotees cannot perceive her. Thus the heroic kings assembled in Vidarbha were agitated with lust upon seeing the Lord’s illusory potency, an expansion of Rukmiṇī. In other words, no one can lust after the Lord’s eternal consort, since as soon as one’s mind is contaminated with lust, the covering of MÄyÄ separates one from the pristine beauty of the spiritual world and its inhabitants.

Finally, Śrīmatī Rukmiṇī-devī felt shy as she looked from the corners of her eyes at the other kings, for she did not want to meet the glances of those inferior men.