गोप्यः कामाद्भयात्कंसो द्वेषाच्चैद्यादयो नृपाः ।
सम्बन्धाद् वृष्णयः स्नेहाद्यूयं भक्त्या वयं विभो ॥३१॥

gopyaḥ kÄmÄd bhayÄt kaá¹so
dveá¹£Äc caidyÄdayo ná¹›pÄḥ
sambandhÄd vṛṣṇayaḥ snehÄd
yÅ«yaá¹ bhaktyÄ vayaá¹ vibho

 gopyaḥ - the gopÄ«s; kÄmÄt - out of lusty desires; bhayÄt - out of fear; kaá¹saḥ - King Kaá¹sa; dveá¹£Ät - out of envy; caidya-Ädayaḥ - ÅšiÅ›upÄla and others; ná¹›pÄḥ - kings; sambandhÄt - out of kinship; vṛṣṇayaḥ - the Vṛṣṇis or the YÄdavas; snehÄt - out of affection; yÅ«yam - you (the PÄṇá¸avas); bhaktyÄ - by devotional service; vayam - we; vibho - O great King.


Text

My dear King Yudhiṣṭhira, the gopÄ«s by their lusty desires, Kaá¹sa by his fear, ÅšiÅ›upÄla and other kings by envy, the Yadus by their familial relationship with Kṛṣṇa, you PÄṇá¸avas by your great affection for Kṛṣṇa, and we, the general devotees, by our devotional service, have obtained the mercy of Kṛṣṇa.

Purport

Different persons achieve different types of mukti — sÄyujya, sÄlokya, sÄrÅ«pya, sÄmÄ«pya and sÄrṣṭi — according to their own intense desire, which is called bhÄva. Thus it is described here that the gopÄ«s, by their lusty desires, which were based upon their intense love for Kṛṣṇa, became the most beloved devotees of the Lord. Although the gopÄ«s at Vá¹›ndÄvana expressed their lusty desires in relationship with a paramour (parakÄ«ya-rasa), they actually had no lusty desires. This is significant of spiritual advancement. Their desires appeared lusty, but actually they were not the lusty desires of the material world. Caitanya-caritÄmá¹›ta compares the desires of the spiritual and material world to gold and iron. Both gold and iron are metal, but there is a vast difference in their value. The lusty desires of the gopÄ«s for Kṛṣṇa are compared to gold, and material lusty desires are compared to iron.

Kaá¹sa and other enemies of Kṛṣṇa merged into the existence of Brahman, but why should Kṛṣṇa’s friends and devotees have the same position? Kṛṣṇa’s devotees attain the association of the Lord as His constant companions, either in Vá¹›ndÄvana or in the Vaikuṇṭha planets. Similarly, although NÄrada Muni wanders in the three worlds, he has exalted devotion for NÄrÄyaṇa (aiÅ›varyamÄn). The Vṛṣṇis and Yadus and the father and mother of Kṛṣṇa in Vá¹›ndÄvana all have familial relationships with Kṛṣṇa; Kṛṣṇa’s foster father and mother in Vá¹›ndÄvana, however, are more exalted than Vasudeva and DevakÄ«.