Although the spiritual nature of conditioned souls may be covered by illusion, Lord Krishna's spiritual nature is omnipotent and is never covered by any other power. In fact, all other powers are His energy and thus function according to His will. The Brahma-samhita (5.44) states, srishti sthiti-pralaya-sadhana-saktir eka/ chayeva yasya bhuvanani bibharti durga/ icchanurupam api yasya ca ceshtate sa: "The mighty Durga, who creates, maintains and annihilates the material worlds, is the potency ot the Supreme Lord, and she moves like His shadow, according to His desire." Thus because the Lord's spiritual influence does not depend on whether someone understands Him or not, the gopis' spontaneous love for Krishna guaranteed their spiritual perfection.

The great Madhvacarya quotes the following relevant passages from the Skanda Purana:

krishna-kamas tada gopyas

tyaktva deham divam gatah

samyak krishnam para-brahma

jnatva kalat param yayuh

"At that time the gopis, who desired Krishna, gave up their bodies and went to the spiritual world. Because they properly understood Krishna to be the Supreme Absolute Truth, they transcended the influence of time."

purvam ca jnana-samyuktas

tatrapi prayasas tatha

atas tasam param brahma

gatir asin na kamatah

"In their previous lives most of the gopis were already fully endowed with transcendental knowledge. It is because of this knowledge, not their lust, that they were able to attain the Supreme Brahman."

na tu jnanam rite moksho

nanyah pantheti hi srutih

kama-yukta tada bhaktir

jnanam cato vimukti-gah

"The Vedas declare that without spiritual knowledge there is no valid path to liberation. Because these apparently lusty gopis possessed devotion and knowledge, they achieved liberation."

ato mokshe 'pi tasam ca

kamo bhaktyanuvartate

mukti-sabdodito caidya-

prabhritau dvesha-bhaginah

"Thus even in their attainment of liberation, 'lust' followed as a manifestation of their pure devotion. After all, what we call liberation was experienced even by envious persons like Sisupala."

bhakti-margi prithan muktim

agad vishnu-prasadatah

kamas tv asubha-kric capi

bhaktya vishnoh prasada-krit

"By the mercy of Lord Vishnu, one who follows the path of devotional service gains liberation as a by-product, and such a person's lusty desire, which would normally invoke misfortune, instead invokes the mercy of Vishnu when exhibited in pure devotion."

dveshi-jiva-yutam capi

bhaktam vishnur vimocayet

aho 'ti-karuna vishnoh

sisupalasya mokshanat

"Lord Vishnu will save even a devotee possessed of an envious life. Just see the extreme mercy of the Lord, as shown by His granting liberation to Sisupala!"

Sisupala was Lord Krishna's cousin. He was mortified when the Lord stole the gorgeous young Rukmini, whom Sisupala himself was hell-bent on marrying. For various other reasons also, Sisupala was consumed with envy of Lord Krishna, and finally he insanely offended Him in a great assembly called the Rajasuya sacrifice. At that time Krishna nonchalantly cut off Sisupala's head and gave him liberation. Everyone present saw the effulgent soul of Sisupala rise out of his dead body and merge into the existence of the Lord. The Seventh Canto explains that Sisupala was an incarnation of a gatekeeper in the spiritual world cursed to take birth on the earth as a demon. Since even Sisupala was liberated by the Lord, who took into consideration the whole situation, then what to speak of the gopis, who loved Krishna more than anything.