śrī-śuka uvāca
sa itthaḿ dvija-mukhyena
saha sańkathayan hariḥ
sarva-bhūta-mano-'bhijñaḥ
smayamāna uvāca tam
brahmaṇyo brāhmaṇaḿ kṛṣṇo
bhagavān prahasan priyam
premṇā nirīkṣaṇenaiva
prekṣan khalu satāḿ gatiḥ
sri-sukah uvaca -- Sukadeva Gosvami said; sah -- He; ittham -- in this manner; dvija -- of brahmanas; mukhyena -- with the best; saha -- together; sankathayan -- conversing; harih -- Lord Hari; sarva -- of all; bhuta -- living beings; manah -- the minds; abhijnah -- who knows perfectly; smayamanah -- smiling; uvaca -- said; tam -- to him; brahmanyah -- devoted to the brahmanas; brahmanam -- to the brahmana; krishnah -- Lord Krishna; bhagavan -- the Supreme Personality of Godhead; prahasan -- laughing; priyam -- at His dear friend; premna -- lovingly; nirikshanena -- with a glance; eva -- indeed; prekshan -- looking; khalu -- indeed; satam -- of the saintly devotees; gatih -- the goal.
[Sukadeva Gosvami said:] Lord Hari, Krishna, perfectly knows the hearts of all living beings, and He is especially devoted to the brahmanas. While the Supreme Lord, the goal of all saintly persons, conversed in this way with the best of the twice-born, He laughed and spoke the following words to that dear friend of His, the brahmana Sudama, all the while smiling and looking upon him with affection.
According to Srila Sridhara Svami, the words sarva-bhuta-mano-'bhijna indicate that since Lord Krishna knows the minds of everyone, He could tell at once that His friend Sudama had brought some flat rice for Him and was ashamed to present it. According to Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti's further explanation of this verse, Lord Krishna smiled at this moment, thinking "Yes, I am going to make you show what you brought for Me." His smile then turned to laughter as He thought, "How long are you going to keep this precious gift hidden in your cloth?"
Krishna glanced toward the bundle hidden inside His friend's garment, telling Sudama by His loving glance, "The veins showing through your emaciated skin and your ragged clothes astonish everyone present, but these symptoms of poverty will last only until tomorrow morning."
Although Lord Krishna is Bhagavan, the supreme, independent Lord, He is always pleased to reciprocate with those who are priya, His cherished servants. As the indulgent patron of the brahmana class, He especially enjoys favoring brahmanas who are additionally qualified by unconditional devotion to Him.
