vraja-striyo yad vāñchanti
pulindyas tṛṇa-vīrudhaḥ
gāvaś cārayato gopāḥ
pada-sparśaḿ mahātmanaḥ
vraja -- of Vraja; striyah -- the women; yat -- as; vanchanti -- they desire; pulindyah -- the women of the aborigine Pulinda tribe in Vraja; trina -- from the grass; virudhah -- and plants; gavah -- the cows; carayatah -- who is grazing; gopah -- the cowherd boys; pada -- of the feet; sparsam -- the touch; maha-atmanah -- of the Supreme Soul.
We desire the same contact with the Supreme Lord's feet that the young women of Vraja, the cowherd boys and even the aborigine Pulinda women desire -- the touch of the dust He leaves on the plants and grass as He tends His cows.
Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti reminds us of the jealous rivalry that always existed between the queens of Dvaraka and the gopis of Vraja. The gopis considered the sophisticated women of Dvaraka the most serious threat to their hold on Sri Krishna, confessing their anxiety to Uddhava: kasmat krishna ihayati prapta-rajyo hatahitah/ narendra-kanya udvahya.
"Why should Krishna come back here after winning a kingdom, killing His enemies and marrying the daughters of kings?" (Bhag. 10.47.45)
Rukmini and her seven chief co-wives considered themselves so fortunate in their relationship with Krishna as He appeared in Dvaraka that they did not especially desire to see Him as He is in Vrindavana. But the sixteen thousand lesser queens, after hearing Uddhava describe Sri Radha's superexcellent qualities, became attracted to touch the dust that falls from Krishna's feet onto the grass and plants of Vrindavana. Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti indicates that some commentators give this as the reason why, after the maushala-lila, these sixteen thousand queens were stolen from Arjuna on the road by Lord Krishna Himself in the disguise of sixteen thousand cowherds, who then took them away to Gokula.
Thus end the purports of the humble servants of His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada to the Tenth Canto, Eighty-third Chapter, of the Srimad-Bhagavatam, entitled "Draupadi Meets the Queens of Krishna."
