SB 10.13.30 — FolioCorpus

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.13.30

द‍ृष्ट्वाथ तत्स्‍नेहवशोऽस्मृतात्मा स गोव्रजोऽत्यात्मपदुर्गमार्ग: । द्विपात्ककुद्ग्रीव उदास्यपुच्छो- ऽगाद्धुङ्कृतैरास्रुपया जवेन ॥ ३० ॥

dṛṣṭvātha tat-sneha-vaśo ’smṛtātmā

[drishtvaatha tat-sneha-vasho ’smritaatmaa]

sa go-vrajo ’tyātmapa-durga-mārgaḥ

[sa go-vrajo ’tyaatmapa-durga-maargah]

dvi-pāt kakud-grīva udāsya-puccho

[dvi-paat kakud-greeva udaasya-puchcho]

’gād dhuṅkṛtair āsru-payā javena

[’gaad dhunkritair aasru-payaa javena]

Word-for-word

dṛṣṭvā — when the cows saw their calves below atha — thereafter tat - sneha - vaśaḥ — because of increased love for the calves asmṛta - ātmā — as if they had forgotten themselves saḥ — that go - vrajaḥ — herd of cows ati - ātma - pa - durga - mārgaḥ — escaping their caretakers because of increased affection for the calves, although the way was very rough and hard dvi - pāt — pairs of legs together kakut - grīvaḥ — their humps moving with their necks udāsya - pucchaḥ — raising their heads and tails agāt — came huṅkṛtaiḥ — lowing very loudly āsru - payāḥ — with milk flowing from the nipples javena — very forcibly .

Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)

dṛṣṭvātha tat-sneha-vaśo ’smṛtātmā

dṛṣṭvā

when the cows saw their calves below

atha

thereafter

tat - sneha - vaśaḥ

because of increased love for the calves

asmṛta - ātmā

as if they had forgotten themselves

sa go-vrajo ’tyātmapa-durga-mārgaḥ

saḥ

that

go - vrajaḥ

herd of cows

ati - ātma - pa - durga - mārgaḥ

escaping their caretakers because of increased affection for the calves, although the way was very rough and hard

dvi-pāt kakud-grīva udāsya-puccho

dvi - pāt

pairs of legs together

kakut - grīvaḥ

their humps moving with their necks

udāsya - pucchaḥ

raising their heads and tails

agāt

came

’gād dhuṅkṛtair āsru-payā javena

huṅkṛtaiḥ

lowing very loudly

āsru - payāḥ

with milk flowing from the nipples

javena

very forcibly .

Important Words

tat-sneha-vaśaḥ — controlled by affection for them
Compound: tat (them) + sneha (affection) + vaśa (under-the-power-of). Vaśa is the technical term for being mastered by something — the cows are mastered by love. Gauḍīyas read sneha-vaśa as one of the conditions of high bhakti: to be controlled by one's own love for Kṛṣṇa.
asmṛta-ātmā — forgetful of themselves
Compound: a-smṛta (un-remembered) + ātma (self). The cows have forgotten themselves. Gauḍīyas treasure this — atmā-vismṛti is, paradoxically, the highest sign of bhakti when it is caused by love for Bhagavān. The self forgets itself in the rush toward Him.
dvi-pāt — (running) on two legs
Compound: dvi (two) + pāt (foot). The cows run as if on two feet — the front pair and the rear pair moving together. The Bhāgavata's bodily realism — the cows' actual gait when running flat-out.
āsru-payāḥ — milk flowing like tears
Compound: āsru (tears, flowing) + payas (milk). Milk flows from their udders as they run, as tears flow from grieving eyes. Vraja-vātsalya's somatic doubling: the body weeps milk.
javena — with great speed
Instrumental of java (speed, force). The cows move with force. Gauḍīyas read javena as the verbal signature of bhakti's spontaneity — when sneha-vaśa takes hold, the response is not measured.

When the cows saw their own calves from the top of Govardhana Hill, they forgot themselves and their caretakers because of increased affection, and although the path was very rough, they ran toward their calves with great anxiety, each running as if with one pair of legs. Their milk bags full and flowing with milk, their heads and tails raised, and their humps moving with their necks, they ran forcefully until they reached their calves to feed them.

Purport

Generally the calves and cows are pastured separately. The elderly men take care of the cows, and the small children see to the calves. This time, however, the cows immediately forgot their position as soon as they saw the calves below Govardhana Hill, and they ran with great force, their tails erect and their front and hind legs joined, until they reached their calves.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda

Gauḍīya Ācāryas

Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya

Translation

Commentary

Forgetting themselves the cows (sa go vraja) ran off (agat). They overcame the obstacles of the cowherds (atmapa) and the difficult path (durga marga). With both front legs moving as one and both back legs as one, they appeared to run on two legs. They stretched their necks out in longing. Their heads and tails were raised. Their tears and milk flowed in streams.

Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya

Commentary

Two verses describe what happened. Some versions have ca instead of atha. The word ca means “but” in this case to show something more unusual than previously. Though the cows’ nature was to have affection, this even happened unexpectedly. Atha has the same significance. The cows’ extraordinary affection is shown: they forgot themselves. The cows escaped from the cowherds and passed over the rough path (atyātmapa-durga-mārgaḥ). The contracted form of the compound is poetic license.

Related values & verses

Related values

Vairagya (Detachment / Dispassion)

Concepts

Atma

Personal Guidance

The cows charge down a rough path with milk flowing, ignoring their caretakers, to reach the calves. Real love is undignified about distance — it crosses what it has to in order to arrive.

Reflection Questions

What 'rough path' would I cross today for Kṛṣṇa if my love for Him matched the cows' love for their calves?
Where is propriety holding me back from a movement of devotion that wants to happen?

Analogy

Like a herd that, hearing the cry of their newborns through a wall, forgets every fence and the rocks under their hooves and runs as if on two legs instead of four — vātsalya overrides the body's caution. The cows of Vraja break their own physiology because, at this moment, love is faster than legs.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io