Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.22.12
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
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kṣvelitam
—
joking behavior
Past passive of √kṣvel (to sport, jest). Technical rasa-term for Kṛṣṇa's playful provocations of the gopīs. Rūpa Gosvāmī catalogues such kṣvelita as one of the constituents of mādhurya in Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu.
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prema-pariplutāḥ
—
fully immersed in pure love of Godhead
Compound: prema (pure love) + pari (around) + plutāḥ (flooded, from √plu, to flow over). Prema is the highest stage of bhakti in Rūpa Gosvāmī's scheme (śraddhā → bhāva → prema). The gopīs are pari-pluta — flooded on every side.
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vrīḍitāḥ
—
embarrassed
Past participle of √vrīḍ (to be ashamed). Vrīḍā is a sthāyī-bhāva-component in mādhurya; the bride's shyness is part of her beauty, not a defect. Bhakti does not annihilate the gopī's natural modesty — it gives it its rightful object.
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jāta-hāsāḥ
—
beginning to laugh
Compound: jāta (born, arisen) + hāsa (laughter). Hāsya-rasa within mādhurya. Their laughter is the spontaneous overflow of bhāva that cannot be contained even by embarrassment.
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na niryayuḥ
—
they did not come out
Negation + perfect of niḥ-√yā. The line draws the līlā taut: He has invited them, they cannot yet move. The hesitation is itself part of the rasa — bhakti's approach to Bhagavān is always tinged with both attraction and fear.
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura explains this verse as follows: “The gopīs were from most respectable families, and they might have argued with Kṛṣṇa: ‘Why don’t You simply leave our clothes on the bank of the river and go away?’ “Kṛṣṇa might have replied, ‘But there are so many of you that some of the girls might take clothes belonging to another.’ “The gopīs would reply, ‘We are honest and never steal anything. We never touch another’s property.’ “Then Kṛṣṇa would say, ‘If that’s true, then simply come and get your clothes. What is the difficulty?’ “When the gopīs saw Kṛṣṇa’s determination, they were filled with loving ecstasy. Although embarrassed, they were overjoyed to receive such attention from Kṛṣṇa. He was joking with them as if they were His wives or girlfriends, and the gopīs’ only desire was to achieve such a relationship with Him. At the same time, they were embarrassed to be seen naked by Him. But still they could not help laughing at His joking words and even began to joke among themselves, one gopī urging another, ‘Go ahead, you go first, and let us see if Kṛṣṇa plays any tricks on you. Then we will go later.’”
Seeing Krsna’s secret joking, the gopis became overcome with love. "To make Krsna happy, I think we should not be so self conscious." Thinking like this they all began to discuss among themselves in bliss. Glancing at one another they became embarrassed. Then one said to another, "O lotus eyed one, he is calling you. " The other answered, "O beautiful faced one, you go and let him drink the nectar." In this way they joked amongst themselves, but stood in the water and did not move.
Since these were special gopīs, they by their nature had deep prema (prema-pariplutāḥ). But understanding that he was joking, they become further immersed in the rasa of prema. By their nature as girls they were embarrassed. With embarrassment and joy they looked at each other and laughed. But they did not come out.
Since these were special gopīs, they by their nature had deep prema (prema-pariplutāḥ). But understanding that he was joking, they become further immersed in the rasa of prema. They looked at each other and laughed. But they did not come out because, looking at each other, they were embarrassed. Or, because they were filled with prema, they shyly smiled. They looked at each other in order to find agreement among them in not coming out. Or, though they wanted to come out, looking at each other they became embarrassed because they were naked. Looking at each other because of that, they smiled and did not come out. Since these were special gopīs, they by their nature had deep prema (prema-pariplutāḥ). But understanding that he was joking, they become further immersed in the rasa of prema. By their nature as girls they were embarrassed. With embarrassment and joy they looked at each other and laughed. But they did not come out.
- What act of surrender does my heart say yes to while my body refuses?
- Where could mutual laughter with fellow devotees help me cross the embarrassment threshold?
A friend caught in a sweet contradiction — too embarrassed to step out, too overjoyed at the attention to be angry, glancing sideways at her companions and breaking into helpless laughter. Prema-pariplutāḥ: when love has flooded the heart, even shame can no longer cancel it.
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura describes the gopīs' inner state in this verse: they could see Kṛṣṇa was joking with them as a husband jokes with a wife — and that was exactly the relationship they had asked for. The vrata's fruit was already arriving in the very moment of embarrassment.
Thus their laughter and embarrassment are not contradictory — they are two faces of prema reading the līlā correctly: He is treating us as His. The shame is the shame of a bride, not of a stranger.
My note
Source: vedabase.io