Chapter 31 · Class prep
A printable handout for teaching this chapter. For each verse with Personal Guidance, you'll see Prabhupāda's translation, the essence, two or three practical applications, and a discussion prompt. Press ⌘P / Ctrl P to print as a handout.
BG 31.1
The gopīs said: O beloved, Your birth in the land of Vraja has made it exceedingly glorious, and thus Indirā, the goddess of fortune, always resides here. It is only for Your sake that we, Your devoted servants, maintain our lives. We have been searching everywhere for You, so please show Yourself to us.
Essence. The gopīs declare that Vraja shines because Kṛṣṇa was born there, and that they live only for Him. Devotion redefines what makes a place or a life valuable — it is the Lord's presence that turns ordinary ground into sacred soil.
BG 31.2
O Lord of love, in beauty Your glance excels the whorl of the finest, most perfectly formed lotus within the autumn pond. O bestower of benedictions, You are killing the maidservants who have given themselves to You freely, without any price. Isn’t this murder?
Essence. The gopīs say Kṛṣṇa's glance surpasses the loveliest autumn lotus, yet His seeming neglect feels like killing those who gave themselves to Him freely. Even pure love feels the sharp pain of perceived distance from the beloved.
BG 31.3
O greatest of personalities, You have repeatedly saved us from all kinds of danger — from poisoned water, from the terrible man-eater Agha, from the great rains, from the wind demon, from the fiery thunderbolt of Indra, from the bull demon and from the son of Maya Dānava.
Essence. The gopīs list past rescues — from poison, demons, storms, fire — to remind Kṛṣṇa He has always protected them. Remembering past mercies builds faith that the same Lord who saved you before will save you again.
BG 31.4
You are not actually the son of the gopī Yaśodā, O friend, but rather the indwelling witness in the hearts of all embodied souls. Because Lord Brahmā prayed for You to come and protect the universe, You have now appeared in the Sātvata dynasty.
Essence. The gopīs see through the cowherd-boy form to the indwelling witness within all hearts, descended at Brahmā's prayer to protect the world. The Lord who shelters all cannot reasonably neglect those who have given Him everything.
BG 31.5
O best of the Vṛṣṇis, Your lotuslike hand, which holds the hand of the goddess of fortune, grants fearlessness to those who approach Your feet out of fear of material existence. O lover, please place that wish-fulfilling lotus hand on our heads.
Essence. The gopīs beg Kṛṣṇa to place His wish-fulfilling lotus hand — the same hand that holds Lakṣmī's — upon their heads. They want not opulence or rescue from death, but the touch of personal blessing from the Lord.
BG 31.6
O You who destroy the suffering of Vraja’s people, O hero of all women, Your smile shatters the false pride of Your devotees. Please, dear friend, accept us as Your maidservants and show us Your beautiful lotus face.
Essence. Kṛṣṇa is the destroyer of Vraja's suffering and the hero whose smile shatters devotees' false pride. The gopīs ask to be accepted as His maidservants — pride breaks open in the presence of one we truly love.
BG 31.7
Your lotus feet destroy the past sins of all embodied souls who surrender to them. Those feet follow after the cows in the pastures and are the eternal abode of the goddess of fortune. Since You once put those feet on the hoods of the great serpent Kāliya, please place them upon our breasts and tear away the lust in our hearts.
Essence. The Lord's lotus feet — which destroy past sins, walk after the cows, and once tamed Kāliya — should now press on the gopīs' hearts and tear away lust. Where the feet of Kṛṣṇa rest, lower desire cannot keep its throne.
BG 31.8
O lotus-eyed one, Your sweet voice and charming words, which attract the minds of the intelligent, are bewildering us more and more. Our dear hero, please revive Your maidservants with the nectar of Your lips.
Essence. Kṛṣṇa's sweet voice and charming words enchant even the intelligent, leaving the gopīs increasingly bewildered. They beg the nectar of His lips to revive them — the heart that has tasted Him cannot survive on lesser fare.
BG 31.9
The nectar of Your words and the descriptions of Your activities are the life and soul of those suffering in this material world. These narrations, transmitted by learned sages, eradicate one’s sinful reactions and bestow good fortune upon whoever hears them. These narrations are broadcast all over the world and are filled with spiritual power. Certainly those who spread the message of Godhead are most munificent.
Essence. Narrations of Kṛṣṇa's pastimes are life itself for those suffering in this world; they cleanse sin, bring fortune, and carry spiritual power. Those who spread these stories are the most generous of all benefactors.
BG 31.10
Your smiles, Your sweet, loving glances, the intimate pastimes and confidential talks we enjoyed with You — all these are auspicious to meditate upon, and they touch our hearts. But at the same time, O deceiver, they very much agitate our minds.
Essence. The gopīs remember Kṛṣṇa's smiles, glances, intimate words and confidential pastimes — auspicious to dwell on, yet agitating. Deep love is bittersweet: meditation on the beloved is both medicine and burning ache.
BG 31.11
Dear master, dear lover, when You leave the cowherd village to herd the cows, our minds are disturbed with the thought that Your feet, more beautiful than a lotus, will be pricked by the spiked husks of grain and the rough grass and plants.
Essence. The gopīs worry that Kṛṣṇa's tender feet will be pricked by sharp grass and husks as He herds cows. Love attends to the smallest details — true devotion notices what others overlook in the beloved's daily life.
BG 31.12
At the end of the day You repeatedly show us Your lotus face, covered with dark blue locks of hair and thickly powdered with dust. Thus, O hero, You arouse lusty desires in our minds.
Essence. At evening Kṛṣṇa returns with His dust-covered, blue-locked lotus face and stirs the gopīs' lusty desire. Even the everyday image of the Lord coming home from work is enough to set the devotee's whole heart aflame.
BG 31.13
Your lotus feet, which are worshiped by Lord Brahmā, fulfill the desires of all who bow down to them. They are the ornament of the earth, they give the highest satisfaction, and in times of danger they are the appropriate object of meditation. O lover, O destroyer of anxiety, please put those lotus feet upon our breasts.
Essence. Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet, worshiped by Brahmā, fulfill every desire of those who bow, ornament the earth, and steady the mind in danger. The gopīs ask Him to place those feet on their breasts and end all their anxiety.
BG 31.14
O hero, kindly distribute to us the nectar of Your lips, which enhances conjugal pleasure and vanquishes grief. That nectar is thoroughly relished by Your vibrating flute and makes people forget any other attachment.
Essence. The gopīs beg the nectar of Kṛṣṇa's lips — relished by His flute and capable of erasing all other attachment. Real spiritual sweetness rearranges what we want; once tasted, lesser attachments lose their grip.
BG 31.15
When You go off to the forest during the day, a tiny fraction of a second becomes like a millennium for us because we cannot see You. And even when we can eagerly look upon Your beautiful face, so lovely with its adornment of curly locks, our pleasure is hindered by our eyelids, which were fashioned by the foolish creator.
Essence. When Kṛṣṇa goes to the forest, a fraction of a second feels like a millennium to the gopīs, and even seeing Him is hindered by the eyelids' blink. Pure love makes ordinary time strange — every separation feels endless.
BG 31.16
Dear Acyuta, You know very well why we have come here. Who but a cheater like You would abandon young women who come to see Him in the middle of the night, enchanted by the loud song of His flute? Just to see You, we have completely rejected our husbands, children, ancestors, brothers and other relatives.
Essence. The gopīs accuse Kṛṣṇa of being a cheater: who else would call young women into the night with His flute, then abandon them? They have rejected husbands, children, and relatives just to see Him — and they want Him to know it.
BG 31.17
Our minds are repeatedly bewildered as we think of the intimate conversations we had with You in secret, feel the rise of lust in our hearts and remember Your smiling face, Your loving glances and Your broad chest, the resting place of the goddess of fortune. Thus we experience the most severe hankering for You.
Essence. Memories of secret talks, rising lust, smiles, glances, and Kṛṣṇa's chest where Lakṣmī rests bewilder the gopīs' minds with intense hankering. Devotional remembrance is not abstract — it floods the body and heart with longing.
BG 31.18
O beloved, Your all-auspicious appearance vanquishes the distress of those living in Vraja’s forests. Our minds long for Your association. Please give to us just a bit of that medicine, which counteracts the disease in Your devotees’ hearts.
Essence. Kṛṣṇa's auspicious appearance vanishes the distress of Vraja; the gopīs beg for even a small dose of the medicine that cures the disease of His devotees' hearts. The cure for separation is more of the very Lord we long for.
BG 31.19
O dearly beloved! Your lotus feet are so soft that we place them gently on our breasts, fearing that Your feet will be hurt. Our life rests only in You. Our minds, therefore, are filled with anxiety that Your tender feet might be wounded by pebbles as You roam about on the forest path.
Essence. The gopīs place Kṛṣṇa's feet gently on their breasts, afraid that pebbles on the forest path will wound them. Their entire life rests in Him. Love measured in anxiety for the beloved's smallest comfort is real love.