Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.49.11
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
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kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa
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O Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa
Doubled vocative — the mantra-form of address. Caitanya Mahāprabhu's mahā-mantra centres on exactly this repetition; Kuntī here utters it spontaneously a yuga before Mahāprabhu would teach it as the yuga-dharma.
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mahā-yogin
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possessor of the greatest spiritual power
Yoga in the Bhāgavata's mouth is not posture but mastery — yoga-māyā, yoga-īśvara. Kuntī names Kṛṣṇa not as the perfect yogi but the Lord of all yoga, parallel to the closing line of the Gītā (yatra yogeśvaraḥ kṛṣṇaḥ).
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viśva-bhāvana
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O protector of the universe
Viśva (cosmos) + bhāvana (sustainer, the one who causes to be). Kuntī widens the address from family to cosmos in a single breath — and then immediately asks Him to protect this one family. The whole logic of personalist bhakti.
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prapannām
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a surrendered lady
Feminine perfect-passive participle of pra-√pad — to fall before, take refuge. The single most weight-bearing word in Vaiṣṇava soteriology; Kuntī claims the prapanna-status that Gītā 18.66 invites.
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govinda
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O Govinda
Go (cows, senses, earth, words) + vinda (one who finds, who gives joy). Kuntī picks the Vraja-name — not Vāsudeva, not Nārāyaṇa — at the moment of greatest need. The cowherd-name carries the most intimate śaraṇa.
“Since Lord Kṛṣṇa maintains the entire universe,” thought Kuntīdevī, “surely He can protect our family.” The word avasīdatīm indicates that Kuntīdevī was overwhelmed by troubles; thus exhausted, she was helplessly taking shelter of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. In her prayers in the First Canto of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Kuntī admits that all these troubles were actually a blessing, for they forced her to always be intensely Kṛṣṇa conscious.
"O great yogi (mahayogi), you can thus hear my words of lamentation! O soul of the universe (visvatman), being also in my heart, you can certainly hear me! O protector of the universe (visva bhavana), since you protect the universe, what trouble is there to protect me? O Govinda , pleasure of the senses, be visible to my eyes, for I want to see you!"
“After solving problems among his own people he will come and console you.” Until the time we see his sweetness, he should protect our lives while we are here. Indicating his supreme abilities, she calls out to him directly in great pain in three verses, speaking pitifully. She prays for protection from dangers in the future. First she calls his primary name Kṛṣṇa twice, so that he will quickly turn towards her. She indicates his ability by calling out to him. O Kṛṣṇa endowed with the highest means (mahā-yogī)! It is not necessary to inform you since you are the source of all knowledge (viśvātman). In knowing everything you are not indifferent, since you protect the universe (viśva-bhāvana). You are affectionate to those who surrender. O Govinda! You gained that name after lifting Govardhana. Do not delay in coming. I am suffering constantly with my infants because of troubles caused by enemies.
- What stacked titles for Kṛṣṇa would you call in your overwhelm today?
- Where do you assume surrender is implicit when explicit speech is needed?
Kuntī's mouth opens and what comes out is no longer a niece's plea but the bhakta's own mantra: Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Govinda. The relational distance collapses — she is now standing where Gajendra stood when the crocodile held him.
In SB 8.2–3, the elephant-king Gajendra — seized by a crocodile and exhausted of his own strength — cries out to Hari and is lifted free. Kuntī's prayer here is the same shape: surrender (prapannām) declared with the last breath of self-effort.
Gauḍīyas pair these two prayers in their teaching: Gajendra in the water, Kuntī in the court — wherever the bhakta is sinking, prapatti is the rope that arrives.
My note
Source: vedabase.io