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Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.62.12

बाणस्य मन्त्री कुम्भाण्डश्चित्रलेखा च तत्सुता । सख्यपृच्छत् सखीमूषां कौतूहलसमन्विता ॥ १२ ॥
bāṇasya mantrī kumbhāṇḍaś
[baanasya mantree kumbhaandash]
citralekhā ca tat-sutā
[chitralekhaa cha tat-sutaa]
sakhy apṛcchat sakhīm ūṣāṁ
[sakhy aprichchat sakheem ooshaam]
kautūhala-samanvitā
[kautoohala-samanvitaa]
Word-for-word
bāṇasya — of Bāṇa mantrī — the minister kumbhāṇḍaḥ — Kumbhāṇḍa Citralekhā — citralekhā ca — and tat — his sutā — daughter sakhī — the girlfriend apṛcchat — she asked sakhīm — her girīfriend ūṣām — Ūṣā kautūhala — with curiosity samanvitā — full .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
bāṇasya mantrī kumbhāṇḍaś
bāṇasya
of Bāṇa
mantrī
the minister
kumbhāṇḍaḥ
Kumbhāṇḍa
citralekhā ca tat-sutā
Citralekhā
citralekhā
ca
and
tat
his
sutā
daughter
sakhy apṛcchat sakhīm ūṣāṁ
sakhī
the girlfriend
apṛcchat
she asked
sakhīm
her girīfriend
ūṣām
Ūṣā
kautūhala-samanvitā
kautūhala
with curiosity
samanvitā
full .
Important Words
  • mantrī — the minister
    Nominative of mantrin. Kumbhāṇḍa is Bāṇa's counselor; his daughter, by being Ūṣā's sakhī, sits at the structural seam between palace and inner-chamber. Gauḍīyas note: every līlā needs informed insiders — Akrūra, Vidura, Uddhava — to keep the plot moving.
  • Citralekhā — Citralekhā
    Compound: citra (picture) + lekhā (drawing). Her very name foretells what she will do — she will draw, and through drawing identify the lover. Sanskrit characters often act out the meaning of their names; the poet is signaling.
  • sakhī — girlfriend
    Feminine of sakhā. In Gauḍīya rasa-śāstra, sakhīs are essential — Rādhā's love for Kṛṣṇa is mediated by Lalitā, Viśākhā, and the rest. Even an asura-side love-story imitates this structure: love needs sakhī-mediation to come to form.
  • kautūhala-samanvitā — full of curiosity
    Compound: kautūhala (curiosity) + samanvitā (endowed with). The sakhī's curiosity is the engine that turns mute longing into action. Gauḍīyas read curiosity itself as a junior form of śraddhā when its object is Kṛṣṇa-kathā.
Bāṇāsura had a minister named Kumbhāṇḍa, whose daughter was Citralekhā. A companion of Ūṣā’s, she was filled with curiosity, and thus she inquired from her friend.
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
Bāṇāsura had a minister named Kumbhāṇḍa, whose daughter was Citralekhā. A companion of Ūṣā's, she was filled with curiosity, and thus she inquired from her friend.
Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

The friend asked her friend. This shows their faith in each other. Kumbhāṇḍa was Bāṇa’s minister. Citralekhā was his daughter. The word ca means “but” (to indicate a different topic). Citralekhā was curious because of Ūsa’s words.

Related values & verses
Related values
Anahankarah (Freedom from False Ego)Bhakti (Devotion)Abhaya (Fearlessness)
Related verses
BG 15.9 BG 18.64 BG 2.62 BG 3.11 BG 12.3 SB 4.29.2 BG 9.11 BG 7.8 BG 10.3 BG 13.1 BG 5.18 BG 6.5 BG 4.39 BG 1.1 BG 16.4 BG 1.41
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
Citralekhā, daughter of Kumbhāṇḍa and Ūṣā's companion, was curious and inquired into her friend's hidden state. Real friendship watches closely and asks the question others would politely skip.
Reflection Questions
  • Who in my life loves me enough to ask the question I would rather not be asked?
  • Whom am I called to ask, with care, about a change I have noticed in them?
Analogy

Like a confidante who notices the new color in her friend's face before her friend has named it, Citralekhā steps forward — the chapter's structural sakhī. In every līlā, love needs a witness to make itself articulate.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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