Chapter 65 · 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 65.1
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: O best of the Kurus, once Lord Balarāma, eager to visit His well-wishing friends, mounted His chariot and traveled to Nanda Gokula.
Essence. Balarāma's return to Vraja honors the bond between Kṛṣṇa's family of devotees and His brother. The Lord and His associates remember and reunite with those who love them — devotion is never forgotten on the divine side.
BG 65.2
Having long suffered the anxiety of separation, the cowherd men and their wives embraced Lord Balarāma. The Lord then offered respects to His parents, and they joyfully greeted Him with prayers.
Essence. Long-suffering separation breaks open in tears of joy at reunion. The cowherds' embrace shows that the pain of separation is the very fuel of the bliss of meeting — neither comes without the other.
BG 65.3
[Nanda and Yaśodā prayed,] “O descendant of Daśārha, O Lord of the universe, may You and Your younger brother Kṛṣṇa ever protect us.” Saying this, they raised Śrī Balarāma onto their laps, embraced Him and moistened Him with tears from their eyes.
Essence. Nanda and Yaśodā pray for Balarāma's wellbeing rather than demanding their own consolation. Mature devotion thinks first of the Lord's welfare, not its own grief.
BG 65.4-6
Lord Balarāma then paid proper respects to the elder cowherd men, and the younger ones all greeted Him respectfully. He met them all with smiles, handshakes and so on, dealing personally with each one according to age, degree of friendship, and family relationship. Then, after resting, the Lord accepted a comfortable seat, and they all gathered around Him. With voices faltering out of love for Him, those cowherds, who had dedicated everything to lotus-eyed Kṛṣṇa, asked about the health of their dear ones [in Dvārakā], and Balarāma in turn asked about the cowherds’ welfare.
Essence. Balarāma honors the elders and embraces the youngsters appropriately — devotional culture knows how to greet every relationship in its proper key. Love is specific, not generic.
BG 65.7
[The cowherds said:] O Rāma, are all our relatives doing well? And Rāma, do all of you, with your wives and children, still remember us?
Essence. The cowherds ask after every relative — devotion to Kṛṣṇa expresses itself as care for everyone in His circle. We cannot love God seriously and ignore those He loves.
BG 65.8
It is our great fortune that sinful Kaṁsa has been killed and our dear relatives have been freed. And it is also our good fortune that our relatives have killed and defeated their enemies and found complete security in a great fortress.
Essence. Relief that Kaṁsa is dead and the family rescued — the cowherds celebrate their friends' liberation as their own. Devotional joy is communal; we rise on each other's freedom.
BG 65.9
[Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued:] Honored to have the personal audience of Lord Balarāma, the young gopīs smiled and asked Him, “Is Kṛṣṇa, the darling of the city women, living happily?
Essence. Honored by Balarāma's audience, the gopīs approach Him eager to ask about Kṛṣṇa. When direct access fades, devotees still seek news through trusted intermediaries.
BG 65.10
“Does He remember His family members, especially His father and mother? Do you think He will ever come back even once to see His mother? And does mighty-armed Kṛṣṇa remember the service we always did for Him?
Essence. The gopīs ask: does He still remember us, will He come back? Even the highest love asks plaintive questions when separation lingers. To wonder is not to doubt — it is to keep loving.
BG 65.11-12
“For Kṛṣṇa’s sake, O descendant of Dāśārha, we abandoned our mothers, fathers, brothers, husbands, children and sisters, even though these family relations are difficult to give up. But now, O Lord, that same Kṛṣṇa has suddenly abandoned us and gone away, breaking off all affectionate ties with us. And yet how could any woman fail to trust His promises?
Essence. For Kṛṣṇa's sake the gopīs abandoned everyone — and now wonder if He has abandoned them. Total surrender carries the risk of seeming forsaken; only such risk reveals true love.
BG 65.13
“How can intelligent city women possibly trust the words of one whose heart is so unsteady and who is so ungrateful? They must believe Him because He speaks so wonderfully, and also because His beautiful smiling glances arouse their lust.
Essence. The gopīs accuse Kṛṣṇa, half-jokingly, of being fickle for city women. Love expresses itself in mock complaint when separation lasts too long — even our protests become prayers.
BG 65.14
“Why bother talking about Him, dear gopī? Please talk of something else. If He passes His time without us, then we shall similarly pass ours [without Him].”
Essence. 'Why bother talking about Him' — and yet they cannot stop. The gopīs' refusal to discuss Kṛṣṇa is the surest sign He fills their minds. Loving protest reveals what consumes the heart.
BG 65.15
While speaking these words, the young cowherd women remembered Lord Śauri’s laughter, His pleasing conversations with them, His attractive glances, His style of walking and His loving embraces. Thus they began to cry.
Essence. Recalling Kṛṣṇa's laughter, glances, and embraces, the gopīs weep. Memory is the form love takes when the beloved is gone. Holy memory is itself communion.
BG 65.16
The Supreme Lord Balarāma, the attractor of all, being expert at various kinds of conciliation, consoled the gopīs by relaying to them the confidential messages Lord Kṛṣṇa had sent with Him. These messages deeply touched the gopīs’ hearts.
Essence. Balarāma comforts the gopīs with skillful words. The Lord's associates know how to console where He Himself is absent — the saints carry Kṛṣṇa's compassion when He seems silent.
BG 65.17
Lord Balarāma, the Personality of Godhead, resided there for the two months of Madhu and Mādhava, and during the nights He gave His cowherd girlfriends conjugal pleasure.
Essence. Balarāma stays in Vraja for two months — He honors the heart-bond by remaining. Real love makes time for those it loves; presence is the heaviest currency of devotion.
BG 65.18
In the company of numerous women, Lord Balarāma enjoyed in a garden by the Yamunā River. This garden was bathed in the rays of the full moon and caressed by breezes bearing the fragrance of night-blooming lotuses.
Essence. Balarāma enjoys in a garden by the Yamunā with many women — the Lord's joy overflows in shared festivity. Divinity is not austerity alone; it includes celebration in good company.
BG 65.19
Sent by the demigod Varuṇa, the divine vāruṇī liquor flowed from a tree hollow and made the entire forest even more fragrant with its sweet aroma.
Essence. Vāruṇī liquor flows from a hollow tree — the Lord and His associates are intoxicated by what the gods themselves send. Divine play does not always look austere; sometimes it looks like overflow.
BG 65.20
The wind carried to Balarāma the fragrance of that flood of sweet liquor, and when He smelled it He went [to the tree]. There He and His female companions drank.
Essence. The fragrance reaches Balarāma and He delights in it — the Lord receives nature's offerings with pleasure. To enjoy creation gratefully is itself a form of worship.
BG 65.21
As the Gandharvas sang His glories, Lord Balarāma enjoyed within the brilliant circle of young women. He appeared just like Indra’s elephant, the lordly Airāvata, enjoying in the company of she-elephants.
Essence. Gandharvas sing while Balarāma enjoys among the women — even the celestials show up to glorify His play. The whole universe collaborates when the Lord enjoys with His devotees.
BG 65.22
At that time kettledrums resounded in the sky, the Gandharvas joyfully rained down flowers, and the great sages praised Lord Balarāma’s heroic deeds.
Essence. Kettledrums sound, flowers rain — even the sky participates in Balarāma's celebration. The cosmos is not indifferent; it responds to devotional joy with its own ovation.
BG 65.23
As His deeds were sung, Lord Halāyudha wandered as if inebriated among the various forests with His girlfriends. His eyes rolled from the effects of the liquor.
Essence. Halāyudha wanders, singing His own deeds — the Lord is not too dignified to enjoy His own story. Self-delight in divine action is not vanity; it is the joy of pure being.
BG 65.24-25
Intoxicated with joy, Lord Balarāma sported flower garlands, including the famous Vaijayantī. He wore a single earring, and beads of perspiration decorated His smiling lotus face like snowflakes. The Lord then summoned the Yamunā River so that He could play in her waters, but she disregarded His command, thinking He was drunk. This angered Balarāma, and He began dragging the river with the tip of His plow.
Essence. Wearing the Vaijayantī garland and enjoying with the gopīs, Balarāma savors every detail of līlā. The smallest items — a particular flower, a particular companion — matter in divine play.
BG 65.26
[Lord Balarāma said:] O sinful one disrespecting Me, you do not come when I call you but rather move only by your own whim. Therefore with the tip of My plow I shall bring you here in a hundred streams!
Essence. Balarāma calls the Yamunā and she does not come — He scolds her for disrespecting Him. Even sacred forces are accountable to the Lord; reverence is not optional for any being.
BG 65.27
[Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued:] Thus scolded by the Lord, O King, the frightened river-goddess Yamunā came and fell at the feet of Śrī Balarāma, the beloved descendant of Yadu. Trembling, she spoke to Him the following words.
Essence. Frightened, the Yamunā goddess appears — even rivers must answer the Lord. The chastisement of the divine is not cruelty but a re-establishing of order.
BG 65.28
[Goddess Yamunā said:] Rāma, Rāma, O mighty-armed one! I know nothing of Your prowess. With a single portion of Yourself You hold up the earth, O Lord of the universe.
Essence. Yamunā confesses she did not recognize Balarāma's supreme position. Spiritual failure is often failure of recognition — we miss God's identity in the moment we are addressed.
BG 65.29
My Lord, please release me. O soul of the universe, I didn’t understand Your position as the Supreme Godhead, but now I have surrendered unto You, and You are always kind to Your devotees.
Essence. Yamunā pleads for release, naming Balarāma as soul of the universe. Genuine humility before God includes naming Him correctly — knowing whom we have offended is the first step home.
BG 65.30
[Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued:] Thereupon Lord Balarāma released the Yamunā and, like the king of the elephants with his entourage of she-elephants, entered the river’s water with His female companions.
Essence. Balarāma releases the Yamunā as a kindly king. The Lord's discipline is always temporary — it lasts only as long as it takes to teach. He does not hold grudges.
BG 65.31
The Lord played in the water to His full satisfaction, and when He came out Goddess Kānti presented Him with blue garments, precious ornaments and a brilliant necklace.
Essence. Kānti devī offers Balarāma fresh garments and ornaments. Divine play attracts continuous offering — the world wants to dress and adorn the Lord. Worship is creation responding to His beauty.
BG 65.32
Lord Balarāma dressed Himself in the blue garments and put on the gold necklace. Anointed with fragrances and beautifully adorned, He appeared as resplendent as Indra’s royal elephant.
Essence. Balarāma dons blue garments and a gold necklace — the same blue Kṛṣṇa often wears. The brothers' resemblance reminds us that the supreme divine has many faces with shared essence.
BG 65.33
Even today, O King, one can see how the Yamunā flows through the many channels created when it was dragged by the unlimitedly powerful Lord Balarāma. Thus she demonstrates His prowess.
Essence. Even today the Yamunā flows through the channels Balarāma carved. The Lord's pastimes leave permanent geography — what God does in love shapes the world for generations.
BG 65.34
Thus for Lord Balarāma all the nights passed like a single night as He enjoyed in Vraja, His mind enchanted by the exquisite charm and beauty of Vraja’s young ladies.
Essence. For Balarāma all the nights passed like a single night — when love is full, time collapses. The way we experience duration tells us how present we are to the beloved.