Though he possess all possible powers, the Lord, being controlled by prema, is bound up. This bondage, however, being the most astonishing aspect of the Lord, becomes his ornament, not his fault. The lord, by his very nature, though self-contented (atma rama), suffers from hunger. Though he is full in his desires, he becomes dissatisfied. Though he is the form of pure goodness, he becomes angry. Though he is the master of Laksmi in Vaikuntha, he steals. Though he instills fear through time and death, he flees in fear. Though he travels quickly on the vehicle of the mind, he is caught by the strong grasp of his mother. Though he is condensed bliss, he cries in sorrow. Though he is all pervading, without limit, he is limited by being tied up. In all these incidents, Krsna was revealing directly to Yasoda his innate quality of being controlled by the devotee. All of this cannot be explained as simply an act or imitation performed by Krsna. Such explanations have no proof to support them and arise from ignorance. Brahma, Siva and Sanat Kumara realized this and were truly astonished. In Bhagavatam 10.11.9 it is said, "Krsna in this universe shows his nature of dependence on the devotee to the devotees tainted with jnana, such as Lord Brahma." Though the lord is independent (sva vasena), where do we see his independence? In his control of the universe and the devas (yasya idam sesvaram vase) . It is through prema, the essence of the cit sakti, that being controlled by the devotee arises, and this gives rise to the Lord’s highest bliss. That has been explained previously.

“It is concluded that Kṛṣṇa is complete and the supreme in powers as the Lord. He is without hunger and dissatisfaction. Yet it has been described that he was angry, theft-prone, and fearful, and he fled away, was forcibly grabbed by his mother and cried. These characteristics, being confidential, should be understood to be real by you, since they are a cause of rasa. But how can he also be called perfect and supreme?” True, by qualities, he is perfect and the Lord, but one must consider his mercy to his devotee. Without that mercy, none of the qualities will give happiness to anyone. A person cannot be pleasant if he has a hard heart. If there is no mercy, qualities diminish in value. Qualities which cause happiness in people are good qualities. Lack of mercy is naturally a fault. Such a fault cannot exist in the Lord for, by becoming an ordinary person with faults, he loses his status as the Lord full of good qualities. Ayam ātmāpahata-pāpmā: the Lord is devoid of sin. (Chāndogya Upaniṣad 8.1.5) Eṣa u eva vāmanīḥ vāmāni sarvāṇy abhiyanti: he is full of all auspicious qualities. All qualities come to the person who knows the Lord as such. (Chāndogya Upaniṣad 4.15.3) Mercy produces all other qualities and counters all faults. Therefore it is the chief quality. This is explained in relation to the puṁsavana ceremony described in the Sixth Canto: yathā tvaṁ kṛpayā bhūtyā tejasā mahimaujasā juṣṭa īśa guṇaiḥ sarvais tato 'si bhagavān prabhuḥ Just as you are endowed with mercy by which your powers are hidden, so you are situated as the Supreme Lord, worthy of worship, by being endowed with the śakti of Mahā-lakṣmī, the śakti of independence, the śakti of wealth, all strength and other qualities. SB 6.19.5 That mercy corresponds to the nature of bhakti and is proper since in its absence there is fault. If unconditional bhakti controls the Lord, it is proper that mercy also controls him. By this his powers do not decrease, since they manifest elsewhere. For instance, though Kṛṣṇa was bound up, he showed power to deliver Kuvera’s sons by pulling down the trees. Rather, but the quality of mercy, since it is all attractive, the powers of the Lord double in potency. It is necessary that he is controlled by the devotee. The Lord of Vaikuṇṭha said: ahaṁ bhakta-parādhīno hy asvatantra iva dvija sādhubhir grasta-hṛdayo bhaktair bhakta-jana-priyaḥ O brāhmaṇa! I am completely under the control of my devotees. I am not at all independent. My heart is controlled by the pure devotees. What to speak of my devotee, even those who are devotees of my devotee are very dear to me. SB 9.4.63 The reason the Lord’s heart is controlled by the devotee is because the devotee is sādhu—devoid of other desires. Therefore it is appropriate that the Lord has no other desire than to please the devotee. Being controlled by the devotee takes the form of internal and external actions favorable to the devotee. Because Kṛṣṇa takes on the mood of an infant in response to Yaśodā’s devotion, his assuming that mood is proper. Thinking of this real condition of Kṛṣṇa, Kuntī became bewildered with astonishment and bliss. gopy ādade tvayi kṛtāgasi dāma tāvad yā te daśāśru-kalilāñjana-sambhramākṣam | vaktraṁ ninīya bhaya-bhāvanayā sthitasya sā māṁ vimohayati bhīr api yad bibheti || My dear Kṛṣṇa, Yaśodā took up a rope to bind you when you committed an offense, and your perturbed eyes flooded with tears, which washed the mascara from your eyes. And you were afraid, though fear personified is afraid of you. This sight is bewildering to me. SB 1.8.31 With this intention, Śukadeva speaks this verse. In this way, being controlled by the devotee has been explicitly (san) shown, since elsewhere (outside of Vraja) pastimes with intensely possessive devotees to the extent of being bound up do not occur. Aṅga expresses Śukadeva’s prema for Parīkṣit and hi expresses certainty. Being controlled has been shown graphically by the Lord who attracts the devotees (hariṇā). Independently, because he is Svayam Bhagavān, Kṛṣṇa controls the universe.

From the beginning of the chapter, or in the way stated (evam), it is clearly (hi) shown that the Lord is controlled by his devotee. Aṅga indicates prema. Though Kṛṣṇa is independent (sva-vaśena), since he is the supreme Lord (kṛṣṇena), and controls the universe, he is controlled by the devotees. This control by Yaśodā shows his being extremely controlled (saṁdarśitā), more than by Brahmā or previously devotees or more than by Yudhiṣṭhira and others, where he acts as the guard, the servant, and the charioteer. No one else could tie him up.