Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.35.16-17
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
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pada-abja-dalaiḥ
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with the petal-like soles of His lotus feet
Compound: pada (foot) + abja (lotus) + dalaiḥ (with petals). The pad-abja is the canonical Gauḍīya image — Kṛṣṇa's feet as lotus, fragrant, soft, refuge. The gopīs notice each individual 'petal' of His tread.
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dhvaja-vajra-nīraja-aṅkuśa
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of flag, thunderbolt, lotus, and elephant goad
Compound: dhvaja (flag) + vajra (thunderbolt) + nīraja (lotus) + aṅkuśa (goad). The four classical signs on Bhagavān's soles. Lakṣmī's lakṣaṇas. The cowherd boy walks Vraja with Viṣṇu's own emblems pressed into the dust.
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vraja
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relieving the pain of Vraja's ground from the hooves
Compound phrase: vraja (Vraja) + bhuvaḥ (of the ground); khura (hoof) + toda (pain) + śamayan (relieving). The earth feels pain from the cows' hooves; Kṛṣṇa's softer feet heal her. The earth is sentient in Vraja — and Kṛṣṇa is her medicine.
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varṣma-dhurya-gatiḥ
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whose movement is like an elephant's body
Compound: varṣma (body) + dhurya (chief, like an elephant) + gatiḥ (movement). The slow rolling gait of a tusker. Sanskrit kāvya consistently compares the regal walk to gaja-gati — Kṛṣṇa carries Himself as the lord He is, even in cowherd dress.
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savilāsa-vīkṣaṇa
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with playful glances
Compound: sa (with) + vilāsa (play, sport) + vīkṣaṇa (glancing). Vilāsa is Rūpa Gosvāmī's technical term for one of the anubhāvas of nāyikā-līlā — the playful sidelong look that wounds. Kṛṣṇa's glance is never neutral; it is always tāṅ-rasa-yukta.
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kuja-gatim gamitāḥ
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brought to the condition of trees (motionless)
Compound: kuja (tree) + gatim (movement, condition) + gamitāḥ (caused to attain). The gopīs are 'tree-ified' — they go still. Stambha, paralysis, is one of the eight sāttvika-bhāvas. Loose hair, slipping clothes, no awareness — the body forgets itself before the glance.
Here mother Yaśodā is no longer in the company of the gopīs, who are confidentially describing their conjugal attraction to Śrī Kṛṣṇa. It is clear from the comments of Jīva Gosvāmī and other ācāryas that the statements in this chapter were made at various times and places. This is natural, since the gopīs were always absorbed in thoughts of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, day and night.
One gopi of another group then spoke of her personal bewilderment on hearing the flute to mother Yasoda. When Krsna, with elephant gait, walks around to relieve the earth of the pain of the cows’ hooves striking the ground by the touch of his feet which resemble lotus petals, which are marked with symbols like the flag and conch, we gopis whose hearts are agitated with lust through his glances become stunned like the trees, and are not aware of our clothing or hair, which all become loose without our noticing it. Though Krsna has relieved the earth of pain, he has produced pain in us by his lotus eyed glances. This is our misfortune.
Another devoted group, holding secret rasa, produced internally by pastimes, is addressed. After passing the third yāma of the day in talking about Kṛṣṇa, when he does not arrive, some of the gopīs, with anxious hearts, on the pretext of picking flowers, go to look for him when it is time for the cows to return. They praise seeing him in the forest at the end of the day. Overcome by emotion they say, “O dear friends! Enough of speaking of others becoming bewildered. Hear about our own condition.” They speak this verse. By using the word nija (his very own), the unusual nature of his feet is indicated. The plural (dalaiḥ) is used instead of the dual out of great respect, or to express the uncommon beauty of each foot print. Those feet have beautiful, astonishing marks of the flag, thunderbolt, lotus and goad. Or the feet are beautiful and astonishing with the marks of the flag, thunderbolt, lotus and goad. These marks also stand for the other famous marks like the cakra and the less famous marks like the octagon. With those feet he relieved the land of Vraja, of the pain caused by the hooves of the cows since he herds the cows there because of the grass. When the Lord follows the cows, his feet naturally touch the earth, and the earth then sprouts new grass and shoots immediately. Pasturing the unlimited cows is a daily occurrence. He moves slowly with the grace of an elephant since he is playing his flute. If he moved quickly he could not play the flute. Though he naturally moves in this manner, they mention this because of its special beauty at this time. It is especially attractive to us. He wanders here and there. The gopīs minds become agitated by his playful glance at them which enter within them. They express their confused state. They become stunned, motionless like trees. Or, when he moves about, we become motionless. By his cleverness we become dumbfounded. Opposite result is shown. This shows his power to bewilder and their gopīs pitiful condition. They do not know that their dresses and hair have come undone. The latter phrase “have come undone” is not mentioned out of embarrassment. Our hair, what to speak of our clothing, becomes loose. Vā indicates both.
Because of the sudden statement directed to Yaśodā, there is no regard for a sequence in time in reciting the verses. But his flute playing at noon can be inferred in the present verse. In great pain, the gopīs display their bewilderment because of great pain at the moment. That is expressed in two verses. He is not wearing shoes and there are many footprints. His feet are like lotus petals wide at the front and narrow at the back, soft and pink. Instead of dalaiḥ some versions have talaiḥ. The plural indicates many footprints or indicates respect. The footprints (and feet) have extraordinary markings. Śaṅkha and cakra marks are not mentioned since they are very famous on Viṣṇu’s feet. By those marks he removes the pain of hooves treading on the land of Govardhana and Vṛndāvana. This is because his lotus feet by their nature remove all pain, the beautiful foot prints cover the hoof marks and remove all pain. Kṛṣṇa moves slowly and gracefully like the king of the elephants, since he is playing the flute. Though he does this to bewilder the gopīs, he also does this to avoid boldness. Actually there is no injuring to the earth by the cows’ hooves, only an appearance of marks, since the cows are related to the Lord himself. However the gopīs do not mention this since they lack reflective powers, because of their unsatisfied desires. Or the injuries to the earth are from the hooves of Dhenuka and Ariṣṭāsura. Kṛṣṇa goes from Vraja to the forest (vrajati) or he moves here and there. Because of him (tena), our minds become agitated by his beautiful or playful (savilāsa) glance. We cannot prevent this. Though he may glance for some other purpose, they develop the greatest bewilderment because their desire is aroused. Thus step by step they reveal his beauty, pastimes and sweetness. They become like trees (kuja), unable to move. Or because of agitation by his glance, and becoming stunned we are not aware that our clothing has become loose. Or after becoming stunned, by his glance we are not aware that our clothing has become loose. When he comes, we do not show skill and become foolish. This opposite result shows his great attractiveness and their humble position. We do not know that our hair has come undone and our clothing has become loose. Vā means both or “even.” Though in bewilderment one loses awareness of everything related to the body, particularly the women would usually be aware of their cloth. In the previous pairs of verses, each verse is a separate statement, but in this verse, the statement continues into the second verse. Because he comes they become stunned. This means that because of his direct association they become stunned. Yaśodā went away to do chores or because of doubled suffering on hearing about the excellence of her son. When they became free of worry that she would return, out of great pain, they speak among themselves about their bewilderment in relation to their description of Brahmā’s bewilderment. The word vicitra indicates other astonishing marks of beauty (lalāmaiḥ) on his feet, like the barley corn and cakra. First they became stunned and then because of bewilderment, they were not aware of their clothing become loose.
Kṛṣṇa walks on Vraja's soil and His lotus-petal feet stamp it with flag, thunderbolt, lotus and goad — the very emblems Brahmā describes on Bhagavān's soles — so that even the ground, sore from the cows' hooves, is cooled by His prints. The gopīs, glanced at in passing, freeze like trees, hair and clothes coming loose without their knowing. Cupid's arrow lands; the casualty is the daughter of Vraja.
When Lord Rāma sent His sandals to Bharata at Nandigrāma, Bharata placed them on the throne and ruled in their name for fourteen years. The Rāmāyaṇa makes the foot of the Lord the seat of dharma itself — not metaphorically, but literally bearing the same flag, thunderbolt, and lotus marks the gopīs see here on Kṛṣṇa.
Gauḍīyas join the two: Rāma's pādukā and Kṛṣṇa's pad-aṅka are the same Bhagavān's same feet. Where Bharata served the sandals, the soil of Vraja receives the prints directly — and is healed by them.
My note
Source: vedabase.io