CHAPTER 19
Capítulo 19
Devouring the Forest Fire
Kṛṣṇa Devora o Incêndio da Floresta
While Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma and Their friends were engaged in the pastimes described above, the cows, being unobserved, began to wander off on their own, entering farther and farther into the deepest part of the forest, allured by fresh grasses. The goats, cows and buffalo traveled from one forest to another and entered the forest known as Īṣīkāṭavī. This forest was full of green grass, and therefore they were allured; but when they entered, they saw that there was a forest fire, and they began to cry. On the other side Balarāma and Kṛṣṇa, along with Their friends, could not find their animals, and they became very much aggrieved. They began to trace the cows by following their footprints, as well as the path of eaten grass. All of the boys were fearing that their very means of livelihood, the cows, were now lost. When searching out the cows in the forest, they themselves became very tired and thirsty. Soon, however, they heard the crying of their cows. Kṛṣṇa began to call the cows by their respective names, with great noise. Upon hearing Kṛṣṇa calling, the cows immediately replied with joy. But by this time the forest fire had surrounded all of them, and the situation appeared to be very fearful. The flames increased as the wind blew very quickly, and it appeared that everything movable and immovable would be devoured. All the cows and the boys became very frightened, and they looked toward Balarāma and Kṛṣṇa the way a dying man looks at the picture of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. They said, “Dear Kṛṣṇa! Dear Kṛṣṇa! You and Balarāma are very powerful. We are now burning from the heat of this blazing fire. Let us take shelter of Your lotus feet. We know You can protect us from this great danger. Our dear friend Kṛṣṇa, we are Your intimate friends. It is not right that we should suffer in this way. We are all completely dependent on You, and You are the knower of all religious life. We do not know anyone except You.”
Enquanto Kṛṣṇa e Balarāma e Seus amigos se ocupavam nos passatempos descritos acima, as vacas, sem serem observadas, começaram a vaguear por sua conta, entrando cada vez mais longe nas partes mais profundas da floresta, seduzidas pela relva fresca. As cabras, vacas e búfalos passaram de uma floresta para outra, e entraram na floresta chamada Īṣīkāṭavī. Essa floresta estava cheia de capim verde, daí terem sido atraídos, mas, quando entraram, viram que havia um incêndio na floresta e começaram a berrar. Do outro lado, Balarāma e Kṛṣṇa, com Seus amigos, não podiam encontrar Seus animais e ficaram muito aflitos. Começaram a procurar as vacas seguindo suas pegadas, bem como o caminho da relva que haviam comido. Todos os meninos temiam que seu próprio meio de vida, as vacas, agora estivesse perdido. Enquanto procuravam as vacas na floresta, ficaram muito cansados e com sede. Logo, porém, ouviram os berros de suas vacas. Kṛṣṇa começou a chamar as vacas por seus respectivos nomes, com grande alarido. Ouvindo o chamado de Kṛṣṇa, as vacas responderam imediatamente com alegria. Entretanto, nessa altura, o incêndio da floresta rodeava todos eles, e a situação parecia muito amedrontadora. As chamas aumentavam com o vento que soprava com grande velocidade, e parecia que tudo, móvel e inerte, seria devorado. Todas as vacas e meninos ficaram muito assustados, e olhavam para Balarāma e Kṛṣṇa do modo como um moribundo olha para uma pintura da Suprema Personalidade de Deus. Eles diziam: “Queridos Kṛṣṇa e Balarāma, agora estamos queimando no calor deste fogo ardente. Deixem que nos abriguemos a Seus pés de lótus. Sabemos que Vocês podem nos proteger deste grande perigo. Nosso querido amigo Kṛṣṇa, somos Seus amigos íntimos. Não está certo que soframos desta maneira. Todos dependemos por completo de Você, que é o conhecedor de toda a vida religiosa. Não conhecemos ninguém além de Você”.
The Personality of Godhead heard the appealing voices of His friends, and casting a pleasing glance over them, He began to answer. By speaking through His eyes, He impressed upon His friends that there was no cause for fear, and He assured them: “Don’t worry.” Then Kṛṣṇa, the supreme mystic, the powerful Personality of Godhead, immediately swallowed up all the flames of the fire. The cows and boys were thus saved from imminent danger. Out of fear, the boys were almost unconscious, but when they regained their consciousness and opened their eyes, they saw that they were again in the Bhāṇḍīra forest with Kṛṣṇa, Balarāma and the cows. They were astonished to see that they were completely free from the attack of the blazing fire and that the cows were saved. They secretly thought that Kṛṣṇa must be not an ordinary boy but some demigod.
A Personalidade de Deus ouviu as vozes suplicantes de Seus amigos e, lançando um olhar agradável sobre eles, começou a responder. Falando através dos olhos, Ele fez com que Seus amigos entendessem não haver razão para medo. Então, Kṛṣṇa, o místico supremo, a poderosa Personalidade de Deus, engoliu imediatamente todas as chamas do incêndio. Dessa maneira, as vacas e os meninos foram todos salvos do perigo iminente. Por causa do medo, os meninos estavam quase inconscientes, mas, quando recuperaram a consciência e abriram os olhos, viram que estavam de novo na floresta com Kṛṣṇa, Balarāma e as vacas. Ficaram atônitos ao verem que estavam completamente livres do ataque do fogo ardente e que as vacas estavam salvas. Eles pensaram secretamente que Kṛṣṇa não devia ser um menino comum, mas, sim, algum semideus.
In the evening, Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, along with the boys and cows, returned to Vṛndāvana, playing Their flutes. As they approached the village, all the gopīs became very joyous. Throughout the day the gopīs used to think of Kṛṣṇa while He was in the forest, and in His absence they were considering one moment to be like twelve years.
Ao anoitecer, Kṛṣṇa e Balarāma, junto com os meninos e as vacas, voltaram para Vṛndāvana tocando Suas flautas. Quando se aproximaram da vila, todas as gopīs ficaram muito contentes. Durante o dia inteiro, as gopīs costumavam pensar em Kṛṣṇa enquanto Ele estava na floresta e, em Sua ausência, elas achavam que um momento parecia durar doze anos.
Thus ends the Bhaktivedanta purport of the nineteenth chapter of Kṛṣṇa, “Devouring the Forest Fire.”
Neste ponto, encerram-se os significados Bhaktivedanta do capítulo dezenove de Kṛṣṇa, intitulado “Kṛṣṇa Devora o Incêndio da Floresta”.