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ŚB 10.36.15

Devanagari

एवं कुकुद्मिनं हत्वा स्तूयमान: द्विजातिभि: ।
विवेश गोष्ठं सबलो गोपीनां नयनोत्सव: ॥ १५ ॥

Text

evaṁ kukudminaṁ hatvā
stūyamānaḥ dvijātibhiḥ
viveśa goṣṭhaṁ sa-balo
gopīnāṁ nayanotsavaḥ

Synonyms

evam — thus; kukudminam — the humped (bull demon); hatvā — killing; stūyamānaḥ — being praised; dvijātibhiḥ — by the brāhmaṇas; viveśa — He entered; goṣṭham — the cowherd village; sa-balaḥ — together with Lord Balarāma; gopīnām — of the gopīs; nayana — for the eyes; utsavaḥ — who is a festival.

Translation

Having thus killed the bull demon Ariṣṭa, He who is a festival for the gopīs’ eyes entered the cowherd village with Balarāma.

Purport

This verse exemplifies the sublime contrast of spiritual qualities within Śrī Kṛṣṇa. In one four-line verse we simultaneously learn that Lord Kṛṣṇa killed a powerful and wicked demon and that His boyish beauty gave festive pleasure to His young girlfriends. Lord Kṛṣṇa is as hard as a thunderbolt or as soft as a rose, depending on our attitude toward Him. The demon Ariṣṭa wanted to kill Kṛṣṇa and all His friends, so the Lord beat him into a wet rag and killed him. The gopīs, however, loved Kṛṣṇa, and thus the Lord boyishly reciprocated their conjugal feelings.