Verse 2.1.149

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verse 2.1.149:

अस्यास् तु व्रज-भूमेः श्रीर् गोप-क्रीडा-सुखं च तत् ।
कदाचिद् अपि मे ब्रह्मन् हृदयान् नापसर्पति ॥ १४९ ॥

asyās tu vraja-bhūmeḥ śrīr gopa-krīḍā-sukhaṃ ca tat |
kadācid api me brahman hṛdayān nāpasarpati || 149 ||

asyāḥ–of that; tu–but; vraja-bhūmeḥ–of the land of Vraja; śrīḥ–the beauty; gopa–with the cowherders; krīḍā–of sporting; sukham–the happiness; ca–also; tat–that; kadācit–ever; api–also; me–of me; brahman–O brahman-realized person; hṛdayāt–from my heart; na apasrpati–would not depart.

Despite all this, O brāhmaṇa, the beauty of the land of Vraja and the happiness of playing with the cowherd boys did not leave my heart. Rather, those memories always remained awake within me.

Commentary: Dig-darśinī-ṭīkā with Bhāvānuvāda

(By Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī himself including a deep purport of that commentary)

Here, Śrī Gopa-kumāra exhibits symptoms of having perfected the chanting of his mantra. Although he experienced bliss in observing Deity worship, festivals, and so on, still, the happiness of wandering in the land of Vraja in Mathurā-maṇḍala was greater. This is explained in this verse beginning with asyā. The word tu, meaning ‘but,’ indicates that Vraja is more special than any other place. The word śrī, meaning ‘beauty,’ indicates, “I personally experienced that beauty. The pastimes with the cowherd boys and the special splendor of the land of Vraja are indescribable and, whether awake or dreaming, I could never forget those things. Even while experiencing great bliss in the Lord’s grand, festive worship in the association of Vaiṣṇavas, vivid impressions of the beauty of Vraja still remained alive in my heart.”