Verse 2.1.216

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verse 2.1.216:

भो गोप-नन्दन क्षेत्रम् इदं मम यथा प्रियम् ।
तथा श्री-मथुराथासौ जन्म-भूमिर् विशेषतः ॥ २१६ ॥

bho gopa-nandana kṣetram idaṃ mama yathā priyam |
tathā śrī-mathurāthāsau janma-bhūmir viśeṣataḥ || 216 ||

bhoḥ gopa-nandana–O son of a cowherd; kṣetram–holy abode; idam–this; mama–My; yathā–just as; priyam–dear; tathā–similarly; śrīmathurā–Śrī Mathurā; atha–so; asau–that; janma-bhūmiḥ–birthplace; viśeṣataḥ–especially.

“O Gopa-nandana, O cowherd boy, just as this holy abode is dear to Me, so is Śrī Mathurā. But since Śrī Mathurā is My birthplace, it is even more dear to me.

Commentary: Dig-darśinī-ṭīkā with Bhāvānuvāda

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

Śrī Jagannātha-deva speaks two verses, beginning here with bho gopa-nandana, with the intention of, first, dispelling any misconception that it is wrong to leave Śrī Puruṣottama-kṣetra to go to Śrī Vṛndāvana, and, second, of affirming that He finds it more pleasing to reside in Vraja-bhūmi than in Śrī Puruṣottama-kṣetra. The purport of the Lord’s using the address, ‘bho gopa-nandana–O cowherd boy’ is: “Since you are the son of a cowherder, it is more appropriate for you to reside in Vraja.” Here, the word idam indicates Śrī Puruṣottama-dhāma, the word atha means ‘rather,’ and the word asau refers to Mathurā. The word viśeṣataḥ signifies: “Mathurā is far superior or extraordinary.” Or, “Mathurā is dear to Me because it is