Texts 10-12
kvacid gāyati gāyatsu
madāndhāliṣv anuvrataiḥ
upagīyamāna-caritaḥ
pathi saṅkarṣaṇānvitaḥ
anujalpati jalpantaṁ
kala-vākyaiḥ śukaṁ kvacit
kvacit sa-valgu kūjantam
anukūjati kokilam
kvacic ca kāla-haṁsānām
anukūjati kūjitam
abhinṛtyati nṛtyantaṁ
barhiṇaṁ hāsayan kvacit
megha-gambhīrayā vācā
nāmabhir dūra-gān paśūn
kvacid āhvayati prītyā
go-gopāla-manojñayā
kvacit — sometimes; gāyati — He sings; gāyatsu — when they are singing; mada-andha — blinded by intoxication; aliṣu — the bees; anuvrataiḥ — along with His companions; upagīyamāna — being chanted; caritaḥ — His pastimes; pathi — upon the path; saṅkarṣaṇa-anvitaḥ — accompanied by Lord Baladeva; anujalpati — He chatters in imitation; jalpantam — of the chattering; kala-vākyaiḥ — with broken speech; śukam — parrot; kvacit — sometimes; kvacit — sometimes; sa — with; valgu — charming; kūjantam — cuckooing; anukūjati — He imitates the cuckooing; kokilam — of a cuckoo; kvacit — sometimes; ca — and; kala-haṁsānām — of the swans; anukūjati kūjitam — imitates the cooing; abhinṛtyati — He dances in front of; nṛtyantam — dancing; barhiṇam — a peacock; hāsayan — making laugh; kvacit — sometimes; megha — like clouds; gambhirayā — grave; vācā — with His voice; nāmabhiḥ — by name; dūra-gān — who had strayed far away; paśūn — the animals; kvacit — sometimes; āhvayati — He calls; prītyā — affectionately; go — to the cows; gopāla — and the cowherd boys; manaḥ-jñayā — which (voice) charms the mind.
Sometimes the honeybees in Vṛndāvana became so mad with ecstasy that they closed their eyes and began to sing. Lord Kṛṣṇa, moving along the forest path with His cowherd boyfriends and Baladeva, would then respond to the bees by imitating their singing while His friends sang about His pastimes. Sometimes Lord Kṛṣṇa would imitate the chattering of a parrot, sometimes, with a sweet voice, the call of a cuckoo, and sometimes the cooing of swans. Sometimes He vigorously imitated the dancing of a peacock, making His cowherd boyfriends laugh. Sometimes, with a voice as deep as the rumbling of clouds, He would call out with great affection the names of the animals who had wandered far from the herd, thus enchanting the cows and the cowherd boys.
Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī explains that Lord Kṛṣṇa would joke with His friends, saying, “Just look, this peacock does not know how to dance properly,” whereupon the Lord would vigorously imitate the peacock’s dancing, causing great laughter among His friends. The bees in Vṛndāvana would drink the sap of the forest flowers, and the combination of this nectar and the association of Śrī Kṛṣṇa made them mad with intoxication. Thus they closed their eyes in ecstasy and expressed their satisfaction by humming. And this humming was also expertly imitated by the Lord.