Text 26
‘annakūṭa’-nāme grāme gopālera sthiti
rājaputa-lokera sei grāme vasati
annakūṭa-nāme — by the name Annakūṭa; grāme — in the village; gopālera — of Gopāla; sthiti — residence; rāja-puta-lokera — of people from Rajasthan; sei grāme — in that village; vasati — habitation.
Gopāla stayed in a village called Annakūṭa-grāma on Govardhana Hill. The villagers who lived in that village were mainly from Rajasthan.
The village named Annakūṭa-grāma is referred to in the Bhakti-ratnākara (Fifth Wave):
gopa-gopī bhuñjāyena kautuka apāra
ei hetu ‘āniyora’ nāma se ihāra
annakūṭa-sthāna ei dekha śrīnivāsa
e-sthāna darśane haya pūrṇa abhilāṣa
“Here all the gopīs and the gopas enjoyed wonderful pastimes with Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Therefore this place is also called Āniyora. The Annakūṭa ceremony was celebrated here. O Śrīnivāsa, whoever sees this place has all his desires fulfilled.” It is also stated:
kuṇḍera nikaṭa dekha niviḍa-kānana
ethāi ‘gopāla’ chilā hañā saṅgopana
“Look at the dense forest near the kuṇḍa. It was there that Gopāla was concealed.” Also, the Stavāvalī (Vraja-vilāsa-stava 75), by Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī, states:
vrajendra-varyārpita-bhogam uccair
dhṛtvā bṛhat-kāyam aghārir utkaḥ
vareṇa rādhāṁ chalayan vibhuṅkte
yatrānna-kūṭaṁ tad ahaṁ prapadye
“When Nanda Mahārāja offered a large quantity of food to Govardhana Hill, Kṛṣṇa assumed a gigantic form and eagerly invited everyone to ask boons from Him. Then, deceiving even Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, He ate all the offered food. Let me take shelter of the place known as Annakūṭa, where Lord Kṛṣṇa enjoyed these pastimes.”