Text 43
tāḥ kiṁ niśāḥ smarati yāsu tadā priyābhir
vṛndāvane kumuda-kunda-śaśāṅka-ramye
reme kvaṇac-caraṇa-nūpura-rāsa-goṣṭhyām
asmābhir īḍita-manojña-kathaḥ kadācit
tāḥ — those; kim — whether; niśāḥ — nights; smarati — He remembers; yāsu — in which; tadā — then; priyābhiḥ — with His beloved girlfriends; vṛndāvane — in the Vṛndāvana forest; kumuda — because of the lotuses; kunda — and jasmines; śaśāṅka — and because of the moon; ramye — attractive; reme — He enjoyed; kvaṇat — jingling; caraṇa-nūpura — (where) the ankle bells; rāsa-goṣṭhyām — in the party of the rāsa dance; asmābhiḥ — with us; īḍita — glorified; manojña — charming; kathaḥ — topics about whom; kadācit — ever.
Does He recall those nights in the Vṛndāvana forest, lovely with lotus, jasmine and the bright moon? As we glorified His charming pastimes, He enjoyed with us, His beloved girlfriends, in the circle of the rāsa dance, which resounded with the music of ankle bells.
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī gives the following deep realization about this verse: “The gopīs knew that no place could be as beautiful as Vṛndāvana. Nowhere else in the universe could one find such a charming scene as the Vṛndāvana forest, which was scented with pious flowers and illumined by the full moon’s light reflected from the serene waves of the sacred Yamunā River. No one loved Kṛṣṇa as much as the gopīs, and thus no one else could understand Him as well. The gopīs rendered intimate service to Kṛṣṇa that only they could perfect. Thus the gopīs were distraught to think that Lord Kṛṣṇa was bereft of Vṛndāvana and bereft of their service. Free of all material lust, they were overwhelmed with disappointment because they could not give Kṛṣṇa happiness by their loving service. They simply could not imagine Kṛṣṇa enjoying anywhere else as He did in Vṛndāvana in their company.”