Text 14
surata-vardhanaṁ śoka-nāśanaṁ
svarita-veṇunā suṣṭhu cumbitam
itara-rāga-vismāraṇaṁ nṛṇāṁ
vitara vīra nas te ’dharāmṛtam
surata — conjugal happiness; vardhanam — which increases; śoka — grief; nāśanam — which destroys; svarita — vibrated; veṇunā — by Your flute; suṣṭhu — abundantly; cumbitam — kissed; itara — other; rāga — attachments; vismāraṇam — causing to forget; nṛṇām — men; vitara — please spread; vīra — O hero; naḥ — upon us; te — Your; adhara — of the lips; amṛtam — the nectar.
O hero, kindly distribute to us the nectar of Your lips, which enhances conjugal pleasure and vanquishes grief. That nectar is thoroughly relished by Your vibrating flute and makes people forget any other attachment.
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī’ s charming commentary on this verse is in the form of a dialogue between the gopīs and Kṛṣṇa:
“The gopīs say, ‘O Kṛṣṇa, You exactly resemble Dhanvantari, the best of physicians. So please give us some medicine, for we are suffering from the disease of romantic desire for You. Don’t hesitate to give us the medicinal nectar of Your lips freely, without our paying a substantial price. Since You are a great hero in giving charity, You should give it without any payment, even to the most wretched persons. Consider that we are losing our life and that now You can restore us to life by giving us that nectar. After all, You have already given it to Your flute, which is simply a hollow bamboo stick.’
“Kṛṣṇa says, ‘But the diet of people in this world is the bad one of attachment to wealth, followers, family and so forth. The particular medicine you’ve requested should not be given to those who have such a bad diet.’
“‘But this medicine makes one forget all other attachments. So wonderful is this herbal drug that it counteracts bad dietary habits. Please give that nectar to us, O hero, since You are most charitable.’”