SB 10.30.13 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

पृच्छतेमा लता बाहूनप्याश्लिष्टा वनस्पते: । नूनं तत्करजस्पृष्टा बिभ्रत्युत्पुलकान्यहो ॥ १३ ॥

Verse text

pṛcchatemā latā bāhūn apy āśliṣṭā vanaspateḥ nūnaṁ tat-karaja-spṛṣṭā bibhraty utpulakāny aho

Synonyms

pṛcchata — just ask ; imāḥ — from these ; latāḥ — creepers ; bāhūn — the arms (branches) ; api — even though ; āśliṣṭāḥ — embracing ; vanaspateḥ — of the tree ; nūnam — certainly ; tat — of Him, Kṛṣṇa ; kara — ja — by the fingernails ; spṛṣṭāḥ — touched ; bibhrati — they are bearing ; utpulakāni — joyful eruptions on the skin ; aho — just see .

Translation

Let us ask these creepers about Kṛṣṇa. Even though they are embracing the arms of their husband, this tree, they certainly must have been touched by Kṛṣṇa’s fingernails, since out of joy they are manifesting eruptions on their skin.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Let us ask these creepers about Kṛṣṇa. Even though they are embracing the arms of their husband, this tree, they certainly must have been touched by Kṛṣṇa's fingernails, since out of joy they are manifesting eruptions on their skin. KB 10.30.13 Some of the gopīs then addressed their gopī friends: “Dear friends, why don’t you question these creepers, who are so jubilantly embracing the big trees as if the trees were their husbands? It appears that the flowers of the creepers must have been touched by the nails of Kṛṣṇa. Otherwise, how could they feel so jubilant?”

Purport

The gopīs reasoned that the creepers would not show signs of rapture merely by physical contact with their husband, a tree. Thus the gopīs concluded that although the creepers were embracing the strong limbs of their husband, they must have been touched by Lord Kṛṣṇa as He moved through the forest.

Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Showing the other gopis signs that Krnsa was there, some gopi said, "O friends, ask these creepers who have signs of having the association of Krsna. You should not say that, because they are still embracing the trees, these creepers did not meet Krsna, because even while they are tightly embracing the branches of their husbands the trees, they exhibited strong desire for Krsna. They must have been touched by the nails of Krsna, for see, their hairs are standing on end. This does not take place in meeting their husbands the trees. Seeing this symptom they cannot tell us a lie, "We did not see Krsna." as the others have one after another."

Purport (Jiva Goswami)

Another group of gopīs whom later ask, “Whose foot prints are these?” (SB 10.30.30) did not hear the present verses since they do not raise doubts at this time. Though some may have paid attention, they did not really hear since they did not have either attraction or hatred for Rādhā. They simply showed everyone the foot prints of Kṛṣṇa. Śukadeva in this verse shows the gopīs’ indifference to what was just said in order to show gopīs with different desires from those who just spoke. Ask this creeper embraced by the arms of her husband. “If that is so, how can you infer that they creepers associated with Kṛṣṇa?” Nūnam indicates conjecture. They have been touched by Kṛṣṇa’s fingernails. “How do you infer that?” Their hairs in the form of buds are standing on end. This is astonishing (aho). It was not like this before!

Purport (Sanatana Goswami)

The trees are his devotees and follow him. They will not speak. We will ask the creepers, since they are female, like us. They say to each other, “Let us ask the creepers.” They are embracing the arms of their husbands. This is our bhāva also.