Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Srimad Bhagavatam 10.9.9

tam atta-yastim prasamiksya satvaras

tato 'varuhyapasasara bhitavat

gopy anvadhavan na yam apa yoginam

ksamam pravestum tapaseritam manah

SYNONYMS

tam -- unto mother Yasoda; atta-yastim -- carrying in her hand a stick; prasamiksya -- Krsna, seeing her in that attitude; satvarah -- very quickly; tatah -- from there; avaruhya -- getting down; apasasara -- began to flee; bhita-vat -- as if very much afraid; gopi -- mother Yasoda; anvadhavat -- began to follow Him; na -- not; yam -- unto whom; apa -- failed to reach; yoginam -- of great yogis, mystics; ksamam -- who could reach Him; pravestum -- trying to enter into the Brahman effulgence or Paramatma; tapasa -- with great austerities and penances; iritam -- trying for that purpose; manah -- by meditation.

TRANSLATION

When Lord Sri Krsna saw His mother, stick in hand, He very quickly got down from the top of the mortar and began to flee as if very much afraid. Although yogis try to capture Him as Paramatma by meditation, desiring to enter into the effulgence of the Lord with great austerities and penances, they fail to reach Him. But mother Yasoda, thinking that same Personality of Godhead, Krsna, to be her son, began following Krsna to catch Him.

PURPORT

Yogis, mystics, want to catch Krsna as Paramatma, and with great austerities and penances they try to approach Him, yet they cannot. Here we see, however, that Krsna is going to be caught by Yasoda and is running away in fear. This illustrates the difference between the bhakta and the yogi. Yogis cannot reach Krsna, but for pure devotees like mother Yasoda, Krsna is already caught. Krsna was even afraid of mother Yasoda's stick. This was mentioned by Queen Kunti in her prayers: bhaya-bhavanaya sthitasya (Bhag. 1.8.31). Krsna is afraid of mother Yasoda, and yogis are afraid of Krsna. Yogis try to reach Krsna by jnana-yoga and other yogas, but fail. Yet although mother Yasoda was a woman, Krsna was afraid of her, as clearly described in this verse.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Founder Acarya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness
His Holiness Hrdayananda dasa Goswami
Gopiparanadhana dasa Adhikari
Dravida dasa Brahmacari