Zero tolerance

(228)  Kamsadamane shistapalane

Krsna To subdue Kamsa and protect the righteous, Certainly, for Mathura I will leave. I go for a good deed, so listen everybody— Allow me to depart ungrudgingly. People of Vraja This act we cannot gladly do; Our moon's eclipse we don't approve. Before your chariot we will lie; By any means we won't let you go. Krsna Charioteer, drive on, drive on over them; Today itself, for Mathura I must leave. Dear though they are, my mission will be fulfilled; I won't tolerate their making any obstacle.

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A bucketful of nectar

(227)  Shono go shono go shono go dharavasii

Listen, oh listen, inhabitants of the earth,
An unknown traveler has come.
"I call everyone with eyes full of love"—
Is that what he's saying?

With rhythmic dance steps, he moves;
With magic of music, he binds all.
Behold, oh behold, everybody behold,
The charming garments in which he is clothed.

Jingling ankle bells in every ear,
Beaming effulgence in every heart,
He says: "Look, a bucketful of nectar
I have brought into this world to allot."

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Duty calls and yet...

(226)  Sakaler ankhi chalachal

Krsna Everyone's eyes are teary, Raining untimely, Tell me why you cry? I am yours, the same am I, Dancing joyfully, Spreading light. People of Vraja We have heard you're going away, Leaving us, For Mathura. Thinking thus, with distraught heart, As you are ours, Desperate tears are there. Krsna For checking evil and protecting good, To go to Mathura I am resolved. Within each heart in Vrindavan, I remain always, Indeed, every instant.

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Dedication

(225)  Sathe sathe theko carane dhare rekho

Stay with me always that I may cling to Your feet;
Never, no never, go far afield.
When rains fall and winds blow, when my heart is heavy,
Let Your divine melody please and appease.

Under Your shelter, everyone remains happily;
Gazing at Your face, all forget their sorrow.
I'll hold on to Your feet, I won't let loose;
I'll obtain Your touch so sweet.

Don't keep in mind my faults; remember, I am Yours.
Don't make any distressing separation.

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Heart-seat

(224)  Bandhu mama pranera priyatama

My abiding friend, my dearest beloved,
You are the essence of life.
By Your charm, affection, and affinity,
Thoughts get expanded.

I go forward, floating in Your mental stream,
Flowing into infinity through Your name and song.
My abiding friend, my closest confidant,
Your perfect knowledge is boundless.

In summer's forest fire, You are coolness;
In winter's snow, the vital heat.
Come close, come sit on the heart-seat;
Eliminate the sorrow of everyone.

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In every rhythm

(223)  Chande chande tomari liila

In every rhythm is Your sport;
In every atom You reside.
In every pore You lie hidden
In every particle You dance.

In dream, I found You;
In dream, I came to know You.
In dream, I loved You;
I realized that You are my true mind.
You are the lamplight of every life;
You resound from every lyre.

In every flower, You are the fragrance;
In sandalwood, You are the coolness.^[1]
In dense forest, You are the murmuring;
In honey, You are the sweetness.
Along an arid track, You are a waterfall;
Like the polestar, You reign ever supreme.

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Bakul fragrance

(222)  Tumi esecho tumi esecho

You have come, You have come;
You have come, full of fragrance bakul.^[1]
And so my heart is enthralled,
Full of fragrance bakul.

The hidden hope that was buried,
Buried deep in mankind's mind—
It's now roused and throbbing,
Resounding round the globe.

The flower that never bloomed in rumination,
The color that never rose in imagination—
It now permeates cosmic mind,
And redolent is the world entire.

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How much

(221)  Tomay kata bhalobasi

How much I love You,
Don't You know?
Many words have accrued
That I would disclose.

Why do You, at every moment,^[1]
Keep busy with so many duties?
Why am I given energy,
When Your tasks You don't dispense?
Grant me the power, day and night,
To go on striving without respite.

With a trace of Your grace and by Your mercy,
For your work there will be a pioneer.

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Incomplete duty

(220)  Krsnamurari bansharii tomari

Krsna, slayer of demons,^[1] Your flute
Once awakened dormant consciousness
To sweet thoughts, sweet expressions,
Sweet penchants, and sweet practices.

Since then, so many years^[2] have passed;
The mental Jamuna^[3] has run dry.
You have not come; Your flute has not sounded—
Its tune has not stirred heaven and earth.

The completion of Your unfinished work
Will we do remembering You.

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Tidings of love

(219)  Kon bhule jaoya bhore

On some forgotten morn,
With honey-coated voice,
You called me, oh Lord.

In lethargy deaf and restless in heart,
I could not hear that call, Your message.

You called me in the sky and in the air,
In the ripple of rivers, in the fragrance of flowers,
In the tender smile of newborns, in the exuberance of youths,
And in the world's myriad forms, full of power to intoxicate.

Go on singing Your tidings of love
For the sake of all, oh Divine Director.

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Life's splendor

(218)  Pita mata bandhu sakha

Father, mother, friend, companion,
Beacon of light in darkness—
Everywhere You are everything;
No one is ever unattended.

When sorrows prick, You are the transcendent lotus;
When pains ignite, You are the soothing sandalpaste.
For all loss, You are the philosopher's stone;
For the rose garden, You are the best garland.

You exist, therefore I also exist.
You alone are life's splendor.

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Wanting You

(217)  Tomare ceyechi parana diyechi

Wanting You, my life I am giving—
Whether You are taking it, I don't know;
I don't know, oh, I don't know.

Knowingly I give—
Knowingly I give, discerningly I give.
Any obstacle I don't mind;
I don't mind, no, I don't mind.

Storms are coming
Storms are coming, meteors are falling;
All around, dark clouds cast their shadow.
Yet I alone—
Yet I alone, on the path I go,
Carrying with me thoughts of You,
Thoughts, oh, thoughts of You.

In company with You, I recall—
In company with You, I recall no one I fear.
No conspirator makes me tremble;
I don't tremble, no, I don't tremble.

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Asked and answered

(216)  Tumi esechile dhara diyechile

You came and let me hold You;
That event I cannot forget.
Your gentle glance—
Your gentle glance, Your gentle charm,
Coming gently and gently going.

Into the ocean of forms—
I dived into the ocean of forms;
There I found the formless jewel.
A beggar at heart—
A beggar at heart but calling You to mind,
I assumed a royal headdress.
Your divine name—
Ever chanting Your divine name,
I throbbed with that ideation.

Today, by contemplation and meditation—
By contemplation and meditation, day and night,
My prayer is realized.

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Hanging on a thread

(215)  Tava asa pathe kan pete pete

With an ear to the path of Your arrival,
I have kept alert age after age.
Of the garland You gave me—
Of the garland You gave me, only thread remains;
All the flowers have fallen away.

Days come and go—
Days come and go in the game of time;
And, by a dark magic, denser the nights grow.
Yet, ever and always do I—
Ever and always do I gaze all around,
Counting the minutes of each passing hour.^[1]

Of this attentive waiting—
Of this attentive waiting and arduous minute counting,
Lord, please tell me when will there be an end.

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Tears of love

(214)  Ankhite chilo jal mamata chalachal

My eyes were moist with tears of love,
When He went to a distant land.
Gazing at me,
Gazing at me as if it were a secret,
He said we'd be lovers in the end.

Tell me, tell me,
Please tell me, you all tell me,
Has He forgotten everything He said?

He has not come back, no He has not,
He has not returned nor has He sent word,
Is He indifferent to my heartache?

I cannot ignore my recollections of Him;
The memory of Him still rocks my mind.
When I think I will not think of Him;
When I think so, it makes me think of Him more.
With which garland of flowers did He bind me?

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Only You

(213)  Eso eso bandhu eso

Come, come, abiding Friend, come
In every breath of my life.
Please be seated, sit close by,
Filling my mind with fragrance.

Who else but You is there
To hear my heart's tales?
To none else do I confide
My private secrets.
Sing, sing, abiding Friend, sing
To charge the air with hope.

Please take, take willingly
And with a smile, my everything.

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Unanswered questions

(212)  Niirava rate tomari sathe

On my silent night with Thee,
Many unspoken words were left hanging.

In the rose garden, why oh why—
In the rose garden, why oh why do a thousand thorns reside?
Why oh why do the rapids choose a rugged path?

The fragrant lily blossoms in filthy water;
The sunny Earth races on a pitch-black orbit.
Full of love and affection,
Full of love and affection, girdled by colorful dreams,
Why oh why does Creation dance with the shadow of death?

Why oh why does pride—
Why oh why does pride, why oh why does conceit,
Crumble and fall beneath the dust of Your feet?

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Sweet surrender

(211)  Din ase ar din cale jay

Days come, and days go;
Where they go, who knows?
Sometimes I am conscious, other times unconscious;
Sometimes sleeping, other times awake.

Where was I long ago when I appeared;
And why did I come— I have forgotten.
Oh, this much only I know:
More than I, He knows.

My needs and my plans—
All are fulfilled in the mind of Him alone.

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I am Yours, and You are mine

(210)  Din gune ar kal gune gune

Days multiplied, and season upon season passed;
I was frozen in place till suddenly He came.
The magic of forms, the nectar of melodies
I'd been regarding with ensorcelled eyes.

My psyche is now absorbed in the Infinite,
Forsaking the bonds of all attachments.
Attaining You, I've attained everything—
Today bliss is within my heart and mind.

Come, oh my abiding Friend, enrapture everyone;
Make everyone dance joyfully in their own right.

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Token of appreciation

(209)  Tomar e asiima apar bhalabasar

For Your profound and limitless love,
What have I offered in exchange?
With both hands, I accepted everything;
Never learning to give; I practiced only taking.

With flowers, fruits, forms, and flavors,
You gave my life abundance.
The light of reason and exquisite sweetness,
With inordinate favor to me You gave.
Now give me only the power and ability
That I may ever hold You in my heart.

Abiding friend in adversity, all my heart's honey,
To the last drop, I pour out for You.

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His dictum

(208)  Asibe baliya giyache caliya

Saying he would return, he went away;
Still my dear friend has not come back.
With harp's flourish, he left, telling me:
Observe simplicity, shun deceit.

Forgetting the goal, I walked down many roads;
The bright surface of the upright path I did not follow.
With bewitching beckonings was I enticed,
Neglecting his crucial dictum, seek the truth.

Today, in every direction sparkles the light.
It proclaims that graciously You are just nearby.

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