30 / Kṛṣṇa's Hiding from the Gopīs
When Kṛṣṇa suddenly disappeared from the company of the  gopīs , they began to search for Him in every place. After not finding Him anywhere, they became afraid and almost mad after Him. They were simply thinking of the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa in great love and affection. Being absorbed in thought, they experienced loss of memory, and with dampened eyes they began to see the very pastimes of Kṛṣṇa, His beautiful talks with them, His embracing, kissing, and other activities. Being so attracted to Kṛṣṇa, they began to imitate His dancing, His walking and smiling, as if they themselves were Kṛṣṇa. Due to Kṛṣṇa's absence, they all became crazy; each one of them began to tell the others that she was Kṛṣṇa Himself. Soon they all began to assemble together and chant Kṛṣṇa's name very loudly, and they moved from one part of the forest to another searching for Him. Actually, Kṛṣṇa is all-pervasive; He is in the sky, and He is in the forest; He is within the heart, and He is always everywhere.
The  gopīs  therefore began to question the trees and plants about Kṛṣṇa. There were various types of big trees and small plants in the forest, and the  gopīs  began to address them. "Dear banyan tree, have you seen the son of Mahārāja Nanda passing this way, laughing and playing on His flute? He has stolen our hearts and has gone away. If you have seen Him, kindly inform us which way He has gone. Dear  aśoka  tree, dear  nāga  flower tree and  campaka  flower tree, have you seen the younger brother of Balarāma pass this way? He has disappeared because of our pride." The  gopīs  were aware of the reason for Kṛṣṇa's sudden disappearance. They could understand that when they were enjoying Kṛṣṇa, they thought themselves to be the most fortunate women within the universe, and since they were feeling proud, Kṛṣṇa disappeared immediately just to curb their pride. Kṛṣṇa does not like His devotees to be proud of their service to Him. He accepts everyone's service, but He does not like one devotee to be prouder than
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