Parenthood 349

In the Srimad-Bhagavatam, Tenth Canto, 9th Chapter, 2nd verse,
Sukadeva Gosvami gives Maharaj Pariksit a description of the form
and beauty of Mother Yasoda. He says, “My dear King, the wide hips
of Mother Yasgoda were surrounded by silk and linen clothes, and her
breasts were flowing with milk because of her affection. When she
was churning butter and tightly holding the rope, the bangles on her
hands and the earrings on her ears were moving, and from the nice
decoration in her hair the flowers were slackening and falling down.
Due to her excessive labor, there were drops of perspiration on her
face.”

There is another description of Mother Yasoda in a devotee’s
prayer: “Let me be given protection by Mother Yasgoda, whose curly
hairs are bound with thread, whose hair is very brightly beautified by
the vermilion placed in the part, and whose bodily frame derides all
her ornaments. Her eyes are always engaged in seeing the face of
Krsna, and thus they are always filled with tears. She has a com-
plexion like the bluish lotus flower, which is enhanced in beauty by
her dressing herself with many colorful garments. Let her merciful
glance fall on all of us so that we may be protected from the clutches
of mayd and smoothly progress in our devotional service!”

There is the following description of Mother Yasgoda’s affection for
Krsna: After rising early in the morning, Mother Yasoda first of all
offered her breast milk to Krsna, and then she began to chant various
mantras for His protection. Then she would decorate His forehead
very nicely and bind His arms with protective talismans. By all of
these activities, it is definitely understood that she is the emblem of
all maternal affection for Krsna.

The description of Nanda Maharaj’s bodily features is as follows.
The hairs on his head are generally black, but some of them are grey.
His garments are of greenish color, like the new-grown leaves of a
banyan tree. His belly is fatty, his complexion is exactly like the full
moon, and he has a beautiful moustache. When Krsna was a baby,
one day He was walking in the courtyard, capturing the finger of His
father, and because He could not walk steadily He appeared to be al-
most falling down. While Nanda Maharaj was giving protection to His
transcendental son in this way, all of a sudden there were drops of
