After slaying Kamsa, Lord Krishna tells Uddhava to go to Gokula with a message for His foster parents — Nandagopa and Yashoda. Krishna tells Uddhava that he should tell them about His affection for them. The Lord says the bhakti of the Gopikas is of the purest form. The Gopikas are akin to gnanis, though they are uneducated, says Lord Krishna. Uddhava goes to Nandagokula. He meets Nandagopa and converses the whole night with him. The next morning, the Gopikas see a chariot outside Nandagopa's residence. The last time they saw such a chariot was when Akrura came to take Krishna away. Now, when they see the chariot, they wonder if Krishna has come back. Seeing Uddhava, they ask him if Krishna has come back to them. They are unable to bear this separation from Him. Uddhava says Krishna has not forgotten them.
The Lord never forgets any bhakta, and the Gopikas were among the best of them, said Adur Asuri Madhavachari. They had no thoughts, except of Krishna. Even when Krishna was in Gokula, the Gopikas could think of little else, but Him. Now that He is away, they only think of Him more, for absence makes the heart grow fonder. A wife may be annoyed by her husband's behaviour and does not think of him constantly when he is around. But if he is away for some days, she worries about him. The purpose of Krishna's separation from the Gopikas is to make the Gopikas worry over Krishna, and to think more about Him.
And His love for those who love Him is unmatched. When Rama is separated from Sita, He is unable to find anything pleasant. His laments upon finding Sita missing take up many verses in the Ramayana. He calls out to the trees for information on Sita's whereabouts. The Lord's love for those who love Him is intense. Uddhava, on being witness to the love of the Gopikas for Lord Krishna, wishes he had been born in the midst of the Gopikas, as a blade of grass at least, so that the dust from their feet would have touched him. Being in the presence of those who love the Lord gives greater pleasure than being in the company of the Lord Himself.
