Bhaktivedanta Narayana Gosvami
From the book “Sri Vraja-maṇḍala-parikramā”:
The mischievous Śrī Kṛṣṇa stole the clothes of the young gopīs while they were bathing and climbed up a kadamba tree. Cīra means “clothes”. Kṛṣṇa also rested near here after killing the Keśī demon. Therefore, another name for this ghāṭa is Caina (caina means “rest”) or Cayana-ghāṭa. Nearby is the well known Jhāḍū-maṇḍala.
Rajashekhara Dasa
From the book “Chaurasi-kosa Vraja Mandala Parikrama”:
The Bhakti-ratnakara says, “The gopis joyfully worshiped Katyayanidevi at Chira Ghata. They put their clothes here on the bank of the Yamuna as they entered the water for taking bath. Krishna secretly stole their clothes and climbed into a kadamba tree to see the fun. When the gopis realized they had no clothes, they were greatly ashamed and bade Krishna to return their clothes while remaining in the water. After revealing His mind, Krishna jubilantly returned their clothes. The gopis then dressed themselves, but only after they had dedicated themselves to Krishna.”
This is the celebrated ghata where Krishna stole the clothing of the gopis. The word ‘chira’ means ‘clothing’. After following the katyayani-vrata for one month by undergoing austerities at Tapovana, the gopis came here on the final day of the vrata to make a clay image of Katyayani Devi and perform puja by offering incense, flowers, and ghee lamps to the goddess, who is worshiped in her form as eight-armed Durga riding her carrier, a tiger. Before starting the katyayani-puja, the gopis went to take their ceremonial bath in the Yamuna and kept their clothing on the river bank. Meanwhile, understanding the minds of the gopis to obtain Him as their husband, Krishna arrived there and after gathering all the gopi’s clothes, climbed into a nearby kadamba tree. Krishna then called the gopis to come and collect their clothing – one at a time, saying He wanted to enjoy the beauty of each slender wasted gopi as she collected her clothing. The gopis were the most beautiful women in the whole universe, far exceeding the beauty of heavenly Apsaras, or even the Lakshmis of Vaikuntha.
At first the gopis strongly protested Krishna’s actions, but inwardly they felt very satisfied that Krishna wanted to see them naked and admire their exquisite beauty. In Vedic culture, a young woman should only exhibit her naked beauty before her husband and no one else, therefore, Krishna was assuming the position of each gopi’s husband, by seeing them stand before Him in their naked splendor. The gopis realized they had no option but to come out of the Yamuna one at a time. Slowly, each naked gopi emerged from the river to collect her clothing from Krishna’s hand, allowing Him to see the incredible beauty of their delicately formed limbs, thus fulfilling the gopi’s desire to have Krishna as their husband. After enjoying their beauty, Krishna gave a promise to the gopis that in the near future, during the autumn season, they would be able to enjoy Him as their husband, by engaging with Him in conjugal pastimes in the forest of Vrindavana.
There is a temple here dedicated to goddess Katyayani Devi that commemorates the transcendental pastime that took place here. It is said that this tirtha was re-discovered by Shrila Narayana Bhatta and Shrila Jiva Goswami has confirmed that this is the original Chira Ghata and the actual spot where the gopis worshiped goddess Katyayani and had their clothing stolen by Krishna. Near to Keshi Ghata in Vrindavana, there is another Chira Ghata, although its proper name is Chayana Ghata, where Krishna simply hid the outer garments of the gopis while they bathed in their underwear after performing rasa-lila at Seva Kunja.
