This is the famous place where Kṛṣṇa’s dana-lila takes place: where he asks the gopis to pay taxes, steals their milk products, and breaking their curd-laden pots. Here Kṛṣṇa’s gopas would face off with the delicate gopīs in argument and flirtatious exchanges.
In celebration of this occasion, the men from Nandagoan sat opposite to the men of Barṣāṇā, repeating the ancient songs of yore carrying forward the glorification of their personal ishtadevas (worshipable deities).
According to Vraja-bhakti-vilāsa, there are two mountains in Barṣāṇā – Brahmā and Viṣṇu. On the Viṣṇu mount is located Vilāsagarh and the rest of the mountain is Brahmācala. At the juncture of the two is Sankari Khor, where ‘dadhi dān līlā’ took place.
Sankari means ‘narrow’ and Khor/gali means ‘lane’. All ācāryas have sung the līlās of Sankari Khor:
Sankari gali is the lane where gopīs, carrying curd-pots on their heads, can only cross in single file, since the passage is narrow. Here, Śyāmasundar charges dān (toll or tax) from them! He, with his battalion of sakhās (friends), demands the toll if they want to pass! The gopis ask, “What tax?” Curd! Krishna and the gopas request, demand or even snatch the curds.
There is a prayer mantra with which the lila recital starts.
It means that the gopīs are coming, with curd-pots on their heads and Śrī Kṛṣṇa has blocked their way. We offer obeisances to this place, where the gopīs regularly traverse. (Vraja-bhakti-vilāsa 4.60)
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