A whole swarm of bees — the alikula — trails after Radha and Krishna through the forest. Krishna walks with one arm around Radhika, leaning on her a little, and in his other hand he holds a lotus, and with that lotus he wards off the bees that circle close to her face. What is the swarm chasing? The fragrance of tulasi. But here is the wonder: there is no tulasi garland on Krishna anymore — it broke and was left behind in the kunja. Back on that abandoned bower its trace still hangs in the air, tugging the bees now backward toward the empty kunja, now forward after the two of them. There is no tulasi here at all. Why, then, are the bees called blind? Because they keep chasing the scent of tulasi where no tulasi has been for a long while. The ghost of that fragrance leads them through the whole forest, following Radhika as she walks, while Krishna keeps waving them off with the lotus. The garland is broken and cast aside — and still the blind swarm flies after its fragrance.