Harivamsha 67
English (machine translation) 67
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67.1
Vaiśaṃpāyana said: / And Akrūra, as he had been commanded, eager to see Kṛṣṇa, / set out in an excellent chariot that moved as swiftly as thought.
67.2
Auspicious omens appeared on Kṛṣṇa’s limbs as well, / foretelling an encounter with a kinsman equal to a father.
67.3
Even beforehand, the king of Mathurā, son of Ugrasena, / had dispatched an envoy to Keśin for the killing [of Kṛṣṇa], because of Upendra.
67.4
Hearing the envoy's words, Keśin, the tormentor of men, / went to Vṛndāvana and, hard to overcome, harassed the cowherds.
67.5
Devouring human flesh, wrathful, wicked in prowess, / that untamable horse-daitya wrought great slaughter.
67.6
Slaughtering cows along with their herdsmen, feeding on the flesh of cattle, / he was indomitable, roaming at will, a maned beast unrestrained.
67.7
That forest resembled a cremation ground, strewn with the bones of men, / where that evil-minded horse-dānava, Keśin, dwelt.
67.8
With his hooves he tore the earth; with his speed he shattered trees; / with his neighing he vied with the wind; with his leaps he cleared the sky.
67.9
Enormously grown, maddened, a wicked horse dwelling in the woods, / his mane trembling, fearsome, he carried out the deeds of Kaṃsa.
67.10
That entire forest was turned into a barren wasteland by that horse-daitya, / whose deeds were like those of Saudāsa, wishing to slay all the cowherds.
67.11
Defiled by his wicked roaming, that great forest / was no longer frequented by men or herds of cattle living from the woods.
67.12
The path leading to that region was made completely impassable / by him who strayed from proper conduct out of rut, voraciously devouring human flesh.
67.13
Pursuing the sound of men, enraged, at daybreak / he once went to the cowherd settlement, driven by the law of time.
67.14
Seeing him, the cowherds and women fled with their children, / crying out, seeking refuge in Kṛṣṇa, the lord and protector of the world.
67.15
At the sound of their weeping and the crying of the cowherds, / Kṛṣṇa granted them safety and rushed against Keśin.
67.16
And Keśin, his neck held high, his teeth and eyes bared, / neighing and fierce in speed, charged toward Govinda.
67.17
Seeing Keśin, the horse-dānava, charging at him, / Govinda advanced to meet him, as a raincloud approaches the moon.
67.18
Seeing Kṛṣṇa standing near Keśin, / the cowherds, thinking of him as a mere human and wishing his welfare, said to Kṛṣṇa:
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"Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa, mighty-armed one, increaser of the joy of your kin!
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You are the giver of fearlessness to the worlds; protect us in particular!
67.19
Dear Kṛṣṇa, you should not approach this vile horse rashly; / you are a child, and this evil creature is hard to overcome.
67.20
He is Kaṃsa's innate breath of life walking outside, dear boy, / the foremost of lordly steeds, an unequaled dānava in battle.
67.21
The terrifier of enemy armies, of great might among horses, / he is a scourge to all living beings, the foremost among evildoers."
67.22
Hearing those words of the speaking cowherds, Madhusūdana, / the slayer of foes, resolved to do battle with Keśin.
67.23
Then, wheeling in circles to the left and to the right, / that horse shattered trees in anger with both his forefeet.
67.24
Upon his face, his hanging mane, and his thick neck, / folds resembling waves of clouds shed sweat born of wrath.
67.25
He rained down foam from his mouth, mingled with dust, / like the moon casting mist in the winter sky.
67.26
With the spray discharged in neighing and the foam pouring from his body, / he showered Govinda, the lotus-eyed one, on all sides.
67.27
With the dust kicked up by his hooves, pale as sweet powdered earth, / that horse made Kṛṣṇa’s hair reddish-brown.
67.28
With leaping and galloping strides, carving the earth with his hooves, / and grinding his teeth together, Keśin rushed at Kṛṣṇa.
67.29
Having clashed with Kṛṣṇa, Keśin, the excellent horse, / struck Kṛṣṇa on the chest with both his forefeet.
67.30
Again and again the mighty dānava dealt furious blows / with his hooves at the flanks of Kṛṣṇa of boundless splendor; / and with his terrible mouth armed with sharp fangs, / the enraged horse bit at Kṛṣṇa’s arms.
67.31
With his hanging mane of hair, locked in combat with Kṛṣṇa, / Keśin shone like the sun in the sky joined with a cloud.
67.32
And with furious velocity the mighty horse sought to strike chest to chest / against Vāsudeva, doubling his prowess out of anger.
67.33
Against him thus puffed up with pride, the mighty Kṛṣṇa, boundless in prowess, / curved his arm in anger and thrust it into the horse's mouth.
67.34
Unable to chew or swallow that arm, / Kṛṣṇa effortlessly extended his arm once more within his mouth, / laughing in sport at the dānava, / while [the horse] vomited bloody foam, his teeth loosened at their roots.
67.35
Torn by the lips and split at the jaws, / his eyes rolled wildly, protruding as their fastenings gave way.
67.36
With his lower jaw dislocated, possessed by agony, his eyes streaming with blood, / his ears flattened and senses lost, Keśin struggled frantically.
67.37
Rearing up repeatedly with his legs, discharging dung and urine together, / his hair wet with sweat and exhausted, his feet became powerless.
67.38
Kṛṣṇa’s arm fixed within Keśin's mouth shone brightly, / like a cloud curved by the rays of the crescent moon at summer’s end.
67.39
And Keśin, clinging to Kṛṣṇa, his body exhausted, appeared / like the tired moon sinking at dawn resting on Mount Meru.
67.40
Knocked out from Keśin’s mouth by Kṛṣṇa’s arm, / the various teeth shaken from Keśin’s mouth fell onto the earth / like waterless pieces of white clouds in autumn.
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And that Keśin was utterly exhausted by Kṛṣṇa of unwearying deeds.
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Then, extending his arm widely, [Kṛṣṇa] powerfully split him apart.
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Split apart in battle by his arm, his face disfigured by Kṛṣṇa,
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the dānava Keśin then uttered a great roar in agony.
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Reeling, his limbs drooping, vomiting blood from his mouth,
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his body severely mutilated, he was like a mountain cleaved in half.
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With mouth agape, that exceedingly terrible asura
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fell down, split in two by Kṛṣṇa’s arm like an elephant cut through;
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he swiftly fell under the force, torn asunder by the extension of the arm.
67.41
The appearance of Keśin, whose body was cleft by his arm, shone / like a beast exceedingly dreadful slaughtered by Pinākin,
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as if two troughs full of meat lay in the dwelling of Pinākin.
67.42
Having two feet, half a back, and half a tail, with one ear, one eye, and one nostril, / those two halves of Keśin, split into two, lay resplendent upon the earth,
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like two mountains cleaved in half by the thunderbolt upon the earth's surface.
67.43
And wounded by Keśin's teeth, Kṛṣṇa's arm shone / like an ancient palmyra tree in the forest marked by the tusks of an elephant lord.
67.44
Having slain that Keśin in battle and divided him into parts, / lotus-petal-eyed Kṛṣṇa stood right there smiling.
67.45
Seeing that Keśin slain, the cowherds and those cowherd women / all rejoiced, their obstacles removed and their exhaustion gone.
67.46
And according to their station and according to their age, / they praised glorious Dāmodara with affectionate words, honoring him again and again:
67.47
"Ah, dear child, a great deed has been done! Slain is this thorn of the world, / the earth-roving Daitya who assumed the form of a horse, O Kṛṣṇa!
67.48
Vṛndāvana has been made safe and fit to be enjoyed by all men and birds, / by you, dear child, slaying this evil horse Keśin in battle.
67.49
Many of our cowherds were killed, along with cows and beloved calves, / and many other inhabitants of the realm were killed by this evil-minded one.
67.50
This evildoer was indeed intent on bringing about the universal destruction, / desiring to roam at his pleasure after emptying the world of men.
67.51
No one wishing to live was able to stand before him, / even among the assembly of gods, let alone upon the surface of the earth!"
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Thus those cowherds praised lotus-eyed Kṛṣṇa.
67.52
Then the invisible brahmin sage Nārada, who moves through the sky, said: / "I am pleased, O Viṣṇu, Lord of gods, O Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa!" again and again.
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"Homage to you, Lord of the world, God of gods, Janārdana!
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Homage to you, homage to you, bearer of the conch, discus, and mace!
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Homage to you whose form is knowledge, to Keśava and the wielder of the discus!
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Homage to the primal seed, devoid of qualities, the self of all qualities!
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Homage to the thousand-headed one; to you I bow, O Janārdana!
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I bow to you, the Lord of the world; homage to you who embody the gods!
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Homage be to you, Hṛṣīkeśa! Protect us on all sides, O Hari!"
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Having thus praised the Lord of the world, he spoke these words once more:
67.53
"This difficult feat performed out of a desire to slay Keśin / was fitting only for you, or else for Tryambaka in heaven.
67.54
Eager for the combat, dear child, with a delighted inner self, / I came here from heaven to witness this battle between man and horse.
67.55
I have seen your deeds, beginning with the death of Pūtanā, / but by this deed, O Govinda, I am fully gratified.
67.56
Even Mahendra, the slayer of Bala, feared this horse, / Keśin of wicked mind, as he assumed a dreadful form.
67.57
That he was cleaved in two by you with your arm of extended joints— / this death was ordained for his end by the source of the universe.
67.58
Because Keśin was slain by you, listen to my decree: / you shall be renowned in the world by the name Keśava.
67.59
May well-being be yours in the world; swiftly I depart. / You must accomplish the remainder of the work to be done; you are capable—do not delay.
67.60
While you are engaged in another task, the gods, like ordinary mortals, / imitating you, play their game relying on your power.
67.61
The time draws near for the battle-ocean of the Bhāratas; / battles are imminent for kings destined for heaven.
67.62
Ascending upward, the paths in the sky have been cleared for those mounting aerial chariots; / places are being allotted in Śakra's world for the rulers of the earth.
67.63
When the son of Ugrasena is quieted and you are established in your station, O Keśava, / on every side that great war of the rulers of the earth will take place.
67.64
And kings will take refuge in you of matchless deeds; / at the time of discord among lords of men, you will take a side.
67.65
For when you sit on the royal throne, O Lord, bearing royal splendor, / kings will abandon their glory through your power, without a doubt.
67.66
This is my message to you, O Kṛṣṇa: you will attain renown through the Vedas / among the deities dwelling in heaven and in the world, O Lord of the world.
67.67
I have witnessed your deed, and I have seen you, O Lord; / when Kaṃsa has been punished, I will meet you once more; I depart.
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What need is there of saying much? Protect the brahmins as you please.
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I know you, mighty-armed one, to be the deity even of the gods."
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Vaiśaṃpāyana said: / Having spoken thus at that time, Nārada departed into the sky.
67.68
Hearing the words of Nārada, master of celestial song, / answering 'So be it,' he approached the cowherds again; / having rejoined the cowherds, Kṛṣṇa entered Vraja.
Linked texts (1)
- Harivaṃśa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit