Bhagavatapurana 10.38: athāṣṭātriṃśo'dhyāyaḥ

10.38.1

/0 śrī-śuka uvāca
akrūro 'pi ca tāṃ rātriṃ madhu-puryāṃ mahā-matiḥ /
uṣitvā ratham āsthāya prayayau nanda-gokulam //

Śrī Śuka said: / The wise Akrūra also, having spent that night in Mathurā, / mounted his chariot and set out for Nanda’s Gokula.

1. Sri Suka said:— And the noble-minded Akrura spent the night at Mathura itself and then drove in a car to Nanda's Gokula.

10.38.2

gacchan pathi mahā-bhāgo bhagavaty ambujekṣaṇe /
bhaktiṃ parām upagata evam etad acintayat //

Going on the road, the greatly blessed man, attained to supreme devotion / for the lotus-eyed Lord, thought to himself thus:

2. On the way, the highly blessed Akrura of great devotion to the glorious Lord of lotus-eyes, thought to himself as follows:

10.38.3

kiṃ mayācaritaṃ bhadraṃ kiṃ taptaṃ paramaṃ tapaḥ /
kiṃ vāthāpy arhate dattaṃ yad drakṣyāmy adya keśavam //

“What auspicious deed was done by me? What supreme austerity practiced? / Or what gift given to a worthy recipient, that today I shall behold Keśava?

3. What auspicious act I have done! What great tapas I have performed, or what gift I have conferred on worthy person that by virtue of those acts I shall to-day see Kesava!

10.38.4

mamaitad durlabhaṃ manya uttamaḥ-śloka-darśanam /
viṣayātmano yathā brahma- kīrtanaṃ śūdra-janmanaḥ //

I consider the sight of He of highest renown difficult to attain for me, / attached to sense objects, just as the recitation of the Veda is for a person born as a Śūdra.

4. I should think it highly difficult for me to gain sight of the glorious Lord sung in the Vedas— for me given to worldly enjoyments,— like a study of the Vedas for one born of a Sudra.

10.38.5

maivaṃ mamādhamasyāpi syād evācyuta-darśanam /
hriyamāṇaḥ kala-nadyā kvacit tarati kaścana //

Yet let it not be said so; even for a base person like me there may indeed be the sight of Acyuta; / carried along by the rushing river of time, someone occasionally crosses over.

5. Though of poor merit I may also yet have a look at Achyuta: for, though borne away by the stream of time (current), one may sometimes get to the shore.

10.38.6

mamādyāmaṅgalaṃ naṣṭaṃ phalavāṃś caiva me bhavaḥ /
yan namasye bhagavato yogi-dhyeyānghri-paṅkajam //

Today all my inauspiciousness is destroyed, and my birth has indeed borne fruit, / since I shall bow to the Lord's lotus foot, meditated upon by yogins.

6. To-day all my evil is gone; even my mundane life has become highly fruitful, for (to-day) I shall worship the glorious Lord's lotus feet (ever) contemplated by Yogins.

10.38.7

kaṃso batādyākṛta me 'ty-anugrahaṃ drakṣye 'ṅghri-padmaṃ prahito 'munā hareḥ /
kṛtāvatārasya duratyayaṃ tamaḥ pūrve 'taran yan-nakha-maṇḍala-tviṣā //

Ah, today Kaṃsa has done me an immense favor, for sent by him I shall behold the lotus foot of Hari, / who has taken an incarnation, by the radiance of whose toenails the ancients crossed over insurmountable darkness.

7. It is a most happy thing. To-day Kamsa has done me a great favour; for, sent by him I shall see the lotus feet of Hari who has appeared in the world and by the radiance of whose toe-nails many in the past got over the impassable darkness (of samsara).

10.38.7.p1

yad arcitaṃ brahma-bhavādibhiḥ suraiḥ $ śriyā ca devyā munibhiḥ sa-sātvataiḥ &

That [foot] which is worshipped by Brahmā, Śiva, and other gods, by the goddess Lakṣmī, and by sages along with the Sātvatas,

8. Those are the feet that are worshipped by Brahma, Siva, etc., and by the celestials, by the Goddess Lukshmi, by the sages and Satvatas— the feet that followed the companions to tend the cows in the woods and became roseate as if painted with the kumkuma on the bosom of the Gopikas.

10.38.8

go-cāraṇāyānucaraiś carad vane % yad gopikānāṃ kuca-kuṅkumāṅkitam //

and which walks in the forest with his companions to graze the cattle, marked with the saffron from the cowherd women’s breasts.

10.38.9

drakṣyāmi nūnaṃ su-kapola-nāsikaṃ smitāvalokāruṇa-kañja-locanam /
mukhaṃ mukundasya guḍālakāvṛtaṃ pradakṣiṇaṃ me pracaranti vai mṛgāḥ //

I shall surely behold the face of Mukunda, with charming cheeks and nose, / with lotus eyes reddish with a smiling glance, and framed by curly locks—for indeed, the deer pass to my right.

9. These animals go round me by the right and I am therefore certain of seeing Mukunda's face of well-formed cheeks and nose, splendid with smiles and looks and eyes like unto red lotus, and overhung with curly locks.

10.38.10

apy adya viṣṇor manujatvam īyuṣo bhārāvatārāya bhuvo nijecchayā /
lāvaṇya-dhāmno bhavitopalambhanaṃ mahyaṃ na na syāt phalam añjasā dṛśaḥ //

Shall there today be the direct perception of Viṣṇu, who by his own will has assumed human form / to relieve the burden of the earth, the abode of beauty? May the fruit of my eyes not be denied to me!

10. Would that to-day I see Vishnu, the abode of all excellence, now at His own will come down in the form of a man for re-

ducing the burden of the earth; if I should see Him there is no denying that my eyes have borne me the best fruit.

10.38.11

ya īkṣitāhaṃ-rahito 'py asat-satoḥ sva-tejasāpāsta-tamo-bhidā-bhramaḥ /
sva-māyayātman racitais tad-īkṣayā prāṇākṣa-dhībhiḥ sadaneṣv abhīyate //

He who, though devoid of ego, is the seer of both the real and the unreal, by his own radiance dispelling the delusion of darkness and duality, / is approached in the bodies fashioned by his own creative power through his regard, by means of the vital breaths, senses, and intellects.

11. The Lord is a mere witness of every cause and every effect, untouched by Ahaṅkara, free from (Nescience) and misapprehension of the differences by virtue of His own intelligent nature (eternal self-realisation): still by virtue of His own will He is seen to be in the midst of the groves of Brindavana and in the houses of Gopis together with the Jivas created in Himself through His Maya and Maya's direction that provides the Jivas with Prana, the senses and the intellectual faculties.

10.38.12

yasyākhilāmīva-habhiḥ su-maṅgalaiḥ vāco vimiśrā guṇa-karma-janmabhiḥ /
prāṇanti śumbhanti punanti vai jagat yās tad-viraktāḥ śava-śobhanā matāḥ //

Words blended with his qualities, deeds, and births, which destroy all sins and are supremely auspicious, / bring life, adorn, and truly purify the universe, while those devoid of them are considered mere decorations upon a corpse.

12. Those utterances which set forth His excellent attributes, deeds and Avataras, which are the root of all auspiciousness and which remove all sin, give life, add grace and ensure purity to the world, whereas those utterances that do not describe them are judged to be decorations of a corpse.

10.38.13

sa cāvatīrṇaḥ kila satvatānvaye sva-setu-pālāmara-varya-śarma-kṛt /
yaśo vitanvan vraja āsta īśvaro gāyanti devā yad aśeṣa-maṅgalam //

He, the Lord, has indeed descended into the lineage of the Sātvatas to bring joy to the guardians of his ordinances and the foremost gods; / spreading his fame, which the gods sing as all-auspicious, he resides in Vraja.

13. In the world indeed for the purpose of making happy those great gods who are to protect the defences of righteousness, He has appeared here in the race of Satvatas; He is now at Vraja spreading His glory as the Supreme Lord, which, being the most auspicious, the gods sing.

10.38.13.p1

taṃ tv adya nūnaṃ mahatāṃ gatiṃ guruṃ $ trailokya-kāntaṃ dṛśiman-mahotsavam &

Today indeed, him, the goal of exalted devotees, the teacher, beloved of the three worlds, a great feast for the eyes,

14. Him indeed today I shall see:— Him who is the one great goal, the father and preceptor, the absolutely charming in the three worlds, the great feast to those that have eyes, and who exhibits a form which combines in itself all those graces which Lakshmi could alone wish to realise; for I had happy visions this morning.

10.38.14

rūpaṃ dadhānaṃ śriya īpsitāspadaṃ % drakṣye mamāsann uṣasaḥ su-darśanāḥ //

bearing a form that is the longed-for abode of Śrī, I shall behold; auspicious are my dawns!

10.38.15

athāvarūḍhaḥ sapadīśayo rathāt pradhāna-puṃsoś caraṇaṃ sva-labdhaye /
dhiyā dhṛtaṃ yogibhir apy ahaṃ dhruvaṃ namasya ābhyāṃ ca sakhīn vanaukasaḥ //

Having stepped down quickly from the chariot, in order to attain my goal I shall surely bow to the feet / of the two Supreme Persons, held in meditation even by yogins, and to their companions living in the forest.

15. And (when within sight) I would directly alight from the chariot and worship the feet of the two that rule the Universe—the feet which even the Yogins constantly cherish in their mind for the attainment of Self-realisation and next to them pay my respects to their friends, the residents of Brindavana.

10.38.15.p1

apy aṅghri-mūle patitasya me vibhuḥ $ śirasy adhāsyan nija-hasta-paṅkajam &

Will the all-pervading Lord place his own lotus hand on the head / of me fallen at his feet—

16. Would that the Lord place His lotus-like palm on the head of my poor self fallen at His feet, the palm that promises fearless shelter to men who, terrified by the fierce serpent of Time, resort to Him for protection.

10.38.16

dattābhayaṃ kāla-bhujāṅga-raṃhasā % prodvejitānāṃ śaraṇaiṣiṇāṃ ṇṛnām //

that hand which grants fearlessness to men terrified by the swift force of the serpent of time, who seek refuge?

10.38.17

samarhaṇaṃ yatra nidhāya kauśikas tathā baliś cāpa jagat-trayendratām /
yad vā vihāre vraja-yoṣitāṃ śramaṃ sparśena saugandhika-gandhy apānudat //

By placing an offering at which Indra and Bali attained sovereignty over the three worlds, / or which, carrying the fragrance of a water-lily, removed the fatigue of the women of Vraja during the dance of love by its touch.

17. Indra and Bali attained to the rulership of the worlds for having offered their worship to those feet, which, indeed fragrant like Sougandhika flowers, refreshed with their touch the women of Vraja fatigued in the sports. 18. I am certain that Achyuta will not take me for an enemy though I am a messenger sent by Kamsa, for He sees everything, He is inside and outside every mind; being Kshetragna He sees its activity with His unclouded vision.

10.38.17.p1

na mayy upaiṣyaty ari-buddhim acyutaḥ $ kaṃsasya dūtaḥ prahito 'pi viśva-dṛk &

Acyuta, the seer of all, will not regard me as an enemy, / though sent as a messenger of Kaṃsa;

10.38.18

yo 'ntar bahiś cetasa etad īhitaṃ % kṣetra-jña īkṣaty amalena cakṣuṣā //

for he is the knower of the field, who with his untainted eye sees this striving of the mind, within and without.

10.38.18.p2

apy aṅghri-mūle 'vahitaṃ kṛtāñjaliṃ $ mām īkṣitā sa-smitam ārdrayā dṛśā &

Will he look with a smiling, tender gaze upon me, / attentive and with folded hands at his feet,

19. Would that the Lord smilingly look on me, fallen at His feet with folded hands, with His eyes full of mercy, so that I may be at once absolved from all sin and in entire fearlessness be the recepient of infinite joy?

10.38.18.p3

apy aṅghri-mūle 'vahitaṃ kṛtāñjaliṃ $ mām īkṣitā sa-smitam ārdrayā dṛśā &

will he look with a smiling, tender gaze upon me, / attentive and with folded hands at his feet,

10.38.19

sapady apadhvasta-samasta-kilbiṣo % voḍhā mudaṃ vīta-viśaṅka ūrjitām //

whereby, with all sins instantly destroyed, / free from hesitation, I shall experience immense joy?

10.38.20

suhṛttamaṃ jñātim ananya-daivataṃ dorbhyāṃ bṛhadbhyāṃ parirapsyate 'tha mām /
ātmā hi tīrthī-kriyate tadaiva me bandhaś ca karmātmaka ucchvasity ataḥ //

Then with his two long arms he will embrace me, his dearest friend, kinsman, and one with no other deity; / for at that very moment my self will be sanctified, and bondage consisting of karma will loosen thereafter.

20. Would that with His long arms He then embraces me—me, His truest friend, well-wisher, His relation devoted to Him alone and not to any other Deity, for my self becomes at once purified and my bondage in the form of karma (kama) becomes shattered!

10.38.20.p1

labdhvāṅga-saṅgam praṇatam kṛtāñjaliṃ $ māṃ vakṣyate 'krūra tatety uruśravāḥ &

Having received contact with his body as I bow with folded hands, / he of wide renown will address me: ‘Uncle Akrūra!’

21. Only after embraces I again bow down with folded hands and the glorious Lord calls me ‘father Akrura’, we are worthy born. Fie upon the birth of that creature who is not so welcomed by the great one (Krishna).

10.38.21

tadā vayaṃ janma-bhṛto mahīyasā % naivādṛto yo dhig amuṣya janma tat //

Then my birth will have borne its fruit; for cursed is the birth / of that person who is not honored by the Supreme!

10.38.22

na tasya kaścid dayitaḥ suhṛttamo na cāpriyo dveṣya upekṣya eva vā /
tathāpi bhaktān bhajate yathā tathā sura-drumo yadvad upāśrito 'rtha-daḥ //

To him no one is favorite, nor dearest friend, nor is anyone disliked, hated, or neglected; / yet he reciprocates with his devotees according to how they worship him, just as the wish-fulfilling tree grants desires when approached.

22. No one is His friend, beloved of Him or disagreeable to Him or hated by Him or treated with indifference; still He attends to His devotees like the celestial tree Kalpa that grants the desired objects of those who resort to, and worship, it.

10.38.23

kiṃ cāgrajo māvanataṃ yadūttamaḥ smayan pariṣvajya gṛhītam añjalau /
gṛhaṃ praveṣyāpta-samasta-satkṛtaṃ samprakṣyate kaṃsa-kṛtaṃ sva-bandhuṣu //

Moreover, his elder brother, the foremost of the Yadus, smiling, will embrace me as I bow, taking me by my folded hands; / leading me into the house and offering all hospitable receptions, he will inquire about Kaṃsa’s treatment of our kinsmen.”

23. Further the elderly Rama, foremost amoung Yadus, would embrace me and with a smile take me when I bow to Him by the hands and lead me into the house and after all the customary attentions will enquire of me about Kamsa’s activities towards his kith and kin.

10.38.24

/0 śrī-śuka uvāca
iti sañcintayan kṛṣṇaṃ śvaphalka-tanayo 'dhvani /
rathena gokulaṃ prāptaḥ sūryaś cāsta-giriṃ nṛpa //

Śrī Śuka said: / Thinking thus about Kṛṣṇa along the way, the son of Śvaphalka / arrived at Gokula by chariot, O king, just as the sun reached the setting mountain.

24. Sri Suka said:— With these thoughts on Krishna all his way Akrura arrived at Gokula in his chariot, and the Sun also reached the western hill, O King.

10.38.25

padāni tasyākhila-loka-pāla- kirīṭa-juṣṭāmala-pāda-reṇoḥ /
dadarśa goṣṭhe kṣiti-kautukāni vilakṣitāny abja-yavāṅkuśādyaiḥ //

In the cow-pasture he saw the footprints of that Lord, the spotless dust of whose feet is touched by the diadems of all world-protectors, / markings of wonder upon the earth, distinguished by lotus, barley-corn, elephant-goad, and other signs.

25. In Vraja he saw the Lord’s footprints, whereof the dust is sought after and worshipped with their crowns by all the protectors of the world, which are the special ornaments of the earth and are

distinctively seen from the marks of _Abja_, _Yava_, _Ankusa_ and the like.

10.38.25.p1

tad-darśanāhlāda-vivṛddha-sambhramaḥ $ premṇordhva-romāśru-kalākulekṣaṇaḥ &

His agitation grew through the joy of beholding them; with hair standing on end out of love, his eyes blurred with tears,

26. With growing impatience through joy at Their sight and through love, his hair standing on end, his eyes dimmed with tears, he alighted from the chariot and fell and rolled in the dust, thinking these are the particles of the dust of Lord's feet; most blessed are these and most blessed am I.

10.38.26

rathād avaskandya sa teṣv aceṣṭata % prabhor amūny aṅghri-rajāṃsy aho iti //

leaping down from his chariot, he rolled in them, crying: “Ah, these are the grains of dust from my Master's feet!”

10.38.27

dehaṃ-bhṛtām iyān artho hitvā dambhaṃ bhiyaṃ śucam /
sandeśād yo harer liṅga- darśana-śravaṇādibhiḥ //

en:

27. The great purpose to be achieved by beings invested with a body is that they behave and feel just as, from the moment he received his message, this Akrura did, without hypocrisy, without fear, or regret, on hearing and thinking of the Lord's marks.

10.38.28

dadarśa kṛṣṇaṃ rāmaṃ ca vraje go-dohanaṃ gatau /
pīta-nīlāmbara-dharau śarad-amburahekṣaṇau //

He beheld Kṛṣṇa and Rāma in Vraja, gone to milk the cows, / wearing yellow and blue garments, with eyes like autumn lotuses,

28. At Vraja he saw Krishna and Rama in the act of milking cows, wearing golden clothes and blue dress (respectively), with eyes like unto the lotus of Autumn (Sarad).

10.38.29

kiśorau śyāmala-śvetau śrī-niketau bṛhad-bhujau /
su-mukhau sundara-varau bala-dvirada-vikramau //

two youths, dark and fair, the dwellings of Śrī, with mighty arms, / of handsome countenance, best among the beautiful, striding like powerful elephants,

29. —Lads of blue and white complexion, endowed with Supreme splendour (Srivatsa mark), with long arms, charming face, First among the beautiful, in gait unto a young elephant;

10.38.30

dhvaja-vajrāṅkuśāmbhojaiś cihnitair aṅghribhir vrajam /
śobhayantau mahātmānau sānukrośa-smitekṣaṇau //

adorning Vraja with their feet marked with flag, thunderbolt, goad, and lotus, / the two great souls, their gaze marked by compassionate smiles,

30. —The lads who grace Vajra with their feet bearing the marks of Dhwaja, Vajra, Ankusa, and lotus, with their sublime stature and form and with their smiling eyes full of mercy;

10.38.31

udāra-rucira-krīḍau sragviṇau vana-mālinau /
puṇya-gandhānuliptāṅgau snātau viraja-vāsasau //

whose play is noble and charming, wearing garlands of flowers and forest garlands, / their limbs anointed with fragrant scents, bathed, and clad in stainless robes,

31. —Of delightful and noble playfulness, adorned with wreaths and Vanamala, besmeared with pigments of happy fragrance and dressed in pure clothes after bath.

10.38.32

pradhāna-puruṣāv ādyau jagad-dhetū jagat-patī /
avatīrṇau jagaty-arthe svāṃśena bala-keśavau //

the two primeval masters of Prakṛti and Puruṣa, the causes and lords of the universe, / Bala and Keśava, descended with a portion of themselves for the welfare of the world,

32. Both the eternal and foremost persons, the first Cause of the Universe and its protectors, who have come in their essential Amsa, as Balarama and Krishna for the sake of the world;

10.38.33

diśo vitimirā rājan kurvāṇau prabhayā svayā /
yathā mārakataḥ śailo raupyaś ca kanakācitau //

dispelling the darkness of the directions with their own splendor, O King, / like an emerald mountain and a silver one, both adorned with gold.

33. —Who by their glory, O king, rid the directions of darkness and who shine like a hill of emeralds and a hill of silver, both chased with gold.

10.38.34

rathāt tūrṇam avaplutya so 'krūraḥ sneha-vihvalaḥ /
papāta caraṇopānte daṇḍa-vad rāma-kṛṣṇayoḥ //

Leaping swiftly from his chariot, Akrūra, overcome with affection, / fell at the feet of Rāma and Kṛṣṇa like a rod.

34. Overwhelmed with his devout affection, quickly that Akrura sprang down from the car and fell prostrate like a pole at the feet of Rama and Krishna.

10.38.35

bhagavad-darśanāhlāda- bāṣpa-paryākulekṣaṇaḥ /
pulakacitāṅga autkaṇṭhyāt svākhyāne nāśakan nṛpa //

His eyes overwhelmed with tears of joy at beholding the Lord, / his limbs covered with horripilation, he was unable to speak his own name out of longing, O King.

35. His eyes were confounded with the tears of joy at the sight of the glorious Lords, the hair on his body stood on end,

choked with feelings of love he could not say who he was, O King.

10.38.36

bhagavāṃs tam abhipretya rathāṅgāṅkita-pāṇinā /
parirebhe 'bhyupākṛṣya prītaḥ praṇata-vatsalaḥ //

Understanding who he was, the Lord, with a hand marked by the discus, / drew him near and embraced him, pleased, being compassionate to the surrendered.

36. The glorious Lord understood him and with his hands marked with chakra and with great delight and affection, drew near and embraced him.

10.38.37

saṅkarṣaṇaś ca praṇatam upaguhya mahā-manāḥ /
gṛhītvā pāṇinā pāṇī anayat sānujo gṛham //

And the high-minded Saṅkarṣaṇa embraced him as he bowed down, / took both his hands in his own, and with his younger brother led him into the house.

37. The high-souled Sankarshana also embraced Akrura prone at his feet and took him by the hand and along with Krishna led him into the palace.

10.38.38

pṛṣṭvātha sv-āgataṃ tasmai nivedya ca varāsanam /
prakṣālya vidhi-vat pādau madhu-parkārhaṇam āharat //

Then, having inquired about his journey and offered him an excellent seat, / he washed his feet according to rule and brought him the honey-mixture offering.

38. Then He asked him whether he had a very happy journey, offered an excellent seat, duly washed his feet and presented the offering of Maghuparka.

10.38.39

nivedya gāṃ cātithaye saṃvāhya śrāntam āḍṛtaḥ /
annaṃ bahu-guṇaṃ medhyaṃ śraddhayopāharad vibhuḥ //

Offering a cow to the guest and massaging him as he rested from fatigue, the respectful / and mighty Lord faithfully served him pure food possessing many virtues.

39. He gave the guest water and with great affection and attention, shampooed His weary guest and entertained him in true devotion with food, excellent preparations perfectly pure and fit to be offered in a sacrifice.

10.38.40

tasmai bhuktavate prītyā rāmaḥ parama-dharma-vit /
makha-vāsair gandha-mālyaiḥ parāṃ prītiṃ vyadhāt punaḥ //

When he had eaten, Rāma, who knows the highest dharma, affectionately / brought him supreme delight once again with mouth-scents, perfumes, and flower-garlands.

40. After dinner Rama, who knows the highest Dharma, again gave him great joy by kindly offering (scented betel leaf, sandal and flowers (to the guest).

10.38.41

papraccha sat-kṛtaṃ nandaḥ kathaṃ stha niranugrahe /
kaṃse jīvati dāśārha sauna-pālā ivāvayaḥ //

Nanda asked him, who had been thus honored: “How do you fare, O descendant of Daśārha, / while the pitiless Kaṃsa lives, like sheep under a slaughterer?

41. After due attentions Nanda enquired, “How do you get on while the merciless Kamsa is alive, O Dasarha, like sheep tended by the butcher himself,

10.38.42

yo 'vadhīt sva-svasus tokān krośantyā asu-tṛp khalaḥ /
kiṃ nu svit tat-prajānāṃ vaḥ kuśalaṃ vimṛśāmahe //

That wicked man, seeking only his own life, killed his own sister's children as she wept. / Can we even ponder whether there is any well-being for you, his subjects?”

42. “Kamsa who killed the children of his own sister, crying as she was, who is a bloodthirsty wicked creature; we would like to inquire what happiness or safety there could be for his subjects”.

10.38.43

itthaṃ sūnṛtayā vācā nandena su-sabhājitaḥ /
akrūraḥ paripṛṣṭena jahāv adhva-pariśramam //

Thus cordially honored by Nanda with true and pleasing words, / Akrūra, questioned in this way, cast off the fatigue of his journey.

43. Thus in their mutual enquiries and answers in most happy language, Akrura, honoured by Nanda, forgot the fatigue of his journey.