Bhagavatapurana 3.3: atha tṛtīyo'dhyāyaḥ

3.3.1

/0 uddhava uvāca
tataḥ sa āgatya puraṃ sva-pitroś cikīrṣayā śaṃ baladeva-saṃyutaḥ /
nipātya tuṅgād ripu-yūtha-nāthaṃ hataṃ vyakarṣad vyasum ojasorvyām //

Uddhava said: / Then, accompanied by Baladeva, he arrived at the city wishing to bring welfare to his parents, / and throwing down the leader of the host of enemies from his high seat, he dragged him, killed and lifeless, across the ground with his might.

1. Uddhava said:—Then Sri Krishna accompanied by Balarama, came to the city of Mathura, and with the desire of making His parents happy, with force pulled down Kamsa, the head of His enemies, from His high seat and killed him and dragged him along on the ground.

3.3.2

sāndīpaneḥ sakṛt proktaṃ brahmādhītya sa-vistaram /
tasmai prādād varaṃ putraṃ mṛtaṃ pañca-janodarāt //

Having learned the complete Veda recited just once by Sāndīpani, / he gave him as a boon his son who had died, [retrieving him] from the belly of Pañcajana.

2. From Sandipini, He learnt the Vedas in all their details which were but once uttered (by the teacher), and gave him back his dead son who was recovered from the stomach of the Rakshasa called Panchajana.

3.3.3

samāhutā bhīṣmaka-kanyayā ye śriyaḥ savarṇena bubhūṣayaiṣām /
gāndharva-vṛttyā miṣatāṃ sva-bhāgaṃ jahre padaṃ mūrdhni dadhat suparṇaḥ //

Summoned by the daughter of Bhīṣmaka to be desired as an equal match of beauty, / while they looked on, he seized his own portion in the Gāndharva manner, placing his foot on their heads like the well-winged bird [Garuḍa].

3. Sri Krishna, like Garuda came in great haste, and set his foot on the head of those who had been invited by (in behalf of) the daughter of Bhishma (by Rukmani) who was in beauty like unto Lakshmi, and, with the intention of being united to her (to wed her) according to the Ghandharva rites, carried her away as she was the avatar of His own Lakshmi (lit. as she was His own share) while they all stood gazing.

3.3.4

kakudmino 'viddha-naso damitvā svayaṃvare nāgnajitīm uvāha /
tad-bhagnamānān api gṛdhyato 'jñāñ jaghne 'kṣataḥ śastra-bhṛtaḥ sva-śastraiḥ //

Taming the humped [bulls] whose noses were unpierced, he married the daughter of Nagnajit at her bridegroom-choice; / though unwounded himself, with his own weapons he struck down the armed men whose pride was crushed and who still greedily attacked like fools.

4. In a Swayamvara, He subdued the bulls whose nose had not been bored through, and married the daughter of King Nagnajit; and He beat away the foolish princes who, though their pride was broken (by His successful feat), still cherished a passion for her and came to fight with Him with their weapons, though He was not hurt by them.

3.3.5

priyaṃ prabhur grāmya iva priyāyā vidhitsur ārcchad dyutaruṃ yad-arthe /
vajry ādravat taṃ sa-gaṇo ruṣāndhaḥ krīḍā-mṛgo nūnam ayaṃ vadhūnām //

The Lord, wishing to please his beloved like a common man, went for her sake to obtain the celestial tree; / the wielder of the thunderbolt rushed at him with his host, blinded by anger—surely he is a toy-deer for his wives!

5. Like a common man, the All-powerful Lord carried away (from Swarga) the celestial tree "Parijata" in order to grant the wish of His queen Satyabhama, and on this account Indra, blind with rage, pursued Him with His celestial army; for Indra is indeed like a pet deer in the hands of women.

3.3.6

sutaṃ mṛdhe khaṃ vapuṣā grasantaṃ dṛṣṭvā sunābhonmathitaṃ dharitryā /
āmantritas tat-tanayāya śeṣaṃ dattvā tad-antaḥ-puram āviveśa //

Seeing Earth's son in battle, who swallowed the sky with his body, destroyed by his well-navelled [disc], / and having been addressed by her, he bestowed the remaining [wealth] upon his son and entered his inner quarters.

6. On seeing her son (Narakasura) who seemed to swallow the sky with His body (who was in complexion a Challenge to the sky) struck down by Sri Krishna's chakra, the goddess Bhoomi, prayed to Him (for mercy). Hearing her prayer, Sri Krishna, bestowed upon Naraka's son that portion of the kingdom which he had not annexed, and then entered the harem (in Naraka's palace).

3.3.7

tatrāhṛtās tā nara-deva-kanyāḥ kujena dṛṣṭvā harim ārta-bandhum /
utthāya sadyo jagṛhuḥ praharṣa- vrīḍānurāga-prahitāvalokaiḥ //

Seeing Hari, the friend of the afflicted, the daughters of kings who had been carried off there by the son of Earth [Naraka] / immediately rose and received him with glances conveying extreme delight, modesty, and loving affection.

7. There the princesses, who had been siezed and imprisoned by Naraka, saw Hari the friend of the distressed, and

at once rose to receive Him with their looks impelled (urged on) by great joy, bashfulness and love.

3.3.8

āsāṃ muhūrta ekasmin nānāgāreṣu yoṣitām /
sa-vidhaṃ jagṛhe pāṇīn anurūpaḥ sva-māyayā //

In a single auspicious moment, in different palaces, / he, suitably matching each, took the hands of these women through his creative power.

8. By virtue of His Maya (supreme powers), at the same hour He accepted the hands of them all in marriage with due ceremony, in (assuming) forms severally agreeable to all in their several apartments.

3.3.9

tāsv apatyāny ajanayad ātma-tulyāni sarvataḥ /
ekaikasyāṃ daśa daśa prakṛter vibubhūṣayā //

Upon them he begot offspring equal to himself in every respect, / ten on each, through his desire to expand his creative power.

9. And by each of them He had ten sons who were all equal to Him in every respect, since He purposed to expand “Prakriti,” (since He wished by nature to assume various forms).

3.3.10

kāla-māgadha-śālvādīn anīkai rundhataḥ puram /
ajīghanat svayaṃ divyaṃ sva-puṃsāṃ teja ādiśat //

Kālayavana, the king of Magadha [Jarāsandha], Śālva, and others who besieged the city with armies / he caused to be killed, himself imparting divine splendor to his men.

10. He himself caused the destruction of Kalayavana, Jarasandha, Salwa and others who besieged His city with their armies, and conferred great glory upon His own men (Bhaktas like Muchukunda, Bheema, etc.)

3.3.11

śambaraṃ dvividaṃ bāṇaṃ muraṃ balvalam eva ca /
anyāṃś ca dantavakrādīn avadhīt kāṃś ca ghātayat //

Śambara, Dvivida, Bāṇa, Mura, and Balvala, / and others like Dantavaktra he slew, and some he caused to be slain.

11. He caused Sambara, Dvivida, Bana, Mura, Balwala and some others to be killed by Pradyumna, Balarama and others while He himself slew Dantavakra and some others.

3.3.12

atha te bhrātṛ-putrāṇāṃ pakṣayoḥ patitān nṛpān /
cacāla bhūḥ kurukṣetraṃ yeṣām āpatatāṃ balaiḥ //

Then the kings who had fallen into the sides of your brothers' sons [the Kauravas and Pāṇḍavas], / as they marched with armies, the earth of Kurukṣetra trembled under them.

12. Then, He brought about the destruction of the kings and princes who had joined the sides of your brother’s sons (Dhritarashtra’s sons and Pandu’s sons) by whose forces marching towards the Kurushetra the earth was made to quake.

3.3.13

sa karṇa-duḥśāsana-saubalānāṃ kumantra-pākena hata-śriyāyuṣam /
suyodhanaṃ sānucaraṃ śayānaṃ bhagnorum ūrvyāṃ na nananda paśyan //

Beholding Suyodhana lying with broken thighs on the earth along with his followers, / his fortune and lifespan destroyed by the ripening of the wicked counsel of Karṇa, Duḥśāsana, and Saubala, he felt no joy.

13. Sri Krishna (was not satisfied even when He saw) was not pleased to see Duryodhana who lay stretched along with his followers on the ground with his thighs broken, and with his wealth and life cut short, as the effect of the wicked counsel given by Karna, Dussasana and Sakuni.

3.3.14

kiyān bhuvo 'yaṃ kṣapitoru-bhāro yad droṇa-bhīṣmārjuna-bhīma-mūlaiḥ /
aṣṭādaśākṣauhiṇiko mad-aṃśair āste balaṃ durviṣahaṃ yadūnām //

"How much of the earth's heavy burden has been removed, when by these [leaders] rooted in Droṇa, Bhīṣma, Arjuna, and Bhīma / eighteen akṣauhiṇīs [perished], while the irresistible army of the Yadus, portions of myself, remains?

14. Sri Krishna thought, “How little after all is the burden of the earth that has been reduced through the agency of Drona, Bheeshma, Arjuna and Bheema though it counts eighteen Akshauhinis in number? For there is still an irresistible force of the Yadavas led by Pradyumna and others who are my Amsas!

3.3.15

mitho yadaiṣāṃ bhavitā vivādo madhv-āmadātāmra-vilocanānām /
naiṣāṃ vadhopāya iyān ato 'nyo mayy udyate 'ntardadhate svayaṃ sma //

"When a quarrel arises among them, whose eyes are reddened from the intoxication of liquor, / there is no other way to destroy them than this; when I depart, they will disappear of themselves."

15. "The means of their destruction will be found when there will be a quarrel between themselves each looking on the other with fiery eyes in deep intoxication, and (there is) no other; (for) when I am up, they will naturally disappear."

3.3.16

evaṃ sañcintya bhagavān sva-rājye sthāpya dharmajam /
nandayām āsa suhṛdaḥ sādhūnāṃ vartma darśayan //

Having reflected thus, the Lord installed the son of Dharma on his own throne / and delighted his friends, showing the path of the virtuous.

16. Having thus reflected, the glorious Lord established the son of Dharma (Yudhishtira) in his own kingdom and brought delight to His friends while He indicated the way to the righteous.

3.3.17

uttarāyāṃ dhṛtaḥ pūror vaṃśaḥ sādhv-abhimanyunā /
sa vai drauṇy-astra-sampluṣṭaḥ punar bhagavatā dhṛtaḥ //

Carried in Uttarā's womb by virtuous Abhimanyu, the lineage of Pūru / was indeed scorched by the weapon of Droṇa's son, and was again preserved by the Lord.

17. The thread of the "Puru race" that had been well treasured up (securely placed) in Uttara by Abhimanyu was cut by the missile (Astra) of Drona's son, but it was restored and kept from extinction by the glorious Lord.

3.3.18

ayājayad dharma-sutam aśvamedhais tribhir vibhuḥ /
so 'pi kṣmām anujai rakṣan reme kṛṣṇam anuvrataḥ //

The all-powerful Lord caused the son of Dharma to perform three horse-sacrifices; / he too, protecting the earth with his younger brothers, found joy, devoted to Kṛṣṇa.

18. The omnipotent Krishna enabled Dharma's son to perform Asvamedha thrice over; and with devotion to Sri Krishna, he (Yudhishtira) protected the earth with the help of his brothers and lived in happiness.

3.3.19

bhagavān api viśvātmā loka-veda-pathānugaḥ /
kāmān siṣeve dvārvatyām asaktaḥ sāṅkhyam āsthitaḥ //

The Lord also, the self of all, following the ways of the world and the Veda, / enjoyed desires in Dvāravatī, unattached, established in Sāṅkhya.

19. The glorious Krishna too, being one with the whole Universe, and treading the path of the world as well as that of the Vedas, enjoyed the pleasures of life at Dwaravati, but without attachment; for, He had the Sankhya Knowledge (how "Prakriti and Purusha" are really distinct.)

3.3.20

snigdha-smitāvalokena vācā pīyūṣa-kalpayā /
caritreṇānavadyena śrī-niketena cātmanā //

With glances of gentle smiles, with speech like nectar, / with flawless conduct, and with his very self which is the abode of Śrī,

20 & 21. With His lovely and smiling looks, with His words sweet as nectar, with His faultless conduct and with His person which is the abode of Sri (Lakshmi), He delighted this as well as the other world, especially the Yadus and rejoiced in His own blissful nature, showing but a moment's friendship to women who by night obtained the pleasure of His company.

3.3.21

imaṃ lokam amuṃ caiva ramayan sutarāṃ yadūn /
reme kṣaṇadayā datta- kṣaṇa-strī-kṣaṇa-sauhṛdaḥ //

delighting this world and that other, and especially the Yadus, / he revelled at night, his affection granted to the women who were celebrating festive occasions.

3.3.22

tasyaivaṃ ramamāṇasya saṃvatsara-gaṇān bahūn /
gṛhamedheṣu yogeṣu virāgaḥ samajāyata //

As he thus took delight for many sets of years, / dispassion arose [in him] toward the duties and possessions of a householder.

22. Thus living a life of delights for many many years, He felt renunciation for the ways of the householder's life and also for the means of finding pleasures.

3.3.23

daivādhīneṣu kāmeṣu daivādhīnaḥ svayaṃ pumān /
ko viśrambheta yogena yogeśvaram anuvrataḥ //

When desires are dependent on fate, and a man is himself dependent on fate, / who that is devoted to the Lord of yoga through yoga would place trust in them?

23. But when the desired purposes are in the hands of (at the disposal of) God, man is solely in His power. Who then would put confidence in them as a source of delight, if he is devoted to the Lord of Yoga by means of Yoga?

3.3.24

puryāṃ kadācit krīḍadbhir yadu-bhoja-kumārakaiḥ /
kopitā munayaḥ śepur bhagavan-mata-kovidāḥ //

Once in the city, the sages, who knew the will of the Lord, / were angered by the playing boys of the Yadus and Bhojas and cursed them.

24. Once when the youths of the Yadus and Bhojas were playing in the city, the sages, who knew the will of the Almighty Lord, were offended by them, and they pronounced a curse upon those youths.

3.3.25

tataḥ katipayair māsair vṛṣṇi-bhojāndhakādayaḥ /
yayuḥ prabhāsaṃ saṃhṛṣṭā rathair deva-vimohitāḥ //

Then, after a few months, the Vṛṣṇis, Bhojas, Andhakas, and others / went joyfully on chariots to Prabhāsa, deluded by fate.

25. Some months afterwards, the Vrishnis, the Bhojas, the Andhakas and others, deluded by the gods, drove in their chariots to the sacred place called Prabhasa in the height of their joy.

3.3.26

tatra snātvā pit-n devān ṛṣīṃś caiva tad-ambhasā /
tarpayitvātha viprebhyo gāvo bahu-guṇā daduḥ //

Having bathed there and propitiated the ancestors, the gods, and the sages with its water, / they then gave cows possessed of many good qualities to the brāhmaṇas,

26. There they bathed, poured libations to the Gods, the Pitris, and Rishis, with the water of the sacred place, and then bestowed upon Brahmins, cows of many excellent qualities.

3.3.27

hiraṇyaṃ rajataṃ śayyāṃ vāsāṃsy ajina-kambalān /
yānaṃ rathān ibhān kanyā dharāṃ vṛtti-karīm api //

gold, silver, beds, garments, deerskins, blankets, / mounts, chariots, elephants, maidens, and even land that provided a livelihood;

27—28. And also gold and silver, clothes and beds, skins and woollen sheets, chariots and vehicles (horses and chariots) elephants, girls, and fields sufficient to yield the means of living; they also gave to Brahmins sumptuous meals, so as to delight the Lord. (And then) those warriors whose life had been devoted to the benefit of cows and Brahmins bowed to them (Brahmins) with their heads touching the earth.

3.3.28

annaṃ coru-rasaṃ tebhyo dattvā bhagavad-arpaṇam /
go-viprārthāsavaḥ śūrāḥ praṇemur bhuvi mūrdhabhiḥ //

and giving them highly flavorful food offered to the Lord, / those heroes whose very lives were for the cows and brāhmaṇas bowed down to the earth with their heads.