Bhagavatapurana 10.53
English (machine translation) 10.53
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Contents
10.53.1
Śrī Śuka said:
Hearing that message of the princess of Vidarbha, the delight of the Yadus / grasped his hand with his own and, laughing, said this:
10.53.2
The Lord said:
In the same way, I too have my mind fixed on her, and I find no sleep at night; / I know that our marriage has been prevented by Rukmin out of hatred.
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I shall bring her, devoted to me, flawless in limb, having crushed the vile kings in battle, / just as one brings a flame of fire out of firewood.
10.53.4
Śrī Śuka said:
Ascertaining the asterism of the marriage of Rukmiṇī, the slayer of Madhu / said to his charioteer, "Dāruka, let the chariot be yoked quickly!"
10.53.5
And he, having brought the chariot yoked with the horses / Śaibya, Sugrīva, Meghapuṣpa, and Balāhaka, stood before him with joined palms.
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Mounting the chariot and making the twice-born mount, the descendant of Śūra / went with swift horses from Ānarta to Vidarbha in a single night.
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The king, the lord of Kuṇḍina, yielding to affection for his son, / was having the rites performed to give his daughter to Śiśupāla.
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The city had its roads, streets, and crossroads swept and sprinkled, / and was decorated with multicolored flags, banners, and archways.
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It was filled with men and women adorned with garlands, scents, wreaths, ornaments, and spotless garments, / and with splendid houses scented with burning aloe.
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Having duly worshipped the ancestors, deities, and brāhmaṇas, O king, / and fed them according to custom, he had auspicious blessings recited.
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The maiden, well bathed and with fine teeth, had the auspicious marriage-thread tied on, / and was dressed in a pair of fresh garments and adorned with the best ornaments.
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The best among the twice-born performed protection for the bride with mantras from the Sāma, Ṛg, and Yajur Vedas; / and the family priest, knower of the Atharva Veda, offered oblations for the pacification of the planets.
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Gold, silver, garments, and sesame mixed with molasses, / as well as cows, the king, best of knowers of the rites, gave to the brāhmaṇas.
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In the same way, Damaghoṣa, the king and lord of Cedi, / had all auspicious rites performed for his son by those versed in mantras.
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Surrounded by regiments of rutting elephants, chariots adorned with golden garlands, / and an army crowded with infantry and cavalry, he went to Kuṇḍina.
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The ruler of Vidarbha approached him, worshipped him, / and joyfully lodged him in an assigned separate residence.
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There Śālva, Jarāsandha, Dantavakra, Vidūratha, / and thousands of others belonging to the faction of the king of Cedi, such as Pauṇḍraka, arrived.
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Hostile to Kṛṣṇa and Rāma, they were prepared to secure the maiden for the king of Cedi, / [thinking,] "If Kṛṣṇa should come surrounded by Rāma and the other Yadus to carry her off,
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we shall fight him united." Resolute in mind, / all the kings came with their complete armies and conveyances.
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Hearing of this preparation of the hostile kings / and that Kṛṣṇa had gone alone to carry off the maiden, the Lord Rāma, apprehensive of conflict,
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overwhelmed with affection for his brother, went swiftly to Kuṇḍina / with a mighty army of elephants, horses, chariots, and infantry.
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The daughter of Bhīṣmaka, of fair hips, longing for the arrival of Hari / and not seeing the return of the twice-born, then reflected:
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"Alas! My marriage is separated [from now] by only three watches of the night, unfortunate as I am. / The lotus-eyed one does not arrive, and I know not the reason here; / nor has that brāhmaṇa, who carried my message, returned even today.
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Can it be that, seeing some flaw in me, the faultless-souled one / does not come indeed to take my hand in marriage, though he had resolved to do so?
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For ill-fated me, the Creator is not favorable, nor is Maheśvara; / or the goddess Gaurī, Rudrāṇī, Girijā, Satī, has turned her face away."
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Thus pondering, the maiden whose mind was captivated by Govinda, / knowing the time, closed her eyes that were filled with tears.
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As the bride was thus awaiting Govinda's arrival, O king, / her left thigh, arm, and eye twitched, betokening what is dear.
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Then that best of brāhmaṇas, dispatched by Kṛṣṇa, / indeed beheld the princess, the goddess residing in the inner apartments.
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Perceiving his delighted face and calm, composed gait, / the chaste maiden, knowing the signs [of good news], questioned him with a pure smile.
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He announced to her that the joy of the Yadus had arrived, and related [his journey], / as well as his true word concerning taking her to himself.
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Knowing that he had arrived, the princess of Vidarbha, delighted in mind, / seeing no other pleasing gift for the brāhmaṇa, bowed down to him.
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Hearing that the two had arrived, eager to behold his daughter's wedding, / [the king] went out to meet Rāma and Kṛṣṇa with the sound of musical instruments and with offerings.
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Bringing madhuparka, spotless garments, / and desirable presents, he worshiped them according to rule.
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Providing a splendid residence for the two, the wise king / extended hospitality properly to them, along with their armies and followers.
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In this manner, he honored the assembled kings with all desirable things, / according to their valor, age, strength, and wealth.
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Hearing that Kṛṣṇa had arrived, the inhabitants of the city of Vidarbha / came and drank the lotus of his face with the hollows of their eyes:
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"Rukmiṇī alone deserves to become his wife, and no other woman; / and he too, of faultless nature, is the suitable husband for the daughter of Bhīṣmaka.
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May the Maker of the three worlds, pleased by whatever good deed we have done, / show favor, and may Acyuta take the hand of the princess of Vidarbha."
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Bound by the affection of love, the city dwellers spoke thus. / And the maiden went out from the inner quarters, guarded by warriors, to the temple of Ambikā.
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She went on foot to see the sprout-like feet of Bhavānī, / completely absorbed in meditating on the lotus feet of Mukunda.
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Keeping silent, she was surrounded by her mothers and companions, / guarded by the king's heroic soldiers, equipped with armor and with weapons raised; / and mṛdaṅgas, conches, paṇavas, horns, and bherī-drums were beaten.
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Accompanied by various presentations and offerings, courtesans in their thousands, / and the wives of brāhmaṇas, finely adorned with garlands, fragrant scents, garments, and ornaments,
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and singing women, and eulogists, singers, and players of instruments, / sūtas, māgadhas, and bards, surrounded the bride and walked along.
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Reaching the goddess's shrine, having washed her lotus-like feet and hands, / having sipped water, pure and serene, she entered into the presence of Ambikā.
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The elderly brāhmaṇa women, knowing the rites, made that young girl / worship Bhavānī, the consort of Bhava, accompanied by Bhava.
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"I bow to you constantly, O Ambikā, the auspicious one together with your offspring. / May the Lord Kṛṣṇa become my husband; let that be sanctioned [by you]."
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With water, fragrant pastes, unbroken grains, incense, garments, wreaths, garlands, and ornaments, / with various presentations and offerings, and with rows of lamps, each in order,
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she also worshiped the married brāhmaṇa women with these, / and with salt, cakes, betel, necklaces, fruits, and sugarcane.
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Those women gave her the remnants of the offering and pronounced blessings. / The bride made obeisance to them and to the goddess, and accepted the remnants.
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Then, having broken her vow of silence, she walked out of Ambikā's temple, / holding on with her hand, adorned with a jeweled ring, to a female servant.
10.53.51
Beholding her, who was like the Lord's creative power captivating even the steady-minded, slender-waisted, her face adorned with earrings, / a youthful maiden with a jeweled girdle resting on her hips, her breasts swelling, her gaze darting in timidity through her curls,
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of pure smile, the jasmine buds of her teeth reddened by the brilliance of her bimba-fruit lower lip, / moving on foot with the gait of a gentle royal swan, radiant with the splendor of jingling, melodious anklets—
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the assembled heroic, renowned kings were bewitched, afflicted with love caused by her. / Seeing her, their minds captivated by her generous smile and bashful glance, the kings dropped their weapons
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and fell to the ground from their elephants, chariots, and horses, completely bewildered. Under the guise of a procession, she surrendered her splendor to Hari; / moving slowly in this way her two fluttering lotus-like feet, looking out then for the arrival of the Lord,
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brushing aside her curls with the nails of her left hand, she shyly looked from the corners of her eyes at the assembled kings, and saw Acyuta. / As that princess was desiring to mount her chariot, Kṛṣṇa carried her off before the eyes of his enemies.
10.53.56
Lifting her onto his chariot marked with the emblem of Garuḍa, humiliating the circle of kings, / Mādhava then proceeded slowly, with Rāma in the lead, like a lion carrying off his share from the midst of jackals.
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Proud men, their enemies headed by Jarāsandha, could not bear that / humiliation of themselves and loss of renown:
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"Alas, fie upon us! The fame of us who have taken up bows / has been carried off by cowherds, as that of lions by deer!"
10.53.57.p1
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Translations (1)
- The Srimad Bhagavatam — S. Subba Rau 1928, English
Linked texts (1)
- Bhāgavatapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit