Bhagavatapurana 10.68
English (machine translation) 10.68
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- English
Contents
10.68.1
Śrī Śuka said: / Duryodhana’s daughter Lakṣmaṇā, O King, who was standing at her svayaṃvara, / was carried away by Sāmba, the son of Jāmbavatī, victorious in battle.
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The Kauravas, enraged, said: "This undisciplined boy, / insulting us, has taken away our maiden by force against her will!
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Bind this ill-mannered youth! What will the Vṛṣṇis do? / They who enjoy the earth that was granted by us, enriched through our favor!
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If, upon hearing that their son has been captured, the Vṛṣṇis come here, / their pride broken, they will subside, just like fully restrained vital breaths."
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Thus Karṇa, Śala, Bhūri, Yajñaketu, and Suyodhana, / approved by the Kuru elders, undertook to fight against Sāmba.
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Seeing the sons of Dhṛtarāṣṭra pursuing him, Sāmba, the great chariot-warrior, / took up his splendid bow and stood his ground alone, like a lion.
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Desiring to capture him, the enraged bowmen, shouting "Halt, halt!", / approached him and, led by Karṇa, showered him with arrows.
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Struck by the Kurus, O best of the Kurus, that delight of the Yadus, / of inconceivable prowess, did not brook it, like a lion attacked by petty beasts.
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Twanging his splendid bow, that hero simultaneously pierced with arrows / all six chariot-warriors individually, Karṇa and the rest, with an equal number [of shafts]—
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four horses with four, and each of the charioteers and / great bowmen chariot-fighters with one each; for that, they praised him.
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However, four [of them] slew his four horses and deprived him of his chariot; / one killed his charioteer, and another broke his bow.
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Having deprived him of his chariot and bound him with difficulty in battle, / the Kurus entered their city victorious, taking the youth and their maiden.
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Hearing of that from the words of Nārada, O King, the Yadus, filled with anger, / made preparations against the Kurus, urged on by Ugrasena.
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Rāma, however, pacified those foremost Vṛṣṇis who had put on their armor; / he who removes the impurities of the Kali age did not desire conflict between the Kurus and Vṛṣṇis.
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He went to Hāstinapura on a chariot splendid as the sun, / surrounded by brāhmaṇas and family elders, like the moon surrounded by planets.
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Having reached the city known as Gajāhvaya, Rāma stayed in a grove outside / and sent Uddhava to Dhṛtarāṣṭra in order to learn their intentions.
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Having paid homage according to rule to the son of Ambikā, to Bhīṣma, Droṇa, Bāhlika, / and Duryodhana, he informed them that Rāma had arrived.
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Overjoyed upon hearing that Rāma, their dearest friend, had arrived, / they all went forth with auspicious offerings in their hands to honor him.
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Having met him, they presented a cow and guest-offering according to proper custom; / those among them who knew his power bowed their heads to Bala.
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Having heard that their relatives were well and having inquired after their welfare and health / mutually, Rāma then spoke resolute words:
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"What the master Ugrasena, sovereign of the earth, commands you, / hear that with undisturbed minds and carry it out without delay:
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'That so many of you, having unrighteously conquered one righteous person, / bound him, I overlook that out of a desire for unity among kinsmen.'"
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Hearing the words of Baladeva, full of prowess, valor, and strength, and commensurate with his power, / the Kurus, highly provoked, said:
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"Oh, this is a great wonder brought about by the insurmountable course of time, / that a shoe indeed wishes to mount a head crowned with a diadem!
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These Vṛṣṇis, joined through marital alliance, sharing beds, seats, and food, / have been brought to equality and given royal thrones by us.
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They enjoy the pair of flywhisks, the conch shell, the white umbrella, / the crown, throne, and bed through our indulgence!
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Away with the emblems of royalty for the Yadus, harmful to their giver like nectar to serpents! / For the Yādavas, enriched by our favor, now issue commands, shameless alas!
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How could even Indra seize what has not been given by the Kurus, / by Bhīṣma, Droṇa, Arjuna, and the rest, any more than a lamb could seize what a lion has grasped?"
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Śrī Bādarāyaṇi said: / Arrogant with the pride of birth, family, and prosperity, O bull of the Bharatas, / those ill-mannered men made Rāma hear offensive words and entered their city.
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Seeing the wicked nature of the Kurus and hearing their unspeakable words, Acyuta [Balarāma], / agitated with anger, terrible to behold, laughed repeatedly and spoke:
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"Surely the wicked, puffed up by various types of pride, do not desire peace; / indeed, the chastisement for them is punishment, just like a stick for animals.
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Alas, after gradually pacifying the highly agitated Yadus / and the angered Kṛṣṇa, I came here desiring peace for these people!
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Yet these dull-witted villains, delighting in quarrel / and full of arrogance, repeatedly insulting me, have spoken abusive words!
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‘Is Ugrasena, the lord of the Bhojas, Vṛṣṇis, and Andhakas, truly not a sovereign, / whose commands even Śakra and the world guardians obey?
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He by whom Sudharmā was occupied, and the Pārijāta, the tree of the immortals, / was brought and enjoyed—is that very person indeed unworthy of a royal seat?
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He whose two lotus feet are served directly by Śrī, the sovereign of the universe— / is that lord of Śrī truly not entitled to the regalia of kings?
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The dust of whose lotus feet is borne upon their supreme crowns by all the world guardians, / an object of worship and the sanctuary of all holy waters,
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and of whom Brahmā, Bhava, and I myself are portions of a portion, / as is Śrī, and we bear it constantly—where [in comparison] is a king's throne?
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[…]
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“The Vṛṣṇis, forsooth, enjoy a tract of land granted by the Kurus! / We are supposedly the shoes, while the Kurus themselves are the head!”
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Ah, what chastiser would tolerate the incoherent, harsh words / of those intoxicated by dominion, puffed up with pride like madmen?
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“Today I shall rid the earth of the Kurus!” he said in fury; / seizing his plow, he rose as if ready to consume the three worlds.
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Tearing up the city of Gajāhvaya with the tip of his plow, / the enraged [hero] dragged it toward the Gaṅgā, intending to cast it in.
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Seeing their city being dragged, reeling like a ship on water, / falling into the Gaṅgā, the Kauravas were filled with consternation.
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Desiring to live, they fled with their families to him alone for refuge; / placing Sāmba together with Lakṣmaṇā before them, with folded hands [they addressed] the Lord:
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“O Rāma, Rāma, support of all! We do not know your power; / you ought to forgive the transgression of us who are foolish and dull-witted.
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You alone are the independent cause of the maintenance, origin, and dissolution [of all]; / the wise say, O Lord, that the worlds are mere playthings for you as you play.
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You alone, O Ananta, bear this globe of the earth upon your head in sport, O thousand-headed one; / and at the end, having withdrawn the universe into yourself, you remain alone without a second.
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Your anger is intended for the instruction of all, not out of hatred or malice; / you who sustain purity, O Lord, are intent upon maintaining and protecting [creation].
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Obeisance to you, the self of all beings, bearer of all powers, imperishable one! / Creator of the universe, obeisance to you! We have taken refuge in you.”
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Śrī Śuka said: / Thus propitiated by those who had surrendered, trembling in distress and shaking in their gait, / Bala was well pleased and granted them freedom from fear, saying, “Do not fear.”
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Duryodhana gave as a dowry sixty-year-old elephants / numbering twelve hundred, and ten thousand horses,
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six thousand golden chariots shining like the sun, / and, loving his daughter, a thousand maidservants with golden ornaments on their necks.
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Accepting all that, the Lord, the best of the Sātvatas, / departed with his son and his daughter-in-law, cheered by his kin.
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Then, having entered his own city, the plow-wielding hero, / meeting his devoted relatives,
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recounted in full his exploits among the Kurus / in the midst of the assembly of the foremost of the Yadus.
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[…]
10.68.54
And even today, that city, indicating the valor of Rāma, / is seen prominently elevated on the south side along the Gaṅgā.
Translations (1)
- The Srimad Bhagavatam — S. Subba Rau 1928, English
Linked texts (1)
- Bhāgavatapurāṇa — Vyāsa, Sanskrit