119. Bhagavatha - Chp 10 - (38&39) Akrura Receives Warm Welcome at Vraja

 119. Srimad Bhagavatha  - Chp 10 - (38&39) Akrura Receives Warm Welcome at Vraja

Akrura, with the thoughts fixed firmly on Srikrishna, failed to realize that the journey to Vraja was not expedited and reached Vraja in the evening. His thoughts were fully on what should be his action when he meets Srikrishna and Balarama. 

Entering Gokula, he saw the footprints of Srikrishna that had clear marks of a lotus, a grain of barley, a goad, conch, and chakra. Knowing well that this footprint is a sacred dust, his joy had no bounds. He jumped from his chariot and rolled on it with no second thought. He felt that he had attained everything for his life.

He saw Srikrishna and Balarama near the cowshed as it was the time to milk the cows. Srikrishna had a dark complexion and was wearing a peetambari (yellowish orange)  garment, while Balarama, with a fair complexion, was wearing a blue garment. 

Both were well decorated with jewellery and garlands. Seeing them in person, Akrura fell prostrate at their feet. His eyes were blinded with tears of joy and was unable to introduce himself as his throat was choked.  The Lord understood his situation, drew near Him, and hugged. Balarama, too, hugged Akrura and clasped his joined palms and took him to his house. 

Akrura was given an excellent seat, and Balarama washed his feet and fetched him sweet (madhuparka) consisting of honey, clarified butter, and curds.  Srikrishna brought him dinner required for the day. Later, Balarama offered him betel leaves and cardamom, garlands, and perfumes. 

After the customary ritual, Nanda enquired Akrura,  “ How are you managing your life with ruthless Kamsa as a ruler? It's like a butcher taking care of the sheep - the one who has killed babies of his cousin for his selfish needs. Hearing the polite words, Akrura was comfortable with the situation and by then got rid of the fatigue of the long journey.

Srikrishna said to Akrura, “ I hope you came safely. We cannot ask about the welfare of you, relatives and the people of Matura as long as Kamsa is alive. Our noble parents are suffering for our sake. Now, tell us the purpose of your visit to us.

On hearing the words of Srikrishna, Akrura detailed to them -  Kamsa's enmity with Yadus and his attempt to kill Vasudeva, why he was sent by Kamsa and what was communicated by Devarishi Narada  (Srikrishna was born to Anakadundubhi-Vasudeva) to Kamsa and his anger.

Srikrishna and Balarama heartily laughed to hear the message of Akrura and informed their father Nanda about Kamsa’s invitation and command. 

Nanda duly instructed gopalas to collect milk, curds, and clarified butter to be given to the king. They decided to proceed to Mathura the next day.

Source: Bhagavatha Mahapurana 

117. Bhagavatha - Chp 10 - (37) Devarishi Narada Secretly Meets Srikrishna

 117. Srimad Bhagavatha  - Chp 10 - (37)

Devarishi Narada Secretly Meets Srikrishna 

To expedite the process of destruction of evil forces and to protect dharma, Devarishi Narada meets King Kamsa at Mathura and explicitly informs him of the descent of Sriman Narayana as Srikrishna,  presently residing at Vraja under the care of Nanda, Vasudeva's relative and friend. 

Devarishi Narada also visited Srikrishna secretly at Vraja and makes a mild case that His Time to leave Vraja has arrived. Srikrishna, the knower of all, was pleased to meet his great devotee, Devarishi Narada. 

Devarishi Narada offers prayers to the Lord ” You are fearless. You have descended to wipe out the sorrows of your devotees and that of Bhoodevi (Mother Earth). Staying at Vraja constrains your work. 

Why Fear?

All living beings fear for another to protect their lives, and this concept doesn't pertain to You. You are fearless (and  Kamsa is nothing for You). You are Aprameya - limitless (and also defend himself for his action)

Devarishi Speaks on Atma Tattva

You are seen as a human but were not born as human in the usual way. You made yourself visible through a yogic form. Hence, you are called Yogeshwara. 

You are using this human form for a purpose. You are Jagadeeshwara (one who gives benefits to others). You are Vasudeva (protector). 

You are there in everything ( Akilavasa). 

You are invisible - secretly residing in the heart somewhere and being witness to all our actions. You are Antaryami.

You are atma - not restricted to one body. You live in all beings, yet you are one. Only by rubbing the logs of wood, fire is produced. Fire resides in logs of wood but is invisible. Logs are many, but fire is one. 

Buddhi (brain) is one part of the body and is controlled by Trigunas (sattva, rajas, and tamas) and is fed constantly by information.  Mind must be supported by Chaitanya Shakti and Gnana Shakti. You are the Chaitanya Shakt and witness to it (Sakshiswaroopa).

The mind does not  have the capacity to grasp vast knowledge just as eyes cannot see far - off objects (galaxy). Mind has to be tuned to  grasp your tattva. 

Everything evolves around you. You are the karta (doer), and creation is your action (Karma). You use your Maya Shakti and its gunas to create.  Yet, You and Maya are inseparable. Maya is your strength. 

You descended in this world to destroy evil forces and protect the virtuous. You just effortlessly killed Demon Kesi, who was so frightful even to Gods (they left heaven and hid themselves for the fear of Kesi). 

Devarishi Visualizes the Future Events

In days to come, I shall witness the end of Canura, Mustika, and other wrestlers, the elephant Kuvalayapida and King Kamsa, too through You.  

Later, I shall witness the end of Demon Panchajana living in conch form, the notorious Kalayavana, Narayanan, and others. 

You will bring the celestial Parimala tree from heaven, though Indra may oppose it. I shall also see in future Your acceptance of Syamantaka gem and Jambavanti (daughter of bear chief Jambava).

You shall bring back the dead son of a brahmana, kill King Paundraka, Dantavakra, and Sisupala (at Emperor Yudhisthira’s Rajasuya Yagna). 

You shall Yourself be a charioteer to Arjuna and engage in eliminating evil forces in the Mahabharata war.

Source: Bhagavatha Mahapurana 

Nara denotes knowledge

Narada denotes giver of knowledge or wisdom

118. Bhagavatha -Chp 10 -(38) Akrura's Anxiety and Profound Devotion Towards Srikrishna

 118 - Srimad Bhagavatha  - Chp 10 - (38) Akrura's Anxiety and Profound Devotion Towards Srikrishna 

Akrura, as per the instructions of King Kamsa,   began his journey to Vraja to bring Srikrishna and Balarama to Mathura. He completed his morning ablutions and left in the chariot. 

Akrura was excited for the only reason that he would be seeing Srikrishna,  the Lord who descended to destroy evil forces and thereby remove the burden of Mother Earth.

Akrura is duty bound. Though he had heard a lot about Srikrishna and his leela, he did not yearn to see Him, probably due to the fear of Kamsa and his associates.  Now that Kamsa himself had assigned him to bring them to Mathura, Akrura had no boundaries to reveal his inner feelings and devotion towards the Lord.

During the journey Akrura thought how gifted he was, what good deeds he had done in the past lives to get such an opportunity to meet the Lord face to face and offer himself at the feet of Srikrishna.

 

I will reach Gokula by evening and will certainly see Keshava. I am unable to understand how people like me got this opportunity so easily. It's the foremost blessing in my life. Indeed, why is He giving me an opportunity? For one who is attracted towards information, getting darshan of the Lord is prohibited as per the scriptures.

Probably, my darshan of Achutha is like a stick in the river, which at some point in time reaches a river bank.  Time is like a flowing river, and sticks are in comparison to jeevatma. At some point in time, the jeevatma reaches the Lord either in this birth or later.

Today, all my bad deeds have vanished, and I have achieved the purpose of my life. I am seeing the Lord and offering my pranams to Him. 

Everyone says Kamsa is cruel, but to me, he has done a great favor. One can cross the darkness of ignorance by falling on God's feet. I am seeing His feet today. 

Earlier too King Ambarisha, Brahma,  Maheshwara, and SriLakshmi Devi  sought His feet. Such is the greatness of His feet.

I will see Mukunda's reddish  lotus-like eyes, His smile,  face, and curly hair. I see good omens of specific birds and animals moving around me in a clockwise direction. I will certainly see Mahavishnu avatar of Srikrishna, who has descended as a human to destroying adharma.

Why was He born as human?

He is Sarvagna. He sees both Karya (action) and Karana (reason behind it), but we only see Karya.  People like me are born to get rid of past karma, but God has no such need. He is independent and seeks no fruit for action. He is beyond ignorance.

Why did God take up this human form? What was the need for such a small work?

God has descended to grace us. By hearing about Him, by speaking about Him, all our sins get destroyed.  It purifies the soul. Any other talk other than praying Srihari is useless.

The journey to Vraja was full of these thoughts. Akrura reached Vraja by the evening of the day.

Source: Bhagavatha Mahapurana 

Akrura, in his previous birth as Sumantra, was King Dasaratha's aide and charioteer and had arranged the coronation of SriRama. While he took Lord Rama, Lakshmana, and Sita devi to the forest,  he was blessed that in his next birth, he would bring the Lord from Vraja to Mathura..

116. Bhagavatha - Chp 10 - (37) Srikrishna Slains Demon Kesi and Demon Vyoma

 116. Srimad Bhagavatha  - Chp 10 - (37) Srikrishna Slains Demon Kesi and Demon Vyoma

Soon after Kamsa was informed by Sage Narada about impending danger from Vasudeva's sons, Krishna and Balarama, he sent Demon Kesi to Vraja to make short work of them. 

Disguised as a horse, Demon Kesi, anxious to fulfill Kamsa's assignment, reached Vraja in no time. The horse had a dark complexion, big eyes, a mouth as big as a cave entrance, and a huge neck. 

To create fear, it was pounding and shaking the earth with its hoofs, swinging its thick manes and creating a huge dust, and its neigh was terrific.

The demon horse roared like a lion and was seeking  a duel. Seeing Srikrishna, it turned around and ran towards Him at full speed and struck Him with its hind legs. Srikrishna quickly held its legs, whirled it, and threw it far away. 

The angry demon horse rose again and rushed towards Srikrishna  with its mouth wide open. Srikrishna put his left arm into its mouth. By the touch of the Lord's arm, the horse’s teeth dropped down.

Srikrishna extended His arm deep inside the throat of the horse and grew in size. By choking the throat of the horse, it became  restless and started sweating profusely. It dropped dead. 

Srikrishna killed Demon Kesi effortlessly and remained calm. The denizens of heaven watching the event showered flowers on Him.

Sage Narada also met Srikrishna secretly, offered his prayers, and gently reminded that time had arrived for Him to leave Vraja for a bigger task ahead and the purpose of His descent.

Srikrishna, the knower of all, spent remaining time taking care of the cows and cowherds who were close to Him. 

When the cows were left for pasturing, they played various games, and one among them was thieves and guards. One group of cowherds took the role of thieves,  a few of them played the role of guards, and the rest of them rams. The sport went on smoothly and fearlessly for a while.

Taking this opportunity, Demon Vyoma converted himself into a cowherd using his conjuring tricks and joined the group of cowherd thieves.  He secretly carried them away and put them in a mountain cave and closed the entrance of it with a huge stone slab. 

Only a few of the cowherds remained to be captured by the demon. Srikrishna,  the knower of all, seized the demon just as a lion would seize a wolf. 

The demon assumed its original form resembling a huge mountain and tried to free himself but couldn't. Srikrishna held the Demon with His arms and dashed him to the ground. He made short work by choking and squeezing his throat. 

Srikrishna broke the stone slab that blocked the mountain cave and rescued the cowherds, and they returned to Vraja safely.

Source: Bhagavatha Mahapurana 

7A - Bhagavatha - Chp 1 - (13)

 7A - Srimad Bhagavatha - Chp 1 - (13) - Vidura's Final Visit to Hastinapura and Dritharashtra's End

Just before the Kurukshetra war, Vidura went on a pilgrimage and returned to Hastinapura after a long time.

Vidura returned with a purpose but did not reveal it to anyone. He spends some time with Pandavas and accepts their hospitality.

One night, Vidura meets Dhritrashtra secretly and tells him that 'Time' has arrived, and he has to quit every bondage and move to the forest immediately.

He questions Dhritrashtra as to why there is a need to satisfy bodily requirements. He makes him remember Bheema's act of killing all his sons and yet accepts their hospitality.

He said “Yudhistir respects you for your age. Enough wrong has been done to them in the past either directly or indirectly.”

So, let's leave immediately.  Surprisingly, Dhritrashtra agrees to this proposal.  Along with him, Gandhari and Kunti follow him.

Yudhistira makes a visit to his uncle every morning to get a blessing but is shocked to know he has gone. Vidura, Gandari, and Kunti were also missing. 

Sanjaya, trusted aid of Dritharashtra, too was unaware of the event. Yudhistir was sad and blamed himself for not taking due care of his elders.

Soon after Dhritrastra and others left, there was a commotion in the palace. Sage Narada tells Yudhistir not to worry about them. 

He says when Time arrives, everyone has to leave. Time is determined based on each one's karma, and karma is determined by each one's vasanas, i.e., rajas, tamas, and satvik. Hence, no one is responsible for anyone's actions.

We think we are independent, but in the real sense, we are under the play of Eshwara.

We pierce a hole in Buffalo's nose and tie a rope. To give direction to it, we pull the rope to our needs.  Similarly,  Eswara controls us.

Regarding who would take care of them in the forest, he says nobody is dependent on anyone. Four-legged animals depend on stationary things (trees, water bodies) for their survival, strong ones depend on weak ones (big fish eat small one), and that is nature's law.  So, there is nothing to worry about.

Sage Narada says Dritharashtra and others have gone deep into the forest of the Himalayas. Now, he has given up all bodily requirements. He is sustained on water and air. He is practicing Astanga yoga (yama, niyama, asana, pranayama,  prathyahara, Dharana, dhyana, and Samadhi).

Five days from now, he is burning his body, and along with him, his hut will be burnt. Visiting him now and waking up will cause more harm than benefit. He is no more Dhritrashtra.

Vidura will move to a different place because of mixed feelings - happy that his brother has achieved higher status, while on the other hand, he is sad about not seeing him anymore in physical form. Giving this information, Sage Narada took leave of Yudishtir.

Source: Bhagavatha Mahapurana

115. Bhagavatha - Chp 10 - (36) Kamsa Summons Akrura

115. Srimad Bhagavatha  - Chp 10 - (36) Kamsa Summons Akrura 

On Sage Narada informing the impending danger from Vasudeva's sons, Kamsa, on a cautious note, instructed Demon Kesi to visit Vraja and kill Srikrishna and Balarama. 

Kamsa immediately summoned his ministers, renowned wrestlers and mahouts, and said, ‘I am told by Sage Narada and earlier too that my end is in the hands of the eighth son of Anakadundubhi (Vasudeva). 

Krishna and Balarama are presently dwelling in Nanda's Vraja. We will invite them on the pretext of dhanur yagna and let those boys be killed by our expert wrestlers.  The game of wrestling will be held in an amphi-theatre witnessed by the people of Mathura.  In case they escape death,  the mighty Kuvalayapida elephant will stand outside to attack them.”  

Kamsa then summoned Akrura, who remained non-controversial to him. Kamsa said, “You are my friend, and I want you to do an important assignment for me.” Immediately go to Vraja and bring those two sons of Vasudeva in a chariot. As told by Sage Narada,  my death is ordained at the hands of Krishna. Fetch them along with Nanda and others in the pretext of inviting them for Dhanu yagna. Carry with you gifts for them. I will take care of the rest. 

Once they are killed, I shall do away with Vrusnis, the Bhojas, my father Ugrasena, and Uncle Devaka, and establish my sovereignty.

When these thorns are thrown away, I shall enter into alliance with Jarasanda, Samsara, Naraka, and Bana. Do not disclose my intention to them but fetch them to my place. 

Akrura said, “To get rid of enemies, your plans, as a king, are appropriate.  However, one should note that success or failure is in the hands of Providence.  I shall fetch them as per your wish. 

Source: Bhagavatha Mahapurana 

114. Bhagavatha - Chp 10 - (36) Srikrishna Slains Aristasura

 114. Srimad Bhagavatha  - Chp 10 - (36) Srikrishna Slains Aristasura 

Aritasura, a demon disguised as bull with a huge body and a large hump, was sent to Vraja by Kamsa in order to kill Srikrishna.

As the demon bull entered Vraja, it began billowing harshly and shaking the earth with its hoofs. To express its anger, it was throwing mud with its horns and discharging dung and urinating in small quantities.  

It's thunder like roar feared the cows and pregnant women. Some cattle fled Vraja. The residents of Vraja sought refuge at Srikrishna,  their saviour. Srikrishna asked them not to be afraid.  

Srikrishna said to the demon,  ‘What will you gain by terrorizing the people of Vraja. I am here to crush you”. Slapping His arms, He provoked the demon. He stretched his arms and placed them on a cowherd's shoulder.

Bending down, the bull rushed towards Srikrishna and attacked Him using its horns. Srikrishna quickly seized its horn and pushed it back to a distance of 18 steps. 

The bull quickly rose again and rushed towards the Lord. Srikrishna tightly held the horns of the bull and threw it on the ground. He stepped hard on it and wrung it as a drenched cloth. He pulled the horn and used it as a weapon to strike it. 

The bull vomited blood, discharged urine, and dung profusely and met its end. Devatas, who witnessed this event, showered flowers on Srihari. The residents of Vraja were relieved of the danger and praised Him. Srikrishna spent around 10 years at Gokula and Brindavan. 

Sage Narada Informs Kamsa the Secret Birth of Srikrishna 

As Kamsa’s end was nearing, Sage Narada called on him. On giving due respect, Kamsa asked the Sage the purpose of his visit.

The Sage cautioned him and said, “the female child of Devaki and Vasudeva  that had escaped death at his hand was indeed the daughter of Yasoda. 

The Lord, appearing as Srikrishna, is the son of Devaki, and Balarama is the son of Rohini. All your agents were killed by these kids, and hence, they did not return to you. Vasudeva had placed Balarama and Srikrishna in Vraja under Nanda's care.”

On hearing it, Kamsa was agitated and intended to kill Vasudeva immediately.  The Sage stopped him and said the sons of Vasudeva have been ordained to be his death and not Vasudeva. 

Kamsa agreed but bound both Vasudeva and Devaki with iron chains.  Sage Narada returned to his abode.

Source: Bhagavatha Mahapurana