Om Vāmanāya namah
Uddhava continued, “
Aho bakī yaṁ stana-kāla-kūṭaṁ jighāṁsayāpāyayad apy asādhvī
Lebhe gatiṁ dhātry-ucitāṁ tato ’nyaṁ kaṁ vā dayāluṁ śaraṇaṁ vrajema
With the intent of killing infant Krishna, the wicked demoness Putana applied deadly poison to her breasts and fed Him her milk. For having breast fed him, Putana, although being wicked, was bestowed with the same levels of merit (punya) that his mother Yashoda had earned for raising Him. Aha! What wonder! What more can be said about His compassion! Who else apart from Him can be our refuge?
Srikrishna smaraṇam mama– I eternally think of Srikrishna. I think of Him and seek shelter in Him alone!
Even those wicked demons who detested and deplored Sri Mahavishnu, the Lord of the three worlds, are his devotees. This is my firm opinion. This is because during the war they were able to see Lord Mahavishnu, who holds the discus in his hand and who sits on the shoulders of Kashyapa’s son Garuda. Can there be any fortune greater than this? From this we should conclude that even demons are his devotees.
Vasudevasya devakyāṁ jāto bhojendra-bandhane
Cikīrṣur bhagavān asyāḥ śam ajenābhiyācitaḥ
Hearing the pleas of Lord Brahma, with the intent of reducing the burden of earth and causing her great delight, Sri Mahavishnu, took birth as the son of Devaki and Vasudeva in the prison of Kamsa.
Thereafter, terrified of Kamsa, his father Vasudeva took him to Nanda-vraja. With great caution, Krishna while ensuring that his glory goes unnoticed lived here for eleven years along with his brother Balarama.
Amidst the forests on the banks of River Yamuna, Krishna surrounded by the cowherds spent his time grazing the cattle. Those forests were abounding with tall trees and chirping birds. With his childhood plays he stole the hearts of all the residents. At times he would weep, at others times he would laugh and with his innocent gaze he looked adorable like a small lion cub.
As he grew up he began to take the herds of cattle for grazing. Melodiously playing the flute he would bring great joy to all his companions. In that herd were bulls as well as cows of every colour.
In order to kill Krishna, Kamsa sent demons who possessed the capacity take on any form per their will. Playfully, just as the children break their toys, Krishna killed them all.
Vipannān viṣa-pānena nigṛhya bhujagādhipam
Utthāpyāpāyayad gāvas tat toyaṁ prakṛti-sthitam
The serpent-king Kaliya poisoned the waters of the lake due to which many cows and cowherds, who drank the waters of the lake, suddenly lost their life. At that moment Krishna punished Kaliya and revived the dead cows and cowherds back to life. He drove Kaliya out of that lake. With this, the waters of that lake turned pure and were fit for consumption.
Lord Krishna desired that the great wealth of that land be utilized properly. Through the help of learned Vedic scholars He got his father King Nanda to worship the cows. Displeased and angered with this, Indra showered thunderous rains on that land. In order to protect the residents of Nanda-vraja together with their cattle from these horrendous rains that were destroying the place, Krishna playfully lifted up the Mountain Govardhan. Holding it like an umbrella over their heads, he protected them all.
It was winter. The pleasant cool moonlight lit up the entire forest. Srikrishna was fascinated with this serene atmosphere. He desired to augment its serenity and grandeur. Srikrishna, who was the jewel that decorated all the Gopi and Gopikas of Vrindavan, melodiously played his flute while dancing amidst these Gopis and Gopikas”.
With this the second chapter of the third canto of Srimad Bhagawatam comes to an end.
Third Canto Chapter Three
The divine transcendental plays demonstrated by the Lord in Dwaraka and Mathura will be now told. Srikrishna visiting Prabhasa Kshetra is also covered.
In response to Vidura’s questions, Uddava began recounting Srikrishna’s childhood deeds. He now continued, “To give joy to his parents Devaki and Vasudeva, Krishna together with his brother Balarama left Nanda-gokula and reached Mathura. There he encountered the terrible Kamsa, who was the leader of all his enemies. He pounced on Kamsa, beat him and threw him down from his throne and then killed him.
Sāndīpaneḥ sakṛt proktaṁ brahmādhītya sa-vistaram
Tasmai prādād varaṁ putraṁ mṛtaṁ pañca-janodarāt
Thereafter Srikrishna, for His formal education, went and resided in the hermitage of Maharishi Sāndipini as his student”.
Om Vāmanāya Namah
