Krishna's Lineage

by Simon Brodbeck

  15 Krishna was delighted, and said to him: Go quickly, dutiful man. We won’t be able to stay here for long without you.

  16 So the infinitely generous Akrūra plunged into the pool of the Yamunā. In the underworld he saw the world of the snakes as clearly as this world, 17 and in the middle of it he saw the snake with a thousand mouths. His raised standard was a golden palm tree, his fingers gripped a plough, and his belly rested on a club. 18 He was white and his face was white, and he wore dark clothes and a single earring. He was drowsy, drunk, his eyes like lotuses, 19 as he reclined comfortably on a white seat made out of the coiled belly of his own body. That mountainous bearer of the earth sported two superb swastikas, 20 and a crested golden crown that was slipping down slightly on the left-hand side. His chest was covered by a garland of golden lotuses, 21 his body was daubed with red sandalwood paste, his arms were long, and his navel had a lotus in it. That tamer of his foes looked like a white cloud, and he was so brilliant that he blazed with splendour.

  22 Akrūra watched as the mighty lord of the serpents, the master of the single ocean, sat there being honoured by the principal snakes led by Vāsuki. 23 The two snakes Kambala and Ashvatara held chowries and fanned the mighty god as he sat on his judgement seat. 24 The chief snake Vāsuki was visible beside him, flanked by other snake attendants such as Karkotaka. 25 They were bathing the king, using celestial jugs of gold. Bathed in the waters of the single ocean, he had lotus flowers covering his hair. 26 And Akrūra saw Vishnu seated comfortably on his lap, dark as a cloud. Dressed in yellow clothes, and with the shrīvatsa adorning his torso, 27 mighty Vishnu was sitting there as solid as the moon—sitting there just like Sankarshana, but without such a splendid seat. 28 Akrūra immediately tried to speak to Krishna, but using his own vital power, Krishna suppressed his speech.

  29 After the infinitely generous Akrūra had experienced the eternal god that the snakes adore, he came back up out of the water, amazed. 30 He saw Bala and Keshava both still sitting there on the chariot, wondrously handsome, gazing at each other. 31 Then, out of curiosity, Akrūra dived down once again, to the place where the eternal god dressed in dark blue was being worshipped. 32 And in just the same way as before, Akrūra saw Krishna sitting on the lap of the thousand-mouthed snake, being worshipped in suitable fashion. 33 Holding the song of praise in his heart, the infinitely generous Akrūra quickly came back up once more, and retraced his steps to the chariot.

  34 Keshava was pleased when Akrūra reappeared, and when he’d come up to them he said to him: What kind of things happen in the pool of adoration, in the world of the snakes? 35 You’ve been delayed for a long time by some distraction. Judging by how your heart is fluttering, I think you’ve seen a marvel.

  36 He replied to Krishna: Apart from you, what marvel will there ever be in the worlds, among creatures that move or creatures that don’t? 37 I saw a marvel down there that’s rare on earth, Krishna, but I see it here too, just as I saw it there, and I love it. 38 I’m in the company of the marvel of the worlds, embodied here, and no marvel can be seen that’s greater than that, Krishna. 39 So come, my lord, and we’ll get to King Kamsa’s town before the sun reaches the western horizon at the end of the day.

  71. The Breaking of the Bow

  1 Vaishampāyana said:

  They all harnessed the horses to the prize chariot with boundless zeal, and sure enough, they entered the capital city at the hour of the scarlet sun. 2 Wise Akrūra, as glorious as the sun, took the two heroes Krishna and Sankarshana to his own home.

  3 The generous master was anxious, and he said to those two with their beautifully coloured bodies: Don’t you be wanting to go to Vasudeva’s house, my boys. 4 The old man’s been driven away by Kamsa on account of you two. Menaced day and night, in the end he said he couldn’t stay here.

  5 Krishna said to him: Brave and virtuous man. The two of us will go off, looking around Mathurā and the royal road, unrecognised.

  6 So, when they’d received permission, the two heroes set out to have a look around, like two elephants who’ve been untied from their tethering-posts and are looking for a fight. 7 And when they saw a man going down the road who was a washer and dyer of clothes, they asked him for some clean clothes. 8 The washerman said to them:

  Whose sons are you, forest-dwellers? You’re two fearless fools, since you’re asking for the clothes of the king. 9 I dye Kamsa’s clothes, any colour he likes—clothes in their hundreds, various ones made in various countries. 10 Whose sons are you? You were born in a forest and raised with wild animals, and the sight of all this red clothing must have kindled your desires. 11 Ha! Vulgar-minded fools. You don’t value your lives, if you come to me and deign to ask for clothes.

  12 While that ignorant fool of a washerman was uttering these poisonous words, he came into bad luck. Krishna got annoyed with him, 13 and smacked him on the head with a palm that was like a thunderbolt, and the washerman fell to the ground dead, his skull smashed. 14 His wives screamed and ran away quickly to Kamsa’s palace, their hair dishevelled, weeping for the dead man. 15 And our pair, both of them now nicely dressed, went off in search of garlands, to the street with the flower market, like two elephants smelling a scent.

  16 There was an affable garland-maker there, named Gunaka. He made a good living from garlands, and his stall was piled high with them. 17 Krishna immediately spoke up in a smooth voice, and asked the cheerful garland-maker to give them some garlands.

  18 The garland-maker was happy to give each of them an enormous garland. He was a sight to behold as he declared: This is a present for the two of you.

  19 Krishna was touched, and he granted Gunaka a favour, saying: The goddess of fortune, who depends upon me, will favour you with masses of wealth, good sir.

  20 When he was given this favour, the garland-maker kept his composure, lowered his face, and received the favour with his head bowed down to Krishna’s feet. 21 At that point the garland-maker thought that they both must be dark-elves, and fearing trouble, he made no reply.

  22 In due course Vasudeva’s two sons got to the royal road, and they saw a hunchbacked woman with some pots of unguent. 23 Krishna said to her: Hunchbacked woman with eyes like lotus petals, whose is this unguent that you’re carrying? Please answer at once.

  24 His voice was as deep as a stormcloud’s, and she walked in zigzags like lightning. She stood there, looked him over, and replied to lotus-eyed Krishna: 25 I’m heading for the king’s bath-house. Take some unguent. I’m waiting . . . Come close, if you please, you’re my heart’s desire. 26 But how come you don’t know who I am, sweetie? I’m the great king’s darling: the woman in charge of anointing his body.

  27 As she stood there chuckling, Krishna said to the hunchback: Give us some unguent that suits our bodies. 28 For we’re visitors here, pretty-face. We’re wrestlers who’ve come to attend the amazing bow-festival and to see this great thriving kingdom.

  29 She replied to Krishna: You’re a delight to my eyes. Take some unguent. Take this one, the best one, fit for the king.

  30 When their bodies had been smeared and their limbs were still damp, those two looked like two bulls with their bodies daubed with mud at a bathing-place on the Yamunā. 31 Then, using the tips of two fingers, Krishna gently raised the hunchback up. Krishna knew the rules of every game! 32 The woman laughed. She had had two sunken breasts, but suddenly she was like a creeper with a straight stalk—her body was lovely and long, her smile was bright, and there was a pronounced curve to her breasts. 33 The lustful woman spoke to Krishna very frankly: Where are you going? I’ll waylay you. Stay here, my darling. Have me.

  34 When they heard the hunchback’s outburst, the two eternal gods started laughing. They looked at each other, clapped their hands, and laughed out loud. 35 Krishna sent the lovesick hunchback on her way with a smile, and then, after she’d left them, the two of them entered the royal compound.

  36 They’d grown up on a cattle station dressed in cowherd clothes, but by the time they entered
the royal palace, their faces and their background had been concealed. 37 The two youngsters entered the bow-room without trepidation, like two powerful lions born in the forests of the Himālaya. 38 They wanted to see the great bow there, decorated and consecrated, and so the two heroes questioned the warden of the arsenal:

  39 Hello, keeper of Kamsa’s bows. Listen to our request. If you please, show us Kamsa’s bow—the one that’s been consecrated, the one whose festival this is that’s being held. Which one is it, good sir?

  40 He showed them the bow. It was like a tree-trunk. Even the gods, Vāsava included, wouldn’t have been able to string it or break it. 41 Then brave Krishna with the lotus-petal eyes took hold of the bow with both arms, and with joy in his heart, he lifted it up. 42 After lifting it up as easy as you like, the powerful youth strung it and kept on bending it. It was the bow that the Daityas revere. 43 It was decorated and consecrated, and had snakes on it. And Krishna bent the bow so much that it broke in two at the middle.

  44 After breaking the prize bow, Krishna ran out of there in a hurry, and so did young Sankarshana.

  45 The crack of the bow breaking made a sound like the wind, filling the directions and shaking the whole palace. 46 The arsenal warden was frightened, and he ran to where the king was. Gasping like a crow, he said:

  47 Listen. I must report a marvel. It happened just now, in the bow-room, and it was as amazing as the chaos at the end of the world. 48 Someone’s sons were there, two young men together. Their hair twisted into topknots, they wore yellow and dark-blue clothes and yellow and white unguents. 49 Those two heroes were like the sons of gods, or like young fires, and they suddenly arrived and stood there calmly in the bow-room as if they’d come down from the sky. I saw them both distinctly, with their beautiful clothes and garlands.

  50 One of them was dark, with eyes like lotuses, and a yellow garland and clothes. He grabbed the prize bow, which is hard even for the gods to grasp. 51 It’s massive and resembles an iron girder, but in no time the young fellow had used his strength to string it, and was amusing himself by bending it. 52 While that strong-armed youth was flexing it without an arrow, it started humming at the gripping-point, and then it came apart in two pieces. 53 Boundlessly bold, he just snapped that prize bow like an elephant snapping its post, and then he and his companion ran off, moving like the wind. He broke it in two and left. But who on earth is he? I don’t know, your majesty.

  54 As soon as he heard that the bow had been broken, Kamsa, too, was anxious in his heart. He dismissed the arsenal warden and retired to his innermost chamber.

  72. Kamsa Briefs the Wrestlers

  1 Vaishampāyana said:

  Kamsa the weal of the Bhojas reflected upon the breaking of the bow, and then he hurriedly went to the stadium to inspect the stands. 2 The supreme king checked that the stadium was built up on all sides, with no gap in the ring of stands, and that the builders had fixed them together tightly. 3 He checked that the stadium was fitted out with rooves that also included upper boxes, and with projecting galleries held up by single pillars. 4 He checked that the stadium was built solidly on all sides, nice and spacious, with good foundations, that the steep staircase leading up to the stands was of the highest quality, 5 that the stadium had seats fit for kings, and paths to stroll along, and that it was shaded by balconies and fit to contain crowds of people. 6–7 After checking that the arena had been well appointed, the wise king issued his instructions:

  Tomorrow, the ring of stands, the rooves, and the paths must be done up with pictures, wreaths, and banners, and made beautiful and nicely perfumed, and the soft furnishings must be in place. 8 Supply piles of cowdung in the playing enclosure that are large enough not to run out,* and supply beautiful shawls and rugs, and suitable offerings of food. 9 Set up large urns at regular intervals, fix them properly into the ground, and make sure they’re all carrying water, and that the tops of the jars are made of gold. 10 Provide offerings of food, along with fruit-juices in drinking-pots. Entertain the umpires, as well as the trade guilds and their leaders. 11 Let in the wrestlers and spectators, and make sure the stands are handsome and well prepared when they come in.

  12 Thus the king gave his final instructions about the gathering. Then he strode out of the arena and entered his own palace.

  13 There he issued a summons for the two wrestlers, Chānūra the immeasurable and Mushtika— 14 hugely vigorous wrestlers, both of them powerful experts in combat. They obeyed Kamsa’s orders, and in they came, both excited. 15 When he saw those world-famous wrestlers before him, King Kamsa made this well-founded speech:

  16 Gentlemen, I’ve heard all about you: two wrestlers used to bearing the champion’s banner, who are rightly celebrated and deserve the highest honours. 17 So if you remember the hospitality I’ve shown to you or the favours I’ve done for you, you must now use your special powers to do an important job for me.

  18 There are two cowherds, Sankarshana and Krishna, who grew up on my cattle station. They may be young, but they’re used to hard work. 19 When those forest-dwellers are fighting their fight in the arena, as soon as they attack you must quickly kill them, no doubt about it. 20 Don’t underestimate them in any way, thinking that because they’re young they lack discipline or experience. You must make absolutely every effort against them. 21 And when those cowherds are killed in combat in the arena, it will benefit me in the short term and in the long term.

  22 The wrestlers Chānūra and Mushtika were crazy about fighting, and the king’s unctuous words brought joy to their hearts. They said:

  23 If those cowherd miscreants stand against us, consider them killed. The miserable pair are as good as dead. 24 If those two forest-dwellers stand and fight against us, we’ll fill up with fury and flood them with misfortune.

  25 After the two wrestler bulls had been briefed by the king and had spoken these poisonous words, they went back to their own homes.

  73. Kamsa’s Story

  1 Vaishampāyana said:

  Then Kamsa spoke to the official whose business was elephants. He said:

  The elephant Kuvalayāpīda must stand at the assembly gate. 2 He’s powerful, and with his eyes rolling with musth he’s unpredictable, and people make him angry. When his temples are flowing with temporin, he’s vicious: a furious hostile elephant. 3 You must direct him at the two forest-dwellers and drive him forward so that Vasudeva’s two wretched sons are killed.

  4 Once you and the bull elephant have killed the two cowboy upstarts in the arena and I’ve seen you do it, 5 then Vasudeva and his family will see that those two have fallen, and he’ll be cut down at the roots and have nothing to support him, and he and his dependants will be destroyed. 6 All the stupid Yādavas who dote upon Krishna will see that Krishna’s been killed, and they’ll be ruined, their hopes dashed. 7 When those two have been killed—by the bull elephant, the wrestlers, or even if I have to kill them myself—the town will be freed from those Yādavas, and I’ll live happily.

  8 I’ve renounced my own father, who was the heir of the Yādava clan, just as I’ve renounced the rest of the Yādavas who’ve sided with Krishna. 9 In fact, what Nārada told me is true: I wasn’t sired by Ugrasena. He wanted a son, but he was a human being, and barely virile. 10 At her time of the month, my mother went, along with some other women, to visit a mountain named Suyāmuna, because she was curious about the wilderness. 11 There she roamed in delightful highlands of beautiful trees, beside craggy mountains, along valleys, and by rivers. 12 She heard the sounds of the sweet songs of the mountain-elves reverberating as echoes, and they brought pleasure to her ears and aroused her desires. 13 And as she kept listening to the calling of the peacocks and the chirping of the birds, she inclined towards her duty as a woman.

  14 At that moment, a charming breeze laden with the smell of blossoms came out from a tract of woodland and blew past, awakening her passion. 15 The kadam trees, which were studded with bees and agitated by frequent showers, were stirred by the breeze as well, and released
a powerful perfume. 16 The rose-chestnut trees rained down showers of blossoms, awakening her lust, and the jungle-flame bushes with their pointy petals shone like lanterns. 17 Covered with new grass and decorated with rain-mites, the broad earth bore her very own seasonal beauty, like a woman in the bloom of youth.

  18 Then the lord of Saubha,* a majestic Dānava named Drumila, took the form of Ugrasena and ravished my mother. 19 With fondness for her husband in her heart, she received him with love. But when she realised how heavy he was, she soon became suspicious 20 and alarmed, and she stood up and said to him:

  You’re definitely not my husband. But who are you—the shapeshifter by whom I’ve been soiled? 21 After assuming the form of my husband, with this one wretched deed you’ve ruined my vow to be a faithful wife, you wretch. 22 What will my angry relatives say to me, the defiler of the dynasty? I’ll live in disgrace, repudiated by my husband’s family. 23 Shame on the likes of you, led astray by your senses. Insufferable, ill-bred, untrustworthy, and unwholesome, you’re the molester of someone else’s wife.

  24 When she angrily insulted him, the Dānava said to the devoted woman:

  My name is Drumila, and I happen to be the mighty lord of Saubha, 25 whereas you’re just a fool who fancies herself to be an expert. How can you accuse me of wrongdoing, after you chose a human husband lacking in virility and power?