Srikrishna- the Lord of the Universe

by Shivaji Sawant

  After crossing Bhrigukachchha, our first sojourn was on the banks of the river Narmada in the Aanarta kingdom. On our way, we would have had to cross Mount Pariyatra, which was long and had dense forests. It occupied more than half the territory to the west of the Dandakaranya. My Lord had experienced the Dakshinapatha of Mount Pariyatra quite a few times before while travelling to Rukminidevi’s city Kundinpura in Vidarbha. Therefore, we were now travelling towards the east by going around it, camping on the banks of river Narmada. After a few days, we arrived in the Mahishmati city on Mount Vindhya.

  The citizens of Mahishmati welcomed Balaramadada, the Lord and Uddhava Maharaja with joy. Our special troop took a week’s rest in this beautiful city. We crossed the big river Shona in the southern Kosala kingdom and reached river Damodara in the Magadha kingdom. Sahadeva, who was now the ruler of Magadha, gave the three brothers – Balaramadada, the Lord and Uddhava Maharaja – a hearty welcome. They offered sacks of food grains, fodder for animals, and medicinal herbs to our Yadava army that had marched ahead. Well-prepared, capacious boats were also given to us to cross the huge river Damodara. Using those boats our special troop crossed the river Damodara along with chariots and elephants. We pulled the capacious Magadha boats out of river Damodara and then we mounted them on the backs of the elephants and reached the banks of river Ganga keeping the Uttkala kingdom on our right and the Anga kingdom of Karna on the left. River Ganga flowed into the eastern ocean near the Vanga kingdom through many mouths. Flowing through the Vanga kingdom the widened bed of Ganga appeared as grand as the ocean. The sight of the river Ganga reminded the Lord intensely of the western ocean of Dwaraka roaring continuously. Even here we automatically took a few sojourns.

  In the end, we were united with our mammoth army on the borders of Pundra. By this time the Pundra leader was driven to a complete misconception by the report that his royal messenger had presented him. Based on the information that he was receiving from his informers he believed that the mock cowherd of Dwaraka who called himself the real Vaasudeva had come to visit him as his vassal! But he completely lost his sleep over the mammoth army on the borders. He panicked when Dantavakra and Viduratha who had come for his support, deserted him to protect their own Karusha kingdom. Still, putting on a false bravado of being the real Vaasudeva, he sent a message with his chief minister. It said, ‘Remove the crown on your head before coming to visit. A vassal of the real Vaasudeva has no right to bear the peacock-feathered crown. Though there has been a delay, send the remaining customary gift salvers with your messenger!’

  Now this had gone beyond Balaramadada’s patience for the first time. He shouted at the chief minister of Paundraka, “Tell your Vaasudeva, we both are coming in person to meet him as a gift!”

  They met on the banks of the Kaushiki, on the battlefield. The notable thing was that Paundraka Vaasudeva who rode in a canopy on the back of an elephant had actually come wearing the same attire as my Lord. He got down from the canopy and challenged the Lord for a battle of swords. His commander fought with Balaramadada. It was amusing to see the Lord brandishing the Nandaka sword, shouting the slogans of family deity Ida, colliding with Paundraka, dressed in the same attire as his. It was indeed a unique experience to see him in action on the battlefield. The sword in Paundrak’s hand broke while bearing the strikes of the Lord’s Nandaka sword. He contemptuously looked at the broken remains of the sword in his hand and threw it away, and took a huge mace in his hands. I swiftly pulled out the Lord’s Kaumodaki mace that was even bigger in size and handed it over to him. The clanging sounds of the clobbering maces echoed and dispersed on the waves of Kaushiki’s waters. The river Kaushiki was witnessing a very rare spectacle, that was rare even for the gods. Two big peacock feathers, almost the size of a palm, were going away from each other, were coming close to each other within moments and again withdrawing from each other fiercely. The Paundraka sun of the eastern kingdom of Pundra was about to set. In the setting sun, the Lord smashed the chest of Paundraka, who had called himself the real Vaasudeva and challenged the Lord. He lay on his back, lifeless, on the banks of the Kaushiki. Balaramadada had already killed his commander. The Lord walked calmly towards the duplicate Vaasudeva. He delicately picked up the peacock feather in his crown that lay aside, and gently wiped the fresh stains of the duplicate Vaasudeva’s blood on it with the edge of the dhoti tied around his waist. He put that peacock feather in my hand and said, “Daruka, immerse this in river Kaushiki! Whatever he was, he was a brave warrior who constantly reminded me of my being the ‘Vaasudeva’ even though by linking the word ‘duplicate’ to my epithet! He was the only king after me in the entire Bharata who tucked a peacock feather in his golden crown!”

  ‘Your wish is my command, sire’. Saying thus I began walking towards river Kaushiki thinking about the new mien of the Lord that I got to see today. When I returned, the Paundraka-sun on the western horizon had set halfway. It was gratifying to see the real Vaasudeva who was offering the evening oblations in river Kaushiki and who was vehemently safeguarding the Virtues of Life in Aaryavarta, ready to destroy Untruth for that purpose. That day the sun set with a contented heart.

  Now the target was Dantavakra, the king of Karusha who had attended the council arranged by Jarasandha on the borders of Kundinpura at the time of the first Swayamwar ceremony of Rukminidevi! And Viduratha, who had participated in Shalva’s conspiracy of inviting the alien Kalayavana!

  The most inexcusable atrocity of these two brothers was that they themselves had captured many kings and sent them to Girivraja for the Shatashirsha Yajna that the Magadha emperor Jarasandha was preparing for. Shishupala committed only a hundred crimes, but these two brothers had committed way more than that!

  The triumphant Yadava army penetrated the borders of the Karusha kingdom shouting acclamations of Balaramadada and the Lord. The Lord sent a message to Dantavakra from the borders of Karusha – ‘Balarama-Srikrishna, the cowherd sons of Gokul’s Nanda-Yashoda, have come to visit the king of Karusha and his brother Viduratha! As Sahadeva, the current ruler of Magadha is a close ally of the Lord of Dwaraka he will not come to the Karusha kingdom this time. Maybe the son of Kalayavana of the Gandhara kingdom will come to assist you. So, do call that alien for your assistance now!’

  The message was clear – get ready to fight with the cowherds of Dwaraka now. Dantavakra understood it. Along with his brother Viduratha he arrived at the border with the army, ready to fight, amidst the cacophony of war drums.

  This was the very first instance in the Lord’s life so far where he had to meet his own aatebandhus on the battlefield. The Lord, standing tall in the back of the moving Garudadhwaja chariot, pulled out the Panchjanya conch from his shawl, and holding it in his rosy palms, raised his blue neck high towards the sky and blew it at the top of his lungs. That inspirational sound prompted thousands and lakhs of armed Yadavas to attack the Karusha warriors with sky-piercing war shouts of ‘Hail Idamata … victory’. Towards the evening the Lord pierced the chest of Dantavakra, unerringly shooting five arrows in a row with the Sharanga bow.

  Balaramadada killed the commander of Karusha and many Karusha warriors with severe blows of the Saunanda pestle and Samvartaka plough.

  Viduratha got enraged when he heard the news of his brother Dantavakra’s death. Shouting loudly, ‘Show me that warlock cowherd’ he brought his chariot rapidly in front of the Lord’s Garudadhwaja chariot. In this battle, many Yadava warriors and I saw the Lord’s outstanding bow and arrow skills. He was not just a master of the life-threatening ‘Bahukantaka’ maneuver in wrestling, the master of Sudarshan who projected the brilliant chakra and left the spectators bewildered; but he was also a master archer, an archer who equalled the expertise of Dhananjaya of Indraprastha and the king of Anga – Karna of Hastinapura. He swiftly handled bows like the Sharanga and Ajitanjaya as if they were toys. Just by touch he would unmistakably identify the kind of arrow in the quiver and would shoot it at Viduratha. First, he made Viduratha immobile in h
is chariot by restraining him in a cage of arrows so tight that he couldn’t move at all. Then within a moment he pushed Viduratha onto the ground along with the cage of arrows around him, and left him without a chariot. Viduratha was indeed a master ‘Rathi’ (charioteer) as his name denoted, but at this moment he was left without a chariot. The Lord chopped off his head with a moon-faced arrow without giving him a moment’s respite.

  As they saw their leaders – Dantavakra and Viduratha – fall, terrified Karusha warriors fled towards the royal city. Thus, with the fall of Dantavakra and Viduratha the eastern region was also set free. The entire eastern side of Aaryavarta was now emancipated from kings like Narakasura of Kamarupa, Jarasandha of Magadha, Paundraka Vaasudeva of the Pundras and Dantavakra and Viduratha of Karush. The entire Aaryavarta had come to know about the Lord’s life mission of removing the obstacles in the flow of Life and letting it flow freely.

  The Lord would casually say, ‘Growth and development are the characteristics of Life.’ This was indeed the all-pervading truth.

  That day our army camped on the borders of the Karusha kingdom. The next day after performing the morning rituals of bathing, charity etc., the Lord entered the royal city of Karusha along with Balaramadada and Uddhava Maharaja. He had sent a messenger ahead and requested for a visit with Maharaja Vriddhasharmana and aatya Shrutadevi. Everybody thought the aged royal couple was going to deny the request, but the exact opposite happened. They sent reply, ‘Sure, come and meet us. Do not hesitate. We have a lot to speak about.’

  The Lord went to visit them with Balaramadada on his right, Uddhava Maharaja on his left, and a few Yadav warriors and I behind him.

  As aatya came into sight he briskly walked forward leaving all of us behind, and put his pious, smooth, blue forehead at the feet of Maharaja Vriddhasharmana and aatya Shrutadevi. With her trembling hands, aged aatya Shrutadevi pulled her bhacha up, whom she was meeting for the first time. The Lord wiped the tears rolling down her eyes with his rosy palms and said in a tender voice full of sweetness, “Oh aatya, consider dada and me like your own sons Dantavakra and Viduratha.” Hearing those words Maharaja Vriddhasharmana who was silent so far said in a trembling but sharp voice, “It is easy to say so. If you two would have been killed would such words have been enough to console your mother and father?”

  “I have not come to console both of you at all. My battle is against the ruthless rulers of any kingdom; against their unfair lopsided views. Injustice – whoever imposes it on another, for whatever reason, is always terrible. But the injustice imposed by the ruler of a kingdom whose forefathers have sacrificed their blood to protect it, is the worst injustice of all. I have not committed a crime in killing my aatebandhus. Yet if you want to curse me instead of giving your blessings, go ahead and do so. I will accept that also readily!”

  The aged couple which had experienced many ups and downsin their lives was moved from the bottom of their hearts when they heard the reasoning of the Lord who was bowing in front of them with his hands joined in request. Maharaja Vriddhasharmana held the Lord’s shoulders tightly and stared in his eyes for a moment. Don’t know what convinced him, but the aged venerable Maharaja of Karusha said, “Vasudeva’s son Srikrishna, we do regret the death of our sons. But we have realized that you had no issue of personal honour or dishonour. I kept telling my sons time and again, ‘Go to Dwaraka once. Visit Balarama and Srikrishna.’ Their mother got exasperated trying to persuade them. But both of them never went to Dwaraka to visit you, because of their pride. Instead they took shelter under the wings of Jarasandha in Girivraja!”

  Aatya seconded him saying, “But many a times both of us did feel like going to Dwaraka to visit you, witness your riches with our own eyes, meet Vasudevadada, Devaki and Rohinivahini at least once. But your Dwaraka is located far away on the shore of the western ocean and we were here in the eastern region.” Her eyes moistened.

  “Vaasudeva, probably you sensed the desire of our hearts and came to visit us. That makes us feel better. Convey our regards to Maharaja Vasudeva and both the Maharanis.”

  Witnessing this incident, my mind was tangled in confusing thoughts about the Lord. That night while trying to relax after dinner in the Karusha royal palace, I was restlessly thinking about the Lord throughout the night. I couldn’t sleep however hard I tried.

  The next day our Yadava army bid farewell to the Karusha kingdom and left towards the Uttkala kingdom. I picked up the reins of the four pure white horses of Garudadhwaja in my hands. Looking at the Lord I said, “Shall we leave, my Lord?” He gave me a very pure smile, which created a dimple in his blue cheek. Last night he must have slept peacefully but cautiously in the Karusha royal palace. Looking at me he affectionately said, “Daruka, you take the seat in the back. You haven’t had enough sleep last night. Put a few drops of cow’s cold milk in your eyes during our very first sojourn. You will be able to sleep better. I will steer the chariot!”

  The Lord’s wish was indeed my command. I halted the Garudadhwaja chariot, left the front seat without arguing and climbed in the back of the chariot. The Lord held the eight reigns of our four pure white horse friends – Meghapushpa, Balahaka, Sugriva and Shaibya. Sitting in the back of the chariot I kept thinking about his keen observation. Just with a glimpse of the mildly reddish edges of my eyes he had unmistakably conjectured that I had been deprived of sleep the whole night.

  The news of the killing of Dantavakra and Viduratha had already reached the Uttkala kingdom. They welcomed the three Yadava brothers with delight. But the Lord was not ready to stay in any city of the Uttkala kingdom. He was eager to lay his eyes on the eastern ocean of Aaryavarta.

  The Lord reached the shores of the eastern ocean along with the king of Uttkala, his commander and army that had come to receive our triumphant Yadava army. Here, our army camped for a full fifteen days.

  When we were leaving the shores, and going towards the Kashi kingdom of Dandapani a mammoth crowd of Uttkala citizens gathered to bid farewell to the Lord of Dwaraka along with his brothers. The Uttkala king bent down to offer prostrations to the Lord. Holding his shoulders, the Lord pulled him up. The king who was impressed to see various facets of the Lord during the fortnight, bent forward a little and said humbly, “Oh Lord of Dwaraka, Prince Balabhadra, Uddhavadeva, this small town will always cherish the memories of your heavenly visit. From today we will call this nameless small town Jagannathpuri in your memory. You are indeed Jagannatha – the saviour of the world. Every year on this particular day there will be a similar Rathayatra-chariot procession – in your memory!” Listening to his words the Lord smiled with affection as usual and said, “Oh king of Uttkala, you should always remember this big brother of mine – Balabhadradada. That will be enough for me. No need to remember me separately at all.”

  We bade farewell to the sentimental people of Uttkala. The Lord climbed into the Garudadhwaja chariot that I was steering. The chariots of Balaramadada and Uddhava Maharaja were behind our chariot. After them were the Lord’s sons – Pradyumna, Samba, Praghosha and the commanders in their own chariots. The army of the Yadavas and the Uttkalas that was moved and mesmerized to see the Lord, gave out loud acclamations that reached sky high – ‘Hail the saviour of the world, ‘Jagannatha’, the Lord of Dwaraka…! Hail the brother of the world saviour, Maharaja Balabhadra …!’

  We arrived at the borders of the Kashi kingdom. Here Dandapani, the king of Kashi, came to receive us along with the army. Along with him, the Lord directly went to the immaculate temple of Kashivishweshwara located in Varanasi, on the banks of river Ganga, without taking any stops in between. Just for a peaceful visit to Lord Shiva. I saw the same fervour in the Lord’s eager gait when he entered the temple with his brothers that I had seen when he went towards the eastern ocean.

  In the shrine of the temple there was an immutable Shivalinga that was drenched under a continuous trickle of water dripping from the big golden vessel for Abhishek. The moment the Lord and Balaramadada saw it, they looked a
t each other smilingly. Nobody understood a word that they spoke after that. Nobody was ever going to understand it. The Lord said – “Come dada, remove the litter and gather the soft sand. Friends, a few of you go to the forest and bring white flowers and Bela leaves. Some of you take some vessels and fill them with the waters of Yamuna. And some of you go and draw some fresh milk of the cows by stimulating the udders. Go, run – get to work!”

  Then immediately turning towards Uddhava Maharaja the Lord said, “Udho dear brother, how much ever you wish, it is not possible to find the flowers of Brahmakamala here in the Kashi kingdom.” Even he responded promptly, “Now we do not even need the Brahmakamalas anymore. Dada, I have come to know very well that you are a Brahmakamala of the kind that spreads the fragrance of novel revolutionary thoughts in all directions!”

  In the Vishweshwara temple of Kashi king Dandapani, the temple priests had made thorough preparations for the Abhishek worship in sixteen different ways. The three brothers sat on a mat near the immutable Shivapindi to perform the rituals.

  The worship of the Shivapindi took place with all the rituals amidst the mantras chanted by the priests of Kashi. All three brothers offered Bela leaves from three directions covering the entire Shivapindi. Now the Abhishek water was dripping on the Bela leaves.

  The three brothers closed their eyes and began chanting the hymn of Shiva.