Krishna Fulfils the Purpose of His Avatar
Let me begin this blog with a soulful song on Krishna composed by "Oothukadu Venkata Subbayyar":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORZPTzQ9RDQ
We will now continue with the rest of the dasakams:
Dasakam 70: Liberation of Sudarshan:
Krishna thus spent his days keeping all the Gopikas immensely pleased by his mere presence. The men folks, the Gopas on their part kept Krishna fully engaged by visiting places. Thus, one day, They went to a Shiva temple in the forest area called Ambika. After worship all of them took rest, when a huge python swallowed Nandagopan. Much as they all tried to liberate Nanda by beating the snake with logs of wood, burning with fire, they could not loosen its hold. They all turned to Krishna for help.
The snake was staring at Krishna, all the while, as Krishna approached it and placed his foot on it. The snake immediately turned into its original form of a celestial being, glistening all over and praised Krishna profusely, saying that he was earlier called Sudarshana and was cursed into becoming a python by a group of sages, when he made fun of them. Now he was redeemed to his original form by the grace of Lord, who sports Sudarshana chakra. Thus saying, he reached his abode above, leaving all Gopas happy to return to their village of Vraja.
Another day, when Krishna was playing with Balarama and some maidens, there came a celestial called Sankhachuda, from the Kubera clan, and kidnapped all the maiden. Krishna went after him quickly, when he released all the women fearing Krishna's wrath. Krishna then chased and killed him and took away his crest jewel and presented it to Balarama.
The Gopikas, though enjoyed Krishna's company, missed him badly, whenever he left for the forest during the day time with his friends. They were fully immersed in his thoughts and were enchanted more by Krishna than by Manmatha, the Cupid. Krishna was always captivating all with his magical flute, emitting the nectar of divine music, which the celestial maidens drank to break their fasting.
One day, when Krishna was in the forest, he saw a fierce looking bull, who was none other than a demon named Arishta, sent by Kamsa, to kill Krishna. The demon assumed the form of a huge bull, loudly bellowing. All the cows ran away from the scene in fear, the demon then turned towards Krishna, the very source of all Vedas. The bull, with raised horns and head, charged on Krishna, though having the form of a holy bull. Krishna instantly crushed the demon to death, to the delight of all the celestials. They all praised Krishna for killing the "Vrisha(bha)", the bull, by Krishna, who is also called "Vrisha", being the upholder of dharma, to the great joy of Indra, also called "Vrishaa". Let us enjoy this pun of words used in this Dasakam.
After this incident, they all happily returned back home, the men jocularly droving all the bulls on the way, claiming the arrival of Krishna, who kills the bulls.
Dasakam 71: Govinda becomes "Keshava":
Kamsa continued his attempts at Krishna's life, this time with his friend called "Keshi". This is a Sanskrit name meaning Horse. This demon takes the form of a horse and also the form of a celestial musician, a Gandharva. (We see the author's pun here when he says that this horse emanated in the Sindh region and thought that he can easily access Krishna, since Krishna is also from Sindhu, the Milky ocean, where Mahalakshmi resides with Vishnu). The demon frightened all the inmates of the village with his thunderous roar, damaging the properties on the way and upon sighting Krishna, charged on him.
Kishna threw the demon to a far off place, making him unconscious. The demon came back furiously to attack Krishna, gathering all his powers. This time Krishna did not want to let go with it. With a view to punish him, Krishna thrust his forearm into the demon's mouth. Krishna's forearm grew in size so much that the demon was choked to death.The demon was thus liberated and united with Krishna. It was as if Krishna won another Aswamedha Yaga (horse Sacrifice). The celestials showered praise on Krishna and called him "Keshava" for killing the demon Keshi. Sage Narada visited Gokula and lauded Krishna for the event. It was Narada who restrained Kamsa from Killing Krishna's father Vasudeva, when Kamsa came to know ( from Narada) that Krishna was the biological son of Vasudeva.
One day, when Krishna was playing hide-and-seek (police and thieves) with his friends in the forest, Vyoma, son of Maya, the chief architect of the demons, appeared there with mischievous intentions of harming Krishna and mingled with the friends. The demon, in the guise of becoming a thief, took away some of the boys and the cows to a cave and closed its entrance with a heavy rock. Krishna understood his evil intentions and killed Vyoma.
Krishna thus brought unlimited joy to the people of Vraja by his acts of kindness, whenever they were in trouble.
Dasakam 72: Akrura, the devotee of Krishna:
Kamsa came to know that Krishna, son of Nanda, now residing in Vraja, was actually the son of Vasudeva, born to kill him. With fear gripping him, Kamsa sent Akrura, a staunch devotee of Krishna, to deceitfully fetch Krishna to Mathura in the pretext of participating in a bow sacrifice.
Akrura, who was yearning to see Krishna all these days, but was afraid of Kamsa, was too pleased that Kamasa himself was sending him to meet Krishna. Kamsa arranged a chariot for Akrura for the journey to Vraja. During the entire journey, Akrura was fully immersed in thoughts of Krishna and was not even aware of the external objects. Throughout the journey he was thinking of how Krishna would treat him and what kind of conversations they would have. One thing was sure that Akrura fully deserved a meeting with the Absolute on his own merits. He continuously prayed to Lord to remove any obstacle that might come his way in meeting with Krishna.
There arose many questions in his mind as to whether a meeting would really happen at all with the Supreme being of whom the Vedas contain numerous hymns and who is the very goal of the Vedas. Will he be able to touch Krishna and embrace him? What could be Krishna's reaction - what will Krishna ask him? where would the meeting happen - so on and so forth.
As Akrura entered Brindhavan, he could not believe that he has reached the place which was sanctified by the holy feet of Krishna and whom even the gods like Brahma and Siva worshipped. He was filled with bliss and experienced ecstasy. He paid respects to those places where Krishna played around and rolled on the dust where Krishna had laid his foot prints. Though there were many people around who worshipped Krishna, the devotion shown by Akrura far excelled all those.
It was dusk by the time Akrura reached Vraja. He heard many Gopas singing in praise of Krishna, citing the various good deeds of Krishna; all these were flowing into his ears like a nectar. Akrura finally spotted Krishna, along with Balarama, watching the milking of cows. It was as if Krishna was waiting to meet his devotee. The very sight of Krishna, the Absolute Supreme Being, filled Akrura's mind with a high degree of emotional ecstasy.
Akrura noticed the both Krishna and Balarama were very neat after the evening bath, wearing yellow and blue garments, adorned with various ornaments and throwing a beaming smile around. Krishna saw from the distance as Akrura climbed down from the chariot and prostrated before him. Krishna swiftly lifted him up , embraced him with love, enquired about his welfare, took him by his hands and led him to his residence, together with Balarama.
Krishna and Narada honoured Akrura and heard from him words about Kamsa's plans and shared them with all the Gopas. Krishna spent the night with Akrura discussing on various topics. Unaware of this, the Gopika maidens found Krishna missing and thought Krishna was spending the night with other gopikas and wondered who was the lucky damsel; may be it was Chandra, may be Chandrabhaga; could be Radha or perhaps Mitravinda.
Krishna nee Begane Baaro
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrkEdOsMCR4Dasakam 73: Krishna Leaving for Mathura:
On hearing the news that Krishna has decided to leave for Mathura, the Gopika women were greatly grief stricken, gathered together and lamented how can this happen to them that Krishna, the merciful, would abandon them all and leave Vraja; who will take care of them, the poor souls; how ill-fated they are, etc.
Krishna reached the banks of Yamuna and was nevertheless followed by several men (Gopas) in their chariots, the women folks sending their worried thoughts, the animals and trees showing deep depression.
Akrura had a bath by immersing in the river and saw Krishna in the waters along with him. Just when he came out of the waters, Akrura witnessed a strange phenomena when he saw Krishna seated in the chariot as well. He was quick to realise that Krishna being the Supreme being, he is omni-present. Akrura again went down the waters and this time he saw the Supreme Lord Vishnu in bhujanga sayanam, lying on the Adi Sesha, holding chakra, conch, mace and lotus in His hands, and surrounded by all the gods and sages.
Akrura was deeply drowned in the ocean of bliss, having seen both the Saguna and Nirguna forms of the Lord. With hairs standing on its edge, Akrura returned back to the chariot and joined Krishna. Krishna jocularly asked him, if the water was so cold as to cause goose-bumps on his body; but Akrura was seized too much in bliss that he could not even reply. Krishna sat by his side in the chariot.
Following is the link to Akrura stotram, the prayers of Akrura, as found in Srimad Bhagavatam:
Dasakam 74: Krishna enters Mathura:
Krishna reached the outskirts of Mathura by midday and rested in a garden to have meals. Then Krishna entered the city of Mathura along with others. The author says that it was as if Krishna was drawn with force, bound by the good deeds of the noble men, women and inmates of Mathura, who were yearning all these days with devotion to see Krishna.
The women of Mathura were full of devotion for Krishna, with love as shining as the feet of Krishna, with features as beautiful as the rain bearing clouds resembling the form of Krishna. Their charm was as attractive as Krishna's chest, adorned with ornaments. Their cleanliness was comparable only to the purity of the Krishna's smile. Their ornaments were as grand as the peacock feathers adorning Krishna's curly hairs.
Krishna went past the women who were delighted by his side glances and also past the men folks, who were rushing alongside to see him. Krishna met a washerman on the way and asked him for some clothes to wear, but the washerman contemptuously denied saying that the clothes belonged to the king and hence he could not wear them. Krishna cut off the washerman's head and liberated his soul.
Krishna was whole-heartedly offered a variety of clothes to wear, by a weaver, who reached the abode of Vaikunta because of this good deed. No one can guess the results of the good deeds of men. Another person offered Krishna with garlands of flowers and sang in praise of him. Krishna offered him all riches and prosperity in return for his devotion, as sought by him.
Krishna was offered scented paste by a woman with a beautiful eyes like a lotus, but who suffered a hunchback due to abnormal spine. While accepting the present from her, Krishna desired to help her, much the same way as her straight devotion to Krishna. He gently raised her chin and straightened her back and made her one of the most beautiful women.
Krishna was offered many gifts such as betel, flowers, fruits etc by the locals who had faith in Krishna. These people had committed less sin and had realised the glory of Krishna and they offered gifts according to their individual capacities. It made the author feel that he had not been fated to be present in that place to offer obeisance to Krishna with folded hands and flowers, due to which he is suffering now.
The women, whose hunchback Krishna had straightened, followed Krishna for a long distance, as she was unable to bear the separation, and after promising her that he would meet her again, Krishna entered the outer gates of the City of Mathura. The city residents went into jubilation at the sight of Krishna and her motherly instincts made Devaki, who was in her cell, experience ecstasy at the arrival of Krishna, much in advance
The city of Mathura was in a festival mood, as Krishna went straight to the Hall of bow sacrifice, where the sacred bow had been kept fully decorated and worshipped. The guards did not stop Krishna either on account of his majestic appearance or on account of his charm. Even before the guards could prevent him, Krishna lifted the holy bow, string it up, drew it and broke it.
The thunderous noise which emanated from the broken bow, sounded as a death knell for Kamsa, who was filled with terror. It was further aggravated by the wiling sounds from the guards who were severely beaten up by Krishna, using the broken pieces of the bow. It made the celestials celebrate the heralding of the death of Kamsa. All the good souls in the city were filled with satisfaction and those wicked were filled with fear.
Krishna went around the city, admiring its wealth and prosperity and reached the garden in the evening, where he met and discussed with Sridama about the sorrow experienced by Radha, due to separation from Krishan. Krishna then went to sleep, looking forward to the events to happen the next day, when the very purpose of his would be fulfilled.
Dasakam 75: Kamsa Mardhanam:
Kamsa, though frightened by Krishna's presence, announced the beginning of the wrestling match first thing in the morning through beating of the drums. All the kings who have arrived there to witness the event, took their respective allotted seats. Nanda had also reached the palace. Kamsa assumed his royal seat on top.
Krishna arrived there at the entrance, with Balarama and other friends, dressed nicely. Krishna was blocked at the entrance by the huge elephant, Kuvalayapeeda, which was intentionally irritated by its mahout, in readiness of a fight with Krishna. Krishna shouted at the elephant to get out of his way, which further infuriated the evil mahout and he pricked the elephant hard. The elephant caught hold of Krishna in its trunk.
Krishna skilfully and easily got himself released from its grips and gave an intense punch on its frontal lobes, went under its legs and came out on the other side, throwing a charming smile around. For Krishna this is child's play, as he used to get himself released from the grip of the sages to elude them. He then ran towards the elephant and played with it, avoiding its vicious attempts to catch him. When the elephant was preparing to attack again, Krishna hurled it forcefully, thrashing it to the ground. He extracted the tusk from the elephant, removed the precious pearls contained in it and gave it to his friend Sudaama, asking him make a necklace out of it and give to to Radha.
Krishna carried the tusk on his shoulder and majestically entered the arena, to the astonishment of those assembled there. He attracted the attention of all by his auspicious and charming looks. They all wondered who should be credited the most, for witnessing the presence this wonderful boy in the palace, was it Nanda, the Gopikas, Yasoda or was it due to the merits earned by them all. Though Krishna mingled with all Gopas, many did not realise the fact that Krishna was the Supreme Brahman Himself, all pervading, omni-present, without any limitations. Many people who assembled in the palace saw Krishna for the first time. It definitely must be due to the maturing of their good deeds in the past and they all got liberated from their sins fully, experiencing Bliss. They started remembering Krishna's notable feats and realised him to be the Supreme Being.
Kamsa now ordered his powerful wrestlers, Chanura and Mushtika to attack Krishna and Balarama respectively. There were exchanges of severe blows on both the sides, accompanied by pushes, pulls, throws and drags with loud noise. Krishna bonded and released Chanura many times. Most of the spectators were quite sad at the mis-match, as they witnessed the tender-aged boys being thrown into the arena to handle hard core wrestlers and they wanted to leave the place, unable to withstand this scene.
But soon they witnessed Krishna lifting Chanura, spinning him round and round, till Chanura was left dead at Krishna's hands and then was thrown down to the grounds. Meanwhile, Balarama too crushed Mushtika to death. The other wrestlers who were waiting to fight with Krishna and Balarama took to their heels at this sight.
Kamsa did not expect this to happen and was perplexed at the turn of events. He, not knowing what to do next, ordered his servants to kill Krishna's parents and arrest Krishna and send him off to a far off place. Krishna was enraged by these cruel words of Kamsa and swiftly climbed up the throne and caught hold of him, carefully avoiding the swirling sword of Kamsa. It was as if Lord flew up on his vehicle, Garuda.
Krishna crushed Kamsa by hurling him down to the ground and instantly killed him, to the delight of all the celestials, who showered flowers. No wonder that Kamsa, who was always thinking of Krishan, though for wrong reasons, thus attained liberation. Kamsa lived and died in fear of Krishna, may be due to the carried forward karma from his previous birth, when he was known as Kalanemi, and was killed by Krishna while churning of the Meru for Amrut and died in fear.
Krishna then killed all the eight brothers of Kamsa, paid his respects to his parents, Vasudeva and Devaki and installed Ugrasena as the next King. Krishna presented many gifts to all the Yadavas in the city and made them happy and settled down in the city along with his friend and best devotee, Uddhava, who had learned the ethics from Brihaspati himself.
Vasudeva Sutam Devam, Kamsa Chanura Mardhanam,
Devaki Paramaanandham, Krishnam Vande Jagat Gurum
Dasakam 76: Uddhava sent to Gokul:
Krishna, along with Balarama, entered the Gurukul of Sage Sandipani and learnt all the Vedas in 64 days. By this action of Krishna, the whole world learnt the importance of proper learning through a Guru. Krishna, as a mark of Guru dakshina, rescued the Sage's son from the grip of Yama and restored him back to the Sage. For this purpose, Krishna had to kill the demon, who kidnapped and swallowed the Sage's son and in the process Krishna acquired the famous conch Panchajanya from the demon. Krishna then triumphantly returned to Mathura, blowing the Panchajanya loudly.
Krishna was often thinking of the deep love and devotion shown by the Gopikas. Out of mercy for them and also desirous of showing Uddhava, the intense passion, shown by the Goppikas, which was unique in all the three worlds, Krishna sent his devotee Uddhava to Gokula as his representative, to assuage the Gopikas of their pangs of separation.
Towards the evening hours, Uddhava arrived at Gokulka, where Krishna had fully established his glory. Uddhava explained to Nanda and Yasoda what had happened at Mathura. They were not only relieved but were very happy at it. The Gopikas saw the nice chariot, studded with various gems, only in the morning and mistook it that Krishna had arrived; but later they came to know that Krishna had sent Uddhava to convey the message. All of them rushed to Nanda's house to learn first hand on what had happened, leaving all their other errands.
Uddhav's sparkling dress and jewelled appearance reminded the Gopikas of Krishna and all of them were choked with the rewinding of memory on Krishna's deeds and the good times spent with him. Loosing themselves in such thoughts and unaware that they are speaking to a stranger, they fumbled and questioned in broken words to Uddhava on whether Krishna has sent him to inform his parents, where and how is Krishna, who is the favourites of the beautiful maidens of Gopkula. They further lamented loudly that only Krishna should protect them, as they were unable to bear the separation from his sweet presence, embraces, love and mischievous talks.
Gopikas showed their deep affection for Krishna by further grieving over his miserable absence and cried for his mercy to come back soon and let them see, at least once, his enchanting form, as done during the Rasa-leela day. They wanted to embrace him, with his captivating lock of curly loose hairs shining with his perspiration.
Uddhava conveyed them all of Krishna's message of spiritual wisdom and tried his best to bring peace in to the minds of the despairing maidens. Uddhava spent few more days of stay in Gokulam, all the while watching in surprise how they were all joyfully enumerating the days they spent with Krishna. He had no words to say when he encountered the women singing songs in praise of Krishna while performing their house-hold duties and all their mutual conversations were only about Krishna. Uddhava understood that even in their dreams they would talk only about Krishna. He witnessed that all their actions were merely a reflection of their imitation of Krishna, and everything about them were an outcome of their identification with Krishna.
Uddhava met Radha and let her know of how her beloved Krishna many times confessed to Uddhava in private about her likes and dislikes, how she spoke to him and how he would scold Uddhava at times saying he should not remain silent like his beloved Radha used to. Hearing these words, Radha's spirits were up and lifted. He further consoled all the maiden that Krishna said he would come back to Gokula soon and was held up now only due to his compelling duties over there. Uddhava further told them that Krishna had asked them not to worry and to remain embedded in his memory, which is very strong and solid; that with this knowledge they would continue to enjoy the Bliss, irrespective of his presence or absence.
Uddhava then returned back to Krishna and reported to him on his visit to Gokula. Krishna was delighted to see Uddhava again and noticed that Udhhava was overwhelmed by the affection shown by the Gopikas to Krishna, which had no parallel in all the three worlds and which Uddhava had never seen nor heard in his life so far.
Krishna and Uddhava
What is the use of study of scriptures and doing penance to reach the Brahman, if the common man can reach the same Brahman through pure love and affection alone ?
Dasakam 77: Krishna begets a son / Fights with Jarasanda:
Krishna wanted to fulfil his promise to the hunch-back women, who had offered him scented paste when he entered Mathura first, whom Krishna had turned into a beautiful woman. The women had become mad after Krishna since then and had been waiting, with great anticipation, for Krishna, as per his promise, by decorating her house daily.
Accompanied by Uddhava, Krishna visited her one day. Upon seeing the well-dressed Krishna, the women was excited beyond the limits and welcomed Krishna in many ways and paid her respects in full. Krishna fulfilled his promise by giving her complete satisfaction of his secret company. Krishna while leaving her granted her a boon, as desired by her, that he would give her similar enjoyment on some more occasions. It is a pity that the women asked for such a low level of enjoyment, instead of seeking liberation, which would enable her to be with the Lord for ever. Krishna fulfilled her desire accordingly and begot a son through her, by name Upasloka, who later became well versed in Saattvata Tantram by learning it from Narada.
Krishna visited Akrura one day, along with Balarama and Uddhava. Akrura welcomed him with great devotion. Krishna deputed Akrura to the Kurus and learnt about the return of Pandavas from the forest and about the activities of Dhritarashtra.
Meantime, Jarasandha, who was the father-in-law of Kamsa, became terribly angry with Krishna for slaying Kamsa and started a battle by laying siege of Mathura with a huge army. Krishna quickly mobilised chariots for Balarama and himself and a small army from the heavens and destroyed the entire army of Jarasandha, which consisted of 23 Akshouhini Sena. (Akshouhini is a large army comprised of 21,870 chariots, as many elephants, 65,610 cavalry and 1,09,350 infantry).
When Balarama seized and bound Jarasandha, Krishna released Jarasandha, as Krishna wanted to destroy all his army and knew that Jarasandha would come back with greater might, with additional reinforcements. All of Jarasndha's army was acquired by him by conquering his enemies. Instigated by other kings, Jarasandha continued his tirade on Krishna without minding his previous defeats and shames, and made further 16 attacks and all the time he was defeated. In all he lost 391 Akshouhini Sena, all destroyed by Krishna. A wonder indeed !
Jarasandha prepared for 18th attack on Mathura, this time with the support of Yavana King, mobilising an army of 3 crore men. Krishna, on seeing this massive army, decided to move his citizens to safety. Krishna constructed overnight a new city, Dwaraka, in the midst of the ocean, with the support of Viswakarma, the divine architect and using his yogic powers, transported all his men there.
Krishna, wearing lotus garland, pretending to be afraid of the enemy, left Mathura on foot and was chased by Yuvan king. Krishna could have easily killed the Yuvan King, but then the king did not deserve it. Krishna led him to a nearby cave, where the Yuvana king saw a sleeping person, mistook it for Krishna and kicked the figure. The sleeping man (King Muchukunda) opened his eyes and saw Yuvana king in front, whereupon, the Yuvana king was reduced to ashes instantly. Charming Krishna then appeared before Muchukunda, a deep devotee of Krishna.
King Muchukunda profusely praised Krishna and told him that having born in the Ishvaku race and having renounced his Kingdom, he was looking for the grace of the Lord only. Krishna was pleased at his complete renunciation from all pleasures as he did not ask for any material benefits but sought only devotion. Accordingly Krishna blessed him with devotion, which leads to salvation by burning all past sins. Krishna then joined Muchukunda and did penance to purge Muchukunda from his sins committed during his tenure as a King such as causing injuries to many, etc. Though Krishna was capable of such a boon to liberate Muchukunda, he chose to do penance only to teach a lesson to the world, the importance of penance as a tool for dissolving one's sins.
Krishna returned back to Mathura and destroyed completely the army of Yuvana and as expected Jarasandha confronted Krishna again. Krishna decided to give Jarasandha one final victory, which would increase his arrogance and therefore Krishna pretended to flee the place and reached Dwaraka.
P.S: Following explanatory words about the above incident involving Jarasandha would help the reader to understand the story better:
Jaraasandha was a king of Magadha who was famed for his extreme strength as well as his birth. Jaraasandha ruled from a capital city known as Girivraja. He was born in two pieces from two mothers, since the king had split the sacred mango between the two queens. He was joined by a Rakshasi by name Jaraa, which resulted in his name. His two daughters were given in marriage to Kamsa, the son of Ugrasena, the king of Mathura.
Krishna and Balarama killed their uncle Kamsa when they were teenagers, and Jaraasandha swore revenge against the two brothers for his two widowed daughters. He attacked Mathura seventeen times with an enormously large army, and was beaten back every time. But the eighteenth time, the joined forces with a foreign (Mleccha) army led by the brutal Kaalayavana. Because of the combined threat, Krishna moved all the descendants of Yadu (i.e the Vrishnis, Bhojas, Andhakas, Dasharhas, Shuras, etc) to a newly constructed city in the sea named Dvaaraka with the power of his Maaya.
Krishna then lured Kaalayavana away from his army toward the cave inhabited by the King Muchukunda, an old man from the Krita Yuga, the son of Maandhaata of the solar dynasty. After Muchukunda burnt Kaalayavana to ashes, (by his earlier boon that whoever wakes him up from sleep would be reduced to ashes), Krishna and Balarama decimated his army, and left for Dvaaraka themselves. But as they went, Jaraasandha ambushed them with an enormous army. Eager to get to Dvaaraka as soon as possible (and knowing it was not them who were meant to defeat Jaraasandha), the brothers climbed the mountain by name Pravarshana and escaped from the pursuing army. But Jaraasandha had his army set fire to the base of the mountain to cook the brothers alive, but the duo jumped over the flames and reached Dvaaraka in safety.
Much later, Jaraasandha began preparing a grand gruesome sacrifice. He decided there was no better way to showcase his magnificence to the world than to initiate a Yajna to Rudra and offer the god a garland made of a hundred heads of defeated kings. The imprisoned kings sent a desperate message to Krishna, who by now was famous as the only one Jaraasandha could not defeat, to come save them.
A few months later, during the preparations of the Raajasuya Yajna (a grand sacrifice in which a king who has conquered the entire earth is proclaimed emperor of the world) of Yudhishthira, Krishna brought up this issue that Jaraasandha was the only king whom Yudhishtira or his brothers had not yet fought. Yudhishthira began to despair, since he had heard of Jaraasandha’s near-proverbial strength. But Krishna took Arjuna and Bheema with him and entered Girivraja through the back gate (it is the custom that an enemy’s house should be entered through unconventional routes). There, Bheema challenged Jaraasandha to a fight and killed him after twenty-eight days of gruelling duels by tearing him in two.
Jaraasandha’s son, Sahadeva (not to be confused with the youngest Paandava), was crowned King of Magadha, and he declared his allegiance to the Paandava Kings. He later fought alongside the five sons of Paandu during the great war at Kurukshetra.
Dasakam 78: Balarama's Marriage and Rukmini's Yearnings:The new city of Dwaraka, which was established in the midst of the ocean by Vishwakarma, was blessed with prosperity by the gods and was shining brightly owing to the radiance from Krishna. As blessed by Lord Brahma, Krishna celebrated the marriage of Balarama with Revathi, daughter of King Revata, in the presence of all Yadavas.
Meantime, we shift our focus to another kingdom of Vidarbha, which was ruled by King Bhishmaka, who had a son by name Rukmi and a daughter named Rukmini. Rukmi had foolishly promised to another king, Sisupala, King of Chedi, as he was relying on him for support, whereas Rukmini was thinking of Krishna for marriage.
Rukmini, who was longing to get married to Krishna for a long time, lost all her hopes and as a last attempt, sent a Brahmana to Krishna to apprise him of her intentions. The Brahmana managed to reach Dwaraka, which was inaccessible to all evil minded men and was pleased by the warm reception met out to him by Krishna, the destroyer of sorrows of all.
The Brahmana informed to Krishna that he was sent by princess Rukmini to convey her deep devotion for Krishna and to explain the situation over there, putting Rukmini in a desperate situation. The Brahmana further conveyed that Rukmini was in deep love with Krishna for a long time and she prayed Krishna to save her from being forcefully married to Sisupala. The Brahmana further informed Krishna of her decision to give up her life, should no help be forthcoming from Krishna.
Hearing this, Krishna became very disturbed and told the Brahmana that even he was equally affected by love for her, and assured the Brahmana that he would surely rescue Rukmini out of this group of kings. Krishna then departed in his chariot, along with the delighted Brahmana, to help Rukmini.
Dasakam 79: Krishna Abducts and Marries Rukmini:
The next morning, Rukmini, shining like the moon and dressed wonderfully with bridal jewels, set out to the temple of Goddess Parvathi, surrounded by able body guards, carrying Krishna on her thoughts. Along with her maids, Rukmini offered pooja to Goddess Parvathi, prostrated at the lotus feet of the Goddess and repeatedly prayed for Her blessings to fulfil her wishes to marry Krishna.
All the kings assembled in the palace were impatiently waiting with high expectations to see the princess. Krishna too was waiting in silence. As Rukmini emerged from the temple, sending her charm all around, the entire lot of kings were stunned by her beauty, as also Krishna who was enchanted by her side glances. Krishna swiftly approached her asking her where she was going and caught hold of Rukmini's hands and took her to his chariot and drove away fast, creating a big commotion among his enemies.
All the kings who had assembled there were furious at this kidnap of princess, abused Krishna as coward etc and started pounding on the Yadavas who had come there but were soon humbled by Balarama and others. Krishna was undaunted by all these and stood like a lion confronted by few hunting dogs.
Rukmi, brother of Rukmini, who was chasing Krishna, was taken prisoner by Krishna, but was let free by Krishna as advised by Balarama, but not before disfiguring Rukmi to humble him. Krishna then reached Dwaraka with his beloved Rukmini, who is embodiment of Goddess Maha Lakshmi Herself.
Krishna delighted Rukmini with all his play and Rukmini was equally thrilled by her blissful encounter with Krishna. Though Krishna used different techniques to keep Rukmini happy throughout the day and night with his cheerful conversations, there was once an utterance by Krishna with double meaning, which caused a bit of unhappiness in the otherwise pure mind of Rukmini. However, Krishna devised various methods to keep her happy always.
Dasakam 80: Syamanthaka Gem / Satyabhama's Marriage:
Satrajit was a Yadava noble man and an ardent devotee of Sun god. He acquired the dazzling samantaka gem from Sun God. Krishna asked him to give him the gem, as if he wanted it badly; but the real reason possibly must have been to get an opportunity to marry Satyabhama, the daughter of Satrajit.
But, the narrow-minded Satrajit did not agree to give the gem to Krishna and instead handed it over to his brother, Prasena to wear it around his neck while hunting. A Lion mistook the red shining gem to be a piece of meat and killed Prasena and swallowed the gem. The lion was killed by the bear king Jaambhavan, who took the glittering gem home and gave it to his child for playing with it.
Satrajit alleged that Krishna had stolen the gem and people began to believe that and started suspecting Krishna. It is only normal for the human beings to abuse the noble and virtuous men on slightest instigation. Krishna, desirous of revealing the truth (which he knew already), went in search of the gem, accompanied by his men. He came across the corpse of Prasena and the lion, which lead him to the nearby cave of Jaambhavan.
The aged Jambhavan, who was a staunch devotee of Lord Rama, did not recognise Krishna (also an avatar of Lord Vishnu), and started fist fight with Krishna, which looked as if Jaambhavan was worshipping Krishna with both the hands. The fight lasted for a long time, with Jaambhavan exclaiming that no one can defeat him as he has surrendered already to Lord Mukunda and that let victory belong to Lord Rama and Lord Hari.
After quite some time, Jaambhavan recognised Krishna to be Lord Hari Himself and he gave Krishna his daughter, Jaambhavi, for marriage and also presented him the Symantaka gem. Krishna accepted the offer and returned back to Dwaraka and gave the gem back to Satrajit.
Satrajit was ashamed of his foolishness in suspecting Krishna and soon he came back to his senses and gave his daughter, Satyabhama, in marriage to Krishna and also gave Krishna, the Samantha gem. Krishna, who cannot be understood by anyone that easily, accepted what he was looking for, namely, Satyabhama's hands and returned back the gem to Satrajit.
Krishna was living happily with Satyabhama, when he heard the news of burning down of Pandavas in the wax palace and he rushed to Hastinapura. During Krishna's absence, one Satadhanva killed Satrajit, as instigated by Akrura and Krithavarma, took away the valuable Samataka gem and gave it to Akrura.
Learning from Satyabhama about this incident, Krishna swiftly killed Satadhanva and pacified Satyabhama. Meanwhile, Balarama, who earlier went in different direction looking for the Syamantika gem, reached Mithila where he met Duryodhana and taught him mace-fight.
It is generally believed that it was Krishna who planned all the events connected with the Syamantaka gem, with a view to finally give it to Akrura for his prosperity. Krishna must have done so, to relieve Akrura of his false pride of having attained wisdom and composure. Akrura ran away from Dwaraka along with Krithavarma, fearing attack by Krishna. Krishna commanded Akrura to come back and then Krishna made Akrura explain how he got hold of Syamantaka gem and finally allowed Akrura to posses it in view of Akrura's past good deeds.
Dasakam 81: Encounter with Narakasura:
Krishna attended the wedding of Draupathi, along with his beloved Satyabhama and spent some time with the Pandavas in Hastinapur. Krishna then established the city of Indraprastha as the head quarters of the Pandavas and returned back to Dwaraka.
Krishna, intending to get his loving sister, Subhadra, married to his favourite disciple Arjuna, and to foil the attempts of Dhuryodhana to marry Subhadra, directed Arjuna to abduct Subhadra. Krishna pacified Balarama for this act of Arjuna and made him agree for the marriage between Subhadra and Arjuna. Krishna proceeded to Indraprastha along with Satyabhama and Balarama and delighted Arjuna.
Krishna married Kalindi, the presiding deity of the Yamuna River, who was Krishna's lover in the past. Krishna allowed God of Fire, Agni Deva, to consume the forest of Khandala and returned to Dwaraka. Krishna rescued his father's sister's daughter, Mitravinda, the princess of Avanti, from the clutches of a number of assembled kings and took her away, since she was keenly in love with Krishna, which wish she was unable to express openly, being afraid of her brothers.
Krishna having heard about the challenge posed by King Nagnajit, proceeded to Kosala and tamed all the seven bulls by assuming seven-forms simultaneously and married the kings daughter Satya.
Krishna likewise married princess Bhadra of Kekaya, as desired by her brothers, Santardana and others. She also happened to be the daughter of Krishna's father's another sister. Krishna is the bestower of boons to all indeed.
Krishna married as his eighth wife, Lakshmana, daughter of King of Madra, after hitting the target of a fish by only seeing its reflection in water, which even Arjuna and others could not achieve.
Krishna came to know from Indra about the atrocities committed by Narakasura, who was the son of Bhumi Devi. Krishna summoned his vehicle Garuda and along with Satyabhama proceeded to the place of Narakasura, known as Pragjyothisha, as if he is on a pleasure trip. Krishna destroyed all the reinforcements built by Narakasura and the place looked as if it can be called as Shonitapuram, (blood-city) due to the flow of blood from Krishna's enemies. Krishna was then attacked by five-headed demon Mura, who arose from the oceans and Krishna beheaded him using his Sudarshana Chakra. Narakasura fought with Krishna using all his mighty elephants, which had four tusks each, but Krishna showed Narakasura, the way to hell, using his Sudarshana Chakra and thus liberated him.
Bhumi Devi lauded Krishna for killing Narakasura. Krishna established Narakasura's son, Baghadatta as the next king. Leaving him with a lone elephant, Krishna secured all the elephants, the entire wealth and also freed the 16000 princesses who were captured and tortured by Narakasura. Krishna took them to Dwaraka.
Krishna then proceeded to the heavens, along with Satyabhama. The celestials there were left in shame by her beauty. Krishna gave back the ear rings (kundalam) snatched by Narakasura from Aditi, the mother of Gods. Indra and other gods adored Krishna in reverence. On his way back, Krishna uprooted the Kalpaka tree, with a view to plant it in Dwaraka. Indra resisted this move and fought with Krishna, only to be defeated by Krishna. These events highlighted the fact that arrogance borne out of wealth and prosperity will lead only to downfall. Krishna then returned to Dwaraka and planted the Tree in Satyabhama's garden. He also married all the 16000 maidens who were released from Narakasura, as they were all devotees of Hari. Krishna spent his time with all of them, sporting various forms simultaneously, to the amusement of Sage Narada. Krishna begot ten sons through each of them.
P.S on Narakasura Vadam:
Following extract is from the discourse of Sri Chinna Jeeyar Swami on Naraka Chaturdasi, the Krishna Chaturdasi in Asweeja masam:
According to Bhagavatham, Satyabhama did not kill Narakasura herself. It was Sri Krishna who killed him after he received an affirmation from Satyabhama to kill the asura. Let’s see how Sri Krishna, as always, ‘tactfully’ got Satyabhama to order him to kill Narakasura! Let’s read what ‘killing of Narakasura’ means to us!
Narakasura, actually named Bhouma grew very arrogant and very greedy day by day. The wealth he acquired by force and power made him more and more cruel with the people in his custody. He troubled 16,000 princesses, who were brought into his kingdom after winning over many Kings. (These included many celestial maidens as well). He got to a point where he snatched Indra’s aasanam (the chair). After complaints from Indra to save everyone, Sri Krishna then began to plan it out.
A quick background on who Bhouma is. When Hiranyaksha moved the mother Bhumi out of her orbit, Lord took the avatar of Varaha Swami and placed the mother Bhumi back in her orbit. During this time, on the day in the evening hours when mother Bhumi and Lord Varaha Swami got together – Bhouma was born.
Because he is the son of mother Bhumi, Krishna had to ensure he gets permission from the mother to kill her son. (Moreover, Bhouma had obtained a boon that he could not be killed without his mother's permission). In Krishna avatar, mother Bhumi took the form of Satyabhama.
After Indra approached Krishna to save him from Narakasura, Krishna checked with Satyabhama about what should be done. Satyabhama clearly said, ‘You should always protect those in need and should put an end to those who are not following the dharma. So, go on! Why is there a question about it?’ Krishna then said, ‘Sure, I will. However, I would not want you to come along with me. You may not be able to tolerate the cruelty in the war, the blood and hurting!’ Satyabhama the replied, ‘I am brave enough to handle it. I will come along too.’ Krishna’s plan began to work. He took her to the battle field.
Narakasura’s empire was called ‘Pragjyothishapuram’ and built with 7 agadthas, meaning 7 huge protection layers such as ‘Mountains, Poisonous gases, Water stream full of Crocodiles and Sharks, Fire, Cruel animals. Sri Krishna took his Garuda Vahana and easily flew over all these layers. As he stepped onto the empire, what seemed like beautiful platforms turned into 100 headed snake! Krishna fought with the snake and killed it. Then, Narakasura and Krishna’s fierce fight started and went on and on. Satyabhama got impatient watching the ongoing fight. She was wondering why Krishna, who as a little boy killed many such demons is taking long. She had then told Krishna, ‘Go on and kill him now!’ Krishna then immediately ended the life of Narakasura. He continued to fight until Satyabhama herself instructed him to kill Narakasura!
In memory of that fight and the great valour of Sri Krishna and his weapons, we enjoy the fire crackers. As an example: Bhuchakra is lit to remember the way Krishna fought raising above the ground and twirling and twisting across each weapon launched by Naraka!
Narakasura asked Krishna for a boon that everyone should speak of him and celebrate a festival on his name! Krishna said, ‘so be it!’ And here we are celebrating the end of Narakasura!
(There is another version of the story: During the battle, an arrow hits Krishna and he acts being unconscious. When Satyabhama saw this she took the place of Lord Krishna and she killed Narakasura. This was because Narakasura had a boon that only mother Bhudevi could kill him).
Dasakam 82: Krishna's Son and Grandson:
This Dasakam elaborates about Krishna's son, Pradyumna (son of Rukmini) and grandson Aniruddha. Pradyumna was incidentally Manmadha (Kamadeva) in his previous birth, who was burnt by Lord Shiva. Rathi, wife of Manamtha, was looking for him.
When he was a child, Pradyumna was kidnapped by demon Sambara and drowned in the ocean. The child was swallowed by a fish, which was caught by a fisherman and brought (back) to Sambara's house for cooking. Pradyumna came out of the fish when it was cut open. Pradyumna was secretly brought up by Rathi, (who realised him to be Manmatha and who was staying in Sambara's household).
Pradyumna killed Sambara and returned to Dwaraka with Rathi. Pradyumna carried away and married Rukmavathi, who was the daughter of Rukmi (Rukmini's brother) and through her begot a son by name Aniruddha, who was a treasury of good qualities. Aniruddha married Rochana, grand daughter of Rukmi and the marriage was conducted in the presence of Krishna. Rukmi was later killed by Balarama in a fight that ensued during a dice game.
Usha, daughter of the thousand armed demon King Bana, who was a devotee of Lord Shiva and son of Mahabali, was a respectable maiden. She once had a dream, wherein she was in a relationship with Aniruddha, though she had never even met him and since then she was suffering from his memory.
Usha had a friend called Chitralekha, who was a yogini and an artist. Through her yogic powers she drew the picture of Aniruddha and after Usha confirmed it was the same person who came in her dream, Chitralekha, using her powers took Aniruddha away from Krishna's palace and brought him to Usha.
Both Aniruddha and Usha continued their relationship till one day, Bana found out the presence of Aniruddha and soon imprisoned him. Having learnt about this from Sage Narada, Krishna was furious and proceeded to Sonitapura, Bana's city, and laid siege to it along with an army of Yadavas.
Lord Shiva, the lover of Parvathi, the daughter of Himalayas, happened to be the guardian for Bana's city and He along with his Ganas confronted Krishna. While Krishna faced Jagadheesa (Lord Shiva), Who is the destroyer of Tripura, Aniruddha faced others like Bana, Satyaki and Guha (Lord Muruga).
Krishna destroyed all the weapons of Lord Shiva and made him unconscious using Mohanaastra. Seeing this, all the ganas fled the scene and their leader (Pramatha kula veera) were killed. Pradyumna and Balarama, likewise defeated Guha, Khumbanda and others.
Bana, having 1000 arms, fought fiercely with Krishna with 500 bows, spraying arrows but Krishna broke all his bows. Shiva's fever (fire) was burnt out by Vishnu fever (fire) and Shiva's fire retreated and praised Krishna and promised that it will not affect those who understood this story of Krishna. Though Shiva's ganas are generally intelligent, they are a bit cruel because of excessive tamas in them.
Due to his arrogance, Bana came back to fight with Krishna, this time with more weapons and paid for it, as Krishna cut off all his arms excepting two on each side. Lord Shiva regained consciousness and realised that He and Krishna are in essence one and same, and praising Krishna, Shiva pleaded that Bana be spared with two arms on each side. Krishna obliged as Bana was Shiva's devotee. Bana, his arrogance gone, praised Krishna, who then returned to Dwaraka with Aniruddha and Usha.
Of all the avatars of Lord Vishnu, Krishna avatar is very special because Krishna repeatedly won over Indra many times, won over Varuna when Varuna (Water God) kidnapped Nandagopan when taking bath in Yamuna in early hours, won over Yama when he retrieved Guru Sadeepani's son, won over Agni (Fire God) by swallowing the flames during the forest fire, won over Brahma while stealing the calves, and also won over Lord Shiva while fighting with Bana. Jai Sri Krishna.
Krishna liberated King Nriga and sent him to heavens, by releasing him from the curse of a brahmin, which turned him into a chameleon and taught the world to respect the brahmins as holy men.
Dasakam 83: Krishna Destroys Fake Narayana:
Once, Balaram had gone to Gokulam, spending his days with the loving maidens there. He had also changed the course of river Yamuna, as she did not attend to his call. Krishna was at Dwaraka. A messenger came with a message from one Paundraka, a self-styled, ill-advised as the divine incarnation of Narayana. to the surprise amusement of those assembled in the court, the messenger asked Krishna to surrender before Paundaraka, leaving all his marks and weapons such as Sudharshana, conch etc. The messenger then left the scene.
Krishna proceeded to Paundarka's city along with an army of Yadavas. Krishna found Paundraka wearing similar but fake ornaments such as Kausthubha gem around the neck, fish-shaped ear rings, yellow garments, with a Srivatsa imprinted on his chest with a hot iron rod. Paundraka despatched his chakra made of iron, Krishna severed his head with his Sudharshana chakra. Krishna further routed the enemy army and also threw the head of King of Kasi, who had allied with Paundraka.
Since Paundraka had imagined himself to be Lord Narayana, he had in a way aligned himself with the Lord and therefore had the privilege of getting liberated by Krishna. Who can understand how the Lord would determine the merits of a person, even if he was an evil.
The son of King of Kasi, by name, Sudhakshina, who had obtained black magic powers by appeasing Lord Shiva, was angry at the death of his father and sent an evil spirit, Kritya, who emitted fire, along with few bootha ganas. These ganas had earlier fled from Krishna in terror while fighting with Bana, but Sudhkshina had somehow managed to persuade them to join again this time to fight Krishna.
Kritya, with large legs which looked like a Palmyra tree, was emitting fire, burning all things in its way. The terrified people came running to Krishna for help. Krishna was playing dice at that time and without stopping the game, he sent Sudharshana chakra against the spirit. This rattled the spirit, when it saw the mighty chakra racing towards it with great lustre. Kritya ran back to escape the chakra, crying loud in misery. Kritya showed its anger on Sudhkashina for misleading it to fight with Krishna, which was against the dictum of Lord Shiva, and burnt down Sudhakshiina and also the entire city of Kashi was reduced to ashes.
In another incident, a minister of Narakasura, born as a wicket person, who brought severe damage in the country, fought with Balarama near Dwaraka and was killed by a mere blow from Balarama's hand. This minister, in his previous birth was known as Vivida and served the Lord in his earlier avatar as Sri Ram and helped Ram in destroying Demons. He got a boon from Ram that Vivida would meet his death at the hands of Lord's powers. Krishna fulfilled his desire now, through Balarama. Hare Rama, Hare Krishna:
Balarama then went to Hastinapura to release Samba, who was held in captive by Duryodhana. Samba was the son of Jambhavati, Krishna's wife and was accused of abducting Duryodhana's daughter, Lakshana. Since Duryodhana did not oblige, Balarama shook the entire city of Hastinapura in rage and released Samba. Krishna refrained from involving in this fight, since he knew that the Kauravas would meet their end in the hands of the Pandavas. Who can understand Krishna's Leela ?
Dasakam 84: Meeting of Yadavas and Gopas:
Once, during a solar eclipse, Krishna went to a holy place called Samantha Panchaka, along with Yadavas and their women folks, leaving Dwaraka to be attended by Aniruddha and Kirthivarma. Krishna performed pooja in the holy waters, which made the waters holier than before and gave away gifts to brahmins. He then spent time there with all friends, including Kauravas, Pandavas etc. Draupathi who was a friend of Krishna, was delighted to meet Krishna's wives and learnt from them how Krishna married them all under different circumstances.
Krishna found that Gopas and Gopikas from Gokulam had also reached the holy spot and they were all so delighted to meet Krishna after a long gap, that they could not believe their eyes, lost all their senses and froze. They had all been affected by misery of separation. Krishna honoured them all and mingled with them to their immense delight and their long standing misery vanished instantly. Such was the intensity of their love for Krishna that all of them embraced Krishna with joy.
Krishna pacified Radha, saying that he could not make it to Gokulam for long, due to continuous attack by the enemies and embraced her to her Joy. She completely united with him and dissolved in bliss.
Krishna then imparted to everyone in private the pure knowledge that he was the Absolute Brahman and that he is the self, residing in all of them and not different from them. After getting this pure knowledge they realised that Krishna was always within them and they got released from the misery of separation. Uddhava, during his earlier visit to Gokulam had shared with them a mixed feeling of joy and sorrow from separation but now after hearing and obtaining true knowledge directly from Krishna, they all experienced Absolute Bliss and union with the Brahman. Mere thought of Krishna was now sufficient for them to get over the misery of separation.
Krishna's natural father, Vasudeva, was keen on knowing the way to get rid of one's sins and when he queried the saints who had assembled there, they all unanimously replied that when Krishna was born as his son, there is no need for any external remedy. However, since Vasudeva insisted upon performing certain rites, they performed specific rites for him.
While the saints were performing the yagnas, the Gopas enjoyed the company of Yadavas, duly honoured by them, and thus they all spent three months in the company of Krishna, to their absolute delight, taking them back to the good old days when they were enjoying the company of Krishna.
Dasakam 85: Jarasandha and Sisupala:
Jarasandha, the Emperor of Magada Kingdom had captured 20,800 kings and imprisoned and tortured all. The victims sent a message to Krishna, the saviour of all, to kill Jarasandha and save them all.
When Krishna was preparing to leave for Magada, Sage Narada appeared and informed Krishna of the Rajasuya Yagna being planned by Yudhishtra at Indraprastha. As advised by Uddhava that a visit to Indraprastha would pave the way for the fight with Jarsandha as well, Krishna left for Yudhishtra's place. Rajasuya yagna can be completed only after defeating all the enemies, including Jarasandha.
Krishna arrived at Indraprastha will all his wives. Yudhishtra had become very rich due to support from his brothers and also due to the mercy of Krishna. He deputed Krishna along with Bhima and Arjuna to face Jarasandha. Krishna politely accepted it, as always, since Yudhistra was his devotee. Krishna would do anything for his devotees.
Krishna, Bhima and Arjuna reached Girivraja, where Jarasandha resided, in the form of Brahmins and managed to obtain Jarasandha's approval for a festival of wrestling, between Jarasandha and all others. Krishna tactfully engaged Bhima to fight with Jarasandha, though Krishna could have easily defeated Jarasandha, but must have felt that Jarasandha was not his equal. It was as if Krishna would always induce war between kings and be a spectator himself. Here, Krishna and Arjuna were silent spectators.
The arrogant Jarasnadha fought vigorously but was killed by Bhima. Krishna gave a hint to Bhima by splitting a small piece of wooden stem into two and accordingly Bhima split Jarasandha in to two pieces by tearing his two legs apart.
Krishna then freed all the kings, blessed them to be his devotees and bestowed them with their lost kingdom to be ruled as per Dharma, which they did, as they had become desire-less by then, due to Krishna's blessings.
Krishna thereafter participated in the rajasuya performed by Yudhishtra, where many Kings participated and offered their services. Krishna, on his part, though he is the Lord of the Universe, washed the feet of the Brahmins assembled there. Yudhishtra was indeed fortunate on this account.
When it came to the question of who should be offered the first honours, Yudhishtra chose Krishna for it, based on the advise given by Sahadeva. Accordingly Yudhishtra performed the Agrapuja and honoured Krishna, who is the very essence of the Universe, the soul of all beings, to the delight of all the gods and wisemen.
On seeing this, the King of Chedi, Sisupala, became wild, sprang up from his seat, carrying weapons and accusing Krishna of being a coward, of having a disgusting character. He further shouted that when so many holy men were present on the occasion, who had foolishly chosen Krishna. On hearing these, the Pandavas rushed to Sisupala in rage.
Krishna restrained Pandavas from defending the offending Sisupala and severed his head with Sudharshana chakra, which had destroyed many demons in the past. Sisupala had all along been always thinking of Krishna during the past three births, though for wrong reasons of hatred for Krishna, thus attained salvation and unity with the Lord, which even the Yogi men could not attain easily. Hiranyakasipu, Ravana and Sisupala were the three births referred here.
Thus the Rajasuya came to a successful conclusion and all the kings departed the scene praising Yudhishtra and Krishna, excepting Duryodhana, who out of jealousy, lost his orientation and fell down in the waters, thinking it to be a firm ground. The palace as built for the Pandavas by Maya, the divine architect for demons.
Induced by Krishna's smile and glances, both Draupadi and Bhima laughed out loud, making fun of Dhuryadana's miserable fall, whereupon Duryodhana felt humiliated. Krishna thus planted the first seed for complete annihilation and destruction of all evil men from the face of the earth.
Dasakam 86: Krishna's Participation in Mahabharata War:
Back home in Dwaraka, while Krishna had gone to Indraprastha, King Salva laid siege. Salva had earlier faced defeat from Yadavas, while Krishna kidnapped Rukmini. Thereafter Salva has obtained through penance, special magical powers from Lord Shiva, including an aerial vehicle called Saubha. Pradymna, Krishna's son, defended the invasion by Salva and the army of yadhavas fought the enemies for 27 days. Pradymna killed the minister of Salva, named Dhyuman.
Krishna and Balarama soon joined the war. Salva broke Krishna's bow "Saranga" with his mace and also Salva created a fake image of Krishna's father, Vasudeva and created an illusion of killing Vasudeva. While some people say the Krishna was stunned by this act of Salva for a moment, but Sage Vyasa opined this to be baseless.
Krishna shattered into pieces, the aerial vehicle, Saubha, and threw it into the seas. Using his Sudharshana chakra, Krishna beheaded Salva. Dantavaktra then attacked Krishna with his mace and Krishna killed him too with his own mace, "Kaumodaki". These men, Salva and Dantavaktra were thus liberated and merged into the Absolute, much the same way as Sisupala. During this avatar, Krishna ensured to provide Moksha to all those who always thought about Krishna, whether for good or for bad.
While Krishna was pre-occupied at Dwaraka thus, the Kauravas arranged a cheating game of dice and Dussasan dragged Draupadi by her long locks of hairs to the court, making her weep in sorrow, wailing loudly for help from Krishna. Out of mercy, Krishna foiled this attempt by protecting her with endless lengths of saree.
Krishna protected Draupadi once more, when Sage Durvasa, known for his anger, who is a part of Lord Shiva Himself, came demanding food, along with other sages, exactly when the food was exhausted fully. Druapati, fearing the worst to happen, prayed to Krishna for help. Krishna spontaneously reached the spot, ate a small bit of leaf left in the cooking pot, which relieved the Durvasa and the other sages from hunger.
The great epic war was about to start. Krishna offered his services to his friend Arjuna as charioteer (Parthasarathy) after granting his entire Yadava army to serve Duryodhana. Krishna went on a trip to Hastinapur to try to bring in peace by avoiding the war. Though his advices were heard with respect by Bhishma, Dhrona and other elders, it was not accepted by Duryodhana. Krishna then gave a sight of his Visvaroopam to the sages there, which shook the earth and then he came back to the Pandavas.
While staring the chariot, noticing Arjuna under deep distress on having destined to kill his close relatives, Krishna imparted True Knowledge to Arjuna, (in the form of Bhagavata Geetha), uttering sacred words such as: Eternal soul has not beginning nor end and is eternal reality. Therefore, the slayer and the slain have no meaning and hence the question of Arjuna killing his relatives does not arise at all. Krishna thus asked Arjuna to join in his attempt to establish dharma and do his duty as a warrior. Krishna then gave Visvaroopa Dharshan to Arjuna and brought peace in his mind to start the war.
During the war, Bhishma was aggressively killing 10,000 men day after day and Arjuna was also tired of the aggression. Krishna intervened and charged towards Bhishma with his Sudharshana chakra, pretending to be angry at Bhishma. But soon, when Bhishma, with folded hands, bowed down, Krishna happily withdrew from attacking. Bhishma was one of the devotees of Krishna and had fought for maintaining Dharma during his lifetime. Hence Krishna was not really intent on attacking Bhishma. The show of Anger by Krishna was to satisfy his devotee Bhisma's vow that he would make Krishna fight with weapon despite Krishna's vow not to do so during the war.
Meantime, Balaram had gone on a pilgrimage trip to Naimisaranyam. There he killed a poet called Sita as he did not raise up and show his respect to Balarama and installed his son in that place. Balarama also killed a demon named, Valkala, who used to trouble the sages from doing yagna. Then he returned to Kurukshetra towards the end of the war, and since the one-on-one fight between Bhima and Dhuryodhana kept on and on for a prolonged period, Balarama adjourned to Dwaraka.
After the war, Aswathama, son of Dhronacharya, became mentally imbalanced and murdered all the sons of Pandavas while they were asleep and user Brahmastra to destroy the whole world. As directed By Krishna, Arjuna negated it and snatched the gem on his head with which he was born. Ashwatama, again despatched another powerful missile to completely destroy the rest of the Pandava clan and when it reached Uttara, wife of Abhimanyu, who was carrying his child, Krishna protected the child in the womb and saved it.
Bhishma was lying on his bed of arrows, waiting for a good time for his death, as per the boon given by his father, Santanu, to choose his time of death. After imparting knowledge to Yudhishtra on the world wisdom, Bhishma attained salvation after having Dharshan of Krishna, of whom he was a devotee.
Krishna advised Yudhishtra to perform three Aswametha yagna, for the sloe purpose of upholding dharma. Krishna then returned to Dwaraka.
Dasakam 87: Kuchelar Visit:
Krishna has a brahmin friend by name Sudhama (later known as Kuchela) during his school days, while studying in Sage Sandhipani Ashram. Sudhama was deeply devoted to Krishna and lived as a simple, unassuming house-holder. His wife was a good match for him, in that she was also adapted to a simple life, though not as enlightened as Sudhama. Being poor and unable to maintain the house-hold, she once suggested to Sudhama, why he should not approach Krishna for helping them with a livelihood.
Kuchela, though left to himself was not for acquiring riches as it would lead only to arrogance, looking at her plight, hunger and misery, set out to meet Krishna. He carried with him some "Aval" (beaten rice) as his offering to Krishna, the only thing that his wife could manage to give him.
Sudhama was struck with wonder upon arriving at Dwaraka and felt as if he had entered Vaikunta itself. He was over joyed when Krishna himself received him cordially. What more could he have asked for ?
Krishna did him all proper honours, with his wife fanning Sudhama. Krishna held Sushama's hands and had a long chat on the events that happened during their school days, including the way they were caught in the sudden showers while they had been to the forest one day to collect firewood as directed by their Guru Patni (wife of Guru).
Krishna, sensing that Kuchela was feeling shy, snatched the beaten rice brought by Kuchela and started eating it. When he wanted to eat more, Rukmini rushed to him and held his hands, saying it is enough. Kuchela enjoyed the honours given by Krishna, who becomes a devotee to his devotees and after spending the night there, Kuchela began his journey back to his village, without getting any return gifts from Kirshna. Who can understand the strange, wonderful and diversified ways of Krishna's anugraham?
Kuchela, on the way back home, was lamenting that had he asked Krishna for help, he would have certainly offered gifts and he was wondering how he is going to manage his wife upon return. He was all along thinking of the wonderful reception he had, the cordial conversations and the magnetic smile of Krishna. When he reached his house, he suddenly saw a huge palace studded with all gems in place of his hut.
For a moment he thought he had lost his way and reached some other place, he saw his wife wearing golden ornaments, along with her friends. He then realised the wonderful Leela of Krishna in blessing him with all the riches.
Even while living in that gem studded palace, Sudama never lost balance, was always living in Bhakti for Krishna and thus attained liberation.
P.S. to Kuchela event:
Following elaboration on Kuchela is found in a blog link:
Bhagavan SreeKrishna and Sudhama, a poor Brahmin boy were close friends when they were studying at the ashram of Sage Sandipani. After leaving the hermitage they lose contact with each other. Krishna becomes the king of Dwaraka, while Kuchela married to Suseela and had many children ,but he remained poor. As Sudhama was an ardent devotee he earned food for his family by singing bhajans in the streets. People called him “Kuchela” (‘Kuchela’ means badly clothed )as he wore torn and ragged clothes.But Kuchela was not affected by his poverty and He continued to be as pious as ever. As requested by his wife Suseela, Kuchela decides to visit his old friend. Lord SreeKrishna… For him it was a chance to renew their friendship than asking for assistance. He wanted to take something for Krishna that he would love. According to our scriptures, one should not go empty handed while visiting the elders, rulers, pregnant ladies, teachers or God. His wife went to neighbours and brought three handfuls of cooked rice flakes. She told her husband to take the rice flakes as gift to Sri Krishna. Sudhama remembers that beaten rice is Krishna’s favourite and decided to give this as a gift to the Lord. On the way he thinks “Will Krishna recognise me? Will he receive me, a poor brahmin? Krishna is so large hearted he will receive any brahmin, even the poorest of the poor.” So thinking he proceeds on foot a distance of maybe a hundred miles.
Krishna is sitting in his house with Rukmini when he sees Kuchela coming. He runs off to meet Kuchela. He sheds tears of joy. .. Narayana….Kuchela is invited inside and taken to the seventh floor of the palace and treated well. Bhagawan lovingly seats Kuchela on the couch and honours him by laving his feet, applying sandal paste on his feet, offering flowers at his feet, performing dhupa, deepa, etc. Jay Sree Karunya Sindhoo….Standing by his side, Rukmini devi the Consort of Krishna, plies the fly whisks to relieve his tedium of the long and arduous trek. Like this they talked on far into the night, holding each other by the arm, when Krishna suddenly asked “Sudama, have you not brought anything for me?” Sudama looked abashed. Noticing this Krishna suddenly snatched the packet from under his arm and opening it exclaimed “Excellent! I like nothing better!” and grabbing a little put it into his mouth and ate it with relish! “Ha!! How sweet it is!” and he ate another handful. When he took another handful for a third time, Sri Rukmini devi who was MathaSree Lakshmi herself caught hold of his hand whispering “Enough! Enough! With two handfuls I have already made him rich beyond dreams!”Krishna stopped and Sudama did not understand what all this whispering was about. Leaving him comfortably in a velvet bed, Krishna retired. Sudama could not sleep for a long time thinking over the events of the day “A poor Brahmin like me ! An ill clad beggar ! I have been embraced by the lord of all wealth as if I was his own brother. Ha The magnanimity of the great!” Full of thankfulness Sudama felt that he was in heaven and slowly fell asleep. Early morning he woke up Krishna was ready in attendance. After some time it is time for kuchela to go. Bhagavan Krishna did not give any gift and neither did Kuchela ask for any .He thought” I did not ask for anything. I know why he did not give me any gift. Wealth would spoil my tapas (penance). How kind is the lord!” Thinking like this, he slowly wended his way back ,homeward. When Kuchela returns home he finds that his hut has miraculously been turned into a palace. The Lord had showered prosperity on his family even without asking for it. His wife comes out to great him with great happiness and told him that the night before, some angels had knocked at the door with very precious gifts and had requested her and the children to come out. They were “Viswakarma” the engineer architect of Indra, lord of heaven, and his men . In a few minutes they built this wonderful Palace with outhouses and orchards and lawns., rivalling those of Lord Indra in heaven. Kubera, god of wealth was also there with his vast treasures. The servants, ornaments, provisions had all materialised from the air in a trice. As she was describing all this wonder the children came trooping in dressed like princes and bright like flowers in the garden. Kuchela too changed into golden attire, though he felt a little uncomfortable. Not only Kuchela, but also his neighbours had become rich beyond their dreams. Thus Sudama the Brahmin though surrounded by luxury lived like a recluse with great restraint, remembering that all this prosperity was due to Krishna’s kindness his grace and attained the supreme grace from which there is no return
Mother Devaki heard about how Krishna once brought back his Guru Sandipani's son from the clutches of Yama, and she wished that Krishna likewise brought back her six children who were killed by her brother Kamsa. She conveyed her wish to Krishna, who then went to the underground world of Mahabali, named Sutala and brought back all the six sons to Devaki. These six, after they were killed by Kamsa, were born to March and again reborn as sons of Hiranyakasipu, as per a curser from Lord Brahma. Krishna then liberated all the six by taking them to Vaikunta.
Krishna reached Mithila, along with few sages, to honour a holy man, named Srutadeva and also his another devotee, King Bahulaswa. Krishna made simultaneous visits to both of them, in two similar forms. While the king offered Krishna with plenty of riches, the Brahmin gave him fruits and freshly cooked rice, received by him recently through alms. Krishna received both these gifts with equal joy and blessed them both with liberation.
Once when Krishna was in Dwaraka, he saw one Brahmana cry out loud on the death of his sons, and after the other. Krishna simply commented, "Who can avoid fate?", which was not expected from him, being the preserver of the whole universe. The purpose of his assuming such a stand must be to teach a lesson to Arjuna, who had taken for granted that Krishna is a human being. Krishna wanted to fully teach him the Absolute Truth and also show him his abode, Vaikunta, (as explained in the following lines).
Coming back to the story, the Brahmana lost his eighth son and the people started to comment on his bad luck, as Krishna did not help him. Arjuna had arrived at Dwaraka and heard the Brahmana cry out on the loss of his ninth son too. Arjuna, unable to bear this, decided to jump into the arena and took a vow that he would save the Brahmana's next child or else he would self immolate himself.
Arjuna, out of pride, went to the Brahmana's house without informing Krishna and built a shield of arrows out of his divine Archery powers so that no god could take away the child. But the child, as soon as it was born, went missing, vanishing into thin air. Arjuna became wild and using his Yogic powers, went after gods, Yama, Indra and others, but could not retrieve the child. Loosing all hopes he was about to jump into the fire, when Krishna prevented him, with a smile on his face.
Krishna took Arjuna in his chariot and proceeded swiftly westwards, crossing the mountain called Lokaloka, dispelling the darkness using the brilliance of his Sudharsana chakra, and told him to look ahead. There Arjuna, with his eyes shining due to the brilliance of the chakra, saw the wonder of wonders, Vaikuntha, at a distance, beyond the seven seas, and beyond the Thamo and Rajo Gunas (made purely of Sattva Guna).
Krishna, along with Arjuna, paid his obeisance and prostrated before the Supreme Being, the one whom Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva treat as the Supreme Lord, reclining on the serpent king, Adhisesha, wearing the divine ornaments and holding weapons in hand, wearing yellow clothings, shining in dark blue complexion, in the Holy presence of Mother Lakshmi, Lord of all vedas and Moksha. The Supreme Brahman is verily Krishna himself.
Lord Vishnu was pleased to return back to Krishna all the children of the Brahmana, explaining that the purpose was to see in person both Krishna and Arjuna together, since both were no different from Lord Vishnu Himself - though Krishna happened to be His complete Self and Arjuna, a part. Lord Vishnu directed Krishna to return the children immediately to the Brahmana, which was done. Arjuna now realised the full glory of Krishna.
Krishna charmed everyone with his Maya Leela, enlarged the progeny of the Vrishni vamsam, carried out many yagna, took extreme care of all his loving wives, all this was possible as he was the embodiment of the Supreme Brahman, born as a Yadhva in human body, shining brightly all the way, always bent on supporting his devotees with moksha, thus relieved Bhudevi of Her burden.
Sage Narada, who lives in Lord's memory always, stayed put most of the time in Dwaraka and Vasudeva, who had already acquired many merits due to his good deeds, further improved his knowledge of Truth from Sage Narada. Uddhava, who is the foremost of all the devotees of Krishna, learnt about the Ultimate Reality directly from Krishna himself. It is believed that Uddhava is present even today in Bhadrikashrama praying for the welfare of Krushna's devotees.
Incarnation of Krishna is the best of all the avatars of Lord Vishnu, especially since Krishna removed the sufferings of all, everywhere, whether they are his devotees or not, by diverse means such as friendship, fear, love, hatred, attachment, etc., and brought them salvation. Let us pray to Guruvayurappan to remove the sufferings of all and to bring world peace and devotion to Krishna.
The four main dhams or holy shrines in the Himalayas are Badrinath, the abode of Lord Narayana, Kedarnath, the abode of Lord Shiva, Gangotri, the source of the river Ganga and Yamunotri, the source of the river, Yamuna. Of these Badrikashrama (Badrinath) is considered to be the most sacred. In the Bhagavad Purana, Lord Krishna tells his friend and devotee, Uddhava that in future he would be available only in the holy spot of Badrikashrama. He gave Uddhava his sandals and told him to carry them to Badrikashrama and keep it there for people to worship. These are to be seen even now. The Hindu scriptures say that the life of a Hindu would be incomplete without making a visit to Badrikashrama. It is the supreme place of pilgrimage especially for the Vaishnavites (worshippers of Vishnu and his avataras). According to the Padma Purana, the rishis found Uttrakhand (modern Uttranchal) to be indeed a glorious temple built by Nature for the worship of the Supreme.
Krishna decides that Uddhava should remain in this world as His representative to instruct people about the Lord’s nature and esoteric truths. He then imparts the Supreme Knowledge called ‘Bhagavata’ which He had taught Brahma in Padmakalpa. This has come to be known as the ‘Uddhava Gita’ and like the ‘Bhagavad Gita’ is the essence of Atma Tatva. It continues to give mental strength to generations of posterity and leads them to the path of salvation.
Bhadrikashrama
This dasakam is recommended for recitation to overcome problem related to pregnancy and child birth. Parayanam (reading) of the portion Santhana Gopalam of Narayaneeyam is recommended.
(With this Dasakam, the story of incarnation of Lord Krishna comes to an end.)
Dasakam 89: Merits of Lord Vishnu:
சாந்தாகாரம் புஜங்க சயநம் பத்மநாபம் ஸுரேசம்
விச்வாகாரம் ககநஸத்ருசம் மேகவர்ணம் சுபாங்கம்
லக்ஷ்மீ காந்தம் கமல நயநம் யோகிஹ்ருத் த்யா நகம்யம்
வந்தே விஷ்ணும் பவ பயஹரம் ஸர்வலோகைக நாதம்
மேகச்யாமம் பீத கௌசேய வாஸம் ஸ்ரீ வத்ஸாங்கம் கௌஸ்து போத்பாஸிதாங்கம்
புண்யோ பேதம் புண்ட ரீகாய தாக்ஷம் விஷ்ணும் வந்தே ஸர்வலோகைக நாதம்
ஸசங்க சக்ரம் ஸகிரீட குண்டலம் ஸபீத வஸ்த்ரம் ஸரஸிரு ஹேக்ஷணம்
லக்ஷ்மீ காந்தம் கமல நயநம் யோகிஹ்ருத் த்யா நகம்யம்
வந்தே விஷ்ணும் பவ பயஹரம் ஸர்வலோகைக நாதம்
மேகச்யாமம் பீத கௌசேய வாஸம் ஸ்ரீ வத்ஸாங்கம் கௌஸ்து போத்பாஸிதாங்கம்
புண்யோ பேதம் புண்ட ரீகாய தாக்ஷம் விஷ்ணும் வந்தே ஸர்வலோகைக நாதம்
ஸசங்க சக்ரம் ஸகிரீட குண்டலம் ஸபீத வஸ்த்ரம் ஸரஸிரு ஹேக்ஷணம்
ஸஹார வக்ஷஸ்த்தல கௌஸ்துப ச்ரியம் நமாமி விஷ்ணும் சிரஸா சதுர்ப்புஜம்
Lord Vishnu, the consort of Goddess Lakshmi, is very careful and choosy while awarding prosperity to His devotees, since such prosperity brings in vanity as well. He would rather wait for the devotees to attain equilibrium and poise before He fulfils their desires. But for those who have already reached the stage in life, there is no holding back and they are instantly blessed to their heart's content. There is no question of any fall of His devotees at any time, though there could be such delay.
People worship Lord Shiva, Brahma or other gods according to the circumstances in which they are brought up. These gods are easily pleased as well as they get easily angry and hence their devotees are put to much difficulties. To quote an example, we can refer to the story of demon Vrikasura.
Vrikaasura was the son of Sakuni. He once asked Sage Narada as to which god can be easily appeased to get boons quickly. Narada directed him to worship Lord Shiva, instead of Lord Narayana, who would not support the evil minded. Accordingly, Vrikaasura did aggressive penance but did not get any result. On the seventh day, he got angry and decided to intensify his penance by cutting of his own head, at which Lord Shiva was pleased to appear before him. Vrikasura obtained a special boon from Lord Shiva, who is the Lord of the Universe, that whoever he touched on their head, would die instantly. Obviously Vikasura lacked wisdom, since he was not a follower of Lord Vishnu.
Vrikasura, the wicked minded, wanting to test this boon as soon as he got it, charged on Lord Shiva to touch His head, much like a lion which would charge on its saviour, who released it from cage. Terrified by this move, Lord Shiva ran hither and there, looking back to see if he is being followed by Vikaasura. When no one could help Lord Shiva from this plight, Lord Vishnu, seeing Lord Shiva approaching him for support, decided to help Him. Lord Vishnu took the form of a learned Brahmacharin (young Brahmin) and appeared before Vrikaasura, even before Vrikaasura could reach Vaikunta in search of Lord Shiva.
The Brahmacharin interfered Vrikaasura, greeted him with respect and told him that he has been cheated by Lord Shiva, who is the leader of all Ghosts and how come Vrikaasura believed this. He further convinced Vrikaasura that in case he did not believe in the words of the Brahmacharin, he can touch his own head and understand that nothing would happen if he touches others. Vrikaasura was fully convinced of this and touched his own head to test it and instantly fell dead like a huge uprooted tree. This shows clearly what happens to the devotees of other gods, while Lord Vishnu becomes the refuge of even Lord Shva Himself.
Again, once the sages staying at the banks of Saraswathi river undertook a mission to understand the most Sattvic (one who is full of sattva Guna) of the three gods, Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. They selected Sage Bhrigu, who was the son of Lord Brahma for this assignment. Bhrigu decided to test them for Rajo Guna, by inducing anger. He showed scant respect for Brahma, who became angry but did not harm him. Lord Shiva became terribly angry at the disrespect shown and wanted to kill Bhrigu, but luckily Goddess Parvathi came to his rescue. Finally Bhrigu came to Lord Vishnu and kicked him on the chest, while Vishnu was laying asleep on goddess Lakshmi's lap. Vishnu woke up and hurriedly apologised for not realising the presence of Bhrigu and as a mark of respect for Bhrigu, Lord Vishnu said that the foot print of Bhrigu on His chest would remain there for ever as an ornament (known as Srivatsam).
Bhrigu thus declared that, of the three, Lord Vishnu possessed Sattvic quality of the highest order, and the sages residing on the banks of Saraswathi river chose Lord Vishnu as their resort and got liberated. Let us also follow them in taking refuge in Lord Vishnu alone, who is the One without any change, personification of Sattva Guna of highest order and One who is unaffected by any decay over time.
Let us pray to Lord Vishnu for removing all our miseries. He is the Supreme Being, the Advaidin, the one without a second, Who was praised by the Vedas during creation and Who represents the cumulative merits of all the Gopis. He is the Lord of Guruvayur, the infinite Brahman.
Dasakam 90: Vishnu and Shiva are one and the same:
குலம் தரும் செல்வம் தந்திடும் அடியார்
படுதுயர் ஆயின எல்லாம்
நிலந்தரம் செய்யும் நீள்விசும்பு அருளும்
அருளொடு பெருநிலம் அளிக்கும்
வலம்தரும் மற்றும் தந்திடும் பெற்ற
தாயினும் ஆயின செய்யும்
நலம்தரும் சொல்லை நான்கண்டு கொண்டேன்
நாராயணா என்னும் நாமம் !
We can learn from the incidences mentioned earlier with Vrikasura, Sage Bhrigu, Mohini Avatar, Ambarisha and many other incidences that Lord Vishnu is undoubtedly superior to all other gods, including Lord Shiva. Lord Vishnu is present both in Nishkala form (one without any attributes) like the Supreme Brahman as well as Sakala form (one with all attributes) like Shiva and other Gods. Lord Vishnu is beyond any definition, and shines brightly as the essence of all.
The triad of Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, along with Sadashiva and Ishvara, perform the five-fold duties consists of creation, maintenance, annihilation, concealment (Maya), and blessing respectively. Of these five, Lord Vishnu is the Sadashiva and He is also Ishvara Himself. Lord Vishnu manifested as Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva in the Satyaloka in three parts.
Of the Trinity gods, the pure Sattva form is known to us as Vishnu. Brahma is the One with predominance of Rajo Guna and a little of Sattva Guna. Sankara (Shiva) is One with Predominance of Sattva but mixed with some Thamo Guna. Thus Lord Vishnu is the Brahman indeed, and the One beyond the realm of the Trinity Gods. He is the Shiva, worshipped by the Saivites, as Vishnu resides in all. There are very many proofs that Shiva is also Vishnu and both are same Being.
Sri Adi Sankara Bhagavat Pada, an aspect of Lord Shiva, who is known for his cast-less unbiased disposition, took to worship of Lord Vishnu and has written several bhashyams on Vishnu Stuti including Vishnu Sahasranama, Bhagavat Gita and as an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu, finally attained Moksha.
Again, Adi Sankara has described Lord Vishnu as transcending the Trinity Gods, in his work on Mantra Sastra, popularly known as "Prabanchsara". He further stated that Lord Vishnu has the lustre of Kalaya flower and while he described "Pranava Mantra," he specifically recommended only the meditation on Lord Vishnu's Nishkala form, rather than any other god.
In another works called "Puranasangraha," which offers a summary all the various Puranas, categorical mention is made of Lord Vishnu's glories. Further Vaikuntha, the abode of Lord Vishnu is stated to be above the realm of the three divisions of Satya Loka, which is the abode of the Trinity gods. Similar mention is not made about Lord Shiva.
Sri Vidhyaranya, a staunch devotee of Lord Shva, has mentioned in his work called "Puranasara" that the form of Lord Vishnu as revealed to Lord Brahma at the beginning of Kalpa, which is fully described in the second canto of Bhagavatam, is variously titled as Vishnu and Shiva, meaning both Vishnu and Shiva are one and the same.
Many Saivites, due to their innate qualities, are devoted to Lord Shiva and they obtain liberation only by showing devotion to Lord Shiva. Sage Vyasa has made certain belittling words against Lord Vishnu in certain works like Skanda Purana, only with a view to encourage such devotees of Lord Shiva and not with any other ulterior motives.
Any materialistic arguments will fall broadly into three categories:
- Those which are inline with the available authoritative declarations but cannot be proved by experiments.
- Those which can be verified only by experience and not by experiments
- Those which are not inline with experience but bordering on false judgment.
Such arguments proposed by the stalwarts are often times more to put forth their point more forcefully to win over others and need not be taken seriously. Much the same way, attributing Thamo guna and defeat of Lord Vishnu, as portrayed in Skanda Puranas and other works, are mere efforts to enhance one's devotion to their chosen deity and cannot be a true statement to undermine the glory of Lord Vishnu.
All the above statements are the innocent inferences of Narayana Bhattatri from what is widely found in scriptures like Sage Vyasa's Bhagavatam, Mantrasastra etc, which talk abundantly on the glories of Lord Vishnu.
From Dasakam 91 till 99, Narayan Bhattari drives home the profound message of "Bhakti as the best way to approach Kali Yuga". Let us enter this final phase of Narayaneeyam now.
Dasakam 91: Surrender at His lotus feet:
வேதங்கள் அறைகின்ற உலகெங்கும் விரிந்தனஉன்
பாதங்கள் இவைஎன்னில் படிவங்கள் எப்படியோ - (கம்பர்).
பாதங்கள் இவைஎன்னில் படிவங்கள் எப்படியோ - (கம்பர்).
Surrendering at the lotus feet of Lord Krishna is the surest means of dispelling the fears that our souls are subject to, because of its unreal Moham, attachment with the worldly objects, including ourselves and its egoistic thoughts, which makes us to undergo transitory life of repeated deaths and rebirths and undergo various sufferings. Total surrender to Lord's feet can destroy and bring an end to all such sufferings. The enlightened one, who faithfully adheres to the dictum of worship shown by Lord Krishna, shall never stray away from the path of Truthfulness, however bad the situation may become, due to the effect of unrelenting Maya.
Let us offer to Lord Narayana, here, right now and always, all that we do with our body, with our words and with our mind, all of which are actuated only by Lord's directions. Following words from Srimat Bhagavatam are apt to mention here:
Kaayena Vaacaa Manaseindriyairvaa
BuddhyAatmanaa Vaa Prakrteh Svabhaavaat |
Karomi Yad-Yat-Sakalam Parasmai
Naaraayannayeti Samarpayaami ||
Whatever I do with my body, speech, mind or the sense organs,
Either by discrimination of the Intellect,
or by the deeper feelings of the heart,
or by the existing tendencies of my mind,
I do them all without ownership,
And I surrender them at the feet of Sri Narayana.
This universe is sanctified by those who have thus totally surrendered and fully focused on Lord Vishnu all of their indriyas, such as mind, body, sense organs, as also their speech, actions and deeds, irrespective of their cast and creed. Those who have ignored Lord Vishnu's feet, how ever high their merits are, would never make this universe holy.
Fear is caused by Maya through mental projection, which is quite apart from the self and is not real. Through a focused attempt for unification with the Lord, one can achieve mental control through regular, severe and conscious practice, though there will be obstructions on the way, by the powerful effects of Maya. However, with deep devotion and intense meditation, one can overcome the fear, since Lord Vishnu has absolute control over Maya.
One sure way of strengthening one's Bhakti is to associate oneself with those who are already devoted to the Lord. Such devotees have accumulated Punya due to their good deeds in their past lives, which would enable inception and development of Bhakti in us, much the same way as association with the rich would also make us rich. Let us therefore pray to Lord to enable us this way, to make ourselves get associated with His devotees, hear through them the glories of the Lord, which would ultimately firm up our belief.
Let us choose the path of devotion, which is much easier for us than the other paths, always recite His names, read about His various avatars and his Leela, upon which the mind gets dissolved in His presence through weeping, shouting, chanting, singing, dancing and such acts of devotion, forgetting for the time being the worldly attachments. Let us pray to Lord to grant us such a way out.
Another method of showing our Bhakti would be to respect and honour all beings in this world, both animate and inanimate objects, all of which are products of the five elements, Panchabhootas, namely, Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Ether. It could include birds, fishes, animals, or any human beings, friends, enemies etc. We should realise that all these are manifestations of the Lord and therefore worthy of service, which would equal service to Lord Himself. It is true that only through service to Lord and just by obtaining His mercy thus, one can realise the height of Bhakti, attain non-attachment and realise True wisdom.
With our minds fully absorbed in the Lord and constantly meditating on Him without any let, we can overcome the sufferings induced by Maya, such as hunger, thirst etc. Focusing our thoughts on His lotus feet would make us realise that our joys and sorrows, likes and dislikes are just the play of Maya. We should let our minds be cooled by the radiations emanating from the Lord's moon-like toe nails.
Not all of us have the mind set to realise the fact that each and every thing on earth is a representation of the Supreme Brahman. In such instances, let us pray to Almighty to grant us Bhakti toward Lord Vishnu, opportunity to get associated with the learned devotee, patience with the ignorant lots and strength to ignore the troubles from enemies. Let the Lord allow us to develop and maintain faith in idol worship of the Lord and thus turn out to be an outstanding devotee of Lord Vishnu in course of time.
Let us pray to Lord Vishnu to grant us freedom from the clutches of Maya, which keeps the true nature of the Lord hidden from our comprehension and instead only projects the world of Maya built by the five elements and also subjects us to the effects of our act karmic actions. Surrender to the lotus feet of the Lord is the only remedy to get relieved from this misery, as declared by Sage Prabhuddha to Videha.
A mere observation of the sufferings of all beings would reveal to us, what is real and what is not. Further a guidance from a learned teacher would add knowledge of the true nature of the Lord. Through regular reading of the books on the stories and glories of the Lord, one can easily cross the ocean of samsara, spun by Maya and reach the shores at the lotus feet of the Lord and enjoy the Bliss. All the above are but steps towards getting initiated to the love and devotion of the Lord.
Dasakam 92: Path to Bhakti:
The Vedas have elaborated on performing various rites and rituals according to the needs of the karta, the doer at various times. However, they also insist that these should be performed without any expectation on end results, since these results are only temporary and bring in attachment. Only by dedicating the performance to the Lord, one gets released from the bondage that occurs due to the results. We should always avoid performing the actions which are not in line with and /or not acceptable to the scriptures. If, however, one has erred due to carelessness or due to other compulsions, one should dedicate such actions to the Lord, for His mercy and compassion in forgiving us.
One sure way to secure the blessings of the Lord would be to worship Him as prescribed in the scriptures, to worship Him in our minds in His purest form, worship him on images made out of approved substances, such as stone, clay, metals, pictures etc or mentally worship Him in the secret caves of one's heart, by offering clean flowers, incense and eatables regularly as per one's capability. Any and all of our offerings will be acceptable to Lord, if they are sanctified by our Bhakti.
Women and people of the lower social order are unprivileged to hear the narrations of Lord's deeds and excellences and for chanting His names. They are indeed to be sympathised. But how can we accept the unpeaceful lot of people of the higher castes, who in spite of having all the facilities of worshipping the Lord, would not do so being arrogant of their learning and high birth. In all the teachings of the Lord they have been repeatedly instructed about the Lord, they perform Yagyaas as a livelihood and for material ends, and there is no misdeed that they do not do. Let us pray to Lord, not to make us one like them.
Those worldly undevoted people laugh loudly at the wise people who are devoted to the Lord with their minds absorbed in Thee. They speak ill of them uttering thus -'This is a wicked fellow and keeps saying Krishna and Raama to cover his misconduct. Because of this person's shameless prattles, I could not say many important things. My brother is an hypocrite and feigns to worship Vishnu all the time.' O Lord! Do not make me like them.
In the Kritha yugam, people used to worship the Lord in the form of a white Sage.In the Tretha yugam, people used to worship the Lord in the form of Yagna and offered sacrifices. The Lord was considered in red colour of Sruka and Suva, which are accessories of yagna. In the Dwapara yugam, people used to worship the Lord in the form of Tantra, offering appropriate tantric rites and rituals. During this period Lord was worshipped in blue colour, holding mace and chakra. Whereas in Kali yugam, people worship the lord, again in blue colour, but a mere chanting and singing of His name is sufficient to invoke his blessings.
The present period, called Kali yugam, is indeed the best one, since just by merely chanting the name of the Lord, one can obtain His grace quickly, without any extra effort. Looking at this, those born earlier in Kritha, Tretha and Dwapara yugas feel that they should have born in Kali Yuga. The only problem with those born in Kali Yuga is that most of us are born with deficiencies in morality, driven by poisonous sensual pursuits. Let us pray to Lord, the slayer of Murari, not to deprive us of His grace because of this reason.
In the Kali Yugam, it is said that the number of devotees would go up in the South India (Dravidian land), especially in the regions of the rivers Kaaveri, Taamraparni and the Kritamaalaa, the holy west, the devotees will be found more in numbers. Those of us who are born in these regions and having some devotion to the Lord, let us pray not to delude us by binding us with ropes of desire, and to make our devotion to Lord complete.
Once king Pareekshit saw the merciless Kali (personified Kali Yuga) who is the enemy of Dharma (righteousness), and to kill him, he drew his sword also. But he did not kill Kali, because Kali is a knower of the essence of Truth, and also because it has some good features too. In Kali, Thy worship bears results very soon whereas evil deeds take time to bring fruits. Kali is also afraid of Lord's devotees, so he tries to take them away by disease etc., even before their devotion becomes firm. For this Lord shall punish Kali.
Sages have declared that, in Kali Yuga, eight deeds — bathing in river Ganges, study of Bhagavad Gita, recitation of Gayatri Mantra, offer of Tulasi leaf (balsam) to the Lord, offer Gopika Chandan, worship of Salagrama (stone image), fasting on Ekadasi days (eleven day of each fortnight) and chanting of Hari's holy names (even if done without understanding their meanings) - all of which need little effort, lead to swift liberation through propitiating the Lord. Let us pray to Lord that due to his grace we shall practice these with sincerity.
O Lord of the Universe! Who so ever, whole heartedly takes refuge in Thee, abandoning all actions, is no longer a debtor to the gods or sages, Pitris, or a servant to them. Even if he has done any misdeeds, they are destroyed by Thee who do reside in his heart. O Lord of Guruvaayur! Our sufferings, born of our sins, do remove and generate devotion in us.
Dasakam 93: List of 24 Natural Teachers to learn from:
With the grace of the Lord, and only then, we can win over the bondage with our relatives. With firm convictions of faith in Lord, we can free ourselves and wander around realising that all that exists are but the manifestations of Maya. Scriptures have prescribed various rules and regulations to be followed by us, which are applicable to all those who see things differently as good or bad due to false multiplicity, when in fact there is no such difference. But that would not bind a person who has renounced all and is deeply focused on the Lord always thereby crossing over all the differences.
Human life is much superior since we are able to discriminate things as good and bad, whereas all other countless animal beings are just intent on satisfying their anger and thirst. It is therefore an excellent opportunity to be born as a human being. Having born as a human, a person can be his own friend or an enemy. Those who adopt to spiritual practice and fully absorbed in Lord's thoughts become their own friends as they lead themselves to salvation. Rest are all their own foes.
One may wonder where to look for a teacher or a guru to lead us into the path of Bhakti. With the Supreme Lord spreading His light of knowledge equally all in the Universe, how can there be a shortage of a preceptor? We can learn valuable lessons by closely observing the Nature around us and gain many good qualities from them. For example, we can learn patience and self-control from Mother Earth, which, inspite of various abuses by many, remains unaffected. We can learn how to remain unattached with our surroundings by observing wind, which, though it is in touch with many and all objects, remains unaffected. We can learn the all pervasiveness of our souls or Selves, from the all pervasiveness of Space (Ether), which is present everywhere.
We can learn from water the art of purifying or cleaning all other objects, while remaining pure and sweet. From Fire, we can learn the art of remaining unaffected by what is being consumed by us. It also throws light on how Self remains inherent in all beings, just as Fire remains present but hidden in wood. From the Moon which remains unaffected by waxing and waning repeatedly, we can learn how to remain unaffected by our growth or decline, as such changes can only affect our bodies and not our souls. We can observe that though the reflections of the Sun from many objects such as water, mirror etc appear different, the source remains the same, i.e. the Sun. Much the same way, we learn that though the soul appears in different bodies with different shapes, the source remains the same, the Supreme Being.
Let us learn from the delicate dove birds, which dies when trying to protect its loved ones from a hunter, that we should not become prey to too much of attachment with anyone. Let us learn from Python which eats only what comes its way, that we should be content with what we get and not to worry too much for what we don't get. The silent deep ocean teaches us to remain calm and incapable of being fully understood by others. Let us learn from the moth, which is attracted by fire and falls dead, how we should not become a prey to the persuading sweet words of the opposite sex, and resist from being tempted. Let us learn from the bees, which suck only the honey from the flowers, how we should selectively enjoy wealth and partake the rest with all others around us.
Let us pray to Lord to protect us from becoming a prey to attractive personnel of opposite sex, unlike the male elephant, which is trapped by men using cow elephants. Let us not accumulate too much of wealth without sharing it to others, which may get snatched by the thieves, just as the honey bee loses its collections to the gatherers. Let the Lord protect us from getting charmed by sweet words of others, unlike the deer which gets stunned by wild music. Let the Lord protect us from becoming a prey to our own food cravings, just as the fish gets caught by a bait. Let us pray to Lord to grant us freedom from undue desire, peace of mind and good sleep. Let us pray to Lord to protect us from the attacks on our wealth, unlike the Kurara bird which is attacked by other birds when it carries meat.
Let us pray to Lord to bless us so that we will be immersed in pure happiness like an infant, which exhibits no pride in itself. May He allow us to wander freely without any company, all on our away from the hustle and buzzle of the daily life, like the single bangle on a lady's hand would not make any noise. Let us focus our mind on the Lord, not concerned about what is happening around us, in the same way a blacksmith would focus on the job of making an arrow, even if the royal possession is taking place around him. Let us not get attached to our house and live like a snake which lives in the rat-holes.
Spiders spin their webs from the material which comes out of its own body and then swallow them back after it is done with. We learn from them that Lord likewise creates the universe and the absorbs it back into Him. We learn from the beetles that by constantly meditating on the Lord, we can gain His form. We learn from our body, though it is filled with all kinds of filth and is of decaying nature, how to discriminate between good and bad and between self and non-self. Though our body is subjected to various illness, it reached us a way to salvation through Bhakti.
Let us pray yo Lord to help us in escaping the infatuation to our body, as a result of which one helplessly develops bondages with relatives, house, wealth etc, forgetting the very Lord who created us. Finally this body, when it dies, is fit only for consumption by Fire or dogs. But when it is alive, the body makes us run wild after our sense organs, which drags us everywhere in pursuit of pleasure but not seek after the Lord.
In case it is not possible to immediately defend our selves from infatuation towards our bodies, let us pray to Lord to relieve us of all our deficiencies and bring about within us deep love and devotion to Lord, so that our bodies will not merely succumb to temporary pleasures. Our birth as a superior human being has been obtained by us after several past lives and let us use it properly for attaining the lotus feet of the Lord.
Dasakam 94: Bhakti is the only Source of Enlightenment:
The Supreme Being is, in fact, immaculate, bodiless, taintless, all pervading and transcendent. Only those who perform desire-less actions, with their minds having achieved absolute purity, can understand these real aspects of the Lord, through their association with a proper Guru. All other common people associate the Lord of having a body, of stout or thin, diverse forms or of subtle form, since they understand bodies made of three Gunas (sativa, rajas, thamas) only. This is similar to people differentiating fire from different woods as small, big, bright or dim without realising that the true and unique nature of fire does not depend on the quality of wood.
Human knowledge consists of many tendencies and desires, which are an effect of past actions, and also the ignorance of identification with the body and the world. It is like a forest of different trees. When a person gains True knowledge, by association with a proper Guru, this action ignites fire of knowledge in the student, much the same way as fire is ignited by rubbing of fire sticks. This fire of knowledge consumes completely the forest of different tendencies in the person and when all the trees (tendencies) are fully burnt out, the flame subsides and the person merges with the Lord in total union.
One may wonder, if there is any other way of getting rid of our worries and sorrows, other than the above recommended method of merger with the Lord. There are many methods recommended in our shastras for reducing our miseries, such as cultivation of crops, imbibing of medicines, six-fold tactics adopted by kings for dealing with enemies, the six karmas enjoined on a Brahmana by Manusmriti, or the eight-limbed Yoga of Patanjali, but all these are of less effective in dealing with the situation. All these alternatives are not only hard to perform due to various difficulties, such as, lack of time, constraints on resources, capacity of the performer, etc. Even if some people end up performing such difficult tasks and obtain the desired results, they would become very proud of their achievement, and tend to forget the unseen hand of Lord, which in itself would ensure their decline fall back into the sufferings.
There is no place which is rid of fear, other than Vaikuntha, the abode of the Lord. Even Lord Brahma, Who lives in Sathyaloka, is in constant fear of pralaya (delusion) at the end of Time and always lives in fear. That being the case, how can we mortals live without fear, as we are constantly performing unrighteous activities, thus accumulating sins and undergo the hardships of hell on earth? Let us therefore pray to Lord, the bestower of boons, friend of the Lowly and an ocean of mercy, to help us in cutting of this bondage and redeem us.
When we merge with the Lord, through Bhakti yoga as explained above, the question of bondage or liberation does not arise. The twin aspects Lord, namely Maya and Knowledge (of Truth), are similar to dreaming and waking stages. Those who are in dreaming stage are like those bonded to worldly pursuits, who would always be eating their fruits of karma and repeatedly undergo joy and sufferings. Whereas, those liberated souls, would not be required to do so and always live in bliss.
For those having an impure mind, there is no use in describing the state of liberation, as they would anyway not understand it even if fully explained to them. The only way to purify their minds is the show devotion to Lord. Let us pray to Lord to purify our minds through intense devotion, by surrendering the fruits of action to his lotus feet, and let Him allow us to gain the realisation of Truth through a proper Guru and thus merge with the Lord.
There are many who are intent on study of Vedas, Scriptures and performing rituals, as a kind of mere formality, without any intention to understand the True nature of the Lord. Their efforts will not yield any results and will go in vain and is same as owning a cow that has not calved. Let us always speak the glory of the Lord, of His nature of Pure Consciousness, of His various incarnations and His sportive Leelas, which bring in joy to the listeners and remove the impurities in their minds.
Though we are not in the know of what the Supreme Being is really all about and with our little understanding of Him, let us focus only on dutifully performing His worship, the merciful One, Who liberated Shishupala. Let it so happen that we get to see His images, get in touch with those who are devotees of the Lord and fall at their feet. Let us always worship Him, sing in His praise, fall at His feet and chant of His glories and deeds.
Let us dedicate to Him all that happens to us. Let us be His servant. Let us engage ourselves only in His service like cleaning of the temples etc. Let us worship His four-armed form in the Sun, in the holy Fire, in the Brahmins, in the Aatman, etc. Let our hearts melt out of love and flow like a stream towards His lotus feet.
The Gopikas of Brindhavan are truly blessed, since due to their untainted devotion to Lord they attained True Bliss and merged with the Lord. This cannot be achieved even by charity, sacrifice, vows, disciplines, austerities or by following the methods of Saankhya Yoga. Only through attachment to Lord, the Gopikas were able to attain Bliss. Of all the devotees of the Lord, the Gopikas have occupied a special place in Lord's heart and are held in high esteem. May the Lord strengthen our devotion to Him.
Manasa Sancharare
Dasakam 95: Meditating on Lord's Form:
In the beginning of creation, the whole of creation, with all its souls, merged in a singular homogenous mass without any individual identities, was contained by Brahman or Vishnu in the form of Hyranya Gharbha, the Golden Egg. After the play of Maya began acting on it, due to the differentiation of Trigunas - Sattva, Rajas and Tamas - it evolved into various creations in its full splendour. Out of the three Gunas, Sattva, the pure goodness, is always the dominant one and over powers the other two, in the form of Bhakti or devotion. Over a period of time, the Sattva also dissolves itself, merging the individual soul with the Ultimate, defeating the effect of Maya.
When Sattva Guna predominates, the soul realises the harmfulness of sense enjoyments. Whereas, when the Rajas and Tamas are predominant, to abstain from worldly enjoyments becomes difficult, because the mind and the gunas are mutually interlinked. Lord had given an advise to this respect, addressing the Sages Sanaka and others, in the form of a swan that to control all these, devotion in Lord's Thuriya state alone is the only refuge.
There are many paths of welfare laid down to suit varying tastes of people as means of fulfilment. They lead to goals that yield only temporary and trivial pleasures. Krishna did describe to his friend, Uddhava, devotion as the most glorious path for attainment of supreme spiritual welfare of man. Where does the transient joys that people get by worldly pursuits, stand in comparison to the eternal bliss of devotion to the Lord!
A person whose mind is satisfied in total devotion, moves about happily in this world. One who has dropped all desires, for him, every place is full of joy, just like a fish living in deep waters, finds water everywhere. Such a person does not covet Indraloka or Brahmaa's residence or the attractive Yogic powers. The bliss of liberation coming of its own to him is also without his seeking.
The devotee is sometimes ensnared by sense pleasure, because of his senses not being in his control fully. But their devotion is so deep that the devotee cannot be conquered by the senses. Just as a well lit blazing fire burns down stacks and heaps of wood, in the same way the devotion burns away stacks of sins and sinful tendencies. When this happens, the false power of the senses do not stand any chance.
The mind is washed and purified when the heart melts with love, the hairs stand on end or tears of joy flow down the eyes. Those who are devoid of devotion cannot experience this delight at all. Just as, by constant use of medicinal collyrium the eyes can see the objects clearly, the mind clearly understands the subtle Truth by constant assimilation of Lord's stories and glories and purifying the soul in the process. This cannot be achieved by the use of Tarka sastra or arguments or by logic.
To practice meditation, we should sit erect in a comfortable pose (sukhaasana) and gaze at the tip of the nose. Then we should control vital breath energies through three fold pranayama, namely, Pooraka (inhalation), Khumbaka (retention of breathe) and Rechaka, exhalation. We should imagine the downward lotus in the heart as facing upward and imagine the sun, moon and fire above it with the Lord in a delicate dark blue form as the water bearing clouds, seated on the top.
Let us meditate on Lord's shining dark blue form which has lustrous hair, shining fish shaped earrings, a gentle smile with compassion flowing, lustre of Kaustubha spreading over the garlands and the big pearl necklaces, the Shreevatsa mark, a soft and charming abdomen, golden hued garment, comely well shaped thighs and lotus like tender feet.
Shreevatsam Mark
Again and again we shall concentrate with growing eagerness on all His limbs. Then I will fix my mind on Lord's lotus like face with a gentle smile. The fully absorbed mind in the Eternal Bliss Consciousness in a non-dual form will not think of anything else. Thus we shall remain steady in the advanced state of communion, by repeated effort.
As we master meditation on the Lord, the eight limbed Sidhdhis - Animaa etc., will indeed come to me jostling one another from nowhere. Realising that they only cause delay in our attainment of Lord, we shall not accept them but ignore them. Let us long for the Lord alone, the Plentitude of Bliss.
Dasakam 96: Lord's Glory:
Let us hear M.S. on Sriman Narayana:
This entire Universe is a personification of the mighty Lord! He alone is the Brahmaa perceptible. Among letters He is 'Akaaram'. Among Mantraas He is 'Om'. Among kings He is Manu and among sages, Bhrigu and also Naarada. Among Asuras He is Prahlaad. He is the 'Surabhi', the celestial cow among the animals and 'Garuda' among the birds. Among the serpents He is Ananta, the Adi Sesha. Among the rivers He is the heavenly 'Gangaa'.
Among persons devoted to the holy men, He is Bali; among sacrifices He is Japayoga; among heroes He is Arjuna; among devotees He is Uddhava. He is the strength of the strongest and grandeur of the majestic. There is no end to His glories. All things brilliant and outstanding are He alone. He is Jiva and Prakriti. There is nothing in this cosmos which is bereft of Him.
People in the four casts and the four aashramas, who perform their duties, as laid down in the Vedas, according to their position in life, with devotion and dedication to Lord, to them non-attachment sprouts and matures gradually but steadily. When they reach complete non-attachment, they give up these duties and attain the true knowledge of Lord. True knowledge is the experience that they are same as That Supreme Being, of the nature of Existence Consciousness and Bliss, the one indivisible in the divided entities and the cause of all but not caused by anything.
The three paths which lead to Thy attainment, in this world are, knowledge (Gyaana), action (Karma) and devotion (Bhakti). Those who are fully dispassionate towards everything in life, are competent for Gyaana marg. People who are subject to worldly attachments may take the path of Karma and dedicate all their doings to the Lord. To those who are neither intensely attached nor intensely dispassionate and also experience joy in thinking of the Lord, the path of Bhaakti is prescribed.
In this mortal world, as a result of good deeds, one easily gets knowledge or devotion to the Lord. Therefore, those in heaven, or those in hell, desire to be born here on earth only. By good fortune, we have this human body which is like a boat for crossing the ocean of Sansaara. Making our Guru the pilot of this boat, and with the Lord becoming the favourable wind, let us pray to Lord to safely take us across the ocean to the shores.
People who are attracted to the path of knowledge (Gyaana Yoga) seeking the non-manifest Brahman, keep on studying the Vedic revelations and Nyaaya Shaastra's logic; they exert themselves hard, and attain the ultimate goal at the end of many life times. Karma Yoga is also very difficult and far fetched from the ultimate goal, due to prolonged efforts. Certainly the path of devotion is indeed the easiest and a sweet one from the very beginning and it quickly leads a devotee to the Lord. May this Bhakti grow more and more in us.
Sage Vyaasa does not recommend excessive effort for seeking knowledge alone. After learning from the scriptures or from a Guru the truth of Brahman, those who takes refuge with firmness in devotion at Lord's feet, to him liberation is at hand. Meditation on Him is also not that easy, because of the wavering nature of the mind, but can be mastered soon with practice, with Lord's grace and with the attractiveness of Lord's enchanting form.
We become disinterested in the difficult path of Vedic rituals. Let us firmly place our faith in the narrations of Lord's stories etc. Even then, if we are not able to give up desires, we will indulge in the desires with the awareness of their harmfulness. Again, with determination, fixing our minds in the Lord will strengthen our devotion. When the Lord do abide in our hearts, attachments are soon fully destroyed.
There is a story of a Brahmin, who had lost all his earned wealth. He was scorned by his society for being a miser. He then acquired discrimination and purity of mind. He said that the people, or time, or Karmaa or planets were not the cause of his sorrow. His own mind was the cause, it being a product of the gunas. It super imposes the gunas on the ever free Aatman and attributes to it the doer ship. With this knowledge he peacefully attained to Lord. May we have that kind of peace of mind.
Long ago, King Pururavas (son of Ilaa), was deeply infatuated by Urvashi and enjoyed her company for long. Then he developed total renunciation and asserted that such enjoyment is trivial and wretched. He became fully devoted to the Lord, became free of all attachments and feeling fulfilled, he moved about freely as one liberated soul. May Lord Guruvayurappan uproot all our desires, make us the best of His devotees and free us of all our diseases.
Dasakam 97: Story of Sage Markandeya:
All entities in this world, knowledge, faith, work, residence, happiness, food etc., being constituted of the three gunas, are of different kinds and different gradations, such as, low, medium or high. But entities and activities pertaining to Lord, His temples and His worship are clearly beyond these three gunas, as He is of pure Sattva Guna only. By resorting to these, we will soon attain perfection.
With our minds fixed in Lord, we can live happily, dedicating all our actions to the Lord. We can go to the holy places, where His devotees go, or where they went in the past. We can maintain an equal minded treatment towards a robber or a Braahmin and also towards animals. Shedding the defective mental attitude of dishonour, honour, enmity, jealousy etc., we shall worship the Lord in all beings.
We should continue to worship in this way, i.e., treating all beings as equal, until we can clearly recognise the presence of the Lord in all beings. When the knowledge of such oneness suddenly dawns, we should move about with total identification with the Lord. Once the practice of Path of Devotion thus begins, the devotee cannot deviate from it. Therefore let us pray to Lord to set us on the captivating path of devotion.
In order to get firmly established in Bhakti, we need good health and long life. Fortunately, to achieve this, service at Lord's feet is the only medicine. Wonderful it is that the medicine is like drinking sweet milk. Long ago, Maarkandeya was told by an astrologer that his life span was of twelve years only. He worshipped intensely at Lord's feet for one year and when death approached, it was driven away by Lord's emissaries.
Always inclined towards worshipping the Lord, sage Maarkandeya was thus endowed with a blessing of living for ever. He continued to do penance on the banks of Pushpabhadraa river and revelled in incomparable bliss for six manvantras. In the seventh Manvantra, the new Indra, tried to seduce him with the help of celestial damsels, soft breeze and Manmatha, the god of love. They did not succeed, rather they were scorched by the heat generated by the sage's yoga. Who can overcome the Bhakti shown by Lord's devotees?
Thereafter, Naaraayana, along with His friend Nara appeared before Maarkandeya, and were repeatedly praised by him with great joy. Though Lord offered him various boons, he did not seek any of them, being fully satisfied to his innermost self with devotion to Thee. Then he wished to see Lord's Maayaa. Being ignorant of the sorrows caused by Maayaa, he chose this boon out of sheer curiosity.
As soon as the Lord left, the clouds were tossed about by unruly winds and torrential rains made the waters of the seven seas engulf, submerging the whole world. Maarkandeya wandered floating in these waters for millions of years. Exhausted, he saw far away, a wondrous Infant, with blue hued body, lying on a banyan leaf, with the toe placed in its lovely lotus mouth.
Maarkandeya was fully excited and he rushed to touch the child. He was drawn inside by the infant's breath. There he saw the expanse of the entire world. Then thrown out by the breath, he was looked at by the infant's sidelong glances. In great joy he approached the infant again, wanting to embrace it. Just then, the infant disappeared and he found himself in his aashram as before. The play of Maya.
Lord Shiva, along with Gauri, then appeared before Maarkandeya, desirous of seeing Vishnu's devotee. He gave the boons of freedom from old age and death etc., without being asked for, which the sage had also acquired by his penance. In this manner, Lord Shiva is also pleased by the worship of Lord Vishnu alone. This also clearly shows that Thou are Trinity itself Brahmaa, Vishnu and Shiva and also the inner controller of all.
In the Satyaloka, in three parts, placed one above the other are located the abodes of Brahmaa, Vishnu and Shiva. Above all, these is the realm of Vaikuntha which is free from the effects of Maayaa and Prakriti, there, in the Causal Waters as also in the house of cowherds, Gokula, the Lord shines in a pure Sattvic form as Sat Chit Brahman, the non-dual self.
Dasakam 98: Salutations to the Lord:
It is Brahaman, on whose base this universe is manifested, from which this universe became, into which it merges, which itself is the universe, who is transcended from this all, from whose illumination the universe is illumined, whose illumination it is. Again, who is far beyond all description and also from the mind's conception. Whose true nature the gods and sages do not know, what of other lesser beings. To That Krishna, Who is Brahaman itself, let us offer our salutations.
Lord takes birth here in this world for protecting it, undertakes many activities through His power of Maya and the interplay of tri-gunas, Vidhya as well as Avidhya. Though formless wonder of wonders and the liberator of all, He takes on many forms. O Vishnu! Supreme Bliss Infinite! Salutations to Thee.
The wisemen say that His form is said to be of neither bird or animal or of a human being, a god or a demon, a woman or a man, nor is it substance, function, species or attribute, existent or non-existent. Brahman can be understood only by such negation ("Neti Neti" - not this, not this) as mentioned in several Upanishads, and by what is left over. Only implied references are made to know the Supreme Bliss that shines. To That Brahman, let us offer salutations.
Brahman reflects Itself in Its Maayaa, and project the Mahat (whole of creation), Ahankaar (Ego), the five different Tanmaatraas (sound, touch, form, taste and smell), the group of five elements (fire, earth, space, air and water), and the senses, the mind etc., also. The whole universe is projected like a dream and the articles in the dream. Again withdrawing everything into Itself with Its power of Kaal (Time), like the tortoise drawing its legs inwards, an intense darkness is produced. Unaffected by this darkness, the Brahman shines. To That Brahman, let us offer our salutations.
Brahman, the only one cause of the universe, being in everything and conceivable in everything, It is described and spoken of as the Primeval Sound, Karma, Atom, Time and so on. In Vedanta that reality alone is called Purusha, Supreme Being, Pure Consciousness and Aatma, and by whose mere glance causes Maayaa to project the universe with various modifications. To that Lord Krishna, we offer our salutations.
Avidyaa, ignorance, which cannot be described as existent or non-existent or even both, projects the objective world, just as a rope is projected as a snake in darkness. When Avidyaa gets transformed into Vidyaa, as a result of God's grace flowing like a stream of light, coupled with hearing of some statements of the scriptures, it becomes the axe which cuts the forest of the objective world. To That Brahman, let us offer our salutations.
Even when this world is seen as existing, it is Thy non-dual self in Reality, just as there is gold in all ornaments and clay in all earthen pots and vessels. Just as for a dreamer, on waking up, darkness vanishes, a worn out rope is seen clearly. When knowledge dawns, it becomes crystal clear through the total assimilation of the objective world into Brahman, the substratum of all. To That Krishna! Let us offer our salutations.
Fearing whom the sun rises, the fire burns, the wind blows, and Brahmaa and others perform their functions at proper time. By whom alone they are raised to their places at the beginning of creation and later removed. To That Controller of the world! To Thee Krishna! We make prostrations.
Brahman manifests the three worlds comprising of the three gunas. Brahman alone is the meaning of the word made up of the three letters (AUM). Brahman is the one which manifests as the Trinity - Brahmaa, Vishnu and Shiva. Its true nature is sung of by the three Vedas. Brahman, as pure consciousness, is aware of the three states of waking, dream and sleep. Brahman takes incarnations in the three Yugas, and cover the whole world in three strides. In the three periods of time - past present and future, It remains unchanged. Let us always worship Him by means of three yogas - Gnyaana, Bhakti and Karma.
Brahman is eternal, pure, ever awake, ever shining Being, ever free, desire-less, beyond opposites, changeless, the source of all manifestations and holding of all values and good qualities, causeless, taintless from ignorance, emanating limitless glory, latent in the hearts of the non-attached, luminous with the light of concentrated Supreme Bliss.
O Vishnu! Thy irreversible wheel of time with its twelve spokes (months), and 360 teeth (days), whirling with ferocious speed, cutting the universe every moment, and running forward, may it not torment us, whose only refuge is at Thy feet. O Ocean of Compassion! O Lord of Guruvaayur! Save us all from hosts of ailments.
Dasakam 99: Vedas Praise Lord Vishnu:
Who can describe the magnificent qualities of Vishnu? Can any one count the sand particles on the Earth? This world was measured by Him by three steps of His and those in the world enjoy, endowed with all the wealth. It is Vishnu who supports all these worlds; may I attain His abode Vaikuntha, which is above everything else, which I love very much and where devotees experience supreme bless, as if nectarine honey is flowing.
O Lord! You are there before anything else appeared; You are the doer of everything (creation, sustenance and dissolution of the world etc); you appear to be new (different, fresh) every minute, and you are the repository of all material, psychic and spiritual wealth (vibhutis). Only the faithful devotee who offers you havis etc. in sacrifices and worships and recounts your supreme greatness in your incarnations as Krishna etc. becomes pleased, fulfilled and acclaimed and quickly reaches the goal of attaining your abode of Vaikuntha.
O Honoured Poets, who praise, glorify or acclaim (kings, etc.)! Glorify the very essence of the Vedas (Vishnu), the way you understand it the same way, with stories of His exploits and leelas in different incarnations. Knowing that His names are beneficial and auspicious for every one, do samkirtan i.e. singing his names with love and devotion. O Vishnu! By samkirtan, stuti etc. of your greatness may I gain knowledge of Your True Transcendental form (swarupa).
O Devotees of the Lord! Always visualise Vishnu’s exploits by which He protected and preserved dharma and what He did for the well-being of Indra, as a servant or as a friend. The Yogis always see the resplendent abode of Vaikuntha, which is above all the worlds and which the best among Brahmins, who are awakened, illumine with a profusion of praise.
O Vishnu! No one already born or yet to be born has reached and understood the limits of your greatness. Knowing that the mere chanting of Lord's name gives best benefits and is auspicious, I chant Your names again and again. With a variety of words of adulation, I praise You whose abode Vaikuntha is high above the three worlds
O Lord! The primordial water that came into being at the beginning of creation took You into its bosom. O Narayana who reclined (on Adishesha) in the primordial water! The souls of all beings together merged in You. O Lord who has no birth! From your navel sprouted a lotus which had the eight quarters (directions) as the petals and Meru as the convolutions. This lotus is said to be the form of the world.
O inhabitants of the world! Lord Vishnu has created this world. You do not know this. There is another form of Vishnu which is inside you. Your mind is covered by Maya as if by a fog; you are satisfied only by the enjoyment of objects of the senses; you are interested only in yagna (sacrifices); It is a matter of great concern that You have no love or devotion for Mukunda (Vishnu).
O Lord! With thousands of heads, eyes and feet You fill the whole of this Universe and beyond that. Not only that, You shine inside the heart, in a space like a very small spec. O Parapurusha! You are the past and the future and everything. Though You are immanent in the body, You transcend the senses and You are the enjoyer of supreme bliss sweet as nectar.
Though You have taken on the form of the three worlds, transcending it, You shine as infinite pure consciousness. Your magnificence is also as great. A small part of You is manifested as the whole world. The major portion, more than Three-fourth, the very embodiment of supreme bliss, shines above all the worlds.
O Lord! Your unmanifest (Nirguna) form is very difficult to understand and realise. Your pure Sattvic form of is manifest and it is easy to perceive. This Sattvic form is like the waves in the ocean of nectar. I take refuge in this Saguna form of Krishna, which surpasses everything, which captures the heart by the sweetness of its qualities. O Lord of Guruvayur! Save me from my ailments.
Dasakam 100:
This is the last chapter of Narayaneeyam. Krishna appears before Narayana Bhattatri and blesses him. The poet describes Krishna, as he saw with his eyes, while writing this last chapter.
The last line of Narayaneeyam is - “Long life, Health and happiness.”
On the 100th day, the Lord blessed him with His vision. Bhattathiri was overwhelmed with ecstasy and in the 100th Daskakam he cries out – ‘Agre Pashyami’ – "here I see him in front of me" – and he gives a vivid description of the most enchanting form of the Lord he saw – from head to toe – Keshaadi Paadam. From that day his ailments vanished and he got totally cured.
Here we go with the detailed description of Krishna, verbatim, as narrated:
Dasakam: 100-- Slokam: 01
अग्रे पश्यामि तेजो निबिडतरकलायावलीलोभनीयं
पीयूषाप्लावितोऽहं तदनु तदुदरे दिव्यकैशोरवेषम् ।
तारुण्यारम्भरम्यं परमसुखरसास्वादरोमाञ्चिताङ्गै-
रावीतं नारदाद्यैर्विलसदुपनिषत्सुन्दरीमण्डलैश्च ॥१॥
agre pashyaami tejO nibiDatara kalaayaavalii lObhaniiyaM
piiyuuShaaplaavitO(a)haM tadanu tadudare divyakaishOraveSham |
taaruNyaarambharamyaM paramasukha rasaasvaada rOmaa~nchitaangaiH
aaviitaM naaradaadyairvilasadupaniShat sundarii maNDalaishcha || 1
In front of me, I see a halo of light, as pretty as a very dense bed of blue lilies, which made me feel that I have been drenched by a shower of the sweet nectar. And then, I saw, in between that light, the form of a divine lad, Who was pretty due to the budding of adolescence, Who was experiencing the thrill of supreme bliss, as seen by his hair standing erect on all his limbs, Who was surrounded by Narada and other sages, as well as by a bevy of extremely pretty damsels.
Dasakam: 100-- Slokam: 02
नीलाभं कुञ्चिताग्रं घनममलतरं संयतं चारुभङ्ग्या
रत्नोत्तंसाभिरामं वलयितमुदयच्चन्द्रकै: पिञ्छजालै: ।
मन्दारस्रङ्निवीतं तव पृथुकबरीभारमालोकयेऽहं
स्निग्धश्वेतोर्ध्वपुण्ड्रामपि च सुललितां फालबालेन्दुवीथीम् ॥२
रत्नोत्तंसाभिरामं वलयितमुदयच्चन्द्रकै: पिञ्छजालै: ।
मन्दारस्रङ्निवीतं तव पृथुकबरीभारमालोकयेऽहं
स्निग्धश्वेतोर्ध्वपुण्ड्रामपि च सुललितां फालबालेन्दुवीथीम् ॥२
niilaabhaM ku~nchitaagraM ghanamamalataraM samyataM chaarubhangyaa
ratnOttamsaabhiraamaM valayitamudayachchandrakaiH pinchChajaalaiH |
mandaarasra~N niviitaM tava pR^ithukabariibhaaramaalOkaye(a)haM
snigdha shvetOrdhvapuNDraamapi cha sulalitaaM phaala baalenduviithiim || 2
I am seeing your big bundle of blue tresses, Which is curly, dense, pure and pretty, which is tied together by a garland of Mandhara flowers, which is extremely pretty due to your crest jewels, which is encircled with a cluster of peacock feathers, with their shining and glistening eyes. And I also see your pretty forehead, comparable to the crescent moon on the fifth day (after the new moon), on which there is a white vertical sandal paste.
Dasakam: 100-- Slokam: 03
हृद्यं पूर्णानुकम्पार्णवमृदुलहरीचञ्चलभ्रूविलासै-
रानीलस्निग्धपक्ष्मावलिपरिलसितं नेत्रयुग्मं विभो ते ।
सान्द्रच्छायं विशालारुणकमलदलाकारमामुग्धतारं
कारुण्यालोकलीलाशिशिरितभुवनं क्षिप्यतां मय्यनाथे ॥३॥
रानीलस्निग्धपक्ष्मावलिपरिलसितं नेत्रयुग्मं विभो ते ।
सान्द्रच्छायं विशालारुणकमलदलाकारमामुग्धतारं
कारुण्यालोकलीलाशिशिरितभुवनं क्षिप्यतां मय्यनाथे ॥३॥
hR^idyaM puurNaanukampaarNava mR^idulaharii cha~nchala bhruuvilaasaiH
aaniila snigdhapakshmaavali parilasitaM netrayugmaM vibhO te |
saandrachChaayaM vishaalaaruNa kamaladalaakaaramaamugdhataaraM
kaaruNyaalOkaliilaa shishirita bhuvanaM kshipyataaM mayyanaathe || 3
Oh Lord, let your eyes, which cools the entire world by its merciful looks, which are made more prettier by your eye brows, which move like the small tides of the completely filled ocean of mercy, which are further made prettier by the black gleaming eye lashes, which eyes are having the shape petals of red lotus. And within those eyes are the extremely pretty pupils, may be turned on me, who does not have any one except you.
Dasakam: 100-- Slokam: 04
उत्तुङ्गोल्लासिनासं हरिमणिमुकुरप्रोल्लसद्गण्डपाली-
व्यालोलत्कर्णपाशाञ्चितमकरमणीकुण्डलद्वन्द्वदीप्रम् ।
उन्मीलद्दन्तपङ्क्तिस्फुरदरुणतरच्छायबिम्बाधरान्त:-
प्रीतिप्रस्यन्दिमन्दस्मितमधुरतरं वक्त्रमुद्भासतां मे ॥४॥
व्यालोलत्कर्णपाशाञ्चितमकरमणीकुण्डलद्वन्द्वदीप्रम् ।
उन्मीलद्दन्तपङ्क्तिस्फुरदरुणतरच्छायबिम्बाधरान्त:-
प्रीतिप्रस्यन्दिमन्दस्मितमधुरतरं वक्त्रमुद्भासतां मे ॥४॥
uttungOllaasinaasaM harimaNi mukura prOllasad gaNDapaalii
vyaalOlatkarNapaashaa~nchita makaramaNii kuNDaladvandvadiipram |
unmiiladdantapankti sphuradaruNatarachChaaya bimbaadharaantaH
priitiprasyandi mandasmita madhurataraM vaktramudbhaasataaM me ||4
Let me be able to see clearly your very sweet face, with a well raised and shining nose, with the pair of shining gem ear studs, in the shape of fish, worn on your pretty ears, whose reflection on your blue sapphire cheeks shines as it moves hither and thither, and with a gentle smile between the slightly parted red cherry lips of yours, revealing the sparkling rows of your white teeth
Dasakam: 100-- Slokam: 05
बाहुद्वन्द्वेन रत्नोज्ज्वलवलयभृता शोणपाणिप्रवाले-
नोपात्तां वेणुनाली प्रसृतनखमयूखाङ्गुलीसङ्गशाराम् ।
कृत्वा वक्त्रारविन्दे सुमधुरविकसद्रागमुद्भाव्यमानै:
शब्दब्रह्मामृतैस्त्वं शिशिरितभुवनै: सिञ्च मे कर्णवीथीम् ॥५॥
नोपात्तां वेणुनाली प्रसृतनखमयूखाङ्गुलीसङ्गशाराम् ।
कृत्वा वक्त्रारविन्दे सुमधुरविकसद्रागमुद्भाव्यमानै:
शब्दब्रह्मामृतैस्त्वं शिशिरितभुवनै: सिञ्च मे कर्णवीथीम् ॥५॥
baahudvandvena ratnOjjvala valayabhR^itaa shONa paaNipravaale
nOpaattaaM veNunaaliiM prasR^ita nakhamayuukhaanguliisangashaaraam |
kR^itvaa vaktraaravinde sumadhura vikasadraagamudbhaavyamaanaiH
shabda brahmaamR^itaistvaM shishirita bhuvanaiH si~nchame karNaviithiim || 5
May you cool my ears with the nectarine divine music, consisting of very sweet and well played melodies, which cools the entire world, emanating from the holes of the flute held by your two red soft hands, which are decorated by the bangles inlaid with precious gems, and which have acquired a multi-coloured hue due to contact of your fingers, and which is kept very near your lotus like face, by the shifting touches of your radiating fingers.
Dasakam: 100-- Slokam: 06
उत्सर्पत्कौस्तुभश्रीततिभिररुणितं कोमलं कण्ठदेशं
वक्ष: श्रीवत्सरम्यं तरलतरसमुद्दीप्रहारप्रतानम् ।
नानावर्णप्रसूनावलिकिसलयिनीं वन्यमालां विलोल-
ल्लोलम्बां लम्बमानामुरसि तव तथा भावये रत्नमालाम् ॥६॥
वक्ष: श्रीवत्सरम्यं तरलतरसमुद्दीप्रहारप्रतानम् ।
नानावर्णप्रसूनावलिकिसलयिनीं वन्यमालां विलोल-
ल्लोलम्बां लम्बमानामुरसि तव तथा भावये रत्नमालाम् ॥६॥
utsarpatkaustubhashriitatibhiraruNitaM kOmalaM kaNThadeshaM
vakshaH shriivatsaramyaM taralatara samuddiipra haara prataanam |
naanaavarNaprasuunaavali kisalayiniiM vanyamaalaaM vilOlallOlambaaM
lambamaanaamurasi tava tathaa bhaavaye ratnamaalaam || 6
I meditate on your very pretty neck, made red by the radiating Kausthubha gem worn by you. And also on your chest made very pretty by the Sri Vathsa, where you have worn several moving gem studded necklaces. And also on the garlands made of multi-coloured forest flowers, as well as blossoms, over which many bees hover round and round. And also over the necklaces of precious stones, spread over your chest.
Dasakam: 100-- Slokam: 07
अङ्गे पञ्चाङ्गरागैरतिशयविकसत्सौरभाकृष्टलोकं
लीनानेकत्रिलोकीविततिमपि कृशां बिभ्रतं मध्यवल्लीम् ।
शक्राश्मन्यस्ततप्तोज्ज्वलकनकनिभं पीतचेलं दधानं
ध्यायामो दीप्तरश्मिस्फुटमणिरशनाकिङ्किणीमण्डितं त्वां ॥७॥
लीनानेकत्रिलोकीविततिमपि कृशां बिभ्रतं मध्यवल्लीम् ।
शक्राश्मन्यस्ततप्तोज्ज्वलकनकनिभं पीतचेलं दधानं
ध्यायामो दीप्तरश्मिस्फुटमणिरशनाकिङ्किणीमण्डितं त्वां ॥७॥
ange pa~nchaangaraagairatishaya vikasat saurabhaakR^iShTalOkaM
liinaaneka trilOkii vitatimapi kR^ishaaM bibhrataM madhyavalliim |
shakraashmanyasta taptOjvala kanakanibhaM piita chelaM dadhaanaM
dhyaayaamO diiptarashmi sphuTamaNirashanaa kinkiNii maNDitaM tvaam || 7
I meditate on Thee, the paste of five ingredients smeared on whose body attracts the whole world by the spreading of its fragrance. We meditate on Thee, whose midriff waist is slender and creeper-like, even though it holds all the three worlds within. We meditate on Thee whose body is like a rock of sapphire, and is adorned by a yellow silk cloth, which is shining like molten gold and wearing a girdle made of studded gems and with mini-bells on it, emitting brilliant rays.
Dasakam: 100-- Slokam: 08
ऊरू चारू तवोरू घनमसृणरुचौ चित्तचोरौ रमाया:
विश्वक्षोभं विशङ्क्य ध्रुवमनिशमुभौ पीतचेलावृताङ्गौ ।
आनम्राणां पुरस्तान्न्यसनधृतसमस्तार्थपालीसमुद्ग-
च्छायं जानुद्वयं च क्रमपृथुलमनोज्ञे च जङ्घे निषेवे ॥८॥
विश्वक्षोभं विशङ्क्य ध्रुवमनिशमुभौ पीतचेलावृताङ्गौ ।
आनम्राणां पुरस्तान्न्यसनधृतसमस्तार्थपालीसमुद्ग-
च्छायं जानुद्वयं च क्रमपृथुलमनोज्ञे च जङ्घे निषेवे ॥८॥
uuruu chaaruu tavOruu ghanamasR^iNaruchau chittachOrau ramaayaaH
vishvakshObhaM vishankya dhruvamanishamubhau piita chelaavR^itaangau |
aanamraaNaaM purastaannyasana dhR^itasamastaartha paalii samudgachChaayaM
jaanudvayancha kramapR^ithula manOj~ne cha janghe niSheve || 8
I meditate on Thy two handsome thighs, which are solid soft and charming, stealing everyone's heart. Fearing to excite the whole world, definitely, they are always covered with yellow silk cloth. Thy two knees, are like two caskets, holding all the desired objects for Thy devotees, and Thy two fore-legs are beautifully tapered and fleshy.
Dasakam: 100-- Slokam: 09
मञ्जीरं मञ्जुनादैरिव पदभजनं श्रेय इत्यालपन्तं
पादाग्रं भ्रान्तिमज्जत्प्रणतजनमनोमन्दरोद्धारकूर्मम् ।
उत्तुङ्गाताम्रराजन्नखरहिमकरज्योत्स्नया चाऽश्रितानां
सन्तापध्वान्तहन्त्रीं ततिमनुकलये मङ्गलामङ्गुलीनाम् ॥९॥
पादाग्रं भ्रान्तिमज्जत्प्रणतजनमनोमन्दरोद्धारकूर्मम् ।
उत्तुङ्गाताम्रराजन्नखरहिमकरज्योत्स्नया चाऽश्रितानां
सन्तापध्वान्तहन्त्रीं ततिमनुकलये मङ्गलामङ्गुलीनाम् ॥९॥
ma~njiiraM ma~njunaadairiva padabhajanaM shreya ityaalapantaM
paadaagraM bhraanti majjat praNata jana manO mandarOddhaarakuurmam |
uttungaataamra raajannakhara himakara jyOtsnayaa chaashritaanaaM
santaapa dhvaanta hantriiM tatimanukalaye mangalaamanguliinaam || 9
I meditate on your anklets, which by the sweet noise it produces, seems to tell your devotees that singing about your feet would do good. And meditate on the upper part of your feet (which are like a tortoise which lifted the Mandara mountain) that lifts high the minds of the devotees, who are getting drowned in illusion. And also I meditate on the auspicious rows of your toes, which have a raised middle and shine with light red colour. And by the light of crescents on them, removes the darkness of sorrow of your devotees and also does them good.
Dasakam: 100-- Slokam: 10
योगीन्द्राणां त्वदङ्गेष्वधिकसुमधुरं मुक्तिभाजां निवासो
भक्तानां कामवर्षद्युतरुकिसलयं नाथ ते पादमूलम् ।
नित्यं चित्तस्थितं मे पवनपुरपते कृष्ण कारुण्यसिन्धो
हृत्वा निश्शेषतापान् प्रदिशतु परमानन्दसन्दोहलक्ष्मीम् ॥१०॥
भक्तानां कामवर्षद्युतरुकिसलयं नाथ ते पादमूलम् ।
नित्यं चित्तस्थितं मे पवनपुरपते कृष्ण कारुण्यसिन्धो
हृत्वा निश्शेषतापान् प्रदिशतु परमानन्दसन्दोहलक्ष्मीम् ॥१०॥
yOgiindraaNaaM tvadangeShvadhikasumadhuraM mukti bhaajaaM nivaasO
bhaktaanaaM kaamavarSha dyutaru kisalayaM naatha te paadamuulam |
nityaM chittasthitaM me pavanapurapate kR^iShNa kaaruNyasindhO
hR^itvaa nishsheShataapaan pradishatu paramaananda sandOhalakshmiim || 10
Oh God! Oh Lord of Guruvayur! Oh Krishna! Oh Ocean of Mercy! Let the soles of your feet which is the sweetest part of your body to the great sages, which is the place of those who attained salvation, which is the tender sprout of the wish giving tree that showers the fulfilment of all the wishes and desires of your devotees. Let this be firmly kept in my mind so that all my sorrows are destroyed and confer on me the flood of prosperity of the Supreme Bliss.
Dasakam: 100-- Slokam: 11
अज्ञात्वा ते महत्वं यदिह निगदितं विश्वनाथ क्षमेथा:
स्तोत्रं चैतत्सहस्रोत्तरमधिकतरं त्वत्प्रसादाय भूयात् ।
द्वेधा नारायणीयं श्रुतिषु च जनुषा स्तुत्यतावर्णनेन
स्फीतं लीलावतारैरिदमिह कुरुतामायुरारोग्यसौख्यम् ॥११॥
स्तोत्रं चैतत्सहस्रोत्तरमधिकतरं त्वत्प्रसादाय भूयात् ।
द्वेधा नारायणीयं श्रुतिषु च जनुषा स्तुत्यतावर्णनेन
स्फीतं लीलावतारैरिदमिह कुरुतामायुरारोग्यसौख्यम् ॥११॥
aj~naatvaa te mahattvaM yadiha nigaditaM vishvanaatha kshamethaaH
stOtraM chaitatsahasrOttaramadhikataraM tvatprasaadaaya bhuuyaat |
dvedhaa naaraayaNiiyaM shrutiShu cha januShaa stutyataa varNanena
sphiitaM liilaavataarairidamiha kurutaamaayuraarOgya saukhyam ||11
Oh Lord of the universe! Please pardon me for writing this stotra, without knowing your greatness properly and this prayer having more than one thousand stanzas should be blessed by you with all your grace as this which is called Narayaneeyam is both about Narayana as well as that which is written by Narayana. And as the Vedas reveal that God is one who is known by his incarnation, this prayer has been well fortified by the stories on incarnation of God. May the great Lord kindly grant a healthy pleasant long life to all of us.
Concluding Remarks:
The unique features of Narayananeeyam, which endear it to devotees, are – firstly it has been written in great pain and agony and so echoes the poet’s heart felt prayer and high devotion. Secondly it is written in first person singular as a direct conversation with the Lord. So anybody reading it would also be addressing the Lord directly in person. This has a magnetic effect of the devotee’s nearness to the Lord. Thirdly, since this hymn has practically demonstrated the cure of the poet’s disease, tonic for – Aayu, Aarogya, Sauchyam – longevity, health and happiness, for all those who approach it with sincerity of faith and devotion.
For the benefit of those who wish to hear the Narayaneeyam discourse by Brahma Sree Anantarama Dhikshidar, appending the following links:
ANANTHARAMA DHEEKSHIDAR'S COMMENTARIES:
PART - 2 - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAZ0dORTO8w
Effect of reading the Dasakams, as mentioned in various texts:
02 Would be respected in heaven
12 Would get great positions
13 Would get wealth long life and fame
15 Would reach the lotus like feet of Vishnu
16 Would get long life , Committed sins would be destroyed
17 Dangers would be avoided
18 Would get victory, would be blessed with children
19 Would be blessed with detachment
22 Mind would not get attracted by bad actions
23 Would get rid of fear, sins would be destroyed
24 Would be blessed with detachment
25 Would be protected again dangers
26 Would get rid of sins , mind will be firm when dangers come
27 28 Would be victorious in all jobs, would get great fame
30 &31 Would get rid of all sins, would get salvation
32 All desires would be fulfilled
33 Devotion would increase
40 Devotion would increase
51 All wishes would be fulfilled
52 All wishes would be fulfilled
60 (1 -3 stanza) Would get married quickly
69 Would get great devotion, ignorance would be wiped out
80 Sins would vanish, Gossip will not defame us
82 Would get victory in all jobs
83 All sins would vanish
85 Problems in life would vanish
87 Would get wealth, Would get detachment
88 Problems would get solved
89 (Stanza 7 -10) Would get salvation, problems would not occur
97 Would get detachment
100 Long life, happiness and health would result
I PRAY TO LORD KRISHNA TO ALLEVIATE ALL YOUR TROUBLES.
No comments:
Post a Comment