The Story Of Krishna

 In the earthly realm, the number of demons who were kings in name only had increased so much that the Earth Goddess, unable to bear the burden, went to Brahma to plead her case. Taking her with him, Brahma, surrounded by the gods and accompanied by Shiva, went to see Vishnu, the resident of the milky ocean.

A divine, disembodied voice resounded there. Hearing it, Brahma told the gods, "Lord Srinivasa is already aware of the Earth Goddess's sorrow. Therefore, he is going to incarnate as a human in the Yadu dynasty on Earth. So, the gods and celestial nymphs must also take birth on Earth and remain there for as long as the Lord roams the world to reduce its burden."

The head of the Yadu clan, King Surasena, ruled that land from Mathura. His son, Vasudeva, set out on a chariot with his wife, Devaki. Kamsa, the son of Ugrasena and Devaki's older brother who loved her deeply, held the reins as the charioteer. Suddenly, a disembodied voice cried out, "O foolish one, the eighth child of the woman you are taking with you will be your killer!"

Hearing this, Kamsa was enraged and drew his sword to kill Devaki. Vasudeva pacified him with many kind words and promised to hand over all the children born to them. Vasudeva's thought was that he had to save Devaki's life at that moment, regardless of whether they had children, Kamsa died, or the divine prophecy came true.

However, the very next year, Devaki gave birth to a son named Kirti Varman. Kamsa was pleased when Vasudeva came with his son, as promised. He sent them away, saying, "You can take this child; the prophecy was about the eighth child, not this one."

But then, Narada came to Kamsa's court and told him that Vishnu was about to incarnate on Earth and that everyone related to Vasudeva were gods, while Kamsa's people were demons. Kamsa, believing that every new birth was a potential Vishnu sent to kill him, began to kill all the infants. He also started ruling the country and tormenting the Yadavas.

After Devaki's first six children were killed, Adisesha came as her seventh pregnancy. At that time, Vishnu, the supreme being who protects everyone, commanded Yogamaya, "You must go to Gokul and take my form of Adisesha from Devaki's womb and place him in the womb of Vasudeva's other wife, Rohini, who is living there hidden from Kamsa."

"Oh, auspicious one," he continued, "after that, I will be born as Devaki's son, and you shall be born to Yasoda."

"People will worship you with names like Durga, Kali, Vijaya, Vaishnavi, Isha, and Sharada, and will establish places for you to be worshipped. Adisesha, who was drawn from you, will be called Samkarshana on this earth, and because of his sweet nature, he will be called Rama. Because he is very strong, he will be called Balabhadra or Balarama."

As Yogamaya carried out her orders, Devaki, who had awakened from her sleep, felt as if her pregnancy had been lost.

During her next pregnancy, Devaki's face blossomed, and she glowed with a new radiance. Kamsa was now certain that the Vishnu who would kill him was in her womb because she had never looked like this before!

When the time for the Lord's incarnation drew near, the birth star Rohini rose. In the darkness of midnight, as Janardana was born, the gods showered flowers upon him.

Vasudeva saw the magnificent child, who had lotus-like eyes, four arms, and was holding a conch, discus, and other weapons. The child had the Srivatsa mark on his chest, the Kaustubha gem on his neck, and was clad in a yellow silk garment. Vasudeva folded his hands and began to praise the child.

In that brightly lit birthing room, Devaki looked at her son, who had the marks of a supreme being, and pleaded, "Please protect us, who are afraid of Kamsa. Please hide this great form of yours from those with mortal eyes." She added that it was a marvel that this form, which protects all living beings at the time of the great dissolution, had appeared in her womb in the human world.

The Lord replied, "Mother, in your previous life, when you were a couple named Prishni and Sutapas, you lived without a child. When I appeared before you, you did not ask for liberation but rather asked that I be born as your son. Since there is no one like me in all three worlds, I was born in your womb with the name Prishnigarbha."

"Then, when you were born as Aditi and Kashyapa, I incarnated as Upendra and was called Vamana because of my dwarf form. And now, I have been born to you for a third time, fulfilling my promise. I showed you this divine form only to remind you of your past lives," he said. "Take me to Gokul and bring back the Yogamaya girl who was born to Yasoda. The Yamuna will make way for you."

The Supreme Being, who dispels the fears of his devotees, gave Vasudeva extraordinary courage. By the power of Yogamaya, everyone fell into a deep sleep, losing their senses. All the doors opened. Adisesha held his hood like an umbrella, and the child reached Gokul without getting wet in the rain. Yasoda was not aware of whether she had given birth to a boy or a girl.

Vasudeva, who took the daughter of Nandagopa and Yasoda, returned as a prisoner just as before. The doors closed. The sound of the baby's crying woke the guards, who informed Kamsa.

In the birthing room, Devaki begged Kamsa to spare at least this girl, but the demonic Kamsa grabbed the baby by her feet and threw her against the stone floor. Immediately, the child, who was the sister of Vishnu, appeared before him as Ambika with eight arms and wielding weapons. She said, "Fool, the one who will kill you has already been born somewhere else. Do not torment the innocent," and then vanished.

Hearing this, Kamsa cried, "I listened to the disembodied voice and tormented you, committing the sin of Brahmahathi (the sin of killing a brahmin)." He then released them.

After consulting with his ministers, Kamsa ordered that all children, both ten days old and older, be killed.

At the time when Krishna, the world's master of immeasurable glory, was born in Nandagopa's Gokul, the cowherds were overjoyed, playing various musical instruments.

Nandagopa, who had come to Mathura to pay tribute to Kamsa, met Vasudeva and described the events in Gokul. Vasudeva warned him of signs of danger in Gokul and told him to return immediately.

Putana, sent by Kamsa, took human form and gave her breast to Krishna to kill him. But the Lord sucked her life out along with her milk, ending her life.

Putana, who had come with the intention of doing harm, attained a good afterlife like a mother because she had breastfed the Lord. Her dead body gave off a fragrance of agarwood.

After that, Krishna killed several other demons sent by Kamsa. The residents of Gokul witnessed and enjoyed the many playful acts he performed as a child.

The events described above are known to all of us, so why should we read them again?

Just as those who see, drink, or bathe in the waters of the Ganges, which flows from the Lord's feet, are purified, so is listening to the story of Vasudeva Krishna. It grants a good afterlife to the speaker, the one who encourages the telling, and the listener.

Jai Shri Krishna!

Source: Srimad Bhagavatha Saram