॥ ॐ नमो भगवते वासुदेवाय ॥
21 May 2023, Sunday - Srimad Bhagavatam X b.50 - This begins the second part of Dashamaskandha. Jarasandha attacks Mathura seventeen times with a huge army. Sri Krishna and Balarama drive him away but spare his life. When he attacks the eighteenth time, Sri Krishna creates Dwaraka, a divine city safe from attack.
***
The daughters of King Jarasandha of Magadha named Asti and Prapti were widowed by the death of his son-in-law, Kamsa. They went to their father's home crying about their fate. Jarasandha was an extremely powerful and evil king who decided to avenge the death of Kamsa. He came with a very huge army ( 23 Akshauhinis, bigger than the combined armies in the Mahabharata war.) Sri Krishna and Balarama decided to defend Mathura against this attack and destroy the enemy army that looked like a tsunami wave. After all, this incarnation of Sri Krishna was to eradicate the evil of undesirable kings from the face of this earth. Just in accordance with Bhagavan's decision, two divine chariots filled with several weapons descended from heaven. Balarama followed Sri Krishna's instruction that this was their moment to start cleansing the earth of evil Kshatriyas. They both put on the armour in the chariots and approached the battlefield in their respective chariots. They sounded their conches that made such a huge impact that Jarasandha's soldiers tottered in fear.
Seeing the young brothers in their chariots, Jarasandha shouted to Sri Krishna, "Oh, you rascal Krishna! I have come here to show the world what happens to people like you. You have killed your own uncle. Better you save yourself and run away. Balarama, you seem a bit bigger and can perhaps face me. You will probably go to heaven fighting unless you defeat me."
श्रीभगवानुवाच
न वै शूरा विकत्थन्ते दर्शयन्त्येव पौरुषम् । न गृह्णीमो वचो राजन्नातुरस्य मुमूर्षतः ॥
T: Sri Krishna replied, " Indeed, Jarasandha! Any great warrior will not boast like you are doing. Like one should ignore the words of a dying man blabbering in a delirium, I ignore your words. Come and face us!"
श्रीशुक उवाच
जरासुतस्तावभिसृत्य माधवौ महाबलौघेन बलीयसाऽऽवृणोत् ।
ससैन्ययानध्वजवाजिसारथी सूर्यानलौ वायुरिवाभ्ररेणुभिः ॥
सुपर्णतालध्वजचिह्नितौ रथावलक्षयन्त्यो हरिरामयोर्मृधे ।
स्त्रियः पुराट्टालकहर्म्यगोपुरं समाश्रिताः सम्मुमुहुः शुचार्दिताः ॥
हरिः परानीकपयोमुचां मुहुः शिलीमुखात्युल्बणवर्षपीडितम् ।
स्वसैन्यमालोक्य सुरासुरार्चितं व्यस्फूर्जयच्छार्ङ्गशरासनोत्तमम् ॥
गृह्णन् निषङ्गादथ सन्दधच्छरान्विकृष्य मुञ्चन् शितबाणपूगान् ।
निघ्नन् रथान् कुञ्जरवाजिपत्तीन्नि रन्तरं यद्वदलातचक्रम् ॥
T: Sage Shuka narrated: The war was most fierce as the huge army surrounded the brothers in attack, raising blinding dust. None could see the chariots of Balarama and Sri Krishna with their flags of Palm Tree and Garuda. The womenfolk of Mathura saw this from their terraces and began to murmur in utter anxiety that Sri Krishna and Balarama would be in distress surrounded by such a mighty army.
Sri Krishna picked up the Sharnga bow sent as an offering by Indra. He shot countless arrows that systematically decimated the Jarasandha army. At that moment, Sri Krishna's Sharnga bow looked like a rapidly spinning wheel of fire. Soon the battlefield was a river of blood shed by the enemy soldiers and their weapons and dead bodies and chariots looked like flotsam in a rapidly flowing river.
Soon, Balarama was able to destroy everyone else and only Jarasandha, stranded without his chariot, was left. As Balarama went and caught hold of him by his hair and was about to kill him, Sri Krishna shouted, "Dear Brother, don't kill Jarasandha! Let him go. There is a reason why we should spare him now (as he will play a role in the future turn of events serving our cause by his evil conduct!)
Thus, Jarasandha returned utterly humiliated. Sri Krishna's incarnation was now entering the second phase where Sri Krishna was restoring Dharma among kings by cleansing the earth of evil.
The people of Mathura as well as all the gods celebrated Sri Krishna's victory with trumpets, drums, songs, and a shower of flowers and sacred grains on Sri Krishna and Balarama as they entered Mathura victorious.
Jarasandha soon returned with an equally big army. The result was the same. Thus, every time he came and attacked with his huge army, everyone would be killed by Sri Krishna and Balarama, but he would be spared. He did not bother to think why. But he attacked seventeen times like this.
अष्टादशमसङ्ग्रामे आगामिनि तदन्तरा । नारदप्रेषितो वीरो यवनः प्रत्यदृश्यत ॥
T: Jarasandha came an eighteenth time. On a provocation by Sage Narada, simultaneously, an adversary by the name of Kalayavana (literally means a foreign invader). He came with an army of 3 crore soldiers from abroad. Kalayavana was invincible and none could kill him.
This time, Sri Krishna said, "Enough of these attacks on the peaceable folk of Mathura. Jarasandha and Kalayavana are going to attack on two sides and this is not good for the people of Mathura. We cannot simultaneously fight two such formidable enemies. The safe thing is to relocate ourselves beyond the reach of Jarasandha."
Sri Krishna decided to create an impenetrable fort on an island in the sea. He summoned the architect of gods, Vishwakarma. He explained to him what kind of a city was to be created at once. Vishwakarma did so overnight. What emerged was the famed city of Dwaraka.
इति सम्मन्त्र्य भगवान् दुर्गं द्वादशयोजनम् । अन्तःसमुद्रे नगरं कृत्स्नाद्भुतमचीकरत् ॥
दृश्यते यत्र हि त्वाष्ट्रं विज्ञानं शिल्पनैपुणम् । रथ्याचत्वरवीथीभिर्यथावास्तु विनिर्मितम् ॥
सुरद्रुमलतोद्यानविचित्रोपवनान्वितम् । हेमशृङ्गैर्दिविस्पृग्भिः स्फटिकाट्टालगोपुरैः ॥
राजतारकुटैः कोष्ठैर्हेमकुम्भैरलङ्कृतैः ।रत्नकूटैर्गृहैर्हैमैर्महामारकतस्थलैः ॥
वास्तोष्पतीनां च गृहैर्वलभीभिश्च निर्मितम् ।चातुर्वर्ण्यजनाकीर्णं यदुदेवगृहोल्लसत् ॥
सुधर्मां पारिजातं च महेन्द्रः प्राहिणोद्धरेः । यत्र चावस्थितो मर्त्यो मर्त्यधर्मैर्न युज्यते ॥
श्यामैककर्णान् वरुणो हयान् शुक्लान् मनोजवान् ।
अष्टौ निधिपतिः कोशान् लोकपालो निजोदयान् ॥
यद्यद्भगवता दत्तमाधिपत्यं स्वसिद्धये । सर्वं प्रत्यर्पयामासुर्हरौ भूमिगते नृप ॥
T: In the construction of that city could be seen the full scientific knowledge and architectural skill of Vishwakarma. There were wide avenues, and commercial districts set in wide open spaces along with splendid parks, and gardens stocked with trees and creepers. There were golden turrets on gateway towers that touched the sky. Houses were beautifully set up, with a shrine for prayer in each. Sri Krishna's palace was magnifient. Indra's gift was the Sudharma Hall. It conferred immortality for anyone who entered. He also gifted the famed Parijata tree. Varuna gave swift horses, Kubera offered mystic treasures as did other gods. In fact, the gods conferred all the powers they had gotten from Maha Vishnu for the fulfilment of His avatara.
तत्र योगप्रभावेण नीत्वा सर्वजनं हरिः । प्रजापालेन रामेण कृष्णः समनुमन्त्रितः ।
निर्जगाम पुरद्वारात्पद्ममाली निरायुधः ॥
T; Using his Yogic Maya Shakti, Bhagavan teleported all the citizens of Mathura instantly to Dwaraka to be protected and ruled by Balarama. What remained in Mathura was a ghost city with nothing worthwhile.
The ultimate Leela Manusha Vigraha, the Lord who enacted His divine sport always as a human, now went forward to encounter the enemy at the gate of Mathura, wearing a garland of lotuses but bearing no weapons! More divine acts were soon to follow.
