Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 1: “Creation”
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Chapter Eight

Prayers by Queen Kunti and Pariksit Saved

SB1.8.1

TEXT 1

suta uvaca

atha te samparetanam

svanam udakam icchatam

datum sakrsna gangayam

puraskrtya yayuh striyah

SYNONYMS

sutah uvaca—Suta said; atha—thus; te—the Pandavas; samparetanam—of the dead; svanam—of the relatives; udakam—water; icchatam—willing to have; datum—to deliver; sa-krsnah—along with Draupadi; gangayam—on the Ganges; puraskrtya—putting in the front; yayuh—went; striyah—the women.

TRANSLATION

Suta Gosvami said: Thereafter the Pandavas, desiring to deliver water to the dead relatives who had desired it, went to the Ganges with Draupadi. The ladies walked in front.

PURPORT

To date it is the custom in Hindu society to go to the Ganges or any other sacred river to take bath when death occurs in the family. Each of the family members pours out a potful of the Ganges water for the departed soul and walks in a procession, with the ladies in the front. The Pandavas also followed the rules more than five thousand years ago. Lord Krsna, being a cousin of the Pandavas, was also amongst the family members.

SB1.8.2

TEXT 2

te niniyodakam sarve

vilapya ca bhrsam punah

apluta hari-padabja-

rajah-puta-sarij-jale

SYNONYMS

te—all of them; niniya—having offered; udakam—water; sarve—every one of them; vilapya—having lamented; ca—and; bhrsam—sufficiently; punah—again; aplutah—took bath; hari-padabja—the lotus feet of the Lord; rajah—dust; puta—purified; sarit—of the Ganges; jale—in the water.

TRANSLATION

Having lamented over them and sufficiently offered Ganges water, they bathed in the Ganges, whose water is sanctified due to being mixed with the dust of the lotus feet of the Lord.

SB1.8.3

TEXT 3

tatrasinam kuru-patim

dhrtarastram sahanujam

gandharim putra-sokartam

prtham krsnam ca madhavah

SYNONYMS

tatra—there; asinam—sitting; kuru-patim—the King of the Kurus; dhrtarastram—Dhrtarastra; saha-anujam—with his younger brothers; gandharim—Gandhari; putra—son; soka-artam—overtaken by bereavement; prtham—Kunti; krsnam—Draupadi; ca—also; madhavah—Lord Sri Krsna.

TRANSLATION

There sat the King of the Kurus, Maharaja Yudhisthira, along with his younger brothers and Dhrtarastra, Gandhari, Kunti and Draupadi, all overwhelmed with grief. Lord Krsna was also there.

PURPORT

The Battle of Kuruksetra was fought between family members, and thus all affected persons were also family members like Maharaja Yudhisthira and brothers, Kunti, Draupadi, Subhadra, Dhrtarastra, Gandhari and her daughters-in-law, etc. All the principal dead bodies were in some way or other related with each other, and therefore the family grief was combined. Lord Krsna was also one of them as a cousin of the Pandavas and nephew of Kunti, as well as brother of Subhadra, etc. The Lord, therefore, was equally sympathetic toward all of them, and therefore he began to pacify them befittingly.

SB1.8.4

TEXT 4

santvayam asa munibhir

hata-bandhun sucarpitan

bhutesu kalasya gatim

darsayan na pratikriyam

SYNONYMS

santvayam asa—pacified; munibhih—along with the munis present there; hata-bandhun—those who lost their friends and relatives; sucarpitan—all shocked and affected; bhutesu—unto the living beings; kalasya—of the supreme law of the Almighty; gatim—reactions; darsayan—demonstrated; na—no; pratikriyam—remedial measures.

TRANSLATION

Citing the stringent laws of the Almighty and their reactions upon living beings, Lord Sri Krsna and the munis began to pacify those who were shocked and affected.

PURPORT

The stringent laws of nature, under the order of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, cannot be altered by any living entity. The living entities are eternally under the subjugation of the almighty Lord. The Lord makes all the laws and orders, and these laws and orders are generally called dharma or religion. No one can create any religious formula. Bona fide religion is to abide by the orders of the Lord. The Lord’s orders are clearly declared in the Bhagavad-gita. Everyone should follow Him only or His orders, and that will make all happy, both materially and spiritually. As long as we are in the material world, our duty is to follow the orders of the Lord, and if by the grace of the Lord we are liberated from the clutches of the material world, then in our liberated stage also we can render transcendental loving service unto the Lord. In our material stage we can see neither ourselves nor the Lord for want of spiritual vision. But when we are liberated from material affection and are situated in our original spiritual form we can see both ourselves and the Lord face to face. Mukti means to be reinstated in one’s original spiritual status after giving up the material conception of life. Therefore, human life is specifically meant for qualifying ourselves for this spiritual liberty. Unfortunately, under the influence of illusory material energy, we accept this spot-life of only a few years as our permanent existence and thus become illusioned by possessing so-called country, home, land, children, wife, community, wealth, etc., which are false representations created by maya (illusion). And under the dictation of maya, we fight with one another to protect these false possessions. By cultivating spiritual knowledge, we can realize that we have nothing to do with all this material paraphernalia. Then at once we become free from material attachment. This clearance of the misgivings of material existence at once takes place by association with the Lord’s devotees, who are able to inject the transcendental sound into the depths of the bewildered heart and thus make one practically liberated from all lamentation and illusion. That is a summary of the pacifying measures for those affected by the reaction of stringent material laws, exhibited in the forms of birth, death, old age and disease, which are insoluble factors of material existence. The victims of war, namely, the family members of the Kurus, were lamenting the problems of death, and the Lord pacified them on the basis of knowledge.

SB1.8.5

TEXT 5

sadhayitvajata-satroh

svam rajyam kitavair hrtam

ghatayitvasato rajnah

kaca-sparsa-ksatayusah

SYNONYMS

sadhayitva—having executed; ajata-satroh—of one who has no enemy; svam rajyam—own kingdom; kitavaih—by the clever (Duryodhana and party); hrtam—usurped; ghatayitva—having killed; asatah—the unscrupulous; rajnah—of the queen’s; kaca—bunch of hair; sparsa—roughly handled; ksata—decreased; ayusah—by the duration of life.

TRANSLATION

The clever Duryodhana and his party cunningly usurped the kingdom of Yudhisthira, who had no enemy. By the grace of the Lord, the recovery was executed, and the unscrupulous kings who joined with Duryodhana were killed by Him. Others also died, their duration of life having decreased for their rough handling of the hair of Queen Draupadi.

PURPORT

In the glorious days, or before the advent of the age of Kali, the brahmanas, the cows, the women, the children and the old men were properly given protection.

1. The protection of the brahmanas maintains the institution of varna and asrama, the most scientific culture for attainment of spiritual life.

2. The protection of cows maintains the most miraculous form of food, i.e., milk for maintaining the finer tissues of the brain for understanding higher aims of life.

3. The protection of women maintains the chastity of society, by which we can get a good generation for peace, tranquillity and progress of life.

4. The protection of children gives the human form of life its best chance to prepare the way of liberty from material bondage. Such protection of children begins from the very day of begetting a child by the purificatory process of garbhadhana-samskara, the beginning of pure life.

5. The protection of the old men gives them a chance to prepare themselves for better life after death.

This complete outlook is based on factors leading to successful humanity as against the civilization of polished cats and dogs. The killing of the above-mentioned innocent creatures is totally forbidden because even by insulting them one loses one’s duration of life. In the age of Kali they are not properly protected, and therefore the duration of life of the present generation has shortened considerably. In the Bhagavad-gita it is stated that when the women become unchaste for want of proper protection, there are unwanted children called varna-sankara. To insult a chaste woman means to bring about disaster in the duration of life. Duhsasana, a brother of Duryodhana, insulted Draupadi, an ideal chaste lady, and therefore the miscreants died untimely. These are some of the stringent laws of the Lord mentioned above.

SB1.8.6

TEXT 6

yajayitvasvamedhais tam

tribhir uttama-kalpakaih

tad-yasah pavanam diksu

sata-manyor ivatanot

SYNONYMS

yajayitva—by performing; asvamedhaihyajna in which a horse is sacrificed; tam—him (King Yudhisthira); tribhih—three; uttama—best; kalpakaih—supplied with proper ingredients and performed by able priests; tat—that; yasah—fame; pavanam—virtuous; diksu—all directions; sata-manyoh—Indra, who performed one hundred such sacrifices; iva—like; atanot—spread.

TRANSLATION

Lord Sri Krsna caused three well-performed Asvamedha-yajnas [horse sacrifices] to be conducted by Maharaja Yudhisthira and thus caused his virtuous fame to be glorified in all directions, like that of Indra, who had performed one hundred such sacrifices.

PURPORT

This is something like the preface to the performances of Asvamedha-yajna by Maharaja Yudhisthira. The comparison of Maharaja Yudhisthira to the King of heaven is significant. The King of heaven is thousands and thousands of times greater than Maharaja Yudhisthira in opulence, yet the fame of Maharaja Yudhisthira was not less. The reason is that Maharaja Yudhisthira was a pure devotee of the Lord, and by His grace only was King Yudhisthira on the level of the King of heaven, even though he performed only three yajnas whereas the King of heaven performed hundreds. That is the prerogative of the devotee of the Lord. The Lord is equal to everyone, but a devotee of the Lord is more glorified because he is always in touch with the all-great. The sun rays are equally distributed, but still there are some places which are always dark. This is not due to the sun but to the receptive power. Similarly, those who are cent percent devotees of the Lord get the full-fledged mercy of the Lord, which is always equally distributed everywhere.

SB1.8.7

TEXT 7

amantrya pandu-putrams ca

saineyoddhava-samyutah

dvaipayanadibhir vipraih

pujitaih pratipujitah

SYNONYMS

amantrya—inviting; pandu-putran—all the sons of Pandu; ca—also; saineya—Satyaki; uddhava—Uddhava; samyutah—accompanied; dvaipayana-adibhih—by the rsis like Vedavyasa; vipraih—by the brahmanas; pujitaih—being worshiped; pratipujitah—the Lord also reciprocated equally.

TRANSLATION

Lord Sri Krsna then prepared for His departure. He invited the sons of Pandu, after having been worshiped by the brahmanas, headed by Srila Vyasadeva. The Lord also reciprocated greetings.

PURPORT

Apparently Lord Sri Krsna was a ksatriya and was not worshipable by the brahmanas. But the brahmanas present there, headed by Srila Vyasadeva, all knew Him to be the Personality of Godhead, and therefore they worshiped Him. The Lord reciprocated the greetings just to honor the social order that a ksatriya is obedient to the orders of the brahmanas. Although Lord Sri Krsna was always offered the respects due the Supreme Lord from all responsible quarters, the Lord never deviated from the customary usages between the four orders of society. The Lord purposely observed all these social customs so that others would follow Him in the future.

SB1.8.8

TEXT 8

gantum krtamatir brahman

dvarakam ratham asthitah

upalebhe ’bhidhavantim

uttaram bhaya-vihvalam

SYNONYMS

gantum—just desiring to start; krtamatih—having decided; brahman—O brahmana; dvarakam—towards Dvaraka; ratham—on the chariot; asthitah—seated; upalebhe—saw; abhidhavantim—coming hurriedly; uttaram—Uttara; bhaya-vihvalam—being afraid.

TRANSLATION

As soon as He seated Himself on the chariot to start for Dvaraka, He saw Uttara hurrying toward Him in fear.

PURPORT

All the members of the family of the Pandavas were completely dependent on the protection of the Lord, and therefore the Lord protected all of them in all circumstances. The Lord protects everyone, but one who depends completely upon Him is especially looked after by the Lord. The father is more attentive to the little son who is exclusively dependent on the father.

SB1.8.9

TEXT 9

uttarovaca

pahi pahi maha-yogin

deva-deva jagat-pate

nanyam tvad abhayam pasye

yatra mrtyuh parasparam

SYNONYMS

uttara uvaca—Uttara said; pahi pahi—protect, protect; maha-yogin—the greatest mystic; deva-deva—the worshipable of the worshiped; jagat-pate—O Lord of the universe; na—not; anyam—anyone else; tvat—than You; abhayam—fearlessness; pasye—do I see; yatra—where there is; mrtyuh—death; parasparam—in the world of duality.

TRANSLATION

Uttara said: O Lord of lords, Lord of the universe! You are the greatest of mystics. Please protect me, for there is no one else who can save me from the clutches of death in this world of duality.

PURPORT

This material world is the world of duality, in contrast with the oneness of the absolute realm. The world of duality is composed of matter and spirit, whereas the absolute world is complete spirit without any tinge of the material qualities. In the dual world everyone is falsely trying to become the master of the world, whereas in the absolute world the Lord is the absolute Lord, and all others are His absolute servitors. In the world of duality everyone is envious of all others, and death is inevitable due to the dual existence of matter and spirit. The Lord is the only shelter of fearlessness for the surrendered soul. One cannot save himself from the cruel hands of death in the material world without having surrendered himself at the lotus feet of the Lord.

SB1.8.10

TEXT 10

abhidravati mam isa

saras taptayaso vibho

kamam dahatu mam natha

ma me garbho nipatyatam

SYNONYMS

abhidravati—coming towards; mam—me; isa—O Lord; sarah—the arrow; tapta—fiery; ayasah—iron; vibho—O great one; kamam—desire; dahatu—let it burn; mam—me; natha—O protector; ma—not; me—my; garbhah—embryo; nipatyatam—be aborted.

TRANSLATION

O my Lord, You are all-powerful. A fiery iron arrow is coming towards me fast. My Lord, let it burn me personally, if You so desire, but please do not let it burn and abort my embryo. Please do me this favor, my Lord.

PURPORT

This incident took place after the death of Abhimanyu, the husband of Uttara. Abhimanyu’s widow, Uttara, should have followed the path of her husband, but because she was pregnant, and Maharaja Pariksit, a great devotee of the Lord, was lying in embryo, she was responsible for his protection. The mother of a child has a great responsibility in giving all protection to the child, and therefore Uttara was not ashamed to express this frankly before Lord Krsna. Uttara was the daughter of a great king, the wife of a great hero, and student of a great devotee, and later she was the mother of a good king also. She was fortunate in every respect.

SB1.8.11

TEXT 11

suta uvaca

upadharya vacas tasya

bhagavan bhakta-vatsalah

apandavam idam kartum

drauner astram abudhyata

SYNONYMS

sutah uvaca—Suta Gosvami said; upadharya—by hearing her patiently; vacah—words; tasyah—her; bhagavan—the Personality of Godhead; bhakta-vatsalah—He who is very much affectionate towards His devotees; apandavam—without the existence of the Pandavas’ descendants; idam—this; kartum—to do it; drauneh—of the son of Dronacarya; astram—weapon; abudhyata—understood.

TRANSLATION

Suta Gosvami said: Having patiently heard her words, Lord Sri Krsna, who is always very affectionate to His devotees, could at once understand that Asvatthama, the son of Dronacarya, had thrown the brahmastra to finish the last life in the Pandava family.

PURPORT

The Lord is impartial in every respect, but still He is inclined towards His devotees because there is a great necessity of this for everyone’s wellbeing. The Pandava family was a family of devotees, and therefore the Lord wanted them to rule the world. That was the reason He vanquished the rule of the company of Duryodhana and established the rule of Maharaja Yudhisthira. Therefore, He also wanted to protect Maharaja Pariksit, who was lying in embryo. He did not like the idea that the world should be without the Pandavas, the ideal family of devotees.

SB1.8.12

TEXT 12

tarhy evatha muni-srestha

pandavah panca sayakan

atmano ’bhimukhan diptan

alaksyastrany upadaduh

SYNONYMS

tarhi—then; eva—also; atha—therefore; muni-srestha—O chief amongst the munis; pandavah—all the sons of Pandu; panca—five; sayakan—weapons; atmanah—own selves; abhimukhan—towards; diptan—glaring; alaksya—seeing it; astrani—weapons; upadaduh—took up.

TRANSLATION

O foremost among the great thinkers [munis] [Saunaka], seeing the glaring brahmastra proceeding towards them, the Pandavas took up their five respective weapons.

PURPORT

The brahmastras are finer than the nuclear weapons. Asvatthama discharged the brahmastra simply to kill the Pandavas, namely the five brothers headed by Maharaja Yudhisthira and their only grandson, who was lying within the womb of Uttara. Therefore the brahmastra, more effective and finer than the atomic weapons, was not as blind as the atomic bombs. When the atomic bombs are discharged they do not discriminate between the target and others. Mainly the atomic bombs do harm to the innocent because there is no control. The brahmastra is not like that. It marks out the target and proceeds accordingly without harming the innocent.

SB1.8.13

TEXT 13

vyasanam viksya tat tesam

ananya-visayatmanam

sudarsanena svastrena

svanam raksam vyadhad vibhuh

SYNONYMS

vyasanam—great danger; viksya—having observed; tat—that; tesam—their; ananya—no other; visaya—means; atmanam—thus inclined; sudarsanena—by the wheel of Sri Krsna; sva-astrena—by the weapon; svanam—of His own devotees; raksam—protection; vyadhat—did it; vibhuh—the Almighty.

TRANSLATION

The almighty Personality of Godhead, Sri Krsna, having observed that a great danger was befalling His unalloyed devotees, who were fully surrendered souls, at once took up His Sudarsana disc to protect them.

PURPORT

The brahmastra, the supreme weapon released by Asvatthama, was something similar to the nuclear weapon but with more radiation and heat. This brahmastra is the product of a more subtle science, being the product of a finer sound, a mantra recorded in the Vedas. Another advantage of this weapon is that it is not blind like the nuclear weapon because it can be directed only to the target and nothing else. Asvatthama released the weapon just to finish all the male members of Pandu’s family; therefore in one sense it was more dangerous than the atomic bombs because it could penetrate even the most protected place and would never miss the target. Knowing all this, Lord Sri Krsna at once took up His personal weapon to protect His devotees, who did not know anyone other than Krsna. In the Bhagavad-gita the Lord has clearly promised that His devotees are never to be vanquished. And He behaves according to the quality or degree of the devotional service rendered by the devotees. Here the word ananya-visayatmanam is significant. The Pandavas were cent percent dependent on the protection of the Lord, although they were all great warriors themselves. But the Lord neglects even the greatest warriors and also vanquishes them in no time. When the Lord saw that there was no time for the Pandavas to counteract the brahmastra of Asvatthama, He took up His weapon even at the risk of breaking His own vow. Although the Battle of Kuruksetra was almost finished, still, according to His vow, He should not have taken up His own weapon. But the emergency was more important than the vow. He is better known as the bhakta-vatsala, or the lover of His devotee, and thus He preferred to continue as bhakta-vatsala than to be a worldly moralist who never breaks his solemn vow.

SB1.8.14

TEXT 14

antahsthah sarva-bhutanam

atma yogesvaro harih

sva-mayayavrnod garbham

vairatyah kuru-tantave

SYNONYMS

antahsthah—being within; sarva—all; bhutanam—of the living beings; atma—soul; yoga-isvarah—the Lord of all mysticism; harih—the Supreme Lord; sva-mayaya—by the personal energy; avrnot—covered; garbham—embryo; vairatyah—of Uttara; kuru-tantave—for the progeny of Maharaja Kuru.

TRANSLATION

The Lord of supreme mysticism, Sri Krsna, resides within everyone’s heart as the Paramatma. As such, just to protect the progeny of the Kuru dynasty, He covered the embryo of Uttara by His personal energy.

PURPORT

The Lord of supreme mysticism can simultaneously reside within everyone’s heart, or even within the atoms, by His Paramatma feature, His plenary portion. Therefore, from within the body of Uttara He covered the embryo to save Maharaja Pariksit and protect the progeny of Maharaja Kuru, of whom King Pandu was also a descendant. Both the sons of Dhrtarastra and those of Pandu belonged to the same dynasty of Maharaja Kuru; therefore both of them were generally known as Kurus. But when there were differences between the two families, the sons of Dhrtarastra were known as Kurus whereas the sons of Pandu were known as Pandavas. Since the sons and grandsons of Dhrtarastra were all killed in the Battle of Kuruksetra, the last son of the dynasty is designated as the son of the Kurus.

SB1.8.15

TEXT 15

yadyapy astram brahma-siras

tv amogham capratikriyam

vaisnavam teja asadya

samasamyad bhrgudvaha

SYNONYMS

yadyapi—although; astram—weapon; brahma-sirah—supreme; tu—but; amogham—without check; ca—and; apratikriyam—not to be counteracted; vaisnavam—in relation with Visnu; tejah—strength; asadya—being confronted with; samasamyat—was neutralized; bhrgu-udvaha—O glory of the family of Bhrgu.

TRANSLATION

O Saunaka, although the supreme brahmastra weapon released by Asvatthama was irresistible and without check or counteraction, it was neutralized and foiled when confronted by the strength of Visnu [Lord Krsna].

PURPORT

In the Bhagavad-gita it is said that the brahmajyoti, or the glowing transcendental effulgence, is resting on Lord Sri Krsna. In other words, the glowing effulgence known as brahma-tejas is nothing but the rays of the Lord, just as the sun rays are rays of the sun disc. So this Brahma weapon also, although materially irresistible, could not surpass the supreme strength of the Lord. The weapon called brahmastra, released by Asvatthama, was neutralized and foiled by Lord Sri Krsna by His own energy; that is to say, He did not wait for any other’s help because He is absolute.

SB1.8.16

TEXT 16

ma mamstha hy etad ascaryam

sarvascaryamaye ’cyute

ya idam mayaya devya

srjaty avati hanty ajah

SYNONYMS

ma—do not; mamsthah—think; hi—certainly; etat—all these; ascaryam—wonderful; sarva—all; ascarya-maye—in the all-mysterious; acyute—the infallible; yah—one who; idam—this (creation); mayaya—by His energy; devya—transcendental; srjati—creates; avati—maintains; hanti—annihilates; ajah—unborn.

TRANSLATION

O brahmanas, do not think this to be especially wonderful in the activities of the mysterious and infallible Personality of Godhead. By His own transcendental energy, He maintains and annihilates all material things, although He Himself is unborn.

PURPORT

The activities of the Lord are always inconceivable to the tiny brain of the living entities. Nothing is impossible for the Supreme Lord, but all His actions are wonderful for us, and thus He is always beyond the range of our conceivable limits. The Lord is the all-powerful, all-perfect Personality of Godhead. The Lord is cent percent perfect, whereas others, namely Narayana, Brahma, Siva, the demigods and all other living beings, possess only different percentages of such perfection. No one is equal to or greater than Him. He is unrivaled.

SB1.8.17

TEXT 17

brahma-tejo-vinirmuktair

atmajaih saha krsnaya

prayanabhimukham krsnam

idam aha prtha sati

SYNONYMS

brahma-tejah—the radiation of the brahmastra; vinirmuktaih—being saved from; atma-jaih—along with her sons; saha—with; krsnaya—Draupadi; prayana—outgoing; abhimukham—towards; krsnam—unto Lord Krsna; idam—this; aha—said; prtha—Kunti; sati—chaste, devoted to the Lord.

TRANSLATION

Thus saved from the radiation of the brahmastra, Kunti, the chaste devotee of the Lord, and her five sons and Draupadi addressed Lord Krsna as He started for home.

PURPORT

Kunti is described herein as sati, or chaste, due to her unalloyed devotion to Lord Sri Krsna. Her mind will now be expressed in the following prayers for Lord Krsna. A chaste devotee of the Lord does not look to others, namely any other living being or demigod, even for deliverance from danger. That was all along the characteristic of the whole family of the Pandavas. They knew nothing except Krsna, and therefore the Lord was also always ready to help them in all respects and in all circumstances. That is the transcendental nature of the Lord. He reciprocates the dependence of the devotee. One should not, therefore, look for help from imperfect living beings or demigods, but one should look for all help from Lord Krsna, who is competent to save His devotees. Such a chaste devotee also never asks the Lord for help, but the Lord, out of His own accord, is always anxious to render it.

Next verse (SB1.8.18)