Source
Texts:
Rukminî's
Message to Lord Krishna
Text
1
S'rî
S'uka said: 'They all thus [realizing their being
robbed] most angry in armor mounted their means of
transport and came, each surrounded by his own troops, after
them, holding their bows.
S'ukadeva
Gosvâmî said: Having thus spoken, all those
infuriated kings donned their armor and mounted their
conveyances. Each king, bow in hand, was surrounded by his
own army as he went after Lord Krishna.
Text
2
When
the Yâdava army spotted them in their pursuit, held the
officers to face them, o King, and twanged they their
bows.
The
commanders of the Yâdava army, seeing the enemy racing
to attack, turned to face them and stood firm, O King,
twanging their bows.
Text
3
From
horseback, elephant shoulders and from the chariot seats
released those [enemy] masters in arms clouds of arrows
that rained like water does over the mountains.
Mounted
on the backs of horses, the shoulders of elephants and the
seats of chariots, the enemy kings, expert with weapons,
rained down arrows upon the Yadus like clouds pouring rain
on mountains.
Text
4
When
the slender waisted girl saw the army of her Lord covered by
heavy rains of arrows looked she at His face embarrassed with
eyes full of fear.
Slender-waisted
Rukminî, seeing her Lord's army covered by torrents of
arrows, shyly looked at His face with fear-stricken
eyes.
Text
5
The
Supreme Lord laughing said: 'Don't be afraid, o beautiful eyes,
right now will this enemy force be destroyed by your
troops'.
In
response the Lord laughed and assured her, "Do not be
afraid, beautiful- eyed one. This enemy force is about to be
destroyed by your soldiers."
Text
6
That
display of power of them could by the heroes Gada
[Krishna's younger brother] Sankarshana and the others
not be tolerated and so struck they with arrows of iron down
the horses, elephants and chariots.
The
heroes of the Lord's army, headed by Gada and Sankarshana,
could not tolerate the aggression of the opposing kings.
Thus with iron arrows they began to strike down the enemy's
horses, elephants and chariots.
Text
7
Of
those riding the chariots, the horses and the elephants fell by
the thousands the heads to the ground complete with earrings,
helmets and turbans.
The
heads of soldiers fighting on chariots, horses and elephants
fell to the ground by the millions; some heads wore earrings
and helmets, others turbans.
Text
8
There
were the heads of humans, horses, donkeys, mules, elephants and
camels as well as [loose] hands with swords, clubs and
bows, hands without fingers, thighs and legs.
Lying
all around were thighs, legs and fingerless hands, along
with hands clutching swords, clubs and bows, and also the
heads of horses, donkeys, elephants, camels, wild asses and
humans.
Text
9
The
kings headed by Jarâsandha who eager for the victory saw
their armies annihilated by the Vrishnis, then left
discouraged.
Seeing
their armies being struck down by the Vrishnis, who were
eager for victory, the kings headed by Jarâsandha were
discouraged and left the battlefield.
Text
10
They
approached and addressed S'is'upâla who with his wife to
become being stolen away, dispirited was perturbed with a dried
up face with all its color gone.
The
kings approached S'is'upâla, who was disturbed like a
man who has lost his wife. His complexion was drained of
color, his enthusiasm was gone, and his face appeared dried
up. The kings spoke to him as follows.
Text
11
[Jarâsandha
said:] 'O Sir, tiger among men, please give up this dark
state of mind, for the embodied ones is there to the wanted and
unwanted no permanence to be found.
[Jarâsandha
said:] Listen, S'is'upâla, O tiger among men, give
up your depression. After all, embodied beings' happiness
and unhappiness is never seen to be permanent, O
King.
Text
12
As
a woman made of wood dances to the desire of a puppeteer is the
same way this world, concerned with joy and sorrow, controlled
by the Controller.
Just
as a puppet in the form of a woman dances by the desire of
the puppeteer, so this world, controlled by the Supreme
Lord, struggles in both happiness and misery.
Text
13
I myself with
twenty-three armies lost seventeen times over in battles with
S'auri [Krishna] and only one I won.
In
battle with Krishna I and my twenty-three armies lost
seventeen times; only once did I defeat Him.
Text
14
Nonetheless I
do not lament or rejoice - not ever; knowing that the world is
driven by Time and fate combined.
But
still I never lament or rejoice, because I know this world
is driven by time and fate.
Text
15
Even
now are we all, leaders of the leaders of heroes, defeated by
the meager entourage of Yadus under the protection of
Krishna.
And
now all of us, great commanders of military leaders, have
been defeated by the Yadus and their small entourage, who
are protected by Krishna.
Text
16
Now,
with our enemies having conquered, works the time in their
favor and then shall we conquer when the time has turned to our
side.'
Now
our enemies have conquered because time favors them, but in
the future, when time is auspicious for us, we shall
conquer.
Text
17
S'rî
S'uka said: 'Thus persuaded by his friends went
S'is'upâla with those of his followers who had remained
from the slaughter back to his city and so did each of the
kings return to his own city.
S'ukadeva
Gosvâmî said: Thus persuaded by his friends,
S'is'upâla took his followers and went back to his
capital. The surviving warriors also returned to their
respective cities.
Text
18
The mighty
Rukmî however, hating Krishna unable to bear his sister's
râkshasa-style marriage, pursued Krishna surrounded by an
entire akshauhinî.
Powerful
Rukmî, however, was especially envious of Krishna. He
could not bear the fact that Krishna had carried off his
sister to marry her in the Râkshasa style. Thus he
pursued the Lord with an entire military division.
Text
19-20
Rukmî,
mighty armed with his bow in his armor, most angry in refusal
swore to all the kings listening: 'Let me tell you this in
truth: I will not return to Kundina without having killed
Krishna in battle and bringing back
Rukminî'.
Frustrated
and enraged, mighty-armed Rukmî, dressed in armor and
wielding his bow, had sworn before all the kings, "I shall
not again enter Kundina if I do not kill Krishna in battle
and bring Rukminî back with me. I swear this to
you."
Text
21
Thus speaking
climbed he his chariot and told he his charioteer: 'Quickly,
drive the horses to where Krishna is, there must be a fight
between Him and me.
Having
said this, he had mounted his chariot and told his
charioteer, "Drive the horses quickly to where Krishna is.
He and I must fight.
Text
22
Today will I,
with my sharp arrows, baffle the madness of that most wicked
Cowherd who had the temerity to violently abduct my
sister!'
"This
wicked-minded cowherd boy, infatuated with His prowess, has
violently abducted my sister. But today I will remove His
pride with my sharp arrows."
Text
23
Thus foolishly
vaunting not knowing what Krishna was all capable of, said he
next from a single chariot calling out to Krishna: 'Stand and
fight!'
Boasting
thus, foolish Rukmî, ignorant of the true extent of
the Supreme Lord's power, approached Lord Govinda in his
lone chariot and challenged Him, "Just stand and
fight!"
Text
24
Drawing
his bow he most firmly struck Krishna [or His chariot]
with three arrows and said: 'Wait a minute, You corrupter of
the Yadu-dynasty!
Rukmî
drew his bow with great strength and struck Lord Krishna
with three arrows. Then he said, "Stand here for a moment, O
defiler of the Yadu dynasty!
Text
25
Wherever
You might go having stolen my sister like a crow stealing the
sacrificial butter; I'll put an end today to Your false pride,
You foolish cheater, You devious fighter!!'
"Wherever
You go, carrying off my sister like a crow stealing
sacrificial butter, I will follow. This very day I shall
relieve You of Your false pride, You fool, You deceiver, You
cheater in battle!
Text
26
If You want my
arrows not to you kill You, lay off and release the girl', but
Krishna with a smile struck Rukmî, with six arrows
breaking his his bow.
"Release
the girl before You are struck dead by my arrows and made to
lie down!" In response to this, Lord Krishna smiled, and
with six arrows He struck Rukmî and broke his
bow.
Text
27
With eight
arrows at his four horses, with two at his charioteer and with
three at his flagpole, took he up another bow and pierced he
Krishna with five.
The
Lord struck Rukmî's four horses with eight arrows, his
chariot driver with two, and the chariot's flag with three.
Rukmî grabbed another bow and struck Lord Krishna with
five arrows.
Text
28
Though hit by
these floods of arrows broke Krishna the bow again just as the
Infallible One broke another one that he picked
up.
Although
hit by these many arrows, Lord Acyuta again broke
Rukmî's bow. Rukmî picked up yet another bow,
but the infallible Lord broke that one to pieces as
well.
Text
29
The spiked
bludgeon, the trident, the lance, the shield and sword, the
pike, the javelin or whatever weapon he took up were all by
Him, the Lord, broken.
Iron
bludgeon, three-pointed spear, sword and shield, pike,
javelin - whatever weapon Rukmî picked up, Lord Hari
smashed it to bits.
Text
30
Then
leaping from his chariot sword in hand ran he, intent to kill
Krishna, forward as furious as a bird in the
wind.
Then
Rukmî leaped down from his chariot and, sword in hand,
rushed furiously toward Krishna to kill Him, like a bird
flying into the wind.
Text
31
With
His arrows breaking in pieces the sword and shield of him
attacking, took He, prepared to kill Rukmî, up His own
sharp sword.
As
Rukmî attacked Him, the Lord shot arrows that broke
Rukmî's sword and shield into small pieces. Krishna
then took up His own sharp sword and prepared to kill
Rukmî.
Text
32
Witnessing
the effort to kill her brother, fell the saintly Rukminî
beset in fear at the feet of her husband and spoke she
lamenting.
Seeing
Lord Krishna ready to kill her brother, saintly
Rukminî was filled with alarm. She fell at her
husband's feet and piteously spoke as follows.
Text
33
S'rî
Rukminî said: 'O Controller of Yoga, o Inscrutable Soul,
o God of Gods, o Master of the Universe, o Auspicious One,
please don't kill my brother, o Mighty-armed
One.'
S'rî
Rukminî said: O controller of all mystic power,
immeasurable one, Lord of lords, master of the universe! O
all auspicious and mighty-armed one, please do not kill my
brother!
Text
34
S'rî
S'uka said: 'With His feet held by her of whom in total fear
the limbs were trembling, the mouth was drying up in sorrow,
the throat was choked and the golden necklace in her agitation
was disheveled, desisted He in compassion.
S'ukadeva
Gosvâmî said: Rukminî's utter fear caused
her limbs to tremble and her mouth to dry up, while her
throat choked up out of sorrow. And in her agitation her
golden necklace scattered. She grasped Krishna's feet, and
the Lord, feeling compassionate, desisted.
Text
35
With a strip of
cloth tying him up, shaved He the evildoer making a mess of him
leaving some of his hair and mustache, as meanwhile the
extraordinary army of the Yadu-heroes had crushed their
opponents like elephants crush a lotus
flower
[compare 1.7].
Lord
Krishna tied up the evildoer with a strip of cloth. He then
proceeded to disfigure Rukmî by comically shaving him,
leaving parts of his mustache and hair. By that time the
Yadu heroes had crushed the extraordinary army of their
opponents, just as elephants crush a lotus flower.
Text
36
Getting
near Krishna saw they there Rukmî in his sorry condition
as good as dead, upon which the almighty Supreme Lord
Sankarshana, feeling pity, released the one bound up and said
to Krishna:
As
the Yadus approached Lord Krishna, they saw Rukmî in
this sorry condition, practically dying of shame. When the
all-powerful Lord Balarâma saw Rukmî, He
compassionately released him and spoke the following to Lord
Krishna.
Text
37
How
improper of Yours, o Krishna; this clipping of You, of his
mustache and hair so badly; is as terrible as the death of a
family member!'
[Lord
Balarâma said:] My dear Krishna, You have acted
improperly! This deed will bring shame on Us, for to
disfigure a close relative by shaving off his mustache and
hair is as good as killing him.
Text
38
[To
Rukminî:] 'O saintly lady, please don't be angry with
Us disfiguring your brother; there is to the matter of who
brings happiness and grief no one else responsible, since a man
picks the fruit of his own actions.'
Saintly
lady, please do not be displeased with Us out of anxiety for
your brother's disfigurement. No one but oneself is
responsible for one's joy and grief, for a man experiences
the result of his own deeds.
Text
39
[And
to Krishna again:] Even though a relative because of his
wrongdoing deserves to be killed, should he by a relative not
be killed, but instead be banned [from the family]; why
should he who is killed by his own fault, be killed a second
time?'
[Again
addressing Krishna, Balarâma said:] A relative
should not be killed even if his wrongdoing warrants capital
punishment. Rather, he should be thrown out of the family.
Since he has already been killed by his own sin, why kill
him again?
Text
40
[To
Rukminî:] 'The sacred code of warriors as established
by the founding father [Brahmâ] is that a brother
even has to kill his own brother; which then is something most
dreadful.'
[Turning
to Rukminî, Balarâma continued: ] The code
of sacred duty for warriors established by Lord Brahmâ
enjoins that one may have to kill even his own brother. That
is indeed a most dreadful law.
Text
41
[Back
to Krishna again:] Those being proud of a kingdom, land,
riches, women, honor and power or something else [other
than the soul] do, blinded by their infatuation for the
opulence, for that reason commit offenses
indeed.'
[Again
Balarâma addressed Krishna:] Blinded by conceit
with their personal opulences, proud men offend others for
the sake of such things as kingdom, land, wealth, women,
honor and power.
Text
42
[And
to Rukminî again:] 'In this attitude of yours toward
all living beings, of wishing evil to the ones inimical and
good to well-wishers, are you partial as an ignorant
person.
[To
Rukminî Balarâma said:] Your attitude is
unfair, for like an ignorant person you wish good to those
who are inimical to all living beings and who have done evil
to your true well-wishers.
Text
43
By
the illusory power of God is caused that people in their ways
are bewildered about the Real Self so that they, who thus take
the body for the soul, speak in terms of having a friend, an
enemy or someone neutral.
The
Supreme Lord's Mâyâ makes men forget their real
selves, and thus, taking the body for the self, they
consider others to be friends, enemies or neutral
parties.
Text
44
Those
who are bewildered perceive the One and Only Supreme Soul of
each and all embodied being as being many, just like one does
with the stars [not recognized as a cohering galaxy] or
the sky [as seen different also existing outside, see also
B.G.
18: 20-21
and 1.2:
32].
Those
who are bewildered perceive the one Supreme Soul, who
resides in all embodied beings, as many, just as one may
perceive the light in the sky, or the sky itself, as
many.
Text
45
The
physical body having a beginning and an end is - composed of
the physical elements, the senses and the modes of nature - in
its being imposed on the self by material ignorance cause of
experiencing the cycle of birth and death.
This
material body, which has a beginning and an end, is composed
of the physical elements, the senses and the modes of
nature. The body, imposed on the self by material ignorance,
causes one to experience the cycle of birth and
death.
Text
46
For the soul in
contact with anything else,
o
chaste one, is there
no separation
because of the originating from it
[as with the
individual soul] or
untruth
because of being revealed by it [as a physical form];
like it is also with the sun in relation to the seeing and the
form seen.
O
intelligent lady, the soul never undergoes contact with or
separation from insubstantial, material objects, because the
soul is their very origin and illuminator. Thus the soul
resembles the sun, which neither comes in contact with nor
separates from the sense of sight and what is seen.
Text
47
Birth
and such are but transformations of the body, not of the soul
ever, just as the phases of the moon do not imply that it has
died on the day of a new moon.
Birth
and other transformations are undergone by the body but
never by the self, just as change occurs for the moon's
phases but never for the moon, though the new-moon day may
be called the moon's "death."
Text
48
Like
a sleeping person experiences himself, sense-objects and
results of action even though not being real, undergoes the
same way the unintelligent one his material existence [see
also 6.16:
55-56].
As
a sleeping person perceives himself, the objects of sense
enjoyment and the fruits of his acts within the illusion of
a dream, so one who is unintelligent undergoes material
existence.
Text
49
Therefore,
o you with the pristine smile, please be yourself again [as
the goddess of fortune] with the knowledge of the essence
dispelling the sadness born of ignorance of which you dried up
and were confounded.'
Therefore,
with transcendental knowledge dispel the grief that is
weakening and confounding your mind. Please resume your
natural mood, O princess of the pristine smile.
Text
50
S'rî
S'uka said: 'The slender-waisted one thus enlightened by
Balarâma, the Supreme Lord, gave up her abasement and
regained her composure with intelligence.
S'ukadeva
Gosvâmî said: Thus enlightened by Lord
Balarâma, slender Rukminî forgot her depression
and steadied her mind by spiritual intelligence.
Text
51
Left
with only his life air, expelled by his enemies and deprived of
his strength and luster was he [Rukmî]
remembering his disfigurement frustrated in his personal
desires and built he for his residence a large city named
Bhojakatha ['having experienced the
vow'].
Left
with only his life air, cast out by his enemies and deprived
of his strength and bodily radiance, Rukmî could not
forget how he had been disfigured. In frustration he
constructed for his residence a large city, which he called
Bhojakatha.
Text
52
Having
said 'Without killing the evil-minded Krishna, without
retrieving my sister,I will not return to Kundina', took he
angry right on that spot up his residence.
Because
he had promised "I will not reenter Kundina until I have
killed wicked Krishna and brought back my younger sister,"
in a mood of angry frustration Rukmî took up residence
at that very place.
Text
53
The
Supreme Lord, thus defeating the earthly rulers, brought the
daughter of Bhîshmaka to His capital and married with her
according the vidhi, o protector of the Kurus.
Thus
defeating all the opposing kings, the Supreme Personality of
Godhead brought the daughter of Bhîshmaka to His
capital and married her according to the Vedic injunctions,
O protector of the Kurus.
Text
54
At
that time there was great rejoicing in each and every home of
the Yadu-city were, o King, the people had no one but Krishna,
the leader of the Yadus, as their object of
love.
At
that time, O King, there was great rejoicing in all the
homes of Yadupurî, whose citizens loved only Krishna,
chief of the Yadus.
Text
55
The
men and women joyful with shining jewels and earrings
respectfully presented wedding gifts to the ones celebrated,
wonderfully dressed.
All
the men and women, full of joy and adorned with shining
jewels and earrings, brought wedding presents, which they
reverently offered to the exquisitely dressed groom and
bride.
Text
56
The
city of the Vrishnis appeared beautiful with the festive
columns raised, the variety of flower garlands, the banners,
the gems and the arches with at every doorway an arrangement of
auspicious items as pots full of water, aguru incense and
lamps.
The
city of the Vrishnis appeared most beautiful: there were
tall, festive columns, and also archways decorated with
flower garlands, cloth banners and precious gems.
Arrangements of auspicious, full waterpots, aguru- scented
incense, and lamps graced every doorway.
Text
57
It's
streets were sprinkled with the help of the with mada flowing
elephants of the popular personalities invited and at the
doorways, to further enhance the beauty, were placed plantain
and betelnut stems.
The
city's streets were cleansed by the intoxicated elephants
belonging to the beloved kings who were guests at the
wedding, and these elephants further enhanced the beauty of
the city by placing trunks of plantain and betel-nut trees
in all the doorways.
Text
58
The
members of the Kuru, Sriñjaya, Kaikeya, Vidarbha, Yadu
and Kunti families enjoyed in that being together in the midst
of the people excitedly running about.
Those
who belonged to the royal families of the Kuru,
Sriñjaya, Kaikeya, Vidarbha, Yadu and Kunti clans
joyfully met one another in the midst of the crowds of
people excitedly running here and there.
Text
59
Hearing
about the kidnapping of Rukminî which was being sung all
around, became the kings and their daughters greatly
amazed.
The
kings and their daughters were totally astonished to hear
the story of Rukminî's abduction, which was being
glorified in song everywhere.
Text
60
O
King, in Dvârakâ were all the citizens overjoyed to
see Krishna, the Master of all Opulence joined with
Rukminî, the goddess of fortune.
Dvârakâ's
citizens were overjoyed to see Krishna, the Lord of all
opulence, united with Rukminî, the goddess of
fortune.
