Chapter 28 - Nanda rescued from Varuṇa

[Sanskrit text for this chapter is available]

Śrī Śuka said:

1. On the Ekādaśī day (the eleventh day of the lunar fortnight, so sacred to devotees of Viṣṇu) Nanda observed complete fast and worshipped Lord Viṣṇu (Janārdana). On the twelfth day, Nanda entered the waters of the Yamunā for performing ablution.

2. Nanda, being ignorant of the time reserved for the demons, entered the waters during night time. A demon (asura) servant of Varuṇa seized Nanda and produced him before Varuṇa.

3. Not seeing Nanda, the cowherds cried out, “Oh Kṛṣṇa, Oh Balarāma”. Hearing the cry and knowing that his father had been carried off to Varuṇa, the Omnipresent Lord, who affords protection to his devotees, approached Varuṇa.

4. Seeing that Lord Kṛṣṇa (the Ruler of senses) had arrived, Varuṇa, the protector of the world, was highly enraptured and worshipping him respectfully submitted:

Varuṇa said:

5. “Today (the object of assuming) my body has been fulfilled. Though I am the Lord of ocean, which is a mine of precious stones, never before such a treasure-trove was found by me as today.

[Bhāgavata Candrikā. adds:]

By the very sight of you, Oh omnipresent Lord, the (purpose of my) eyes and tongue have become fulfilled.] Those who resort to your feet achieve the end of their journey (of saṃsāra).

6. I salute you Oh glorious Lord, the Brahman himself and the Supreme Soul wherein the very name of the Māyā, the cause of creation of the various worlds, is not even heard of.

7. Your father has been brought here by my ignorant servant who did not know the limits and nature of his duty. It behoves your Lordship to pardon him.

8. Oh Kṛṣṇa! The witness of everything in the Universe! Be pleased to shower your grace on me. Oh Govinda, full of filial love! This is your father. He may be taken back.”

[Bhāgavata Candrikā. adds:]

We have been fortunate to see you as your father has been brought here. We are your progeny (or subjects). It behoves you to be gracious unto us, despite our offences.]”

Śrī Śuka said:

9. Thus propitiated by Varuṇa, the glorious Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Ruler of rulers, took his father with him and returned, thereby bringing delight to his kith and kin.

10. Nanda was struck with wonder at the affluence and grandeur of the protectors of the world which he had never witnessed so far, and also the submissiveness of the Lokapālas to Kṛṣṇa—with amazement he related everything to his relatives.

11. Thinking him to be the Almighty Lord himself, the cowherds whose minds were still more overwhelmed with eagerness and wonder, thought (to themselves): “Would that the Supreme Lord grant unto us his imperceptible state (called Brahman) and take us to his eternal region?”

12. Knowing the wish (cherished at heart) by his own people, the all-perceiving glorious Lord, out of his own accord, and out of grace, began to think with a view to accomplishing their desires.

13. “While wandering in this world in higher and lower forms of existence due to the force of the Nescience, desire and actions (karma), people verily do not know their own fate.”

14-15. Considering this, the highly compassionate, glorious Lord Hari manifested to the cowherds his own realm which is beyond the range of tamas and his essential nature which is absolutely real, not subject to modification or destruction but is pure consciousness, infinite, self-luminous, eternal and perfect stage which is realized by the sages after transcending the trinity of guṇas (when the bondage of guṇas is severed).

16. They were at first transported to Brahmahrada^[1]—pool-like deeply absorbed state in Brahman—and were made to plunge into it and were eventually taken out of it (i.e. were awakened from that samādhi or trance). There they beheld the divine region of Brahman by the Grace of Lord Kṛṣṇa through which formerly^[2] Akrūra also saw the divine abode.

17. Beholding in that realm Kṛṣṇa being extolled by personified Vedas in different hymns, Nanda and others were filled with supremely ecstatic delight and were greatly amazed as well.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

SR.’s 1st explanation: Para-Brahman is the pool in which the cowherds were made to remain immersed in a trance and again roused from the samādhi by Kṛṣṇa.

Bhāvāratha Dīpikā’s 2nd explanation: The pool in the Yamunā wherein the Akrūra beheld the Brahma-loka (vide infra chs. 39.40-55) is also called Brahma-hrada. Although Bhāvāratha Dīpikā gives this alternative explanation that they were taken to this pool in the Yamunā by Kṛṣṇa and were shown Brahma-loka that is not complementary to the Almighty Lord Kṛṣṇa. Hence Bhāvāratha Dīpikā’s first explanation is accepted.

[2]:

Bhāvāratha Dīpikā explains: “The word purā is used as the incident took place before the dialogue between Śuka and Parīkṣit took place.”