Chapter 43 - Killing of the elephant Kuvalayāpīḍa

[Sanskrit text for this chapter is available]

Śrī Śuka said:

1. The next morning, Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma who had taken their bath and performed purificatory rites (as if to expiate the sin of killing their maternal uncle who, despite warnings of breaking the sacred bow, did not release their parents but wanted to kill them, heard the sound of the kettledrums and the shouting and beating of arms by wrestlers, went to see the tournaments, Oh repressor of enemies!

2. Arriving at the entrance of the arena, Kṛṣṇa beheld the elephant Kuvalayāpīḍa stationed there under the direction of the controller of the elephant.

3. Preparing himself for action by tightening the cloth worn round the loins, and tying up tightly his curly locks of hair (with his upper garment) he spoke to the conductor of the elephant in a voice deep like thunder.

4. “You conductor of the elephant I Make way for us. Hurry up. Clear out instantly. Else I shall send you along with your elephant to the region of Death.”

5. Threatened thus, the driver of the elephant got enraged and goaded that already infuriated elephant looking like the god of Death at the end of the universe, to charge against Kṛṣṇa.

6. The big elephant vehemently dashed at Kṛṣṇa and seized him with his trunk. But slipping out of the coil of his trunk, Kṛṣṇa dealt him a blow and concealed himself betwixt his legs.

7. The enraged animal could not find Kṛṣṇa. Guided by his sense of smell, he reached his trunk to Keśava (Kṛṣṇa) who forcibly disengaged himself and rushed out of his grip.

8. Catching hold of the tail of that extremely mighty elephant, Kṛṣṇa easily dragged him to a distance of twenty- five bows (or one hundred cubit) even as Garuḍa would do to a cobra.

9. With his firm grip on his tail, he turned him to the contrary direction when he tried to turn to the right or to the left to catch hold of Kṛṣṇa, just as a boy would do to a calf to revolve it either this way or that.

10. Then he confronted the elephant at the very front and struck him down with his hand. He ran before the elephant with that much speed that he thought Kṛṣṇa to be in his grasp at every step and he made him tumble down.

11. While running sportively, Kṛṣṇa fell down on the ground, and promptly jumped aside. Thinking that Kṛṣṇa had fallen down (and lying there), the infuriated elephant struck the ground with his tusks (as Kṛṣṇa was not there).

12. Extremely enraged at the futility of his attack and being goaded on by the drivers, he dashed in rage towards Kṛṣṇa.

13. The glorious Lord, the slayer of demon Madhu, approached the attacking elephant, caught hold of his trunk and felled him on the ground.

14. Like a lion, Lord Kṛṣṇa pressed down the fallen elephant with his foot and extracting a tusk of that elephant killed him as well as his drivers.

15. Leaving the dead elephant there, Kṛṣṇa with one tusk in hand, entered the arena. With one tusk on his shoulder, with his body stained with drops of ichor and blood, Kṛṣṇa shone beautiful with his lotus-like face decked with pearl-like drops of perspiration’

16. Surrounded by several cowherds, Balarāma and Kṛṣṇa armed with an excellent weapon in the form of the tusk of the elephant, entered the amphitheatre.

17.^[1] When, accompanied with his elder brother, Kṛṣṇa entered the arena, he appeared like a thunderbolt to the athletes, as a superman to men, the god of Love (Cupid) incarnate to women, a kinsman to cowherds, a chastiser to wicked monarchs, a child to his parents, the veritable Death to Kaṃsa, the king of Bhojas, as a weakling or an inadequate competitor to the ignorant, the Highest Principle (Brahman) to the Yogins and the Supreme Deity to Vṛṣṇis.

18. Seeing that the elephant Kuvalayāpīḍa was killed and both of them were still invincible, Kaṃsa with all his intrepidity and self-possession, felt extremely terrified at that time, Oh King.

19. The mighty-armed brothers with picturesque dress, strange ornaments, wreaths and wearing quaint garments, shone like two excellently attired brilliant actors on the stage and they captivated (and agitated the minds of the on-lookers with their brilliance.

20. The occupants of the galleries, both from the town and the country gazed at those two super-men. With their eyes and countenances beaming with an outburst of extreme joy, they as if drank the countenances of those brothers with their eyes but did not feel satisfied, Oh King.

21. They were as if drinking them with their eyes, licking them with their tongues, smelling them with their nose and clasping them in their arms.

22. They described to each other the details of what they actually saw (e.g. breaking of the sacrificial bow) and of what they heard (e.g. lifting of mount Govardhana) as if they were recollecting their personality (armed with the tusks of the elephant), excellences (such as bravery), sweetness (of smiling, manner of speaking etc.) and their extraordinary courage.

23. “These two brothers are the incarnations of the rays of the Almighty Lord Hari whose abode is cosmic waters, descended on the earth in the house of Vasudeva.

24. It is reported that this Kṛṣṇa was born of Devakī and taken to Gokula where, without being known by anyone, he grew up in the house of Nanda till that time.

25. By him Pūtanā, the demon in the form of a whirl-wind (Gakravāta), the two Arjuna trees, the Yakṣa (Śaṅkhacūḍa), Keśin, Dhenuka^[2] and others of the same tribe were finished.

26. Cows along with cowherds were rescued by him from the forest-conflagration, the serpent Kāliya was subdued and Indra was humbled down with his pride ridden off.

27. The big mountain (Govardhana) was held up by him on his palm for seven days and Gokula was protected from (driving) showers, (tempestuous) wiṇḍs and thunderbolts.

28. Looking with delight at his ever-cheerful appearance beaming with smiles, the Gopīs easily^[3] got over their sufferings of various sorts.

29. People say that being protected by him in every respect, the race of Yadu became widely celebrated and will attain affluence, glory and influence.

30. This is his elder brother the splendid-looking Balarāma of lotus-eyes, by whom were killed Pralamba, Vatsaka (the demon who assumed the form of a calf) and Asuras like Baka and others^[4]”

31. While people were talking thus (among themselves) and there was a flourish of trumpets, Cāṇūra addressed Kṛṣṇa and Rāma, and spoke as follows:

32. “Oh Kṛṣṇa, the son of Nanda! Oh Balarāma! Hearing that both of you are respected as great heroes, expert in wrestling, you have been invited by the king who is eager to see you.

33. Subjects who abide by the wish of the king in thought, word and deeds, attain to prosperity. And if they behave to the contrary, they meet with the reverse of it.

34. It is quite well known that since the age as cowherdboys who tend calves, even grown up cowherds also take delight in sporting and wrestling in the jungle while pasturing the cows.

35. Hence, let all of us do what is liked by the king. All beings will be propitious unto us thereby, as the king personifies all beings.”

36. Hearing that speech, Kṛṣṇa welcomed it. Considering that wrestling was desirable in his case^[5]; he gave a reply appropriate to the place and occasion.

37. “(Though we are not city-dwellers like you under Kaṃsa’s direct control) we too, wanderers in the forest as we are, are the subjects of the king of Bhojas we shall always do what is agreeable to him. It will be a great favour unto us.

38. We are after all boys. We shall play with those who are equal to us in strength. Let there be proper type of wrestling. There should not be the slightest transgression of justice, Oh judges of the wrestling tournaments.”

Cāṇūra replied:

39. “Neither You nor Balarāma is a child nor a teenager (from eleven to fifteen years of age). You, by whom an elephant possessing the strength of a thousand elephants was killed as if in a sport, are the foremost amongs [among?] the powerful people.

40. Hence, Oh Kṛṣṇa (A scion of the Vṛṣṇi clan) You will have to wrestle with powerful athletes. There is no injustice in this case. You measure Your strength with me and let Balarāma wrestle with Muṣṭika.”

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Bhāvāratha Dīpikā explains that Lord Kṛṣṇa was a combination of different rasas (sentiments) according to the view point of the person concerned. He quotes a verse enumerating the order of rasas. He manifested:

raudro'dbhutaśca śṛṅgāro hāsayaṃ vīro dayā tathā /
bhayānakaśca bībhatsaḥ śāntaḥ saprema-bhaktikaḥ //

VT. and Subodhinī also in a lengthy commentary expound how Lord Kṛṣṇa represented all the rasas. For example: the ordinary citizens were so much surprised to see the Supra-human exploits of Kṛṣṇa (e.g. killing a big elephant singlehandedly without the use of weapons by bis physical might) that it was a miracle to them (adbhuta)

[2]:

It may be noted that Dhenuka was killed by Balarāma (vide 10.15.36) But people in Mathura heard a different report.

[3]:

Bhāvāratha Dīpikā alternately takes āśramam [āśrama] as qualifying mukham [mukha] and interprets: the slightly ‘fatigued countenance of Kṛṣṇa.’

[4]:

As it usually happens in hearsay information, people of Mathura seem to have mixed up matters, for Vatsa and Baka were killed by Kṛṣṇa.

[5]:

Subodhinī explains that the investiture of the sacred thread of Kṛṣṇa had not taken place. As such, though he was a Kṣattriya, he was ineligible to use arms. Hence (for killing them) wrestling was appropriate from the point of time and place or traditional usage.