Chapter 59(b) - Satyabhāmā defeats Gods

[Note: Padaratnāvalī’s Text chapter 66]

Śrī Śuka continued:

1. Perceiving that gods are rushing forward to attack them, Kṛṣṇa, the Lord of the world, remarked to Satyabhāmā, “Here have arrived your guests, these gods”.

2. While the Lord of gods was speaking thus, the warrior- gods despatched (against Kṛṣṇa) roared and discharged a volley of arrows on Kṛṣṇa, O descendant of Kurus.

3. Then, confused at the sudden calamity, Satyabhāmā took up the Śārṅga bow and with a volley of arrows cut off the shafts discharged by the warriors from heaven.

4. Thereafter advanced Kubera the Lord of wealth, surrounded by a number of Yakṣas and twanging the string of his palm-tree high bow plated with gold at both ends.

5. Discharging arrows with feathers of gold and now and then roaring like a lion, he rushed forward in the battle and shouted, “Stop, Stop.”

6. Satyā (Satyabhāmā) hit forcibly his big belly with five sharp arrows that cut him to the quick, O King.

7. Being deeply wounded by her arrows in the battle, the god of wealth discharged three bhalla arrows at the beloved of Lord Hari and gave out a lusty shout.

8-9. Even before those shafts could reach her, she cut them with three arrows with crescent-shaped head. And the queen (Satyā) struck the forehead of Kubera, the Lord of Guhyakas, with eight Vatsadanta (type of) arrows swift like the mind, O prominent Kuru. Extremely pained with those arrows, Kubera, the son of Pulastya, was over-whelmed with rage.

10-13. In that combat, he discharged twenty-one sharp arrows but Satyabhāmā, with her seven shafts, cut each of them into three pieces within half a second (wink of the eye). While they were in the air, Satyabhāmā, the beloved of Hari, flew into rage and cut into two the big bow of Kubera at its hold (in the middle) with an arrow with crescent-shaped head. Kubera, the Lord of riches picked up another bow and stringing it, discharged a volley of arrows, wrathfully breathing like a serpent. But queen Satyabhāmā with ease (as in a sport) cut down all those arrows with her Sannataparva shafts (of hard knots). It was a miracle as it were to see. Kubera, thereupon, wrathfully glared at Satyabhāmā.

14-16. “Look at my prowess I shall kill you outright today”, growled he. With a desire to wipe out his defeat and humiliation and while all gods were gazing, he fixed an excellent arrow with a crescent-head on his bow tall as a palmyra tree, to kill queen Satyabhāmā.

17. Anticipating his plan (in mind), the consort of Hari cut his bow just in the middle (at its hold), with an arrow with a horse-shoe shaped sharp head, O best of Kurus.

18. Then Kubera, the protector of wealth took up his formidable Mudgara (club) that terrified demons and brandishing it hundred times, hurled it at the queen (Satyā).

19. Kṛṣṇa with his left hand (easily) caught hold of that extremely terrible club as it was rushing towards her and seeing at him laughed loudly.

20. Thereupon, Kubera, the Lord of wealth retired from the battle and fled away. Kṛṣṇa spoke highly of his queen, embraced her with great regard.

21. When Kubera took to his heels in the battle with Kṛṣṇa, the enemy of Kaṃsa, Varuṇa raising his noose attacked Kṛṣṇa in a combat.

22. Perceiving the advance of Varuṇa who rode a crocodile, Garuḍa of formidable strength pounced upon him like a tiger springing on an ox.

23. Terrific was the fight between Garuḍa and Varuṇa, like the combat between Bali and Indra in the war between gods and demons.

24. Varuṇa, the Lord of waters, threw the noose about the neck of Garuḍa and angrily dragged him like one lion dragging another.

25. Lifting up Varuṇa, the Lord of waters with the ends of his wings and catching hold of the crocodile in his claws Garuḍa hurled them into the sea.

26. Having lost his mount and catching hold of his noose with great difficulty, Varuṇa ran away on foot from the battle-field to his abode whence he came.

27. When Varuṇa retired from the battle-field, the Wind-god and the Fire-god jointly attacked Kṛṣṇa, O the best of Kurus!

28. The Fire-god discharged five arrows, while the Wind-god fired three shafts. Their fight with Kṛṣṇa was wonderful to look at.

29. Thereupon, Govinda, exterminator of enemies, laughed loudly and pierced the Fire-god with one arrow and the Wind-god with seven.

30. Deeply and forcibly struck on the chest with one shaft with horse-shoe-shaped head, the Fire-god realized that Kṛṣṇa was extraordinary and quickly fled from the battlefield.

31.Noticing that the Fire-god had run away from the battle and that his whole body was bristling with arrows, he (the Wind-god) was overwhelmed with pain.

32.He realized that it was lotus-eyed god Viṣṇu who had appeared on the battle-field. He retired from the battle as he wanted to save his own life.

33.Thereupon mounting his he-buffalo and raising up his refulgent rod, Yama, with his eyes reddened with rage, attacked Kṛṣṇa in the battle.

34. Noticing Yama with his big rod raised up (to strike at him,) the lotus-eyed Kṛṣṇa hurled his mace at him and felled it from his hand.

35. The heavy blow of his mace on his rod made Yama’s hand tremble. Turning his back, the god of death ran away with his buffalo, O scion of the Kuru race.

36. Beholding the discomfiture and retreat of Yama, Nirṛti was overwhelmed with fear and judging his power, did not come to fight.

37. But god Śiva of great heroic lustre, armed with a trident and mounting his bull, attacked Kṛṣṇa with his enormous army of goblins.

38. Those two mighty valorous heroes well-known in the world engaged in a terrible combat, each with an ambition to defeat the other.

39. Piercing Kṛṣṇa with ten arrows and Garuḍa with five, Śiva roared out in the battle, Stop, Stop.

40. Taking up his Śārṅga bow, Kṛṣṇa, the destroyer of cities of enemies, hit Śiva, the rider of the bull with thirty arrows simultaneously.

41. In that combat, Garuḍa, the destroyer of serpents, harassed the bull with his pointed bill, both of his claws and wings.

42. Discharging again fifty Nārāca arrows at him, Kṛṣṇa engaged Śaṅkara, the benign god who blesses the world, in the fight, O ruler of the world.

43. Śiva, got enraged and brandishing his sharp-pointed formidable-looking trident hurled it at Vasudeva (Kṛṣṇa), O King.

44. Noticing the trident rushing at him, Kṛṣṇa hurled his heavy demon-destroying mace Kaumodakī at it, to ward it off.

45. It is traditionally reported that both the weapons—the Kaumodakī mace and the trident—buffeted each other in the sky and giving out huge flames both of them simultaneously fell into the sea.

46. Felling down the trident into the sea, the mace Kaumodakī returned to Viṣṇu’s (Kṛṣṇa’s) hand and the trident also to that of Śiva.

47. The serpent decorated god Śiva raised up his sharp sword and spurring his bull with his heals, he attacked Kṛṣṇa in the combat.

48. Promptly seizing the bull by his two horns, Garuḍa hurled god Śiva along with the bull to a distance of hundred bows (four hundred cubits).

49. Thereupon god Śiva, the wielder of trident with the bull as his mount, left the battle and speedily went back to his pee, O best of Kurus!