Part 3: Fight with Acchadanta

And now, as Kṛṣṇa was going along, when he had reached the city Hastikalpa^[1] on the road, he told Haladhārin that he was suffering from hunger. Balabhadra said to him: “I shall go to this city for food for you. You stay here on your guard, brother. If anything unfavourable happens to me for any reason, I shall give a lion’s-roar. Hearing that, you should hurry.”

With these words Rāma entered the city and, possessing a god-like form, was seen by the townspeople with wonder, “Who is he?” “Dvārakā has been burned and Sīrin here, having left it, has come,” this rumor spread among the people, on reflection. By means of a ring Rāma himself took many kinds of food from a confectioner and wine from a liquor-dealer by means of a bracelet.

When Bala went near the city-gate, after taking (the food and wine), the guards saw him and, astonished, went to the king. The king in this city was Acchadanta, son of Dhṛtarāṣṭra, who had survived those killed by the Pāṇḍavas, partisans of Kṛṣṇa, in the past. The guards said: “Like a robber he takes food and wine in your city by giving a valuable ring and bracelet. Now, equal to Sirin in form, he is going outside. Whether he is a robber or whether he is Bala, henceforth there is no fault on our part.”

Acchadanta went there with an army to kill Bala and had the gate’s double-doors barred. Bala put down the food and drink, pulled up an elephant-post, gave a lion’s roar, and began to kill the enemy-army. Hearing the lion’s-roar, Kṛṣṇa ran up, broke the double-doors with a kick, and entered the city, like the submarine fire the ocean. Taking the iron-bound club, Kṛṣṇa killed the enemy-soldiers; and said to King Acchadanta who was submissive: “Our strength of arm has not gone any place! Villain, what have you done? Humble, enjoy your kingdom. You are freed from this crime.”

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Identified as Hāthab near Bhavnagar by Lai.