Once when mother earth was overburdened by hundreds of thousands of military phalanxes of various conceited demons dressed like kings, she approached Lord Brahmā for relief.

TRANSLATION

King Parīkṣit said: My dear lord, you have elaborately described the dynasties of both the moon-god and the sun-god, with the exalted and wonderful character of their kings.

 

COMMENTARY

In this verse Parīkṣit Mahārāja praises Śukadeva Gosvāmī for his previous Bhāgavatam descriptions. He did this to thank Śukadeva Gosvāmī and to encourage him to continue speaking hari-katha. Being naturally a devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa, Parīkṣit Mahārāja especially wanted to hear more about the wonderful glories of Śrī Kṛṣṇa.

 

Though the word sūrya, the sun-god, would usually come before soma, the moon-god, soma is mentioned first. This is because the moon-god Candra (soma) is the grandson of Brahmā; an aṁśa of Brahmā; the deity of the mind, and most importantly Śrī Kṛṣṇa appeared in his dynasty, soma-vaṁsa. Though the wonderful activities of Svāyambhuva and his dynasty were related in the Fourth Canto, they did not culminate in sweetness. However, sweetness was finally attained with the descriptions of Kṛṣṇa, who appeared in the moon dynasty (soma-vaṁsa) and Lord Rāma of the sun dynasty (sūrya-vaṁśa). Thus, the discussions of these dynasties became very prominent in Śrīmad Bhāgavatam.

 

||10.1.2||

yadoś ca dharma-śīlasya nitarāṁ muni-sattama

tatrāṁśenāvatīrṇasya viṣṇor vīryāṇi śaṁsa naḥ

TRANSLATION

O best of munis, you have also described the descendants of Yadu, who were very pious and strictly adherent to religious principles. Now, if you will, kindly describe the wonderful, glorious activities of Lord Viṣṇu, or Kṛṣṇa, who appeared in that Yadu dynasty with Baladeva, His plenary expansion.

Commentary

yadoś: “You have also previously described the pious nature of Yadu. Though Yadu disobeyed his father’s order, because of his pure devotion, his exalted character is praised in the Ninth and Eleventh Cantos of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam.”

 

muni-sattama: Parīkṣit addresses Śukadeva as the king of the munis—muni sattama, because as a sage (muni) Śukadeva Gosvāmī is completely knowledgeable, and as a devotee (sat) he is the chief since he established the supreme position of bhakti. viṣṇor vīryāṇi: “Please describe the heroic exploits (vīryani) of He who has appeared (avatīrṇasya) as that person whose aṁśa is Viṣṇu in Vaikuṇṭha.” Another meaning: “Please describe the exploits partially (aṁśena), since it is impossible to completely describe Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes.”

 

||10.1.3||

avatīrya yador vaṁśe bhagavān bhūta-bhāvanaḥ

kṛtavān yāni viśvātmā tāni no vada vistarāt

translation

The Supersoul, the Supreme Personality of Godhead Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the cause of the cosmic manifestation, appeared in the dynasty of Yadu. Please tell me elaborately about His glorious activities and character, from the beginning to the end of His life.

COMMENTARY

Parīkṣit Mahārāja said, “Śukadeva, previously you briefly told how Kṛṣṇa was taken from Kaṁsa’s prison to Vraja. But you did not explain everything in that description. O muni, you described it in only two verses. Now I pray that you will describe this incident in many verses.”

bhagavān bhūta-bhāvanah: Bhagavān Śrī Kṛṣṇa descends to immerse the jīvas (bhūta) in prema (bhāvana) and to fill all living entities with bhāva. Many verses support this point such as Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (9.24.64): vākyair vikrama-līlayā, nṛlokam ramayām āsa, mūrtyā sarvāṅga-ramyayā, “By His pleasing smiles, affectionate behavior, instructions and His uncommon heroic pastimes like lifting Govardhana Hill, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, appearing in His transcendental body, pleased all of human society.” Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (3.2.11) explains how Kṛṣṇa gave pleasure to human society (avitṛpta-dṛśāṁ nṛṇām) by revealing His beautiful all-attractive form. Even after tasting Kṛṣṇa’s sweetness, however the people remained unsatisfied. Everyone developed a desire to constantly taste the sweetness of Kṛṣṇa. Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (11.1.6) says: sva-mūrtyā loka-lāvanya-nirmuktyā locanaṁ nṛṇām, “The sweetness of Kṛṣṇa’s beauty steals the functions of all the senses. The eyes no longer desire to see any other form. Drowning them in the ocean of His beauty, Syamasundara gives them prema”.

viśvātmā: Kṛṣṇa is called viśvātmā, the Supersoul of the entire universe or Paramātmā, because He is the true object of love rather than the body or other jīvas. This is explained in Brahmā’s prayers in the fourteenth chapter of the Tenth Canto. vada vistarāt: “Please explain extensively (vistarāt) or elaborately since my intelligence is slow to grasp the subject.”

 

||10.1.4||

nivṛtta-tarṣair upagīyamānād bhavauṣadhāc chrotra-mano-’bhirāmāt

ka uttamaśloka-guṇānuvādāt pumān virajyeta vinā paśughnāt

TRANSLATION

Glorification of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is performed in the paramparā system; that is, it is conveyed from spiritual master to disciple. Such glorification is relished by those no longer interested in the false, temporary glorification of this cosmic manifestation. Descriptions of the Lord are the right medicine for the conditioned soul undergoing repeated birth and death. Therefore, who will cease hearing such glorification of the Lord except a butcher or one who is killing his own self?

COMMENTARY

I am taking whatever remnants Śrīdhara Swami and Sanātana Gosvāmī have left.

 

King Parīkṣit said to Śukadeva Gosvāmī, “I am a tiny jīva bound up by the disease of material life. How can I stop drinking the great medicine of Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes recited by you, who are the best of doctors endowed with the greatest fortune?” With this intention Parīkṣit Mahārāja speaks this verse.

tarṣair: thirst, tṛṣna, or attachment to material enjoyment.

nivṛtta-tarṣair: By taking the medicine of hearing Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes one extinguishes (nivṛtta) the thirst (tṛṣna) for material life. Nivṛtta-tarṣair indicates pure devotees, not jñānīs, because of the use of present tense and the prefix upa in upagīyamānād. Jñānīs meditate but they do not chant Kṛṣṇa’s glories. Liberated pure devotees continually glorify the practice of hearing Kṛṣṇa-katha over jñāna and other processes.

 

upagīyāmād: Upa indicates intense or continuous glorification. In other words, “We loudly praise this medicine, as it has cured us of our disease. What more can be said about tasting it? You (Śukadeva) are the taster.” bhavauṣadhāc: Who could stop drinking the sweet topics of Kṛṣṇa which are like a medicine (ausadhī) to cure the disease of material existence (bhava)? In other words, those who get the opportunity to hear the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa will not stop listening because it cures them of the disease of material existence. chrotra: srotra, listener. Because such topics are please the mind (manobhirāmāt) neither the speaker of Kṛṣṇa-katha nor the listener tires of hearing about Kṛṣṇa. mano-’bhirāmāt: Unlike other medicines, this medicine does not have a bitter taste. Therefore Parīkṣit Mahārāja says mano-’bhirāmāt: kṛṣṇa-katha gives great pleasure to the ears and mind. Therefore drink the nectar of the Bhagavata with both your ears and mind. paśughnāt: Only people involved in killing animals (paśughnāt) in sacrifice with a longing to attain celestial enjoyment on Svargaloka will not listen to these topics. Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (3.3.18) also confirms, ayājayad dharma-sutam, that those seeking dharma, artha and kāma (religion, wealth and enjoyment) have no taste for the name, qualities and resplendent pastimes of the all-attractive Madhusūdana Kṛṣṇa.

 

Another meaning: “Who would give up drinking the topics of Kṛṣṇa that are recited by Śrī Guru? Even liberated souls loudly glorify the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa. Only those desiring wealth and material enjoyment would stop hearing about Kṛṣṇa. Thus Parīkṣit Mahārāja says that only a killer of animals (paśughnāt) would stop hearing Kṛṣṇa-katha and no one else.

 

||10.1.5-7||

pitāmahā me samare ’marañjayair devavratādyātirathais timiṅgilaiḥ

duratyayaṁ kaurava-sainya-sāgaraṁ kṛtvātaran vatsa-padaṁ sma yat-plavāḥ

drauṇy-astra-vipluṣṭam idaṁ mad-aṅgaṁ santāna-bījaṁ kuru-pāṇḍavānām

jugopa kukṣiṁ gata ātta-cakro mātuś ca me yaḥ śaraṇaṁ gatāyāḥ

vīryāṇi tasyākhila-deha-bhājām antar bahiḥ pūruṣa-kāla-rūpaiḥ

prayacchato mṛtyum utāmṛtaṁ ca māyā-manuṣyasya vadasva vidvan

TRANSLATION

Taking the boat of Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet, my grandfather Arjuna and others crossed the ocean of the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra, in which such commanders as Bhīṣmadeva resembled great fish that could very easily have swallowed them. By the mercy of Lord Kṛṣṇa, my grandfathers crossed this ocean, which was very difficult to cross, as easily as one steps over the hoofprint of a calf. Because my mother surrendered unto Lord Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet, the Lord, Sudarśana-cakra in hand, entered her womb and saved my body, the body of the last remaining descendant of the Kurus and the Pāṇḍavas, which was almost destroyed by the fiery weapon of Aśvatthāmā. Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, appearing within and outside of all materially embodied living beings by His own potency in the forms of eternal time—that is, as Paramātmā and as virāṭ-rūpa—gave liberation to everyone, either as cruel death or as life. Kindly enlighten me by describing His transcendental characteristics.

COMMENTARY

Verse 5: “I should also hear the topics of Kṛṣṇa because He is the protector of our dynasty.” Thus Parīkṣit Mahārāja speaks this verse.

 

“My grandfather crossed the ocean of the Kaurava army, though it was difficult to surmount because of Bhīṣma and others (devavratādy), who were like timingala fish (timiṅgilaiḥ) that could easily swallow or defeat the demigods (amarañjayair). Kṛṣṇa made that ocean as insignificant as the water in a calf’s hoof-print.

 

“The cause was taking shelter of the boat (yat-plavāḥ) of Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet. Please speak about that person. Surrender to Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet enables one to cross the ocean of material existence.”

Verse 6: “I must certainly hear about Kṛṣṇa because He is my only protector.” With this in mind Parīkṣit Mahārāja speaks this verse.

ātta-cakro: The holder of the cakra, Kṛṣṇa, along with His club, (mentioned in the First Canto), entered into my mother, Uttara, who had surrendered to Him. The Lord easily saved my body from being burned (vipluṣṭam) by the heat of Aśvatthāmā’s weapon (drauṇy astra).

 

ca: indicates that Kṛṣṇa also protected the limbs of Parīkṣit Mahārāja’s mother.

Verse 7: Kṛṣṇa’s topics should be heard because He alone bestows the final goal on all those with material bodies (ākhila deha bhājam). With this intention the present verse is spoken.

bahiḥ: outside Kṛṣṇa awards death to those envious (bahiḥ) of His devotees. antar: Kṛṣṇa gives eternal life to those who are His near and dear devotees (antar). puruṣa: To devotees like Vasudeva, Kṛṣṇa bestows bliss in His two handed or four handed human form.

kāla-rupaiḥ: To demons like Kaṁsa, Kṛṣṇa appears in the form of time or death. According to the statements of Bhāgavatam, Kṛṣṇa’s appearance resembles the prescription of rock candy to a person afflicted with jaundice. Though Kṛṣṇa first appears as time to award death to the demons, He later awards them liberation.

prayacchataḥ: (the giver) is used in present tense to indicate that it is being seen before Parīkṣit’s eyes, or to convey the eternal nature of Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes. māyā manuṣyasya: The body of the Supreme Lord is made of eternal spiritual energy called māyā, whereas the body of a human is made of material energy.

 

The Madhya Bhāṣya of the Pramanita Śruti says, ato māyāmayaṁ viṣṇuṁ pravadanti manīṣiṇaḥ: “The sages say the body accepted by Lord Viṣṇu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is called māyāmaya. Viṣṇu’s body is not formed of the external energy. Therefore, this māyā refers to Kṛṣṇa’s internal spiritual potency, yogamāyā.

||10.1.8||

rohiṇyās tanayaḥ prokto rāmaḥ saṅkarṣaṇas tvayā

devakyā garbha-sambandhaḥ kuto dehāntaraṁ vinā

TRANSLATION

My dear Śukadeva Gosvāmī, you have already explained that Saṅkarṣaṇa, who belongs to the second quadruple, appeared as the son of Rohiṇī named Balarāma. If Balarāma was not transferred from one body to another, how is it possible that He was first in the womb of Devakī and then in the womb of Rohiṇī? Kindly explain this to me.

COMMENTARY

In the next four verses (8-11) Parīkṣit Mahārāja inquires about the details of Kṛṣṇa’s birth. A general description was given in Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (9.24.54-55) which describes the birth of Devakī’s seventh child with the words Saṅkarṣaṇam (saṅkarṣaṇa) and ahi-īsvaram (the supreme controller). Here Parīkṣit Mahārāja says, “Śukadeva Gosvāmī, elsewhere you have said Saṅkarṣaṇa is the son of Rohiṇī, so how could He come from Devakī’s womb without having to change bodies?”

 

||10.1.9||

kasmān mukundo bhagavān pitur gehād vrajaṁ gataḥ

kva vāsaṁ jñātibhiḥ sārdhaṁ kṛtavān sātvatāṁ patiḥ

TRANSLATION

Why did Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, leave the house of His father, Vasudeva, and transfer Himself to the house of Nanda in Vṛndāvana? Where did the Lord, the master of the Yadu dynasty, live with His relatives in Vṛndāvana?

COMMENTARY

vraja: Kṛṣṇa went from Vasudeva’s home (the prison cell) in Mathurā to Vraja. Here Vraja means Mahāvana. After going to Vraja, Kṛṣṇa left the home of Nanda. Parīkṣit Mahārāja is asking, “Where did Kṛṣṇa go in Vṛndāvana to establish His home along with the cowherd men?”

 

||10.1.10||

vraje vasan kim akaron madhupuryāṁ ca keśavaḥ

bhrātaraṁ cāvadhīt kaṁsaṁ mātur addhātad-arhaṇam

TRANSLATION

Lord Kṛṣṇa lived both in Vṛndāvana and in Mathurā. What did He do there? Why did He kill Kaṁsa, His mother’s brother? Such killing is not at all sanctioned in the śāstras.

COMMENTARY

Madhupuryām: refers to Mathurā and Dvārakā, the cities of the descendents of Madhu. “Why did Kṛṣṇa kill His mother’s (Devakī) brother Kaṁsa? Kṛṣṇa should not have done that, since Kaṁsa was his mother’s brother.”

 

||10.1.11||

dehaṁ mānuṣam āśritya kati varṣāṇi vṛṣṇibhiḥ

yadu-puryāṁ sahāvātsīt patnyaḥ katy abhavan prabhoḥ

TRANSLATION

Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, has no material body, yet He appears as a human being. For how many years did He live with the descendants of Vṛṣṇi? How many wives did He marry, and for how many years did He live in Dvārakā?

COMMENTARY

How many years did Kṛṣṇa live with the Yadus?

 

dehaṁ mānuṣam āśritya: By using this phrase, Parīkṣit Mahārāja indicates that the years should be in human calculation, not that of the devas.

 

In other places the Lord is referred to as “paramātma narakrti” or “budha parabrahma manusya cihnadhari.” The Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad says, narākṛti para-braḥma kāraṇa-mānuṣaḥ: “The Supreme Absolute Truth, for His own purpose, appears in a humanlike form, although He is the source of everything.” These śāstric statements show that the human-like form of Kṛṣṇa is His svarūpa or spiritual form. Thus the phrase dehaṁ mānuṣam cannot mean that Kṛṣṇa has a material body.

 

||10.1.12||

etad anyac ca sarvaṁ me mune kṛṣṇa-viceṣṭitam

vaktum arhasi sarvajña śraddadhānāya vistṛtam

TRANSLATION

O great sage, who know everything about Kṛṣṇa, please describe in detail all the activities of which I have inquired and also those of which I have not, for I have full faith and am very eager to hear of them.

||10.1.13||

naiṣātiduḥsahā kṣun māṁ tyaktodam api bādhate

pibantaṁ tvan-mukhāmbhoja-cyutaṁ hari-kathāmṛtam

TRANSLATION

Because of my vow on the verge of death, I have given up even drinking water, yet because I am drinking the nectar of topics about Kṛṣṇa, which is flowing from the lotus mouth of your Lordship, my hunger and thirst, which are extremely difficult to bear, cannot hinder me.

COMMENTARY

“Parīkṣit, because you are afflicted by hunger and thirst you should rest a while.” In response to Śukadeva’s advice, Parīkṣit speaks this verse: “It was due to hunger and thirst that I lost my discrimination, and placed the snake around the neck of the muni. Now that I am drinking hari-kathāmṛtam, the nectar of the pastimes of Hari, I have completely given up food and water. Hunger and thirst no longer afflict me.”

 

Why is the present tense used here? Because hunger will manifest the moment one stops hearing about Kṛṣṇa. āmbhoja: lotus; This word suggests the sweetness and intoxicating effect of the topics of Hari. For this reason, Parīkṣit Mahārāja has forgotten his intolerable hunger and thirst. The lotus suggests that the mouth of Śukadeva is fragrant like a lotus. āmṛtam: nectar; Indicates that the lotus mouth (mukhāmbhoja) of Śukadeva Gosvāmī is like the moon in that it drips nectar; bestows joy; and destroys the darkness in the hearts of the listeners. It also means that Parīkṣit, being thirsty for the pastimes of Hari (hari-kathāmṛtam), is like a cakora bird longing for the moonlight. All of this expresses Parīkṣit Mahārāja’s great attachment for hearing the topics of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa.

||10.1.14||

sūta uvāca

evaṁ niśamya bhṛgu-nandana sādhu-vādaṁ

vaiyāsakiḥ sa bhagavān atha viṣṇu-rātam

pratyarcya kṛṣṇa-caritaṁ kali-kalmaṣa-ghnaṁ

vyāhartum ārabhata bhāgavata-pradhānaḥ

TRANSLATION

Sūta Gosvāmī said: O son of Bhṛgu [Śaunaka Ṛṣi], after Śukadeva Gosvāmī, the most respectable devotee, the son of Vyāsadeva, heard the pious questions of Mahārāja Parīkṣit, he thanked the King with great respect. Then he began to discourse on topics concerning Kṛṣṇa, which are the remedy for all sufferings in this age of Kali.

COMMENTARY

bhṛgu-nandana: Sūta Gosvāmī speaks, “O son of Bhṛgu [Śaunaka Ṛsi].”

kali kalmaṣa ghnaṁ: Śukadeva began describing the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa which dispel the sorrows of the jīvas of kali-yuga and destroy the worst of sins. viṣṇu rātam: always protected by Viṣṇu; Śukadeva began describing Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes to Parīkṣit (viṣṇu rātam).

bhāgavata pradhānaḥ: chief devotee; describes Śukadeva as the chief among devotees, who shows great regard for the book bhagāvata and the devotee bhagāvata.

 

||10.1.15||

śrī-śuka uvāca

samyag vyavasitā buddhis tava rājarṣi-sattama

vāsudeva-kathāyāṁ te yaj jātā naiṣṭhikī ratiḥ

TRANSLATION

Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: O Your Majesty, best of all saintly kings, because you are greatly attracted to topics of Vāsudeva, it is certain that your intelligence is firmly fixed in spiritual understanding, which is the only true goal for humanity. Because that attraction is unceasing, it is certainly sublime.

COMMENTARY

samyag vyavasitā buddhis: Śukadeva Gosvāmī said, “You have developed firm attachment to the Lord because (yat) your intelligence (buddhi) is fixed (samyag vyavasitā). rājarṣi sattama: You previously addressed me as muni sattama, the best among the munis and devotees. This is my response. O king, you are the best among saintly kings (rajarṣi sattama) and devotees because of your superior devotion to the Lord. By Kṛṣṇa’s mercy you defeated the power of brahma teja (Aśvattāmā’s astra) at the time of birth and death.”

 

||10.1.16||

vāsudeva-kathā-praśnaḥ puruṣāṁs trīn punāti hi

vaktāraṁ pracchakaṁ śrotṝṁs tat-pāda-salilaṁ yathā

TRANSLATION

The Ganges, emanating from the toe of Lord Viṣṇu, purifies the three worlds, the upper, middle and lower planetary systems. Similarly, when one asks questions about the pastimes and characteristics of Lord Vāsudeva, Kṛṣṇa, three varieties of men are purified: the speaker or preacher, he who inquires, and the people in general who listen.

COMMENTARY

pāda salilaṁ yathā: Hari-katha purifies three types of persons, just like the caraṇāmṛta of śālagrām or a deity, which purifies three types of persons: those who put it on their head, those who drink it and those who do both. It also means that the topics of Hari are just like the Gaṅgā, which purifies those in the upper, middle and lower worlds. The topics of Hari purify the speaker, the inquirer and the listener in descending order. Hari-katha is most purifying for the speaker, then the inquirer and then the listener.

 

||10.1.17||

bhūmir dṛpta-nṛpa-vyāja-daityānīka-śatāyutaiḥ

ākrāntā bhūri-bhāreṇa brahmāṇaṁ śaraṇaṁ yayau

TRANSLATION