Narayana Krishna

“Maharishi Śuka continued, ‘Due to the pressure of the Lord’s feet, Kaliya’s hoods were broken and he had been rendered unconscious’.

The pride of a snake is always in its hood. When the hood is bruised or broken, its pride vanishes. Hood is its most important limb.

“Pleased with the prayers offered by his wives, Śrikrishna spared the snake. Recovering its sensory strength and vitality, breathing heavily in great difficulty, in a pitiable tone it addressed Śrikrishna, the dispeller of sins, and prayed,

‘O Lord! By birth we snakes are wicked. Biting, destroying and swallowing our prey is our only task. Injecting poison into the living entity we cause its death. As we are pre-dominantly composed of tamas (ignorance), our entire life is filled with uncontrollable fury and traits of goodness (sattva) do not even exist in us. Without distinction, we bite the saints as well as the wicked. We are those pitiable beings who bite even the person who comes to our aid.

As we are totally filled with tamas (ignorance), our bodies are full of sin. O Lord, it is a natural disposition of a living entity to live in accordance to its tendency and distancing from its inherent nature is, to it, almost equivalent of giving up its life. To be filled with vanity is a normal tendency for house-holders, isn’t it?

O creator! You have created this universe in such way that it is teeming with many variations due to the different combinations of the attributes of goodness, passion and ignorance (trigunas). It has many different types of peaceful dispositions, bodily strengths, sensory strengths, maternal energies, paternal energies and latent tendencies. In such a creation, we are born as serpents filled with uncontrollable anger since birth.

O Supreme Lord! It is almost impossible to cross this illusion of Yours. We, the deluded beings, cannot cross this illusion with self-efforts. Anger is our natural disposition’.”

If you ask us to speak, we speak out of anger. If you ask us to look, our gaze will be filled with anger. We bite in anger. From head to toe we are filled with anger as we are predominantly filled with tamo guna. Wherever we go, we fill the place with poison. The wind that blows over us is also rendered poisonous.

“Kaliya continued, ‘O Lord, we who are filled with anger are unable to cross this illusion which has enveloped us. O Lord of the universe! You are omniscient. You are the root for this disposition to exist in us. You bless me or punish me per Your discretion. Please do whatever You feel is right’.”

Kaliya asked the Lord to punish or bless per His wish. ‘Please act based on what You feel is right and based on what I am entitled to’- was his prayer.

“Maharishi Śuka said, ‘Śrikrishna, the Supreme Lord, had incarnated in a human form on Earth in order to fulfill the task of the Devatas. Hearing the words spoken by Kaliya, He replied, “O Kaliya! henceforth do not live here. Without any delay proceed to the ocean together with your wives, children and all other relatives. Cattle and humans will use these waters for their needs.

The human being who, during both Sandhya (twilight) times, recollects this punishment meted out by Me to you and glorifies it, will never have to fear you. The person who recollects this incident, who reads it, listens to it every day will never have to fear you’.”

Swamiji says: Today is Garuda Panchami or Naga Panchami. It is our fortune to record this incident today. The day you listen/ read it, you can think it is so. The Lord himself has given this boon.

“The Lord continued, ‘The person who, after observing fast, bathes in this sacred pond where I have sported with you, offers water oblations to Devatas and fore-fathers while thinking of Me and worshipping Me, will be freed from all his sins in totality. I am aware that fearing Eagle Garuda, you abandoned the Ramaṇaka island and have sought shelter in this pond. I assure you that Garuda will never devour you, who possess the marks of My feet on your hood’.”

The stories of Śrikrishna always fill us with wonder, don’t they? They are supremely astonishing.

“When the Lord commanded thus, Kaliya and his wives were filled with great happiness. In great reverence, they worshipped Him. They were mentally at peace. Kaliya presented Śrikrishna, the protector of the universe who retains the Garuda on his flag, with illumining clothing, gems, glittering chains, many costly ornaments, sandal paste, other divine pastes and a garland of lotuses. Kaliya who had pleased the Lord with his prayer, circumambulated around the Lord in reverence and then after offering Him obeisance took leave of the Lord. Together with his wives, children and hordes of relatives, he immediately set out for the Ramanaka island located in the ocean.

The moment Kaliya departed from there, the waters of Yamuna were freed from poison and were now as pure as nectar. This is the blessing showered by Śrikrishna, the human incarnation of the Supreme Lord”.

With this the sixteenth chapter of the tenth canto comes to an end.

Narayana Krishna