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Sukadeva Gosvami said: Jarasandha had defeated 20,800 kings in combat and thrown them into
prison. As these kings emerged from the Giridroni fortress, they appeared dirty and shabbily
dressed. They were emaciated by hunger, their faces were dried up, and they were greatly
weakened by their long imprisonment. The kings then beheld the Lord before them.
His complexion was dark blue like the color of a cloud, and He wore a yellow silk garment.
He was distinguished by the Srivatsa mark on His chest, His four mighty arms, the pinkish
hue of His eyes, which resembled the whorl of a lotus, His lovely, cheerful face, His
gleaming makara earrings and the lotus, club, conchshell and disc in His hands. A helmet,
a jeweled necklace, a golden belt, and golden bracelets and armlets decorated His form,
and on His neck He wore both the brilliant, precious Kaustubha gem and a garland of forest
flowers. The kings seemed to drink His beauty with their eyes, lick Him with their tongues,
relish His fragrance with their nostrils and embrace Him with their arms. Their past sins
now eradicated, the kings all bowed down to Lord Hari, placing their heads at His feet.
The ecstasy of beholding Lord Krsna having dispelled the weariness of their imprisonment,
the kings stood with joined palms and offered words of praise to that supreme master of
the senses. The kings said: Obeisances to You, O Lord
of the ruling demigods, O destroyer of Your surrendered devotees’ distress. Since we
have surrendered to You, O inexhaustible Krsna, please save us from this terrible material
life, which has made us so despondent. O master, Madhusudana, we do not blame this
King of Magadha, since it is actually by Your mercy that kings fall from their royal position,
O almighty Lord. Infatuated with his opulence and ruling power,
a king loses all self-restraint and cannot obtain his true welfare. Thus bewildered by
Your illusory energy, he imagines his temporary assets to be permanent.
Just as men of childish intelligence consider a mirage in the desert to be a pond of water,
so those who are irrational look upon the illusory transformations of Maya as substantial.
Previously, blinded by the intoxication of riches, we wanted to conquer this earth, and
thus we fought one another to achieve victory, mercilessly harassing our own subjects. We
arrogantly disregarded You, O Lord, who stood before us as death. But now, O Krsna, that
powerful form of Yours called time, moving mysteriously and irresistibly, has deprived
us of our opulences. Now that You have mercifully destroyed our pride, we beg simply to remember
Your lotus feet. Never again will we hanker for a miragelike
kingdom—a kingdom that must be slavishly served by this mortal body, which is simply
a source of disease and suffering and which is declining at every moment. Nor, O almighty
Lord, will we hanker to enjoy the heavenly fruits of pious work in the next life, since
the promise of such rewards is simply an empty enticement for the ears.
Please tell us how we may constantly remember Your lotus feet, though we continue in the
cycle of birth and death in this world. Again and again we offer our obeisances unto
Lord Krsna, Hari, the son of Vasudeva. That Supreme Soul, Govinda, vanquishes the suffering
of all who surrender to Him. Sukadeva Gosvami said: Thus the kings, now
freed from bondage, glorified the Supreme Lord. Then, my dear Pariksit, that merciful
bestower of shelter spoke to them in a gentle voice.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: From now on, my dear kings, you will have firm
devotion to Me, the Supreme Self and the Lord of all that be. I assure you this will come
to pass, just as you desire. Fortunately you have come to the proper conclusion,
my dear kings, and what you have spoken is true. I can see that human beings’ lack
of self-restraint, which arises from their intoxication with opulence and power, simply
leads to madness. Haihaya, Nahusa, Vena, Ravana, Naraka and
many other rulers of demigods, men and demons fell from their elevated positions because
of infatuation with material opulence. Understanding that this material body and
everything connected with it have a beginning and an end, worship Me by Vedic sacrifices,
and with clear intelligence protect your subjects in accordance with the principles of religion.
As you live your lives, begetting generations of progeny and encountering happiness and
distress, birth and death, always keep your minds fixed on Me.
Be detached from the body and everything connected to it. Remaining self-satisfied, steadfastly
keep your vows while concentrating your minds fully on Me. In this way you will ultimately
attain Me, the Supreme Absolute Truth. Sukadeva Gosvami said: Having thus instructed
the kings, Lord Krsna, the supreme master of all the worlds, engaged male and female
servants in bathing and grooming them. O descendant of Bharata, the Lord then had
King Sahadeva honor them with offerings of clothing, jewelry, garlands and sandalwood
paste, all suitable for royalty. After they had been properly bathed and adorned,
Lord Krsna saw to it that they dined on excellent food. He also presented them with various
items befitting the pleasure of kings, such as betel nut.
Honored by Lord Mukunda and freed from tribulation, the kings shone splendidly, their earrings
gleaming, just as the moon and other celestial bodies shine brilliantly in the sky at the
end of the rainy season. Then the Lord arranged for the kings to be
seated on chariots drawn by fine horses and adorned with jewels and gold, and pleasing
them with gracious words, He sent them off to their own kingdoms.
Thus liberated from all difficulty by Krsna, the greatest of personalities, the kings departed,
and as they went they thought only of Him, the Lord of the universe, and of His wonderful
deeds. The kings told their ministers and other associates
what the Personality of Godhead had done, and then they diligently carried out the orders
He had imparted to them. Having arranged for Bhimasena to kill Jarasandha,
Lord Kesava accepted worship from King Sahadeva and then departed with the two sons of Prtha.
When they arrived at Indraprastha, the victorious heroes blew their conchshells, bringing joy
to their well-wishing friends and sorrow to their enemies.
The residents of Indraprastha were very pleased to hear that sound, for they understood that
now the King of Magadha had been put to rest. King Yudhisthira felt that his desires were
now fulfilled. Bhima, Arjuna and Janardana offered their
respects to the King and informed him fully about what they had done.
Upon hearing their account of the great favor Lord Kesava had mercifully shown him, King
Dharmaraja shed tears of ecstasy. He felt such love that he could not say anything.