Verse Text
dvitīyo, yathā –
mṛtyus taskara-maṇḍale sukṛtināṁ vṛnde vasantānilaḥ
kandarpo ramaṇīṣu durgata-kule kalyāṇa-kalpa-drumaḥ |
indur bandhu-gaṇe vipakṣa-paṭale kālāgni-rudrākṛtiḥ
śāsti svasti-dhurandharo madhupurīṁ nītyā madhūnāṁ patiḥ ||78||
Translation
The second type of learning, knowledge of conduct is illustrated: The lord of the Madhus, Kṛṣṇa, is death for the thieves; the spring breeze for the pious; Cupid for the young women; a desire tree for the poverty-stricken; the cooling moon for His friends; the fire of final destruction in the form of Rudra for the enemies. He protects Mathurā and Dvārakā by His judicious conduct (in relation to all people.)
Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Svasti-dhurandharaḥ means that Kṛṣṇa takes responsibility for the welfare of all. He protects the whole world by his proper conduct and by proper conduct brings death to the thieves.
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
An alternate version is tribhuvanaṁ nītyā madhūnāṁ patiḥ: Kṛṣṇa protects the whole universe by proper conduct. This is a suitable description because it shows Kṛṣṇa acting like a king. If one takes madhupurīm nītyā madhūnāṁ patiḥ as the reading, it should be understood that madhupurīm indicates Dvārakā as well as Mathurā (since the Lord ruled both places), since one can analyze the compound into madhūnāṁ purī, city of the Madhu (Yadu) dynasty.
Purport (Nectar of Devotion)
Regarding His moral principles, it is stated in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam that Kṛṣṇa is ruling over Vṛndāvana as death personified to the thieves, as pleasing bliss to the pious, as the most beautiful Cupid to the young girls and as the most munificent personality to the poor men. He is as refreshing as the full moon to His friends, and to His opponents He is the annihilating fire generated from Lord Śiva. Kṛṣṇa is therefore the most perfect moralist in His reciprocal dealings with different kinds of persons. When He is death personified to the thieves, it is not that He is without moral principles or that He is cruel; He is still kind, because to punish thieves with death is to exhibit the highest quality of moral principles. In Bhagavad-gītā, also, Kṛṣṇa says that He deals with different kinds of persons according to their dealings with Him. Kṛṣṇa’s dealings with devotees and with nondevotees, although different, are equally good. Because Kṛṣṇa is all-good, His dealings with everyone are always good.