Chapter Six Kaṁsa-bala-varṇana Description of Kaṁsa's Strengtḥ

Śrī Bahulāśva said: Who was this very powerful demon Kaṁsa? O great sage, please describe his births and deeds.

Śrī Nārada said: At the time of churning the ocean a great demon named Kālanemi fought with Lord Viṣṇu and was violently killed by Him.

When with his sañjīvinī science Śukrācārya revived him, in his heart Kālanemi yearned to fight again with Lord Viṣṇu.

On Mount Mandara he performed severe austerities, drinking dūrvā-grass juice and worshiping the demigod Brahmā.

When a hundred celestial years had passed all that remained of him was bones in an anthill. Then Brahmā said to him, Ask for a benediction," and Kālanemi spoke a reply.

Kālanemi said: May my death not come from the hands of any or all of the very powerful demigods, who have Lord Viṣṇu as their root.

Śrī Brahmā said: O demon, the benediction you request is difficult to attain. Still, you have now attained it. My words are not false.

Śrī Nārada said: In Ugrasena's wife the demon attained another demonic birth. Even in childhood he would regularly fight with great wrestlers.

Wishing to conquer all directions, Jarāsandha, the king of Magadha, set his royal camp at different places by the Yamunā's shore.

Then the elephant Kuvalayāpīḍa, who was strong as thousands of other elephants, became angry, broke his chains, and ran from the royal camp.

It ran from the royal camp to the mountains and entered an arena where Kaṁsa was fighting.

When wrestlers fled and the elephant approached him, Kaṁsa grabbed its trunk and threw it to the ground.

Again grabbing it, Kaṁsa threw it into Jarāsandha's army eighty miles away.

Pleased by seeing this amazing strength, the king of Magadha gave his two daughters, Asti and Prāpti, as well as that elephant, to Kaṁsa.

For a wedding present Jarāsandha gave a hundred million horses, a hundred thousand elephants, three hundred thousand chariots, and ten thousand maidservants.

Then, very proud of the strength of his arms, and eager to fight, powerful Kaṁsa went, all alone, to Māhiṣmatī City.

Cāṇūra, Muṣṭika, Kūṭa, Śāla, and Tośala, who were the sons of the king of Māhiṣmatī, were wrestlers very eager to defeat their opponents in fighting.

Kaṁsa calmly said to them: "Let us fight. If you win, I will become your servant.

"If I win, I will make you all my servants." All these great fighters looked at him and agreed. Then Kaṁsa fought with them and they tried to defeat him.

When Cāṇūra rushed at him, Kaṁsa made a great sound and threw him to the ground.

When Muṣṭika rushed at him with ferocious punches, with one punch Kaṁsa knocked him to the ground.

When Kūṭa rushed at him, Kaṁsa knowcked him to the ground, grabbed his feet, and violently threw him into the sky.

When Śala, waving his arms, rushed at him, Kaṁsa grabbed an arm, pulled him down, and dragged him about.

Then Kaṁsa grabbed Tośala, knocked him to the ground, and, by the power of his arms, threw him eighty miles away.

Then Kaṁsa made them all his servants and, on my advice, went with them to great Mount Pravaraṣaṇa.

After presenting his proposal before him, Kaṁsa fought with the gorilla Dvivida for twenty days without becoming tired.

Dvivida uprooted a mountain and threw it on Kaṁsa's head. Kaṁsa also grabbed a mountain and threw it on Dvivida.

Dvivida punched Kaṁsa and jumped into the sky. Kaṁsa chased him and threw him to the ground.

In this way Dvivida was knocked unconscious. Dispirited, weakened, and his bones broken, he became Kaṁsa's servant.

Then Kaṁsa went to Ṛṣyamūka forest, where there was a great demon named Keśī, who had the form of a horse whinnying like thunder.

Punching it again and again, Kaṁsa subdued the horse. Mounting it, very powerful Kaṁsa rode to Mount Mahendra.

pralayārka-prabhaṁ dṛṭṭvā nanāma śirasā munim punaḥ pradakṣiṇī-kṛtyo tad-aṅghryor nipapāta ha śata—a hundred; vāram—times; ca—also; ujjahāra—lifting; girim—the hill; utpatya—uprooting; daitya-rāṭ—the king of mountains; punaḥ—again; tatra—there; sthitam—placed; rāmam—rāma; krodha—with anger; samrakta—red; locanam—eyes; pralaya—of devastation; arka—of the sun; prabham—the splendor; dṛṭṭvā—seeing; nanāma—bowed down; śirasā—with his head; munim—to the sage; punaḥ—again; pradakṣiṇī-kṛtyaḥ—circumambulating; tad-aṅghryoḥ—at His feet; nipapāta—fell; ha—certainly. A hundred times the demon-king Kaṁsa uprooted the mountain, held it high, and set it again in its place. When he saw Lord Paraśurāma, who was as effulgent as the sun at the time of cosmic dissolution, and whose eyes were now red with anger, Kaṁsa bowed his head before the sage, circumambulated Him, and fell at His feet.

Pacified by this, Paraśurāma, his eyes very fierce, said to Kaṁsa, "O worm! O baby crab! You are insignificant as a mosquito.

Today I will kill you, who are a wicked kṣatriya falsely proud of his strength. This great bow by My side weighs a hundred thousand bhāras.

This bow was given by Lord Viṣṇu in the battle for Tripura City. To kill the kṣatriyas I received it from Lord Śiva's own hand.

If you can draw this bow it will be good for you. If you cannot draw it I will destroy your strength.

Hearing these words, the demon Kaṁsa picked up the bow made of seven palm trees. As Paraśurāma watched, Kaṁsa easily strung it.

A hundred times he drew the bowstring back to his ear and released it with a thunderous sound.

That sound echoed in the universe of seven planetary systems and outer space. It made the elephants that support the directions tremble and it made the stars fall to the earth.

Putting the bow back in its place, and bowing again and again to Lord Paraśurāma, Kaṁsa said, "O Lord, I am not a kṣatriya. I am a demon, and I am Your servant.

"I am the servant of Your servant. O Supreme Person, please protect me." Hearing this, Lord Paraśurāma was pleased with him and gave him that bow.

Śrī Paraśurāma said: Whoever breaks this bow of Lord Viṣṇu will kill you.

Śrī Nārada said: Then Kaṁsa bowed down before the sage Paraśurāma. As Kaṁsa thought of all this, he became filled with pride. No king could fight with him. They only brought him gifts.

On the seashore Kaṁsa saw a a demon named Aghāsura who, licking its tongue and hissing, had a serpent's body.

When the serpent approached and bit him, the fearless and very powerful demon-king Kaṁsa jumped on it and became like a necklace squeezing its neck.

In the east a great bull-demon named Ariṣṭa fought with Kaṁsa as one elephant fights with another elephant.

With its horns it uprooted a mountain and threw it at Kaṁsa's head. Then Kaṁsa took a mountain and threw it at Ariṣṭa's head.

With a single punch the great demon Kaṁsa made Ariṣṭa fall unconscious. After this victory Kaṁsa went to the north.

There, eager to fight, Kaṁsa said to Narakāsura, Prāgjyotiṣa City's very powerful king, who was a son of the earth-goddess, "O king of the demons, please give me a fight.

"If you are victorious, I will become your servant. If I am victorious I will make you my servant."

First a very powerful demon named Pralambāsura fought with Kaṁsa. They fought as one great lion fights with another great lion.

Kaṁsa wrestled him to the ground and threw him into Prāgjyotiṣa City.

Then a demon named Dhenuka came and grabbed Kaṁsa. With fearsome strength Kaṁsa angrily threw him far away.

Kaṁsa threw Dhenuka eight hundred miles, jumped on him, and crushed him with many hard punches.

On Narakāsura's order a demon named Tṛṇāvarta pulled Kaṁsa into the sky and fought with him eight hundred thousand miles in outer space.

With limitless strength Kaṁsa dragged the demon from outer space to the earth and made him vomit blood from his mouth.

When a powerful and demonic duck named Bakāsura tried to swallow him with its beak, Kaṁsa made it fall with a single punch hard as a thunderbolt.

Lifting itself up, the white-winged demon made a sound like thunder and angrily swallowed Kaṁsa with its sharp beak.

When he was swallowed, Kaṁsa became angry and his body became like a thunderbolt. Its throat breaking, the great duck Bakāsura spat Kaṁsa out at once.

Kaṁsa grabbed Bakāsura and threw it to the ground. As they fought, Kaṁsa grabbed it with both hands, whirled it around, and dragged it here and there.

Then Bakāsura's sister, who was named Pūtanā, came and wished to fight. Kaṁsa laughed and said to her, "Hear my words, O Pūtanā.

"I will never fight with a woman. Bakāsura has become my brother, so you should be my sister."

Then, seeing that Kaṁsa had endless strength, Narakāsura accepted defeat. He made friendship with Kaṁsa and they formed an alliance against the demigods.