Parva 2 Chapter 23: andhakavacanam - Andhaka Admonishes Kamsa

vaiśaṁpāyana said: (O janamejaya!) Seeing that the bull (chief) of yādavas ( vasudeva) is thus abused, all the bulls (leaders) of yādavā-s closed their ears with hands and considered his (kaṁsa's) life as gone. andhako'nudvignamanā dhairyādavikṛtaṁ vacaḥ | provāca vadatāṁ śreṣṭhaḥ samāje kaṁsamojasā |2-23-2 But andhaka was not perturbed. Great among orators, with splendour, he spoke courageously using faultless words to kaṁsa. aślāghyo me mataḥ putra tavāyaṁ vākpariśramaḥ | ayukto garhitaḥ sadbhirbāndhaveśu viśeṣataḥ ||2-23-3 Son, your effort with the words is not praiseworthy. This is my opinion. These words are unsuitable for good men, specially for relatives. ayādavo yadi bhavāṣchṛṇu tāvadyaducyate | na hi tvāṁ yādavaṁ vīra balātkurvanti yādavāḥ ||2-23-4 If you are not a yādava, then hear what we are saying. O Hero! (vīra), yādava-s will not use force on you, who is a yādava. aślāghyā vṛṣṇayaḥ putra yeṣām tvamanuśāsitā | ikṣvākuvaṁśajo rājā vinivṛttaḥ svayaṁ sakṛt ||2-23-5 Son! The members of vṛṣṇi dynasty, on whom you are ruling, are not praiseworthy. There was a king of ikṣvāku dynasty, who had to relinquish his kingdom. bhojo vā yādavo vāsi kaṁso vāsi yathā tathā | sahajaṁ te śirastāta jaṭī muṇḍo'pi vā bhava ||2-23-6 You may be a bhoja or yādava or kaṁsa. But son! Your head is yours. Be with matted hairs or shaven or anything as you like. ugrasenastvayaṁ shochyo yo'smākaṁ kulapāṁsanaḥ | durjātīyena yena tvamīdṛśo janitaḥ sutaḥ ||2-23-7 ugrasena's situation is regrettable. He is a disgrace to our race since he got a son like you with deplorable qualities. na cātmano guṇāṁstāta pravadanti manīṣiṇāḥ | pareṇoktā gunā gauṇyaṁ yānti vedārthasaṁmitāḥ ||2-23-8 Son! The wise do not speak of their qualities. Only when others speak of their qualities, those are considered true, equal to the meaning of Vedas. pṛthivyāṁ yaduvaṁśo'yaṁ nindanīyo mahīkṣitām | bālaḥ kulāntakṛnmūḍho yeṣāṁ tvamanuśāsitā ||2-23-9 On earth, our yādava race has become despicable among kings since it has a ruler who kills children and his own race without having the power of discrimination. asādhumadbhirvākyaiścha tvayā sādhviti bhāṣitaiḥ | na cāpyāsāditaṁ kāryamātmā ca vivṛtaḥ kṛtaḥ ||1-23-10 By speaking these despicable words, thinking that these are excellent you will not get anything done. Instead, the words simply revealed your mind. guroranavaliptasya mānyasya mahatāmapi | kśepaṇaṁ kaḥ śubhaṁ manye dvijasyeva vadhe kṛte ||2-23-11 Who will think that abusing a humble preceptor who is respectable even for the great men, is auspicious? This is similar to killing of Brahmin-s mānyāśchaivābhigamyāścha vṛddhāstāta yathāgnayaḥ | krodho hi teṣāṁ pradahellokānantargatānapi ||2-23-12 Son! Elderly men are always respectable like fire. Their anger can burn even the internal worlds. budhena tāta dāntena nityamabhyucchritātmanā | dharmasya gatiranveṣyā matsyasya gatirapsviva ||2-23-13 Son! One who is a scholar, who is self controlled and who is always on the way of self progress should seek the path of dharma, like a fish seeking its way in water. kevalaṁ tvaṁ tu darpeṇa vṛddhānagnisamāniha | vācā tudasi marmaghnyā amantroktā yathā''hutiḥ ||2-23-14 Simply because of your false pride, you struck the elderly people, who are brilliant as fire, with words, splitting their weak spots. Like an offering made without chanting the proper mantra, your words are useless. vasudevaṁ ca putrārthe yadimaṁ parigarhasi | tatra mithyā pralāpante nindāmi kṛpaṇaṁ vacaḥ ||2-23-15 Are you not admonishing vasudeva because of his sons? Therefore your criticism is empty talk. I strongly condemn your words. dāruṇe ca pitā putre naiva dāruṇatāṁ vrajet | putrārthe hyāpadaḥ kaṣṭāḥ pitaraḥ prāpnuvanti hi ||2-23-16 Even if the son is terrible, a father can not act cruelly to him. A father is always prepared to face difficulties and dangers for the sons. cādito vasudevena yadi putraḥ śiśustadā | manyase yadyakartavyaṁ tatpṛccha pitaram svakam ||2-23-17 vasudeva's hiding his son when he was a child (for his protection) can not be considered as a fault. You may ask your own father about this. garhatā vasudevaṁ ca yaduvaṁśaṁ ca nindatā | tvayā yādavaputrāṇāṁ vairajaṁ viṣamarjitam 2-23-18|| By abusing vasudeva and ridiculing the yadu dynasty, you have only created the poison of enmity among the sons of yādavas. akartavyaṁ yadi kṛtaṁ vasudevena putrajam | kimarthamugrasenena śiśustvaṁ na vināśitaḥ ||2-23-19 If vasudeva has acted improperly by protecting his son (when he was a child), why did ugrasena not kill you when you were a child? punnāmno narakātputro yasmāttrātā pitṝṁstadā | tasmādbruvanti putreti putraṁ dharmavido janāḥ ||2-23-20 A son saves his father from the hell known as put. Hence people who are conversant with dharma call son as putra. jātyāṁ hi yādavaḥ kṛśṇāḥ sa ca saṅkarṣaṇo yuvā | tvaṁ cāpi vidhṛtastābhyāṁ jātavaireṇā chetasā ||2-23-21 kṛṣṇa and saṅkarṣaṇa also belong to yādava dynasty. You considered them to be your enemies since their birth and now they consider you as their enemy. udbhūtānīha sarveṣāṁ yadūnāṁ hṛdayāni vai | vasudeve tvayā''kṣipte vāsudeve ca kopite ||2-23-22 You shook the minds of all yādava-s by abusing vasudeva and making vāsudeva (kṛṣṇa) angry. kṛṣṇe ca bhavato dveṣye vasudevavigarhaṇāt | śaṁsanti cemāni bhayaṁ nimittānyaśubhāṇi te ||2-23-23 By abusing vasudeva, you have made kṛṣṇa your enemy. Due to this, you see these fearful omens. sarpāṇāṁ darśanaṁ tīvraṁ duḥsvapnānāṁ niśākṣaye | puryā vaidhavyaśaṁsīni kāraṇāiranumīmahe ||2-23-24 At the end of the night dreaming about serpents is inauspicious. We infer that this indicates that the city will become king-less. esha ghoro grahaḥ svātīmullikhaṅkhe gabhastibhiḥ | cakramaṣgārakaścakre citrāyāṁ ghoradarśanaḥ ||2-23-25 Here the terrible planet is covering the star svāti. The ferocious planet Mars is devouring the star citra, encircling it. budhena paśchimā sandhyā vyāptā ghoreṇa tejasā | vaiśvānarapathe shukro hyaticāraṁ cacāra ha ||2-23-26 The planet Mercury appears on the western horizon. The planet Venus is moving fast towards the path of vaiśvānara. ketunā dhūmaketostu nakṣatrāṇi trayodaśa | bharaṇyādīni bhinnāni nānuyānti niśākaram ||2-23-27 The inauspicious presence of ketu has diminished the brightness of thirteen stars led by Bharani. It does not follow moon. prāksaṁdhyā parighagrastā bhābhirbādhati bhāskaram | pratilomaṁ ca yāntyeva vyāharanto mṛgadvijāḥ ||2-23-28 The previous sandhya affects the sun under the influence of a parigha (a line seen across the sun). The animals and birds move in opposite directions crying wildly. śivā śmaśānānniṣkramya niḥśvāsāṅgāravarṣiṇī | ubhe sandhye purīṁ ghorā paryeti bahu vāśatī ||2-23-29 Leaving the crematorium, a jackal howling and showering fire from its mouth, circles the city in the evening and at dawn. ulkā nirghātanādena papāta dharanītale | calatyaparvaṇi mahī girīṇāṁ śikharāṇi ca ||2-23-30 A shower of meteors fell on the face of earth with a loud noise. Suddenly, there is an earthquake and the mountain peaks are trembling. grastaḥ svarbhānunā sūryo divā naktamajāyata | dhūmotpātairdiśo vyāptāḥ śuṣkāśanisamāhatāḥ ||2-23-31 The planet rahu eclipsed the sun and it was dark during daytime. Smoke clouds are seen in all directions. Lightning is seen without any clouds in the sky. prasravanti ghanā raktaṁ sāśanistanayitnavaḥ | chalitā devatāḥ sthānāttyajanti vihagā nagān ||2-23-32 Clouds shower blood accompanied by thunder and lightning. The deities move from their altars. The birds leave the trees. yāni rājavināśāya daivajṣāḥ kathayanti ha | tāni sarvāṇi paśyāmo nimittānyaśubhāni vai ||2-23-33 Expert astrologers say that all these indicate the destruction of a king. Here we also see other inauspicious signs. tvaṁ cāpi svajanadveṣī rājadharmaparāṅmukhaḥ | animittāgatakrodhaḥ sannikṛṣṭabhayo hyasi ||2-23-34 You hate your own people. You do not perform your duties as a king. You get angry without any reason. It appears that some misfortune will come to you in the near future. yastvam devopamam vṛddhaṁ vasudevaṁ vasūpamam | mohātkṣipasi durbuddhe kutaste śāntirātmanaḥ ||2-23-35 You, with wicked intellect, abuse the elderly, god-like vasudeva, who is like vasus. How can you ever have peace? tvadgato yo hi naḥ snehastaṁ tyajāmo'dya vai vayam | ahitaṁ svasya vaṁśasya na tvāṁ kṣaṇamupāsmahe ||2-23-36 From now onwards, we are abandoning all affection for you. You are a disgrace to your race. We shall no longer serve you even for a moment. sa hi dānapatirdhanyo yo drakṣyati vane gatam | puṇḍarīkaviśālākṣaṁ kṛṣṇamakliṣṭakāriṇam ||2-23-37 That dānapati (akrūra) is blessed who has gone to the forest. He will be able to see the lotus eyed kṛṣṇa who can easily do all impossible tasks. cinnamūlo hyayaṁ vaṁśo yadūnāṁ tvatkṛte kṛtaḥ | kṛṣṇo jṣātīnsamānāyya sa sandhānaṁ kariṣyati ||2-23-38 Because of you, the yādava race has become rootless. kṛṣṇa will bring all the relatives, acquaintances and friends together. kṣāntameva tavānena vasudevena dhīmatā | kālasaṁyakparijṣāno brūhi tvaṁ yadyadicchasi ||2-23-39 Intelligent vasudeva has already forgiven your offenses. Time has taken away your powers of discrimination. Hence you speak as you like. mahyaṁ tu rochate kaṁsa vasudevasahāyavān | gaccha kṛṣṇasya nilayaṁ sandhistena ca rochatām ||2 23-40 kamsa, my advice is that you go along with vasudeva to kṛṣṇa's residence and try to make an alliance of friendship with him. iti srimahābhārate khileṣu harivaṁśe viṣṇuparvaṇi andhakavacane trayoviṁśo'dhyāyaḥ Thus this is the twenty-third chapter of viṣṇuparva of harivaṁśa, khila of śrimahābhārata, andhaka admonishes kaṁsa. nīlakaṇṭha commentary trayoviṁś'esminnadhyāye ugrasenapitāmahaḥ | kaṅkaḥ kaṁsaṁ vinirbhartsya hitamāheti varṇyate || 1 || · 2-23-1 kṣipramiti | · 2-23-2 andhakaḥ kaṅkāparanāmā ugrasenasya pitāmaha iti prāṣchaḥ | · 2-23-5 ikṣvākuvaṁśajo asamaṣjāḥ yathā prajāpīḍakaḥ sakṛdvinivṛtto jātaḥ sa eva tvaṁ punarjāta ityarthaḥ || · 2-23-6 sahajam avikṛ+taṁ te tava śiraḥ uttamāṅgaṁ baddhakuṇḍalaṁ jaṭī muṇḍa iti lakṣaṇayā mūrdhanyān badhvopacchindhi vetyarthaḥ || · 2-23-8 gauṇyaṁ sāphalyam || · 2-23-10 asādhumadbhiḥ nindādiyuktaiḥ vivṛtaḥ spaṣṭīkṛtaḥ || · 2-23-12 antargatān yogabalārjitānapi || · 2-23-21 jātyāṁ hi utpattāveva tvayā jātavaireṇa chetasā kṛṣṇaḥ saṁkarṣaṇaścha dhṛtaḥ tābhyāṁ ca tvamapi tathaiva jātaivareṇa chetasā dhṛta iti tvameva bālaghnaḥ prathamo'parādhī ityarthaḥ || · 2-23-22 uddhūtāni atikampitāni || · 2-23-25 eṣa iti | sarvatobhadracakre kaṁsasya janmanakṣatraṁ mṛgaśiraḥ | tato daśamaṁ citrā tasyaiva nakṣatram | tatra ghoro grahaḥ rāhuḥ krūro'sti | kujashcha vakrībhūya tatraivāgato'sti | tābhyāṁ karmabhaṁ vyāpya janmabhaṁ viddhamiti tava jīvanārtho yatnaḥ sarvo niṣphalo bhaviṣyati dehashcha naṅkṣayati bhāvaḥ || · 2-23-26 evaṁ paśchimāyāmudito budho'pi rājyabhaṅgakṛdityāha - budheneti | aticāraṁ sūryamullaṅghya gamanaṁ yathāca budhasūryaśukrāṇām atyantaṁ pṛthakdarśanaṁ mahate nāśāya bhavatīti bhāvaḥ || · 2-23-27 ketunā pucchena dhūmaketorutpātaviśeṣasya bharaṇyādīniti kaṁsasya janmakarmabhe dhūmaketunā tṛtīyena upagraheṇāpi viddhe ityarthaḥ | nānuyānti niśākaramityanena citrāste rāhau citrāt uttarāṇi trayodaśa nakṣatrāṇi jīvapakṣe sati pūrvāṇi trayodaśanakṣatrāṇi mṛtyupakṣe pātitāni | atastatratyaḥ chandro'pi na tairnakṣatrairuttamaphalakaratvenānugamyata ityarthaḥ || · 2-23-28 parigho ravimaṇḍale tiryagvṛttidaṇḍaḥ bādhati bādhate || · 2-23-29 paryati parikrāmiti | vāśatī śabdaṁ kurvāṇā || · 2-23-30 aparvaṇi akāṇḍe ākasmāditi yāvat || · 2-30-32 devatāḥ devatāpratimāḥ || · 2-30-38 tvatkṛte tvadarthe tvayaivetyarthaḥ | saṁdhānaṁ itastato viprakīrṇānāṁ yādavānāmānayanena ekīkaraṇam || · 2-30-39 kālena samyak parigataṁ naṣṭaṁ jṣānaṁ yasya saḥ kālaḥ samyak parijṣātaḥ || iti śrīmahābhārate harivaṁśe viṣṇuparvaṇi ṭīkāyāṁ trayodaśo'dhyāyaḥ ||