Parva 2 Chapter 8: vṛkavarṇanam - Attack by wolves

vaiśaṁpāyana said: (O janamejaya,) In this way kṛṣṇa and saṁkarṣaṇa spent their childhood. They completed seven years in the same vraja. nīlapītāmbaradharau pītaśvetānulepanau | babhūvaturvatsapālau kākapakṣadharāvubhau ||2-8-2 They were dressed in blue (saṁkarṣaṇa) and yellow (kṛṣṇa) clothes. Their bodies were smeared with yellow and white (sandal) pastes. They became keepers of calves. Both had hair locks. parṇavādyaṁ śrutisukhaṁ vādayantau varānanau | śuśubhāte vanagatau triśīrṣāviva pannagau ||2-8-3 The boys with beautiful faces, blew whistles made of palm leaves, which were pleasant to hear. They dazzled in the forest, looking like three-headed snakes (while blowing whistles). mayūrāṅgadakarṇau tu pallavāpīḍadhāriṇau | vanamālākuloraskau drumapotāvivodgatau ||2-8-4 They wore peacock feathers on arms and ears. They wore crowns of leaves on their heads Their chests had garlands of forest flowers. Thus they looked like young trees. aravindakṛtāpīḍau rajjuyajṣopavītinau | sashikyatumbakarakau gopaveṇupravādakau ||2-8-5 Their heads were decorated with lotus flowers. They wore sacred threads made of ropes. They carried swings of ropes suspended from either ends of a pole, gourds and water vessels. They played flutes among the gopas. kvachidvasantāvanyonyaṁ krīḍamānau kvachitkvachit | parṇaśayyāsu saṁsuptau kvacinnidrāntarekṣaṇau ||2-8-6 They laughed looking at each other at some places. They played with each other at some other places. They slept on beds made of leaves. Sometimes they lied down closing their eyes. evaṁ vatsānpālayantau shobhayantau mahāvanam | chaṣcūryantau ramantau sma kiśorāviva chaṣchalau ||2-8-7 In this way they took care of the calves and dazzled in the great forest. They freely wandered about like two young restless horses. atha dāmodaraḥ śrīmānsaṅkarṣaṇamuvāca ha | ārya nāsminvane śakyaṁ gopālaiḥ saha krīḍitum ||2-8-8 One day, the handsome dāmodara (kṛṣṇa) told saṅkarṣaṇa: "Brother, It is not possible to play with gopa-s in this forest any more. avagītamidam sarvamāvābhyāṁ bhuktakānanam | prakṣīṇatṛṇakāṣṭham ca gopairmathitapādapam ||2-8-9 We are seeing all this again and again. This forest is consumed by us. There is no more grass and fire-wood and the trees are destroyed by gopas. ghanībhūtāni yānyāsankānanāni vanāni ca | tānyākāśanikāśāni dṛśyante'dya yathāsukham ||2-8-10 These woods and forests were dense They are thin now. Without leaves, open skies can be seen (through the forest) easily. govāṭeṣvapi ye vṛkṣāḥ parivṛttārgaleṣu ca | sarve goṣṭhāgniṣu gatāḥ kṣayamakṣayavarchasaḥ ||2-8-11 There were trees surrounding the cowshed with locked doors. All those inexhaustible trees have gone, being consumed for fire-wood in vraja. saṁnikṛṣṭāni yānyāsankāṣṭhāni ca tṛṇāni ca | tāni dūrāvakṛṣṭāsu mārgitavyāni bhūmiṣu ||2-8-12 Fire-wood and grass were available nearby earlier. We have to search for these on grounds located far way. araṇyamidamalpodamalpakakṣaṁ nirāśrayam | anveṣitavyaviśrāmaṁ dāruṇaṁ viraladrumam ||2-8-13 This forest has very little water and grass. It is devoid of any supports. The rest-places have to be searched for. The trees are rare. The situation is pathetic. akarmanyeṣu vṛkṣeṣu sthitavipraṁ sthitadvijam | saṁvāsasyāsya mahato janenotsāditadrumam ||2-8-14 The trees are no longer productive. The birds living on these trees have left. The large number of inhabitants have cut down many trees. nirānandaṁ nirāsvādaṁ niṣprayojanamārutam | nirvihaṅgamidaṁ śūnyaṁ nirvyaṣjanamivāśanam ||2-8-15 There is no happiness here. There is nothing to be enjoyed. The air is useless. The forest is empty without birds like food without condiment. vikrīyamāṇaiḥ kāṣṭhaiścha śākaiścha vanasaṁbhavaiḥ | uccinnasaṣchayatṛṇairghoṣo'yaṁ nagarāyate ||2-8-16 The fire-wood and leafy vegetables of this forest are sold (for a livelihood ). Without any grass, the vraja looks like a city. śailānāṁ bhūṣaṇaṁ ghoṣo ghoṣāṇāṁ bhūṣaṇaṁ vanam | vanānāṁ bhūṣaṇaṁ gāvastāścāsmākaṁ parā gatiḥ ||2-8-17 vraja-s are decoration of hills. Forests are decoration of vrajas. Cows are decoration of forests. Cows are our greatest assets. tasmādanyadvanaṁ yāmaḥ pratyagrayavasendhanam | icchantyanupabhuktāni gāvo bhoktuṁ tṛṇāni ca ||2-8-18 Therefore, we should go to another forest where grass and fire-wood are available in plenty. The cows like to eat new green grass which they have not eaten before. tasmādvanaṁ navatṛṇaṁ gacchantu dhanino vrajāḥ | na dvārabandhāvaraṇā na gṛhakṣetriṇastathā | praśastā vai vrajā loke yathā vai cakracāriṇaḥ ||2-8-19 Therefore, the vraja, seeking prosperity, should go to a forest where new grass is available. The places, where doors are closed and covered and houses and fields are bound, are not good for residence. Like freely moving birds (such as haṁsa, sārasa etc. who are without a permanent residence), the vraja living in different places is famous in the world. hakṛnmūtreṣu teṣveva jātakṣārarasāyanam | na tṛṇaṁ bhuṣjate gāvo nāpi tatpayase hitam ||2-8-20 Due to cow-dung and urine, salt and chemicals have accumulated (in the earth). The cows are not eating such grass and that is not favourable for milk. sthalīprāyāsu rathyāsu navāsu vanarājiṣu | carāvaḥ sahitau gobhiḥ kṣipraṁ saṁvāhyatāṁ vrajaḥ ||2-8-21 All the paths in this forest have become plain. Let us all go with the cows to new forests. Let us quickly relocate the vraja there. śrūyate hi vanaṁ ramyaṁ paryāptaṁ tṛṇasaṁstaram | nāmnā vṛndāvanaṁ nāma svāduvṛkṣaphalodakam ||2-8-22 It is heard that there is a beautiful forest named vṛndāvanaṁ. That forest has adequate green grass. There are trees having tasty fruits and the water is tasty. ajhillikaṇṭakavanaṁ sarvairvanaguṇairyutam | kadambapādapaprāyaṁ yamunātīrasaṁśritam ||2-8-23 There are no thorny bushes in that forest. It has all that a forest should have. There are many kadamba trees in that forest on the banks of yamunā. snigdhaśītānilavanaṁ sarvartunilayaṁ śubham | gopīnāṁ sukhasaṣcāraṁ cārucitravanāntaram ||2-8-24 A cool breeze blows in that forest. All seasons are present there simultaneously. The gopi-s can roam freely there. Inside there are many beautiful and strange forests. tatra govardhano nāma nātidūre girirmahān | bhrājate dīrghaśikharo nandanasyeva mandaraḥ ||2-8-25 There is a great mountain named govardhana not very far from the forest. The mountain has many tall peaks. It looks splendid like mandara (mountain) in nandana (forest). madhye cāsya mahāśākho nyagrodho yojanocchritaḥ | bhāṇḍīro nāma shuśubhe nīlamegha ivāmbare ||2-8-26 In the middle of the forest, there is a banyan tree with huge branches having one yojana height. Called bhāṇḍīra, it dazzles like a blue cloud in the sky. madhyena cāsya kālindī sīmantamiva kurvatī | prayātā nandanasyeva nalinī saritāṁ varā ||2-8-27 The river kālindī runs through the middle as the partition on the forehead of a married woman, like the river nalinī which runs through nanadana. tatra govardhanaṁ caiva bhāṇḍīraṁ ca vanaspatim | kālindīṁ ca nadīṁ ramyāṁ drakṣyāvaścharataḥ sukham ||2-8-28 It will be a pleasure for us to walk around there and see govardhanam, bhāṇḍīram, trees and the beautiful river kālinḍi. tatrāyaṁ kalpyatāṁ ghoṣastyajyatāṁ nirguṇaṁ vanam | saṁtrāsayāvo bhadraṁ te kiṣchidutpādya kāraṇam ||2-8-29 Let us leave this useless forest and establish vraja there. Let us create some reason and generate fear. All will be well. evaṁ kathayatastasya vāsudevasya dhimataḥ | prādurbabhūvuḥ shatasho raktamāṁsavasāśanāḥ ||2-8-30 As the intelligent son of vasudeva (kṛṣṇa) was speaking, hundreds of wolves, fond of blood , meat and marrow , emerged . ghorāścintayatastasya svatanūruhajāstadā | viniṣpeturbhayakarāḥ sarvaśaḥ shatasho vṛkāḥ ||2-8-31 Hundreds of terrible wolves emerged from his body and spread everywhere, as he was thinking about them. niṣpatanti sma bahavo vrajasyotsādanāya vai | vṛkānniṣpatitāndṛṣṭvā goṣu vatseṣvatho nṛṣu ||2-8-32 gopīṣu ca yathākāmaṁ vraje trāso'bhavanmahān | Seeing the many wolves which emerged to relocate the vraja (as kṛṣṇa desired), all the cows, calves, men and women, the entire vraja became extremely frightened. te vṛkāḥ paṣchabaddhāścha daśabaddhāstatha pare ||2-8-33 triṁśadviṁśatibaddhāścha śatabaddhāstathā pare | nishcherustasya gātrebhyaḥ śrīvatsakṛtalakṣaṇāḥ ||2-8-34 The wolves, manifested from kṛṣṇa's body in groups of five, ten, twenty, thirty and hundred had the (auspicious) mark of srīvatsa (mark of viṣṇu). kṛṣṇasya kṛṣṇavadanā gopānāṁ bhayavardhanāḥ | bhakṣayadbhiścha tairvatsāṁstrāsayadbhiścha govrajān ||2-8-35 The black faced wolves which emerged from kṛṣṇa's body terrified the gopas. They ate the calves and frightened the cows of vraja. nishi bālānharadbhiścha vṛkairutsādyate vrajaḥ | na vane shakyate gantuṁ na gāścha parirakṣitum ||2-8-36 In the night, they stole young boys. The wolves broke the life at vraja. It became impossible to go to the forest and to protect the cows. na vanātkiṣchidāhartuṁ na ca vā tarituṁ nadīm | trastā hyudvignamanaso'gatāstasminvane'vasan ||2-8-37 It became impossible to collect anything from the forest and to cross the river. All the inhabitants became overwhelmed by fear and anxiety. evaṁ vṛkairudīrṇaistu vyāghratulyaparākramaiḥ | vrajo niṣpandacheṣṭasya ekasthānacharaḥ kṛtaḥ ||2-8-38 In this way, the wolves, who were terrific like tigers, rendered the vraja without and movement and activities. They were forced to stay together at one place. iti śrīmahabhārate khileṣu harivaṁśe viśṇuparvaṇi śiśucaryāyāṁ vṛkadarśane'ṣṭamo'dhyāyaḥ Thus this is the eighth chapter of viṣṇuparva of harivaṁśa, khila of śrimahābhārata, attack by wolves. nīlakaṇṭha commentary asminnathāṣṭame'dhyāye vanāntaramiyāsataḥ | tanūrūhasamutpannā vṛkā kṛṣṇasya varṇyate || evaṁ tāvityadhyāyaḥ | "sudevo adya prapatedanāvṛtparāvataṁ paramāṁ gantavā u adhāśayīta nirṛterupasthe dhainaṁ vṛkā rabhasāso adyuḥ" ityasya mantrasyopabṛṁhaṇārthaḥ | mantrārthaḥ | purūravasaṁ pratyurvaśī vadati | sudevaḥ śobhanasvāmiko vrajaḥ ādyakṣaralopena vāsudevo vā adya prapatet adyaiva upadravasamakālaṁ gacchet anāvṛt nāsti āvṛt nirodhako yasya tādṛśo'pi parāvataṁ paramāt dūrāddūrataraṁ gantavai gantuṁ u niśchitaṁ prapatedityanvayaḥ | adya pakṣāntare yadi sudevo na prapatettarhi nirṛterupasthe shayita agha athavā evaṁ vrajaṁ vāsudevaparijanaṁ rabhasāso rabhasāḥ vegavantaḥ vṛ+kāḥ adyuḥ bhakṣayeyuḥ tasmādvāsudevo vā tatparigṛhīto vrajo vā vṛkebhyo vibheti atastvādṛśenāpi indriyavṛkebhyaḥ sutarāṁ bhetavyamiti bhāvaḥ | itaḥ spaṣṭārthaṁ mūlaṁ || 2-8-3 paṇavo hi tumbīphalopeto vādyaviśeṣaḥ | ādyapadāttādṛśaṁ rudravīṇādikaṁ paṇavādyamata eva triśīrṣāviveti dṛṣṭāntaḥ saṁgacchate parṇavādyamityapi pāṭhaḥ || · 2-8-7 chaṣcūryantau atyantaṁ saṁcarantau kiśorāviva aśvapotāviva || · 2-8-9 avagītaṁ nāśitaṁ bhuktabhogaṁ kānanam || · 2-8-10 kānanāni udyānāni vanāni araṇyāni ākāśanikāśāni patrādinā śūnyāni || · 2-8-11 parito vṛttacakrākāraḥ paridhiḥ argalashva yeṣu teṣu parivṛttārgaleṣu || · 2-8-15 nirvyaṣjanaṁ śākarūpādihīnam || · 2-8-18 kartavyamāha | tasmāditi || · 2-8-19 nanu pitṛparyāgatā bhūmirnirdhanāpi sukhāvahetyukteḥ kathaṁ pūrvasthānaṁ tyājyamityāha | na dvāreti | cakreṇa samudāyena caranti te cakracāriṇo haṇsasārasādayaḥ aniketo ityarthaḥ || · 2-8-20 śakṛnmūtreṣu teṣveṣu tṛṇeṣu patiteṣu satsu || · 2-8-21 sthalīprāyāsu samabhūmitulyāsu nistṛṇātvityarthaḥ || · 2-8-24 snigdhavanaṁ śītānilaṁ cheti saṁbandhaḥ || · 2-8-28 charato mṛgādīniti śeṣaḥ || · 2-8-33 paṣchabaddhāḥ paṣcādisaṁkhyayā saṁhatā || · 2-8-37 agatāḥ asamcārāḥ · 2-8-38 tadevāha | evamiti || iti harivamshe viṣṇuparvaṇi ṭīkāyāmaṣṭamo.dhyāyaḥ ||