Devanagari
श्रीवसुदेव उवाच
श्लाघनीयगुण: शूरैर्भवान् भोजयशस्कर: । स कथं भगिनीं हन्यात् स्त्रियमुद्वाहपर्वणि ॥ ३७ ॥
Verse text
śrī-vasudeva uvāca
ślāghanīya-guṇaḥ śūrair
bhavān bhoja-yaśaskaraḥ
sa kathaṁ bhaginīṁ hanyāt
striyam udvāha-parvaṇi
Synonyms
śrī
—
vasudevaḥ uvāca — the great personality Vasudeva said
;
ślāghanīya
—
guṇaḥ — a person who possesses praiseworthy qualities
;
śūraiḥ
—
by great heroes
;
bhavān
—
your good self
;
bhoja
—
yaśaḥ — karaḥ — a brilliant star in the Bhoja dynasty
;
saḥ
—
one such as your good self
;
katham
—
how
;
bhaginīm
—
your sister
;
hanyāt
—
can kill
;
striyam
—
especially a woman
;
udvāha
—
parvaṇi — at the time of the marriage ceremony .
Translation
Vasudeva said: My dear brother-in-law Kaṁsa, you are the pride of your family, the Bhoja dynasty, and great heroes praise your qualities. How could such a qualified person as you kill a woman, your own sister, especially on the occasion of her marriage?
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Vasudeva said: My dear brother-in-law Kaṁsa, you are the pride of your family, the Bhoja dynasty, and great heroes praise your qualities. How could such a qualified person as you kill a woman, your own sister, especially on the occasion of her marriage?
KB 10.1.37
He said, “My dear brother-in-law Kaṁsa, you are the most famous king of the Bhoja dynasty, and people know that you are the greatest warrior and a valiant king. How is it that you are so infuriated that you are prepared to kill a woman who is your own sister at this auspicious time of her marriage?
Purport
According to Vedic principles, a
brāhmaṇa,
an old man, a woman, a child or a cow cannot be killed under any circumstances. Vasudeva stressed that Devakī was not only a woman but a member of Kaṁsa’s family. Because she was now married to Vasudeva, she was
para-strī,
another man’s wife, and if such a woman were killed, not only would Kaṁsa be implicated in sinful activities, but his reputation as king of the Bhoja dynasty would be damaged. Thus Vasudeva tried in many ways to convince Kaṁsa in order to stop him from killing Devakī.
Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Vasudeva used strategy of sama, or kind words: invoking relationship, personal gain, helping others, creating dissension and glorification of qualities. Slaghaniya gunah (one of praiseworthy qualities) glorifies his qualities. "bhoja yasaskrah" invokes family relationship. Mentioning "bhagini," his sister, invoking fear and doubt, is the use of dissensions or bheda. "How can you kill" indicates gain and helping others. Though she bears your killer, not killing her because she is a woman will bring a gain of fame. Saving her life is helping others.
She is a defenseless woman, your sister, and it will happen during her wedding. And you are a famous person. Killing her now will bring infamy in this life, and hell in the next life. Thus Vasudeva indicates two types of bheda, problems in this life and next.
The real intent of the words can be understood by taking opposite meanings. Saying he has praiseworthy qualities actually indicates that he does not have those qualities. In the bhoja dynasty he is famous for causing problems. By killing his sister, his dynasty will be destroyed.
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
First Vasudeva tries to enlighten Kaṁsa by sāma. He uses the word bhavān out of respect. Why would you, so honorable, kill a woman, your sister, on the occasion of her marriage? You should not kill her. If you do so, the reputation of your courage will be destroyed. By saying that Kaṁsa has praiseworthy fame, he glorifies Kaṁsa’ṣ qualities. By mentioning the Bhoja dynasty he uses relationship. By mentioning his sister, he uses identity. Why should you kill her? By giving up killing her you will gain fame. It is her wedding day. By sparing her you help increase the offspring. Another meaning of the phrase ślāghanīya-guṇaḥ śūraiḥ is “you are much inferior or secondary (guṇaḥ) to the praiseworthy warriors.” The Bhojas are fortunate among the Yadus, but people say that among them there is one person who is most sinful. Why should he who creates fame in this way to them kill only his sister? He should kill his whole dynasty.