|
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
7
8
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
10
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
12
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
14
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
16
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
18
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
20
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
22
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
24
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
26
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
28
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
30
31
32
32
32
32
32
32
32
32
32
32
32
32
32
32
32
32
32
32
33
34
34
34
34
34
34
34
34
34
35
36
36
36
36
36
36
37
38
38
38
39
|
KB 1970-2-2 / The Killing of Satrajit and Satadhanva
2 / The Killing of Satrajit and Satadhanva
After Akrura visited Hastinapura and reported the condition of
the Pandavas to Krsna, there were further developments. The
Pandavas were transferred to a house which was made of shellac
and was later on set ablaze, and everyone understood that the
Pandavas along with their mother, Kunti, had been killed. This
information was also sent to Lord Krsna and Balarama. After
consulting together, They decided to go to Hastinapura to show
sympathy to Their relatives. Krsna and Balarama certainly knew
that the Pandavas could not have been killed in the devastating
fire, but in spite of this knowledge They wanted to go to
Hastinapura to take part in the bereavement. On arriving in
Hastinapura, Krsna and Balarama first of all went to see
Bhismadeva because he was the chief of the Kuru dynasty. They
then saw Vidura, Gandhari and Drona. Other members
of the Kuru dynasty were not sorry, because they wanted the
Pandavas and their mother to be killed. But some family members,
headed by Bhisma, were actually very sorry for the incident,
and Krsna and Balarama expressed equal sorrow, without
disclosing the actual situation.
When Krsna and Balarama were away from the city of Dvaraka,
there was a conspiracy to take away the Syamantaka jewel
from Satrajit. The chief conspirator was Satadhanva. Along with
others, Satadhanva wanted to marry Satyabhama,
the beautiful daughter of Satrajit. Satrajit had
promised that he would give his beautiful daughter in charity
to various candidates, but later on the decision was changed,
and Satyabhama was given to Krsna along with the Syamantaka
jewel. Satrajit had no desire to give the jewel away along with
his daughter, and Krsna, knowing his mentality, accepted his
daughter but returned the jewel. After getting back the jewel
from Krsna, he was satisfied and kept it with him always. But
in the absence of Krsna and Balarama there was a conspiracy by
many men, including even Akrura and Krtavarma, who were
devotees of Lord Krsna, to take the jewel from Satrajit. Akrura
and Krtavarma joined the conspiracy because they wanted the
jewel for Krsna. They knew that Krsna wanted the jewel and that
Satrajit had not delivered it properly. Others joined the
conspiracy because they were disappointed in not having the
hand of Satyabhama. Some of them incited Satadhanva to kill
Satrajit and take away the jewel.
The question is generally raised, Why did a great devotee like
Akrura join this conspiracy? And why did Krtavarma, although a
devotee of the Lord, join the conspiracy also? The answer is
given by great authorities like Jiva Gosvami and others that
although Akrura was a great devotee, he was cursed by the
inhabitants of Vrndavana because of his taking Krsna away from
their midst. Because of his wounding their feelings, Akrura was
forced to join the conspiracy declared by sinful men. Similarly,
Krtavarma was a devotee, but because of his intimate
association with Kamsa, he was also contaminated by sinful
reaction, and he also joined the conspiracy.
Being inspired by all the members of the conspiracy, Satadhanva
one night entered the house of Satrajit and killed him while he
was sleeping. Satadhanva was a sinful man of abominable
character, and although due to his sinful activities he was not
to live for many days, he decided to kill Satrajit while
Satrajit was sleeping at home. When he entered the house to
kill Satrajit, all the women there began to cry very loudly,
but in spite of their great protests, Satadhanva mercilessly
butchered Satrajit without hesitation, exactly as a butcher
kills an animal in the slaughterhouse. Since Krsna was absent
from home, His wife Satyabhama was also present on the night
Satrajit was murdered, and she began to cry, "My dear father!
My dear father! How mercilessly you have been killed!" The dead
body of Satrajit was not immediately removed for cremation
because Satyabhama wanted to go to Krsna in Hastinapura.
Therefore the body was preserved in a tank of oil so that Krsna
could come back and see the dead body of Satrajit and take real
action against Satadhanva. Satyabhama immediately started for
Hastinapura to inform Krsna about the ghastly death of her
father.
When Krsna was informed by Satyabhama of the murder of His
father-in-law, He began to lament like an ordinary man. His
great sorrow is, again, a strange thing. Lord Krsna has nothing
to do with action and reaction, but because He was playing the
part of a human being He expressed His full sympathy for the
bereavement of Satyabhama, and His eyes filled with tears upon
hearing about the death of His father-in-law. He thus began
to lament, "Oh, what unhappy incidents have taken place!" In
this way both Krsna and Balarama, along with Satyabhama, the
wife of Krsna, immediately returned to Dvaraka and began to
make plans to kill Satadhanva and take away the jewel. Although
he was a great outlaw in the city, Satadhanva was still very
much afraid of Krsna's power, and thus he
became most afraid on Krsna's arrival.
Understanding Krsna's plan to kill him, he immediately went to
take shelter of Krtavarma. But on being approached by him,
Krtavarma said, "I shall never be able to offend Lord Krsna and
Balarama because They are not ordinary persons. They are the
Supreme Personality of Godhead. Who can be saved from death if
he has offended Balarama and Krsna? No one can be saved from
Their wrath." Krtavarma further said that Kamsa, although
powerful and assisted by many demons, could not be saved from
the wrath of Krsna, and what to speak of Jarasandha, who
had been defeated by Krsna eighteen times and each time had to
return from the fighting in disappointment.
When Satadhanva was refused help by Krtavarma he went to
Akrura and implored him to help. Akrura also replied, "Both
Balarama and Krsna are Themselves the Supreme Personality of
Godhead, and anyone who knows Their unlimited strength would
never dare to offend Them or fight with Them." He further
informed Satadhanva, "Krsna and Balarama are so powerful that
simply by willing They are creating the whole
cosmic manifestation, maintaining it and dissolving it.
Unfortunately, persons who are bewildered by the illusory
energy cannot understand the strength of Krsna, although the
whole cosmic manifestation is fully under His control." He
cited, as an example, that Krsna, even at the age of seven
years, had lifted Govardhana Hill and had continued to hold up
the mountain for seven days, exactly as a child carries a small
umbrella. Akrura plainly informed Satadhanva that he would
always offer his most respectful obeisances to Krsna, the
Supersoul of everything that is created and the original cause
of all causes. When Akrura also refused to give him shelter,
Satadhanva decided to deliver to the hands of Akrura
the Syamantaka jewel. Then, riding on a horse which
could run at great speed and up to four hundred miles at a
stretch, he fled the city.
When Krsna and Balarama were informed of the flight of
Satadhanva, They mounted Their chariot, its flag marked by the
picture of Garuda, and followed immediately. Krsna was
particularly angry with Satadhanva and wanted to kill him
because he had killed Satrajit, a superior personality.
Satrajit happened to be the father-in-law of Krsna, and it is
the injunction of the sastras that anyone
who has rebelled against a superior person, or guru-druha, must
be punished in proportion to the volume of offense.
Because Satadhanva had killed His father-in-law, Krsna was
determined to kill him by any means.
Satadhanva's horse became exhausted and died near a garden
house in Mithila. Unable to take help of the horse, Satadhanva
began to run with great speed. In order to be fair to
Satadhanva, Krsna and Balarama also left Their chariot and
began to follow Satadhanva on foot. While both Satadhanva and
Krsna were running on foot, Krsna took His disc and cut off
the head of Satadhanva. After Satadhanva was killed,
Krsna searched through his clothing for the Syamantaka jewel,
but He could not find it. He then returned to Balarama and said,
"We have killed this person uselessly because the jewel is
not to be found on his body." Sri Balarama suggested, "The
jewel might have been kept in custody of another man in
Dvaraka, so You'd better return and search it out." Sri
Balarama expressed His desire to remain in Mithila City for
some days because He enjoyed an intimate friendship with the
King. Therefore, Krsna returned to Dvaraka, and Balarama
entered the city of Mithila.
When the King of Mithila saw the arrival of Sri Balarama in his
city, he became most pleased and received the Lord with great
honor and hospitality. He presented many valuable presents to
Balaramaji in order to seek His pleasure. At this time Sri
Balarama lived in the city for several years as the honored
guest of the King of Mithila, Janaka Maharaja. During this time,
Duryodhana, the eldest son of Dhrtarastra, took the
opportunity of coming to Balarama and learning from Him the art
of fighting with a club.
After killing Satadhanva, Krsna returned to Dvaraka, and in
order to please His wife Satyabhama, He informed her of the
death of Satadhanva, the killer of her father. But He also
informed her that the jewel had not been found in his
possession. Then, according to religious principles, Krsna,
along with Satyabhama, performed all kinds of ceremonies in
honor of the death of His father-in-law. In that
ceremony all the friends and relatives of the family joined
together.
Akrura and Krtavarma, who were prominent members in the
conspiracy to kill Satrajit, had incited Satadhanva to kill
him, but when they heard of the death of Satadhanva at Krsna's
hand, and when they heard also that Krsna had returned to
Dvaraka, they both immediately left Dvaraka. The citizens
of Dvaraka felt themselves threatened with pestilence and
natural disturbances due to the absence of Akrura from the city.
This was a kind of superstition because while Lord Krsna was
present there could not be any pestilence, famine or natural
disturbances. But in the absence of Akrura there were
some disturbances in Dvaraka. Once in
the province of Kasi within the barricade of
Varanasi there was severe drought and practically no
rainfall. At that time the King of Kasi arranged the
marriage of his daughter, known as Gandini, with Svaphalka, the
father of Akrura. This was done by the King of Kasi on the
advice of an astrologer, and actually it so happened that after
the marriage of the King's daughter with Svaphalka there was
sufficient rainfall in the province. Due to this supernatural
power of Svaphalka, his son Akrura was also considered equally
powerful, and people were under the impression that wherever
Akrura or his father remained, there would be no natural
disturbance, famine or drought. That kingdom is
considered to be happy where there is no famine, pestilence, or
excessive heat and cold and where people are happy mentally,
spiritually and bodily. As soon as there is some
disturbance, people consider the cause to be due
to the absence of an auspicious personality in the city. Thus
there was a rumor that because of the absence of Akrura
inauspicious things were happening. After the departure of
Akrura, some of the elderly members of the town began to
perceive that there were also inauspicious signs due to the
absence of the Syamantaka jewel. When Lord Sri Krsna heard
these rumors spread by the people He decided to summon Akrura
from the kingdom of Kasi. Akrura was Krsna's uncle; therefore,
when he came back to Dvaraka Lord Krsna first of all welcomed
him as befitting a superior person. Krsna is the Supersoul in
everyone's heart; He knows everything going on in everyone's
heart. He knew everything that had happened in connection with
Akrura's conspiracy with Satadhanva. Therefore, He smilingly
began to address Akrura.
Addressing him as the chief among magnificent men, Krsna said, "
My dear uncle, it is already known to Me that the Syamantaka
jewel was left by Satadhanva with you. Presently there is no
direct claimant of the Syamantaka jewel, for King Satrajit has
no male issue. His daughter Satyabhama is not very anxious for
this jewel, yet her expected son, as grandson of Satrajit,
would, after performing the regulative principles of
inheritance, be the legal claimant of the jewel." Lord Krsna
indicated by this statement that Satyabhama was already
pregnant and that her son would be the real claimant for the
jewel and would certainly take the jewel from him.
Krsna continued, "This jewel is so powerful that no ordinary
man is able to keep it. I know that you are very pious in
activities, so there is no objection to the jewel being kept
with you. There is one difficulty, and that is that My elder
brother, Sri Balarama, does not believe My version that the
jewel is with you. I therefore request you, O large-hearted one,
to show Me the jewel before My other relatives so
that they may be pacified.
You cannot deny that the jewel is with you because from various
kinds of rumors we can understand that you have enhanced your
opulence and are performing sacrifices on an altar made of
solid gold." The properties of the jewel were known: wherever
the jewel remained, it would produce for the keeper almost nine
mounds of pure gold daily. Akrura was getting gold in that
proportion and was distributing it very profusely at
sacrificial performances. Lord Krsna cited Akrura's lavishly
spending in gold as positive evidence of his possessing the
Syamantaka jewel.
When Lord Krsna, in friendly terms and in sweet language,
impressed Akrura about the real fact and Akrura understood that
nothing could be concealed from the knowledge of Sri Krsna, he
brought the valuable jewel, shining like the sun and
covered by cloth, and presented it before Krsna. Lord Krsna
took the Syamantaka jewel in His hand and showed it to all His
relatives and friends present there and then again returned the
jewel to Akrura in their presence so that they would know that
the jewel was actually being kept by Akrura in Dvaraka City.
This story of the Syamantaka jewel is very significant. In the
Srimad-Bhagavatam it is said that anyone who hears the story of
the Syamantaka jewel or describes it or simply remembers it
will be free from all kinds of defamation and the reactions of
all impious activities and thus will attain the highest
perfectional condition of peace.
Thus ends the Bhaktivedanta purport of the Second
Volume, Second Chapter, of Krsna, "The Killing of Satrajit and
Satadhanva."
|
|
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
9
10
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
12
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
13
14
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
15
16
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
17
18
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
19
20
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
21
22
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
23
24
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
25
26
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
27
28
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
29
30
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
31
32
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
33
34
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
35
36
37
37
37
37
37
37
37
37
37
38
39
39
39
39
39
39
40
41
41
41
42
|
KB 57: The Killing of Satrajit and Satadhanva
CHAPTER FIFTY–SEVEN
The Killing of Satrajit and Satadhanva
After Akrura visited Hastinapura and reported the condition of
the Pandavas to Krsna, there were further developments. The
Pandavas were transferred to a house which was made of lac
and was later set ablaze, and everyone believed that the
Pandavas, along with their mother Kunti, had been killed. This
information was also sent to Lord Krsna and Balarama. After
consulting together, They decided to go to Hastinapura to show
sympathy to Their relatives. Krsna and Balarama certainly knew
that the Pandavas could not have been killed in the devastating
fire, but in spite of this knowledge They wanted to go to
Hastinapura to take part in the bereavement. On arriving in
Hastinapura, Krsna and Balarama first went to see
Bhismadeva because he was the chief of the Kuru dynasty. They
then saw Krpacarya, Vidura, Gandhari and Drona. Other members
of the Kuru dynasty were not sorry, because they wanted the
Pandavas and their mother to be killed. But some family members,
headed by Bhisma, were actually very sorry for the incident,
and Krsna and Balarama expressed equal sorrow, without
disclosing the actual situation.
When Krsna and Balarama were away from the city of Dvaraka,
there was a conspiracy to take the Syamantaka jewel away
from Satrajit. The chief conspirator was Satadhanva, who was
among those who had wanted to marry Satyabhama, Satrajit'
s beautiful daughter. Satrajit had promised that he
would give his beautiful daughter in charity to various
candidates, but later the decision was changed, and
Satyabhama was given to Krsna along with the Syamantaka jewel.
Satrajit had no desire to give the jewel away with his
daughter, and Krsna, knowing his mentality, accepted his
daughter but returned the jewel. After getting back the jewel
from Krsna, he was satisfied and kept it with him always. But
in the absence of Krsna and Balarama there was a conspiracy by
many men, including even Akrura and Krtavarma, who were
devotees of Lord Krsna, to take the jewel from Satrajit. Akrura
and Krtavarma joined the conspiracy because they wanted the
jewel for Krsna. They knew that Krsna wanted the jewel and that
Satrajit had not delivered it properly. Others joined the
conspiracy because they were disappointed in not having the
hand of Satyabhama. Some of them incited Satadhanva to kill
Satrajit and take away the jewel.
The question is generally raised, Why did a great devotee like
Akrura join this conspiracy? And why did Krtavarma, although a
devotee of the Lord, join the conspiracy also? The answer
given by great authorities like Jiva Gosvami is that
although Akrura was a great devotee, he was cursed by the
inhabitants of Vrndavana because of his taking Krsna away from
their midst. Because of wounding their feelings, Akrura was
forced to join the conspiracy declared by sinful men. Similarly,
Krtavarma was a devotee, but because of his intimate
association with Kamsa, he was contaminated by sinful
reactions, and he also joined the conspiracy.
Being inspired by all the members of the conspiracy, Satadhanva
one night entered the house of Satrajit and killed him while he
was sleeping. Satadhanva was a sinful man of abominable
character, and although due to his sinful activities he was not
to live for many days, he decided to kill Satrajit while
Satrajit was sleeping at home. When he entered the house to
kill Satrajit, all the women there cried very loudly,
but in spite of their great protests, Satadhanva mercilessly
butchered Satrajit without hesitation, exactly as a butcher
kills an animal in the slaughterhouse. Since Krsna was absent
from home, His wife Satyabhama was present on the night
Satrajit was murdered, and she began to cry, "My dear Father!
My dear Father! How mercilessly you have been killed!" The dead
body of Satrajit was not immediately removed for cremation
because Satyabhama wanted to go to Krsna in Hastinapura.
Therefore the body was preserved in a tank of oil so that Krsna
could come back and see the dead body of Satrajit and take real
action against Satadhanva. Satyabhama immediately started for
Hastinapura to inform Krsna about the ghastly death of her
father.
When Krsna was informed by Satyabhama of the murder of His
father-in-law, He began to lament like an ordinary man. His
great sorrow is, again, a strange thing. Lord Krsna has nothing
to do with action and reaction, but because He was playing the
part of a human being, He expressed His full sympathy for the
bereavement of Satyabhama, and His eyes filled with tears when
He heard about the death of His father-in-law. He thus began
to lament, "Oh, what unhappy incidents have taken place!" Then
Krsna and Balarama, along with Satyabhama,
immediately returned to Dvaraka and began to
make plans to kill Satadhanva and take away the jewel. Although
he was a great outlaw in the city, Satadhanva was still very
much afraid of Krsna's power, and thus when Krsna arrived he
became most afraid.
Understanding Krsna's plan to kill him, he immediately went to
take shelter of Krtavarma. But
Krtavarma said, "I shall never be able to offend Lord Krsna and
Balarama, for They are not ordinary persons. They are the
Supreme Personality of Godhead. Who can be saved from death if
he has offended Balarama and Krsna? No one can be saved from
Their wrath." Krtavarma further said that Kamsa, although
powerful and assisted by many demons, could not be saved from
Krsna's wrath, and what to speak of Jarasandha, who
had been defeated by Krsna seventeen times and each time had to
return from the fighting in disappointment.
When Satadhanva was refused help by Krtavarma, he went to
Akrura and implored him to help. But Akrura also replied, "
Balarama and Krsna are Themselves the Supreme Personality of
Godhead, and anyone who knows Their unlimited strength would
never dare offend Them or fight with Them." He further
informed Satadhanva, "Krsna and Balarama are so powerful that
simply by willing They create, maintain and dissolve the whole
cosmic manifestation.
Unfortunately, persons bewildered by the illusory
energy cannot understand the strength of Krsna, although the
whole cosmic manifestation is fully under His control." He
cited, as an example, that Krsna, even at the age of seven
years, had lifted Govardhana Hill and had continued to hold up
the mountain for seven days, exactly as a child carries a small
umbrella. Akrura plainly informed Satadhanva that he would
always offer his most respectful obeisances to Krsna, the
Supersoul of everything created and the original cause
of all causes. When Akrura also refused to give him shelter,
Satadhanva decided to deliver the Syamantaka jewel into
the hands of Akrura. Then, riding on a horse which
could run at great speed and up to four hundred miles at a
stretch, he fled the city.
When Krsna and Balarama were informed of the flight of
Satadhanva, They mounted Their chariot, its flag marked by a
picture of Garuda, and followed immediately. Krsna was
particularly angry with Satadhanva and wanted to kill him
because he had killed Satrajit, a superior personality.
Satrajit happened to be the father-in-law of Krsna, and it is
the injunction of the sastras that one who is guru-druha,
who has rebelled against a superior person, must
be punished in proportion to the severity of the offense.
Because Satadhanva had killed His father-in-law, Krsna was
determined to kill him by any means.
Satadhanva's horse became exhausted and died near a garden
house in Mithila. Unable to take help of the horse, Satadhanva
began to run with great speed. In order to be fair to
Satadhanva, Krsna and Balarama also left Their chariot and
began to follow Satadhanva on foot. While Satadhanva and
Krsna were running, Krsna took His disc and cut off
Satadhanva's head. After Satadhanva was killed,
Krsna searched through his clothing for the Syamantaka jewel,
but He could not find it. He then returned to Balarama and said,
"We have killed this person uselessly, for the jewel is
not to be found on his body." Sri Balarama suggested, "The
jewel might have been kept in the custody of another man in
Dvaraka, so You'd better return and search it out." Sri
Balarama expressed His desire to remain in Mithila City for
some days because He enjoyed an intimate friendship with the
King. Therefore, Krsna returned to Dvaraka, and Balarama
entered the city of Mithila.
When the King of Mithila saw the arrival of Sri Balarama in his
city, he was most pleased and received the Lord with great
honor and hospitality. He gave many valuable presents to
Balaramaji in order to seek His pleasure. At this time Sri
Balarama lived in the city for several years as the honored
guest of the King of Mithila, Janaka Maharaja. During this time,
Duryodhana, the eldest son of Dhrtarastra, took the
opportunity to come to Balarama and learn from Him the art
of fighting with a club.
After killing Satadhanva, Krsna returned to Dvaraka, and in
order to please His wife Satyabhama, He informed her of the
death of Satadhanva, the killer of her father. But He also
informed her that the jewel had not been found in his
possession. Then, according to religious principles, Krsna,
along with Satyabhama, performed ceremonies in
honor of His departed father-in-law. In those
ceremonies all the friends and relatives of the family joined
together.
Akrura and Krtavarma were prominent members in the
conspiracy to kill Satrajit, having incited Satadhanva to kill
him. So when they heard of the death of Satadhanva at Krsna's
hand, and when they also heard that Krsna had returned to
Dvaraka, they both immediately left the city. The citizens
of Dvaraka felt themselves threatened with pestilence and
natural disturbances due to the absence of Akrura from the city.
This was a kind of superstition, because while Lord Krsna was
present there could not be any pestilence, famine or natural
disturbances. But in the absence of Akrura there were
apparently some disturbances in Dvaraka. The superstition
arose for the following reason: Once in the province of
Kasi (Varanasi) there was severe drought -- practically no
rain fell. At that time the King of Kasi arranged the
marriage of his daughter, known as Gandini, with Svaphalka, the
father of Akrura. This was done by the King of Kasi on the
advice of an astrologer, and actually it so happened that after
the marriage of the King's daughter with Svaphalka there was
sufficient rainfall in the province. Due to this supernatural
power of Svaphalka, his son Akrura was considered equally
powerful, and people were under the impression that wherever
Akrura or his father stayed there would be no natural
disturbances, such as famine or drought. That kingdom is
considered happy where there is no famine, pestilence or
excessive heat and cold and where people are happy mentally,
spiritually and physically. As soon as there was some
disturbance in Dvaraka, people considered the cause to be
the absence of an auspicious personality in the city. Thus
there was a rumor that because of the absence of Akrura
inauspicious things were happening. After the departure of
Akrura, some of the elderly residents of the city also began to
perceive inauspicious signs due to the
absence of the Syamantaka jewel. When Lord Sri Krsna heard
these rumors spread by the people, He decided to summon Akrura
from the kingdom of Kasi.
Akrura was Krsna's uncle; therefore, when he came back to
Dvaraka, Lord Krsna first of all gave him a welcome befitting a
superior person. Krsna is the Supersoul in everyone and knows
everything going on in everyone's heart. He knew everything
that had happened in connection with Akrura's conspiracy with
Satadhanva. Therefore, He smilingly began to speak to Akrura.
Addressing him as the chief among munificent men, Krsna said, "
My dear uncle, it is already known to Me that the Syamantaka
jewel was left by Satadhanva with you. Presently there is no
direct claimant of the Syamantaka jewel, for King Satrajit has
no male issue. His daughter Satyabhama is not very eager for
this jewel, yet her expected son, as the grandson of Satrajit,
would, after performing the regulative principles of
inheritance, be the legal claimant of the jewel." Lord Krsna
indicated by this statement that Satyabhama was already
pregnant and that her son would be the real claimant of the
jewel and would certainly take it from Akrura.
Krsna continued: "This jewel is so powerful that no ordinary
man is able to keep it. I know that you are very pious in
activities, so there is no objection to the jewel's being kept
with you. There is one difficulty, and that is that My elder
brother, Sri Balarama, does not believe My version that the
jewel is with you. I therefore request you, O large-hearted one,
to show Me the jewel just once before My other relatives so
that they may be pacified and reject various kinds of rumors.
You cannot deny that the jewel is with you because
we can understand that you have enhanced your
opulence and are performing sacrifices on an altar made of
solid gold." The properties of the jewel were known: wherever
the jewel remained, it would produce for the keeper more than
two mounds of pure gold daily. Akrura was getting gold in that
proportion and distributing it profusely at
sacrificial performances. Lord Krsna cited Akrura's lavishly
spending gold as positive evidence of his possessing the
Syamantaka jewel.
When Lord Krsna, in friendly terms and sweet language,
impressed Akrura about the real fact and Akrura understood that
nothing could be concealed from the knowledge of Sri Krsna, he
brought out the valuable jewel, covered by cloth but shining
like the sun, and presented it before Krsna. Lord Krsna
took the Syamantaka jewel in His hand and showed it to all His
relatives and friends present and then returned the
jewel to Akrura in their presence, so that they would know that
the jewel was actually being kept by Akrura in Dvaraka City.
This story of the Syamantaka jewel is very significant. In
Srimad-Bhagavatam it is said that anyone who hears the story of
the Syamantaka jewel or describes it or simply remembers it
will be free from all kinds of defamation and the reactions of
all impious activities and thus will attain the highest
perfectional condition of peace.
Thus ends the Bhaktivedanta purport of the Fifty-seventh
Chapter of Krsna, "The Killing of Satrajit and
Satadhanva."
|