CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR
After Kaášsaâs wrestlers expressed their determination, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the killer of Madhu, confronted CÄášĹŤra, and Lord BalarÄma, the son of RohiášÄŤ, confronted Muᚣášika. KášášŁáša and CÄášĹŤra and then BalarÄma and Muᚣášika locked themselves hand to hand, leg to leg, and each began to press against the other with a view to coming out victorious. They joined palm to palm, calf to calf, head to head, chest to chest and began to strike each other. The fighting increased as they pushed each other from one place to another. One captured the other and threw him down on the ground, and another rushed from the back to the front of another and tried to overcome him with a hold. The fighting increased step by step. There was picking up, dragging and pushing, and then the legs and hands were locked together. All the arts of wrestling were perfectly exhibited by the parties as each tried his best to defeat his opponent.
But the audience in the wrestling arena was not very much satisfied because the combatants did not appear to be equally matched. They considered KášášŁáša and BalarÄma to be mere boys before CÄášĹŤra and Muᚣášika, who were the strongest wrestlers, as solid as stone. Being compassionate and favoring KášášŁáša and BalarÄma, the many ladies in the audience began to talk as follows: âDear friends, there is injustice here.â Another said, âEven in front of the King this wrestling is going on between incompatible sides.â The ladies had lost their sense of enjoyment. They could not encourage the fighting between the strong and the weak. âMuᚣášika and CÄášĹŤra are just like thunderbolts, as strong as great mountains, and KášášŁáša and BalarÄma are two delicate boys of very tender age. The principle of justice has already left this assembly. Persons who are aware of the civilized principles of justice will not remain to watch this unfair match. Those taking part in watching this wrestling match are not very much enlightened; therefore whether they speak or remain silent, they are being subjected to the reactions of sinful activities.â
âBut my dear friends,â another lady in the assembly spoke out, âjust look at the face of KášášŁáša. There are drops of perspiration on His face from chasing His enemy, and His face appears like a lotus flower with drops of water.â
Another lady said, âDonât you see how the face of Lord BalarÄma has turned especially beautiful? There is a reddish hue on His white face because He is engaged in a strenuous wrestling match with Muᚣášika.â
Another lady in the assembly addressed her friend, âDear friend, just imagine how fortunate is the land of VášndÄvana, where the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself is present, always decorated with flower garlands and engaged in tending cows along with His brother, Lord BalarÄma. He is always accompanied by His cowherd boyfriends, and He plays His transcendental flute. The residents of VášndÄvana are fortunate to be able to constantly see the lotus feet of KášášŁáša and BalarÄma, which are worshiped by great demigods like Lord Ĺiva and by the goddess of fortune. We cannot estimate how many pious activities were executed by the damsels of VrajabhĹŤmi so that they were able to enjoy the Supreme Personality of Godhead by looking upon the unparalleled beauty of His transcendental body. The beauty of the Lord is beyond compare. No one is higher than or equal to Him in beauty of complexion or bodily luster. KášášŁáša and BalarÄma are the reservoir of all kinds of opulenceânamely wealth, strength, beauty, fame, knowledge and renunciation. The gopÄŤs are so fortunate that they can see and think of KášášŁáša twenty-four hours a day, beginning from their milking the cows or husking the paddy or churning the butter in the morning. While engaged in cleaning their houses and washing their floors, they are always absorbed in thought of KášášŁáša.â
The gopÄŤs give a perfect example of how one can execute KášášŁáša consciousness even while performing various types of material engagements. By constantly being absorbed in the thought of KášášŁáša, one cannot be affected by the contamination of material activities. The gopÄŤs, therefore, are perfectly in trance, samÄdhi, the highest perfectional stage of mystic power. In the Bhagavad-gÄŤtÄ, it is confirmed that one who is constantly thinking of KášášŁáša is a first-class yogÄŤ among all kinds of yogÄŤs. âMy dear friends,â one lady told another, âwe must accept the activities of the gopÄŤs to be the highest form of piety; otherwise, how could they have achieved the opportunity of seeing KášášŁáša both morning and eveningâin the morning when He goes to the pasturing ground with His cows and cowherd boyfriends, and in the evening when He returns with them, playing on His flute and smiling very brilliantly?â
When Lord KášášŁáša, the Supersoul of every living being, understood that the ladies in the assembly were anxious for Him, He decided not to continue wrestling but to kill the wrestlers immediately. The parents of KášášŁáša and BalarÄma, namely Nanda MahÄrÄja, YaĹodÄ, Vasudeva and DevakÄŤ, were also very anxious because they did not know the unlimited strength of their children. Lord BalarÄma was fighting with the wrestler Muᚣášika in the same way that KášášŁáša, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, was fighting and wrestling with CÄášĹŤra. Lord KášášŁáša appeared to be cruel to CÄášĹŤra, and He immediately struck him thrice with His fist. The great wrestler was jolted, to the astonishment of the audience. CÄášĹŤra then took his last chance and attacked KášášŁáša, just as one hawk swoops upon another. Folding his two hands, he began to strike the chest of KášášŁáša, but Lord KášášŁáša was not even slightly disturbed, any more than an elephant is when hit by a flower garland. KášášŁáša quickly caught the two hands of CÄášĹŤra and began to wheel him around, and simply by this centrifugal action, CÄášĹŤra lost his life. KášášŁáša then threw him to the ground. CÄášĹŤra fell just like the flag of Indra, and all his nicely fashioned ornaments were scattered hither and thither.
Muᚣášika also struck BalarÄma, and BalarÄma returned the stroke with great force. Muᚣášika began to tremble and vomit blood. Distressed, he gave up his vital force and fell down just as a tree falls down in a hurricane.
After the two wrestlers were killed, a wrestler named KĹŤáša came forward. Lord BalarÄma immediately caught him in His left hand and killed him nonchalantly. A wrestler of the name Ĺala came forward, and KášášŁáša immediately cracked his head with a kick. A wrestler named ToĹala came forward and was killed in the same way. Thus all the great wrestlers were killed by KášášŁáša and BalarÄma, and the remaining wrestlers fled from the assembly out of fear for their lives. All the cowherd boyfriends of KášášŁáša and BalarÄma approached Them and congratulated Them with great pleasure. While trumpets resounded and drums were beaten, the leg bells on the feet of KášášŁáša and BalarÄma tinkled.
All the people gathered there began to clap in great ecstasy, and no one could estimate the bounds of their pleasure. The brÄhmaášas present began to praise KášášŁáša and BalarÄma ecstatically. Only Kaášsa was morose; he neither clapped nor offered benediction to KášášŁáša. Kaášsa resented that the trumpets and drums should be played for KášášŁášaâs victory, and he was very sorry that the wrestlers had been killed and had fled the assembly. He therefore immediately ordered the band to stop playing and addressed his men as follows: âI order that these two sons of Vasudeva be immediately driven out of MathurÄ. The cowherd boys who have come with Them should be plundered and all their riches taken away. Nanda MahÄrÄja should immediately be arrested and killed for his cunning behavior, and that rascal Vasudeva should also be killed without delay. Also my father, Ugrasena, who has always supported my enemies against my will, should be killed.â
When Kaášsa spoke in this way, Lord KášášŁáša became very angry with him, and within a second He jumped onto the high dais of King Kaášsa. Kaášsa was prepared for KášášŁášaâs attack, for he knew from the beginning that KášášŁáša was to be the supreme cause of his death. Kaášsa immediately unsheathed his sword and prepared to answer the challenge of KášášŁáša with sword and shield. As Kaášsa wielded his sword up and down, hither and thither, Lord KášášŁáša, the supreme powerful Lord, caught hold of him with great force. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the shelter of the complete creation and from whose lotus navel the whole creation is manifested, immediately knocked the crown from the head of Kaášsa and grabbed his long hair in His hand. He then dragged Kaášsa from his seat to the wrestling dais and threw him down. Then KášášŁáša at once straddled his chest and began to strike him over and over again. Simply from the strokes of KášášŁáša's fist, Kaášsa lost his vital force.
To assure His parents that Kaášsa was dead, Lord KášášŁáša dragged him just as a lion drags an elephant after killing it. When people saw this, there was a great roaring sound from all sides as some spectators expressed their jubilation and others cried in lamentation. From the day Kaášsa had heard he would be killed by the eighth son of DevakÄŤ, he was always thinking of KášášŁáša with His wheel in hand, and because he was very much afraid of his death, he was thinking of KášášŁáša in that form twenty-four hours a day, without stoppingâeven while eating, while walking and while breathingâand naturally he got the blessing of liberation. In the Bhagavad-gÄŤtÄ it is stated, sadÄ tad-bhÄva-bhÄvitaḼ: [Bg. 8.6] a person gets his next life according to the thoughts in which he is always absorbed. Kaášsa was thinking of KášášŁáša with His wheel, which means NÄrÄyaáša, who holds a wheel, conchshell, lotus flower and club.
According to the opinion of authorities, Kaášsa attained sÄrĹŤpya-mukti after death; that is to say, he attained the same form as NÄrÄyaáša (Viᚣášu). On the Vaikuášášha planets all the inhabitants have the same bodily features as NÄrÄyaáša. After his death, Kaášsa attained liberation and was promoted to Vaikuášášhaloka. From this instance we can understand that even a person who thinks of the Supreme Personality of Godhead as an enemy gets liberation or a place in a Vaikuášášha planet, so what to speak of the pure devotees, who are always absorbed in favorable thoughts of KášášŁáša? Even an enemy killed by KášášŁáša gets liberation and is placed in the impersonal brahma-jyotir. Since the Supreme Personality of Godhead is all-good, anyone thinking of Him, either as an enemy or as a friend, gets liberation. But the liberation of the devotee and the liberation of the enemy are not the same. The enemy generally gets the liberation of sÄyujya, and sometimes he gets sÄrĹŤpya liberation.
Kaášsa had eight brothers, headed by Kaáš ka, all of them younger than he, and when they learned that their elder brother had been killed, they combined together and rushed toward KášášŁáša in great anger to kill Him. Kaášsa and his brothers were all KášášŁášaâs maternal uncles, brothers of KášášŁášaâs mother, DevakÄŤ. When KášášŁáša killed Kaášsa He killed His maternal uncle, which is against the regulations of Vedic injunctions. Although KášášŁáša is independent of all Vedic injunctions, He violates the Vedic injunctions only in inevitable cases. Kaášsa could not be killed by anyone but KášášŁáša; therefore KášášŁáša was obliged to kill him. But as far as Kaášsaâs eight brothers were concerned, BalarÄma took charge of killing them. BalarÄmaâs mother, RohiášÄŤ, although the wife of Vasudeva, was not the sister of Kaášsa; therefore BalarÄma took charge of killing all of Kaášsaâs eight brothers. He immediately took up an available weapon (most probably the elephantâs tusk which He carried) and killed the eight brothers one after another, just as a lion kills a flock of deer. KášášŁáša and BalarÄma thus verified the statement that the Supreme Personality of Godhead appears in order to give protection to the pious and to kill the impious demons, who are always enemies of the demigods.
The demigods from the higher planetary systems showered flowers, congratulating KášášŁáša and BalarÄma. Among the demigods were powerful personalities like Lord BrahmÄ and Lord Ĺiva, and all joined together in showing their jubilation over Kaášsaâs death. There were beating of drums and showering of flowers from the heavenly planets, and the wives of the demigods danced in ecstasy.
The wives of Kaášsa and his eight brothers were aggrieved at the sudden death of their husbands, and all of them struck their foreheads and shed torrents of tears. Crying loudly and embracing the bodies of their husbands, which lay on the wrestling dais, the wives of Kaášsa and his brothers lamented, addressing the dead bodies: âOur dear husbands, you are so kind and are the protectors of your dependents. Now, after your death, we are also dead, along with your homes and children. We no longer look auspicious. On account of your death, the auspicious functions to take place, such as the sacrifice of the bow, have all been spoiled. Our dear husbands, you treated persons ill who were faultless, and as a result you have been killed. This is inevitable because a person who torments an innocent person must be punished by the laws of nature. We know that Lord KášášŁáša is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is the supreme master and supreme enjoyer of everything; therefore, one who neglects His authority can never be happy, and ultimately, as you have, he meets death.â
Since KášášŁáša was kind and affectionate to His aunts, He solaced them as far as possible. The ritualistic ceremonies performed after death were then conducted under the personal supervision of KášášŁáša because He happened to be the nephew of all the dead princes. After finishing this business, KášášŁáša and BalarÄma immediately released Their father and mother, Vasudeva and DevakÄŤ, who had been imprisoned by Kaášsa. KášášŁáša and BalarÄma fell at Their parentsâ feet and offered them prayers. Vasudeva and DevakÄŤ had suffered so much trouble from Kaášsa because KášášŁáša was their son. DevakÄŤ and Vasudeva were fully conscious of KášášŁášaâs exalted position as the Supreme Personality of Godhead; therefore, although KášášŁáša touched their feet and offered them obeisances and prayers, they did not embrace Him but simply stood up to hear the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Although KášášŁáša was born as their son, Vasudeva and DevakÄŤ were always conscious of His position.
Thus ends the Bhaktivedanta purport of the Forty-fourth Chapter of KášášŁáša, âThe Killing of Kaášsa.â