dūtaṁ ca prāhiṇon mandaḥ
kṛṣṇāyāvyakta-vartmane
dvārakāyāṁ yathā bālo
nṛpo bāla-kṛto 'budhaḥ
dūtam - a messenger; ca - and; prāhiṇot - he sent; mandaḥ - slow-witted; kṛṣṇāya - to Lord Kṛṣṇa; avyakta - inscrutable; vartmane - whose path; dvārakāyām - at Dvārakā; yathā - as; bālaḥ - a boy; nṛpaḥ - king; bāla - by children; kṛtaḥ - made; abudhaḥ - unintelligent.
Thus slow-witted King Pauṇḍraka sent a messenger to the inscrutable Lord Kṛṣṇa at Dvārakā. Pauṇḍraka was acting just like an unintelligent child whom other children are pretending is a king.
According to Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura, the reason Śukadeva Gosvāmī here mentions for the second time that Pauṇḍraka sent a message to Lord Kṛṣṇa is that the great sage is astonished at Pauṇḍraka’s extreme foolishness.
