Source
Texts:
The
Battle Between S'âlva and the Vrishnis
Text
1
S'rî
S'uka said: 'Please, o King, now hear how Krishna, in His body
playing the human, in yet another wonderful deed of His killed
the lord of Saubha.
S'ukadeva
Gosvâmî said: Now please hear, O King, another
wondrous deed performed by Lord Krishna, who appeared in His
humanlike body to enjoy transcendental pastimes. Hear how He
killed the master of Saubha.
Text
2
He with the
name of S'âlva, came, as a friend of S'is'upâla to
Rukminî's wedding and was by the Yadus defeated in battle
together with Jarâsandha and others [see
10:
54 and also
10.50]
S'âlva
was a friend of S'is'upâla's. When he attended the
wedding of Rukminî, the Yadu warriors defeated him in
battle, along with Jarâsandha and the other
kings.
Text
3
Before all the
kings listening he made the pledge: 'Wait and see, I'll rid the
earth of the Yâdavas with all I can.'
S'âlva
swore in the presence of all the kings: "I will rid the
earth of Yâdavas. Just see my prowess!"
Text
4
The foolish
king vowed with this eating once a day a handful of dust,
worshiped as his master the lord protecting the animallike
[pictured as Pas'upati or S'iva with S'âlva praying
as a boy together with Yama].
Having
thus made his vow, the foolish King proceeded to worship
Lord Pas'upati [S'iva] as his deity by eating a
handful of dust each day, and nothing more.
Text
5
At
the end of a year gave the great lord quickly pleased
[Âs'utosha], the master of Umâ,
S'âlva, who had approached him for shelter, the choice of
a benediction.
The
great Lord Umâpati is known as "he who is quickly
pleased," yet only at the end of a year did he gratify
S'âlva, who had approached him for shelter, by
offering him a choice of benedictions.
Text
6
He
chose a vehicle terrifying to the Vrishnis with which he could
travel at will and which would be indestructible to the gods,
the demons, the humans, the singers of heaven, the serpents and
the wild men.
S'âlva
chose a vehicle that could be destroyed by neither demigods,
demons, humans, Gandharvas, Uragas nor Râkshasas, that
could travel anywhere he wished to go, and that would
terrify the Vrishnis.
Text
7
With
the lord of the mountain saying 'so be it' was Maya
Dânava, there for outdoing the cities of the enemies
[see 7.10:
53],
commissioned to construct for, and offer to S'âlva a
[flying] fortress
made of iron named Saubha.
Lord
S'iva said, "So be it." On his order, Maya Dânava, who
conquers his enemies' cities, constructed a flying iron city
named Saubha and presented it to S'âlva.
Text
8
When
he obtained the vehicle that, as an abode of darkness, moving
to his liking, was unassailable, went S'âlva to
Dvârakâ, bearing in mind the enmity shown by the
Vrishnis.
This
unassailable vehicle was filled with darkness and could go
anywhere. Upon obtaining it, S'âlva went to
Dvârakâ, remembering the Vrishnis' enmity toward
him.
Text
9-11
O best of the
Bharatas, S'âlva, besieging the city with a large army,
laid in ruins the parks, the gardens and all the towers,
gateways, mansions, outer walls, outlook posts and recreational
areas surrounding it. From that finest vimâna of his
there fell torrents of weapons, stones and trees as also
thunderbolts, snakes and hailstones, while with the rise of a
fierce whirlwind all the directions were covered with
dust.
S'âlva
besieged the city with a large army, O best of the Bharatas,
decimating the outlying parks and gardens, the mansions
along with their observatories, towering gateways and
surrounding walls, and also the public recreational areas.
From his excellent airship he threw down a torrent of
weapons, including stones, tree trunks, thunderbolts, snakes
and hailstones. A fierce whirlwind arose and blanketed all
directions with dust.
Text
12
The city of
Krishna thus terribly tormented by Saubha could, just as the
earth with Tripura [see
7.10:
56],
o King, find no peace.
Thus
terribly tormented by the airship Saubha, Lord Krishna's
city had no peace, O King, just like the earth when it was
attacked by the three aerial cities of the demons.
Text
13
The Great Lord
Pradyumna seeing how His subjects
were
being harassed then said to them: 'Do not fear!', after which
the great hero of untold glory mounted His
chariot.
Seeing
His subjects so harassed, the glorious and heroic Lord
Pradyumna told them, "Do not fear," and mounted His
chariot.
Text
14-15
Sâtyaki,
Cârudeshna, Sâmba, Akrûra and his younger
brothers, Hârdikya, Bhânuvinda as also Gada, S'uka
and Sârana and other eminent leaders of the leading
warrior bowmen, went out in armor protected by chariotry,
elephantry, cavalry and infantry.
The
chief commanders of the chariot warriors - Sâtyaki,
Cârudeshna, Sâmba, Akrûra and his younger
brothers, along with Hârdikya, Bhânuvinda, Gada,
S'uka and Sârana - went out of the city with many
other eminent bowmen, all girded in armor and protected by
contingents of soldiers riding on chariots, elephants and
horses, and also by companies of infantry.
Text
16
Then a
hair-raising battle commenced between the Yadus and the
followers of S'âlva, that was as tumultuous as the battle
between the demons and the demigods [see
8:10].
A
tumultuous, hair-raising battle then commenced between
S'âlva's forces and the Yadus. It equaled the great
battles between the demons and demigods.
Text
17
Like the
darkness of night dissipates by the warm rays of the sun, were
by the son of Rukminî in an instant with weapons divine
the magical tricks destroyed of the master of
Saubha.
With
His divine weapons Pradyumna instantly destroyed all of
S'âlva's magic illusions, in the same way that the
warm rays of the sun dissipate the darkness of night.
Text
18-19
With
twenty-five iron-tipped, in their joints perfectly smoothened
arrows with golden shafts struck He S'âlva's
commander-in-chief [Dyumân], with a hundred he
pierced S'âlva, with one each his soldiers, with ten each
his charioteers and with three each of the carriers
[elephants, horses].
Lord
Pradyumna's arrows all had gold shafts, iron heads and
perfectly smooth joints. With twenty-five of them He struck
down S'âlva's commander-in- chief
[Dyumân], and with one hundred He struck
S'âlva himself. Then He pierced S'âlva's
officers with one arrow each, his chariot drivers with ten
arrows each, and his horses and other carriers with three
arrows each.
Text
20
Seeing
that amazing, mighty feat of Pradyumna, the great personality,
was He honored by all of his and the enemy soldiers.
When
they saw the glorious Pradyumna perform that amazing and
mighty feat, all the soldiers on both sides praised
Him.
Text
21
Then
seen in many forms, then seen as one only and then not being
seen at all, had that magical illusion created by Maya turned
into something that could impossibly be located by the
opponent.
At
one moment the magic airship built by Maya Dânava
appeared in many identical forms, and the next moment it was
again only one. Sometimes it was visible, and sometimes not.
Thus S'âlva's opponents could never be sure where it
was.
Text
22
Moving
hither and thither like a whirling firebrand, from one moment
to the next seen on the earth, then in the sky, on a mountain
top and then in the water, remained that Saubha-thing never in
one place.
From
one moment to the next the Saubha airship appeared on the
earth, in the sky, on a mountain peak or in the water. Like
a whirling, flaming baton, it never remained in any one
place.
Text
23
Wherever
S'âlva with his soldiers appeared with his Saubha, did
there and then the army commanders of the Yadus release their
arrows.
Wherever
S'âlva would appear with his Saubha ship and his army,
there the Yadu commanders would shoot their arrows.
Text
24
S'âlva of
the enemy, lost his bearings when his army and fortress
unbearably had to suffer the arrows hitting like fire and sun
that in contact were as snake-venom.
S'âlva
became bewildered upon seeing his army and aerial city thus
harassed by his enemy's arrows, which struck like fire and
the sun and were as intolerable as snake venom.
Text
25
Though
the vrishni-heroes, eager for the victory in this world and the
next, were extremely pained by the floods of weapons from the
commanders of S'âlva, did they not leave their
positions.
Because
the heroes of the Vrishni clan were eager for victory in
this world and the next, they did not abandon their assigned
posts on the battlefield, even though the downpour of
weapons hurled by S'âlva's commanders tormented
them.
Text
26
S'âlva's
companion named Dyumân - previously hurt by Pradyumna -
confronting with a club of maura-iron, stroke with a powerful
roar.
S'âlva's
minister Dyumân, previously wounded by S'rî
Pradyumna, now ran up to Him and, roaring loudly, struck Him
with his club of black steel.
Text
27
Pradyumna,
the subduer of the enemies, who had his wits blown out by the
mace, was then by His chariot driver, a son of Dâruka,
well-known with the duties removed from the
battlefield.
Pradyumna's
driver, the son of Dâruka, thought that his valiant
master's chest had been shattered by the club. Knowing well
his religious duty, he removed Pradyumna from the
battlefield.
Text
28
In
a moment regaining consciousness, said the son of Krishna to
His chariot driver: 'How wrong of you, driver, to take Me away
from the battlefield!
Quickly
regaining consciousness, Lord Krishna's son Pradyumna said
to His charioteer, "O driver, this is abominable - for Me to
have been removed from the battlefield!
Text
29
Except for Me,
has no one born in the house of Yadu ever been known to have
abandoned the field; I'm blemished because of a driver thinking
like a eunuch!
"Except
for Me, no one born in the Yadu dynasty has ever been known
to abandon the battlefield. My reputation has now been
stained by a driver who thinks like a eunuch.
Text
30
What
now must I say meeting with My fathers Râma and Krishna,
altogether having fled from the battle? What if asked would
then fit on My behalf?
"What
will I say to My fathers, Râma and Kes'ava, when I
return to Them after having simply fled the battle? What can
I tell Them that will befit My honor?
Text
31
Certainly My
sisters-in-law will deride Me
saying:
'How o how, o hero, could Your enemies turn You into a coward
in battle?'
"Certainly
My sisters-in-law will laugh at Me and say, 'O hero, tell us
how in the world Your enemies turned You into such a coward
in battle.' "
Text
32
The
charioteer said: 'O Long-lived One, what I did happened was
done in good faith of dharma, o Lord; a driver should protect
the master that ran into difficulty, just as the master should
protect the driver.
The
driver replied: O long-lived one, I have done this knowing
full well my prescribed duty. O my Lord, the chariot driver
must protect the master of the chariot when he is in danger,
and the master must also protect his driver.
Text
33
Knowing
this were You, by the enemy his club factually struck
unconscious, removed from the field by me thinking You were
hurt!'
With
this rule in mind, I removed You from the battlefield, since
You had been struck unconscious by Your enemy's club and I
thought You were seriously injured.
