CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE
The History of Pradyumna
This chapter tells how Pradyumna was born as the son of Lord Kṛṣṇa and then kidnapped by the demon Śambara. It also describes how Pradyumna killed Śambara and returned home with a wife.
Kāmadeva (Cupid), an expansion of Lord Vāsudeva, had been burned to ashes by Lord Śiva’s anger and was reborn as part and parcel of Pradyumna from the womb of Rukmiṇī. A demon named Śambara, thinking Pradyumna his enemy, kidnapped Him from the maternity room even before He was ten days old. Śambara threw Pradyumna into the ocean and returned to his kingdom. A powerful fish swallowed Pradyumna and was caught by fishermen in a net. They presented the huge fish to Śambara, and when his cooks cut it open they found a child within its belly. The cooks gave the infant to the maidservant Māyāvatī, who was astonished to see Him. Just then Nārada Muni appeared and told her who the infant was. Māyāvatī was actually Kāmadeva’s wife, Ratidevī. While waiting for her husband to be reborn in a new body, she had taken employment as a cook in the household of Śambara. Now that she understood who the infant was, she began to feel intense affection for Him. After a very short time, Pradyumna grew to youthful maturity, entrancing all the women with His beauty.
Once, Ratidevī approached Pradyumna and playfully moved her eyebrows in a conjugal mood. Addressing her as His mother, Pradyumna commented that she was putting aside her proper maternal mood and behaving like a passionate girlfriend. Rati then told Pradyumna who they both were. She advised Him to kill Śambara, and to help Him she instructed Him in the mystic mantras known as Mahā-māyā. Pradyumna went to Śambara and, after angering him with various insults, challenged him to fight, upon which Śambara angrily took up his club and marched outside. The demon tried various magic spells against Pradyumna, but Pradyumna fended off all of them with the Mahā-māyā mantras and then beheaded Śambara with His sword. At that moment Ratidevī appeared in the sky and took Pradyumna away to Dvārakā.
When Pradyumna and His wife entered the inner chambers of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s palace, the many beautiful ladies there thought He was Kṛṣṇa Himself, so much did His appearance and dress resemble the Lord’s. Out of shyness the ladies ran here and there to hide themselves. But after a little while they noticed small differences in Pradyumna’s and Kṛṣṇa’s appearances, and once they understood that He was not Lord Kṛṣṇa, they gathered around Him.
When Rukmiṇī-devī saw Pradyumna, she felt overwhelmed with motherly love, and milk began to flow spontaneously from her breasts. Noting that Pradyumna looked exactly like Kṛṣṇa, she became eager to find out who He was. She remembered how one of her sons had been abducted from the maternity room. “If He were still alive,” she thought, “He would be the same age as this Pradyumna standing before me.” While Rukmiṇī reflected in this way, Lord Kṛṣṇa arrived in the company of Devakī and Vasudeva. Although the Lord understood the situation perfectly well, He remained silent. Then Nārada Muni arrived and explained everything. Everyone was amazed to hear the account and embraced Pradyumna in great ecstasy.
Because Pradyumna’s beauty so closely resembled Kṛṣṇa’s, the ladies in a maternal relationship with Pradyumna could not help thinking of Him as their conjugal lover. He was, after all, the exact reflection of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, and therefore it was natural for them to see Him in this way.
Devanagari
कामस्तु वासुदेवांशो दग्ध: प्राग् रुद्रमन्युना ।
देहोपपत्तये भूयस्तमेव प्रत्यपद्यत ॥ १ ॥
Text
kāmas tu vāsudevāṁśo
dagdhaḥ prāg rudra-manyunā
dehopapattaye bhūyas
tam eva pratyapadyata
Synonyms
śrī-śukaḥ uvāca — Śukadeva Gosvāmī said; kāmaḥ — Cupid; tu — and; vāsudeva — of Lord Vāsudeva; aṁśaḥ — the expansion; dagdhaḥ — burned; prāk — previously; rudra — of Lord Śiva; manyunā — by the anger; deha — a body; upapattaye — in order to obtain; bhūyaḥ — again; tam — to Him, Lord Vāsudeva; eva — indeed; pratyapadyat — came back.
Translation
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: Kāmadeva [Cupid], an expansion of Vāsudeva, had previously been burned to ashes by Rudra’s anger. Now, to obtain a new body, he merged back into the body of Lord Vāsudeva.
Purport
In his Kṛṣṇa-sandarbha (Anuccheda 87), Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī cites the following verse of the Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad (2.40) to prove that the Pradyumna who is the son of Kṛṣṇa and Rukmiṇī is the same Pradyumna who is a member of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s eternal fourfold plenary expansion, the catur-vyūha:
tribhiḥ śaktyā samāhitaḥ
rāmāniruddha-pradyumnai
rukmiṇyā sahito vibhuḥ
“There [in Dvārakā] the almighty Lord Kṛṣṇa, endowed with His full potency, resided in the company of His three plenary expansions — Balarāma, Aniruddha and Pradyumna.” The Kṛṣṇa-sandarbha goes on to explain, with reference to the present verse of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, that “the Cupid whom Rudra burned up with his anger is a demigod subordinate to Indra. This demigod Cupid is a partial manifestation of the prototype Cupid, Pradyumna, who is a plenary expansion of Vāsudeva. The demigod Cupid, being unable to attain a new body on his own, entered within the body of Pradyumna. Otherwise Cupid would have had to remain in a perpetual state of disembodiment, a result of Rudra’s having incinerated him with his anger.”
In his English rendering of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.14.30 purport), Śrīla Prabhupāda confirms the absolute status of Pradyumna, Lord Kṛṣṇa’s first son: “Pradyumna and Aniruddha are also expansions of the Personality of Godhead, and thus They are also viṣṇu-tattva. At Dvārakā Lord Vāsudeva is engaged in His transcendental pastimes along with His plenary expansions, namely Saṅkarṣaṇa, Pradyumna and Aniruddha, and therefore each and every one of Them can be addressed as the Personality of Godhead, …”
According to Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī, Pradyumna took birth from the womb of Rukmiṇī before Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s marriage to Jāmbavatī and the Lord’s other marriages took place. Subsequently, Pradyumna returned from Śambara’s palace. But before Śukadeva Gosvāmī tells of Kṛṣṇa’s pastimes with His other wives, he will narrate the entire story of Pradyumna for the sake of continuity.
Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī further notes that Kāmadeva, or Cupid, now appearing within Pradyumna, is a portion of Vāsudeva because he is manifest from the element citta, consciousness, which is presided over by Vāsudeva, and also because he (Cupid) is the cause of material generation. As the Lord states in the Bhagavad-gītā (10.28), prajanaś cāsmi kandarpaḥ: “Of progenitors I am Kandarpa [Cupid].”
Devanagari
प्रद्युम्न इति विख्यात: सर्वतोऽनवम: पितु: ॥ २ ॥
Text
kṛṣṇa-vīrya-samudbhavaḥ
pradyumna iti vikhyātaḥ
sarvato ’navamaḥ pituḥ
Synonyms
saḥ — He; eva — indeed; jātaḥ — taking birth; vaidarbhyām — in the daughter of the king of Vidarbha; kṛṣṇa-vīrya — from the seed of Lord Kṛṣṇa; samudbhavaḥ — generated; pradyumnaḥ — Pradyumna; iti — thus; vikhyātaḥ — known; sarvataḥ — in all aspects; anavamaḥ — not inferior; pituḥ — to His father.
Translation
He took birth in the womb of Vaidarbhī from the seed of Lord Kṛṣṇa and received the name Pradyumna. In no respect was He inferior to His father.
Devanagari
स विदित्वात्मन: शत्रुं प्रास्योदन्वत्यगाद् गृहम् ॥ ३ ॥
Text
hṛtvā tokam anirdaśam
sa viditvātmanaḥ śatruṁ
prāsyodanvaty agād gṛham
Synonyms
tam — Him; śambaraḥ — the demon Śambara; kāma — as he desired; rūpī — assuming forms; hṛtvā — stealing; tokam — the child; aniḥ-daśam — not yet ten days old; saḥ — he (Śambara); viditvā — recognizing; ātmanaḥ — his own; śatrum — enemy; prāsya — throwing; udanvati — into the sea; agāt — went; gṛham — to his home.
Translation
The demon Śambara, who could assume any form he desired, kidnapped the infant before He was even ten days old. Understanding Pradyumna to be his enemy, Śambara threw Him into the sea and then returned home.
Purport
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī points out that according to the Viṣṇu Purāṇa, Pradyumna was kidnapped on the sixth day after His birth.
Devanagari
वृतो जालेन महता गृहीतो मत्स्यजीविभि: ॥ ४ ॥
Text
mīnaḥ so ’py aparaiḥ saha
vṛto jālena mahatā
gṛhīto matsya-jīvibhiḥ
Synonyms
Translation
A powerful fish swallowed Pradyumna, and this fish, along with others, was caught in a huge net and seized by fishermen.
Devanagari
सूदा महानसं नीत्वावद्यन् सुधितिनाद्भुतम् ॥ ५ ॥
Text
upājahrur upāyanam
sūdā mahānasaṁ nītvā-
vadyan sudhitinādbhutam
Synonyms
Translation
The fishermen presented that extraordinary fish to Śambara, who had his cooks bring it to the kitchen, where they began cutting it up with a butcher knife.
Devanagari
नारदोऽकथयत् सर्वं तस्या: शङ्कितचेतस: ।
बालस्य तत्त्वमुत्पत्तिं मत्स्योदरनिवेशनम् ॥ ६ ॥
Text
māyāvatyai nyavedayan
nārado ’kathayat sarvaṁ
tasyāḥ śaṅkita-cetasaḥ
bālasya tattvam utpattiṁ
matsyodara-niveśanam
Synonyms
dṛṣṭvā — seeing; tat — in its; udare — belly; bālam — a child; māyāvatyai — to Māyāvatī; nyavedayan — they gave; nāradaḥ — Nārada Muni; akathayat — related; sarvam — all; tasyāḥ — to her; śaṅkita — astonished; cetasaḥ — whose mind; bālasya — of the child; tattvam — the facts; utpattim — the birth; matsya — of the fish; udara — in the abdomen; niveśanam — the entrance.
Translation
Seeing a male child in the belly of the fish, the cooks gave the infant to Māyāvatī, who was astonished. Nārada Muni then appeared and explained to her everything about the child’s birth and His entering the fish’s abdomen.
Devanagari
पत्युर्निर्दग्धदेहस्य देहोत्पत्तिं प्रतीक्षती ॥ ७ ॥
निरूपिता शम्बरेण सा सूदौदनसाधने ।
कामदेवं शिशुं बुद्ध्वा चक्रे स्नेहं तदार्भके ॥ ८ ॥
Text
ratir nāma yaśasvinī
patyur nirdagdha-dehasya
dehotpattim pratīkṣatī
sā sūdaudana-sādhane
kāmadevaṁ śiśuṁ buddhvā
cakre snehaṁ tadārbhake
Synonyms
sā — she; ca — and; kāmasya — of Cupid; vai — in fact; patnī — the wife; ratiḥ nama — named Rati; yaśasvinī — famous; patyuḥ — of her husband; nirdagdha — burnt to ashes; dehasya — whose body; deha — of a body; utpattim — the attainment; pratīkṣatī — waiting; nirūpitā — appointed; śambareṇa — by Śambara; sā — she; sūda-odana — of vegetables and rice; sādhane — in the preparation; kāma-devam — as Cupid; śiśum — the infant; buddhvā — understanding; cakre — she developed; sneham — love; tadā — then; arbhake — for the child.
Translation
Māyāvatī was in fact Cupid’s renowned wife, Rati. While waiting for her husband to obtain a new body — his previous one having been burnt up — she had been assigned by Śambara to prepare vegetables and rice. Māyāvatī understood that this infant was actually Kāmadeva, and thus she began to feel love for Him.
Purport
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī explains this story as follows: When Cupid’s body was burned to ashes, Rati worshiped Lord Śiva to obtain another body for Cupid. Śambara, having also come to Śiva for a benediction, was recognized by the lord first, who told him, “You should now ask for your benediction.” Śambara, struck with lust at seeing Rati, replied that he wanted her as his benediction, and Śiva complied. Lord Śiva then consoled the sobbing Rati, telling her, “Go with him, and in his very home you will attain what you desire.” Thereupon, Rati bewildered Śambara with her deluding power and, taking the name Māyāvatī, remained in his house untouched.
Devanagari
जनयामास नारीणां वीक्षन्तीनां च विभ्रमम् ॥ ९ ॥
Text
sa kārṣṇi rūḍha-yauvanaḥ
janayām āsa nārīṇāṁ
vīkṣantīnāṁ ca vibhramam
Synonyms
Translation
After a short time, this son of Kṛṣṇa — Pradyumna — attained His full youth. He enchanted all women who gazed upon Him.
Devanagari
प्रलम्बबाहुं नरलोकसुन्दरम् ।
सव्रीडहासोत्तभितभ्रुवेक्षती
प्रीत्योपतस्थे रतिरङ्ग सौरतै: ॥ १० ॥
Text
pralamba-bāhuṁ nara-loka-sundaram
sa-vrīḍa-hāsottabhita-bhruvekṣatī
prītyopatasthe ratir aṅga saurataiḥ
Synonyms
sā — she; tam — Him; patim — her husband; padma — of a lotus flower; dala-āyata — spread wide like the petals; īkṣaṇam — whose eyes; pralamba — extended; bāhum — whose arms; nara-loka — of human society; sundaram — the greatest object of beauty; sa-vrīḍa — bashful; hāsa — with a smile; uttabhita — upraised; bhruvā — and with eyebrows; īkṣatī — glancing; prītyā — lovingly; upatasthe — approached; ratiḥ — Rati; aṅga — my dear (King Parīkṣit); saurataiḥ — with gestures indicative of conjugal attraction.
Translation
My dear King, with a bashful smile and raised eyebrows, Māyāvatī exhibited various gestures of conjugal attraction as she lovingly approached her husband, whose eyes were broad like the petals of a lotus, whose arms were very long and who was the most beautiful of men.
Purport
Māyāvatī exhibited her conjugal attraction for Pradyumna even before revealing their true identities. Naturally this caused some confusion at first, as described in the following verse.
Devanagari
मातृभावमतिक्रम्य वर्तसे कामिनी यथा ॥ ११ ॥
Text
mātas te matir anyathā
mātṛ-bhāvam atikramya
vartase kāminī yathā
Synonyms
Translation
Lord Pradyumna told her, “O mother, your attitude has changed. You are overstepping the proper feelings of a mother and behaving like a lover.”
Devanagari
भवान् नारायणसुत: शम्बरेणहृतो गृहात् ।
अहं तेऽधिकृता पत्नी रति: कामो भवान् प्रभो ॥ १२ ॥
Text
bhavān nārāyaṇa-sutaḥ
śambareṇa hṛto gṛhāt
ahaṁ te ’dhikṛtā patnī
ratiḥ kāmo bhavān prabho
Synonyms
Translation
Rati said: You are the son of Lord Nārāyaṇa and were kidnapped from Your parents’ home by Śambara. I, Rati, am Your legitimate wife, O master, because You are Cupid.
Devanagari
मत्स्योऽग्रसीत्तदुदरादित: प्राप्तो भवान् प्रभो ॥ १३ ॥
Text
akṣipac chambaro ’suraḥ
matsyo ’grasīt tad-udarād
itaḥ prāpto bhavān prabho
Synonyms
Translation
That demon, Śambara, threw You into the sea when You were not even ten days old, and a fish swallowed You. Then in this very place we recovered You from the fish’s abdomen, O master.
Devanagari
मायाशतविदं तं च मायाभिर्मोहनादिभि: ॥ १४ ॥
Text
durjayaṁ śatrum ātmanaḥ
māyā-śata-vidaṁ taṁ ca
māyābhir mohanādibhiḥ
Synonyms
tam imam — him; jahi — please kill; durdharṣam — who is difficult to approach; durjayam — and difficult to conquer; śatrum — enemy; ātmanaḥ — Your own; māyā — magic spells; śata — hundreds; vidam — who knows; tam — him; ca — and; māyābhiḥ — by magic spells; mohana-ādibhiḥ — of bewilderment and so on.
Translation
Now kill this dreadful Śambara, Your formidable enemy. Although he knows hundreds of magic spells, You can defeat him with bewildering magic and other techniques.
Devanagari
पुत्रस्नेहाकुला दीना विवत्सा गौरिवातुरा ॥ १५ ॥
Text
kurarīva gata-prajā
putra-snehākulā dīnā
vivatsā gaur ivāturā
Synonyms
Translation
Your poor mother, having lost her son, cries for You like a kurarī bird. She is overwhelmed with love for her child, just like a cow that has lost its calf.
Devanagari
मायावती महामायां सर्वमायाविनाशिनीम् ॥ १६ ॥
Text
pradyumnāya mahātmane
māyāvatī mahā-māyāṁ
sarva-māyā-vināśinīm
Synonyms
Translation
[Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued:] Speaking thus, Māyāvatī gave to the great soul Pradyumna the mystic knowledge called Mahā-māyā, which vanquishes all other deluding spells.
Devanagari
अविषह्यैस्तमाक्षेपै: क्षिपन् सञ्जनयन् कलिम् ॥ १७ ॥
Text
saṁyugāya samāhvayat
aviṣahyais tam ākṣepaiḥ
kṣipan sañjanayan kalim
Synonyms
saḥ — He; ca — and; śambaram — Śambara; abhyetya — approaching; saṁyugāya — to battle; samāhvayat — called him; aviṣahyaiḥ — intolerable; tam — him; ākṣepaiḥ — with insults; kṣipan — reviling; sañjanayan — inciting; kalim — a fight.
Translation
Pradyumna approached Śambara and called him to battle, hurling intolerable insults at him to foment a conflict.
Devanagari
निश्चक्राम गदापाणिरमर्षात्ताम्रलोचन: ॥ १८ ॥
Text
padāhata ivoragaḥ
niścakrāma gadā-pāṇir
amarṣāt tāmra-locanaḥ
Synonyms
saḥ — he, Śambara; adhikṣiptaḥ — insulted; durvācobhiḥ — by harsh words; padā — by a foot; āhataḥ — struck; iva — like; uragaḥ — a snake; niścakrāma — came out; gadā — a club; pāṇiḥ — in his hand; amarṣāt — out of intolerant anger; tāmra — copper-red; locanaḥ — whose eyes.
Translation
Offended by these harsh words, Śambara became as agitated as a kicked snake. He came out, club in hand, his eyes red with rage.
Devanagari
प्रक्षिप्य व्यनदन्नादं वज्रनिष्पेषनिष्ठुरम् ॥ १९ ॥
Text
pradyumnāya mahātmane
prakṣipya vyanadan nādaṁ
vajra-niṣpeṣa-niṣṭhuram
Synonyms
Translation
Śambara whirled his club swiftly about and then hurled it at the wise Pradyumna, producing a sound as sharp as a thunder crack.
Devanagari
अपास्य शत्रवे क्रुद्ध: प्राहिणोत् स्वगदां नृप ॥ २० ॥
Text
pradyumno gadayā gadām
apāsya śatrave kruddhaḥ
prāhiṇot sva-gadāṁ nṛpa
Synonyms
Translation
As Śambara’s club came flying toward Him, Lord Pradyumna knocked it away with His own. Then, O King, Pradyumna angrily threw His club at the enemy.
Devanagari
मुमुचेऽस्त्रमयं वर्षं कार्ष्णौ वैहायसोऽसुर: ॥ २१ ॥
Text
daiteyīṁ maya-darśitam
mumuce ’stra-mayaṁ varṣaṁ
kārṣṇau vaihāyaso ’suraḥ
Synonyms
Translation
Resorting to the black magic of the Daityas taught to him by Maya Dānava, Śambara suddenly appeared in the sky and released a downpour of weapons upon Kṛṣṇa’s son.
Devanagari
सत्त्वात्मिकां महाविद्यां सर्वमायोपमर्दिनीम् ॥ २२ ॥
Text
raukmiṇeyo mahā-rathaḥ
sattvātmikāṁ mahā-vidyāṁ
sarva-māyopamardinīm
Synonyms
bādhyamānaḥ — harassed; astra — of weapons; varṣeṇa — by the rain; raukmiṇeyaḥ — Pradyumna, son of Rukmiṇī; mahā-rathaḥ — the powerful warrior; sattva-ātmikām — produced of the mode of goodness; mahā-vidyām — (He utilized) the mystic knowledge called Mahā-māyā; sarva — all; mayā — magic; upamardinīm — which overcomes.
Translation
Harassed by this rain of weapons, Lord Raukmiṇeya, the greatly powerful warrior, made use of the mystic science called Mahā-māyā, which was created from the mode of goodness and which could defeat all other mystic power.
Devanagari
प्रायुङ्क्त शतशो दैत्य: कार्ष्णिर्व्यधमयत्स ता: ॥ २३ ॥
Text
paiśācoraga-rākṣasīḥ
prāyuṅkta śataśo daityaḥ
kārṣṇir vyadhamayat sa tāḥ
Synonyms
Translation
The demon then unleashed hundreds of mystic weapons belonging to the Guhyakas, Gandharvas, Piśācas, Uragas and Rākṣasas, but Lord Kārṣṇi, Pradyumna, struck them all down.
Devanagari
शम्बरस्य शिर: कायात् ताम्रश्मश्र्वोजसाहरत् ॥ २४ ॥
Text
sa-kirīṭaṁ sa-kuṇḍalam
śambarasya śiraḥ kāyāt
tāmra-śmaśrv ojasāharat
Synonyms
Translation
Drawing His sharp-edged sword, Pradyumna forcefully cut off Śambara’s head, complete with red mustache, helmet and earrings.
Devanagari
भार्ययाम्बरचारिण्या पुरं नीतो विहायसा ॥ २५ ॥
Text
stuvadbhiḥ kusumotkaraiḥ
bhāryayāmbara-cāriṇyā
puraṁ nīto vihāyasā
Synonyms
ākīryamāṇaḥ — being showered; divi-jaiḥ — by the residents of heaven; stuvadbhiḥ — who were offering praise; kusuma — of flowers; utkaraiḥ — with the scattering; bhāryayā — by His wife; ambara — in the sky; cāriṇyā — who was traveling; puram — to the city (Dvārakā); nītaḥ — He was brought; vihāyasā — through the sky.
Translation
As the residents of the higher planets showered Pradyumna with flowers and chanted His praises, His wife appeared in the sky and transported Him through the heavens, back to the city of Dvārakā.
Devanagari
विवेश पत्न्या गगनाद् विद्युतेव बलाहक: ॥ २६ ॥
Text
lalanā-śata-saṅkulam
viveśa patnyā gaganād
vidyuteva balāhakaḥ
Synonyms
Translation
O King, Lord Pradyumna and His wife resembled a cloud accompanied by lightning as they descended from the sky into the inner quarters of Kṛṣṇa’s most excellent palace, which were crowded with lovely women.
Devanagari
प्रलम्बबाहुं ताम्राक्षं सुस्मितं रुचिराननम् ॥ २७ ॥
स्वलङ्कृतमुखाम्भोजं नीलवक्रालकालिभि: ।
कृष्णं मत्वा स्त्रियो ह्रीता निलिल्युस्तत्र तत्र ह ॥ २८ ॥
Text
pīta-kauśeya-vāsasam
pralamba-bāhuṁ tāmrākṣaṁ
su-smitaṁ rucirānanam
nīla-vakrālakālibhiḥ
kṛṣṇaṁ matvā striyo hrītā
nililyus tatra tatra ha
Synonyms
tam — Him; dṛṣṭvā — seeing; jala-da — like a cloud; śyāmam — of dark blue complexion; pīta — yellow; kauśeya — silk; vāsasam — whose dress; pralamba — long; bāhum — whose arms; tāmra — reddish; akṣam — whose eyes; su-smitam — with a pleasing smile; rucira — charming; ānanam — face; su-alaṅkṛta — nicely decorated; mukha — face; ambhojam — lotuslike; nīla — blue; vakra — curling; ālaka-ālibhiḥ — with locks of hair; kṛṣṇam — Kṛṣṇa; matvā — thinking Him; striyaḥ — the women; hrītāḥ — becoming bashful; nililyuḥ — hid themselves; tatra tatra — here and there; ha — indeed.
Translation
The women of the palace thought He was Lord Kṛṣṇa when they saw His dark-blue complexion the color of a rain cloud, His yellow silk garments, His long arms and red-tinged eyes, His charming lotus face adorned with a pleasing smile, His fine ornaments and His thick, curly blue hair. Thus the women became bashful and hid themselves here and there.
Devanagari
उपजग्मु: प्रमुदिता: सस्त्रीरत्नं सुविस्मिता: ॥ २९ ॥
Text
vailakṣaṇyena yoṣitaḥ
upajagmuḥ pramuditāḥ
sa-strī ratnaṁ su-vismitāḥ
Synonyms
Translation
Gradually, from the slight differences between His appearance and Kṛṣṇa’s, the ladies realized He was not the Lord. Delighted and astonished, they approached Pradyumna and His consort, who was a jewel among women.
Devanagari
अस्मरत् स्वसुतं नष्टं स्नेहस्नुतपयोधरा ॥ ३० ॥
Text
vaidarbhī valgu-bhāṣiṇī
asmarat sva-sutaṁ naṣṭaṁ
sneha-snuta-payodharā
Synonyms
Translation
Seeing Pradyumna, sweet-voiced, dark-eyed Rukmiṇī remembered her lost son, and her breasts became moist out of affection.
Devanagari
धृत: कया वा जठरे केयं लब्धा त्वनेन वा ॥ ३१ ॥
Text
kasya vā kamalekṣaṇaḥ
dhṛtaḥ kayā vā jaṭhare
keyaṁ labdhā tv anena vā
Synonyms
Translation
[Śrīmatī Rukmiṇī-devī said:] Who is this lotus-eyed jewel among men? What man’s son is He, and what woman carried Him in her womb? And who is this woman He has taken as His wife?
Devanagari
एतत्तुल्यवयोरूपो यदि जीवति कुत्रचित् ॥ ३२ ॥
Text
nīto yaḥ sūtikā-gṛhāt
etat-tulya-vayo-rūpo
yadi jīvati kutracit
Synonyms
Translation
If my lost son, who was kidnapped from the maternity room, were still alive somewhere, He would be of the same age and appearance as this young man.
Devanagari
आकृत्यावयवैर्गत्या स्वरहासावलोकनै: ॥ ३३ ॥
Text
sārūpyaṁ śārṅga-dhanvanaḥ
ākṛtyāvayavair gatyā
svara-hāsāvalokanaiḥ
Synonyms
Translation
But how is it that this young man so much resembles my own Lord, Kṛṣṇa, the wielder of Śārṅga, in His bodily form and His limbs, in His gait and the tone of His voice, and in His smiling glance?
Devanagari
अमुष्मिन् प्रीतिरधिका वाम: स्फुरति मे भुज: ॥ ३४ ॥
Text
yo me garbhe dhṛto ’rbhakaḥ
amuṣmin prītir adhikā
vāmaḥ sphurati me bhujaḥ
Synonyms
Translation
Yes, He must be the same child I bore in my womb, since I feel great affection for Him and my left arm is quivering.
Devanagari
देवक्यानकदुन्दुभ्यामुत्तम:श्लोक आगमत् ॥ ३५ ॥
Text
vaidarbhyāṁ devakī-sutaḥ
devaky-ānakadundubhyām
uttamaḥ-śloka āgamat
Synonyms
evam — thus; mīmāṁsamānāyām — as she was conjecturing; vaidarbhyām — Queen Rukmiṇī; devakī-sutaḥ — the son of Devakī; devakī-ānakadundubhyām — together with Devakī and Vasudeva; uttamaḥ-ślokaḥ — Lord Kṛṣṇa; āgamat — came there.
Translation
As Queen Rukmiṇī conjectured in this way, Lord Kṛṣṇa, the son of Devakī, arrived on the scene with Vasudeva and Devakī.
Devanagari
नारदोऽकथयत् सर्वं शम्बराहरणादिकम् ॥ ३६ ॥
Text
tūṣṇīm āsa janārdanaḥ
nārado ’kathayat sarvaṁ
śambarāharaṇādikam
Synonyms
vijñāta — understanding fully; arthaḥ — the matter; api — even though; bhagavān — the Supreme Personality of Godhead; tūṣṇīm — silent; āsa — remained; janārdanaḥ — Kṛṣṇa; nāradaḥ — Nārada Muni; akathayat — recounted; sarvam — everything; śambara — by Śambara; āharaṇa — the kidnapping; ādikam — beginning with.
Translation
Although Lord Janārdana knew perfectly well what had transpired, He remained silent. The sage Nārada, however, explained everything, beginning with Śambara’s kidnapping of the child.
Devanagari
अभ्यनन्दन् बहूनब्दान् नष्टं मृतमिवागतम् ॥ ३७ ॥
Text
kṛṣṇāntaḥ-pura-yoṣitaḥ
abhyanandan bahūn abdān
naṣṭaṁ mṛtam ivāgatam
Synonyms
Translation
When the women of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s palace heard this most amazing account, they joyfully greeted Pradyumna, who had been lost for many years but who had now returned as if from the dead.
Devanagari
दम्पती तौ परिष्वज्य रुक्मिणी च ययुर्मुदम् ॥ ३८ ॥
Text
kṛṣṇa-rāmau tathā striyaḥ
dampatī tau pariṣvajya
rukmiṇī ca yayur mudam
Synonyms
Translation
Devakī, Vasudeva, Kṛṣṇa, Balarāma and all the women of the palace, especially Queen Rukmiṇī, embraced the young couple and rejoiced.
Devanagari
अहो मृत इवायातो बालो दिष्ट्येति हाब्रुवन् ॥ ३९ ॥
Text
ākarṇya dvārakaukasaḥ
aho mṛta ivāyāto
bālo diṣṭyeti hābruvan
Synonyms
Translation
Hearing that lost Pradyumna had come home, the residents of Dvārakā declared, “Ah, providence has allowed this child to return as if from death!”
Devanagari
स्तन्मातरो यदभजन् रहरूढभावा: ।
चित्रं न तत् खलु रमास्पदबिम्बबिम्बे
कामे स्मरेऽक्षविषये किमुतान्यनार्य: ॥ ४० ॥
Text
tan-mātaro yad abhajan raha-rūḍha-bhāvāḥ
citraṁ na tat khalu ramāspada-bimba-bimbe
kāme smare ’kṣa-viṣaye kim utānya-nāryaḥ
Synonyms
yam — whom; vai — indeed; muhuḥ — repeatedly; pitṛ — His father; sa-rūpa — who exactly resembled; nija — as their own; īśa — master; bhāvāḥ — who thought of Him; tat — His; mātaraḥ — mothers; yat — inasmuch as; abhajan — they worshiped; raha — in privacy; rūḍha — full-blown; bhāvāḥ — whose ecstatic attraction; citram — amazing; na — not; tat — that; khalu — indeed; ramā — of the goddess of fortune; āspada — of the shelter (Lord Kṛṣṇa); bimba — of the form; bimbe — who was the reflection; kāme — lust personified; smare — Cupid; akṣa-viṣaye — when He was before their eyes; kim uta — what then to speak of; anya — other; nāryaḥ — women.
Translation
It is not astonishing that the palace women, who should have felt maternal affection for Pradyumna, privately felt ecstatic attraction for Him as if He were their own Lord. After all, the son exactly resembled His father. Indeed, Pradyumna was a perfect reflection of the beauty of Lord Kṛṣṇa, the shelter of the goddess of fortune, and appeared before their eyes as Cupid Himself. Since even those on the level of His mother felt conjugal attraction for Him, then what to speak of how other women felt when they saw Him?
Purport
As Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī explains, whenever the palace women saw Śrī Pradyumna, they immediately remembered their Lord, Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Śrīla Prabhupāda comments as follows in Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead: “Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī has explained that in the beginning all the residents of the palace, who were all mothers and stepmothers of Pradyumna, mistook Him to be Kṛṣṇa and were all bashful, infected by the desire for conjugal love. The explanation is that Pradyumna’s personal appearance was exactly like Kṛṣṇa’s, and he was factually Cupid himself. There was no cause of astonishment, therefore, when the mothers of Pradyumna and other women mistook him in that way. It is clear from the statement that Pradyumna’s bodily characteristics were so similar to Kṛṣṇa’s that he was mistaken to be Kṛṣṇa even by His mother.”
Thus end the purports of the humble servants of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda to the Tenth Canto, Fifty-fifth Chapter, of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, entitled “The History of Pradyumna.”