Harivamsa

vaiśaṁpāyana said:

After some days, the foster mother of bhoja kaṁsa, known as pūtanā, came in the form of a bird.

pūtanā nāma śakunī ghorā prāṇabhayaṅkarī |

ājagāmārdharātre vai pakṣau krodhādvidhunvatī ||2-6-23

The bird named pūtana was terrible, terrifying the living beings. She arrived at midnight, flapping her wings with anger.

tato'rdharātrasamaye pūtanā pratyadṛśyata |

vyāghragaṁbhīranirghoṣaṁ vyāharantī punaḥ punaḥ ||2-6-24

Then pūtanā was seen at the midnight. She roared aloud again and again like a tiger.

nililye śakaṭasyākṣe prasravotpīḍavarṣiṇī |

dadau stanaṁ ca kṛṣṇāya tasminsupte jane nishi ||2-6-25

She stood on the axle of the cart with her breast full of milk. While people were sleeping in the night, she breast-fed kṛṣṇa.

tasyāḥ stanaṁ papau kṛṣṇaḥ prāṇaiḥ saha vinadya ca |

cinnastanī tu sahasā papāta śakunī bhuvi ||2-6-26

kṛṣṇa sucked her breast along with her life. She wailed aloud. With her breast cut off, suddenly the bird fell down on the ground.

tena shabdena vitrastāstato bubudhire bhayāt |

sa nandagopo gopā vai yaśodā ca suviklavā ||2-6-27

Hearing the sound, nandagopa. gopa-s and yaśodā got up. They were worried and terrified.

te tāmapaśyanpatitāṁ visaṣjṣāṁ vipayodharām |

pūtanāṁ patitāṁ bhūmau vrajeṇeva vidāritām ||2-6-28

They saw pūtanā, unconscious, without her breast, lying on the ground, as a mountain struck by thunderbolt.

idaṁ kiṁ tviti saṁtrastāḥ kasyedaṁ karma chetyapi |

nandagopaṁ puraskṛtya gopāste paryavārayan ||2-6-29

gopa-s led by nandagopa were frightened. They surrounded pūtanā and asked: what is this? Who did this?

nādhyagacchanta ca tadā hetuṁ tatra kadācana |

āścaryamāścaryamiti bruvanto'nuyayurgṛhān ||2-6-30

They could not understand how this could happen. Saying this is strange, this is strange, they returned to their houses.

gateṣu teṣu gopeṣu vismiteṣu yathāgṛham |

yaśodāṁ nandagopastu papraccha gatasaṁbhramaḥ ||2-6-31

As the gopa-s returned home wondering about the incident, nandagopa, who was .terrified asked yaśodā.

ko'yaṁ vidhirna jānāmi vismayo me mahānayam |

putrasya me bhayaṁ tīvraṁ bhīrutvaṁ samupāgatam ||2-6-32

What is this fate? I have not understood this. I am totally surprised. There is a terrible danger to my son. I am highly afraid.

yaśodā tvabravīdbhītā nārya jānāmi kiṁ tvidam |

dārakeṇa sahānena suptā shabdena bodhitā ||2-6-33

yaśodā said with fear: My lord, I do not know what is this. I was sleeping with the child. I woke up with the sound.

yaśodāyāmajānantyāṁ nandagopaḥ sabāndhavaḥ |

kaṁsādbhayaṁ cakārograṁ vismayaṁ ca jagāma ha ||2-6-34

When yaśodā expressed her ignorance about the incident, nandagopa, along with his relatives were surprised. They had great fear about kaṁsa.

iti śrīmahābhārate khileṣu harivāṁśe viṣṇuparvaṇi śiśucaryāyāṁ śakaṭabhaṅgapūtanāvadhe ṣaṣṭho'dhyāyaḥ

Thus this is the sixth chapter of viṣṇuparva of harivaṁśa, khila of śrimahābhārata, elimination of śakaṭāsura and pūtanā.

Translators' note:

Protection of kṛṣṇa after killing pūtana as described in viṣṇu purāṇa and bhāgavata

In viṣṇu purāṇa, yaśodā waves cow tail over kṛṣṇa and nandagopa recites slokas for protection.

viṣṇu purāṇa, Book V, Chapter V, pages 320, 2006.

ādāya kṛṣṇaṁ santrastā yaśodāpi dvijottama |

gopucchabhrāmaṇenātha bāladoṣamapākarot || 5-5-12

gokarīṣamupādāya nandagopo'pi mastake |

kṛṣṇasya pradadau rakṣāṁ kurvaṁśchaitadudīrayan || 5-5-13

Yashoda snatching up Krishna, waved over him a cow-tail brush to guard him from harm, whilst Nanda placed dried cow-dung powdered upon his head;

he gave him also an amulet (3), saying at the same time,

nandagopa uvāca

rakṣatu tvāṁaśeśāṇāṁ bhūtānāṁ prabhavo hariḥ |

yasya nābhisamudbhūtapaṅkajādabhavajjagat || 5-5-14

nandagopa said:

May Hari, the lord of all beings without reserve, protect you; he from the lotus of whose navel the world has developed,

yena daṁṣṭrāgravidhṛtā dhārayatyavanirjagat |

varāharūpadhṛgdevassa tvāṁ rakṣatu keśavaḥ || 5-5-15

and on the tip of whose tusks the globe was upraised from the waters. May that Kesava who assumed the form of a boar, protect thee.

nakhaṅkuravinirbhinnavairivakṣastalo vibhuḥ |

nṛsiṁharūpi sarvatra rakṣatu tvāṁ janārdanaḥ || 5-5-16

May that Kesava who, as the man-lion, rent with his sharp nails the bosom of his foe, ever protect thee.

vāmano rakṣatu sadā bhavantaṁ yaḥ kṣaṇādabhūt |

trivikramaḥ kramākrāntatrailokyaḥ sphuradāyudhaḥ || 5-5-17

May that Kesava who appearing first as dwarf, suddenly traversed in all his might, with three paces, the three regions of the universe, constantly defend thee.

shiraste pātu govindaḥ kaṇṭhaṁ rakṣatu keśavaḥ |

guhyaṁ ca jaṭharaṁ viṣṇurjaṅghe pādau janārdanaḥ || 5-5-18

May Govinda guard thy head, Kesava thy neck, Vishnu thy belly, Janarddana thy legs and feet,

mukhaṁ bāhū prabāhū ca manaḥ sarvendriyāṇi ca |

rakṣatvavyāhataiśvaryastava nārāyaṇo'vyayaḥ || 5-5-19

the eternal and irresistible ṇarayana thy face, thine arms, thy mind, and faculties of sense.

śārṅgacakragadāpāṇeśśaṅkhanādahatā kṣayam |

gacchantu pretakūṣmāṇḍarākṣasā ye tavāhitāḥ || 5-5-20

May all ghosts, goblins, and spirits malignant and unfriendly, ever fly thee, appalled by the bow, the discus, the mace, and sword of Vishnu and the echo of his shell.

tvāṁ pātu dikṣu vaikuṇṭho vidikṣu madusūdanaḥ |

hṛṣīkeśo'mbare bhūmau rakṣatu tvāṁ mahīdhara || 5-5-21

May Vaikuntha guard thee in the cardinal points, and in the intermediate ones, Madhusudhana. May hṛśīkeśa defend thee in the sky and Mahidhara upon earth.

parāśara uvāca |

evaṁ kṛtasvastyayano nandagopena bālakaḥ |

śāyitaśśakaṭasyādho bālaparyaṅkikātale || 5-5-22

parāśara said :

Having pronounced this prayer to avert all evil, Nanda put the child to sleep in his bed underneath the wagon.

(3) The Raksha, the preserver, or preservative against charms is a piece of thread or silk, or some more costly material bound round the wrist or arm with an appropriate prayer such as that in the text. Besides its application to children, to avert the effects of evil eyes, or to protect them against Dains or witches, there is one day in the year, the Rakhi Purnima or full moon in the month of Sravan (July- August) when it is bound upon the wrists of adults by friendly or kindred Brahmans, with a short prayer or benediction. The Rakhi is also sent sometimes by persons of distinction, and especially by females, to members of a different family, or even race and nation to intimate a sort of brotherly or sisterly adoption. Tod’s Rajasthan, I.312. (Translation with notes by h.ḥ.Wilson, viṣṇu purāṇa, Book V, Chapter V, page 406, Punthi Pustak, 1979).

In bhāgavata, gopi-s recite ślokas for protection. (bhāgavata, daśama skanda, chapter 6, slokas 19 to 30, vol. 2, page 138, gita press, 1999)

yaśodārohiṇībhyāṁ tāḥ samaṁ bālasya sarvataḥ |

rakṣāṁ vidadhire ramyaggopucchabhramaṇādibhiḥ || 10-6-19

Afterwards the gopi-s, along with yaśodā and rohiṇi protected kṛṣṇa’s limbs in all ways such as waving the cow-tail etc.

gomūtreṇa snāpayitvā punargorajasārbhakam |

rakṣāṁ cakrushcha śakṛtā dvādaśāṅgeṣu nāmabhiḥ || 10-6-20

gopyaḥ saṁspṛṣṭasalilā aṅgeṣu karayoḥ pṛthak |

nyasyātmanyatha bālasya bījanyāsamakurvata || 10-6-21

avyādajo'ṅghri maṇimāṁstava jānvathorū|

yajṣochyutaḥ kaṭitaṭam jaṭharaṁ hayāsyaḥ |

hṛt keshavastvadura īśa inastu kaṇṭhaṁ |

viṣṇurbhujaṁ mukhamurukrama īśvaraḥ kam || 10-6-22

cakryagrataḥ sahagato harirastu paścāt

tvatpārśvayordhanurasī madhuhājanaścha |

koṇeṣu śaṅkha urugāya uparyupendra-

stārkṣyaḥ kṣitau haladharaḥ puruṣaḥ samantāt || 10-6-23

indriyāṇi hṛṣīkeśaḥ prāṇān nārāyaṇo'vatu |

śvetadvīpapatiśchittaṁ mano yogeśvaro'vatu || 10-6-24

pṛśnigarbhastu te buddhimātmānaṁ bhagavān paraḥ |

krīḍantaṁ pātu govindaḥ śayānaṁ pātu mādhavaḥ || 10-6-25

vrajantamavyād vaikuṇṭha āsīnaṁ tvāṁ śriyaḥ patiḥ |

bhuṣjānaṁ yajṣabhuk pātu sarvagrahabhayaṅkaraḥ || 10-6-26

ḍākinyo yāudhānyaścha kūṣmāṇḍā ye'rbhakagrahāḥ |

bhūtapretapiśācāścha yakṣarakṣovināyakāḥ || 10-6-27

koṭarā revatī jyeṣṭā pūtanā mātrukādayaḥ |

unmādā ye hyapasmārā dehaprāṇendriyadruhaḥ || 10-6-28

svapnadṛṣṭā mahotpātā vṛddhabālagrahāścha ye |

sarve nashyantu te viṣṇornāmagrahaṇabhīravaḥ || 10-6-29

śrīśuka uvāca |

iti praṇayabaddhābhirgopibhiḥ kṛtarakṣaṇam |

pāyayitvā stanaṁ mātā saṁnyaveśayadātmajam || 10-6-30

nīlakaṇṭha commentary

ṣaṣṭhe tvadhaitadhyāye kṛ+ṣṇenādhaḥ sthitānasaḥ |

bhaṣjanaṁ pūtanāyaścha śoṣaṇaṁ samudiryate ||

· 2-6-1 tatra asataḥ | aprakāśamānasya | ballavatvaṁ gopatvam ||

· 2-6-4 "pṛthurayo dakṣiṇāyā ayojyainaṁ devāso amṛtāso astuḥ | kṛ+ṣṇādudastādaryā 3 vihāyāśchikitsantī mānuṣāya kṣayāyaitena" iti mantroktamarthamupabṛṁhayati | śakaṭasyeti | mantrārthastu pṛthurmahān rathaḥ śakaṭaṁ dakṣiṇāyāḥ diśaḥ saṁbandhī mṛtyukaramityarthaḥ | ayoji yojitaḥ śatrubhirityarthāllabhyate tamenaṁ rathaṁ devāso devāḥ amṛtāso amṛtā āsamantāt astuḥ parivārya sthitavantaḥ | etasminnantare saḥ rathaḥ kṛṣṇāt kṛṣṇaṁ prāpya tatpreraṇena udastāt utthitaḥ vihāyāḥ ākāśāśritaḥ viśeṣeṇa hayate gacchatīti vā yantrotkṣiptagoLakavadākāśamārgeṇotthāya patitaḥ sannaṣṭa ityarthaḥ | tatashcha āryā īśvarī svāminī mātā tatratyaprajā vā | chikitsantī saṁśayavantī mānuṣāya mānuṣasya kṣayāya nāśāya etena patatā rathenāyaṁ bālakaḥ kathaṁ na nāśitaḥ ityatra kāraṇaviśeṣamapaśyantī saṁdihānaivātiṣṭhannatvīśvarakṛtyametadityavedīti bhāvaḥ | evameva sarveṣāmarthānāṁ pratyakṣaśrutimūlakatvamunneyaṁ vedopabṛṁhaṇatvādasya śāstrasya | putretyartha karmeti pāṭhe karmagṛddhinī snānaikachittā |

· 2-6-8 viparyastaṁ viparītasthitam

· 2-6-11 gamane prayojanamiti śeṣaḥ

· 2-6-13 bhinnāni bhāṇḍādīni yena taṁ bhāṇḍaṁ cakroparītavovyūhaḥ pātrākhyaḥ ghaṭī ghuro'grabhāgakalaśaḥ ghaṭa ghaṭanā ca bhinnāni tāni yasyeti | cakramaulinaṁ cakraṁ maulāvivopari yasya taṁ | vrīhyāditvādiniḥ |

· 2-6-18 loḍitam unmathitaṁ

· 2-6-20 sarve sarvātmanīśvare | "sarvaṁ samāpnoṣi tato'si sarvaḥ" iti nirvacanātsaṁjṣāśabdo'yamato nātra sarvanāmasamjṣā ||

· 2-6-22 śakunī pakṣiṇī bakānujātvāt veṣadhāriṇī manuṣyaveṣadhāriṇiti kaṁsasya dhātrīti vrajastaiḥ śrutā |

· 2-6-25 praśravotpīḍavarṣiṇī prashravena kṣīrādikyena yaḥ stanayorutpīḍaḥ pīḍā tena varṣiṇī

· 2-6-30 tatra pūtanāvadhe hetuṁ kāraṇaṁ nādyagacchanta nādhigatavantaḥ nandādayaḥ gopā bālarūpā devāstu jānantyevetyāha mantraḥ: "hetiḥ pakṣiṇī na dabhnātyasmānāṣtryāṁ padaṁ kṛṇute agnidāne shanno gobhyashcha puruṣebhyaścāstu mā no hiṁsīdiha devāḥ kapota" iti | hetirāyudhavadvadhakāriṇī pakṣiṇī pūtanārūpā asmān vrajastān na dabhnāti nābhibhavati pratyuta agnidhāne jāṭharāgnerdhāne nimitte śiśorjāṭharāgniṁ stanadānena tarpayituṁ āṣtrāyaṁ "āṣa gatidīptyādāneṣu āṣayati" paralokaṁ gamayati mṛtyunā grāhayati vā dehaṁ dīpayati vā āṣṭrā kṛṣṇatanustasāyāṁ padaṁ stānaṁ kṛṇute kṛṣṇaṁ pāyayituṁ svamṛtyurūpāṁ tāṁ tanuṁ spṛśati smetyarthaḥ ||

iti śrīharivaṁśe viṣṇuparvaṇi ṭīkāyāṁ ṣaṣṭodhyāyaḥ