SB 1.9.37 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

स्वनिगममपहाय मत्प्रतिज्ञा- मृतमधिकर्तुमवप्लुतो रथस्थ: । धृतरथचरणोऽभ्ययाच्चलद्गु- र्हरिरिव हन्तुमिभं गतोत्तरीय: ॥ ३७ ॥

Verse text

sva-nigamam apahāya mat-pratijṣām ṛtam adhikartum avapluto rathasthaḥ dhṛta-ratha-caraṇo ’bhyayāc caladgur harir iva hantum ibhaṁ gatottarīyaḥ

Synonyms

sva — nigamam — own truthfulness ; apahāya — for nullifying ; mat — pratijṣām — my own promise ; ṛtam — factual ; adhi — more ; kartum — for doing it ; avaplutaḥ — getting down ; ratha — sthaḥ — from the chariot ; dhṛta — taking up ; ratha — chariot ; caraṇaḥ — wheel ; abhyayāt — went hurriedly ; caladguḥ — trampling the earth ; hariḥ — lion ; iva — like ; hantum — to kill ; ibham — elephant ; gata — leaving aside ; uttarīyaḥ — covering cloth .

Translation

Fulfilling my vow and sacrificing His own promise, He got down from the chariot, took up its wheel, and ran towards me hurriedly, just as a lion goes to kill an elephant. He even dropped His outer garment on the way.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Giving up his own promise not to fight, and making my vow to make him fight come true, Kṛṣṇa, situated on the chariot, quickly got down and holding the wheel of a chariot, ran towards me, like a lion coming to kill an elephant, while the earth shook and his top cloth fell to the ground.

Purport

The Battle of Kurukṣetra was fought on military principles but at the same time in a sporting spirit, like a friend’s fight with another friend. Duryodhana criticized Bhīṣmadeva, alleging that he was reluctant to kill Arjuna because of paternal affection. A kṣatriya cannot tolerate insults on the principle of fighting. Bhīṣmadeva therefore promised that the next day he would kill all five Pāṇḍavas with special weapons made for the purpose. Duryodhana was satisfied, and he kept the arrows with him to be delivered the next day during the fight. By tricks Arjuna took the arrows from Duryodhana, and Bhīṣmadeva could understand that this was the trick of Lord Kṛṣṇa. So he took a vow that the next day Kṛṣṇa would have to take up weapons Himself, otherwise His friend Arjuna would die. In the next day’s fighting Bhīṣmadeva fought so violently that both Arjuna and Kṛṣṇa were in trouble. Arjuna was almost defeated; the situation was so tense that he was about to be killed by Bhīṣmadeva the very next moment. At that time Lord Kṛṣṇa wanted to please His devotee, Bhīṣma, by keeping Bhīṣma’s promise, which was more important than His own. Seemingly He broke His own promise. He promised before the beginning of the Battle of Kurukṣetra that He would remain without weapons and would not use His strength for either of the parties. But to protect Arjuna He got down from the chariot, took up the wheel of the chariot and hurriedly rushed at Bhīṣmadeva in an angry mood, as a lion goes to kill an elephant. He dropped His covering cloth on the way, and out of great anger He did not know that He had dropped it. Bhīṣmadeva at once gave up his weapons and stood to be killed by Kṛṣṇa, his beloved Lord. The fighting of the day was thus ended at that very moment, and Arjuna was saved. Of course there was no possibility of Arjuna’s death because the Lord Himself was on the chariot, but because Bhīṣmadeva wanted to see Lord Kṛṣṇa take up some weapon to save His friend, the Lord created this situation, making Arjuna’s death appear imminent. He stood before Bhīṣmadeva to show him that his promise was fulfilled and that He had taken up the wheel.

Commentary (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

“It is said that Kṛṣṇa elevates his devotee to a higher position than his own. I saw that directly.” This is explained in two verses. Kṛṣṇa made a promise (sva-nigamam) that he would not take up weapons, but would only assist Arjuna. I made a promise that I would make him give up that promise and take up weapons. To make sure that this would become true, Kṛṣṇa, situated on the chariot, quickly got down from the chariot in such a manner that no one could see his separation from the chariot. Or Kṛṣṇa, though he got down, remained on the chariot to protect it in another form invisible to others. This pastime was spontaneously carried out, and was not because of my request. He took the wheel of the chariot and ran towards me. The earth trembled because of his great strength exerted through running in excitement. His cloth fell down. Because of his excited running he was not aware whether his cloth had fallen or not. Because Kṛṣṇa cannot give up his quality of affection for his devotee, when Arjuna would be unable to fight, Kṛṣṇa would give up his promise and use weapons to protect Arjuna. It is impossible for others to make Arjuna unable to fight. Thus overpowering Arjuna for a moment, I will see Kṛṣṇa fight as an indication of his affection for his devotee. Bhīṣma made this promise that Kṛṣṇa should take up weapons in order to fulfill this desire. Having seen Kṛṣṇa’s prema for Arjuna when he broke his own promise, and satisfying Bhīṣma, Kṛṣṇa’s excellence became famous in the world. That is the meaning of this incident.