SB 10.1.65 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

ऋषेर्विनिर्गमे कंसो यदून् मत्वा सुरानिति देवक्या गर्भसम्भूतं विष्णुं च स्ववधं प्रति ॥ ६५ ॥ देवकीं वसुदेवं च निगृह्य निगडैर्गृहे जातं जातमहन् पुत्रं तयोरजनशङ्कया ॥ ६६ ॥

Verse text

ṛṣer vinirgame kaṁso yadūn matvā surān iti devakyā garbha-sambhūtaṁ viṣṇuṁ ca sva-vadhaṁ prati devakīṁ vasudevaṁ ca nigṛhya nigaḍair gṛhe jātaṁ jātam ahan putraṁ tayor ajana-śaṅkayā

Synonyms

ṛṣeḥ — of the great sage Nārada ; vinirgame — on the departure (after giving information) ; kaṁsaḥ — Kaṁsa ; yadūn — all the members of the Yadu dynasty ; matvā — thinking of ; surān — as demigods ; iti — thus ; devakyāḥ — of Devakī ; garbha — sambhūtam — the children born from the womb ; viṣṇum — (accepting) as Viṣṇu ; ca — and ; sva — vadham prati — fearing his own death from Viṣṇu ; devakīm — Devakī ; vasudevam ca — and her husband, Vasudeva ; nigṛhya — arresting ; nigaḍaiḥ — by iron shackles ; gṛhe — confined at home ; jātam jātam — each one who was born, one after another ; ahan — killed ; putram — the sons ; tayoḥ — of Vasudeva and Devakī ; ajana — śaṅkayā — with the doubt that they would be Viṣṇu .

Translation

After the departure of the great saint Nārada, Kaṁsa thought that all the members of the Yadu dynasty were demigods and that any of the children born from the womb of Devakī might be Viṣṇu. Fearing his death, Kaṁsa arrested Vasudeva and Devakī and chained them with iron shackles. Suspecting each of the children to be Viṣṇu, Kaṁsa killed them one after another because of the prophecy that Viṣṇu would kill him.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

After the departure of the great saint Nārada, Kaṁsa thought that all the members of the Yadu dynasty were demigods and that any of the children born from the womb of Devakī might be Viṣṇu. Fearing his death, Kaṁsa arrested Vasudeva and Devakī and chained them with iron shackles. Suspecting each of the children to be Viṣṇu, Kaṁsa killed them one after another because of the prophecy that Viṣṇu would kill him. KB 10.1.65-66 After being thus informed by Nārada about the appearance of the demigods in different families, Kaṁsa at once became very much alarmed. He understood that since the demigods had already appeared, Lord Viṣṇu must be coming soon. He at once arrested both his brother-in-law Vasudeva and Devakī and put them behind prison bars. Within the prison, shackled in iron chains, Vasudeva and Devakī gave birth to a male child year after year, and Kaṁsa, thinking each of the babies to be the incarnation of Viṣṇu, killed them one after another. He was particularly afraid of the eighth child, but after the visit of Nārada, he came to the conclusion that any child might be Kṛṣṇa. Therefore it was better to kill all the babies who took birth from Devakī and Vasudeva.

Purport

Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, in his notes on this verse, has mentioned how Nārada Muni gave Kaṁsa this information. This incident is described in the Hari-vaṁśa. Nārada Muni went to see Kaṁsa by providence, and Kaṁsa received him very well. Nārada, therefore, informed him that any one of the sons of Devakī might be Viṣṇu. Because Viṣṇu was to kill him, Kaṁsa should not spare any of Devakī’s children, Nārada Muni advised. Nārada’s intention was that Kaṁsa, by killing the children, would increase his sinful activities so that Kṛṣṇa would soon appear to kill him. Upon receiving the instructions of Nārada Muni, Kaṁsa killed all the children of Devakī one after another. The word ajana-śaṅkayā indicates that Lord Viṣṇu never takes birth ( ajana ) and that He therefore appeared as Kṛṣṇa, taking birth just like a human being ( mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam ). Kaṁsa attempted to kill all the babies born of Devakī and Vasudeva, although he knew that if Viṣṇu were born, He would not be killed. Actually it came to pass that when Viṣṇu appeared as Kṛṣṇa, Kaṁsa could not kill Him; rather, as foretold, it was He who killed Kaṁsa. One should know in truth how Kṛṣṇa, who takes His birth transcendentally, acts to kill the demons but is never killed. When one perfectly understands Kṛṣṇa in this way, through the medium of śāstra, one becomes immortal. As the Lord says in Bhagavad-gītā (4.9) : janma karma ca me divyam evaṁ yo vetti tattvataḥ tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti so ’rjuna “One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna.”

Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Kamsa heard that Visnu who had been his enemy in a previous life, would now be born in the womb of Devaki and would kill him. Hearing from the mouth of Narada, Kamsa believed this. Out of fear of Visnu (ajana, one who has no birth) he killed the children as soon as they were born.

Purport (Jiva Goswami)

Nārada went particularly far away (vinirgame) because of shame at having directly put Vasudeva in prison, and because Kaṁsa feared he may return to prevent his actions. Kaṁsa understood that the Yadus were the Lord’s associates and that Viṣṇu born with all powers (saṁbhūtam) from Devakī to kill him. Past tense is used for the future event because the time was close or because the event was certain. Or Kaṁsa thought that Viṣṇu who possesses all powers (sambhūtam) was in Devakī’s womb. Another version has sambhūtim. Kaṁsa understood from Nārada that the eighth child of Devakī would kill him and that the relatives were making preparations to kill him. ttatraiṣa devakī yā te mathurāyāṁ pitṛṣvasā yo ‘syā garbho ‘ṣṭamaḥ kaṁsa sa te mṛtyur bhaviṣyati devānāṁ caiva sarvasvaṁ tridivasya gatiś ca saḥ paraṁ rahasyaṁ vedānāṁ sa te mṛtyur bhaviṣyati parato ‘pi paras teṣam svayaṁbhūś ca divaukasām tatas tv etan mahadbhūtaṁ divyam te kathayāmy aham ślāghaśca sa hi te mṛtyur bhūta-pūrvaś ca taṁ smara O Kaṁsa! You will be killed by the eighth child of Devakī, your sister, in Mathurā. He who is the goal of the devatās and the secret of the Vedas will kill you. He is superior to the devatās and without birth. I am telling you this astonishing, divine news. He killed you in the past. Remember that. Piṭrṣvasā means sister related through the father. Some say that Āhuka, Devaka’s father raised Devakī, his granddaughter as his own child. Nigṛhya means imprisoned in Kaṁsa’s house. Ajana means a person who is without birth. Kaṁsa thought he would be born like a normal child. This word thus indicates Kaṁsa’s foolishness. Or it indicates fear of something which was perhaps non-existent.