SB 10.44.38 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

तं सम्परेतं विचकर्ष भूमौहरिर्यथेभं जगतो विपश्यत: हाहेति शब्द: सुमहांस्तदाभू-दुदीरित: सर्वजनैर्नरेन्द्र ॥ ३८ ॥

Verse text

taṁ samparetaṁ vicakarṣa bhūmau harir yathebhaṁ jagato vipaśyataḥ hā heti śabdaḥ su-mahāṁs tadābhūd udīritaḥ sarva-janair narendra

Synonyms

tam — him ; samparetam — dead ; vicakarṣa — dragged ; bhūmau — along the ground ; hariḥ — a lion ; yathā — as ; ibham — an elephant ; jagataḥ — all the people ; vipaśyataḥ — as they looked on ; hā hā iti — “Oh, oh!” ; śabdaḥ — the sound ; su — mahān — mighty ; tadā — then ; abhūt — arose ; udīritaḥ — spoken ; sarva — janaiḥ — by all the people ; nara — indra — O ruler of men (King Parīkṣit) .

Translation

As a lion drags a dead elephant, the Lord then dragged Kaṁsa’s dead body along the ground in full view of everyone present. O King, all the people in the arena tumultuously cried out, “Oh! Oh!”

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

As a lion drags a dead elephant, the Lord then dragged Kaṁsa's dead body along the ground in full view of everyone present. O King, all the people in the arena tumultuously cried out, "Oh! Oh!" KB 10.44.38 To assure His parents that Kaṁsa was dead, Lord Kṛṣṇa dragged him just as a lion drags an elephant after killing it. When people saw this, there was a great roaring sound from all sides as some spectators expressed their jubilation and others cried in lamentation.

Purport

Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī explains that many people in the audience thought Kaṁsa had simply been knocked unconscious when thrown from the lofty dais. Therefore Lord Kṛṣṇa dragged his corpse so everyone would realize that the evil King was indeed dead. Thus the exclamation hā hā indicates how surprised the people were that the King was suddenly dead and gone. The audience’s astonishment is also mentioned in the Viṣṇu Purāṇa: tato hāhā-kṛtaṁ sarvam āsīt tad-raṅga-maṇḍalam avajṣayā hataṁ dṛṣṭvā kṛṣṇena mathureśvaram “Then the entire arena became filled with cries of astonishment as the people saw that the master of Mathurā had been contemptuously killed by Kṛṣṇa.”

Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

The spectators thought that Kamsa was only unconscious and were not aware that he was dead. Krsna dragged him on the ground to make them realize that he was dead. They expressed surprise because though Kamsa was a great warrior, he had been killed with such distain. The visnu purana also says, "Then all those spectators exclaimed ‘Oh, what calamity, seeing that Krsna had killed the King of Mathura in a contemptuous way’"

Purport (Jiva Goswami)

Because Kṛṣṇa fell on top of him, he died (samparetam). While the universe watched, he dragged him on the earth. This means no one opposed this, and everyone was happy. They cried out in astonishment since Kaṁsa, though a great warrior, was killed with disrespect. The audience’s astonishment is also mentioned in the Viṣṇu Purāṇa: tato hāhā-kṛtaṁ sarvam āsīt tad-raṅga-maṇḍalam avajñayā hataṁ dṛṣṭvā kṛṣṇena mathureśvaram Then the entire arena became filled with cries of astonishment as the people saw that the master of Mathurā had been contemptuously killed by Kṛṣṇa. Śukadeva, full of joy, called out to Parīkṣit when he saw that he was also joyous.

Purport (Sanatana Goswami)

Because Kṛṣṇa fell on top of him, he died (samparetam). To satisfy Vasudeva and others, he dragged him on the earth. This produced a huge trough. Gauraveṇātimahatā parikhā tena kṛṣyatā Kṛtā kaṁsasya dehena vegeneva mahāmbhasaḥ He dug out a huge trough of water by pulling Kaṁsa’s body quickly. Viṣṇu Purāṇa This is known as Kaṁsa’s canal or Kaṁsa’s River. This is near Viśranti-tīrtha. This implies his body was huge and tough. Roaring like a lion suggest that he pulled him easily, with anger. Everyone saw this directly. No one had been able to stop him though he was the wickedest person. Now everyone was happy. They exclaimed with disrespect for the death of a huge demons. tato hāhā-kṛtaṁ sarvam āsīt tad-raṅga-maṇḍalam avajñayā hataṁ dṛṣṭvā kṛṣṇena mathureśvaram Then the entire arena became filled with cries of astonishment as the people saw that the master of Mathurā had been contemptuously killed by Kṛṣṇa. Viṣṇu Purāṇa Śukadeva, full of joy, called out to Parīkṣit when he saw that he was also joyous. Or since you are king you can understand this nature in people.