Devanagari
अहो बकी यं स्तनकालकूटं
जिघांसयापाययदप्यसाध्वी ।
लेभे गतिं धात्र्युचितां ततोऽन्यं
कं वा दयालुं शरणं व्रजेम ॥ २३ ॥
Verse text
aho bakī yaṁ stana-kāla-kūṭaṁ
jighāṁsayāpāyayad apy asādhvī
lebhe gatiṁ dhātry-ucitāṁ tato ’nyaṁ
kaṁ vā dayāluṁ śaraṇaṁ vrajema
Synonyms
aho
—
alas
;
bakī
—
the she-demon (Pūtanā)
;
yam
—
whom
;
stana
—
of her breast
;
kāla
—
deadly
;
kūṭam
—
poison
;
jighāṁsayā
—
out of envy
;
apāyayat
—
nourished
;
api
—
although
;
asādhvī
—
unfaithful
;
lebhe
—
achieved
;
gatim
—
destination
;
dhātrī
—
ucitām — just suitable for the nurse
;
tataḥ
—
beyond whom
;
anyam
—
other
;
kam
—
who else
;
vā
—
certainly
;
dayālum
—
merciful
;
śaraṇam
—
shelter
;
vrajema
—
shall I take .
Translation
Alas, how shall I take shelter of one more merciful than He who granted the position of mother to a she-demon [Pūtanā] although she was unfaithful and she prepared deadly poison to be sucked from her breast?
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Oh! Evil Pūtanā, who offered her poisonous breast to Kṛṣṇa to drink with the intention of killing him, attained the position of a nurse in the spiritual world. How else is so merciful? I surrender to him!
Remembering Kṛṣṇa’s sweet mercy to those who wanted to harm him when he first appeared in the world, Uddhava laments. Even though Pūtanā who pretended to have sentiments of a mother gave him poison to kill him, she attained a position in Goloka similar to the nurses of Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa has two real nurses named Ambikā and Kalimbā. Though Pūtanā only had the dress of a devotee, she attained love suitable to a devotee. Though she hated the Lord, he made her a special example. This incident shows Kṛṣṇa’s quality of giving liberation and bhakti to even those who hate him.
Purport
Here is an example of the extreme mercy of the Lord, even to His enemy. It is said that a noble man accepts the good qualities of a person of doubtful character, just as one accepts nectar from a stock of poison. In His babyhood, He was administered deadly poison by Pūtanā, a she-demon who tried to kill the wonderful baby. And because she was a demon, it was impossible for her to know that the Supreme Lord, even though playing the part of a baby, was no one less than the same Supreme Personality of Godhead. His value as the Supreme Lord did not diminish upon His becoming a baby to please His devotee Yaśodā. The Lord may assume the form of a baby or a shape other than that of a human being, but it doesn’t make the slightest difference; He is always the same Supreme. A living creature, however powerful he may become by dint of severe penance, can never become equal to the Supreme Lord.
Lord Kṛṣṇa accepted the motherhood of Pūtanā because she pretended to be an affectionate mother, allowing Kṛṣṇa to suck her breast. The Lord accepts the least qualification of the living entity and awards him the highest reward. That is the standard of His character. Therefore, who but the Lord can be the ultimate shelter?