Srimad Bhagvata Mahapurana Book 11 Chapter 30:1-14

Book 11: Chapter 30

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Srimad Bhagvata Mahapurana: Book 11: Chapter 30: Verses 1-14

The king (Pariksit) submitted : Uddhava, a great devotee of the Lord, having proceeded to the woodland (of Badarikasrama), what did the Lord, the father of (all) created beings, do next in Dwaraka ? His (own) race having been wiped out through the curse of Brahmanas, how did Sri Krsna (the foremost of the Yadus) cast off His body, the most beloved of the eyes of all, from which ladies could not withdraw their eyes (once) riveted on it; which, having (once) entered the ears of the virtuous and (then) clung to their mind (through the passage of the ears), never departs from it; whose splendour (when glorified by poets) gives a delightful character to their speech and what goes without saying, brings honour to them, and looking on which, (when) seated in the car of (the all-victorious) Arjuna, warriors (who fell in battle) attained similarity to it ! The sage (Sri Suka) replied : Seeing evil portents of a grave nature manifest in the heavens and on earth as well as in the air, Sri Krsna spoke thus to the Yadus sitting (together) in (the assembly hall known by the name of) Sudharma. "These grave portents of a terrible nature appearing in Dwaraka are indications of a holocaust. We should not (therefore) stay here even for an hour, 0 leaders of the Yadus Let the womenfolk, infants and aged men move from this place to (the sacred spot called) Sankhoddhara, while we shall proceed to Prabhasa, where the river Saraswati flows towards the west (and joins the sea). Having bathed in that river and (thus) purified, and remaining without food, we shall (all) worship the (images of) gods with a fully concentrated mind by bathing them, daubing them with sandal-paste and offering (other) articles of worship. Having been blessed (by the Brahmanas) through the recitation of benedictory Mantras (sacred texts) and offering of flowers etc., we shall also honour the highly blessed Brahmanas by gifting them cows, lands, gold and raiments as well as elephants, horses, chariots and dwellings. That is the surest way of dispersing evil and the best means of securing happiness. Worship of gods, the Brahmanas and cows brings supreme exaltation to men." Attentively hearing this speech of Sri Krsna (the enemy of the demon Madhu) and saying "Amen !", the elderly among the Yadus all proceeded to Prabhasa in chariots after crossing the sea by means of barks. There the scions of Yadu performed with supreme Devotion whatever was enjoined by the Lord alongwith all (other) means of ensuring prosperity. Then, their judgment having been vitiated by (an evil) destiny, they drank there a highly intoxicating and delicious drink known by the name of Maireyaka, by the filtrates of which the intellect is perverted. There ensued a very bitter clash between the heroes, who were (all) proud at heart and were hard drunk with the strong beverage and were (further) deluded by the enchanting potency of Sri Krsna. Inflamed with anger and equipped with arms they contended (with one another) on the seashore by means of bows, swords, spears, maces, bludgeons and lances.

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