Bhagavatha Purana - Part VI
Krishna kills elephant and he leaves for Mathura.
Krishna leaves for Mathura and killing of the elephant!
All the efforts of King Kamsa to kill Krishna failed miserably. Hence he taught of a neat plan. In Mathura, where Kamsa lived and ruled, certain festivals are celebrated as national festivals. Many events were organized during such festival fare. There will be display of skill and strength by renowned boxers. First they will display their skill and the winner will challenge anyone among the crowd to come out and fight with them. Usually none would dare challenge such boxers since they had the patronage of the King who looked after their welfare and kept them in good conditon.
This time Kamsa engaged Akrura who is close to Nandagopa, the foster father of Krishna at Gokulam. Kamsa sent an invitation to Krishna and Balarama to come and participate in the grand festival. Kamsa taught that he can easily finish Krishna when he reaches Mathura by a multi pronged stratagy. He asked the "Mauth"(the elephant keeper) to ready a huge elephant to kill Krishna when he reaches the entrance of Mathura. Though the parents of Krishna never relished the idea of sending the brothers Krishna and Balarama, yet they could not disobey the king Kamsa. Hence they sent them to Mathura after great hesitation. But the cowmaids of Gokulam could never come to terms to part with Krishna, their darling angel. Hence when Akrura was driving the chariot away from Gokulam, they vociferously protested and tried to stop the chariot from proceeding to Mathura. Now Krishna had to intervene. He requested the cow maids not to obstruct him from going since he had a mission to fulfill. After long arguments, the cowmaids let the chariot proceed. Krishna reached the outskirts of Mathura after a long journey. He asked Akrura to let them get down at the gate so that they will be able to enjoy the beauty of the city. Both the brothers got down from the chariot and started walking towards the main gate.
On the way, Krishna saw a woman whose back was bent like an arch and she was walking towards the gate with difficulty. But she was a servant maid of the palace and she supplies perfumes and flowers to the inmates of the palace. She saw the brothers coming towards her and she was excited by the divine beauty of the boys. But she was ugly to look at with a hunch back. Krishna asked her to give some perfume and flower but she hesitated. Meanwhile Krishna pressed her feet with his feet and lifted her chin. In a moment her hunch back vanished and she was standing erect and she looked very beautiful. She could not believe her eyes. She gave a beautiful garland to adore Krishna and she thanked him from her heart. Krishna too was very happy to cure her. Then both the brothers were proceeding towards the main gate, There, the elephant keeper was ready with his elephant and he goaded it to proceed in the direction of Krishna and to crush him.
Both the brothers got scent of the approaching elephant and they were ready to meet it. When the elephant tried to lift Krishna from the ground he escaped effortlessly and caught hold of its tail. With great strength and determination, he rotated the big elephant with the help of the tail. Balarama caught hold of its huge tusks and broken it. The elephant was writhing in pain. Seizing this opportunity, they both lifted the animal and dashed it on the ground. The onlookers were frightened by the gory scene. After killing it, they were proceeding towards the palace grounds where boxing competition is about to commence. They were carrying the huge tusks of the elephant as victory sign. Kamsa came to know this and he was very furious. He commissioned the best boxers to kill Krishna and Balarama. They both reached the arena and all the people exclaimed about the valor of the brothers who killed the mighty elephant. Rest in next part.
