The Disappearance of the Yadu Dynasty

In the Thirtieth Chapter, the Lord has the devatā portions of the Yadus go the Prabhāsa, withdraws them from the world and sends them to Svarga, while he, in his expansion, went to Vaikuṇṭha.

When his dynasty was destroyed, how did the Lord give up his body which was most dear for all, even for Śiva? It is heard that some sages maintain that the Lord actually gave up his body. How is that possible? This is not possible at all, since it is impossible that the Lord could give up a body which is eternity, knowledge and bliss. How can a true brāhmaṇa give up his position of being a brāhmaṇa? It is not possible. Sa-viśeṣaṇe vidhi-niṣedhau viśesaṇam upasaṁkrāmataḥ sati viśeṣye bādhe: statements of affirmation and denial change the meaning of their particular descriptive elements if there is a contradiction to the principal subject. (Nyāya-vartika-tātparya by Vacaspati Miśra) In this sentence, it states that the Lord gave up a body which was dear to him. That means he gave up his dynasty manifested on earth.1 Another example is as follows. “A traveler gave up a gold pot full of water.” This means that the traveler poured the water out of the pot, because of fatigue due to the weight, and carried the empty gold pot.

This verse shows that he could not give up his body. The eternal wives like Rukminī could not withdraw their eyes which were attached to his form. That form entered the ears of the ātmārāma sages like you through their ears and remained there like a picture, and would not go away. The beauty of that form described by poets like Vyāsa produced special joy in their words. Seeing that form on Arjuna’s chariot in battle, the soldiers attained sāyujya. That body was directly Brahman, beyond the guṇas. By seeing a material form one cannot attain sāyujya. The personified Vedas say:

nibhṛta-marun-mano-’kṣa-dṛòha-yoga-yujo hṛdi yan

munaya upāsate tad arayo ’pi yayuḥ smaraṇāt

Simply by constantly thinking of him, the enemies of the Lord attained the same Supreme Truth whom sages fixed in yoga worship by controlling their breath, mind and senses. SB 10.87.23

Nor would ātmārāmas remain attached to a material form. Nor would the Lord’s eternal wives such as Lakṣmī, hlādinī-śaktis, be attached to a material form. Therefore, sages who describe that the Lord gave up his body are bewildered by the Lord’s māyā.

Internally the Lord thought as follows. Among all the persons who came to meet me from various places during the trip to Kurukṣetra, Kali came unnoticed by others and spoke to me. “O master! When will I take charge of the earth?” I said, “You can take charge only when my pastimes are over.” After I disappear, with the right given by me, Kali will pervade the earth. However, during my present appearance, dharma has increased to four legs, even greater than in Satya-yuga. If dharma is so strong, how can Kali rule? The rule is that Kali will rule when there is only one leg of dharma remaining. One should not say that when I disappear then the four legs of dharma will also disappear, on the logic of nimittāpāye naimittikasyāpy apāyaḥ: when the cause disappears, the effects disappear, since the devatās of great fame, purifiers of the whole world, remain alert. Moreover I have destroyed the unfavorable among the population of favorable, unfavorable and neutral parties. Now, if I ascend to Vaikuṇṭha with all the inhabitants of my abode, in sight of all persons, as Rāma did, the favorable devotees will double in number. Those who are already intensely favorable will increase their prema a hundredfold out of great longing in prema and those who are neutral will become devotees on seeing this extraordinary event. Dharma will thus increase. How will even a little influence of Kali be possible? By what method will I increase adharma in order to restrict dharma?

Here is the method. I will remain as I do now in Dvārakā with the Yadus who are my associates in pastimes, but will become invisible to the eyes of all material people. The devatās who are vibhūtis, such as Cupid and Kārtikeya, have entered into my eternal associates like Pradyumna and others. By my power of yoga I will withdraw them from those bodies, without others noticing. Making some fake forms for the eyes of ordinary people, which appear to be Pradyumna and others, I will have them go to Prabhāsa, with the other inhabitants of Dvārakā, and have them drink wine after meditating and giving charity, and send them to Svarga according to their individual qualification as devotees. I (in another form) will depart for Vaikuṇṭha with the other inhabitants of Dvārakā, as Rāma did. (The root forms of Kṛṣṇa and his associates remained in Dvārakā invisibly.) But I will let the common people see the influence of māyā. They will think that the Yadus left Dvārakā, went to Prabhāsa with all the Yadu dynasty, and under the control of the brāhmaṇas’ curse, drank wine and gave up their bodies after killing each other. They will think the Lord along with Balarāma, giving up a human body, ascended to the spiritual abode. Thus they will say that my body was temporary, made of matter. Thinking I have a material body is a great offense. I have said avajānanti māṁ mūòhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam: the fools deride me, thinking I have a material human form. (BG 9.11) I have describd the result:

moghāśā mogha-karmāṇo mogha-jñānā vicetasaḥ |

rākṣasīm āsurīṁ caiva prakṛtiṁ mohinīṁ śritāḥ ||

Among those who cannot distinguish this truth, those who are devotees do not gain sālokya, those who are karmīs do not attain their material fruits, and those who are jñānīs do not attain liberation. They assume the nature of Rākṣasas and asuras. BG 9.12

If the devotees think in this way, their desire to attain me will be futile. If the karmīs think in this way, they cannot attain Svarga. If the jñānīs think in this way, they cannot attain liberation. They become Rākṣasas. Some will think that Supreme Lord has a temporary body because of seeing that all others have temporary bodies. Some bodies live a long time and others a short time. Others will claim that just as Kurus all died, Kṛṣna died with his family at Prabhāsa. By people’s hearing, speaking and praising such preaching of wrong ideas by idiots who think they are learned, immediately one leg of dharma only will remain.

Just as eyes afflicted with jaundice see a shining white conch to be yellow, people whose minds and eyes are afflicted by māyā will see my departure pastimes, which are actually eternity, knowledge and bliss, to be afflicted by material misfortune. They will see and conclude that I gave up my body along with all asociates like Pradyumna and that the queens like Rukmiṇī were burned in the funeral fire. Not only the materialists will see this. Even persons like Arjuna will see this by my divine will. Sages like Vaiśampāyana and Parāśara will describe this in their works. And Śiva, my devotee, taking birth in Kali-yuga, will preach this in a commentary of the Vedānta-sūtras in order to spread Kali’s influence. Persons with no intelligence, repeatedly studying the sūtras, will explain the meaning according that commentary. Sūkṣmo yaḥ kāraṇopādhir māyākhye ’neka-śaktimān sa eva bhagavad-dehaḥ: the body of the Lord, possessing unlimited powers, is a subtle covering of māyā on Brahman. Thinking in this way, with the idea of producing great disturbance, the Lord spoke this verse, expressing fear and agitation.

Is there any fear of the Lord being cruel in this plan? For those other than devotees, at the time of ripening of their bad karmas, their unfortunate path would manifest anyway. The will of the Lord alone is the cause of the good or bad karmas manifesting. Otherwise one could also accuse Buddha of being cruel (by telling people to reject the Vedas). The Lord spoke the truth about his pastimes to Uddhava in order to dispell doubt for the devotees’ worship. Uddava said:

ity āvedita-hārdāya mahyaṁ sa bhagavān paraḥ

ādideśāravindākṣa ātmanaḥ paramāṁ sthitim

When I asked the lotus-eyed Lord what I desired in my heart, he explained to me his supreme decision. SB 3.4.19

Sthitim means “the decision of the Lord,” concerning the arrangement of his pastimes and the eternal residents of Dvārakā. Uddhava also explains the disappearance pastime of the Lord:

pradarśyātapta-tapasām avitṛpta-dṛśāṁ nṛṇām

ādāyāntaradhād yas tu sva-bimbaṁ loka-locanam

The Lord, having shown his form, the center of attraction for all eyes, then took that form and disappeared from the men, who had not performed austerities but had attained the Lord’s mercy, and were continually craving a vision of his form. SB 3.2.11

The Lord took that form which was attractive to all eyes and disappeared. Another meaning cannot be given to the word bimbam, because in later verses this refers to the Lord’s body.

yan martya-līlaupayikaṁ sva-yoga-

māyā-balaṁ darśayatā gṛhītam

vismāpanaṁ svasya ca saubhagarddheḥ

paraṁ padaṁ bhūṣaṇa-bhūṣaṇāḍgam

Kṛṣṇa possesses that form suitable for human pastimes to show the full capacity of his yoga-māyā. That form astonishes even the Lord of Vaikuṇṭha. It is the pinnacle of auspicious qualities and enhances the beauty of his ornaments. SB 3.2.12

yad dharma-sūnor bata rājasūye

nirīkṣya dṛk-svastyayanaṁ tri-lokaḥ

kārtsnyena cādyeha gataṁ vidhātur

arvāk-sṛtau kauśalam ity amanyata

At the rājasūya sacrifice of Yudhiṣṭhira, all the people of the universe, seeing the form of the Lord which created auspiciousness in all directions, considered that the skill of the creator in making the most beautiful objects in the recent universe was nullified completely at that time. SB 3.2.13

Kṛṣṇa’s disappearance is compared to the sun, which sets but does not get destroyed. Kṛṣṇa-dyumaṇi nimloce: Kṛṣṇa has disappeared like the sun. (SB 3.2.5) However, eyes covered by māyā will take shelter of wrong philosophy. Uddhava says:

devasya māyayā spṛṣṭā ye cānyad asad-āśritāḥ

bhrāmyate dhīr na tad-vākyair ātmany uptātmano harau

The intelligence of the devotee who is absorbed in Paramātmā is not bewildered by the words of those touched by the Lord’s māyā or those who take shelter of a demonic mentality. SB 3.2.10

Those whose eyes are affected by māyā, who are materialistic, who take shelter of the philosophy of material karma, will say that Kṛṣṇa gave up his body. One’s intelligence should not be bewildered by their words such as “Kṛṣṇa simply obtained the results of his irreligious acts.” Whose intelligence should not be affected? The intelligence of the devotee, whose mind is absorbed (uptātmanaḥ) in the Lord (ātmani), should not be bewildered.

Here is the evidence showing that the Lord’s form, names, abodes, qualities, pastimes associates are all eternal.

govindaḥ sac-dic-ānanda-vigragaḥ pañca-padaṁ vṛnòāvana-sura-bhūruha-talāsīnaḥ satataṁ sa-marud-gaṇo’ haṁ paramayā stutyā tosayāmi

I satisfy with praises, along with the Maruts, Govinda, a form of eternity, knowledge and bliss, five feet tall, seated at the base of desire tree in Vṛndāvana. Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad 1.33

vāsudevaḥ saḍkarṣaṇaḥ pradyumno’niruddho’haṁ matsyaḥ kūrmo varāho narasiṁho vāmano rāmo rāmo rāmaḥ kṛṣṇo buddhaḥ kalkir ahaṁ śatadhāhaṁ sahasradhāham amito’ham ananto’ham | naivaite jāyante, naivaite mriyante, naiṣām ajñāna-baddho na muktiḥ, sarva eva hy ete pūrṇā ajarā amṛtāḥ paramāḥ paramānandāḥ

I am unlimited, immeasureable by a hundred, by a thousand times, in the forms of Vāsudeva, Saḍkarṣaṇa, Pradyumna, Aniruddha, Mtsya, Kūrma, Varāha, Narasiṁha, Vāmana, Rāma, Paraśurāma, Balarāma, Kṛṣṇa, Buddha and Kalki. These forms are not born and do not die. They do not become bound by ignorance or become liberated. They are all perfect, ageless, deathless, full of supreme bliss. Catur-veda-śikhā

nirdoṣa-pūrṇa-guṇa-vigraha ātma-tantro

niścetanātmaka-śarīrra-guṇaiś ca hīnaḥ |

ānanda-mātra-mukha-pāda-saroruhādiḥ

The Lord’s form is faultess and full of perfect qualities. It is independent, devoid of qualities of the material, unconscious bodies. His head, lotus feet and other limbs are all full of bliss. Dhyāna-bindu Upaniṣad.

nanda-vraja-janānandī sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ

Kṛṣṇa’s form is eternity, knowledge and bliss, and gives bliss to the inhabitants of Vṛndāvana. Brahmāṇòa Purāṇa

sarve nityāḥ śāśvatāś ca dehās tasya parātmanaḥ |

hānopādāna-rahitā naiva prakṛtijāḥ kvacit ||

The Lord’s bodies are all eternal, devoid of destructible elements. They do not arise from matter. Mahā-vārāha Purāṇa

yuge yuge viṣṇur anādi-mūrtiṁ āsthāya śiṣṭaṁ paripāti duṣṭahā

Situated in his beginningless form in every yuga, Viṣṇu protects the devotees and kills the demons. Narasiṁha Purāṇa

yo vetti bhautikaṁ dehaṁ kṛṣṇasya paramātmanaḥ |

sa sarvasmād bahiṣkāryaḥ śrauta-smārta-vidhānataḥ |

mukhaṁ tasyāvalokyāpi sa-celaḥ snānam ācaret ||

He who thinks thaqt the body of Kṛṣna is material should be excluded from all rites according the Vedas and Smṛtis. If one sees his face one should bathe with one’s clothes one. Viṣṇu Purāṇa

na bhūta-saḍga-saṁsthāno doho’sya paramātmanaḥ

The Supreme Lord has no faults arising from contact with material elements.

Mahā-bhārata

amṛtāṁśo’mṛta-vapuḥ

The Lord’s body is immortal, made of nectar. Mahābhārata

Śāḍkārācarya in his famous commentary says that this means “he who has a body without death.” The following verses are proof from the Bhāgavatam:

tāvat prasanno Bhagavān puṣkarākṣaḥ kṛte yuge

darśayām āsa taṁ kṣattaḥ śābdaṁ brahma dadhad vapuḥ

O Vidura! The lotus eyed Lord, having a body made of eternity knowledge and bliss, pleased with Kardama, showed him his form in Satya-yuga. SB 3.21.7

yat tad vapur bhāti vibhūṣaṇāyudhair

avyakta-cid-vyaktam adhārayad dhariḥ

babhūva tenaiva sa vāmano vaṭuḥ

sampaśyator divya-gatir yathā naṭaḥ

The Lord whose body is eternally endowed with ornaments and weapons, which is invisible to the word and with spiritual form, became visible. Then, in the presence of parents, to please them, the Lord, like an actor whose actions are hard to understand, became Vāmana, a brāhmaṇa-dwarf, a brahmacārī. SB 8.18.12

taṁ matvātmajam avyaktaṁ martya-liḍgam adhokṣajam

gopikolūkhale dāmnā babandha prākṛtaṁ yathā

That unmanifested person, who is beyond the perception of the senses, had now appeared as a human child, and mother Yaśodā, considering him her own ordinary child, bound Him to the wooden mortar with a rope. SB 10.9.4

satya-jñānānantānanda-mātraika-rasa-mūrtayaḥ

aspṛṣṭa-bhūri-māhātmyā api hy upaniṣad-dṛśām

The forms of Viṣṇu all had eternal, unlimited forms, full of knowledge and bliss and existing beyond the influence of time. Their great glory was not even to be touched by the jñānīs engaged in studying the Upaniṣads. SB 10.13.54

asyāpi deva vapuṣo mad-anugrahasya

svecchā-mayasya na tu bhūta-mayasya ko ’pi

neśe mahi tv avasituṁ manasāntareṇa

sākṣāt tavaiva kim utātma-sukhānubhūteḥ

My dear Lord, neither I nor anyone else can estimate the potency of this transcendental body of yours, which has shown such mercy to me and which appears just to fulfil the desires of your pure devotees. Although my mind is completely withdrawn from material affairs, I cannot understand your personal form. How, then, could I possibly understand the happiness you experience within yourself? SB 10.14.2

tasmād idaṁ jagad aśeṣam asat-svarūpaṁ

svapnābham asta-dhiṣaṇaṁ puru-duḥkha-duḥkham

tvayy eva nitya-sukha-bodha-tanāv anante

māyāta udyad api yat sad ivāvabhāti

Therefore this entire universe, which like a dream is by nature unreal, nevertheless appears real, and thus it covers one’s consciousness and assails one with repeated miseries. This universe appears real because it is manifested by the potency of illusion emanating from you, whose unlimited transcendental forms are full of eternal happiness and knowledge. SB 10.14.22

The śruti also says the name of the Lord is eternal. om āsya jānanto nāma cid vivaktana: You who know the name of the Lord is spiritual should chant it. (Ṛg Veda 1.156.3)

The present tense in the following verse indicates the names are eternal.

bahūni santi nāmāni rūpāṇi ca sutasya te

guṇa-karmānurūpāṇi tāny ahaṁ veda no janāḥ

For this son of yours there are many forms and names according to his transcendental qualities and activities. These are known to me, but people in general do not understand them. SB 10.8.15

anāma-rūpa evāyaṁ bhagavān harir īśvaraḥ |

akarteti ca yo vedaiḥ smṛtibhiś cābhidhīyate ||

The Lord is said to be without material name, form and action according to the Vedas and Smṛti scriptures. Padma Purāṇa

The statement in Vāsudevadhyātma summarizes the meaning:

aprasiddhes tad-guṇānām anāmāsau prakīrtitaḥ |

aprākṛtatvād arūpasyāpy arūpo’sāv udīryate ||

sambandhena pradhānasya harer nāsty eva kartṛtā |

akartāram ataḥ prāhuḥ purāṇaṁ taṁ purāvidaḥ ||

Because his qualites are extraordinary the Lord is said to be without name. Because he does not hava material form he is said to be without form. Because he has no relation to matter, the Lord, the doer, the ancient sages say he is without actions.

Upāsakānāṁ siddhy-arthaṁ brahmaṇo rūpa-kalpanā means that the deity forms of the Lord are for the purpose of worshippers perfecting their worship. Those forms may be made of stone, wood, or metal in the form of Rāma, Kṛṣṇa or others. (It does not mean the spiritual forms are assumed by Brahman only for worshippers.)

The abodes of the Lord are eternal. tāsāṁ madhye sākṣād brahma gopāla-purī hi: among the places, the village of Gopāla is directly brahman. (Gopāla-tāpanī Upaniṣad) Nityaṁ me mathurāṁ viddhi purīṁ dvāravatīṁ tathā: know that my abodes of Mathurā and Dvārakā are eternal. (Padma Purāṇa). Sometimes the phrase vanaṁ vṛndāvanaṁ tathā replaces Dvārakā in the last quotation.

The Lord’s pastimes are eternal. Eko devo nitya-līlānurakto bhakta-vyāpī bhakta-hṛdy antarātmā: the oneLord, absorbed in his eternal pastimes, pervades the devotee and resides in the heart of the devotee. (Puruṣa-bodhinī Śruti) The present tense in the next verse indicate the eternal natrure of the pastimes:

jayati jana-nivāso devakī-janma-vādo

yadu-vara-pariṣat svair dorbhir asyann adharmam

sthira-cara-vṛjina-ghnaḥ su-smita-śrī-mukhena

vraja-pura-vanitānāṁ vardhayan kāma-devam

Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa lives eternally among the cowherd men and the Yādavas, and is conclusively both the son of Devakī and Yaśodā. He is the guide of the Yadu dynasty and the cowherd men, and with His mighty arms He kills everything inauspicious, in Vraja, Mathurā and Dvārakā. By His presence He destroys all things inauspicious for all living entities, moving and inert, and the suffering of separation of the inhabitants of Vraja and Dvārakā. His blissful smiling face always increases the desires of the gopīs of Vṛndāvana and women of Mathurā and Dvārakā. He remains eternally in this situation. SB 10.90.48

kāmaṁ krodhaṁ bhayaṁ sneham aikyaṁ sauhṛdam eva ca

nityaṁ harau vidadhato yānti tan-mayatāṁ hi te

Persons who constantly direct their lust, anger, fear, protective affection, feeling of impersonal oneness, or friendship toward Lord Hari are sure to become absorbed in thought of him. SB 10.29.15

The associates in the pastimes are eternal:

yathā saumitri-bharatau yathā saḍkarṣaṇādayaḥ |

tathā tenaiva jāyante nija-lokād yadṛcchayā ||

ete hi yādavāḥ sarve mad-gaṇā eva bhāvini |

sarvathā mat-priyā devi mat-tulya-guṇa-śālinaḥ ||

Just like Lakṣmana and Bharata, and Saḍkarṣaṇa, the Yādvas appear in this world by comeing from their spiritual planets by their will. All the Yādavas, me associates, are dear to me and equal to me in qualities. Padma Purāṇa, Uttara-khaṇòa 229.57-58

nityāvatāro bhagavān nitya-mūrtir jagat-patiḥ |

nitya-rūpo nitya-gandho nityaiśvarya-sukhānubhūḥ ||

The Supreme Lord, master of the univsers, has eternal forms, eternal avatāras, eternal fragrance, eternal power and eternal bliss. BṛhadViṣṇu Purāṇa2

Thus there can be no objection concerning the Lord. The phrase “flags of death” indicate death. We should not stay here a moment longer.

Praytak means “flowing to the west.”

Abhisicya means bathing.

Bhavaḥ means auspiciousness.

The sandhi in śreyopabṛṁhitam is poetic license.

Maireyakam is a type of liquor. From this verse till verse 26 the opinions of others, which are not the actual truth, are expressed. The Lord has said:

vayaṁ ca tasminn āplutya tarpayitvā pitèn surān

bhojayitvoṣijo viprān nānā-guṇavatāndhasā

teṣu dānāni pātreṣu śraddhayoptvā mahānti vai

vṛjināni tariṣyāmo dānair naubhir ivārṇavam

By bathing at Prabhāsa-kṣetra, by offering tarpanas to the Pitṛs and devatās, by feeding the worshipable brāhmaṇas with various delicious foodstuffs and by bestowing gifts upon them as the most suitable candidates for charity, like sowing seeds, we will certainly cross over these terrible dangers through such acts of charity, just as one can cross over a great ocean in a suitable boat. SB 11.6.37-38

Thus the devatās, on the strength of the Lord’s words, overcame the curse of the brāhmaṇas by giving charity. Drinking wine, they disappeared and ascended to Svarga. The Lord’s version of events starts in verse 27. Previously the Lord said:

madhv-āmadātāmra-vilocanānām

mitho yadaiṣāṁ bhavitā vivādo

naiṣāṁ vadhopāya iyān ato ’nyo

mayy udyate ’ntardadhate svayaṁ sma

When they will quarrel among themselves, with eyes red because of complete intoxication from liquor, they actually will not die. The cause of their disappearance is otherwise. Only when I decide that they disappear, they will disappear spontaneously. SB 3.3.15

The meaning of the above verse is this. When the quarrel will arise, it is not a method of killing them. That quarrel among them cannot be a cause of their death. Even beating each other with handfuls of reeds will not kill them. The quarrel and the killing seen by ordinary people are not actual. “What was the cause of their destruction?” It is other than killing. What is it? When I desire, they will simply disappear. That is certain (sma).

They became bewildered by Kṛṣṇa’s māyā. “Who is this? Did we do that?” Such is the bewilderment. Saḍgharṣaḥ means an intense quarrel.

One Gada was Kṛṣṇa’s brother. The other Gada was Kṛṣna’s son.

They became blinded by the intoxication.. Or andhakāra can be combined with the suffix itaḥ to form andhakaritaḥ, “produced in darkness,” similar to words like tāritaḥ, “produced with stars.”

Jahruḥ should be jagṛhuḥ.

Holding the reeds which became like iron clubs they attacked each other and attacked Kṛṣṇa.

They began to get angry (udyamya). They took fistfuls of reed as well.

He gave up the earth planet or gave up the human body (lokaṁ mānuṣyam).

From here, the Lord’s version starts. Seeing Balarāma return in his svarūpa to Mahā-vaikuṇṭha, and his aṁśa go beneath Pātāla as Śeṣa, Kṛṣṇa sat under a pippala tree.

sundara-smita-vaktrābjaṁ

nīla-kuntala-maṇòitam

puṇòarīkābhirāmākṣaṁ

sphuran makara-kuṇòalam

kaṭi-sūtra-brahma-sūtra-

kirīṭa-kaṭakāḍgadaiḥ

hāra-nūpura-mudrābhiḥ

kaustubhena virājitam

vana-mālā-parītāḍgaṁ

mūrtimadbhir nijāyudhaiḥ

kṛtvorau dakṣiṇe pādam

āsīnaṁ paḍkajāruṇam

His ornaments gave off a golden glow.

He pierced his foot. This means that the hunter Jarā thought that he had shot a deer. Actually his arrow only touched Kṛṣṇa’s foot but did not pierce it, since the Lord’s limbs are eternity, knowledge and bliss. Otherwise when the hunter in fear placed his head on the Lord’s foot, as explained in the next verse, he would have taken out the arrow.

His sin was that he had fired an arrow at the Lord.

You should forgive my sin. You are sinless. No sin can exist at your feet. Thus you are qualified to forgive my sin.

“Fortunately, I have no pain in my foot. But you, with intention of violence, shot the arrow.” In response, the hunter speaks this verse. Therefore, please kill me immediately.

The following description was previously given:

teṣāṁ maireya-doṣeṇa viṣamīkṛta-cetasām

nimlocati ravāv āsīd veṇūnām iva mardanam

As the sun was setting, with consciousness distorted by intoxication of liquor, they destroyed each other, just as bamboos by mutual friction start a fire and destroy the whole forest.

bhagavān svātma-māyāyā gatiṁ tām avalokya saḥ

sarasvatīm upaspṛśya vṛkṣa-mūlam upāviśat

Seeing this action of his māyā, Kṛṣṇa, sipping the water of the Sarasvatī River, sat down under a tree. SB 3.4.2-3

According to the Third Canto, when the sun was setting and the Yadus had killed each other in battle, the Lord sat down on the bank of the Sarasvatī River. Then the hunter approached to kill a deer. But this is not possible. If 560,000,000 Yadus were suddenly killed in battle at that place, there would be a river of blood and great confusion of noise. How would it be possible for the hunter to arrive there to kill a deer? How would a deer, fearful in nature, remain in that place? Therefore this killing of the Yadus was actually false. However, the Lord made Arjuna and others believe it, in order to increase the prema in karunā-rasa of his devotees like Yudhiṣṭhira and to make them give up this world. And for others, he did this to increase the wrong philosophy so that dharma would be stifled. Actually, after the devatās had drunk wine and disappeared, the hunter came to that place which was without sound and people. (The battle was an illusion.)

Girāṁ patayaḥ means the seers of the Vedas. Even they do not know about this, which is produced by your māyā. How can I, of low birth, say immediately what has happened?

This is my desire. I had to accept the curse of the brāhmaṇa. It was my desire. Go to the spiritual (svargam) place of those with the best actions, my devotees. Go to Vaikuṇṭha. Sukṛtinām means “of those possessing good act,” to praise the hunter.

Icchā-śarīriṇā means “by the Lord who possesses the best body by his desire.”

Though the chariot was sent to Vaikuṇṭha, the charioteer was not sent to Vaikuṇṭha. This arrangement was made in order that Dāruka would inform others of the present situation, and that he, who had originally come from Vaikuṇṭha,3 would enter into the unmanifest pastimes in Dvārakā on seeing that in Dvārakā there was an increase in prema with all the eternal associates such as Uddhava. Dāruka should inform others of the Lord’s condition—that he would be performing unmanifest pastimes.

“What is the nature of this arrangement of disappearing, since you have a form which is eternity, knowledge and bliss? Be merciful and explain that to me.” This deceptive pastime was created by my māyā.

Thus ends the commentary on the Thirtieth Chapter of the Eleventh Canto of the Bhāgavatam for the pleasure of the devotees, in accordance with the previous ācāryas.