राम

Harivaṃśa-parva

Harivaṃśa · Adhyāya 29

40 versesThe Syamantaka Jewel

Synopsis

The narrative of the gem. The Syamantaka, given by Kṛṣṇa to Satrājit, comes into the hands of Babhru and Śatadhanvan the Bhoja. Akrūra, seeking an opening against Satyabhāmā, longs for the jewel. Śatadhanvan is killed by Balarāma; the jewel, however, is not found on him. When Balarāma returns, he asks Kṛṣṇa for the jewel. The chapter closes with Akrūra, son of Gāndinī, finally receiving the jewel from Kṛṣṇa's own hand and shining "like the sun himself."

First-pass synopsis; pending review by a Sanskritist.

Verse 1

यत् तत् सत्राजिते कृष्णो मणिरत्नं स्यमन्तकम् अदात् तद् धारयद् बभ्रुर् भोजेन शतधन्वना

yat tat satrājite kṛṣṇo maṇiratnaṃ syamantakam adāt tad dhārayad babhrur bhojena śatadhanvanā

The Syamantaka gem-jewel which Kṛṣṇa gave to Satrājit — that was held by Babhru and by Śatadhanvan the Bhoja.

Verse 2

सदा हि प्रार्थयाम् आस सत्यभामाम् अनिन्दिताम् अक्रूरो ऽन्तरम् अन्विच्छन् मणिं चैव स्यमन्तकम्

sadā hi prārthayām āsa satyabhāmām aninditām akrūro 'ntaram anvicchan maṇiṃ caiva syamantakam

Verse 3

सत्राजितं ततो हत्वा शतधन्वा महाबलः रात्रौ तं मणिम् आदाय ततो ऽक्रूराय दत्तवान्

satrājitaṃ tato hatvā śatadhanvā mahābalaḥ rātrau taṃ maṇim ādāya tato 'krūrāya dattavān

Verse 4

अक्रूरस् तु तदा रत्नम् आदाय भरतर्षभ समयं कारयां चक्रे नावेद्यो ऽहं त्वयाच्युते

akrūras tu tadā ratnam ādāya bharatarṣabha samayaṃ kārayāṃ cakre nāvedyo 'haṃ tvayācyute

Verse 5

वयम् अभ्युपपत्स्यामः कृष्णेन त्वां प्रधर्षितम् ममाद्य द्वारका सर्वा वशे तिष्ठत्य् असंशयम्

vayam abhyupapatsyāmaḥ kṛṣṇena tvāṃ pradharṣitam mamādya dvārakā sarvā vaśe tiṣṭhaty asaṃśayam

Verse 6

हते पितरे दुःखार्ता सत्यभामा यशस्विनी प्रययौ रथम् आरुह्य नगरं वारणावतम्

hate pitare duḥkhārtā satyabhāmā yaśasvinī prayayau ratham āruhya nagaraṃ vāraṇāvatam

Verse 7

सत्यभामा तु तद् वृत्तं भोजस्य शतधन्वनः भर्तुर् निवेद्य दुःखार्ता पार्श्वस्थाश्रूण्य् अवर्तयत्

satyabhāmā tu tad vṛttaṃ bhojasya śatadhanvanaḥ bhartur nivedya duḥkhārtā pārśvasthāśrūṇy avartayat

Verse 8

पाण्डवाणां तु दग्धानां हरिः कृत्वोदकं तदा कुल्यार्थे च स भ्रातॄणां न्ययोजयत सात्यकिम्

pāṇḍavāṇāṃ tu dagdhānāṃ hariḥ kṛtvodakaṃ tadā kulyārthe ca sa bhrātṝṇāṃ nyayojayata sātyakim

Verse 9

ततस् त्वरितम् आगम्य द्वारकां मधुसूदनः पूर्वजं हलिनं श्रीमान् इदं वचनम् अब्रवीत्

tatas tvaritam āgamya dvārakāṃ madhusūdanaḥ pūrvajaṃ halinaṃ śrīmān idaṃ vacanam abravīt

Verse 10

हतः प्रसेनः सिंहेन सत्राजिच् छतधन्वना स्यमन्तकः स मद्गामी तस्य प्रभुर् अहं विभो

hataḥ prasenaḥ siṃhena satrājic chatadhanvanā syamantakaḥ sa madgāmī tasya prabhur ahaṃ vibho

Verse 11

तदारोह रथं शीघ्रं भोजं हत्वा महाबलम् स्यमन्तको महाबाहो सह नौ स भविष्यति

tadāroha rathaṃ śīghraṃ bhojaṃ hatvā mahābalam syamantako mahābāho saha nau sa bhaviṣyati

Verse 12

ततो रथं समारुह्य रामकृष्णौ महाबलौ शतधन्वविनाशाय नगराद् वारणावताद् शतधन्वा ततो भीतो विज्ञायाच्युतम् आगतम् ततः प्रववृते युद्धं तुमुलं भोजकृष्णयोः शतधन्वा ततो ऽक्रूरम् अवैक्षत् सर्वतोदिशम्

tato rathaṃ samāruhya rāmakṛṣṇau mahābalau śatadhanvavināśāya nagarād vāraṇāvatād śatadhanvā tato bhīto vijñāyācyutam āgatam tataḥ pravavṛte yuddhaṃ tumulaṃ bhojakṛṣṇayoḥ śatadhanvā tato 'krūram avaikṣat sarvatodiśam

Verse 13

अनाप्तौ च वधार्हौ च कृत्वा भोजजनार्दनौ शक्तो ऽपि शाठ्याद् धार्दिक्यं नाक्रूरो ऽभ्युपपद्यत

anāptau ca vadhārhau ca kṛtvā bhojajanārdanau śakto 'pi śāṭhyād dhārdikyaṃ nākrūro 'bhyupapadyata

Verse 14

अपयाने ततो बुद्धिं भोजश् चक्रे भयार्दितः योजनानां शतं साग्रं हयया प्रत्यपद्यत

apayāne tato buddhiṃ bhojaś cakre bhayārditaḥ yojanānāṃ śataṃ sāgraṃ hayayā pratyapadyata

Verse 15

विख्याता हृदया नाम शतयोजनगामिनी भोजस्य वडवा राजन् यया कृष्णम् अयोधयत्

vikhyātā hṛdayā nāma śatayojanagāminī bhojasya vaḍavā rājan yayā kṛṣṇam ayodhayat

Verse 16

ततः क्रुद्धौ भोजकृष्णौ त्वरितौ तु महाबलौ वञ्चयित्वा ततः कृष्णं शतधन्वातिबुद्धिमान् पूर्वां दिशं जगामाशु हयया वातवेगया अथ द्रुतम् अगात् कृष्णो रथेन रथिनां वरः बलेन सहितो राजन् प्रययौ तस्य मार्गणे क्षीणां जवेन हृदयाम् अध्वनः शतयोजने दृष्ट्वा रथस्य स्वां वृद्धिं शतधन्वानम् आर्दयत्

tataḥ kruddhau bhojakṛṣṇau tvaritau tu mahābalau vañcayitvā tataḥ kṛṣṇaṃ śatadhanvātibuddhimān pūrvāṃ diśaṃ jagāmāśu hayayā vātavegayā atha drutam agāt kṛṣṇo rathena rathināṃ varaḥ balena sahito rājan prayayau tasya mārgaṇe kṣīṇāṃ javena hṛdayām adhvanaḥ śatayojane dṛṣṭvā rathasya svāṃ vṛddhiṃ śatadhanvānam ārdayat

Verse 17

ततस् तस्या हयायास् तु श्रमात् खेदाच् च भारत खम् उत्पेतुर् अथ प्राणाः कृष्णो रामम् अथाब्रवीत्

tatas tasyā hayāyās tu śramāt khedāc ca bhārata kham utpetur atha prāṇāḥ kṛṣṇo rāmam athābravīt

Verse 18

तिष्ठस्वेह महाबाहो दृष्टदोषा हया मया पद्भ्यां गत्वा हरिष्यामि मणिरत्नं स्यमन्तकम्

tiṣṭhasveha mahābāho dṛṣṭadoṣā hayā mayā padbhyāṃ gatvā hariṣyāmi maṇiratnaṃ syamantakam

Verse 19

पद्भ्याम् एव ततो गत्वा शतधन्वानम् अच्युतः मिथिलाम् अभितो राजञ् जघान परमास्त्रवित्

padbhyām eva tato gatvā śatadhanvānam acyutaḥ mithilām abhito rājañ jaghāna paramāstravit

Verse 20

स्यमन्तकं च नापश्यद् धत्वा भोजं महाबलम् निवृत्तं चाब्रवीत् कृष्णं रत्नं देहीति लाङ्गली

syamantakaṃ ca nāpaśyad dhatvā bhojaṃ mahābalam nivṛttaṃ cābravīt kṛṣṇaṃ ratnaṃ dehīti lāṅgalī

Verse 21

नास्तीति कृष्णश् चोवाच ततो रामो रुषान्वितः धिक्शब्दपूर्वम् असकृत् प्रत्युवाच जनार्दनम्

nāstīti kṛṣṇaś covāca tato rāmo ruṣānvitaḥ dhikśabdapūrvam asakṛt pratyuvāca janārdanam

Verse 22

भ्रातृत्वान् मर्षयाम्य् एष स्वस्ति ते ऽस्तु व्रजाम्य् अहम् कृत्यं न मे द्वारकया न त्वया न च वृष्णिभिः

bhrātṛtvān marṣayāmy eṣa svasti te 'stu vrajāmy aham kṛtyaṃ na me dvārakayā na tvayā na ca vṛṣṇibhiḥ

Verse 23

प्रविवेश ततो रामो मिथिलाम् अरिमर्दनः सर्वकामैर् उपचितैर् मैथिलेनाभिपूजितः

praviveśa tato rāmo mithilām arimardanaḥ sarvakāmair upacitair maithilenābhipūjitaḥ

Verse 24

एतस्मिन्न् एव काले तु बभ्रुर् मतिमतां वरः नानारूपान् क्रतून् सर्वान् आजहार निरर्गलान्

etasminn eva kāle tu babhrur matimatāṃ varaḥ nānārūpān kratūn sarvān ājahāra nirargalān

Verse 25

दीक्षामयं स कवचं रक्षार्थं प्रविवेश ह स्यमन्तककृते प्राज्ञो गांदीपुत्रो महायशाः

dīkṣāmayaṃ sa kavacaṃ rakṣārthaṃ praviveśa ha syamantakakṛte prājño gāṃdīputro mahāyaśāḥ

Verse 26

अर्थान् रत्नानि चाग्र्याणि द्रव्याणि विविधानि च षष्टिं वर्षाणि धर्मात्मा यज्ञेषु विनियोजयत्

arthān ratnāni cāgryāṇi dravyāṇi vividhāni ca ṣaṣṭiṃ varṣāṇi dharmātmā yajñeṣu viniyojayat

Verse 27

अक्रूरयज्ञा इति ते ख्यातास् तस्य महात्मनः बह्वन्नदक्षिणाः सर्वे सर्वकामप्रदायिनः

akrūrayajñā iti te khyātās tasya mahātmanaḥ bahvannadakṣiṇāḥ sarve sarvakāmapradāyinaḥ

Verse 28

अथ दुर्योधनो राजा गत्वा स मिथिलां प्रभुः गदाशिक्षां ततो दिव्यां बलभद्राद् अवाप्तवान्

atha duryodhano rājā gatvā sa mithilāṃ prabhuḥ gadāśikṣāṃ tato divyāṃ balabhadrād avāptavān

Verse 29

प्रसाद्य तु ततो रामो वृष्ण्यन्धकमहारथैः आनीतो द्वारकाम् एव कृष्णेन च महात्मना

prasādya tu tato rāmo vṛṣṇyandhakamahārathaiḥ ānīto dvārakām eva kṛṣṇena ca mahātmanā

Verse 30

अक्रूरस् त्व् अन्धकैः सार्धम् अपायाद् भरतर्षभ हत्वा सत्राजितं युद्धे सहबन्धुं महाबली

akrūras tv andhakaiḥ sārdham apāyād bharatarṣabha hatvā satrājitaṃ yuddhe sahabandhuṃ mahābalī

Verse 31

श्वफल्कतनयायां तु तारायां नरसत्तमौ भङ्गकारस्य तनयौ विश्रुतौ च महाबलौ जज्ञाते ऽन्धकमुख्यस्य शत्रुघ्नो बन्धुमांश् च तौ वरात् तु भङ्गकारस्य स कृष्णप्रतिमो ऽभवत् ज्ञातिभेदभयात् कृष्णस् तम् उपेक्षितवान् अथ अपयाते तदाक्रूरे नावर्षत् पाकशासनः

śvaphalkatanayāyāṃ tu tārāyāṃ narasattamau bhaṅgakārasya tanayau viśrutau ca mahābalau jajñāte 'ndhakamukhyasya śatrughno bandhumāṃś ca tau varāt tu bhaṅgakārasya sa kṛṣṇapratimo 'bhavat jñātibhedabhayāt kṛṣṇas tam upekṣitavān atha apayāte tadākrūre nāvarṣat pākaśāsanaḥ

Verse 32

अनावृष्ट्या तदा राष्ट्रम् अभवद् बहुधा कृशम् ततः प्रसादयाम् आसुर् अक्रूरं कुकुरान्धकाः

anāvṛṣṭyā tadā rāṣṭram abhavad bahudhā kṛśam tataḥ prasādayām āsur akrūraṃ kukurāndhakāḥ

Verse 33

पुनर् द्वारवतीं प्राप्ते तस्मिन् दानपतौ ततः प्रववर्ष सहस्राक्षः कच्छे जलनिधेस् तदा

punar dvāravatīṃ prāpte tasmin dānapatau tataḥ pravavarṣa sahasrākṣaḥ kacche jalanidhes tadā

Verse 34

कन्यां च वासुदेवाय स्वसारं शीलसंमताम् अक्रूरः प्रददौ धीमान् प्रीत्यर्थं कुरुनन्दन

kanyāṃ ca vāsudevāya svasāraṃ śīlasaṃmatām akrūraḥ pradadau dhīmān prītyarthaṃ kurunandana

Verse 35

अथ विज्ञाय योगेन कृष्णो बभ्रुगतं मणिम् सभामध्यगतं प्राह तम् अक्रूरं जनार्दनः

atha vijñāya yogena kṛṣṇo babhrugataṃ maṇim sabhāmadhyagataṃ prāha tam akrūraṃ janārdanaḥ

Verse 36

यत् तद् रत्नं मणिवरं तव हस्तगतं विभो तत् प्रयच्छस्व मानार्ह मयि मानार्यकं कृथाः

yat tad ratnaṃ maṇivaraṃ tava hastagataṃ vibho tat prayacchasva mānārha mayi mānāryakaṃ kṛthāḥ

Verse 37

षष्टिवर्षगते काले यद् रोषो ऽभूत् तदा मम स संरूढो ऽसकृत्प्राप्तस् ततः कालात्ययो महान्

ṣaṣṭivarṣagate kāle yad roṣo 'bhūt tadā mama sa saṃrūḍho 'sakṛtprāptas tataḥ kālātyayo mahān

Verse 38

ततः कृष्णस्य वचनात् सर्वसात्वतसंसदि प्रददौ तं मणिं बभ्रुर् अक्लेशेन महामतिः

tataḥ kṛṣṇasya vacanāt sarvasātvatasaṃsadi pradadau taṃ maṇiṃ babhrur akleśena mahāmatiḥ

Verse 39

ततस् तम् आर्यवत्प्राप्तं बभ्रोर् हस्ताद् अरिंदमः ददौ हृष्टमनाः कृष्णस् तं मणिं बभ्रवे पुनः

tatas tam āryavatprāptaṃ babhror hastād ariṃdamaḥ dadau hṛṣṭamanāḥ kṛṣṇas taṃ maṇiṃ babhrave punaḥ

Verse 40

स कृष्णहस्तात् संप्राप्य मणिरत्नं स्यमन्तकम् आबध्य गांदिनीपुत्रो विरराजांशुमान् इव

sa kṛṣṇahastāt saṃprāpya maṇiratnaṃ syamantakam ābadhya gāṃdinīputro virarājāṃśumān iva

Having obtained the gem-jewel Syamantaka from Kṛṣṇa's hand, binding it on, the son of Gāndinī shone like the sun.

Verse commentary

The Syamantaka Returned to Akrūra in the Assembly

स्यमन्तकमणेर् अक्रूरहस्ते प्रत्यर्पणम्

Verses 1, 8, 15, 20, 25, 35, 40: the chain of custody opening (Satrājit → Kṛṣṇa → Babhru via Bhoja-Śatadhanvā), Kṛṣṇa's funeral-offering for the Pāṇḍavas, the famous thousand-yojana mare Hṛdayā, Balarāma's suspicion and demand 'give the jewel', Akrūra's dīkṣā-armor concealment, Kṛṣṇa's yogic discernment and public call in the sabhā, and the jewel tied back on Akrūra who shines like the sun. Template commentary, pending Editorial Council review.

HV 29 continues the Syamantaka cycle immediately after Kṛṣṇa's public self-clearing in Chapter 28. Śatadhanvā, the Bhoja, murders Satrājit at night and takes the jewel; he passes it secretly to Akrūra before fleeing. Balarāma and Kṛṣṇa pursue on a swift chariot; Śatadhanvā mounts the famed mare *Hṛdayā* ('Heart') and is overtaken and killed. But the gem is nowhere on him. Balarāma, still carrying the residue of Chapter 28's earlier slander, now suspects his younger brother of keeping the jewel, and demands *ratnaṃ dehi* — 'give the gem'. Akrūra, meanwhile, has slipped away to Vārāṇasī wearing a *dīkṣā-kavaca*, an armor of ritual-vows meant to shield the concealment. Without him, Dvārakā suffers portents and drought. Kṛṣṇa, by yogic sight, *vijñāya yogena*, sees the jewel in Akrūra's keeping; he recalls Akrūra to the Yādava assembly and, in the full sabhā, returns the gem into Akrūra's own hand. Akrūra ties it on and shines *aṃśumān iva* — like the sun. The chapter teaches the companion-lesson to Chapter 28: public truth not only clears the innocent, it restores the exposed to their true carrying.

HV 29.1

यत् तत् सत्राजिते कृष्णो मणिरत्नं स्यमन्तकम् । अदात् तद् धारयद् बभ्रुर् भोजेन शतधन्वना ॥

yat tat satrājite kṛṣṇo maṇiratnaṃ syamantakam | adāt tad dhārayad babhrur bhojena śatadhanvanā

The jewel Syamantaka which Kṛṣṇa had given to Satrājit — that was now being held by Babhru [Akrūra], through the Bhoja Śatadhanvā.

The Living Words

*Yat tat satrājite kṛṣṇaḥ maṇiratnaṃ syamantakam adāt*, 'which Kṛṣṇa had given to Satrājit'. *Tat dhārayad babhruḥ*, 'that Babhru was holding'. *Bhojena śatadhanvanā*, 'through the Bhoja Śatadhanvā'.

The Heart of It

The opening verse names the whole chain: from Kṛṣṇa's hand to Satrājit, from Satrājit through Śatadhanvā to Babhru (Akrūra). A thing of great power is never still. The Varkari tradition reads this the way Jñāneśvar reads wealth in the Gītā-commentary: *lakṣmī* passes through hands, and only the Name stays with the one who calls it. *Nāma-smaraṇa ghaḍoni nivāṅṭaḥ* — the Haripāṭh's conviction that the only safe holding is holding-by-remembering. The Syamantaka will pass through three hands before the chapter ends. The Name would never need to leave.

HV 29.8

पाण्डवाणां तु दग्धानां हरिः कृत्वोदकं तदा । कुल्यार्थे च स भ्रातॄणां न्ययोजयत सात्यकिम् ॥

pāṇḍavāṇāṃ tu dagdhānāṃ hariḥ kṛtvodakaṃ tadā | kulyārthe ca sa bhrātṝṇāṃ nyayojayata sātyakim

And for the Pāṇḍavas thought burned-to-death, Hari poured the funeral-water then; and for His cousins' lineage-duty He appointed Sātyaki.

The Living Words

*Pāṇḍavāṇāṃ dagdhānām*, 'for the Pāṇḍavas burned'. *Hariḥ kṛtvodakaṃ*, 'Hari having poured water'. *Kulyārthe bhrātṝṇāṃ*, 'for the kula-duty of brothers'. *Nyayojayata sātyakim*, 'he appointed Sātyaki'.

The Heart of It

Even as the Syamantaka storm breaks over Dvārakā, Kṛṣṇa does not postpone kinship-rite. The supposed death of his cousins reaches him and he *immediately* performs the śrāddha-water, *kṛtvodakam*. Jñāneśvar's Warkari reading: the outer crisis does not defer the inner obligation. A man who forgets his funeral-duty to cousins in the middle of a crime-hunt has already lost the case, whatever the verdict. *Kulya* here means the lineage-debt that must be paid before anything else. The Haripāṭh's *nitya-naimittika* balance — the daily-and-duty-bound rites carried through every storm — has HV 29.8 as its Purāṇic example.

HV 29.15

विख्याता हृदया नाम शतयोजनगामिनी । भोजस्य वडवा राजन् यया कृष्णम् अयोधयत् ॥

vikhyātā hṛdayā nāma śatayojana-gāminī | bhojasya vaḍavā rājan yayā kṛṣṇam ayodhayat

There was a famous mare named *Hṛdayā* — 'Heart' — able to go a hundred yojanas, belonging to the Bhoja; on her he fought against Kṛṣṇa, O king.

The Living Words

*Vikhyātā hṛdayā nāma*, 'a famous one named Hṛdayā'. *Śatayojana-gāminī*, 'going a hundred yojanas'. *Bhojasya vaḍavā*, 'the Bhoja's mare'. *Yayā kṛṣṇam ayodhayat*, 'on whom he fought Kṛṣṇa'.

The Heart of It

The mare's name is *Hṛdayā* — 'Heart'. A thief flees from Kṛṣṇa mounted on *Heart*. The whole theology of the restless manas is in that image. Jñāneśvar in the *Jñāneśvarī* calls the mind a runaway horse that even Indra cannot catch; Kṛṣṇa alone can overtake it. HV 29.15 literalises that metaphor: the fugitive-heart is a thousand-yojana mare, and only the Lord runs her down. The Warkari reading: do not let your heart be borrowed to carry stolen wealth. Let *Rāma-rāma* be the rider, and the same mare is no longer a fugitive but a pilgrim.

HV 29.20

स्यमन्तकं च नापश्यद् धत्वा भोजं महाबलम् । निवृत्तं चाब्रवीत् कृष्णं रत्नं देहीति लाङ्गली ॥

syamantakaṃ ca nāpaśyad dhatvā bhojaṃ mahā-balam | nivṛttaṃ cābravīt kṛṣṇaṃ ratnaṃ dehīti lāṅgalī

And after killing the mighty Bhoja he did not see the Syamantaka; and the plough-bearer, on his return, said to Kṛṣṇa, 'Give the jewel.'

The Living Words

*Syamantakaṃ nāpaśyat*, 'he did not see the Syamantaka'. *Dhatvā bhojam*, 'having killed the Bhoja'. *Nivṛttam*, 'on returning'. *Abravīt kṛṣṇaṃ ratnaṃ dehi iti lāṅgalī*, 'the plough-bearer said to Kṛṣṇa, give the jewel'.

The Heart of It

After Chapter 28's public clearing, an ember of suspicion remains inside the family. Balarāma — *lāṅgalī*, the plough-bearer — turns to his younger brother and says *ratnaṃ dehi* — 'give the jewel'. The Warkari reading is sober: a slander extinguished in the sabhā may still smolder in the living room. Sabhā-truth is fast; brother-trust is slow. Tukārām in Gāthā 1240 cries *āpuliyā koṇā nāḍhalasi rāmā* — 'O Rāma, against my own people I have no recourse'. The nearest circle is always hardest. The Haripāṭh's teaching on *ekānta-bhāva* — that the private room needs its own repeated purification — has HV 29.20 as its biographical root.

HV 29.25

दीक्षामयं स कवचं रक्षार्थं प्रविवेश ह । स्यमन्तककृते प्राज्ञो गांदीपुत्रो महायशाः ॥

dīkṣāmayaṃ sa kavacaṃ rakṣārthaṃ praviveśa ha | syamantaka-kṛte prājño gāṃdī-putro mahā-yaśāḥ

The wise Gāṃdī-son, greatly famed, entered into an armor made of consecration-vows, for protection, on account of the Syamantaka.

The Living Words

*Dīkṣāmayaṃ kavacam*, 'armor made of dīkṣā'. *Rakṣārthaṃ praviveśa*, 'entered for protection'. *Syamantaka-kṛte*, 'on account of the Syamantaka'. *Prājño gāṃdī-putraḥ mahā-yaśāḥ*, 'the wise, greatly-famed Gāṃdī-son'.

The Heart of It

Akrūra clothes himself in *dīkṣā-kavaca* — an armor of vow-observances — to shield the hidden gem. The paradox is exact: a vow taken to conceal a wrong is a second wrong. The Warkari critique of *vṛtti-jāḍya*, the stiffened outer observance with no inner truth, is named here in Purāṇic form. Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh (Abhaṅga 14.2) warns against *bāhyā-āchaṇ* — outward garb without inner *śraddhā*. Ekanāth's line *vaira-rangī pāha-jaḥ* — 'wearing the robe of an enemy' — is the same diagnosis. A ritual cloak is not a safe place to hide a stolen jewel. The chapter will let Akrūra learn this the merciful way.

HV 29.35

अथ विज्ञाय योगेन कृष्णो बभ्रुगतं मणिम् । सभामध्यगतं प्राह तम् अक्रूरं जनार्दनः ॥

atha vijñāya yogena kṛṣṇo babhru-gataṃ maṇim | sabhā-madhya-gataṃ prāha tam akrūraṃ janārdanaḥ

Then, having known by yoga that the jewel was with Babhru, Kṛṣṇa — Janārdana — spoke to that Akrūra who had come into the midst of the assembly.

The Living Words

*Atha vijñāya yogena*, 'then knowing by yoga'. *Kṛṣṇo babhru-gataṃ maṇim*, 'Kṛṣṇa [knew] the jewel was with Babhru'. *Sabhā-madhya-gataṃ prāha*, 'spoke to him come into the middle of the sabhā'. *Tam akrūraṃ janārdanaḥ*, 'to that Akrūra, Janārdana [did]'.

The Heart of It

This is the pivotal verse. *Vijñāya yogena* — Kṛṣṇa knew by yogic insight, not by informant. *Sabhā-madhya-gataṃ prāha* — he spoke not in private but in the sabhā's middle. Twice in two chapters the sabhā is the court of Kṛṣṇa's truth (see HV 28.30). What is inwardly seen by yoga is outwardly spoken in the common room. The Warkari tradition's dindī-under-the-sky is the same rhythm enlarged: *dhyāna* in the heart and *saṅkīrtana* in the street, one breath. Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh Abhaṅga 2.4 *nām-ghoṣēṃ kollāhala* — the 'uproar of the Name' — is the sabhā-equivalent of Kṛṣṇa's *sabhā-madhya-prāha*: inward knowing made outward speech.

HV 29.40

स कृष्णहस्तात् संप्राप्य मणिरत्नं स्यमन्तकम् । आबध्य गांदिनीपुत्रो विरराजांशुमान् इव ॥

sa kṛṣṇa-hastāt saṃprāpya maṇi-ratnaṃ syamantakam | ābadhya gāṃdinī-putro virarājāṃśumān iva

Having received the jewel-gem Syamantaka from Kṛṣṇa's own hand, and having tied it on, the son of Gāṃdinī [Akrūra] shone like the sun.

The Living Words

*Kṛṣṇa-hastāt saṃprāpya*, 'having received from Kṛṣṇa's hand'. *Maṇi-ratnaṃ syamantakam*, 'the gem Syamantaka'. *Ābadhya*, 'having tied it on'. *Gāṃdinī-putraḥ*, 'Gāṃdinī's son [Akrūra]'. *Virarājāṃśumān iva*, 'shone like the sun'.

The Heart of It

The culmination is astonishing and tender: Kṛṣṇa does not confiscate the gem. He returns it, *from his own hand*, into the hand of the man he has just publicly exposed. Akrūra ties it on and shines *aṃśumān iva* — like the sun. The Warkari reading is that exposure in the sabhā is not punishment; it is a returning. The Guru does not break your pot, says Nāmdev; he tightens its binding so it will hold water. Kṛṣṇa gives Akrūra back to himself — cleansed of the *dīkṣā-kavaca* of concealment and free, at last, to shine. The chapter ends with the falsely-accused cleared (Kṛṣṇa, in Chapter 28) *and* the rightly-exposed restored (Akrūra, here). This is the full ethic of Kṛṣṇa's sabhā.

Thread

Chapter 28 cleared the innocent in public; Chapter 29 restores the exposed in public. Together they map the whole Kṛṣṇa-ethic of wealth, name, and community: bring contested things into the sabhā, not the closet; clear by yoga-sight what cannot be clarified by rumor; then give back. The mare named *Heart*, the vow-armor worn over hidden gold, and the brother's lingering doubt each name a way wealth goes wrong. *Vijñāya yogena* and *sabhā-madhya-gataṃ prāha* — inward knowing and outward speech — are the two disciplines that set it right.

Echo in the saints

Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh Abhaṅga 15 *eka nāma pāvana* declares that the Name alone purifies, and therefore all other wealth must pass through its fire. Tukārām's *anu-renū-sama jhālo* — 'I have become like a particle of dust' — is the inner posture opposite Akrūra's *dīkṣā-kavaca*. The Warkari way is open-handed: hold nothing back, wear no armor of vow over a hidden thing, walk through the dindī with empty hands. Then whatever jewel you carry will shine at day's end like Akrūra's — *aṃśumān iva*, like the sun.

Scripture references

EchoesBhagavad Gītā 13.2

The Lord is the knower of the field within every heart, including the hiding-place of the hidden jewel.

क्षेत्रज्ञं चापि मां विद्धि सर्वक्षेत्रेषु भारत । क्षेत्रक्षेत्रज्ञयोर्ज्ञानं यत्तज्ज्ञानं मतं मम ॥

kṣetra-jñaṃ cāpi māṃ viddhi sarva-kṣetreṣu bhārata | kṣetra-kṣetra-jñayor jñānaṃ yat taj jñānaṃ mataṃ mama

Know Me also as the knower-of-the-field in every field, O Bhārata. That which is the knowledge of field and field-knower — that I consider knowledge.

HV 29.35's *vijñāya yogena kṛṣṇo babhru-gataṃ maṇim* — Kṛṣṇa knowing the jewel's location in Akrūra's house without an informer — is the Gītā 13.2's *kṣetra-jña* acting in history. The Warkari tradition reads them as a single teaching: the Lord is already the inward witness of what the outward tongue conceals.

EchoesBhagavad Gītā 16.17

Outer vows worn over hidden wrong are the *āsurī-sampad* posture; public truth is the *daivī* cure.

आत्मसम्भाविताः स्तब्धा धनमानमदान्विताः । यजन्ते नामयज्ञैस्ते दम्भेनाविधिपूर्वकम् ॥

ātma-sambhāvitāḥ stabdhā dhana-māna-mada-anvitāḥ | yajante nāma-yajñais te dambhenāvidhi-pūrvakam

Self-esteemed, stubborn, filled with intoxication of wealth and pride, they perform sacrifices that are sacrifices only in name — hypocritically, without the proper rules.

Akrūra's *dīkṣā-kavaca* in HV 29.25 — ritual-armor worn to shield a hidden gem — is Gītā 16.17's *nāma-yajña* performed *dambhena*. The Warkari critique of *vṛtti-jāḍya* (stiffened outer observance) and the Haripāṭh's warning against *bāhyā-āchaṇ* (outward garb) name the same posture. Kṛṣṇa's sabhā-call is its cure: the public word that returns the man to truth.

BORI critical edition, ed. P. L. Vaidya (1969). Digital text from the GRETIL Zurich constituted text. Distributed under CC BY-NC-SA 4.0.