Viṣṇu-parva

Harivaṃśa · Adhyāya 51

37 versesThe Twin Arjunas Broken

Synopsis

In time, the gentle boys grow. By five years they walk; by their second year they have been crawling and beautifying the village. Inseparable from infancy, they form one sound, one purpose, each with the luster of the young moon and sun. The middle of the chapter tells the story of the two arjuna-trees: Kṛṣṇa, a small child, drags the mortar to which he has been tied, rushes between the twin trees, and breaks them at the root. He laughs in the middle. The chapter closes: "This was the wondrous thing the child did, Kṛṣṇa of the best of Bharatas, while dwelling in Ghoṣa."

First-pass synopsis; pending review by a Sanskritist.

Verse commentary below

Dāmodara: Kṛṣṇa Tied to the Mortar, the Fall of the Arjuna-Trees: Verses 2, 5, 13, 14, 18, 34, 36: the two brothers in childhood reaching one-ness, the cowherd-boys as 'single measure of the worlds', Yaśodā calling her Lord-child to come drink milk, the tying of a rope around the belly binding him to the mortar, the two arjuna-trees uprooted as Kṛṣṇa laughed between them, Nandagopa's long embrace of his son 'as if returned from death', and the naming of Kṛṣṇa as Dāmodara from the rope around his belly. Template commentary, pending Editorial Council review.

Verse 1

काले गच्छति सौम्यौ तौ दारकौ कृतनामकौ पञ्च संवत्सरान् प्राप्तौ शोभयानौ व्रजं मुहुः कृष्णसंकर्षणौ चोभौ रिङ्गिनौ समपद्यताम्

kāle gacchati saumyau tau dārakau kṛtanāmakau pañca saṃvatsarān prāptau śobhayānau vrajaṃ muhuḥ kṛṣṇasaṃkarṣaṇau cobhau riṅginau samapadyatām

Time went by. The two lovely boys, now named, reached five years and brightened Vraja again and again. Kṛṣṇa and Saṃkarṣaṇa, the two crawlers, had grown up.

Verse 2

ताव् अन्योन्यगतौ बालौ बाल्याद् एवैकतां गतौ एकमन्त्रधरौ कान्तौ बालचन्द्रार्कवर्चसौ

tāv anyonyagatau bālau bālyād evaikatāṃ gatau ekamantradharau kāntau bālacandrārkavarcasau

Verse 3

एकनिर्माणनिर्युक्ताव् एकशय्यासनाशनौ एकवेषधराव् एकं पुष्यमाणौ शिशुव्रतम्

ekanirmāṇaniryuktāv ekaśayyāsanāśanau ekaveṣadharāv ekaṃ puṣyamāṇau śiśuvratam

Verse 4

एककार्यान्तरगताव् एकदेहौ द्विधा कृतौ एकचर्यौ महावीर्याव् एकस्य शिशुतां गतौ

ekakāryāntaragatāv ekadehau dvidhā kṛtau ekacaryau mahāvīryāv ekasya śiśutāṃ gatau

Verse 5

एकप्रमाणौ लोकानां देववृत्तान्तमानुषौ कृत्स्नस्य जगतो गोपौ संवृत्तौ गोपदारकौ

ekapramāṇau lokānāṃ devavṛttāntamānuṣau kṛtsnasya jagato gopau saṃvṛttau gopadārakau

Verse 6

अन्योन्यव्यतिषक्ताभिः क्रीडाभिर् अभिशोभितौ अन्योन्यकिरणग्रस्तौ चन्द्रसूर्याव् इवाम्बरे

anyonyavyatiṣaktābhiḥ krīḍābhir abhiśobhitau anyonyakiraṇagrastau candrasūryāv ivāmbare

Verse 7

विसर्पन्तौ तु सर्वत्र सर्पभोगभुजाव् उभौ रेजतुः पांशुदिग्धाङ्गौ दृप्तौ कलभकाव् इव

visarpantau tu sarvatra sarpabhogabhujāv ubhau rejatuḥ pāṃśudigdhāṅgau dṛptau kalabhakāv iva

Verse 8

क्वचिद् भस्मप्रदिग्धाङ्गौ करीषप्रोक्षितौ क्वचित् तौ तत्र परिधावेतां कुमाराव् इव पावकी

kvacid bhasmapradigdhāṅgau karīṣaprokṣitau kvacit tau tatra paridhāvetāṃ kumārāv iva pāvakī

Verse 9

क्वचिज् जानुभिर् उद्धृष्टैः सर्पमाणौ विरेजतुः क्रीडन्तौ वत्सशालासु शकृद्दिग्धाङ्गमूर्धजौ

kvacij jānubhir uddhṛṣṭaiḥ sarpamāṇau virejatuḥ krīḍantau vatsaśālāsu śakṛddigdhāṅgamūrdhajau

Verse 10

शुशुभाते श्रिया जुष्टाव् आनन्दजननौ पितुः जनं च विप्र कुर्वाणौ हसन्तौ च क्वचित् क्वचित्

śuśubhāte śriyā juṣṭāv ānandajananau pituḥ janaṃ ca vipra kurvāṇau hasantau ca kvacit kvacit

Verse 11

तौ बालकौ ललितकौ मूर्धजव्याकुलेक्षणौ रेजतुश् चन्द्रवदनौ दारकौ सुकुमारकौ

tau bālakau lalitakau mūrdhajavyākulekṣaṇau rejatuś candravadanau dārakau sukumārakau

Verse 12

अतिप्रसक्तौ घोषेषु घोषम् आपूर्य दारकौ अतिप्रसक्तौ तौ दृष्ट्वा सर्वव्रजविचारिणौ नाशक्नुवद् वारयितुम् नन्दगोपः सुदुर्मदौ

atiprasaktau ghoṣeṣu ghoṣam āpūrya dārakau atiprasaktau tau dṛṣṭvā sarvavrajavicāriṇau nāśaknuvad vārayitum nandagopaḥ sudurmadau

Verse 13

ततो यशोदा संक्रुद्धा कृष्णं कमललोचनम् उवाच शिशुरूपेण चरन्तं जगतः प्रभुम् एहि वत्स पिब स्तन्यं दुर्वोढुं मम संप्रति एतावन्तम् इतः कालं क्वा गतो ऽसि गृहाद् बहिः इत्य् आदाय करे पुत्रं गृहान् निर्वास्य सा रुषा आनाय्य शकटीमूलं भर्त्सयन्ती पुनः पुनः

tato yaśodā saṃkruddhā kṛṣṇaṃ kamalalocanam uvāca śiśurūpeṇa carantaṃ jagataḥ prabhum ehi vatsa piba stanyaṃ durvoḍhuṃ mama saṃprati etāvantam itaḥ kālaṃ kvā gato 'si gṛhād bahiḥ ity ādāya kare putraṃ gṛhān nirvāsya sā ruṣā ānāyya śakaṭīmūlaṃ bhartsayantī punaḥ punaḥ

Verse 14

दाम्ना चैवोदरे बद्ध्वा प्रत्यबन्धद् उदूखले यदि शक्नोषि गच्छेति तम् उक्त्वा कर्म साकरोत् व्यग्रायाम् तु यशोदायाम् निर्जगाम ततो ऽङ्गणात्

dāmnā caivodare baddhvā pratyabandhad udūkhale yadi śaknoṣi gaccheti tam uktvā karma sākarot vyagrāyām tu yaśodāyām nirjagāma tato 'ṅgaṇāt

Verse 15

शिशुलीलां ततः कुर्वन् कृष्णो विस्मापयन् व्रजम् सो ऽङ्गणान् निःसृतः कृष्णः कर्षमाण उदूखलम्

śiśulīlāṃ tataḥ kurvan kṛṣṇo vismāpayan vrajam so 'ṅgaṇān niḥsṛtaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ karṣamāṇa udūkhalam

Verse 16

स यमाभ्याम् प्रवृद्धाभ्याम् अर्जुनाभ्यां चरन् वने निश्चक्राम शिशुर् मध्यात् कर्षमाण उदूखलम्

sa yamābhyām pravṛddhābhyām arjunābhyāṃ caran vane niścakrāma śiśur madhyāt karṣamāṇa udūkhalam

Verse 17

तत् तस्य कर्षतो बद्धम् तिर्यग् गतम् उदूखलम् लग्नं ताभ्यां समूलाभ्याम् अर्जुनाभ्यां चकर्ष ह

tat tasya karṣato baddham tiryag gatam udūkhalam lagnaṃ tābhyāṃ samūlābhyām arjunābhyāṃ cakarṣa ha

Verse 18

ताव् अर्जुनौ कृष्यमाणौ तेन बालेन रंहसा समूलविटपौ भग्नौ स तु मध्ये जहास वै

tāv arjunau kṛṣyamāṇau tena bālena raṃhasā samūlaviṭapau bhagnau sa tu madhye jahāsa vai

The two Arjuna-trees, pulled by that child's speed, broke root and branch together. And he, in the middle, only laughed.

Verse 19

निदर्शनार्थं गोपानां दिव्यं स्वबलम् आस्थितः तद् दाम तस्य बालस्य प्रभावाद् अभवद् दृढम्

nidarśanārthaṃ gopānāṃ divyaṃ svabalam āsthitaḥ tad dāma tasya bālasya prabhāvād abhavad dṛḍham

Verse 20

यमुनातीरमार्गस्था गोप्यस् तं ददृशुः शिशुम् क्रन्दन्त्यो विस्मयन्त्यश् च यशोदानिकटं ययुः

yamunātīramārgasthā gopyas taṃ dadṛśuḥ śiśum krandantyo vismayantyaś ca yaśodānikaṭaṃ yayuḥ

Verse 21

तास् तु संभ्रान्तवदना यशोदाम् ऊचुर् अङ्गनाः एह्य् आगच्छ यशोदेति संभ्रमे किं विलम्बसे

tās tu saṃbhrāntavadanā yaśodām ūcur aṅganāḥ ehy āgaccha yaśodeti saṃbhrame kiṃ vilambase

Verse 22

यौ ताव् अर्जुनवृक्षौ तु व्रजे सत्योपयाचितौ ताव् एतौ तव पुत्रस्य पतिताव् उपरि द्रुमौ पुत्रस्योपरि ताव् एतौ पतितौ ते महीरुहौ

yau tāv arjunavṛkṣau tu vraje satyopayācitau tāv etau tava putrasya patitāv upari drumau putrasyopari tāv etau patitau te mahīruhau

Verse 23

दृढेन दाम्ना तत्रैव बद्धो वत्स इवोदरे जहास मध्ये वृक्षाभ्यां तव पुत्रः स बालकः

dṛḍhena dāmnā tatraiva baddho vatsa ivodare jahāsa madhye vṛkṣābhyāṃ tava putraḥ sa bālakaḥ

Verse 24

प्रहसन्न् एव वृक्षाभ्यां मध्ये क्रीडन्न् इवाङ्गणे उत्तिष्ठ गच्छ दुर्मेधे मूढे पण्डितमानिनि पुत्रम् आनय जीवन्तुं मुक्तं मृत्युमुखाद् इव

prahasann eva vṛkṣābhyāṃ madhye krīḍann ivāṅgaṇe uttiṣṭha gaccha durmedhe mūḍhe paṇḍitamānini putram ānaya jīvantuṃ muktaṃ mṛtyumukhād iva

Verse 25

सा भीता सहसोत्थाय हाहाकारं प्रकुर्वती तं देशम् अगमद् यत्र पतितौ तौ महाद्रुमौ

sā bhītā sahasotthāya hāhākāraṃ prakurvatī taṃ deśam agamad yatra patitau tau mahādrumau

Verse 26

ददर्श ताभ्यां सा मध्ये द्रुमाभ्याम् आत्मजं शिशुम् दाम्ना निबद्धम् उदरे कर्षमाणम् उदूखलम्

dadarśa tābhyāṃ sā madhye drumābhyām ātmajaṃ śiśum dāmnā nibaddham udare karṣamāṇam udūkhalam

Verse 27

सगोपीगोपवृद्धश् च सयुवा च व्रजस् तदा पर्यगच्छत् ततो द्रष्टुं गोपेषु महद् अद्भुतम्

sagopīgopavṛddhaś ca sayuvā ca vrajas tadā paryagacchat tato draṣṭuṃ gopeṣu mahad adbhutam

Verse 28

जजल्पुस् ते यथाकामं गोपा वनविचारिणः जजल्पुर् जातसंभ्रान्ता सर्वे विस्मितचेतसः केनेमौ पातितौ वृक्षौ घोषस्यैवाग्रपादपौ

jajalpus te yathākāmaṃ gopā vanavicāriṇaḥ jajalpur jātasaṃbhrāntā sarve vismitacetasaḥ kenemau pātitau vṛkṣau ghoṣasyaivāgrapādapau

Verse 29

विना वातं विना वर्षं विद्युत्प्रपतनं विना विना हस्तिकृतं दोषम् केनेमौ पातितौ द्रुमौ

vinā vātaṃ vinā varṣaṃ vidyutprapatanaṃ vinā vinā hastikṛtaṃ doṣam kenemau pātitau drumau

Verse 30

अहो बत न शोभेतां विमूलाव् अर्जुनाव् इमौ इमौ निपतितौ भूमौ वितोयौ जलदाव् इव

aho bata na śobhetāṃ vimūlāv arjunāv imau imau nipatitau bhūmau vitoyau jaladāv iva

Verse 31

यदीमौ घोषरचितौ घोषकल्याणकारिणौ नन्दगोप प्रसन्नौ ते द्रुमाव् एवंगताव् अपि यत्र ते दारको मुक्तो विमूलाभ्याम् अविक्षतः

yadīmau ghoṣaracitau ghoṣakalyāṇakāriṇau nandagopa prasannau te drumāv evaṃgatāv api yatra te dārako mukto vimūlābhyām avikṣataḥ

Verse 32

औत्पातिकम् इदं घोषे तृतीयं वर्तते त्व् इह पूतनाया निपातश् च द्रुमयोः शकटस्य च

autpātikam idaṃ ghoṣe tṛtīyaṃ vartate tv iha pūtanāyā nipātaś ca drumayoḥ śakaṭasya ca

Verse 33

अस्मिन् स्थाने निवेशो ऽयं घोषस्यास्य न विद्यते उत्पाता ह्य् अत्र दृश्यन्ते कथयन्तो नशोभनम्

asmin sthāne niveśo 'yaṃ ghoṣasyāsya na vidyate utpātā hy atra dṛśyante kathayanto naśobhanam

Verse 34

नन्दगोपस् तु सहसा मुक्त्वा कृष्णम् उदूखलात् निवेश्य चाङ्के सुचिरं मृतं पुनर् इवागतम्

nandagopas tu sahasā muktvā kṛṣṇam udūkhalāt niveśya cāṅke suciraṃ mṛtaṃ punar ivāgatam

Verse 35

नातृप्यत् प्रेक्षमाणो वै कृष्णं कमललोचनम् ततो यशोदां गर्हन् वै नन्दगोपो विवेश ह स च गोपजनः सर्वो घोषम् एव जगाम ह

nātṛpyat prekṣamāṇo vai kṛṣṇaṃ kamalalocanam tato yaśodāṃ garhan vai nandagopo viveśa ha sa ca gopajanaḥ sarvo ghoṣam eva jagāma ha

Verse 36

स च तेनैव नाम्ना तु कृष्णो वै दामबन्धनात् येन दाम्ना निबद्धो ऽसाव् उदरे सुदृढं व्रजे घोषे दामोदर इति गोपीभिः परिगीयते

sa ca tenaiva nāmnā tu kṛṣṇo vai dāmabandhanāt yena dāmnā nibaddho 'sāv udare sudṛḍhaṃ vraje ghoṣe dāmodara iti gopībhiḥ parigīyate

Verse 37

एतद् आश्चर्यभूतं हि बालस्यासीद् विचेष्टितम् कृष्णस्य भरतश्रेष्ठ घोषे निवसतस् तदा

etad āścaryabhūtaṃ hi bālasyāsīd viceṣṭitam kṛṣṇasya bharataśreṣṭha ghoṣe nivasatas tadā

Such was the wondrous behavior of the child Kṛṣṇa, best of Bharatas, while he dwelt in Ghoṣa.

Verse commentary

Dāmodara: Kṛṣṇa Tied to the Mortar, the Fall of the Arjuna-Trees

दामोदरकथा अर्जुनवृक्षभङ्गश् च

Verses 2, 5, 13, 14, 18, 34, 36: the two brothers in childhood reaching one-ness, the cowherd-boys as 'single measure of the worlds', Yaśodā calling her Lord-child to come drink milk, the tying of a rope around the belly binding him to the mortar, the two arjuna-trees uprooted as Kṛṣṇa laughed between them, Nandagopa's long embrace of his son 'as if returned from death', and the naming of Kṛṣṇa as Dāmodara from the rope around his belly. Template commentary, pending Editorial Council review.

HV 51 is one of the most beloved chapters in the Harivaṃśa — the Dāmodara episode. The five-year-old Kṛṣṇa and his brother Balarāma, inseparable, are playing everywhere in Vraja with such abandon that Nandagopa cannot restrain them. Yaśodā, finally exasperated, calls Kṛṣṇa to the house, ties a rope around his belly, and binds him to a heavy wooden mortar, saying, 'Go now if you can'. Kṛṣṇa, pulling the mortar behind him, enters the forest and catches it between two arjuna-trees; the trees are uprooted, and Kṛṣṇa laughs between them. The chapter closes with Nandagopa untying the rope from the mortar, holding his son on his lap for a long time 'as if returned from death', and with the cowherds singing the name *Dāmodara* — 'he of the rope-belly' — which the Varkari tradition has loved for two millennia.

HV 51.2

ताव् अन्योन्यगतौ बालौ बाल्याद् एवैकतां गतौ । एकमन्त्रधरौ कान्तौ बालचन्द्रार्कवर्चसौ ॥

tāv anyonya-gatau bālau bālyād evaikatāṃ gatau | eka-mantra-dharau kāntau bāla-candrārka-varcasau

Those two, mutually entered into each other, from childhood itself come to one-ness — holders of a single mantra, lovely, with the splendor of young moon and sun.

The Living Words

*Anyonya-gatau*, 'mutually-gone-into'. *Bālyād eva ekatāṃ gatau*, 'from childhood itself, come to one-ness'. *Eka-mantra-dharau*, 'holders of a single mantra'. *Bāla-candrārka-varcasau*, 'of young moon and sun splendor'.

The Heart of It

The verse is the Harivaṃśa's iconic phrasing for the two brothers. *Bālyād eva ekatāṃ gatau* — 'from childhood itself, gone to one-ness'. The Varkari tradition's love for the Pāṇḍuraṅga-Balabhadra pair at Paṇḍharpūr — two images but one reality — has HV 51.2 as its Sanskrit source. Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh constantly addresses the Lord as *rāma-kṛṣṇa-hari*: three names, one name; *eka-mantra-dhara*, sharing a single mantra. HV 51.2's theology of brotherly oneness is the shape of the Warkari Name itself.

HV 51.5

एकप्रमाणौ लोकानां देववृत्तान्तमानुषौ । कृत्स्नस्य जगतो गोपौ संवृत्तौ गोपदारकौ ॥

eka-pramāṇau lokānāṃ deva-vṛttānta-mānuṣau | kṛtsnasya jagato gopau saṃvṛttau gopa-dārakau

The single measure of the worlds, humans in a deva-manner — become the protectors (gopau) of the whole world as cowherd-children (gopa-dārakau).

The Living Words

*Eka-pramāṇau lokānām*, 'the single standard-of-measure of the worlds'. *Deva-vṛttānta-mānuṣau*, 'humans in a deva-manner' (divine in behavior, human in form). *Kṛtsnasya jagato gopau*, 'protectors of the entire world'. *Saṃvṛttau gopa-dārakau*, 'become cowherd-children'. The play on *gopa* (protector/cowherd) is the verse's delight.

The Heart of It

The verse is the Harivaṃśa's most profound pun. *Kṛtsnasya jagato gopau saṃvṛttau gopa-dārakau* — 'the protectors of the entire world have become cowherd-children'. *Gopa* means both 'protector of the cosmos' and 'cowherd'; the same word carries the double-meaning. The Varkari tradition's long delight in *Gopāla* is exactly this: the one who herds cows is the one who herds worlds. Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh's image of Kṛṣṇa-gopa as *viśva-gopa*, protector-of-the-universe, has HV 51.5's pun as its source.

HV 51.13

ततो यशोदा संक्रुद्धा कृष्णं कमललोचनम् । उवाच शिशुरूपेण चरन्तं जगतः प्रभुम् । एहि वत्स पिब स्तन्यं दुर्वोढुं मम संप्रति ॥

tato yaśodā saṃkruddhā kṛṣṇaṃ kamala-locanam | uvāca śiśu-rūpeṇa carantaṃ jagataḥ prabhum | ehi vatsa piba stanyaṃ dur-voḍhuṃ mama saṃprati

Then Yaśodā, enraged, said to Kṛṣṇa the lotus-eyed — the Lord of the worlds in child-form: 'Come, calf, drink the breast; I can barely bear it now.'

The Living Words

*Saṃkruddhā yaśodā*, 'enraged Yaśodā'. *Kamala-locanam*, 'lotus-eyed' [Kṛṣṇa]. *Śiśu-rūpeṇa carantaṃ jagataḥ prabhum*, 'the Lord of the worlds walking in child-form'. *Ehi vatsa piba stanyam*, 'come, calf, drink the breast'. *Dur-voḍhum mama saṃprati*, 'I can barely bear it now'.

The Heart of It

The verse is the Harivaṃśa's most tender theology. *Śiśu-rūpeṇa carantaṃ jagataḥ prabhum* — 'the Lord of the worlds, walking in child-form' — is the subject of the sentence, while the verb is Yaśodā's exasperated command. The Varkari tradition's insistence that bhakti must be able to address the Lord with the tenderness of *ehi vatsa*, 'come, calf', is in this verse. Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh would never separate the *jagat-prabhu* from the *vatsa*; the Lord who is the master of worlds is also the child whom the bhakta can chide into the lap for milk.

HV 51.14

दाम्ना चैवोदरे बद्ध्वा प्रत्यबन्धद् उदूखले । यदि शक्नोषि गच्छेति तम् उक्त्वा कर्म साकरोत् ॥

dāmnā caivodare baddhvā pratyabandhad udūkhale | yadi śaknoṣi gaccheti tam uktvā karma sākarot

She tied [him] at the belly with a rope and bound [the rope] to the mortar; saying 'go now, if you can', she did her work.

The Living Words

*Dāmnā ca udare baddhvā*, 'having tied with a rope at the belly'. *Pratyabandhad udūkhale*, 'bound to the mortar'. *Yadi śaknoṣi gaccheti*, '"go, if you can"'. *Karma sākarot*, 'she did her work'.

The Heart of It

The verse is the Harivaṃśa's Dāmodara-verse. *Dāmnā udare baddhvā... udūkhale pratyabandhad* — the rope around the belly, the belly bound to the mortar, and the mother's challenge. The Varkari tradition has treasured this verse for centuries. *Yadi śaknoṣi gaccheti* — 'go, if you can' — is the mother addressing the Lord of the worlds with the exact confidence of a woman who knows her child cannot yet escape. The Lord, in response, does not escape by divine power; he simply pulls the mortar after him. Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh's image of the bhakta tied by grace to the heavy mortar of this-worldly duty, pulling it faithfully through the day, has HV 51.14 as one of its most beloved models.

HV 51.18

ताव् अर्जुनौ कृष्यमाणौ तेन बालेन रंहसा । समूलविटपौ भग्नौ स तु मध्ये जहास वै ॥

tāv arjunau kṛṣyamāṇau tena bālena raṃhasā | sa-mūla-viṭapau bhagnau sa tu madhye jahāsa vai

Those two arjuna-trees, dragged by the child with speed, broke with root and branch — and he, in between, laughed.

The Living Words

*Arjunau kṛṣyamāṇau*, 'the two arjuna-trees being dragged'. *Bālena raṃhasā*, 'by the child with speed'. *Sa-mūla-viṭapau bhagnau*, 'broken with root and branch'. *Sa tu madhye jahāsa vai*, 'he, in between, laughed'.

The Heart of It

The verse captures the Harivaṃśa's most quietly devastating moment. *Sa tu madhye jahāsa vai* — 'he, in between, laughed'. Not a divine peal of thunder; a child's laugh, between the two broken trees. The Varkari tradition's love of this detail: the Lord's *hāsa*, laughter, is the sound of the fall of proud standing things. Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh names the Name itself as Hari's laughter; what the worlds experience as devastation, the bhakta hears as play. HV 51.18's *jahāsa vai* is, for the Warkari, the soundscape of liberation: the laugh between the broken trees.

HV 51.34

नन्दगोपस् तु सहसा मुक्त्वा कृष्णम् उदूखलात् । निवेश्य चाङ्के सुचिरं मृतं पुनर् इवागतम् ॥

nanda-gopas tu sahasā muktvā kṛṣṇam udūkhalāt | niveśya cāṅke su-ciraṃ mṛtaṃ punar ivāgatam

Nandagopa, at once releasing Kṛṣṇa from the mortar, seated him on his lap for a long time — as if [he had] returned again from death.

The Living Words

*Nanda-gopaḥ sahasā muktvā*, 'Nandagopa, releasing at once'. *Kṛṣṇam udūkhalāt*, 'Kṛṣṇa from the mortar'. *Niveśya ca aṅke su-ciram*, 'having seated on his lap for a long time'. *Mṛtaṃ punar ivāgatam*, 'as if returned from death'.

The Heart of It

The verse is the father's embrace. *Mṛtaṃ punar ivāgatam* — 'as if returned again from death'. Nandagopa holds his son for a long time, as parents do when a child has come back from a fright. The Varkari tradition's tenderness toward father-figures in the tradition — Nandagopa, Vasudeva, and, by extension, every bhakta's own father — is rooted in verses like this. Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh's image of the Lord himself as the father who seats the returned bhakta *aṅke su-ciram*, 'on the lap for a long time', knows *mṛtaṃ punar ivāgatam* is every bhakta's daily homecoming.

HV 51.36

स च तेनैव नाम्ना तु कृष्णो वै दामबन्धनात् । येन दाम्ना निबद्धो ऽसाव् उदरे सुदृढं व्रजे । घोषे दामोदर इति गोपीभिः परिगीयते ॥

sa ca tenaiva nāmnā tu kṛṣṇo vai dāma-bandhanāt | yena dāmnā nibaddho 'sāv udare su-dṛḍhaṃ vraje | ghoṣe dāmodara iti gopībhiḥ parigīyate

And that Kṛṣṇa, by the name from the rope-binding — by which rope he was tied firmly at the belly in Vraja — is sung 'Dāmodara' in the cow-settlement by the gopīs.

The Living Words

*Dāma-bandhanāt*, 'from the rope-binding'. *Yena dāmnā nibaddhaḥ*, 'by which rope he was bound'. *Udare su-dṛḍham*, 'firmly at the belly'. *Dāmodara iti gopībhiḥ parigīyate*, 'is sung as Dāmodara by the gopīs'.

The Heart of It

The verse is the Harivaṃśa's gift of one of the Lord's most beloved names. *Dāmodara* — 'he of the rope-bellied' — is given by the gopīs, sung in Vraja, carried forward through every subsequent bhakti tradition. The Varkari tradition's affection for this name is inseparable from its theology: the Lord is the one who *consents* to be bound, who *permits* a rope around his belly. Jñāneśvar's Haripāṭh understands: the Name is *Dāmodara* because the Lord has agreed to be tied by the bhakta's love. The rope is not the bhakta's bondage; it is the Lord's.

Thread

The seven verses trace the chapter's arc: the two brothers come to one-ness in childhood (51.2), the cowherd-boys as the single measure of the worlds (51.5), Yaśodā's loving exasperation commanding the Lord of worlds to drink milk (51.13), the rope around the belly and the mortar-binding (51.14), the arjuna-trees falling with root and branch and Kṛṣṇa laughing between them (51.18), Nandagopa's long lap-embrace as if of a child returned from death (51.34), and the naming of Kṛṣṇa as Dāmodara by the gopīs (51.36). The Harivaṃśa's most-loved Vraja-chapter, with one of the bhakti tradition's most enduring names.

Echo in the saints

HV 51 is among the Harivaṃśa's most-quoted chapters in Warkari bhajan-literature. The name *Dāmodara* sung by the gopīs in *ghoṣe dāmodara iti parigīyate* has traveled from Vraja through every subsequent bhakti tradition; Jñāneśvar's own mouth knows it. And the image of Kṛṣṇa-the-child laughing between the two broken arjuna-trees (*sa tu madhye jahāsa vai*) is Jñāneśvar's very emblem of *līlā*: the Name's laughter is the sound of proud standing things coming down. The Lord consents to the rope — *dāma-bandhana* — because he wants the bhakta to know that the rope *his love* ties is the only rope that reaches the Infinite.

Scripture references

EchoesBhagavad Gītā 4.11

Love binds the Lord.

ये यथा मां प्रपद्यन्ते तांस्तथैव भजाम्यहम् । मम वर्त्मानुवर्तन्ते मनुष्याः पार्थ सर्वशः ॥

ye yathā māṃ prapadyante tāṃs tathaiva bhajāmy aham | mama vartmānuvartante manuṣyāḥ pārtha sarvaśaḥ

In whatever way they approach me, I take them in that very way; in every way, O Pārtha, people follow my path.

HV 51's Dāmodara story is the Gītā 4.11 made story: Yaśodā approaches the Lord with a mother's rope, and the Lord consents to be tied. 'In whatever way they approach me' is the theology of HV 51.14; 'I take them in that very way' is the theology of 51.36's dāmodara iti gīyate.

Vulgate additions for this adhyāya

One section of Appendix I attaches here. These are passages preserved in manuscripts outside the critical text.

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