Srimad Bhagavatam — Dashama Skandha, Shloka 36
Yoga-māyā Appears as Durgā; Kaṁsa’s Repentance and the Demonic Policy of Persecuting Vaiṣṇavas
किं क्षेमशूरैर्विबुधैरसंयुगविकत्थनै: । रहोजुषा किं हरिणा शम्भुना वा वनौकसा । किमिन्द्रेणाल्पवीर्येण ब्रह्मणा वा तपस्यता ॥ ३६ ॥
kiṁ kṣema-śūrair vibudhair asaṁyuga-vikatthanaiḥ raho-juṣā kiṁ hariṇā śambhunā vā vanaukasā kim indreṇālpa-vīryeṇa brahmaṇā vā tapasyatā
What is there to fear from demigods who boast vainly only when far from the battlefield? Hari dwells in seclusion within the heart-cave of the yogīs; Śambhu has gone to the forest; Brahmā is absorbed in austerity; and the others, led by Indra, are weak in prowess. Therefore You have nothing to fear.
Kaṁsa’s ministers told Kaṁsa that all the exalted demigods had fled in fear of him. One had gone to the forest, one to the core of the heart, and one to engage in tapasya. “Thus you can be free from all fear of the demigods,” they said. “Just prepare to fight.”
FAQs
This verse shows Kaṁsa’s asuric pride: he dismisses the devas as powerless, belittling even Hari, Śiva, Indra, and Brahmā—revealing how arrogance blinds one to divine supremacy.
In the narrative, Kaṁsa is agitated by fear of his foretold death and becomes defiant; he tries to bolster his confidence by mocking the gods as ineffective and irrelevant.
It warns against contempt and ego: when fear or ambition rises, one may dismiss sacred authority; cultivating humility and remembrance of the Lord protects the heart from such blindness.