Shloka 59

कुब्जानुग्रहः, धनुर्भङ्गः, कुवलयापीडवधः, मल्लयुद्धं, कंसवधः, स्तुतयः

Devanagari script

बलक्षयं विवृद्धिं च दृष्ट्वा चाणूरकृष्णयोः वारयाम् आस तूर्याणि कंसः कोपपरायणः

Transliteration

balakṣayaṃ vivṛddhiṃ ca dṛṣṭvā cāṇūrakṛṣṇayoḥ vārayām āsa tūryāṇi kaṃsaḥ kopaparāyaṇaḥ

Translation

Seeing Cāṇūra’s strength ebb away while Kṛṣṇa’s prowess only grew, Kaṃsa—given over to wrath—ordered the instruments to be silenced.

Word by Word

• बलक्षयम्: loss of strength
• बलक्षयम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बल (प्रातिपदिक) + क्षय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: बलस्य क्षयः (loss of strength)

• विवृद्धिम्: increase, growth
• विवृद्धिम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विवृद्धि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha/Connector (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय (conjunction ‘and’)

• दृष्ट्वा: having seen
• दृष्ट्वा: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: दृश् (धातु) + क्त्वा (अव्यय-कृदन्त)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (Gerund/Absolutive)

• चाणूरकृष्णयोः: of Chanura and Krishna
• चाणूरकृष्णयोः: Sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चाणूर (प्रातिपदिक) + कृष्ण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), द्विवचन (Dual); द्वन्द्व-समास: चाणूरश्च कृष्णश्च (of Chanura and Krishna)

• वारयाम्: I stopped / I restrained
• वारयाम्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वृ (धातु) + णिच् (causative)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), उत्तमपुरुष (1st person), एकवचन (Singular), परस्मैपद; causative stem वारय- ‘to stop’

• आस: did, was (auxiliary)
• आस: Kriya (Auxiliary/सहायक-क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular), परस्मैपद; सहायक-क्रिया (auxiliary) with वारयाम् आस = ‘did stop’

• तूर्याणि: musical instruments
• तूर्याणि: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तूर्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• कंसः: Kamsa
• कंसः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कंस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• कोपपरायणः: given over to anger
• कोपपरायणः: Karta (Subject qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कोप (प्रातिपदिक) + परायण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); तत्पुरुष: कोपे परायणः (devoted/absorbed in anger)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: Krishna descends to dismantle Kaṃsa’s oppressive regime by defeating his champions and thereby clearing the way for dharma’s restoration.

Leela: Yuddha

Dharma Restored: Just governance and safety for the people by ending tyrannical violence

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Adharma reacts with anger and suppression when confronted by the evident rise of divine-backed righteousness.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: When resistance to truth intensifies, remain steady and continue righteous action without being shaken by intimidation.

Vishishtadvaita: Dharma’s victory is not abstract; it unfolds through the Lord’s personal intervention within history.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Characters & Entities

• Krishna
• Cāṇūra
• Kaṃsa

FAQs

What is the significance of Kaṃsa stopping the music in the Vishnu Purana?

It marks the turning point where Kaṃsa realizes his champion is failing; the silencing of celebration reflects the collapse of adharma’s confidence before Krishna’s inevitable victory.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the shift of power in this arena scene?

By contrasting Cāṇūra’s “bala-kṣaya” (loss of strength) with Krishna’s “vivṛddhi” (increasing might), Parāśara narratively signals that the Lord’s sovereignty asserts itself as opposition weakens.

The theological importance of Lord Vishnu (Krishna) in this context?

Krishna’s rising power is not merely athletic prowess but the Purāṇic motif of the Supreme Reality restoring cosmic order—where adharma naturally diminishes in the presence of the Divine.