Shloka 28
पौण्ड्रक-वधः, कृत्या-प्रशमनम्, वाराणसी-दाहः
तच्छिरः पतितं दृष्ट्वा तत्र काशिपतेः पुरे जनः किम् एतद् इत्य् आह केनेत्य् अत्यन्तविस्मितः
tacchiraḥ patitaṃ dṛṣṭvā tatra kāśipateḥ pure janaḥ kim etad ity āha kenety atyantavismitaḥ
Seeing that severed head lying in the city of the lord of Kāśī, the people, utterly astonished, cried out: “What is this? By whom has this been done?”
Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)
Avatara: Krishna
Purpose: Kṛṣṇa’s victory becomes publicly manifest, provoking astonishment that prepares the next retaliatory act in the narrative.
Leela: Yuddha
Dharma Restored: Public recognition of the Lord’s supremacy over hostile rulers
Vishnu Form: Krishna
FAQs
This verse places the event within Kāśī—depicted as a prominent and sacred royal city—so the public shock underscores how breaches of order (dharma) become especially momentous in such a renowned seat of sovereignty.
Parāśara advances the plot through a vivid public scene—citizens witnessing a startling sign and questioning its cause—creating suspense before the narrative explains who acted and why.
Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the Purāṇic worldview assumes events unfold within Vishnu’s overarching governance of dharma and karmic consequence, where worldly power and disorder remain subordinate to the Supreme Reality.