Shloka 40
यादवक्षयः, बलराम-निर्याणम्, कृष्णस्य उपसंहारः (प्रभासे विनाशः)
एरका तु गृहीता तैर् वज्रभूतेव लक्ष्यते तया परस्परं जघ्नुः संप्रहारे सुदारुणे
erakā tu gṛhītā tair vajrabhūteva lakṣyate tayā parasparaṃ jaghnuḥ saṃprahāre sudāruṇe
Seizing the eraka reeds, they beheld them as though turned into vajras, thunderbolts; and with those very reeds they struck one another down in a dreadfully savage melee.
Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Kṛṣṇa’s final acts on earth and the destruction of the Yādavas
Teaching: Historical
Quality: authoritative
Vamsha: Chandra
Key Kings: Yādavas
Vishnu Form: Krishna
FAQs
It signals the irresistible fruition of destiny and curse: an ordinary reed is perceived as a vajra, showing how kāla and karma can turn the mundane into an instrument of inevitable destruction.
Parāśara narrates it as a divinely-ordered unfolding where arrogance and prior causes culminate in a brutal, mutual slaughter—each striking the other in a close-quarters clash.
Even when the verse describes human action, the Purana’s frame implies Vishnu’s sovereign order operating through time (kāla): dynasties rise and fall under the Supreme’s governance, underscoring the transience of worldly power.