Shloka 7
मद्राष्ट्रे वारिता वृष्टिर् यदा शक्रेण किं तदा मद्बाणभिन्नैर् जलदैर् आपो मुक्ता यथेप्सिताः
madrāṣṭre vāritā vṛṣṭir yadā śakreṇa kiṃ tadā madbāṇabhinnair jaladair āpo muktā yathepsitāḥ
When Indra held back the rains over the land of Madra, what then? Pierced by my arrows, the clouds released their waters—freely, exactly as I desired.
A king/ruler of Madra (as quoted within Parasara’s narration to Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Accounts of Krishna-era political and martial events
Teaching: Historical
Quality: authoritative
Avatara: Krishna
Purpose: Krishna curbs oppressive power by ensuring the world’s welfare, overturning even divine obstruction when it harms subjects.
Leela: Loka-rakshana
Dharma Restored: Rājadharma of protecting subjects’ livelihood; restoration of seasonal order for the land
Concept: Withholding necessities from the people is adharma; power is justified only when it protects life and prosperity.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Use authority to secure essentials (water, food, safety) for dependents; oppose policies that harm collective welfare.
Vishishtadvaita: Bhūmi and the world’s welfare are to be protected as the Lord’s body (śarīra), so sustaining rain/food becomes a dharmic imperative.
Vishnu Form: Krishna
Lakshmi Presence: Bhumi
FAQs
It highlights how prosperity and drought are tied to cosmic governance; rainfall becomes a narrative marker of divine control and the testing of royal power.
Through brief, vivid quotations of kings, Parasara shows rulers asserting authority over their realms, yet always within a cosmos where divine forces like Indra influence outcomes.
In the Vishnu Purana’s worldview, all sovereignty—of gods like Indra and of earthly kings—ultimately rests in Vishnu as the supreme ground of order; such episodes implicitly point to that higher source of power.