Shloka 7

Vasudeva Meets Nanda; Pūtanā’s Fall; Viṣṇu-Rakṣā (Protective Hymn) in Gokula

Devanagari script

वसतां गोकुले तेषां पूतना बालघातिनी सुप्तं कृष्णम् उपादाय रात्रौ तस्मै ददौ स्तनम्

Transliteration

vasatāṃ gokule teṣāṃ pūtanā bālaghātinī suptaṃ kṛṣṇam upādāya rātrau tasmai dadau stanam

Translation

While they were living in Gokula, Pūtanā—the slayer of infants—came by night, lifted up the sleeping Kṛṣṇa, and offered him her breast.

Word by Word

• vasatām: while (they) were living
• vasatām: Samaya (Temporal genitive/काल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vas (वस्) (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्तः—शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त (present participle); षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन; 'while (they) were dwelling'

• gokule: in Gokula
• gokule: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gokula (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन

• teṣām: of them
• teṣām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: tad (तद्-सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन; 'of them'

• pūtanā: Pūtanā
• pūtanā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pūtanā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• bāla-ghātinī: slayer of infants
• bāla-ghātinī: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bāla (प्रातिपदिक) + ghātinī (प्रातिपदिक; √han (हन्) + णिनि/इनी)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समासः (उपपद-तत्पुरुष: 'child-slayer'); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying pūtanā)

• suptam: sleeping
• suptam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: supta (प्रातिपदिक; √svap (स्वप्) क्त)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying kṛṣṇam)

• kṛṣṇam: Kṛṣṇa
• kṛṣṇam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛṣṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• upādāya: having taken up
• upādāya: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √dā (दा) + upa- (उपसर्ग) (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्तः—क्त्वा/ल्यप्-प्रत्ययान्त (gerund); 'having taken up/carrying away'

• rātrau: at night
• rātrau: Adhikarana (Time/काल-अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rātri (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• tasmai: to him
• tasmai: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: tad (तद्-सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4th), एकवचन; 'to him'

• dadau: gave
• dadau: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √dā (दा) (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), परस्मैपद; प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; 'gave'

• stanam: breast
• stanam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: stana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Avatara Context

Avatara: Krishna

Purpose: Kṛṣṇa protects the world by annihilating demonic forces even in infancy, beginning with Pūtanā who seeks to kill him and other children.

Leela: Loka-rakshana

Dharma Restored: Protection of innocents and the defeat of adharma embodied in child-killing sorcery.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Krishna

Bhakti Type: Vatsalya

Characters & Entities

• Krishna
• Putana
• Gokula

FAQs

What is the significance of Pūtanā offering her breast to Kṛṣṇa in the Vishnu Purana?

It dramatizes hostile devotion turned into a divine encounter: even a murderous act becomes the occasion for Kṛṣṇa’s supreme protection and the revelation that no poison or death can overpower the Lord.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the danger to Kṛṣṇa in this episode?

Parāśara presents Pūtanā as a nocturnal, child-killing threat entering Gokula, emphasizing the vulnerability of the infant form—yet implicitly underscoring that the Lord’s avatāra remains sovereign over all dangers.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu (as Kṛṣṇa) in this context?

Kṛṣṇa’s infancy is not weakness but līlā: the Supreme Being descends among devotees, and even when approached with deceit, his divinity prevails, safeguarding dharma and revealing his unmatched lordship.