Shloka 23
Kṛṣṇa Leads Kālayavana to Mucukunda; The Yavana Is Burned; Mucukunda’s Prayers and Boon of Bhakti
तमालोक्य घनश्यामं पीतकौशेयवाससम् । श्रीवत्सवक्षसं भ्राजत्कौस्तुभेन विराजितम् ॥ २३ ॥ चतुर्भुजं रोचमानं वैजयन्त्या च मालया । चारुप्रसन्नवदनं स्फुरन्मकरकुण्डलम् ॥ २४ ॥ प्रेक्षणीयं नृलोकस्य सानुरागस्मितेक्षणम् । अपीव्यवयसं मत्तमृगेन्द्रोदारविक्रमम् ॥ २५ ॥ पर्यपृच्छन्महाबुद्धिस्तेजसा तस्य धर्षित: । शङ्कित: शनकै राजा दुर्धर्षमिव तेजसा ॥ २६ ॥
tam ālokya ghana-śyāmaṁ pīta-kauśeya-vāsasam śrīvatsa-vakṣasaṁ bhrājat kaustubhena virājitam
En Le contemplant, le roi vit le Seigneur, sombrement bleu comme un nuage, vêtu de soie jaune; sur Sa poitrine brillait la marque du Śrīvatsa et, à Son cou, resplendissait le joyau Kaustubha. Pourvu de quatre bras, orné de la guirlande Vaijayantī, Il montrait un visage beau et paisible, des boucles d’oreilles en forme de makara étincelantes, et un regard souriant, plein d’affection, qui captive les hommes. Sa jeunesse était sans égale, et Sa démarche, noble comme celle d’un lion courroucé, révélait une splendeur invincible. Accablé par cet éclat et encore hésitant, le très sage Mucukunda interrogea doucement Śrī Kṛṣṇa.
It is significant that text 24 states, catur-bhujaṁ rocamānam: “The Lord was seen in the beauty of His four-armed form.” Throughout this great work, we find Lord Kṛṣṇa manifesting His various transcendental forms, most prominently the two-armed form of Kṛṣṇa and the four-armed form of Nārāyaṇa or Viṣṇu. Thus there is no doubt that Kṛṣṇa and Viṣṇu are nondifferent, or that Kṛṣṇa is the original form of the Lord. These things are sometimes misunderstood, but the great ācāryas, experts in spiritual science, have clarified the matter for us. God in His original form is not merely the creator, maintainer and destroyer, or the punisher of conditioned souls, but rather the infinitely beautiful Godhead, enjoying in His own right, in His own abode. This is the form of Kṛṣṇa, the same Kṛṣṇa who expands Himself into Viṣṇu forms for the maintenance of our bumbling world.
FAQs
This verse describes Kṛṣṇa’s dark-blue complexion, yellow silk garments, Śrīvatsa mark, and Kaustubha jewel—classic signs of the Supreme Lord’s transcendental form.
These are traditional divine identifiers (lakṣaṇas) of Nārāyaṇa/Kṛṣṇa, emphasizing that the person Mucukunda sees is the Supreme Lord, not an ordinary hero.
Regular remembrance of the Lord’s divine features strengthens bhakti and steadies the mind toward purity and surrender.