Shloka 39
Aghāsura-vadha: The Killing and Deliverance of Aghāsura
सकृद् यदङ्गप्रतिमान्तराहिता मनोमयी भागवतीं ददौ गतिम् । स एव नित्यात्मसुखानुभूत्यभि- व्युदस्तमायोऽन्तर्गतो हि किं पुन: ॥ ३९ ॥
sakṛd yad-aṅga-pratimāntar-āhitā manomayī bhāgavatīṁ dadau gatim sa eva nityātma-sukhānubhūty-abhi- vyudasta-māyo ’ntar-gato hi kiṁ punaḥ
たとえ一度きりでも――たとえ不本意であっても――至上人格神の御姿を心に思い浮かべれば、クリシュナの慈悲により最高の救いに至る。アガースラがそうであった。まして、主がアヴァターラとして現れその心に入られる者、あるいは万生の超越的歓喜の源であり幻力を完全に払う主の蓮華の御足を常に念ずる者については、言うまでもない。
The process for receiving the favor of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is described here. Yat-pāda-paṅkaja-palāśa-vilāsa-bhaktyā ( Bhāg. 4.22.39 ). Simply by thinking of Kṛṣṇa, one can attain Him very easily. Kṛṣṇa is also described as having His lotus feet always within the hearts of His devotees ( bhagavān bhakta-hṛdi sthitaḥ ). In the case of Aghāsura, one may argue that he was not a devotee. The answer to this is that he thought of Kṛṣṇa for a moment with devotion. Bhaktyāham ekayā grāhyaḥ. Without devotion, one cannot think of Kṛṣṇa; and, conversely, whenever one thinks of Kṛṣṇa, one undoubtedly has devotion. Although Aghāsura’s purpose was to kill Kṛṣṇa, for a moment Aghāsura thought of Kṛṣṇa with devotion, and Kṛṣṇa and His associates wanted to sport within Aghāsura’s mouth. Similarly, Pūtanā wanted to kill Kṛṣṇa by poisoning Him, but Kṛṣṇa took her as His mother because He had accepted the milk of her breast. Svalpam apy asya dharmasya trāyate mahato bhayāt ( Bg. 2.40 ). Especially when Kṛṣṇa appears as an avatāra, anyone who thinks of Kṛṣṇa in His different incarnations ( rāmādi-mūrtiṣu kalā-niyamena tiṣṭhan ), and especially in His original form as Kṛṣṇa, attains salvation. There are many instances of this, and among them is Aghāsura, who attained the salvation of sārūpya-mukti. Therefore the process is satataṁ kīrtayanto māṁ yatantaś ca dṛḍha-vratāḥ ( Bg. 9.14 ). Those who are devotees always engage in glorifying Kṛṣṇa. Advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam: when we speak of Kṛṣṇa, we refer to all His avatāras, such as Kṛṣṇa, Govinda, Nārāyaṇa, Viṣṇu, Lord Caitanya, Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma and Śyāmasundara. One who always thinks of Kṛṣṇa must attain vimukti, special salvation as the Lord’s personal associate, not necessarily in Vṛndāvana, but at least in Vaikuṇṭha. This is called sārūpya-mukti.
FAQs
This verse teaches that even a single encounter with the Lord’s divine, non-material reality can grant the highest destination; therefore, sustained absorption in Him is supremely purifying and liberating.
He highlights the Lord’s transcendence: Krishna is not conditioned by material illusion, but is eternally self-satisfied. This establishes why contact with Him liberates others and why those absorbed in Him become freed from māyā.
Make daily, intentional contact with Krishna through śravaṇa and kīrtana—hearing and chanting—because even brief, sincere remembrance can transform consciousness and weaken the grip of illusion.