Previous Verse
Next Verse

Shloka 9

Garga Muni Names Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma; the Butter-Thief Pastimes; Yaśodā Sees the Universe in Kṛṣṇa’s Mouth

कंस: पापमति: सख्यं तव चानकदुन्दुभे: । देवक्या अष्टमो गर्भो न स्त्री भवितुमर्हति ॥ ८ ॥ इति सञ्चिन्तयञ्छ्रुत्वा देवक्या दारिकावच: । अपि हन्ता गताशङ्कस्तर्हि तन्नोऽनयो भवेत् ॥ ९ ॥

kaṁsaḥ pāpa-matiḥ sakhyaṁ tava cānakadundubheḥ devakyā aṣṭamo garbho na strī bhavitum arhati

കംസൻ പാപബുദ്ധിയുള്ളവനും കൂറ്റനീതിയിൽ ചതുരനും ആണ്. നിനക്ക് വസുദേവൻ (ആനകദുന്ദുഭി) എന്നവനോടുള്ള സൗഹൃദവും, ദേവകിയുടെ എട്ടാം ഗർഭം സ്ത്രീയായിരിക്കുവാൻ അർഹമല്ല എന്നതും—ഇവയെല്ലാം അവൻ കൂട്ടിച്ചിന്തിക്കും. ദേവകിയുടെ മകളായ യോഗമായയുടെ വാക്കുകളിൽ നിന്ന് ‘എന്നെ കൊല്ലുന്നവൻ മറ്റെവിടെയോ ജനിച്ചു’ എന്ന് അവൻ കേട്ടിട്ടുണ്ട്; ഇനി ഞാൻ സംസ്കാരം ചെയ്തതായി കേട്ടാൽ, അവൻ സംശയിച്ച് കൃഷ്ണനെ ദേവകീ-വസുദേവരുടെ പുത്രനെന്ന് കരുതി കൊല്ലാൻ ശ്രമിക്കും—അത് നമുക്കു മഹാ അനർത്ഥം.

kaṁsaḥKaṁsa
kaṁsaḥ:
Karta (कर्ता)
TypeNoun
Rootkaṁsa (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
pāpa-matiḥwicked-minded
pāpa-matiḥ:
Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
TypeNoun
Rootpāpa (प्रातिपदिक) + mati (प्रातिपदिक)
FormFeminine, Nominative, Singular; epithet
sakhyamfriendship
sakhyam:
Karma (कर्म)
TypeNoun
Rootsakhya (प्रातिपदिक)
FormNeuter, Accusative, Singular
tavayour
tava:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
TypeNoun
Rootyusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
FormGenitive, Singular
caand
ca:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootca (अव्यय)
FormConjunction (समुच्चय)
ānakadundubheḥO Ānakadundubhi
ānakadundubheḥ:
Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
TypeNoun
Rootānakadundubhi (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine, Genitive, Singular; used in address (संबोधनार्थे)
devakyāḥof Devakī
devakyāḥ:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
TypeNoun
Rootdevakī (प्रातिपदिक)
FormFeminine, Genitive, Singular
aṣṭamaḥeighth
aṣṭamaḥ:
Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
TypeAdjective
Rootaṣṭama (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
garbhaḥwomb-child
garbhaḥ:
Karta (कर्ता)
TypeNoun
Rootgarbha (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
nanot
na:
Pratiṣedha (प्रतिषेध)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootna (अव्यय)
FormNegation particle (निषेध)
strīa woman
strī:
Pradhāna (प्रधान/विधेय)
TypeNoun
Rootstrī (प्रातिपदिक)
FormFeminine, Nominative, Singular; predicate
bhavitumto become
bhavitum:
Prayojana (प्रयोजन)
TypeVerb
Root√bhū (धातु) + tumun (तुमुन्)
FormInfinitive (तुमुनन्त)
arhatiis fit
arhati:
Kriyā (क्रिया)
TypeVerb
Root√arh (धातु)
FormPresent (लट्), Parasmaipada, 3rd person, Singular
itithus
iti:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootiti (अव्यय)
FormQuotative particle (इति-निपात)
sañcintayanthinking; pondering
sañcintayan:
Karta (कर्ता)
TypeVerb
Rootsam-√cint (धातु) + śatṛ (शतृ)
FormPresent active participle (वर्तमानकृदन्त/शतृ), Masculine, Nominative, Singular; agreeing with implied subject (Kaṁsaḥ)
śrutvāhaving heard
śrutvā:
Pūrvakāla (पूर्वकाल)
TypeVerb
Root√śru (धातु) + ktvā (क्त्वा)
FormAbsolutive/gerund (क्त्वान्त), indicating prior action
devakyāḥof Devakī
devakyāḥ:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
TypeNoun
Rootdevakī (प्रातिपदिक)
FormFeminine, Genitive, Singular
dārikā-vacaḥthe girl’s words
dārikā-vacaḥ:
Karma (कर्म)
TypeNoun
Rootdārikā (प्रातिपदिक) + vacas (प्रातिपदिक)
FormNeuter (vacas), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘words of the girl’
apieven; perhaps
api:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootapi (अव्यय)
FormParticle (निपात), concessive/emphatic
hantāthe killer
hantā:
Karta (कर्ता)
TypeNoun
Roothantṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular; agent noun ‘killer’
gata-śaṅkaḥfree from doubt
gata-śaṅkaḥ:
Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
TypeAdjective
Rootgata (√gam+kta) + śaṅkā (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular; बहुव्रीहि: ‘one whose doubt has gone’
tarhithen
tarhi:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
TypeIndeclinable
Roottarhi (अव्यय)
FormAvyaya; temporal/consequential adverb (तर्हि)
tatthat (result)
tat:
Karta (कर्ता)
TypeNoun
Roottad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
FormNeuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular; here Nominative as subject of bhavet
naḥfor us; our
naḥ:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
TypeNoun
Rootasmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
FormPronoun, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Plural; enclitic
anayoḥof these two
anayoḥ:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
TypeNoun
Rootidam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine, Genitive, Dual; ‘of these two’
bhavetmight be; would occur
bhavet:
Kriyā (क्रिया)
TypeVerb
Root√bhū (धातु)
FormOptative (विधिलिङ्), Parasmaipada, 3rd person, Singular

Kaṁsa knew very well that Yoga-māyā was, after all, the maidservant of Kṛṣṇa and Viṣṇu and that although Yoga-māyā had appeared as the daughter of Devakī, she might have been forbidden to disclose this fact. Actually this was what had happened. Garga Muni argued very soberly that his taking part in performing the reformatory process for Kṛṣṇa would give rise to many doubts, so that Kaṁsa might take very severe steps to kill the child. Kaṁsa had already sent many demons to attempt to kill this child, but none of them had survived. If Garga Muni were to perform the purificatory process, Kaṁsa’s suspicions would be fully confirmed, and he would take very severe steps. Garga Muni gave this warning to Nanda Mahārāja.

K
Kaṁsa
V
Vasudeva (Ānakadundubhi)
D
Devakī

FAQs

This verse shows Kaṁsa’s sinful, suspicious mind: even after seeing a baby girl, he reasons that Devakī’s eighth child “cannot be a girl,” revealing how fear and adharma distort judgment.

Because he was obsessed with the prophecy that Devakī’s eighth child would kill him; his fixation made him distrust the obvious and suspect that the real danger had been hidden from him.

Unchecked fear and wrongdoing create paranoia and poor decisions; cultivating dharma and devotion steadies the mind and reduces destructive suspicion.