Shloka 66
Parīkṣit’s Questions and the Prelude to Kṛṣṇa’s Advent
Earth’s Burden, Viṣṇu’s Order, and Kaṁsa’s Fear
ऋषेर्विनिर्गमे कंसो यदून् मत्वा सुरानिति । देवक्या गर्भसम्भूतं विष्णुं च स्ववधं प्रति ॥ ६५ ॥ देवकीं वसुदेवं च निगृह्य निगडैर्गृहे । जातं जातमहन् पुत्रं तयोरजनशङ्कया ॥ ६६ ॥
ṛṣer vinirgame kaṁso yadūn matvā surān iti devakyā garbha-sambhūtaṁ viṣṇuṁ ca sva-vadhaṁ prati
Selepas pemergian Resi Narada, Kamsa berfikir bahawa semua ahli dinasti Yadu adalah dewa dan mana-mana anak yang lahir dari rahim Devaki mungkin adalah Vishnu. Kerana takut akan kematiannya, Kamsa menangkap Vasudeva dan Devaki serta membelenggu mereka dengan rantai besi. Mengesyaki setiap anak sebagai Vishnu, Kamsa membunuh mereka satu demi satu kerana ramalan bahawa Vishnu akan membunuhnya.
Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, in his notes on this verse, has mentioned how Nārada Muni gave Kaṁsa this information. This incident is described in the Hari-vaṁśa. Nārada Muni went to see Kaṁsa by providence, and Kaṁsa received him very well. Nārada, therefore, informed him that any one of the sons of Devakī might be Viṣṇu. Because Viṣṇu was to kill him, Kaṁsa should not spare any of Devakī’s children, Nārada Muni advised. Nārada’s intention was that Kaṁsa, by killing the children, would increase his sinful activities so that Kṛṣṇa would soon appear to kill him. Upon receiving the instructions of Nārada Muni, Kaṁsa killed all the children of Devakī one after another.
FAQs
Because Nārada’s message intensified Kaṁsa’s fear, leading him to conclude that Viṣṇu would manifest through Devakī’s pregnancy and become the instrument of his death.
Śukadeva Gosvāmī is narrating these events to Mahārāja Parīkṣit.
Fear and suspicion distort perception and drive harmful actions; devotion and trust in dharma protect one from destructive choices.