Shloka 25
Svargārohaṇa-parva Adhyāya 5 — Karmaphala-Nirdeśa and Phalāśruti (कर्मफलनिर्देशः फलश्रुतिश्च)
वे जो नारायण नामसे प्रसिद्ध सनातन देवाधिदेव हैं उन्हींके अंश वसुदेवनन्दन श्रीकृष्ण थे, जो अवतारका कार्य पूरा करके पुन: अपने स्वरूपमें प्रविष्ट हो गये ।।
ṣoḍaśa strīsahasrāṇi vāsudevaparigrahaḥ | amajjantāḥ sarasvatyāṃ kālena janamejaya ||
Vaiśampāyana berkata: Wahai Janamejaya! Śrī Kṛṣṇa, putera Vasudeva—sebahagian daripada Nārāyaṇa, Dewa yang kekal dan Dewa di atas segala dewa—setelah menyempurnakan tugas penjelmaan-Nya, kembali masuk ke dalam wujud asal-Nya. Kemudian, menurut putaran Kala (waktu), enam belas ribu wanita yang pernah menjadi permaisuri Vāsudeva (Śrī Kṛṣṇa) pun terjun ke Sungai Sarasvatī dan menamatkan riwayat mereka.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the power of Kāla (time) and impermanence: once the divine mission is complete and the Lord withdraws, worldly bonds and supports dissolve, and human lives—overwhelmed by loss and circumstance—move toward an inevitable end. It frames the episode as part of cosmic closure rather than triumph or blame.
After Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s departure from the world, his sixteen thousand women (his household/consorts) later plunge into the Sarasvatī river and die. Vaiśampāyana narrates this to King Janamejaya as one of the final unravelings that follow the end of the Yādava era and the completion of Kṛṣṇa’s avatāra-work.