Shloka 3
Aghāsura-vadha: The Killing and Deliverance of Aghāsura
कृष्णवत्सैरसङ्ख्यातैर्यूथीकृत्य स्ववत्सकान् । चारयन्तोऽर्भलीलाभिर्विजह्रुस्तत्र तत्र ह ॥ ३ ॥
kṛṣṇa-vatsair asaṅkhyātair yūthī-kṛtya sva-vatsakān cārayanto ’rbha-līlābhir vijahrus tatra tatra ha
कृष्णोऽसङ्ख्यातवत्सैः सह गोपवत्सैश्च स्ववत्सकान् यूथीकृत्य तत्र तत्र वनेऽर्भलीलाभिर्विजह्रुः।
In this verse the words kṛṣṇa-vatsair asaṅkhyātaiḥ are significant. The word asaṅkhyāta means “unlimited.” Kṛṣṇa’s calves were unlimited. We may speak of hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions, billions, trillions, tens of trillions, and so on, but when we go further to speak of numbers impossible for us to count, we are speaking of unlimited numbers. Such unlimited numbers are indicated here by the word asaṅkhyātaiḥ. Kṛṣṇa is unlimited, His potency is unlimited, His cows and calves are unlimited, and His space is unlimited. Therefore He is described in Bhagavad-gītā as Parabrahman. The word brahman means “unlimited,” and Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Unlimited, Parabrahman. Therefore, we should not consider the statements of this verse to be mythological. They are factual, but inconceivable. Kṛṣṇa can accommodate an unlimited number of calves and an unlimited measurement of space. This is neither mythological nor false, but if we study Kṛṣṇa’s potency with our limited knowledge, that potency will never be possible to understand. Ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṇa-nāmādi na bhaved grāhyam indriyaiḥ ( Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 1.2.109). Our senses cannot perceive how He could keep an unlimited number of calves and cows and have unlimited space in which to do so. But this is answered in the Bṛhad-bhāgavatāmṛta:
FAQs
This verse depicts Kṛṣṇa and the cowherd boys herding calves and joyfully playing throughout the forest, showing the sweetness of Kṛṣṇa’s humanlike childhood pastimes that nourish loving devotion.
The verse notes countless “kṛṣṇa-vatsas”—dark-hued calves—creating a vivid Vraja scene and emphasizing how Kṛṣṇa’s presence naturally colors and fills the entire pastureland atmosphere of His līlā.
By remembering Kṛṣṇa’s simple, joyful līlā and cultivating childlike sincerity in devotion—bringing the mind back to Kṛṣṇa through daily remembrance, kīrtana, and seeing spiritual meaning in ordinary duties.