Shloka 22
Yoga-māyā Appears as Durgā; Kaṁsa’s Repentance and the Demonic Policy of Persecuting Vaiṣṇavas
यावद्धतोऽस्मि हन्तास्मीत्यात्मानं मन्यतेऽस्वदृक् । तावत्तदभिमान्यज्ञो बाध्यबाधकतामियात् ॥ २२ ॥
yāvad dhato ’smi hantāsmī- ty ātmānaṁ manyate ’sva-dṛk tāvat tad-abhimāny ajño bādhya-bādhakatām iyāt
అజ్ఞానాంధకారంలో దేహాత్మబుద్ధితో ‘నేను చంపబడుతున్నాను’ లేదా ‘నేను చంపాను’ అని భావించినంతకాలం, అతడు తనను బంధితుడూ బంధకుడూ అనుకొని కర్మబంధంలో ఉండి సుఖదుఃఖ ఫలితాలను అనుభవిస్తాడు।
By the grace of the Lord, Kaṁsa felt sincere regret for having unnecessarily persecuted such Vaiṣṇavas as Devakī and Vasudeva, and thus he came to the transcendental stage of knowledge. “Because I am situated on the platform of knowledge,” Kaṁsa said, “understanding that I am not at all the killer of your sons, I have no responsibility for their death. As long as I thought that I would be killed by your son, I was in ignorance, but now I am free from this ignorance, which was due to a bodily conception of life.” As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (18.17) :
FAQs
This verse says such identification is ignorance born of false ego; as long as one clings to it, one repeatedly experiences the dual roles of oppressor and oppressed.
In the narrative around Kaṁsa’s cruelty and fear, Śukadeva highlights the deeper cause of violence and suffering—misidentification with the body and doership—so the listener understands the spiritual root of bondage.
Practice seeing yourself and others as souls rather than labels of “victim” or “enemy,” reduce reactive blame and pride, and cultivate devotion and self-knowledge to step out of cycles of conflict.