Shloka 42
Chapter 90
सङ्ख्यानं यादवानां कः करिष्यति महात्मनाम् ।
यत्रायुतानाम् अयुत-लक्षेणास्ते स आहुकः ॥
saṅkhyānaṃ yādavānāṃ kaḥ kariṣyati mahātmanām / yatrāyutānām ayuta- lakṣeṇāste sa āhukaḥ //
ใครเล่าจะนับจำนวนเหล่ายาทวะผู้มีมหาจิตได้? ในหมู่เขานั้น แม้เพียงอาหุกะผู้เดียวก็มีหมู่ชนมากมาย นับเป็นหมื่นแล้วหมื่นเล่า
Having cited staggering figures, Śukadeva now underscores their immeasurability: the Yādavas were beyond ordinary calculation. The rhetorical question—“Who could count them?”—is a literary device to convey not merely quantity but greatness (mahātmanām). The mention of Āhuka indicates that even a single prominent member of the dynasty was surrounded by an enormous retinue, implying that Dvārakā’s population of royal descendants, attendants, and allied households was vast beyond normal census. Devotionally, the verse points to the opulence (aiśvarya) of Kṛṣṇa’s manifest pastimes: the Supreme Lord’s earthly līlā displays a kingdom overflowing with strength, prosperity, and protection. Yet the Bhāgavatam’s deeper thrust is not material grandeur for its own sake—it is to inspire remembrance of Kṛṣṇa as the source of all expansions and to show that His devotees and associates flourish under His shelter. Thus, the immeasurable Yādava assembly becomes a sign of divine arrangement, where dharma, prosperity, and devotion coexist in Kṛṣṇa-centered civilization.
FAQs
It says their number was practically uncountable, emphasizing that even one figure like Āhuka was accompanied by an immense multitude.
Āhuka is presented as a prominent Yādava elder/figure in the dynasty; his mention illustrates the vast scale of the Yādava community in Dvārakā.
It encourages seeing prosperity and organization as meaningful when centered on Kṛṣṇa—true greatness is measured not only by numbers, but by dharmic and devotional life.