Shloka 38
Kāliya-damana: Kṛṣṇa Subdues the Serpent and Purifies the Yamunā
तदेष नाथाप दुरापमन्यै- स्तमोजनि: क्रोधवशोऽप्यहीश: । संसारचक्रे भ्रमत: शरीरिणो यदिच्छत: स्याद् विभव: समक्ष: ॥ ३८ ॥
tad eṣa nāthāpa durāpam anyais tamo-janiḥ krodha-vaśo ’py ahīśaḥ saṁsāra-cakre bhramataḥ śarīriṇo yad-icchataḥ syād vibhavaḥ samakṣaḥ
噢主啊，虽说迦利耶这蛇王生于无明之暗、又为嗔怒所制，却得到了他人难得之成就。欲望充满而在生死轮回中漂转的有身众生，只要蒙受你莲花足下尘埃，一切福佑便可在眼前显现。
It is very rare for a conditioned soul to free himself from the contamination of illusion and thus become established in perfect consciousness of the Absolute Truth. And yet this benediction was achieved by the serpent Kāliya because the Lord personally danced upon the serpent’s hoods with His lotus feet. Although we conditioned souls may not receive the mercy of having the Lord dance on our head, we can receive the dust of the lotus feet of the Absolute through the Lord’s representative, the bona fide spiritual master, and thus go back home, back to Godhead, forever freed from the misery and ignorance of the mundane universe.
FAQs
This verse teaches that even Kāliya—angry and “born of darkness”—received rare fortune because Kṛṣṇa’s mercy can become directly manifest to any embodied soul who genuinely turns toward Him.
They pleaded for Kāliya’s protection and acknowledged that his contact with Kṛṣṇa was an extraordinary blessing, highlighting Kṛṣṇa’s compassion even toward the undeserving.
Instead of despairing over past faults, cultivate sincere desire for Kṛṣṇa through prayer, humility, and devotion—trusting that grace can appear even in difficult circumstances.