Vishnu Sahasranāma | Verses 31-40

Text 31

Lord Kṛṣṇa is the father of the moon, (amṛtāṁśūdbhava) and He is very powerful and splendid (bhānu). He defeats the atheists (sasabindu) and He is Śrīman Nārāyaṇa, understood by the theists (sureśvara).

Devotional service to Him is the nectar-medicine that counteracts the poisonous snake-bite of material existence (auṣadhaṁ). He is the enemy of the demons (jagataḥ setuḥ). He defeats the impersonalists and establishes the actual truth of spiritual variety (satya-dharma-parākrama).

Note:

Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa quotes the following description of the name amṛtāṁśūdbhava found in the Śruti-śāstra:

candramā manaso jātaḥ

"The moon is born from the mind of Śrīman Nārāyaṇa."

Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa explains that the name śaśabindu begins the list of the names of the Lord's incarnation as Dattātreya.

Text 32

In all three phases time: past, present and future, Lord Kṛṣṇa is eternally the supreme master of all living entities (bhūta-bhavya-bhavan-nātha).

He rescues the living entities from material existence with His merciful sidelong glance (pavana) and He purifies the devotees (pavana). He appears in many forms to protect the devotees (anala).

He tears into pieces the material desires of His devotees (kāmahā and kāma-kṛt). He is the supreme handsomeness and the object of the aspirations of the saintly Paramahaṁsas (kānta).

He is the source of all that is desirable, even for the Buddhists and other bewildered living beings, (kāma) and it is He who grants sense gratification, liberation or whatever is desired by the conditioned souls (kāma-prada). He is omnipotent (prabhu).

Text 33

Lord Kṛṣṇa begins the four yugas by His appearance as the yuga-avatāra (yugādi-kṛt). He causes the succession of four yugas (yugāvarta).

He preaches the specific processes of spiritual realization intended for each yuga (naika-māyā), and He is full of transcendental knowledge, opulences and renunciation (mahāśana).

He is invisible to the uncivilized and demonic (adṛśya) and His form in unlimited (vyakta-rūpa). He defeats thousands of uncivilized atheists (sahasra-jit). He defeats unlimited numbers of atheists (ananta-jit).

Note:

Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa observes that the first four names in this verse describe the Lord's yuga-avatāras. The names of Lord Kalki are given in the next series of four names, which begin with adṛśya.

Text 34

Lord Kṛṣṇa is worshiped and glorified by Brahmā, Śiva, and all devas and saintly persons (iṣṭa).

Holding the Sudarśana-cakra, club, lotus and conch, and decorated with the Kaustubha jewel and other ornaments, He is splendidly manifest in the city of Mathurā (Viśiṣṭa).

He is worshiped by them who know the purpose of the Vedas (śiṣṭeṣṭa). In His Vṛndāvana pastimes He is crowned with a peacock feather (śikhaṇḍī).

His handsomeness enchanted the minds of the residents of Vrājabhūmi (nahuṣa) and He showered upon them a nectar rain of transcendental bliss and pure love of God (vṛṣa).

When, hearing the description of His naughty childhood pranks, Mother Yaśodā became angry, He pacified Her with sweet words (krodhahā), but when she interrupted feeding Him to tend to the overflowing pot of boiling milk, He became angry and broke the butter-pot (krodha-kṛt).

He killed the host of demons sent to Vṛndāvana by Kamsa (kartā), and He protects the entire universe with His powerful arms (viśva-bāhu).

He lifted Govardhana Hill to protect the residents of Vrājabhūmi (mahī-dhara).

Note:

Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa quotes the following description of the name Viśiṣṭa, found in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.3.9):

tam adbhutaṁ bālakam ambujekṣaṇaṁ
catur-bhujaṁ śaṅkha-gadādy-udāyudham
śrīvatsa-lakṣmaṁ gala-śobhi-kaustubhaṁ
pītāmbaraṁ sāndra-payoda-saubhagam

"Lord Kṛṣṇa then appeared in Mathurā
as the new-born child of Vāsudeva and Devakī.
Lord Kṛṣṇa had wonderful lotus-like eyes
and He bore in His hands the four weapons,
Śankha, cakra, gadā and padma.

On His chest was the mark of Śrīvatsa
and on His neck the brilliant Kaustubha gem.
He was dressed in yellow,
and His body was blackish like a dense cloud."

The following description of krodhaḥ is found in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.8.31):

itthaṁ strībhiḥ sa-bhaya-nayana-śrī-mukhālokinībhir
vyākhyātārthā prahasita-mukhī na hy upālabdhum aicchat

"Sometimes all the gopīs would look at Kṛṣṇa sitting there,
His eyes fearful so that His mother would not chastise Him,
and when they saw Kṛṣṇa's beautiful face, instead of chastising Him,
they would simply look upon His face and enjoy transcendental bliss.
Mother Yaśodā would mildly smile at all this fun,
and she would not want to chastise her blessed transcendental son."

The following description of the name krodha-kṛt is found in the Śrīmad- Bhāgavatam (10.9.6):

sañjāta-kopaḥ sphuritāruṇādharaṁ
sandaśya dadbhir dadhi-mantha-bhājanam
bhittvā mṛṣāśrur dṛṣad-aśmanā raho
jaghāsa haiyaṅgavam antaraṁ gataḥ

"Being very angry, and biting His reddish lips with His teeth,
Kṛṣṇa, with false tears in His eyes,
broke the container of yogurt with a piece of stone.
Then He entered a room and began to eat
the freshly churned butter in a solitary place."

Text 35

Lord Kṛṣṇa is eternal and unchanging, and He is the protector of the residents of Vraja (Acyuta).

He is famous in Vrājabhūmi and the entire universe (prathita). He is the object of the pure love of the residents of Vraja (prāṇa) and He is the source of their strength and their very life (prāṇada).

Even though Indra offended Him by trying to flood Vṛndāvana with rain, Kṛṣṇa kindly appeared before him (vāsavānuja). After He had forgiven Indra's offenses, Kṛṣṇa was bathed with the milk of the Surabhī cows, who thus proclaimed that Lord Kṛṣṇa was their Indra (apāṁ-nidhi).

Lord Kṛṣṇa is personally manifest as the transcendental abode of Māthura and the other places where He performed pastimes (adhiṣṭhānam).

He protects the residents of Vrājabhūmi with great care and attention (apramatta), and he is respected by all the cowherd men because He is the son of Nanda Mahārāja, the king of Vraja (pratiṣṭhita).

Note:

Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa quotes King Indra's explanation of the name apāṁ-nidhi:

aham kilendro devānām
tvam gavām indratām gataḥ

"Although I am the Indra who rules over devas
you are the Indra of these transcendental Surabhī cows."

Śukadeva Gosvāmī also confirms:

indro gavām

"Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Indra of the transcendental Surabhī cows."

The name adhiṣṭhānam is described in the Śruti-mantra:

sākṣād brahma gopāla-purī

"The transcendental abode of Mathura is a direct incarnation
of Śrīman Nārāyaṇa Himself."

The Smṛti-śāstra further explains:

pañca-yojanam evāsti
vanam me deha-rūpakam

“The transcendental land of Vṛndāvana, which is five yojanas in area,
is a direct manifestation of My own transcendental form."

In the Vedic literatures, Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself explains the name apramatta:

tasmān mac-charaṇam goṣṭhaṁ
man-nātham mat-parigraham
gopāya svātma-yogena
so 'yam me vrata āhitaḥ

"I vow that with My own internal potency
I shall always protect the cows,
cowherd men and gopīs who reside in Vṛndāvana
and who have all taken shelter of Me and depend upon Me.
I vow that I shall always protect my dear parents
and my relatives and friends who reside here."

Text 36

Lord Kṛṣṇa causes Kamsa's demon friends to wither away (Skanda), and at the same time He grants strength to Kārtikeya, the general of deva armies (Skanda-dhāra).

It is upon Him that the burden of all the universes rests (dhurya), and He grants the benedictions desired by the florist Sudāmā and all other devotees (Varadā).

He is the source of life for all living entities, and His chariot moves more swiftly than the wind (Vāyu-vāhana). He is the splendid and effulgent (bṛhad-bhānu) son of King Vasudeva (Vāsudeva).

He is the original source of all devas (ādi-deva) and he is the destroyer of the demons (purandara).

Lord Kṛṣṇa explains the meaning of the name devādi in the Bhagavad-gītā (10.2):

aham ādir hi devānāṁ

"I am the source of devas."

Text 37

Lord Kṛṣṇa removed the lamentation of the earth (Aśoka) and also removed the fear inspired in the hearts of the devotees by demonic rulers who were actually only thieves disguised as kings (tāraṇa).

He removes the devotee's fear of repeated birth, old-age, disease and death (tāra).

He is very powerful and heroic (sura) and He appeared in the dynasty of the great devotee and powerful King Devamīḍa (śauri).

He is the king that ruled over the citizens of Mathura, delighting them with great transcendental bliss, and He is also the supreme ruler of all living entities in both the spiritual and material worlds (janeśvara).

He is the kind well- wisher of the residents of Mathura, and all other living entities also (anukula), and His transcendental opulence and prowess bewilder both the demons, headed by Kamsa, and also the devotees, headed by Nārada (śatāvarta).

He playfully holds a lotus flower (padmī), His eyes are as beautiful as lotus flowers, and He resides in His eternal abode of Gokula, which appears like a great lotus flower (padma-nibhekṣaṇa).

Note:

Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa explains that the name Padmī has another meaning which is very confidential. Padmī may mean:

"Lord Kṛṣṇa who appears like a blue lotus flower and who is accompanied by Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, who appears like a golden lotus flower which grows in the waters of pure love of Godhead.

Those two lotus flowers are surrounded by innumerable other lotus flowers, which are the gopis, who are all expansions of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī."

The transcendental abode of Gokula (padma-nibhekṣaṇa) is described in the following verse from the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.2):

sahasra-patram kamalam
gokulākhyam mahat padam
tat-karṇikāram tad dhāma
tad anantāṁśa-saṁbhavam

"The super-excellent station of Kṛṣṇa, which is known as Gokula,
has thousands of petals and a corolla like that of a lotus
sprouted from a part of His infinite aspect,
the whorl of the leaves being the actual abode of Kṛṣṇa."

Text 38

Lord Kṛṣṇa's navel is like a lake from which has sprouted the lotus flower that is the place of Brahma's birth (padma-nābha). Lord Kṛṣṇa's eyes are like fully- blossom lotus flowers (aravindākṣa).

He always stands in the lotus-like hearts of the gopis and other intimate devotees (padma-garbha), and He always protects the devotees who meditate upon Him seated within their lotus-hearts (śarīra-bhṛt).

He is full of all transcendental opulences (mahardhi), and He is endowed with omniscience and other similar transcendental powers and qualities (ṛddha).

He pervades the universes and enjoys innumerable transcendental pastimes (vṛddhātmā).

His handsome eyes are very large, and His transcendental form cannot be understood with the limited material senses (mahākṣa).

He carries a flag marked with the emblem of Garuda (Garuḍa-dhvaja).

Note:

Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa quotes Lord Kṛṣṇa's own description of the name śarīra-bhṛt, found in the Smṛti-śāstra:

darśana-dhyāna-samsparśair
matsya-kūrma-vihaṅgamāḥ
svāny apatyāni puṣṇānti
tathāham api padmaja

"By vision, by meditation and by touch only
do the fish, the tortoise and the birds maintain their offspring.
Similarly do I also, O Padmaja."

Text 39

Lord Kṛṣṇa's transcendental form cannot be compared to anything else (atula). He is like a ferocious Śarabha beast that destroys the demons (śarabha).

Although His ferocity strikes fear into the demons' hearts, He nevertheless liberates those demons who have the good fortune to be killed by Him (Bhīmā).

Understanding the devotion borne for Him by His servants, at the appropriate time He gives them the transcendental result earned by their efforts (samayajña).

Situated as the Super-soul within the hearts of His representatives, devas, He personally accepts the clarified butter offered to them in the performance of Vedic sacrifices (havir-hari).

He is endowed with the 32 auspicious signs of a great personality, and all other auspicious characteristics as well (sarva-lakṣaṇa-lakṣaṇya), and when he appears in His original form as Kṛṣṇa in Gokula, He is endowed with all transcendental handsomeness and opulence (lakṣmīvān).

He is always victorious in battle (samitiñjaya).

Note:

Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa quotes the description of the name atula found in the Śruti-mantra:

na tasya pratimā

"Nothing can compare with the transcendental form
of Śrīman Nārāyaṇa."

Text 40

Lord Kṛṣṇa is always affectionate to those who take shelter of Him (vikṣara), and He becomes angry at those who try to harm those who take shelter of Him (rohita).

Inspired by His ever fresh transcendental qualities, the devotees always search for Him, and He also reveals the path of spiritual enlightenment to His devotees (mārga). He inspires great love in the hearts of His devotees, and He is also the origin of everything (hetu).

He allowed His waist to be tied by Mother Yaśodā’s rope (Dāmodara), and He patiently tolerated Mother Yaśodā’s chastisement of Him, which was inspired by pure parental love (saha).

His birthday occasioned a great celebration in Gokula, where His transcendental names, pastimes, and qualities were all glorified (mahi-dhāra). Devotional service to Him is the best of all spiritual activities (mahā-bhāga).

He can run faster than anyone, and is thus always ahead of everyone else, and He also runs quickly as He enthusiastically plays with His friends, the sons of the cowherd men of Gokula (vegavān).

He assumed a giant form and ate the innumerable cakes, condensed- milk products and other palatable foods offered to Govardhana Hill by the cowherd men (amitāśana).

Note:

Śrīla Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa quotes the following explanation of the name Dāmodara, found in the Smṛti-śāstra:

te naiva nāmnātra
kṛṣṇo vai dāma-bandhanāt
goṣṭhe dāmodara iti
gopībhiḥ parigīyate

"Instead of calling Yaśodā’s son Kṛṣṇa,
the gopis in Vraja have taken to calling Him Dāmodara,
because His mother bound Him about the waist with a rope."