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He destroyed the Gandharas, van- quished the sons of Nagnajit, and released King Su-darsana, whom they had bound. He slew Paw6?ya with the fragment of a door, and crushed the Kalingas in Dantakfira. Through him the burnt city of Benares was restored. He killed Ekalavya, king of the Nishadas, and the demon Jambha. With the aid of Bala-rama he killed Su-naman, the wicked son of Ugrasena, and restored the kingdom to the latter. He conquered the flying city of Saubha and the king of the /S'alwas, and there he obtained the fiery weapon 5ata-glini. jS^araka, son of the earth, had carried off the beautiful jeweUed earrings of Aditi to Prag-jyotisha, the impregnable castle of the Asuras. The gods, headed by Indra, were unable to prevail against ISTaraka, so tliey appointed Kr/slma to slay him. Accordingly he killed KRISHNA. 163 Muru and the Eiiksliasa Ogha ; and finally lie slew Xaraka and brought back the earrings. It further appears in different parts of the Maha-bharata that K?'ish?ia, prince of Dwaraka, was present at the swayam-vara of Draupadi, and gave his judgment that she had been fairly won by Arjuna. While the PaWfiavas were reigning at Indra-prastha, he paid them a visit, and went out hunting with them in the 'KhmddiYdi forest. There he and Arjuna allied themselves with Agni, who was desirous of burninoj the Kha?ic?ava forest, but was prevented by Indra. Agni having secured the help of K?'ish?ia and Arjuna, he gave the former the celebrated chakra (discus) Vajra-nabha, and the club Kaumodakl. Then Indra was defeated and Agni burnt the forest. Arjuna afterwards visited K77sh'fta at Dwaraka, and was received with great demonstrations of joy. Arjuna, with the connivance of Knsh?ia, eloped with Su-bhadra, Iv7'ish7za's sister, much to the annoyance of Bala-rama, her elder brother. When Yudhi-sh/hira was desirous of performing the Raja-siiya sacrifice, Krishwa told him that he must first conquer Jara-sandha, king of Magadha. Jara-sandha was attacked and slain, and K?'ish?ia was thus revenged upon the enemy who had forced him to leave Mathura and emigrate to Dwaraka. KWsh?ia attended the Raja-siiya sacrifice performed by Yudlii-sh^hira, and there he met /Sisu-pala, whose betrothed wife he had carried off. /S'isu-pala reviled him and acted very violently, so Kr/sh?za cast his discus and cut off his enemy's head. He was present at the gambling match between Yudhi-sh/hira and the Kauravas. ^\Tien Draupadi had been staked and lost, she was dragged into the public hall by DuA- 5asana, who tore off her clothes, but KrishTia pitied her, and renewed her clothes as fast as they were torn away. After the close of the exile of the Pa?2^avas, K?'/shwa was present, and took part in the council which preceded the great war, and strongly advised a peaceful settlement. Then he returned to Dwaraka. Thither Arjuna and Dur-yodliana followed him with the object of enlisting his services in the coming w^ar, but he refused to take any active part because he was related to both parties. He gave them the choice of his personal attendance or of the use of his army. Arjuna, who had arrived first, and therefore had the first choice, asked for Kr/sh?2a himself, and Dur-yodhana joyfuUy accepted the army. K^ishwa then became the charioteer 1 64 KRISHNA, of Arjima. After this, at the request of the PawtZavas, he went in splendid state to Hastina-pnra as a mediator, but his efforts were unavailing, and he returned. Preparations for action were then made and the forces drawn out. On the eve. of the battle, while acting as Arjuna's charioteer, he is represented as relating to Arjuna the Bhagavad-gita or divine song. He rendered valuable services to Arjuna throughout the battle, but on two occasions he suggested unfair dealing. He prompted the lie by which Yudhi-shiShira broke down the prowess of Dro72a, and he suggested the foul blow by which Bhima shattered the thigh of Dur-yodhana. He afterwards went to Hastina-pura with the conquerors, and he also attended their Aswa-medha sacrifice. On returning to Dwaraka he issued a proclamation forbidding the use of wine. Portents and fearful signs appeared, and a general feehng of alarm spread among all in Dwaraka. K?'/sh??a gave directions that the inhabitants should go out to Prabhasa on the sea-shore and endeavour to propitiate the deity. He gave permission also that wine might be drunk for one day. A drunken brawl followed, in which his son Pradyumna was killed in his presence, and nearly all the chiefs of the Yadavas were slain. Bala-rama went out from the fray and died peace- fully under a tree, and K?'ishwa himself was killed unintention- ally by a hunter named Jaras, who shot him with an arrow, mistaking him at a distance for a deer. Arjuna proceeded to Dwaraka and performed the obsequies of Krish^ia. A few days afterwards the city was swallowed up by the sea. Five of K^'ishwa's widows were subsequently burnt upon a funeral pile in the plain of Kuru-kshetra. " Among the texts of the Maha-bharata," says Dr. ]\Iuir, " there are some in which K?'ish?za is distinctly subordinated to Maha-deva (*Siva), of whom he is exliibited as a worshipper, and from whom, as well as from his wife Uma, he is stated to have received a variety of boons. Even in these passages, however, a superhuman character is ascribed to K?*isli?2a." The popular history of Krishwa, especially of his childhood and youth, is given in the PuraTias, and is the subject of many a story. The Bhagavata Purawa is the great authority, and from that the following account is condensed : — The sage Narada had foretold to Kan^a that a son of Devaki, his brother's daughter, should destroy him and overthrow his KRISHNA. 165 kingdom. To obviate this danger, Kan^a kept his cousin Devaki confined in his own palace, and six children that she bore he caused to be put to death. She conceived a seventh time, but the child was an incarnation of Vish/m, and was miraculously preserved by being transferred from the womb of Devaki to that of Rohi?iI, Avho was Yasu-deva's second wife. This child was Bala-rama. Devaki again conceived, and her eighth child was born at midnight with a very dark skin, whence he was called Kr/sli?ia. He had a peculiar curl of hair, called sri-vatsa, upon his breast. The gods interposed to preserve the life of this divinely begotten child. The guards of the palace were over- powered with sleep, and bolts and barriers were removed. Vasu- deva took up the child and escaped with him from Mathura. He repaired to the bank of the Yamuna (Jumna), and, crossing the river, went to the house of IsTanda, a cowherd, whose wife, Yasoda, had on that very night been delivered of a female child. Yasu-deva secretly changed the infants, and carried back the daughter of Yasoda to his wife DevakL Kansa discovered that he had been cheated, and in his wrath he ordered that every male infant that gave signs of vigour should be put to death. Yasu-deva and Devaki, being no longer dangerous, were set at liberty. Nanda, alarmed by the order for the massacre, took the young child and removed with Yasoda and with Rohim and Bala-rama to Gokula. Here KrfshTia was brought up, and wan- dered about in company of his elder brother Bala-rama. They played many pranks and passed many practical jokes ; but they exhibited such marvellous strength and such godlike powers that they soon became famous. Kansa was continually forming schemes for the death of Iv?'/shwa. The female demon Piitana assumed a lovely form, and tried to kill him by suckling him, but the child sucked away her life. Another demon tried to drive a cart over him, but he dashed the cart to pieces. A demon named Tri?iavartta took the form of a whirlwind and flew off with him, but the child brought the demon to the ground with such violence that he died. One day K?7'sh?ia broke the vessels of milk and curds and ate the butter, which made Yasoda angr}^ She fastened a rope round his body, and tied him to a large bowl, but he dragged the bowl away till it caught between two trees and uprooted them. From this feat he got the name of Damodara (rope-belly). He had a terrible 1 66 KRISHNA. conflict with the great serpent Kaliya, who lived in the Yamuna, and he compelled him to go away. On one occasion, when the gopls or milkmaids were bathing, he took away all their clothes and climbed up a tree, and there he remained till the damsels came to him naked to recover them.