Srimad Bhagavatam
Canto Ten. Volume 5. Chapter 16
TRANSLATION AND PURPORT BY Mahamandaleshwar Mahant Sri Krsna Balaram Swamiji
Subduing the Kaliya serpent
Text 1
sri suka uvaca
vilokya dusitam krsnam
krsnah krsnahina vibhuh
tasya visuddhim anvicchan
sarpam tam udavasayat
Translation
Sri Sukadeva Goswami said, Lord Sri Krsna saw that the water of the Yamuna River was contaminated by the black cobra, Kaliya. Desiring to purify it, He drove the serpent out.
Purport
By telling the essence of Krsna's subduing the serpent Kaliya, Sri Sukadeva Goswami inspires King Pariksit to inquire about Lord Krsna's glories in detail. In this way Sukadeva Goswami has planted the seed of questioning in King Pariksit's heart. Krsna's narrations are so wonderful that they negate the poisonous effects of this material world. Krsna does not allow the spiritually dedicated soul to sip the poison of materialism. This is His glory.
The address Krsna, used in this text for Yamuna is defined in the Dharanikosa Dictionary thus: krsna syad draupadi nili kalindi maricesu ca, "The following are called by the name Krsna: Draupadi (the wife of Arjuna), a black bumble bee, the Yamuna River, and one of the Maricis." Furthermore, the Yamuna water is dark in color; that is why she is called Krsna. In the Visnu Purana she is called Yamuna Patarani or Yamuna Maharani, meaning Queen Yamuna. She is an eternal consort of Krsna and eternally flows in the capital city of the spiritual world. That is why she is so important. The Visnu Purana also states that taking a bath in the Yamuna is equal to taking one hundred baths in the Ganges. Krsna desired a bath and jumped in the Yamuna, whereas the Ganges is the water that washed the Lord's lotus feet. Therefore taking a bath in the Yamuna is far better than taking a bath in the Ganges. In the Dvaraka pastimes of Krsna she appears as Kalindi, which we shall discuss in later volumes of this Canto.
The black serpent Kaliya contaminated the water of the Yamuna. By Krsna tormenting and vanishing Kaliya, he cleans the Yamuna and benefits Kaliya, the serpent. By telling the essence of Krsna's subduing the serpent Kaliya, Sri Sukadeva Goswami inspires King Pariksit to inquire about Lord Krsna's glories in detail. In this way Sukadeva Goswami has planted the seed of further questioning in King Pariksit's heart. Krsna's narrations are so wonderful that they negate the poisonous effects of this material world. Krsna does not allow the spiritually dedicated soul to sip the poison of materialism. This is His glory.
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