CHAPTER SIXTY-SEVEN
Lord Balarāma Slays Dvivida Gorilla
This chapter describes how Lord Baladeva enjoyed the company of the young girls of Vraja on Raivataka Mountain and killed the ape Dvivida there.
Narakāsura, a demon whom Lord Kṛṣṇa killed, had a friend named Dvivida, an ape. Dvivida wanted to avenge the death of his friend, so he set fire to the homes of the cowherds, devastated Lord Kṛṣṇa’s province of Ānarta and flooded coastal lands by churning the ocean’s water with his mighty arms. The rascal then tore down the trees in the āśramas of great sages and even passed stool and urine on their sacrificial fires. He kidnapped men and women and imprisoned them in mountain caves, which he sealed off with boulders. After thus disrupting the entire land and polluting many young women of respectable families, Dvivida came upon Raivataka Mountain, where he found Lord Baladeva enjoying in the company of a bevy of attractive women. Ignoring Lord Baladeva, who was apparently intoxicated from drinking vāruṇī liquor, Dvivida displayed his anus to the women right in front of the Lord and further insulted them by making crude gestures with his eyebrows and passing stool and urine.
Dvivida’s outrageous behavior angered Lord Baladeva, and He threw a stone at the ape. But Dvivida managed to dodge it. He then ridiculed Lord Baladeva and tugged at the women’s dresses. Seeing this audacity, Lord Baladeva decided to kill Dvivida. Thus He took up His club and His plow weapon. Powerful Dvivida then armed himself by pulling up a śāla tree from the ground, and with this tree he struck the Lord on the head. Lord Baladeva, however, remained unmoved and smashed the tree trunk to pieces. Dvivida uprooted another tree, and yet another and another, until the forest was denuded. But although he struck Baladeva on the head with one tree after another, the Lord simply broke all the trees to pieces. Then the foolish ape started throwing a barrage of stones. Lord Baladeva crushed them all to powder, after which Dvivida charged the Lord and hit Him on the chest with his fists, infuriating Him. Putting aside His club and plow weapons, Lord Balarāma then struck Dvivida’s throat and shoulder, at which point the ape vomited blood and fell down dead.
Having killed Dvivida, Lord Baladeva set off for Dvārakā as demigods and sages showered flowers from the sky and offered Him praises, prayers and obeisances.
Devanagari
भुयोऽहं श्रोतुमिच्छामि रामस्याद्भुतकर्मण: ।
अनन्तस्याप्रमेयस्य यदन्यत् कृतवान् प्रभु: ॥ १ ॥
Text
bhuyo ’haṁ śrotum icchāmi
rāmasyādbhuta-karmaṇaḥ
anantasyāprameyasya
yad anyat kṛtavān prabhuḥ
Synonyms
śrī-rājā — the glorious King (Parīkṣit); uvāca — said; bhūyaḥ — further; aham — I; śrotum — to hear; icchāmi — wish; rāmasya — of Lord Balarāma; adbhuta — amazing; karmaṇaḥ — whose activities; anantasya — unlimited; aprameyasya — immeasurable; yat — what; anyat — else; kṛtavān — did; prabhuḥ — the Lord.
Translation
The glorious King Parīkṣit said: I wish to hear further about Śrī Balarāma, the unlimited and immeasurable Supreme Lord, whose activities are all astounding. What else did He do?
Devanagari
नरकस्य सखा कश्चिद् द्विविदो नाम वानर: ।
सुग्रीवसचिव: सोऽथ भ्राता मैन्दस्य वीर्यवान् ॥ २ ॥
Text
narakasya sakhā kaścid
dvivido nāma vānaraḥ
sugrīva-sacivaḥ so ’tha
bhrātā maindasya vīryavān
Synonyms
śrī-śukaḥ uvāca — Śukadeva Gosvāmī said; narakasya — of the demon Naraka; sakhā — friend; kaścit — a certain; dvividaḥ — Dvivida; nāma — by name; vānaraḥ — an ape; sugrīva — King Sugrīva; sacivaḥ — whose adviser; saḥ — he; atha — also; bhrātā — the brother; maindasya — of Mainda; vīrya-vān — powerful.
Translation
Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: There was an ape named Dvivida who was a friend of Narakāsura’s. This powerful Dvivida, the brother of Mainda, had been instructed by King Sugrīva.
Purport
Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī points out some interesting facts about the ape Dvivida. Although Dvivida was an associate of Lord Rāmacandra’s, he later became corrupted by bad association with the demon Naraka, as stated here: narakasya sakhā. This bad association was the reaction for an offense Dvivida had committed when, being proud of his strength, he disrespected Lord Rāmacandra’s brother Lakṣmaṇa and others. Those who worship Lord Rāmacandra sometimes chant hymns addressed to Mainda and Dvivida, who are attendant deities of the Lord. According to Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, the Mainda and Dvivida mentioned in this verse are empowered expansions of these deities, who are residents of Lord Rāmacandra’s Vaikuṇṭha domain.
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura concurs with Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī’s view that Dvivida was ruined by bad association, which was a punishment for his having disrespected Śrīmān Lakṣmaṇa. Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī states, however, that the Mainda and Dvivida mentioned here are actually the eternally liberated devotees addressed as attendant deities during the worship of Lord Rāmacandra. The Lord arranged their degradation, he says, to show the evil of the bad association that results from offending great personalities. Thus Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī compares the fall of Dvivida and Mainda to that of Jaya and Vijaya.
Devanagari
पुरग्रामाकरान् घोषानदहद् वह्निमुत्सृजन् ॥ ३ ॥
Text
vānaro rāṣṭra-viplavam
pura-grāmākarān ghoṣān
adahad vahnim utsṛjan
Synonyms
sakhyuḥ — of his friend (Naraka, whom Lord Kṛṣṇa had killed); saḥ — he; apacitim — repayment of his debt; kurvan — doing; vānaraḥ — the ape; rāṣṭra — of the kingdom; viplavam — creating great disturbance; pura — the cities; grāma — villages; ākarān — and mines; ghoṣān — cowherd communities; adahat — he burned; vahnim — fire; utsṛjan — spreading about.
Translation
To avenge the death of his friend [Naraka], the ape Dvivida ravaged the land, setting fires that burned cities, villages, mines and cowherd dwellings.
Purport
Kṛṣṇa had killed Dvivida’s friend Naraka, and to retaliate the ape intended to destroy Lord Kṛṣṇa’s flourishing kingdom. In Kṛṣṇa Śrīla Prabhupāda writes: “His first business was to set fires in villages, towns and industrial and mining places, as well as in the residential quarters of the mercantile men who were busy dairy farming and protecting cows.”
Devanagari
आनर्तान् सुतरामेव यत्रास्ते मित्रहा हरि: ॥ ४ ॥
Text
tair deśān samacūrṇayat
ānartān sutarām eva
yatrāste mitra-hā hariḥ
Synonyms
kvacit — once; saḥ — he, Dvivida; śailān — mountains; utpāṭya — tearing up; taiḥ — with them; deśān — all the kingdoms; samacūrṇayat — he devastated; ānartān — the province of the Ānarta people (in which Dvārakā is situated); sutarām eva — especially; yatra — where; āste — is present; mitra — of his friend; hā — the killer; hariḥ — Kṛṣṇa.
Translation
Once Dvivida tore up a number of mountains and used them to devastate all the neighboring kingdoms, especially the province of Ānarta, wherein dwelt his friend’s killer, Lord Hari.
Devanagari
देशान् नागायुतप्राणो वेलाकूले न्यमज्जयत् ॥ ५ ॥
Text
dorbhyām utkṣipya taj-jalam
deśān nāgāyuta-prāṇo
velā-kūle nyamajjayat
Synonyms
kvacit — once; samudra — of the ocean; madhya — in the midst; sthaḥ — standing; dorbhyām — with his arms; utkṣipya — churning up; tat — its; jalam — water; deśān — the kingdoms; nāga — elephants; ayuta — (like) ten thousand; prāṇaḥ — whose vital strength; velā — of the coast; kūle — upon the shore; nyamajjayat — he caused to drown.
Translation
Another time he entered the ocean and, with the strength of ten thousand elephants, churned up its water with his arms and thus submerged the coastal regions.
Devanagari
अदूषयच्छकृन्मूत्रैरग्नीन् वैतानिकान् खल: ॥ ६ ॥
Text
kṛtvā bhagna-vanaspatīn
adūṣayac chakṛn-mūtrair
agnīn vaitānikān khalaḥ
Synonyms
Translation
The wicked ape tore down the trees in the hermitages of exalted sages and contaminated their sacrificial fires with his feces and urine.
Devanagari
निक्षिप्य चाप्यधाच्छैलै: पेशष्कारीव कीटकम् ॥ ७ ॥
Text
kṣmābhṛd-dronī-guhāsu saḥ
nikṣipya cāpyadhāc chailaiḥ
peśaṣkārīva kīṭakam
Synonyms
Translation
Just as a wasp imprisons smaller insects, he arrogantly threw both men and women into caves in a mountain valley and sealed the caves shut with boulders.
Devanagari
श्रुत्वा सुललितं गीतं गिरिं रैवतकं ययौ ॥ ८ ॥
Text
dūṣayaṁś ca kula-striyaḥ
śrutvā su-lalitaṁ gītaṁ
giriṁ raivatakaṁ yayau
Synonyms
Translation
Once, while Dvivida was thus engaged in harassing the neighboring kingdoms and polluting women of respectable families, he heard very sweet singing coming from Raivataka Mountain. So he went there.
Devanagari
सुदर्शनीयसर्वाङ्गं ललनायूथमध्यगम् ॥ ९ ॥
गायन्तं वारुणीं पीत्वा मदविह्वललोचनम् ।
विभ्राजमानं वपुषा प्रभिन्नमिव वारणम् ॥ १० ॥
Text
rāmaṁ puṣkara-mālinam
sudarśanīya-sarvāṅgaṁ
lalanā-yūtha-madhya-gam
mada-vihvala-locanam
vibhrājamānaṁ vapuṣā
prabhinnam iva vāraṇam
Synonyms
tatra — there; apaśyat — he saw; yadu-patim — the Lord of the Yadus; rāmam — Balarāma; puṣkara — of lotus flowers; mālinam — wearing a garland; su-darśanīya — most attractive; sarva — all; aṅgam — whose limbs; lalanā — of women; yūtha — of a bevy; madhya-gam — in the midst; gāyantam — singing; vāruṇīm — the vāruṇī liquor; pītvā — drinking; mada — with intoxication; vihvala — unsteady; locanam — whose eyes; vibhrājamānam — brilliantly glowing; vapuṣā — with His body; prabhinnam — in rut; iva — as; vāraṇam — an elephant.
Translation
There he saw Śrī Balarāma, the Lord of the Yadus, adorned with a garland of lotuses and appearing most attractive in every limb. He was singing amidst a crowd of young women, and since He had drunk vāruṇī liquor, His eyes rolled as if He were intoxicated. His body shone brilliantly as He behaved like an elephant in rut.
Devanagari
चक्रे किलकिलाशब्दमात्मानं सम्प्रदर्शयन् ॥ ११ ॥
Text
ārūḍhaḥ kampayan drumān
cakre kilakilā-śabdam
ātmānaṁ sampradarśayan
Synonyms
Translation
The mischievous ape climbed a tree branch and then revealed his presence by shaking the trees and making the sound kilakilā.
Purport
The word śākhā-mṛga indicates that the ape Dvivida, like ordinary apes, was naturally inclined to climb trees. Śrīla Prabhupāda writes: “This gorilla by the name Dvivida could climb up into the trees and jump from one branch to another. Sometimes he would jerk the branches, creating a particular type of sound — kilakilā — so that Lord Balarāma was greatly distracted from the pleasing atmosphere.”
Devanagari
हास्यप्रिया विजहसुर्बलदेवपरिग्रहा: ॥ १२ ॥
Text
taruṇyo jāti-cāpalāḥ
hāsya-priyā vijahasur
baladeva-parigrahāḥ
Synonyms
Translation
When Lord Baladeva’s consorts saw the ape’s impudence, they began to laugh. They were, after all, young girls who were fond of joking and prone to silliness.
Devanagari
दर्शयन् स्वगुदं तासां रामस्य च निरीक्षित: ॥ १३ ॥
Text
bhrū-kṣepair sammukhādibhiḥ
darśayan sva-gudaṁ tāsāṁ
rāmasya ca nirīkṣitaḥ
Synonyms
tāḥ — them (the girls); helayām āsa — ridiculed; kapiḥ — the ape; bhrū — of his eyebrows; kṣepaiḥ — with odd gestures; sammukha — by standing right in front of them; ādibhiḥ — and so on; darśayan — showing; sva — his; gudam — anus; tāsām — to them; rāmasya — as Lord Balarāma; ca — and; nirīkṣitaḥ — was watching.
Translation
Even as Lord Balarāma looked on, Dvivida insulted the girls by making odd gestures with his eyebrows, coming right in front of them, and showing them his anus.
Purport
Śrīla Prabhupāda writes: “The gorilla was so rude that even in the presence of Balarāma he began to show the lower part of his body to the women, and sometimes he would come forward to show his teeth while moving his eyebrows.” Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī states that Dvivida would come right up to the women and move about, urinate and so on.
Devanagari
स वञ्चयित्वा ग्रावाणं मदिराकलशं कपि: ॥ १४ ॥
गृहीत्वा हेलयामास धूर्तस्तं कोपयन् हसन् ।
निर्भिद्य कलशं दुष्टो वासांस्यास्फालयद् बलम् ।
कदर्थीकृत्य बलवान् विप्रचक्रे मदोद्धत: ॥ १५ ॥
Text
balaḥ praharatāṁ varaḥ
sa vañcayitvā grāvāṇaṁ
madirā-kalaśaṁ kapiḥ
dhūrtas taṁ kopayan hasan
nirbhidya kalaśaṁ duṣṭo
vāsāṁsy āsphālayad balam
kadarthī-kṛtya balavān
vipracakre madoddhataḥ
Synonyms
tam — at him, Dvivida; grāvṇā — a rock; prāharat — threw; kruddhaḥ — angry; balaḥ — Lord Balarāma; praharatām — of throwers of weapons; varaḥ — the best; saḥ — he, Dvivida; vañcayitvā — avoiding; grāvāṇam — the rock; madirā — of liquor; kalaśam — the pot; kapiḥ — the ape; gṛhītvā — seizing; helayām āsa — made fun of; dhūrtaḥ — the rascal; tam — Him, Lord Balarāma; kopayan — angering; hasan — laughing; nirbhidya — breaking; kalaśam — the pot; duṣṭaḥ — wicked; vāsāṁsi — the garments (of the girls); āsphālayat — he pulled at; balam — Lord Balarāma; kadarthīkṛtya — disrespecting; bala-vān — powerful; vipracakre — he insulted; mada — by false pride; uddhataḥ — puffed up.
Translation
Angered, Lord Balarāma, the best of fighters, hurled a rock at him, but the cunning ape dodged the rock and grabbed the Lord’s pot of liquor. Further infuriating Lord Balarāma by laughing and by ridiculing Him, wicked Dvivida then broke the pot and offended the Lord even more by pulling at the girls’ clothing. Thus the powerful ape, puffed up with false pride, continued to insult Śrī Balarāma.
Devanagari
क्रुद्धो मुषलमादत्त हलं चारिजिघांसया ॥ १६ ॥
Text
deśāṁś ca tad-upadrutān
kruddho muṣalam ādatta
halaṁ cāri-jighāṁsayā
Synonyms
Translation
Lord Balarāma saw the ape’s rude behavior and thought of the disruptions he had created in the surrounding kingdoms. Thus the Lord angrily took up His club and His plow weapon, having decided to put His enemy to death.
Purport
The word avinayam means “without humility.” Dvivida, completely lacking in modesty and humility, shamelessly performed the most wicked activities. Lord Balarāma knew of the great disturbances Dvivida had caused to people in general, apart from the vulgar behavior the ape was exhibiting in the Lord’s own presence. The offensive ape would now have to die.
Devanagari
अभ्येत्य तरसा तेन बलं मूर्धन्यताडयत् ॥ १७ ॥
Text
śālam udyamya pāṇinā
abhyetya tarasā tena
balaṁ mūrdhany atāḍayat
Synonyms
Translation
Mighty Dvivida also came forward to do battle. Uprooting a śāla tree with one hand, he rushed toward Balarāma and struck Him on the head with the tree trunk.
Devanagari
प्रतिजग्राह बलवान् सुनन्देनाहनच्च तम् ॥ १८ ॥
Text
patantam acalo yathā
pratijagrāha balavān
sunandenāhanac ca tam
Synonyms
Translation
But Lord Saṅkarṣaṇa remained as motionless as a mountain and simply grabbed the log as it fell upon His head. He then struck Dvivida with His club, named Sunanda.
Devanagari
गिरिर्यथा गैरिकया प्रहारं नानुचिन्तयन् ॥ १९ ॥
पुनरन्यं समुत्क्षिप्य कृत्वा निष्पत्रमोजसा ।
तेनाहनत् सुसङ्क्रुद्धस्तं बल: शतधाच्छिनत् ॥ २० ॥
ततोऽन्येन रुषा जघ्ने तं चापि शतधाच्छिनत् ॥ २१ ॥
Text
vireje rakta-dhārayā
girir yathā gairikayā
prahāraṁ nānucintayan
kṛtvā niṣpatram ojasā
tenāhanat su-saṅkruddhas
taṁ balaḥ śatadhācchinat
taṁ cāpi śatadhācchinat
Synonyms
mūṣala — by the club; āhata — struck; mastiṣkaḥ — his skull; vireje — he appeared brilliant; rakta — of blood; dhārayā — with the downpour; giriḥ — a mountain; yathā — like; gairikayā — with red oxide; prahāram — the blow; na — not; anucintayan — regarding seriously; punaḥ — again; anyam — another (tree); samutkṣipya — uprooting; kṛtvā — making; niṣpatram — devoid of leaves; ojasā — forcefully; tena — with it; ahanat — he struck; su-saṅkruddhaḥ — totally angered; tam — it; balaḥ — Lord Balarāma; śatadhā — into hundreds of pieces; acchinat — shattered; tataḥ — then; anyena — with another; ruṣā — furiously; jaghne — smashed; tam — it; ca — and; api — also; śatadhā — into hundreds of pieces; acchinat — He broke.
Translation
Struck on the skull by the Lord’s club, Dvivida became brilliantly decorated by the outpour of blood, like a mountain beautified by red oxide. Ignoring the wound, Dvivida uprooted another tree, stripped it of leaves by brute force and struck the Lord again. Now enraged, Lord Balarāma shattered the tree into hundreds of pieces, upon which Dvivida grabbed yet another tree and furiously hit the Lord again. This tree, too, the Lord smashed into hundreds of pieces.
Devanagari
आकृष्य सर्वतो वृक्षान् निर्वृक्षमकरोद् वनम् ॥ २२ ॥
Text
bhagne bhagne punaḥ punaḥ
ākṛṣya sarvato vṛkṣān
nirvṛkṣam akarod vanam
Synonyms
Translation
Thus fighting the Lord, who again and again demolished the trees He was attacked with, Dvivida kept on uprooting trees from all sides until the forest was left treeless.
Devanagari
तत्सर्वं चूर्णयामास लीलया मुषलायुध: ॥ २३ ॥
Text
balasyopary amarṣitaḥ
tat sarvaṁ cūrṇayāṁ āsa
līlayā muṣalāyudhaḥ
Synonyms
Translation
The angry ape then released a rain of stones upon Lord Balarāma, but the wielder of the club easily pulverized them all.
Purport
Śrīla Prabhupāda writes: “When no more trees were available, Dvivida took help from the hills and threw large pieces of stone, like rainfall, upon the body of Balarāma. Lord Balarāma, in a great sporting mood, began to smash those big pieces of stone into mere pebbles.” Even today there are many sports wherein people enjoy striking a ball or similar object with a stick or bat. This sporting propensity exists originally in the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who playfully (līlayā) pulverized the deadly boulders hurled at Him by the powerful Dvivida.
Devanagari
आसाद्य रोहिणीपुत्रं ताभ्यां वक्षस्यरूरुजत् ॥ २४ ॥
Text
muṣṭī-kṛtya kapīśvaraḥ
āsādya rohiṇī-putraṁ
tābhyāṁ vakṣasy arūrujat
Synonyms
Translation
Dvivida, the most powerful of apes, now clenched his fists at the end of his palm-tree-sized arms, came before Lord Balarāma and beat his fists against the Lord’s body.
Devanagari
जत्रावभ्यर्दयत्क्रुद्ध: सोऽपतद् रुधिरं वमन् ॥ २५ ॥
Text
tyaktvā muṣala-lāṅgale
jatrāv abhyardayat kruddhaḥ
so ’patad rudhiraṁ vaman
Synonyms
yādava-indraḥ — Balarāma, the Lord of the Yādavas; api — and; tam — him; dorbhyām — with His hands; tyaktvā — throwing aside; muṣala-lāṅgale — His club and plow; jatrau — on the collarbone; abhyardayat — hammered; kruddhaḥ — angry; saḥ — he, Dvivida; apatat — fell; rudhiram — blood; vaman — vomiting.
Translation
The furious Lord of the Yādavas then threw aside His club and plow and with His bare hands hammered a blow upon Dvivida’s collarbone. The ape collapsed, vomiting blood.
Purport
In Kṛṣṇa, Śrīla Prabhupāda writes: “This time Lord Balarāma became most angry. Since the gorilla was striking Him with his hands, Lord Balarāma would not strike him back with His own weapons, the club or the plow. Simply with His fists He began to strike the collarbone of the gorilla. This striking proved to be fatal to Dvivida.”
Devanagari
पर्वत: कुरुशार्दूल वायुना नौरिवाम्भसि ॥ २६ ॥
Text
sa-ṭaṅkaḥ sa-vanaspatiḥ
parvataḥ kuru-śārdūla
vāyunā naur ivāmbhasi
Synonyms
cakampe — shook; tena — because of him; patatā — as he fell; sa — together with; ṭaṅkaḥ — its cliffs; sa — together with; vanaspatiḥ — its trees; parvataḥ — the mountain; kuru-śārdūla — O tiger among the Kurus (Parīkṣit Mahārāja); vāyunā — by the wind; nauḥ — a boat; iva — as if; ambhasi — on the water.
Translation
When he fell, O tiger among the Kurus, Raivataka Mountain shook, along with its cliffs and trees, like a wind-tossed boat at sea.
Purport
The word ṭaṅka here indicates not only the mountain cliffs but also the fissures and other spots where water had accumulated. All these mountainous areas shook and trembled when Dvivida fell.
Devanagari
सुरसिद्धमुनीन्द्राणामासीत् कुसुमवर्षिणाम् ॥ २७ ॥
Text
sādhu sādhv iti cāmbare
sura-siddha-munīndrāṇām
āsīt kusuma-varṣiṇām
Synonyms
jaya-śabdaḥ — the sound of jaya (“Victory!”); namaḥ-śabdaḥ — the sound of namaḥ (“Obeisances!”); sādhu sādhu iti — the exclamation “Excellent! Well done!”; ca — and; ambare — in the sky; sura — of the demigods; siddha — advanced mystics; muni-indrāṇām — and great sages; āsīt — there were; kusuma — flowers; varṣiṇām — who were pouring down.
Translation
In the heavens the demigods, perfect mystics and great sages cried out, “Victory to You! Obeisances to You! Excellent! Well done!” and showered flowers upon the Lord.
Devanagari
संस्तूयमानो भगवान् जनै: स्वपुरमाविशत् ॥ २८ ॥
Text
jagad-vyatikarāvaham
saṁstūyamāno bhagavān
janaiḥ sva-puram āviśat
Synonyms
Translation
Having thus killed Dvivida, who had disturbed the whole world, the Supreme Lord returned to His capital as the people along the way chanted His glories.
Purport
Thus end the purports of the humble servants of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda to the Tenth Canto, Sixty-seventh Chapter, of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, entitled “Lord Balarāma Slays Dvivida Gorilla.”