The Eleventh Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam begins with a reference to the pastimes executed by Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa in the Tenth Canto. The beginning of the Tenth Canto describes that when the earth was overburdened by demoniac rulers, the personified earth, Bhūmi, approached Lord Brahmā with tears in her eyes, begging for relief, and Brahmā immediately went with the demigods to approach the Supreme Lord in His form of Kṣīrodakaśāyī Viṣṇu. As the demigods waited respectfully on the shore of the Milk Ocean, the Supreme Lord announced through Brahmā that He would soon incarnate on earth and that the demigods should also descend to assist in His pastimes. Thus from the very beginning of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s appearance it was understood that He would descend to the earth to remove the demons.

As Śrīla Prabhupāda states in his commentary to Bhagavad-gītā (16.6), those who agree to obey the injunctions of revealed scriptures are known as demigods, whereas those who defy the orders of Vedic scriptures are known as asuras, or demons. The Vedic literatures are presented within the universe for the guidance of the conditioned souls, who are trapped under the three modes of material nature and who are therefore rotating in a continuous cycle of birth and death. By strictly adhering to the Vedic injunctions, we can easily satisfy our material needs and at the same time make tangible progress on the path back home, back to Godhead. Thus we can achieve an eternal life of bliss and knowledge in the Lord’s own abode simply by obeying the Lord’s instructions as they are presented in Vedic literatures such as Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. The demons, however, minimize or even mock the absolute authority of the Supreme Lord and His teachings. Because these asuras envy the sovereign status of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, they minimize the importance of the Vedic scriptures, which emanate directly from the breathing of the Lord. The demons establish a society governed by their own concocted whims and inevitably create chaos and misery, especially for pious living entities who sincerely desire to follow the will of God.

Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa states in Bhagavad-gītā that when there is a predominance of such chaotic, irreligious societies on the earth, He personally descends to rectify the imbalance. Thus from the very beginning of His transcendental infancy, Kṛṣṇa systematically killed the powerful asuras, or demons, who were an intolerable burden for the earth. Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa was assisted by His brother, Balarāma, who is also the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Although God is one, He can expand Himself to enjoy in many forms at once. That is His omnipotence. And the first such expansion is Balarāma, or Baladeva. Balarāma killed many noteworthy demons, including Dhenukāsura, Dvivida and the envious Rukmī. Kṛṣṇa was also accompanied by the members of the Yadu dynasty, many of whom were demigods who had descended to assist the Lord.

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, however, has revealed that although many demigods had taken birth in the Yadu dynasty to assist the Lord, some members of the Yadu dynasty were actually inimical toward Kṛṣṇa. Because of their mundane vision of the Lord, they considered themselves to be on the same level as Kṛṣṇa. Having taken birth in the family of the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself, they had inconceivable strength, and thus they misunderstood Kṛṣṇa’s supreme position. Having forgotten that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, they would constitute a great burden, and consequently it was necessary for Kṛṣṇa to remove them from the earth. There is a popular saying that familiarity breeds contempt. To destroy the contemptuous members of His own dynasty, the Lord caused a quarrel among them. For this purpose, He arranged for Nārada and other sages to display anger against the Kārṣṇas, the members of His family. Although many Yadus who were devoted to Kṛṣṇa were apparently killed in this fratricidal war, Lord Kṛṣṇa actually returned them to their original positions as universal directors, or demigods. It is the Lord’s promise in Bhagavad-gītā that He will always protect those who are favorable to His service.

Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura, in his commentary on this verse, has given a summary of the entire Eleventh Canto as follows. Chapter One describes the beginning of the mauṣala-līlā, or the prelude to the destruction of the Yadu dynasty. Chapters Two through Five describe the conversations between the nine Yogendras and King Nimi. Chapter Six describes the prayers of Brahmā, Śiva and other residents of heaven. Chapters Seven through Twenty-nine present the conversation between Kṛṣṇa and Uddhava that is known as the Uddhava-gītā. Chapter Thirty describes the withdrawal of the Yadu dynasty from the earth. The final chapter describes the disappearance of Lord Kṛṣṇa.