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King Kansa was the most absolute and tyrannical
monarch of the period; the bare mention of whose name was sufficient to
send fear through the hearts of all good and peace-loving people. His
sister's name was Devaki upon whom his brother Kansa showered brotherly
love. And that is the reason why, on the day of Devaki's marriage to
Vasudev, when the time came for Devaki to travel to her husband's house,
that king Kansa wanted to drive the carriage himself as a token of his
brotherly love.
The newly married couple were simple and beautiful,
yet noble and majestic to look at. They were really very happy. The
royal carriage richly decorated with precious gems and ornaments, was
being followed by a large retinue of people wearing colourful gala
dresses. Everything was pleasant all round.
Suddenly the face of nature changed. The birds stopped
singing; the sun was obscured by a cloud; the soft breeze became a
howling wind creating dust storms. Ill omens were pointing to imminent
danger. An unaccountable fear suddenly gripped the minds of all in the
procession. At such a time, an unseen voice, an oracle, was heard from
above which said:
"Oh you foolish one, whom are you driving so merrily?
Would you not know that the eighth issue of her womb shall be the cause
of your death?"
On hearing this, the terrible Kansa sprang up from his
seat, drew his sword, and was about to kill his sister on the spot, had
not Vasudev intervened. Falling upon his feet, on behalf of his newly
married wife, reminding Kansa that not Devaki but her eighth child would
be the cause of his death. So he requested Kansa most humbly, to spare
her life, she being fully innocent, and promised, since he had fear from
her children, that each and everyone of them would be given over to him.
Kansa felt the force of the reason and agreed to the proposal of Vasudev.
Besides his newly married bride Devaki, Vasudev had
another good wife, named Rohini and with these two loving and dutiful
wives he managed to live in peace and comfort.
In the course of time, the first male child was born
to Devaki. Vasudev, true to his word, sent the news to King Kansa, who
sent his servants to fetch the child whom he instantly killed with his
own hands. Six children were thus killed by the cruel king, who
foolishly wanted to avert the course of fate.
In the case of the seventh child, somehow or other the
womb appeared to be fruitless, although it was really transferred,
through divine agency, from Devaki to Rohini, who in due course of time,
brought forth a child that, on account of its transference from one womb
to another came to be known by the name of Sankarshana.
Now when the time for the birth of her eighth child
was approaching, Kansa ordered Vasudeva and Devaki to be cast into his
prison, bound with the same chain.
Both the wife and husband did not know what to do.
Every minute of their lives they called upon their only hope, their only
deliverance, God. The solace of the unhappy, ardent prayers proceeding
from the very bottom of their souls, incessantly flowed out of their
hearts; and the almighty Lord of the universe, in His own mysterious
ways, was infilling their souls with infinite power of endurance which
kept the fragile vessels of their delicate frames steady and safe in
that gloomy and stormy sea of life.
For us, there is a lesson to be derived from this. We
can draw great comfort from the Gita where the Lord tells us: Ch.8,verse
58-"Fixing your mind on Me, you shall by my grace, overcome all
obstacles..."
Devaki was about to usher into the world its saviour,
and she along with her husband, bewailed her lot and beating her
forehead said: "O darling, be not born of me to be smashed to death by
the cruel king Kansa". And with this, both Devaki and Vasudeva fell into
a swoon. In the gloom of that unconsciousness, suddenly a light flashed,
and a beautiful youth of sixteen, holding mace and discus, conch shell
and lotus in his four hands, rose above the horizon of their mental
firmament, healing all their mental wounds, cheering and exhilarating
them with his sweet smile."Father and mother, weep no more. I have come
at last to your rescue and to the rescue of all the good people. Open
your eyes and see me as your child. Carry me father to the house of your
friend Nanda in Gokula. His wife Yashoda has given birth to a daughter
just now. Exchange me for that daughter. Bring her back to this prison
leaving me on the lap of Yashoda who will be sleeping at the time.
Nothing shall bar your path".
With these words, the soul-solacing charming youth
vanished.
When Devaki and Vasudeva opened their eyes, they saw
the most charming and beautiful baby ever a parent was blessed with.
That was at midnight of Ashtami-Rohini day, the divine baby was born in
Prison. The earth and the heavens were filled with joy. Flowers
blossomed, rains fell from the sky, peacocks danced, the gods rained
flowers, and divine music was heard. Devaki and Vasudeva forgot their
miserable condition for a while, looking at the smiling baby playing
with its tiny limbs. The mother kissed the sweet face and forgot her
danger. Then after a while, they realised the real state of affairs and
both the husband and wife shuddered. Then the sweet instructions of the
fascinating youth in the vision flashed into their minds. Vasudeva
clasped the child at once in his bosom to start for Gokula, but found
that his legs were in chains. He did not know what to do. In his haste
he gave a jerk, and his legs were released! He sprang upon his feet and
ran towards the door of his dungeon. The massive iron-barred doors were
locked with three fold locks; but the guards were all asleep, and
therefore fearlessly he gave a push forward and the gates were unlocked
and flew open of their own accord. The crossing over the river Yamuna
was just as miraculous. Vasudeva reached Gokula and to his astonishment
found the door of Nanda's house open. He exchanged the babies and
hurried back to the prison of Kansa. Early in the morning, all the
people at Gokula came to know that a beautiful male child, a prince had
been born the previous night at midnight to Nanda's wife, and their
simple hearts were filled with unbounded joy.
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