“In the yoga system, by the perfection called mahima-siddhi, one can expand himself as he desires. The demon Aghasura expanded himself up to eight miles and assumed the shape of a very fat serpent. Having attained this wonderful body, he stretched his mouth open just like a mountain cave. Desiring to swallow all the boys at once, including Krishna and Balarama, he sat on the path.” (Krishna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Volume 1, Chapter 12)

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The less intelligent will always give higher priority to the visuals. They fail to notice that for every image, for every moment frozen in time, there is something which took place prior. In other words, every effect has a cause. Lakshmana, the younger brother of Shri Rama, once raised this very truth in arguing in favor of action. Because results do not appear magically, on their own, there has to be some action as the impetus.

अदृष्टगुणदोषाणामध्रुवाणां तु कर्मणाम्
नान्तरेण क्रियां तेषां फलमिष्टं प्रवर्तते

adṛṣṭaguṇadoṣāṇāmadhruvāṇāṃ tu karmaṇām
nāntareṇa kriyāṃ teṣāṃ phalamiṣṭaṃ pravartate

“Unseen and indefinite are the good and bad reactions of fruitive work. And without taking action, the desired fruits of such work cannot manifest.” (Lakshmana speaking to Lord Rama, Valmiki Ramayana, Aranya Kand, 66.17)

In the case of Aghasura, the illusion was in taking the image of children to be everything. They are innocent, after all. They do not know better. Wise parents have employed the tactic of empty threats since before anyone can remember. For instance, if the children previously insisted on keeping a dog in the home, the father might warn them beforehand, as follows:

“Listen, we are getting this dog specifically for you. It is entirely your responsibility. If you fail to hold up your end of the deal, we will get rid of the dog. I mean it. I am not kidding around.”

Later on, after the same dog has destroyed the house through uncontrolled behavior, the father sits the same children down:

“Okay, what did I tell you before? I warned you, did I not? How could you let this happen? I have no choice but to now let the dog leave. I know a very nice lady who is coming by the house today. She is interested in taking the dog. Do not make me the bad guy. You have no one to blame but yourselves.”

Of course, the father has no plans to part ways with the dog. The children, however, think he is serious. They begin to cry. They vow to do better, going forward. They will clean up the mess. They will keep a better eye on things in the future.

Aghasura failed to realize that those children lived in Vrindavana for a reason. They had seen a lot, already. Never mind, as their innocence was to be exploited. How, exactly? Through illusion, of course. Aghasura would take the shape of a massive python. Not anything that could be carried in a bag or held within the hands. This python would be so big that its mouth alone would resemble the opening to a cave.

प्रतिस्पर्धेते सृक्कभ्यां सव्यासव्ये नगोदरे
तुङ्गश‍ृङ्गालयोऽप्येतास्तद्दंष्ट्राभिश्च पश्यत

आस्तृतायाममार्गोऽयं रसनां प्रतिगर्जति
एषामन्तर्गतं ध्वान्तमेतदप्यन्तराननम्

pratispardhete sṛkkabhyāṁ
savyāsavye nagodare
tuṅga-śṛṅgālayo ’py etās
tad-daṁṣṭrābhiś ca paśyata

āstṛtāyāma-mārgo ’yaṁ
rasanāṁ pratigarjati
eṣāṁ antar-gataṁ dhvāntam
etad apy antar-ānanam

“On the left and right, the two depressions resembling mountain caves are the corners of its mouth, and the high mountain peaks are its teeth. In length and breadth the animal’s tongue resembles a broad traffic-way, and the inside of its mouth is very, very dark, like a cave in a mountain.” (Cowherd boys speculating about the vision of Aghasura as a python, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 10.12.21-22)

The objective of the false image was to lure in the cowherd boys. They would be like the hostages held for ransom. Amazingly, some of the cowherd boys were suspicious right from the start. They thought that perhaps this was a fake, that the cave was really a wicked character arriving on the scene to cause trouble. After deliberating amongst themselves, they eventually decided to proceed. After all, their best friend was close by. He was the bodyguard, who had proven His amazing abilities many times before.

Everything was going according to plan. The star player in Aghasura’s attack was surprise; he went with something least expected, in a long and dark cave that was really the mouth and abdomen of a temporary python. The goal was always Krishna. Aghasura was a friend to Kamsa, after all. Kamsa wanted Krishna dead. Krishna was the eighth child to Kamsa’s sister named Devaki. Aghasura thought this surprise and sneaky attack would do the trick. Krishna even entered the false cave, in trailing behind His friends.

As mentioned previously, the images do not tell the entire story. There is a trigger. There is action which precedes the completion of the image. In this case, the cowherd boys were correct in their initial assumption. They were indeed protected by Krishna. Moreover, that Krishna was not an ordinary child. He was the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In the way that foolish Aghasura based his entire operation off an image, to exploit others when they were least expecting it, so the supposed rival responded with an even more unexpected attack.

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada explains that Aghasura made use of a mystic perfection known as mahima-siddhi. This is the ability to become large, at will. Since Krishna was not a mere child, but the master of all mystic power, Yogeshvara, the same ability could be used in response.

Every ability has a source. Every image has a story. If the wicked want to exploit the innocent by attacking in an unexpected manner, then the source of everything has every right to respond in kind. He can choose to defend in the most unexpected way, as Aghasura soon learned. When Krishna began expanding Himself, Aghasura could no longer tolerate the obstruction. The demon’s life air exited through the top of his head. Krishna was kind enough to grant that demon liberation, for having participated in a story to be celebrated for all of time.

तेनैव सर्वेषु बहिर्गतेषु
प्राणेषु वत्सान् सुहृद: परेतान्
द‍ृष्टय‍ा स्वयोत्थाप्य तदन्वित: पुन-
र्वक्त्रान्मुकुन्दो भगवान् विनिर्ययौ

tenaiva sarveṣu bahir gateṣu
prāṇeṣu vatsān suhṛdaḥ paretān
dṛṣṭyā svayotthāpya tad-anvitaḥ punar
vaktrān mukundo bhagavān viniryayau

“When all the demon’s life air had passed away through that hole in the top of his head, Krishna glanced over the dead calves and cowherd boys and brought them back to life. Then Mukunda, who can give one liberation, came out from the demon’s mouth with His friends and the calves.” (Shrimad Bhagavatam, 10.12.32)

In Closing:

Carefree innocence detected,
Chance to exploit expected.

A python with mouth as a cave,
To see how His friends to save.

Krishna who focus the entire time,
Soon the boys unconscious to find.

But when into Aghasura to land,
Victory when enormous to expand.

Categories: krishna pastimes

Tags: aghasura, dailyprompt, hare krishna, poem, poems, poetry