Makaranda Madhukar Anand Mahendale Festshrift

Author(s): M A Dhaky, Jitendra B Shah
Publisher: Shardaben Chimanbhai Educational Research Centre

Page 60

The Justification of Krsna's Annihilation of His Own Clan
However, a clear justification is given by the ViP when Krsna refers to the Yādavas as a very great burden to the earth (5.37.26), adding that even a youth of the Yādavas is no less than Jarāsandha and others who were a heavy load on the earth (5.37.25); and he declares that the earth's burden will not be removed until the Yādavas are obliterated (5.37.22). So the VIP gives an unambiguous reason why the Yādavas should be destroyed. In the Mbh the grounds are not so strong, for, although it mentions the wickedness of the Yādavas, it does not state that they are a burden to the earth; in other words, their punishment need not have been so drastic as a complete annihilation. Whereas in the ViP the burden of the earth cannot be removed until they are extirpated. Hence, the ViP advances beyond the Mbh in justifying Krsna.
III. The Problem and the Justifications in the Bhagavata Purāna and its Commentaries
The text states that the annihilation of the Yādavas is due to the curse of the Brahmins (11.6.26, 31, 34; 11.30.2, 24), and the commentators, explicitly or implicitly, mention the curse, when explaining these verses. Some of them refer to it even at other places (e.g., GD, SS on 11.1.1; BP, GD, GS, VR on 11.30.20) and even attribute Krsna's being shot by and arrow to it (GS, SS, VD on 11.30, 38). The curse cannot be averted (VR on 11.6.36; BP on 11.6.37) because of the difference between the divine, earthly and embodied souls (RR on 11.6.34). The idea would seem to be that Krsna is only seeing to it that the imprecation of the Brahmins is fulfiled, and it was pronounced precisely because of the misbehaviour of some of the Yādavas.
However, the text also mentions that Krsna does not annul the curse, even though he is capable of doing so (11.6.42); on the contrary, he approves of it (11.1.24), and several commentators repeat this explicitly (e.g., BP, 16 GD, GS, SS, VD, VR) or almost explicitly (VB, RR, SD, Sudarśanasūrin). He uses the curse of the Brahmins as a pretext (11.1.5) and the commentators explicitly (BP, GD, GS, JG (Ks), RR, SD, VB, VC, VD, VR on 11.1.5; see also SD on 11.1.1) or implicitly repeat what the verse says. In fact, VC and VD add that even though Krsna suggests to the Yādavas that they move to Prabhāsa, ostensibly to remain alive and thus avoid the effect of the