This collection of popular stories of child Krishna is based
on the Srimad Bhagavad Purana. The book used as reference is the Srimad
Bhagavatam (10th Edition) by Kamala Subramaniam published by Bhavan’s Book
University.
Putana
To get rid of Sri Krishna, Kamsa decided to kill all the
newborn children in his country. He thought up of methods of doing it and
finally decided to give the evil job to Putana.
From the moment she got the orders, she began wandering at
will in the country of Kamsa.
Wander as she was, at will, one day Putana, who was flying
in the air saw Gokula and since she had not gone there yet, decided that she
would go there. With her Asura powers, she changed herself into a beautiful
woman.
She entered the house of Nanda and reached the courtyard
where the Lord was.
Putana looked all around her. It so happened that no one was
about. She lifted the child from the cradle. Taking him in her arms she sat
down and placed him on her lap.
Putana then loosed the knot which held her blouse tight and,
with the child on her lap, she put his lips to her breast which was filled with
poisoned milk. The lord held her breast firmly in his two little hands and
began to suck lustily. After a few seconds she realized that he was sucking her
very life. She was in great pain and all her vital organs were tortured when he
sucked at her breast. She began to scream. Her purpose was all forgotten. “Leave
me! Leave me! she kept on saying and she tried to pluck her breast away from
the mouth of the child but it was of no avail. She shrieked in agony. With last
cry of agony Putana lost her life and her beautiful form was all gone. She fell
down dead.
Shakatasura
Shakatasura was one of Kamsa’s henchmen and he had entered
the wheel of a cart in Gokula with the intention of killing baby Krishna.
Yashoda who was sitting with her friends placed the cradle
of Sri Krishna under the cart in which Shaktasura was hidden.
Yashoda did not notice that Sri Krishna had got up after a
while. He cried and no paid any attention to him. He became very angry and with
his little legs more tender than the creeper clinging to a tree, he kicked the
cart under which he was placed. There was a great noise and the people saw that
the cart had fallen far away as though it had been flung away. The wheel had
come off the cart.
Only baby Krishna knew who was in the wheel. The kick from
the sacred foot had killed Shaktasura.
Trinavarta
Trinavarta took the form of a whirlwind. Everyone in Gokula
was suddenly overpowered by the fury of the sudden blast. There was so much
power in the current and so much of dust that no one was able to see anything.
The eight quarters were resounding with the noise of the
whirlwind and there was darkness everywhere.
Yashoda, who rushed to the courtyard to take her child,
could not find it.
She called out to others and they all looked everywhere for the
child and could not find it.
Trinavarta in the meantime had carried the child far away,
high in the sky. His aim was to rise as high as he could and then to dash the
child to the ground and thus kill it.
The child, however, had become very heavy: so heavy that he
found it impossible to lift the child. He tried to drop it but he could not. The
child caught the neck of Trinavarta between its two little hands and the asura
found himself choking. He could let his breath come only in great gasps: and
even that stopped after a while. Trinavarta was dead.
Soon the people of Gokul found baby Krishna playing on the
immense chest of the Asura.
Yashoda Saw The Entire Universe in the Mouth of Baby Krishna
One day, the children were all playing in the courtyard in
front of the house and Yashoda was busy in the kitchen. Suddenly Balrama rushed
to her and said that Krishna was eating mud by handfuls.
Yashoda rushed up to Krishna and caught hold of him with her
left hand with her right hand raised as though to strike him she said “Is there
no end to your mischief? Why did you eat mud?
Krishna shook his head and said, “I did not eat mud.”
Yashoda said: Balarama your brother saw you and they told me
you ate mud.
Krishna said, “He is telling a lie, try and check. Look into
my mouth and see if there is any mud there.
Krishna, opened his mouth for his mother to see. She looked
and what she saw there filled her with awe.
Inside the sweet mouth of her son, Yashoda saw the entire
universe. All animate and inanimate she had heard and not even imagined, she
saw in the mouth of her little son.
He Who Is Universe Allows Himself To Be Tied To A Mortar
As usual, Krishna had broken the pot of curds. An angry Yashoda
approached him from behind. She had a little stick in her hand. Krishna saw her
when she had come very near and seeing the stick in her hand he ran away.
Yashoda was running after him to catch hold of him.
Krishna saw his mother tired out by the chasing game he was
bent on playing with her. Krishna felt sorry for her and allowed himself to be
caught by her finally.
Yashoda said, I will not beat you. But I am going to tie you
up to this mortar.
Yashoda brought a piece of rope and placing Krishna by the
side of the mortar she tried to tie him up. She bound him up and now began to
tie the little boy to the mortar. When she tried to knot the rope she found it
was too short.
She got another piece and tied it to the one on the waist of
Krishna. But this too was short. She kept on bringing rope after rope and all
the rope in the house was exhausted and still she was not able to tie up her
little son.
Yashoda was trying to tie up universe using a piece of rope.
Looking at his mother and her tired face Krishna felt sorry
for her and taking pity on her he allowed himself to be tied up.
Twin Trees
Nalakuvera and Manigriva, two Gandharva princes, were cursed
by Narada to be born as twin Arjuna trees at Vrindavan for ignoring Him. Narada
had said to Nalakuvera and Manigriva that they will escape from curse when
Krishna will pull them down.
Baby Krishna who was tied to the wooden grinding mortar,
pulled it between the two trees and made them fall on the ground and thus
giving the twins moksha.
For a Handful of Fruits
One day, when Krishna was playing in the courtyard he heard
a voice in the street: Fruits Jambul Fruits! He rushed to the door and saw a
nishadha woman with a basketful of fruits. When Krishna asked for some fruits,
the woman told him that he must pay for them.
Krishna agreed to give some grains for fruits.
Krishna went inside the house and took grains in his little hands.
The nishada woman lovingly took the few grains and gave
Krishna fruits to his content.
The nishadha woman went home and found her basked to be very
heavy. She placed it on the ground and looked inside. She found it to be filled
with precious gems.
Vatsa
One day, while Balarama and Krishna, were grazing their
calves on the banks of Yamuna an asura who had been sent by Kamsa went there to
kill them.
This aura assumed the form of a cal and, joing the herd of
calves, he went wherever they went.
Krishna saw him and knew who he was. Quietly
and secretly he spoke to Rama about it. He then pretended as though he knew
nothing about it; as though nothing untoward was happening. Very slowly and
very casually Krishna approached the asura who was the unaware of the fact that
his guise had been discovered.
Suddenly, Krishna grasped the hind legs of the little calf
and whirled him round and round. He flung him down on the ground and Asura
Vatsa was dead.
Baka
One day Sri Krishna and his friends went to the banks of
Yamuna to give water to the calves. The boys too had long drinks of water and
when they looked around they found a frightening bird on the bank of the river.
The bird was as huge as a boulder.
The boys realized that it was an immense crane.
This was Asura Baka who was waiting there to kill Krishna.
He was lying prone and Sri Krishna went near it.
Suddenly, it came to life and with its beak swallowed Krishna.
Baka soon felt a ball of fire traveling down his long neck
and he could not bear the pain. He spat out Krishna.
He then rushed towards Krishna to peck at him with his
powerful beaks which were like large spikes of iron.
When Baka was close enough Krishna caught hold of the two
halves of the open beak and, while the others were looking on, he split the terrible
bird in two.
Agha
Agha was the brother of Putana and Baka. He took the form a
huge python and waited for Krishna.
His mouth looked like a huge cavern and the fangs looked
like little peaks.
Gopas and Krishna who reached the spot decided to play
inside the cave.
The children began to enter the mouth of the asura one by
one.
Finally Sri Krishna, who knew the cave was a trickery of demon
Agha, decided to enter it along with his friends.
When he reached the throat of the python, Sri Krihna began
to grow bigger and bigger in size.
Aghasura tried his best to spit him out and save himself but
it was not possible.
Slowly, steadily, life was being choked out him and Aghaura could
do nothing about it.
He lashed his immense tail in agony but the pain in his
throat was getting more and more until it was unbearable. Finally, a huge guest
of air which was life breath escaped from his head which had split under
pressure.
As soon as the asura died, Krishna looked with his eyes full
of love on the forms of his companions who had fainted. They all rushed out.