Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 10.50.31
Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devoteesGovinda Has a Further Purpose
“With the divine noose of Varuṇa and other, mortal ropes, Balarāma began tying up Jarāsandha, who had killed so many foes. But Lord Govinda still had a purpose to fulfill through Jarāsandha, and thus He asked Balarāma to stop.”
What the purport teaches
- Balarāma began binding Jarāsandha with the divine noose of Varuṇa and ordinary ropes.
- Lord Govinda asked Balarāma to stop because He still had a purpose to fulfill through Jarāsandha.
- Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī explains that hatārātim can mean either one who has killed his enemies or one through whom his enemies would be killed.
Try this today
Reread Govinda’s reason for stopping Balarāma, and reflect on His purposeful action.
Ask yourself
What does Govinda’s intervention reveal about the purpose behind His actions?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
From Canto 10, chapter 14 onward, the translation and purports were completed by Śrīla Prabhupāda's disciples after his departure, and published by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.