Canto Six / CHAPTER TWELVE

Vritrāsura’s Glorious Death

Although Vritrāsura repeatedly encouraged Indra to kill him with the thunderbolt, King Indra was morose at having to kill such a great devotee and was hesitant to throw it. Vritrāsura, disappointed that King Indra was reluctant despite his encouragement, took the initiative very forcefully by throwing his trident at Indra. Vritrāsura was not at all interested in victory; he was interested in being killed so that he could immediately return home, back to Godhead. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (4.9), tyaktvā deham punar janma naiti: after giving up his body, a devotee immediately returns to Lord Krishna and never returns to accept another body. This was Vritrāsura’s interest.

The Lord says in Bhagavad-gītā (15.15):

“I am seated in everyone’s heart, and from Me come remembrance, knowledge and forgetfulness.” When two parties fight, the fighting actually goes on under the direction of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is Paramātmā, the Supersoul. Elsewhere in the Gītā (3.27) the Lord says:

“The bewildered spirit soul, under the influence of the three modes of material nature, thinks himself the doer of activities that are in actuality carried out by nature.” The living entities work only under the direction of the Supreme Lord. The Lord gives orders to material nature, and she arranges facilities for the living entities. The living entities are not independent, although they foolishly think themselves the doers (kartā).

Victory is always with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As for the subordinate living entities, they fight under the arrangement of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Victory or defeat is not actually theirs; it is an arrangement by the Lord through the agency of material nature. Pride in victory, or moroseness in defeat, is useless. One should fully depend on the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is responsible for the victory and defeat of all living entities. The Lord advises, niyatam kuru karma tvam karma jyāyo hy akarmanah: “Perform your prescribed duty, for action is better than inaction.” The living entity is ordered to act according to his position. Victory or defeat depends on the Supreme Lord. Karmany evādhikāras te mā phaleshu kadācana: “You have a right to perform your prescribed duty, but you are not entitled to the fruits of actions.” One must act sincerely, according to his position. Victory or defeat depends on the Lord.

Vritrāsura encouraged Indra, saying, “Don’t be morose because of my victory. There is no need to stop fighting. Instead, you should go on with your duty. When Krishna desires, you will certainly be victorious.” This verse is very instructive for sincere workers in the Krishna consciousness movement. We should not be jubilant in victory or morose in defeat. We should make a sincere effort to implement the will of Krishna, or Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and we should not be concerned with victory and defeat. Our only duty is to work sincerely, so that our activities may be recognized by Krishna.

The difference between the suras and the asuras is that the suras know that nothing can happen without the desire of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whereas the asuras cannot understand the supreme will of the Lord. In this fight, Vritrāsura is actually the sura, whereas Indra is the asura. No one can act independently; rather, everyone acts under the direction of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore victory and defeat come according to the results of one’s karma, and the judgment is given by the Supreme Lord (karmanā-daiva-netrena). Since we act under the control of the Supreme according to our karma, no one is independent, from Brahmā down to the insignificant ant. Whether we are defeated or victorious, the Supreme Lord is always victorious because everyone acts under His directions.

This is confirmed in Caitanya-caritāmrita (Ādi 5.142):

“Lord Krishna alone is the supreme controller, and all others are His servants. They dance as He makes them do so.” We are all servants of Krishna; we have no independence. We are dancing according to the desire of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but out of ignorance and illusion we think we are independent of the supreme will. Therefore it is said:

“Krishna, who is known as Govinda, is the supreme controller. He has an eternal, blissful, spiritual body. He is the origin of all. He has no other origin, for He is the prime cause of all causes.” (Brahma-samhitā 5.1)

As confirmed in the Vishnu Purāna, parasya brahmanah śaktis tathedam akhilam jagat: whatever manifestations we experience are nothing but various energies of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. These energies cannot create anything independently. This is also confirmed by the Lord Himself in Bhagavad-gītā (9.10): mayādhyakshena prakritih sūyate sa-carācaram. “This material nature is working under My direction, O son of Kuntī, and it is producing all moving and unmoving living beings.” Only under the direction of the Lord, the Supreme Person, can prakriti, which is manifested in twenty-four elements, create different situations for the living entity. In the Vedas the Lord says:

“Since everything is a manifestation of My energy, I am known as Parabrahman. Therefore everyone should hear from Me about My glorious activities.” The Lord also says in Bhagavad-gītā (10.2), aham ādir hi devānām: “I am the origin of all the demigods.” Therefore the Supreme Personality of Godhead is the origin of everything, and no one is independent of Him. Śrīla Madhvācārya also says, anīśa jīva-rūpena: the living entity is anīśa, never the controller, but is always controlled. Therefore when a living entity becomes proud of being an independent īśvara, or god, that is his foolishness. Such foolishness is described in the following verse.

According to the conclusion of the philosophy known as karma-mīmāmsā, one’s karma, or previous fruitive activity, is the cause of everything, and therefore there is no need to work. Those who arrive at this conclusion are foolish. When a father creates a child, he does not do so independently; he is induced to do so by the Supreme Lord. As the Lord Himself says in Bhagavad-gītā (15.15), sarvasya cāham hridi sannivishto mattah smritir jñānam apohanam ca: “I am in everyone’s heart, and from Me come remembrance, knowledge and forgetfulness.” Unless one receives dictation from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who sits within everyone’s heart, one cannot be induced to create anything. Therefore the father and mother are not the creators of the living entity. According to the living entity’s karma, fruitive activities, he is put into the semen of the father, who injects the living entity into the womb of the mother. Then according to the body of the mother and father (yathā-yoni yathā-bījam), the living entity accepts a body and takes birth to suffer or enjoy. Therefore the Supreme Lord is the original cause of one’s birth. Similarly, the Supreme Lord is the cause of one’s being killed. No one is independent; everyone is dependent. The true conclusion is that the only independent person is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

It is not good to be falsely puffed up, saying that by one’s own effort one has become opulent, learned, beautiful and so on. All such good fortune is achieved through the mercy of the Lord. From another point of view, no one wants to die, and no one wants to be poor or ugly. Therefore, why does the living entity, against his will, receive such unwanted troubles? It is due to the mercy or chastisement of the Supreme Personality of Godhead that one gains or loses everything material. No one is independent; everyone is dependent on the mercy or chastisement of the Supreme Lord. There is a common saying in Bengal that the Lord has ten hands. This means that He has control everywhere — in the eight directions and up and down. If He wants to take everything away from us with His ten hands, we cannot protect anything with our two hands. Similarly, if He wants to bestow benedictions upon us with His ten hands, we cannot factually receive them all with our two hands; in other words, the benedictions exceed our ambitions. The conclusion is that even though we do not wish to be separated from our possessions, sometimes the Lord forcibly takes them from us; and sometimes He showers such benedictions upon us that we are unable to receive them all. Therefore either in opulence or in distress we are not independent; everything is dependent on the sweet will of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

As the Lord explains in Bhagavad-gītā (18.54):

“One who is transcendentally situated at once realizes the Supreme Brahman and becomes fully joyful. He never laments or desires to have anything; he is equally disposed to every living entity. In that state he attains pure devotional service unto Me.” When one attains self-realization, the brahma-bhūta stage, one knows that whatever happens during his life is due to the contamination of the modes of material nature. The living being, the pure soul, has nothing to do with these modes. In the midst of the hurricane of the material world, everything changes very quickly, but if one remains silent and simply observes the actions and reactions of the hurricane, he is understood to be liberated. The real qualification of the liberated soul is that he remains Krishna conscious, undisturbed by the actions and reactions of the material energy. Such a liberated person is always jubilant. He never laments or aspires for anything. Since everything is supplied by the Supreme Lord, the living entity, being fully dependent on Him, should not protest or accept anything in terms of his personal sense gratification; rather, he should receive everything as the mercy of the Lord and remain steady in all circumstances.

Vritrāsura was so great and powerful that in effect he was acting as the spiritual master of Indra. Although Vritrāsura was on the verge of defeat, he was not at all affected. He knew that he was going to be defeated by Indra, and he voluntarily accepted that, but since he was supposed to be Indra’s enemy, he tried his best to kill Indra. Thus he performed his duty. One should perform his duty under all circumstances, even though one may know what the result will be.

King Indra, the greatest of the demigods, was astonished to hear the instructions of Vritrāsura, who was supposed to be a demon. He was struck with wonder that a demon could speak so intelligently. Then he remembered great devotees like Prahlāda Mahārāja and Bali Mahārāja, who had been born in the families of demons, and thus he came to his senses. Even so-called demons sometimes have exalted devotion for the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore Indra smiled reassuringly at Vritrāsura.

As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (6.22):

“Established in Krishna consciousness, one never departs from the truth, and upon gaining this he thinks there is no greater gain. Being situated in such a position, one is never shaken, even in the midst of the greatest difficulty.” An unalloyed devotee is never disturbed by any kind of trying circumstance. Indra was surprised to see that Vritrāsura, undisturbed, was fixed in devotional service to the Lord, for such a mentality is impossible for a demon. However, by the grace of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, anyone can become an exalted devotee (striyo vaiśyās tathā śūdrās te ’pi yānti parām gatim). An unalloyed devotee is sure to return home, back to Godhead.

Lord Vishnu is the mahā-purusha. Therefore one who becomes a Vaishnava attains the position of a mahā-paurushya. This position was attained by Mahārāja Parīkshit. It is said in the Padma Purāna that the distinction between a demigod and a demon is that a demigod is a devotee of Lord Vishnu whereas a demon is just the opposite: vishnu-bhaktah smrito daiva āsuras tad-viparyayah. Vritrāsura was considered a demon, but actually he was more than qualified as a devotee, or mahā-paurushya. If one somehow becomes a devotee of the Supreme Lord, whatever his position, he can be brought to the position of a perfect person. This is possible if an unalloyed devotee tries to serve the Lord by delivering him in this way. Therefore Śukadeva Gosvāmī says in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (2.4.18):

“Kirātas, Hūnas, Āndhras, Pulindas, Pulkaśas, Ābhīras, Śumbhas, Yavanas and members of the Khasa races, and even others addicted to sinful acts can be purified by taking shelter of the devotees of the Lord, for He is the supreme power. I beg to offer my respectful obeisances unto Him.” Anyone can be purified if he takes shelter of a pure devotee and molds his character according to the pure devotee’s direction. Then, even if one is a Kirāta, Āndhra, Pulinda or whatever, he can be purified and elevated to the position of a mahā-paurushya.

King Indra wondered how Vritrāsura could have been elevated to the position of an exalted devotee. As for Prahlāda Mahārāja, he was initiated by Nārada Muni, and therefore it was possible for him to become a great devotee, although he was born in a family of demons. For Vritrāsura, however, Indra could not detect such causes. Therefore he was struck with wonder that Vritrāsura was such an exalted devotee that he could fix his mind without deviation upon the lotus feet of Lord Krishna, Vāsudeva.

Vritrāsura has formerly prayed (Bhāg. 6.11.25), na nāka-prishtham na ca pārameshthyam na sārva-bhaumam na rasādhipatyam. “I do not want the facilities for happiness on Brahmaloka, Svargaloka or even Dhruvaloka, not to speak of this earth or the lower planets. I simply want to return home, back to Godhead.” This is the determination of a pure devotee. A pure devotee is never attracted to any exalted position within this material world. He simply wants to associate with the Supreme Personality of Godhead like the inhabitants of Vrindāvana — Śrīmatī Rādhārānī, the gopīs, Krishna’s father and mother (Nanda Mahārāja and Yaśodā), Krishna’s friends and Krishna’s servants. He wants to associate with Krishna’s atmosphere of Vrindāvana’s beauty. These are the highest ambitions of a devotee of Krishna. Devotees of Lord Vishnu may aspire for a position in Vaikunthaloka, but a devotee of Krishna never aspires even for the facilities of Vaikuntha; he wants to return to Goloka Vrindāvana and associate with Lord Krishna in His eternal pastimes. Any material happiness is like water in a ditch, whereas the spiritual happiness eternally enjoyed in the spiritual world is like an ocean of nectar in which a devotee wants to swim.

It appears from the statement of this verse that sometimes there are flying mountains and that their wings are cut by the thunderbolt of Indra. Vritrāsura’s huge body resembled such a mountain.

Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Thākura explains that Indra, not Vritrāsura, was actually killed. He says that when Vritrāsura swallowed King Indra and his carrier, the elephant, he thought, “Now I have killed Indra, and therefore there is no more need of fighting. Now let me return home, back to Godhead.” Thus he stopped all his bodily activities and became situated in trance. Taking advantage of the silence of Vritrāsura’s body, Indra pierced the demon’s abdomen, and because of Vritrāsura’s trance, Indra was able to come out. Now, Vritrāsura was in yoga-samadhi, and therefore although King Indra wanted to cut his throat, the demon’s neck was so stiff that Indra’s thunderbolt took 360 days to cut it to pieces. Actually it was the body left by Vritrāsura that was cut to pieces by Indra; Vritrāsura himself was not killed. In his original consciousness, Vritrāsura returned home, back to Godhead, to become an associate of Lord Sankarshana. Here the word alokam means the transcendental world, Vaikunthaloka, where Sankarshana eternally resides.