Fri 28 Nov 2008 | The Killing of the Aghasura Demon |  |  |
Lord Krishna and His Friends go on a Picnic
Once, Lord Krishna desired to go early in the morning with all His cowherd friends to the forest, where they were to assemble together and take lunch. 
Keeping the calves before them, they started for the forest in a great procession. Many a sportive playing went on amongst the boys as childhood pastimes.
When Lord Krishna was enjoying His childhood pastimes with His friends, Aghasura demon became very impatient. He was unable to tolerate seeing Krishna play so happily. Aghasura happened to be the younger brother of Putana
and Bakasura
, and he thought, “Krishna has killed my brother and sister. Now I shall kill Him along with all His friends and calves.” Aghasura was instigated by Kamsa, the wicked uncle of Lord Krishna. So the demon had come with great determination.
Aghasura’s Plan
The demons are generally expert in achieving almost all kinds of mystic powers. 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.
At first the boys thought that the demon was a statue, but after examining it they saw that it was a big serpent lying down on the road and widening his mouth. Then they further consulted among themselves: “If we all at one time entered into the mouth of this great serpent, how could it possibly swallow all of us? And even if it were to swallow all of us at once, it could not swallow Krishna. Krishna will immediately kill him, as He did Bakasura.” Talking in this way, all the boys looked at the beautiful lotus-like face of Krishna, and they began to clap and smile. And so they marched forward and entered the mouth of the gigantic serpent.
Meanwhile, Krishna, who is the Supersoul
within everyone’s heart, could understand that the big statuesque figure was a demon. The boys did not know this, however, and thus while Krishna was planning how to stop the destruction of His intimate friends, all the boys along with their calves entered the mouth of the serpent. But Krishna did not enter. The demon was awaiting Krishna’s entrance, and he was thinking, “Everyone has entered except Krishna, who has killed my brother and sister.”
Lord Krishna’s Plan
Krishna is the assurance of safety to everyone. He began to consider how He could kill the demon and at the same time save the boys and calves. Finally, after some deliberation, He also entered the mouth of the demon. At that time all the Demigods
, who had gathered to see the fun and who were hiding within the clouds, expressed their feelings with the words “Alas! Alas!”
While the demon was trying to smash Krishna and His companions, Krishna heard the demigods crying “Alas! Alas!” and He immediately began to expand Himself within the throat of the demon. Although he had a gigantic body, the demon choked by the expanding of Krishna. His big eyes moved violently, and he quickly suffocated. His life air
could not come out from any source, and ultimately it burst out of a hole in the upper part of his skull. Thus his life air passed off. Aghasura’s spirit soul came out like a dazzling light, illuminating all directions, and merged into the body of Krishna within the vision of all the demigods.
Liberation of Aghasura
For Shri Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead
, who is far greater than demigods such as Lord Brahma
, it is not at all difficult to award one the opportunity of merging with His eternal body. This kind of liberation or mukti is called sayujya-mukti and He awarded this to Aghasura. Aghasura was certainly the most sinful living entity, and it is not possible for the sinful to merge into the existence of the Absolute Truth. But in this particular case, because Krishna entered into Aghasura’s body, the demon became fully cleansed of all sinful reactions. But those persons constantly thinking of the eternal form of the Lord in the shape of the Deity
in the temple or in the shape of a mental form are awarded the transcendental benediction of entering into the Kingdom of God
and associating with the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
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