Balarama Visits Vrindavana (From Srimad Bhagavatam 10 Canto 65. Chapter)

Once Lord Balarama, eager to visit His well-wishing friends, mounted His chariot and traveled to Nanda Gokula. Remembering the deep friendship He once enjoyed with the cowherd folk, Rama went alone to Vraja, having taken Krishna’s permission. In Hari-vamsa (Visnu-parva 46.10) it is stated: The simple residents of Vrndavana were aggrieved that Lord Krishna had gone to live elsewhere, so Balarama went there to console them.

Srila Vishvanatha Cakravarti Thakur addresses the question of why Krishna, the great ocean of pure love, did not also go to Vraja. In explanation the Acarya provides the following description:

The Yadus thought, “The Lord's beloved girlfriends are famous for their pure, ecstatic love, and His parents are extremely affectionate toward Him. Krishna is controlled by pure love, so if He goes to see them, how will He be able to leave them and come back to us?” With this in mind, the Yadus prevented Lord Hari from going, knowing that He becomes subservient to the pastimes in which He reciprocates the ever-increasing love of the Vrajabasis.

 

 

But then, why should Baladeva leave Krishna, who is dearer to Him, then His own life? It is because Balarama had such great eagerness (utkantha), that His discrimination and sense control disappeared.     

Having long suffered the anxiety of separation, the cowherd men and their wives embraced Balarama. The Lord then offered respects to His parents, and they joyfully greeted Him with prayers, "O descendant of Dasharha, O Lord of the universe, may You and Your younger brother Krishna ever protect us." Saying this, they embraced Him and raised their son onto their laps – first Nanda and then mother Yashoda – and moistened Him with tears from their eyes.

Balarama then paid proper respects to the elder Gopas, and the younger ones all greeted Him respectfully. He met them all with smiles, handshakes and so on, dealing personally with each one according to age, degree of friendship, and family relationship.

Then, after (lunch) resting, the Lord accepted a comfortable seat, and they all gathered around Him. With voices faltering out of love for Him, those cowherds, who had dedicated everything to lotus-eyed Krishna, asked about the health of their dear ones in Dvaraka, and Balarama in turn asked about the cowherds' welfare. The gopas asked: “O Rama, are all our relatives doing well? And Rama, do all of you, with your wives and children, still remember us? It is our great fortune that sinful Kamsa has been killed and our dear relatives have been freed. And it is also our good fortune that our relatives have killed and defeated their enemies and found complete security in a great fortress (Dvaraka).”

Then honored to have the personal audience of Balarama, the younger Gopis smiled and asked Him: "Is Krishna, the darling of the city women, living happily in Dvaraka? Does He remember His family members, especially His father and mother? Do you think He will ever come back even once to see His mother? And does mighty-armed Krishna remember the service we always did for Him? For Krishna’s sake, O descendant of Dasharha, we abandoned our mothers, fathers, brothers, husbands, children and sisters, even though these family relations are difficult to give up. But now, O Lord, that same Krishna has suddenly abandoned us and gone away, breaking off all affectionate ties with us. And yet how could any woman fail to trust His promises? How can intelligent city women possibly trust the words of one whose heart is so unsteady and who is so ungrateful? They must believe Him because He speaks so wonderfully and also because His beautiful smiling glances arouse their lust. But, why bother talking about Him, dear friends? Please let’s talk of something else. If He passes His time without us, then we shall similarly pass ours without Him."

While speaking these words, the young cowherd women remembered Lord Sauri's laughter, His pleasing conversations with them, His attractive glances, His style of walking and His loving embraces. Thus they began to cry.  The Supreme Lord Balarama, the attractor of all, being expert at various kinds of conciliation, consoled the gopis by relaying to them the confidential messages Lord Krishna had sent with Him. These messages deeply touched the gopis' hearts.

Lord Balarama, resided there for the two months of Madhu and Madhava, and during the nights He gave His personal gopi-friends conjugal pleasure. In their company, He enjoyed in a garden by the Yamuna River (sriram-ghatta). This garden was bathed in the rays of the full moon and caressed by breezes bearing the fragrance of night-blooming lotuses.

Sent by Varunadeva, the divine Varuni liquor flowed from a tree hollow and made the entire forest even more fragrant with its sweet aroma. The wind carried to Balarama the fragrance of that flood of sweet liquor, and when He smelled it He went to the tree. There He and His female companions drank. As the Gandharvas sang His glories, Balarama enjoyed within the brilliant circle of His gopis. He appeared just like Indra's elephant, the lordly Airavata, enjoying in the company of she-elephants. Kettledrums resounded in the sky, the Gandharvas joyfully rained down flowers, and the great Rishis praised Lord Balarama's heroic deeds.

Halayudha wandered as if inebriated among the various forests with His girlfriends. His eyes rolled from the effects of the liquor. Thus, intoxicated with joy, Balarama sported flower garlands, including the famous Vaijayanti. He wore a single earring, and beads of perspiration decorated His smiling lotus face like snowflakes. The Lord then summoned the Yamuna River so that He could play in her waters, but she disregarded His command, thinking He was drunk. This angered Balarama, and He began dragging the river with the tip of His plow and spoke: “O sinful one! Disrespecting Me, you do not come when I call you, but rather move only by your own whim. Therefore with the tip of My plow I shall bring you here in a hundred streams!”

Thus scolded by the Lord, the frightened river-goddess Yamuna came and fell at the feet of Balarama. Trembling, she spoke to Him the following words: “Rama, Rama, O mighty-armed one! I know nothing of Your prowess. With a single portion of Yourself You hold up the earth, O Lord of the universe. My Lord, please release me. O soul of the universe, I didn't understand Your position as the Supreme Godhead, but now I have surrendered unto You, and You are always kind to Your devotees.”

Thereupon Balarama released the Yamuna and, like the king of the elephants with his entourage of she-elephants, entered the river's water with His female companions. He played in the water to His full satisfaction, and when He came out Goddess Kanti (Lakshmi) presented Him with blue garments, precious ornaments and a brilliant necklace. Lord Balarama dressed Himself in the blue garments and put on the gold necklace. Anointed with fragrances and beautifully adorned, He appeared as resplendent as Indra's royal elephant.

Even today, one can see how the Yamuna flows through the many channels created when it was dragged by the unlimitedly powerful Lord Balarama. Thus she demonstrates His prowess.


Dvivida (SB 10.67)

There was a powerful monkey named Dvivida who was a friend of Narakasura. Dvivida was an associate of Lord Ramacandra's, he later became corrupted by bad association with the demon Naraka. This bad association was the reaction for an offense Dvivida had committed when, being proud of his strength; he disrespected Lord Ramacandra's brother Lakshman and others.  

To avenge the death of his friend, Naraka, the ape Dvivida ravaged the land, setting fires that burned cities, villages, mines and cowherd dwellings. Once, he tore up a number of mountains and used them to devastate all the neighboring kingdoms, especially the province of Anarta, wherein dwelt his friend's killer, Lord Hari. Another time he entered the ocean and, with the strength of ten thousand elephants, churned up its water with his arms and thus submerged the coastal regions. The wicked Gorilla tore down the trees in the hermitages of exalted sages and contaminated their sacrificial fires with his feces and urine. Just as a wasp imprisons smaller insects, he arrogantly threw both men and women into caves in a mountain valley and sealed the caves shut with boulders.

Once, while Dvivida was thus engaged in harassing the neighboring kingdoms and polluting women of respectable families, he heard very sweet singing coming from Raivataka Mountain. So he went there. There he saw Balarama, adorned with a garland of lotuses and appearing most attractive. He was singing amidst a crowd of young women, and since He had drunk varuni liquor, His eyes rolled as if He were intoxicated. His body shone brilliantly as He behaved like an elephant in rut.

The mischievous ape climbed a tree branch and then revealed his presence by shaking the trees and making some funny sounds. When Baladeva's consorts saw the ape's impudence, they began to laugh. They were, after all, young girls who were fond of joking and prone to silliness. Even as Lord Balarama looked on, Dvivida insulted the girls by making odd gestures with his eyebrows, coming right in front of them, and showing them his bottom. Seeing the impudence of the ape enraged Balarama, so much so that He hurled a rock at him. But the cunning ape dodged the rock and grabbed the Lord's pot of liquor, and further infuriated the Lord by laughing and by ridiculing Him. Wicked Dvivida then broke the pot and offended the Lord even more by pulling at the girls' clothing. Thus the powerful ape, puffed up with false pride, continued to insult Sri Balarama.

When Balarama saw the ape's rude behavior and thought of the disruptions he had created in the surrounding kingdoms, He angrily took up His club and His plow weapon, having decided to put His enemy to death. As the monstrous Dvivida came forward to attack the Lord, with an uprooted Palm tree, he rushed toward Balarama and struck Him on the head with the tree trunk. But Lord Sankarshana remained as motionless as a mountain and simply grabbed the log as it fell upon His head he throw in on the side and then struck Dvivida with His club.

Struck on the skull by the Lord's club, Dvivida became brilliantly decorated by the outpour of blood, like a mountain beautified by red oxide. Ignoring the wound, Dvivida uprooted another tree, stripped it of leaves by brute force and struck the Lord again. Enraged Balarama shattered the tree into hundreds of pieces, upon which Dvivida grabbed yet another tree and furiously hit the Lord again. This tree, too, the Lord smashed into hundreds of pieces. Thus fighting the Lord, who again and again demolished the trees He was attacked with, Dvivida kept on uprooting trees from all sides until the forest was left treeless. The angry ape then released a rain of stones upon Balarama, but the wielder of the club easily pulverized them all. Dvivida, the most powerful of apes, now clenched his fists at the end of his palm-tree-sized arms, came before Lord Balarama and beat his fists against the Lord's body. The furious Lord of the Yadavas then threw aside His club and plow and with His bare hands hammered a blow upon Dvivida's collarbone. The ape collapsed, vomiting blood. When he fell, Raivataka Mountain shook, along with its cliffs and trees, like a wind-tossed boat at sea. In the heavens the devas, perfect mystics and great sages cried out, "Victory to You! Obeisances to You! Excellent! Well done!" and showered flowers upon the Lord.