Krṣṇa Erects the Dvārakā Fort
329
specifically addressed Him as the killer of His own relatives. Kaṁsa had killed so many of his own nephews, yet Jarāsandha did not take notice of it; but because Krṣṇa had killed His maternal uncle, Kaṁsa, Jarāsandha tried to criticize Him. That is the way of demoniac dealing. Demons do not try to find their own faults, but try to find the faults of their friends. Jarāsandha also criticized Krṣṇa for not even being a  kṣatriya . Because He was raised by Mahārāja Nanda, Krṣṇa was not a  kṣatriya , but a  vaiśya .  Vaiśyas  are generally called  guptas , and the word  gupta  can also be used to mean “hidden.” So Krṣṇa was both hidden and raised by Nanda Mahārāja. Jarāsandha accused Krṣṇa of three faults: that He killed His own maternal uncle, that He was hidden in His childhood, and that He was not even a  kṣatriya . And therefore Jarāsandha felt ashamed to fight with Him.
Next he turned toward Balarāma and addressed Him: “You, Balarāma! If You like You can fight along with Him, and if You have patience, then You can wait to be killed by my arrows. Thus You can be promoted to heaven.” It is stated in the  Bhagavad-gītā  that a  kṣatriya  can become benefited in two ways while fighting. If a  kṣatriya  gains victory in the fight, he enjoys the results of victory, but even if he is killed in the fight, he is promoted to the heavenly kingdom.
After hearing Jarāsandha speak in that way, Krṣṇa answered: “My dear King Jarāsandha, those who are heroes do not talk much. Rather, they show their prowess. Because you are talking much, it appears that you are assured of your death in this battle. We do not care to hear you anymore, because it is useless to hear the words of a person who is going to die or one who is very distressed.” In order to fight with Krṣṇa, Jarāsandha surrounded Him from all sides with great military strength, and the sun appeared covered by the cloudy air and dust. Similarly, Krṣṇa, the supreme sun, was covered by the military strength of Jarāsandha. Krṣṇa’s and Balarāma’s chariots were marked with pictures of Garuḍa and palm trees. The women of Mathurā were all standing on the tops of the houses and palaces and gates to see the wonderful fight, but when Krṣṇa’s chariot was surrounded by Jarāsandha’s military force, they became so frightened that some of them fainted. Krṣṇa saw Himself overwhelmed by the military strength of Jarāsandha. His small number of soldiers were being harassed by them, so He immediately took up His bow, named Śārṅga.
He began to take His arrows from their case, and one after another He set them on the bowstring and shot them toward the enemy. They were so accurate that the elephants, horses and infantry soldiers of Jarāsandha