PLATE NINE
One reason why Lord Kṛṣṇa's activities appeared bewildering to Queen Kuntī was that He came to this world to fulfill many purposes simultaneously. One important purpose was simply to satisfy the desires of His dear devotees Vasudeva and Devakī. In their former lives, Vasudeva and Devakī were known as Sutapā and Pṛśni. They were ordered by Lord Brahmā to produce offspring, and so they engaged themselves in severe austerities for thousands of years. Being pleased by their penances, Kṛṣṇa came before them and asked them what they wanted. They said, "We want a son like You. That is our desire." Kṛṣṇa agreed, and in their next lives Sutapā and Pṛśni (now Vasudeva and Devakī) had the extraordinary opportunity to play the role of Lord Kṛṣṇa's parents. As shown here, Vasudeva and Devakī were within Kaṁsa's prison when Lord Kṛṣṇa in His Viṣṇu form appeared before them as their son. He appeared from the heart of Devakī in the dense darkness of night, like the full moon rising on the eastern horizon. The newborn child had very wonderful lotuslike eyes and bore in His four hands a conchshell, disc, club, and lotus. On His chest was the mark of Śrīvatsa, and on His neck the brilliant Kaustubha gem. Then, after receiving prayers from Vasudeva and Devakī and instructing them, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, transformed Himself into His original form as a small human child. ( p. 118 )