Putana Killed 47
Your arms; may Lord Urukrama protect Your face; may Lord Isvara
protect Your head; may Lord Cakradhara protect Your front; may Lord
Gadadhara protect Your back; may Lord Madhusidana who carries a bow
in His hand protect Your eyesight; may Lord Visnu with His conchshell
protect Your left side; may the Personality of Godhead Upendra protect
You from above, and may Lord Tarksya protect You from below the earth;
may Lord Haladhara protect You from all sides; may the Personality of
Godhead known as Hrsikeéa protect all Your senses; may Lord Narayana
protect Your breath; and may the Lord of Svetadvipa, Narayana, protect
Your heart; may Lord Yogesvara protect Your mind; may Lord Prénigarbha
protect Your intelligence, and may the Supreme Personality of Godhead
protect Your soul. While You are playing, may Lord Govinda protect You
from all sides, and when You are sleeping, may Lord Madhava protect You
from all danger; when You are working may the Lord of Vaikuntha
protect You from falling down; when You are sitting, may the Lord of
Vaikuntha give You all protection; and while You are eating, may the
Lord of all sacrifices give You all protection.”

Thus mother Yasoda began to chant different names of Visnu to protect
the child Krsna’s different bodily parts. Mother Yasoda was firmly con-
vinced that she should protect her child from different kinds of evil spirits
and ghosts—namely Bakinis, Yatudhanis, Kusmandas, Yaksas, Raksasas,
Vinayakas, Kotara, Revati, Jyestha, Putana, Matrkas, Unmadas and simi-
lar other evil spirits who eause persons to forget their own existence
and give trouble to the life-air and the senses. Sometimes they appear in
dreams and cause much perturbation; sometimes they appear as old
women and suck the blood of small children. But all such ghosts and evil
spirits cannot remain where there is chanting of the holy name of God.
Mother Yaégoda was firmly convinced of the Vedic injunctions about the
importance of cows and the holy name of Visnu; therefore she took all
shelter in the cows and the name of Visnu just to protect her child Krsna.
She recited all the holy names of Visnu so that He might save the child.
Vedic culture has taken advantage of keeping cows and chanting the holy
name of Visnu since the beginning of history, and persons who are still
following the Vedic ways, especially the householders, keep at least one
dozen cows and worship the Deity of Lord Visnu, who is installed in their
house.

The elderly gopis of Vrndavana were so absorbed in affection for Krsna
that they wanted to save Him, although there was no need to, for He had
already protected Himself. They could not understand that Krsna was the
Supreme Personality of Godhead playing as a child. After performing the
