yatha hrsikesa khalena devaki
kamsena ruddhaticiram Sucarpita
vimocitaham ca sahatmaja vibho
tvayaiva nathena muhur vipad-ganat
O HrsikeSa, master of the senses and
Lord of lords, You have released Your
mother, Devaki, who was long im-
prisoned and distressed by the envious
King Kamhsa, and me and my children
from a series of constant dangers.
—Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.8.23
Devaki, the mother of Krsna and sister of King Karnsa, was put into
prison along with her husband, Vasudeva, because the envious King was
afraid of being killed by Devaki’s eighth son (Krsna). The King killed all
the sons of Devaki who were born before Krsna, but Krsna escaped the
danger of child-slaughter because He was transferred to the house of
Nanda Maharaja, Lord Krsna’s foster father. Kuntidevi, along with her
children, was also saved from a series of dangers. But Kuntidevi was
shown far more favor because Lord Krsna did not save the other children
of Devaki, whereas He saved the children of Kuntidevi. This was done
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