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Death is Certain
With unkempt, frizzy hair, jumping up and down his broad gigantic shoulder, he pounded his feet on the ground fiercely. The fine sand particles on the already fissured floor rose higher and scattered everywhere. The sound of the footsteps was filled with rage and was heard even at such great distance, that the sleepy guards woke up swiftly rubbing their sleepy eyes. They stood upright waiting for the footsteps to fast approach them.
“Thud”…. He kicked and the gates flung open hitting against the stone wall. With raging anger, just like a charging bull, he looked at the newborn. Pushing everyone away with his mighty arms, he made his way towards the baby. With no mercy left in his heart, he picked the delicate foot and tried to crush her head on the stone wall.
But to his dismay, the tender little baby disappeared from his mighty palms. Awestruck at what had just happened, he looked at his palms again and again, like as if the baby had shrunk in size and had been hiding somewhere in between his fingers. He heard soft cackles and looked around moving his heavy body in all the directions. His crimped hair moved slowly covering his face partially. The cackle was heard again. With slight fear in his heart, he looked up and nothing unusual. He waited to know what had just happened.
A rumbling thunder echoed inside the jail. He trembled in awe. A radiant light filled the roof of the jail. The newborn appeared again and this time with eight arms. In each, she carried, a trident, arrow, conch, discus, mace, sword, bow and lotus. With weapons of destruction in all her arms, she stood upright just like the body of Righteousness.
The resplendent female form echoed, “The eighth son of Devaki is already born. He is safe and has been nestled in a beautiful dwelling. Your death is certain and as directed by the voice from the heaven, he will vanquish you with his own mighty arms.”
With such thunderous roar, the voice of Vishnumaya vanished into thin air.
Filled with great remorse at his violent act, Kamsa removed the cuffs that he placed on the hands of his sister Devaki and brother in law, Vasudeva. After a prevailing silence, he spoke thus, “Today, my heart is filled with extreme compassion towards you two. I
have erred by killing all your children and yet, you stood still while I tried to kill your eighth child too. I have realised that the sins that I have committed cannot be replaced. For the love of my own body, I committed thus. I already have a place reserved in hell for me. Trying to sin more will not help me anymore.”
With tears flowing from his eyes, he implored again, “Please forgive this monstrous rage that I have carried towards you and your children. The ego inside me has led me to perform such acts. I have humiliated you beyond limit. I hope you are gracious enough to forgive this sinner.”
Not thinking twice, the noble couple forgave him instantly.
When he got back to his private quarters, he was bewildered about the incident. When he had left to the jail, he was as ferocious as a lion, but when he came out, he was at peace. He forgot to realise that the company of the noble souls had made his evil indignation vanish from his mind.
His minister began, “There is a possibility that the eighth child is hid somewhere by the couple you have just released from the jail.”
Kamsa looked back distracted. The minister continued; “You are like the God of death to all the Devas and lesser immortals. They are terribly frightened when they hear your name. But today, you were not yourself. Why do you need to be forgiven when you are capable of vanquishing the world and bringing it under your control? What happened today might have been an illusion, a game plan made by your sister Devaki. They distracted you and moved the child to a safe spot.”
Kamsa’s mind was agitated. He listened without saying a word.
The minister continued, “Amongst all the Trinity Gods, Brahma is just menial. Eshwara is absorbed fully into his tapas. Narayana is lying lazily on the serpent claiming to be in a yogic trance. But, our worry should only be on Narayana. He has no beginning and no end. He is ever pervading. He knows no infinity. He is highly supportive of Vedas, cows and sages who perform ritualistic benefit for the welfare of humanity. So if you vanquish all that, he considers as holy,then you can certainly ascertain your position forever.”
Not realising that, his ministers had nothing but garlanded him with the string of death, Kamsa forgot humanity and left all his good qualities that he had just procured from the noble couple, into thin air. He was delighted at the speech of his ministers and failed to notice their evil indignation.
Just like how the sunlight can never penetrate into darkness, Kamsa’s thoughts too were nothing but mere darkness. In the presence of the noble souls like Devaki and Vasudeva, he was almost a changed man. But that didn’t last long, because of his evil company.
What one fails to realise is that the physical body is just like an earthen pot. An instrument that is easily malleable to good and evil. When in the presence of good, it transcends towards truthfulness, but when in the company of evil, it lusts towards evil indignation. But the soul inside is not perishable.
This realisation comes only with understanding about the supreme Lord. But, the physical body manifests more ego because of its failure to understand the presence of the ultimate infinite energy. Hence, it is important for one to choose righteousness over unpleasantness. And when one realises that, he knows “Death is certain………” for the physical body but not the soul.
SARVAM KRISHNARPANAM ASTHU….
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