None can fathom the Supreme Brahman’s greatness or Sankalpa. Scriptures point out this truth when trying to describe Him and say that he is beyond thought and speech. The myriad names in the Vishnu Sahasranama try to capture His omniscience, omnipotence and omnipresence, said Sri Dushyanth Sridhar in a discourse. But all these names and their significance cannot claim to describe Him fully, for His greatness is never ending and His enigmatic quality continues to baffle.
The jivatmas get an opportunity to know Him through His incarnations. During Krishna avatar, He chooses to live among the Yadava clan, the descendents of Yadu, because this race had been cursed by Yayati and denied the chance to ascend the throne. With Krishna’s presence, the Yadus become strong and prosperous and think themselves to be invincible. But Krishna is impartial and brings His own Yadava race to a close when the curse of the sages becomes a supposed cause. The Yadavas become arrogant and play a prank on the rishis. One among them, Samban, poses as a pregnant woman before them. The sages discern the mischief in this act and curse that Samban would give birth to an iron rod that would bring about the destruction of the entire race. Out of fear, the Yadavas reduce the rod to powder and they scatter these into the seas.
But the powdered pieces are washed ashore and these grow into a kind of grass that turns deadly to the Yadavas who use it to kill themselves in a fight. One bit of the rod is swallowed by a fish and this reaches the hands of a hunter who fixes it to his arrow. The end of Krishna avatar is entwined with this episode when Krishna becomes a prey to this arrow. All things happen because of His Sankalpa.
